Nearing the End of the 4-day Weekend!

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving - It was a quiet day here at our house - Decided to forego the invites and stay home with our own turkey - Got up and made the stuffing and got the turkey ready and my husband did his usual when I asked him to help me get the turkey in the oven bag and into the pan - he made it do a little dance! Does this every year the dork!

We had dinner late afternoon and about 5:30 my husband comes upstairs and tells me he has to have a nap and could I wake him up at 8:00 for the game. Well this is what I saw when I went in to wake him up - All 3 of my boys - husband, Miles under his chin and Riley attached to his butt! I told all those lazybones to get up - and they all yawned at me!



Well most of the day I spent working on the Santa rug for my Mom - this is as far as I got and haven't picked up the hook since Thanksgiving. Still not sure how i'm doing the background yet - I do have to change the "birdhouse" roof - it was a stocking but my mom likes birdhouses too so i thought I would change it and add a few birds to the rug -as you can see I can't freehand draw! So not sure how it will hook up.

Friday I went to a folk art sale, Der Belsnickel, a juried craft show of which you are supposed to have I think 95% natural and handmade. Well nothing really knocked my socks off seemed like it was all the same items from previous years and not many people were walking around with bags - i was in and out of there in less than an hour there was one seller there that i know from another handcraft store and bought a few ornies and things from her.

Yesterday i got up early and drove to New Jersey to teach two workshops and I have to tell you it was very nice to see that people out there are buying handcrafted items (made in the US). Rosie's store, The Maple Tree, is small but filled with wonderful hand crafted items from local artisans. She had a steady stream of customers all day that were buying! Great for her! It's nice to see people are buying items made by hand. The classes went well, I met a lot of wonderful people and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. If you are ever in the area of the NJ shore points, check out her store - and also down the road at Teaberry Antiques , my friend has a store within this co-op. She has some nice prim and country items.

Today it's cold and damp and rainy out and I had no desire to anywhere! Haven't picked up a hook or done anything worthwhile - just a wasted day of doing nothing. I so wish I was a person that could nap (never seemed to be able to get into that habit) as this is what i found when i lifted the a blanket i leave on top of the bed (for the cats of course!)

Oh my goodness he was so toasty warm and looked oh so comfortable that i crawed under the blanket with him but that lasted about 2 minutes - like i said - I just can't seem to "nap"! Well Riley got up about a half hour ago and is talking and stalking and looking to get into something! He's just too funny - i just gave him a "rubdown"and tried to clip his claws - got one done - he was having no parts of it today! Maybe I can get one done a day - then it will be time to start over again!

Well it's dark out now and I'm already starting with that "dread" of a Sunday nite - work tomorrow! Urghhhh - especially hard after a "long weekend" but it's something that's got to be done to pay the bills!

I feel like i totally wasted today - I really need to get my rear in gear and get creating again!

Have a wonderful first week of December (now isn't that hard to believe!) and remember to Smile!

joanne

Went In and Got Back Out Alive!

Okay - I said i was going to totally clean my hooking room and then start hooking - but last night I made some headway that is making me feel more "settled" and I feel like sitting and hooking tonite. I have the floor cleaned so you can walk in an out of the room - the wool is put away, the supplies I need for my upcoming workshops are all ready and stored in the spare bathroom and some boxes and totes were emptied and things put away! Well at one point last nite I had the closet door open - let me just say if it was posted - it would have that crime scene tape with a banner saying "Danger Falling Junk" - Well in there I have one of those laundry basket totes with a metal stand standing on top of two rubbermaid tubs and in the tote basket i have some wool that is not good for hooking and some plastic and paper bags, some stools i plan on hooking tops on and who knows what else - Well i hear this sortof crash - and I look in and then i had to dig in there and there at the bottom is Riley covered in wool and bags - he was in there just purring away - What a knucklehead! He just thinks digging thru junk is great fun (sortof like his Mom at a flea market or antique store!)



Well I just made a pot of tea and plan on taking a bubble bath and then start this rug for my Ma for Christmas - She collects Santa's - so I'm pondering on how to do the background and even the tree and stocking - She has an area in her dining room she keeps some select Santa's out all year so I'm thinking maybe i'll make it a Santa "off season" = Thought about doing a Hawaii shirt coat theme but that's so not my Mother! LOL! Any ideas out there? But then again I can see this in all the traditional colors - maybe I'll do that and turn it into a large pillow! oh I don't know! I'll sit and start hooking and hopefully something will come to me!



Today I got a cute email from a friend about a cat and mouse - Well years ago back before we bought this house we lived in a half of house that had a bathroom with two doors and a room behind each door and had our three little loves at that time - Sid, Nicky and Miles - One morning I awoke to a commotion only to see Miles chasing a mouse and Nicky was chasing Miles chasing the mouse and in turn Sid was chasing Nicky and Miles and the Mouse - Well they were running back and forth thru the bathroom between the two bedrooms - I got everyone cornered in the bathroom and shut the doors - The boys were totally freaking out and then I'm thinking where's the mouse? Then I see Miles and Nicky totally circling Sid doing figure 8's as they do - and there is Sid just sitting there looking around like "what's happening" - there sitting under Sid's front paws is the little mouse looking like he was tucked away in a cave! I nearly lost it but I kept my cool and threw a towel over Sid thinking i could get the mouse that way (duh - yep I'm a real mouse hunter aren't I?) Well the mouse scurries out and under the door and I couldn't stop laughing for about an hour - oh where is a video camera or camera when you need it! Well needless to say that little mouse wasn't found for 3 more days (but that's another story!) So anyway that got me to thinking about Sid - my very first cat- He was in our lives for too short of a time (1989 to 2004), losing him to chronic renal failure, and everyday he is still missed - he was a very big presence (and a very loud mouth!) in our house . This is the only picture I have on digital of him - he always looked "gruff" in his pictures but he was a loyal loving friend that was always there for us.

And speaking of cats, this is how i found Riley asleep the other week - how these kitties get in these positions, i'll never know - but thought this was too funny with his paw in the air!

After work today i delivered my rugs where they needed to be and stopped in a handcraft store - only handmade items allowed in here and must be made in US -Well here is one of my finds - isn't this too cute - He's called "PinPuss" - He just had to come home with me - I won't show you my other "finds" as they may end up in some of my friends Christmas packages!

Well i believe i rambled enough for now! Off to take that bubble bath and then hopefully a long nite of hooking with my catwarmers and tea!

Wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! Stay Safe - joanne