The babies are finally starting to look like puppies!  Eyes and ears are fully open and they are struggling to get up on their feet.  Although………..more than 3 or 4 steps and then it’s time for a nap.  They tire so easily at this age.

This next week will see them learning how to play with each other……and they will start making little puppy growl noises. 

The 2 sisters are in the front.  The tiny girl is still tiny, but she is growing at a nice pace.  She manages to keep up with the others, but I still worry a bit about her.  Hopefully it is just in her genes to be small, and not a physical problem.  Time will tell over the next few weeks.

The boys are growing in leaps and bounds and the glimpse of promise is definitely apparent with these two.  A good breeder is always breeding first in hopes of improving their line, with each generation.  Whist I had high hopes for another girl to go forward with from this breeding, it is apparent that the boys in this litter show the most potential.  Nice big eyes and big smoochy heads at this stage.

Featured in these puppy pictures is my first attempt at Overshot weaving.  This blanket was made for my grandson, Aidan, last year.  The pattern was found in an older Handwoven Magazine, issue: May/June 1993.

The satin binding on the edges is all hand sewn and hides a few less than perfect selvages…….we all have been beginners for at least a little while, right?…..LOL  Thankfully an end feed shuttle has helped my selvages immensely!

The waffle dishtowels, featured in my sidebar, will be coming off the loom tommorrow to be sewn and wet finished.  The next project on the loom will be some overshot table runners for my dining room. I find that overshot weaving is one of my favorite types of weaving. 

Homeopathy

This past week has been a very difficult and trying week.  Breeze, the mother of the puppies somehow managed to either rupture or herniate a disc in her back.  I have never seen an animal in so much pain as this girl was.  She was having such intense muscle spasms, that she would completely twist her head and neck upside down in pain.   Through it all, her eyes were just begging me to do something to help her.

My vet who practices traditional veterinary medicine, had precious little that he could do for her, short of putting her on steroids to reduce the inflammation.  However, we were dealing with a nursing mom and the puppies were just too young to be weaned.  Steroids also weaken the immune system, every time they are given.  So, I spent a day in panic, calling vet certified chiropractors, acupuncturists and even someone who practices reiki, desperately trying to find someone that could give my girl a little relief from the pain.  Everyone was either out of town or busy and I was feeling very despondent.

I then remembered a very kind man, who is married to a friend of mine in the Cavalier world.  Dr. Larry Bernstein is a homeopathic vet and helped me once many years ago with my girl Dancer, who we lost last year.  A homeopathic vet operates in a different method than a traditional vet.  The homeopath, looks to treat the whole dog and looks to find a specific remedy that will allow the dog to heal from the inside out, by bringing the body into balance.

Dr. Larry prescribed a few remedies that quickly gave my girl a certain level of relief, however, she continued to have wild spasms in her shoulder area.  We tried another remedy, which set her back a few steps, so we changed course and went in another direction, using a remedy called Belladonna.  Within a 1/2 hour and 2 doses of this remedy, the neck spasms completely stopped.  By the next morning, she was able again to clean and care for her puppies.  Today, she is back to her old self and pain free.  We were able to get her to this point, without the invasiveness of steroids and she was able to continue nursing her babies, so that they didn’t lose ground.

I can’t say enough good things about Dr. Bernstein.  He is a kind, compassionate and generous man and his method of medicine has made me a complete believer in homeopathy.  From this point forward, I will work with a homeopath in conjunction with a traditional vet with my animals. 

Knitting and Spinning

 Needless to say, not much knitting was accomplished this week.  I lacked the concentration to focus on knitting for more than a little bit here and there.  Being that I was up all night, giving Breeze her meds every few hours, the brain was just too darn tired to work too hard.

I did finish one of the Old Shale socks….I love this pattern!

What I did find comforting were the gentle rhythms of the spinning wheels.  I find spinning to be a very relaxing and mindless activity.   For me, spinning is complete Zen…….you can let your mind wander, or in my case, let it rest a bit and still create something lovely. 

I filled the bobbin with the fiery red batt that went to SPA with me and then I moved on to this lovely dyed brown/blue toned romney that I got from eBay a few months ago.

I hope to ply the skeins over the next few days.

Goodnite Sweet Babies……..

Little Miss Dora is growing into a lovely young lady!

She is looking forward to the day when she can play with her siblings, but for now, they need their rest.

Now, if only I could climb in that basket and take a nap with them…LOL

Have a great weekend!!!

Does this picture not say it all??  You really have to click on this picture to appreciate the magnitude of what was going on.  This weekend was the NETA Spa, held in Portland, Maine.  NETA stands for New England Textile Arts.  It started with just a few women, wanting to get together for a spa fiber weekend, that was not going to break the bank.  What started out as a small gathering, has blossomed into fiber artists taking over the entire hotel.  The above picture is only a small slice of what and who were there.  Two huge ballrooms, were filled to the brim with spinners, knitters and any other fiber art that you can think of.  Lobby common areas had couches filled with lounging women, happily chatting amongst themselves as they knit and spin.

Some of the weekend features were vendors galore, numerous door prize drawings, syncronized swimming, a fashion show, along with hotel ammenites such as massages, hot tubbing and even Reiki sessons.  Great FUN!!

This has been a very difficult and trying week for me as Breeze, the mother of the puppies, somehow managed to slip (rupture) a disk in her back and has required round the clock care in addition to the puppies. (more about this later in the week).  Originally, I was supposed to spend the entire weekend at the Spa, but given the situation, I was fortunate that my DH offered to care for Breeze for a few hours, so that I could attend, if even just for a little while.

It was GREAT fun!!  Fiber people are the best!  After being cooped up in the house for weeks on end, it was so nice to be out amongst friends.  Julia was there and showed us her incredible sweater that she is knitting from Poetry in Stitches.  Nancy of The Spinning Bunny had a stunning short row alpaca shawl that she made with intricate celtic knots up the back.  I kick myself for not taking a picture of it, but I was too busy lusting after it, to even think about the digital camera.

My friend, Gil Gonsalves, of Robin Spinning wheels, brought his new traveling wheel for myself and a few others to test drive.  Keep your eyes open for this great little wheel..it is sure to be a hit!  It is called, the "Wee Robin", and should be making it’s debut at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in May.

This is what I left with this morning with the anticipation of a few hours of spinning and a full bobbin………………….

This is what I came home with………..LOL.  As you can see, not much spinning was accomplished.  It was so nice to see friends and catch up on what everyone has been doing over the winter, that I spent soooo much time gabbing away……….staying much longer than my DH had agreed to.  Thankfully, he is a good sport and realized how much I needed to get out and visit. 

Now there were fiber temptations of every kind imaginable abounding.  Gorgeous Cashmere laceweight yarns, colorful rovings, wheels, needles ……..you name it, it was there.  I was a good girl though and only came home with these little goodies. 

The new Interweave Scarf Style Book, 2 past Wild Fiber Magazines…….and a year’s subscription to Wild Fibers.  I spent some time chatting with the editor of WF, Linda Cortwright, and she informed me that they are going to do another spread on Angora Rabbits, so I am excited.  One of my rabbits was pictured in the Spring 2004 table of contents.  It is a fabulous magazine for fiber enthusiasts!

Puppies

I want to take a minute to thank the outpouring of support that I have received from the blogging world.  So many of you have left comments and have written to me privately,  with such kind and supportive words about the puppies.  Sometimes a litter will be whelped and raised without a hitch and are gone almost before you know it, then other times there will be struggles such as there have been with this litter that leaves a breeder scratching their head wondering why the heck they do this.  Somehow when you look into these little faces though…….you remember ~

In parting, here is a picture of the big boy.  A few of you have asked to see the boys.  The big teddy bear of the bunch has his eyes fully open now and already I can see his mother and even more so, his grandmother’s gentle expression. His brother’s eyes have not
opened yet, so I will save his picture for another day.  This boy in all his hugeness, is looking very promising………

I swore I would never keep another boy……hhmmmmmm

I know……I promised I wouldn’t overdue the puppy pictures……but I just couldn’t resist.   The puppies have occupied my waking hours, (which has been about 20 hours a day), so…………they just happen to be the focus of my life currently. 

Nestled in between the beanie bears for my grandchildren are the 2 sisters.  Both are doing really well now.  The little one is still very small, but she is a fighter and I am sure now that she will be fine.

Wrapping the puppies is the Noro hat and scarf set that will be making it’s way today, along with the Opera Scarf, to Lisa and Jacob, for their Red Scarf project.

Knitting

It seems that I have been called to do a lot of knitting for special projects lately and it has been a joy to be able to pitch in and help these different organizations in a small way.  The SHIPS project is a worthy one.  It is people knitting hats and slippers for the Soldiers overseas.  This hat that I just finished up was knit with some yarn that my Secret Pal 3, Erica, had sent to me.  I used the Everyone’s Favorite Hat pattern again

Wow……I LOVE this yarn.  The funny part is, I would probably have never picked it out in a store, but it is fabulous to knit with.  It is Lana Grossa, Royal Tweed.  100% Merino…….great stuff!  There is enough left over that I think I will make a pair of fingerless mittens for me.  I am thinking that I would love a sweater made with this yarn.  Yum…..

I have one more hat for SHIPS to finish up before the SPA this weekend.  One of the NETA members sent me this skein of Manos to make up a hat and OH MY!!!  I always knew that I would love to work with Manos, but never dared to shell out the money for a sweater and then be disappointed.  WELL……..guess what, my next sweater is going to be made with this.  (the gold yarn is going to be cloverleaf socks)

I have a icelandic sweater pattern that calls for lopi.  I have never been a big fan of lopi, as I find it to be really scratchy…….but luckily, manos and lopi have the same gauge, so this is going to be my summer project. (it will take me that long to save up enough money to buy the manos..LOL)

So while I am saving my pennies, I am going to work on some bait bags for my dog showing friends.  Actually I am going to start selling these at the shows.  It will help to defray some of the costs of showing, like airfare and hotel rooms.  I am hoping to attend our CKCSC,USA National Specialty, in May.  It is being held in Charlotte, NC this year.  My DH and I have not been on a vacation alone for a very long time, so I am hoping that somehow we might be able to sneak away for a few days and attend the show.  I have never been to Charlotte……..so, fingers are crossed that we will be able to get away.

In closing…….the aftermath of the Nor’easter we had……

Brrrrrrrrrr………….keep warm!

While temperatures of 40’s and 50’s teased us with images of Spring around the corner last week, this is what greeted up this morning.

24 inches of wet, heavy snow is expected up here in the North Country before this storm ends sometime tomorrow.

This much snow, means a day of fun for kids and dogs alike.  I guess Ole Phil, was right when he said 6 more weeks of winter!

Puppies

I want to thank everyone who has remembered my little puppy girls in their thoughts and prayers this week.  The blogging community truly is wonderful!  It has been a long and trying week. 

The littlest girl ended up an infection in her umbilical cord, which is life threatening and a major cause of death in puppies.  It causes a systemic infection, which can quickly destroy the dog’s internal organs.  Hopefully we caught it in time  with antibiotics and probiotics.  Baby girl seems to have turned that proverbial corner and this morning she was up to 4.8 oz and feeling a little less skeletal.  She is nursing on her own and keeping up with the others now.

  To keep it in perspective however, here is a picture of the little girl with her biggest brother.  He is weighing in at a whopping 13.8 oz!    The other girl is now up to a healthy 6.3 oz and I am feeling very good about her developing into a healthy pup.

Thanks again everyone for your good vibes!!!

Knitting

On the knitting front, it has been a frustrating week.  Most likely, from sleep deprivation…LOL

This lovely bunch of wool was in the mail this week.  I had first seen a scarf/hat set made with this Noro yarn on Norma’s page.  The colors really caught my eye.  I am working on a special "red" project, but I wanted to inject some pink into it as well, as the woman who this set will be for is a breast cancer survivor. 

My first attempt was going to be this scarf………but the thicker Noro just wasn’t meant for this scarf……sooooooooooo ripppppppp.  Next, I pulled out my Everyone’s Favorite Hat & Scarf pattern that I picked up in Rhinebeck this fall.  Norma used this pattern and I loved the set, so I know it will work with this yarn.

Here comes the frustrating part….LOL…. Now, I bet your thinking….what??  They look the same…….but they’re not.

I thought that I had grabbed the size 13 needles required for the pattern…..but in my tired haze, it was the size 11’s that I grabbed.  Now in the picture……they really look the same, but when you feel them…….yup, there is a huge difference, so the one on the left is going to frog pond tonight……

In keeping with the snowy theme, I ventured outside to take a picture of the finished opera scarf for the Red Scarf Project.

Pattern:  Opera Scarf
Yarn:  Filaro Kid Illusion (wool, mohair, rayon, nylon)
Needles: 10 1/2

Keep Warm!!

I promise not to bore you with lots of puppy pictures, but I couldn’t resist this one.  What you see in this picture is the largest puppy with his arm around the tiniest puppy.  How cute is that??

Of course, I am operating on almost no sleep…..so be kind…LOL.   Believe it or not, having a litter of puppies is almost as tiring as having an infant.  I don’t go to bed for approximately 10 days, especially when there are puppies as tiny as the 2 girls in this litter.  I am checking on the puppies constantly making sure that Mum hasn’t inadvertently sat on one and suffocated it.  I also rotate the little ones at the milk bar, to make sure that they are getting their fair share. 

As you can see from the picture, there is a HUGE size difference in these puppies.  Both girls were only a tiny 3.7 oz at birth and the other 2 were 6 and 7 oz.  I am not sure how this happened as Breeze was a great eater throughout her pregnancy, so it is not from lack of good nutrition on her part, however in speaking to a long time breeder friend, she mentioned that it could have been that the 2 girls were in one horn of the uterus and the 2 boys were in the other and perhaps the horn that the 2 girls were in, was nutritionally deprived somehow.

Needless to say, I am very concerned about the "wee" ones.  They are very very tiny, but they both seem to be fighters.  In looking at the above picture, you can imagine how easy it is for the big boy to push the little girl away from the milk bar, so I have been spending a lot of time holding him while the 2 little girls take their turns.

Say a little prayer for the 2 little girls…….I have been doing this long enough, that I realize that losing them is a real possibility.  The hard part of breeding.

Spinning

Well, if one has to stay up all night………one might as well be productive. (grin).  I took a few days off from knitting and concentrated on spinning.  The roving is hand dyed, blended fiber from my rabbits here.  When I had my last batch of rovings processed, I pulled this colorway out and kept it for myself.  After working on some scratchy romney earlier last week, it was a treat to come back to the soft angora/merino blend.

This bag full of roving is destined to
become this vest.  The pattern is from Mountain Colors.  It is nice to have a finished object out of my rovings, so that people can see what it knits up like.  Angora is so very warm that I don’t know that I could stand wearing a sweater, so this lacey vest should be a nice choice

Knitting

The new sock for the Six Sock KAL was announced this week and I have to admit that I was not in love with it….in fact, I am not sure that I like it enough to put that much effort into it as I am not a real fan of spiral knitting.  It is lovely, just not my cup of tea………so………..I decided to work on another sock that caught my eye in my blog surfing.

Marguerite from Stiches of Violet , created this great pattern.  You can get the free pattern here.  I have to say that I am really loving this sock!  The yarn is Lang Jawoll superwash and I am working on size 1 doublepoint needles.

I am also plugging away on the X and O vest from Folk Vests.  I am enjoying the pattern, but still not loving the black abbey yarn, although, the yarn does give the pattern alot of definition.

Ribby Cardi is taking a break, due to the fact that I have to rip out the sleeves..ggrrr, so I thought that I would work on this vest instead.  Who knows…….with all of this midnight knitting, I just may get them both finished by the time I make it back upstairs to my bed….LOL.

In parting, I just want to say…………GO PATRIOTS!!!!!!!!   WOO- HOO!!

Kites harness the force of the wind.
They express our intent,
But they cannot change the wind.
(Feb. 4th Tao, Deng Ming-Dao)

Congratulations Breeze (Ballymena Winter’s Wind)

Too tired for anything else………more later this weekend.

Normally, I don’t do these kinds of things…..but since I was tagged twice today, by Jean and Chris,……I thought I would be a good sport…… I guess, I’m IT…hehe. 

One reason why I will do this game, is that I just LOVE music.  I can hear a song and it immediately brings me back to a time in my life.  I am usually pretty good at music trivia.  A few months ago, I won the only contest I have ever won, when Vicki held her, what year was I born in contest.  It was fun and brought me right back to my highschool days.  It seems that she and I graduated the same year..LOL. 

So here goes……be prepared, my music tastes are all over the board:

1.  Total amount of music files on your computer:  one. 
Hard to believe a music lover only has one file and that file is that most ridiculous, yet seriously mesmerizing Rumanian song, sung by our silly German friend, here.  OMG, I can’t even watch it or I will be hearing it in my dreams……..hahahaha.  When I am feeling a bit down, all’s I have to do is click on that link and I find I am smiling again……..but the danger is……..I will be singing it all night long, even in my dreams…

2. The last CD you bought was:
Distant Future by Heidi Talbot
A combination of one of my favorite types of music……bluegrass, with an Irish touch.  Being a redheaded Irish person, I tend to find myself drawn to Irish singers.  I had no clue when I bought this CD that Heidi was from Ireland, but it gave me a wee bit more enjoyment when I read the reviews.

3.  What is the song you last listened to before reading this message?
This one is easy……the stereo is right next to the computer (which is probably why I don’t have music files on the computer),   Out of the Woods, by Nickle Creek .  Another bluegrass band.

4. Write down 5 songs you often listen to or that mean a lot to you:
Ugghh…I agree with Chris, now I am going to have to think………there are SO many!

A.When You Come Back Down, again by Nickle Creek
When my granddaughter Avery was stillborn, it was a song that touched many hearts.

B.  Fields of Gold, by Sting
This is a song that brings me back to a carefree time in my life.  A time of complete
freedom in my 30’s and long days in the sun at the ocean.  It is also bittersweet as it  brings back memories of a very dear person, who is no longer with us.

C.   What A Wonderful World, by Louis Armstrong
Whenever I hear this song, I immediately smile and move into that zone of childhood happiness.  I ADORE this song.  It makes me feel like all is right in the world.  I also end up picturing Louis singing , I Wanna Be Like You Hoo Hoo, from the Jungle Book.  Just an all over good feelin’ song!

D.   The Soul of the Machine
Many of you have probably never heard this album……..it is different, very new age.  I learned how to ski with this tape, softly playing in my ears.  I didn’t learn how to ski until I was 32, but living up north, in God’s Country, I figured, I had best learn how to fill those cold winter days.  I was sooooooo bad…..haha.  I fell off of every chair ramp on every mountain up here…some ski bunny, eh?…NOT!  The soothing tunes of this album helped to calm my nerves and settle me down, so that I wasn’t a roving danger to everyone on the mountain.

E.    She Drives Me Crazy, (The Raw and the Cooked, Fine Young Cannibals)
This is my favorite exercise tape.  Whether it is on the stepper or out walking, this tape, along with Robert Cray’s, Strong Persuader, always keep me smiling, in spite of how much I HATE to exercise…LOL.

There you have it.  There is so much more that I love, such as the haunting harp tunes of O’Carolan or the power violins from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.  Then there is the sexy, soothing songs that John Mayer sings or the ecclectic sounds of The Chieftains and one of my new favorites, Maroon 5

Whew……..I spent more time on that than I expected……but it was time I enjoyed spending.  Now the question remains…….who am I going to tag.  I know that you are supposed to tag 3 people, but I also know that this game has gone around a few times, so I am only going to tag one special person.  I know that she hasn’t played and because she doth protest soooooooo much………..she’s (Norma) IT!!  (Ducking for cover…hehe)

Fluted Bannisters are Done!

All’s I can say about this pattern and these socks is…………………I LOVE them!!  They are the most comfortable socks that I have knit todate.  This was a fun pattern, but mindless enough, that you could put it down and then pick it up days months later and easily find your place. (my favorite kind of pattern)
Yarn  Regia Silk, given to me from my Secret 3 Pal, Erica
this is beyond fabulous Yarn!  Needles: Size1                   

Especially For Ryan
 Ryan, my friend, this is for you!  You were wondering which kennel you should find your next companion at……

skip the dog kennel…..

This is what a dog does when a bitch girl dog is in season. 
eewwwwwwwww……………..go for the bunnies!!!

Man oh man, it has been some kind of cold up here.  You are looking at an icycle hanging off of our sunroom.  The icycle is about 5 feet long…..bbrrrrrrr!!

Night time temps have been ranging in the -25 degree range all week and even with these arctic temps we’ve had close to 18 inches of snow over the last week….bbbrrrrrrrrr!!!

A few years ago, it was on a night with similar temps that I rushed to the vet at 3 am for an emergency c-section.  That trip produced two girls.  Ballymena’s Winter’s Tale and Ballymena Winter’s Wind. 

We are getting ready for what appears to be another Wintery Whelping.

Yesterday, during a snowstorm, Breeze and I made our way to the Vet for an xray.  I always do an xray a week before puppies are due.  This way, I can get a head count, check position and most importantly gauge size.  If you click on this picture, you will see the outline of 4 little spines.  Three of the heads are facing towards the left and one is facing the right.  Of course, the 3 facing left tell me that currently they are going to be born breech…sigh….  The good news is, is that they are a nice size and mom should not have too much trouble delivering them.  They could always flip, but my experience has been that they do not change position too often from what I have seen on the x-ray.

So in between the franticness of trying to find another car and send the van with the shot transmission almost 100 miles away to be repaired, I have been getting supplies washed and ready for the Winter Whelping.  We have our whelping box, hot water bottle, heating pad, clamps, scissors, towels, facecloths (for pulling the little buggers out), along with soft pads for when mom is finished and a baby monitor.  What you don’t see is the glass of wine that will be poured and ready for when I am finished…LOL.  Even though I have been breeding for almost 8 years now, I still get nervous with each delivery, so the wine will be there to help settle down the nurse when she is finished.  For now, we will just take temps twice a day and the waiting game begins.  Wish us luck!

The gang is trying to show Breeze their "close" support……….believe it or not there are 6 dogs, crammed into this crate….LOL

On the Knitting Front

The beaded socks for the KAL are finished.  They were fun to knit, but if I do them again, I will make changes.  I think I would use a smaller needle and do some ribbing all the way down the foot, so that the fit is better.  Smaller beads too.  It was a fun challenge though, never having knit with beads before. 

Pattern: Pink Beaded Socks  (Six Sock Knit along)
Needles:  Size 2 double pointed
Beads:   Size 8 "e" beads (Elegant Ewe)
Yarn:  Gray Koigu

I am close to finishing up the Fluted Bannister socks and I LOVE these socks!  They fit so nicely and the yarn is yummy.  I will post more about them when they are finished.

I am also participating in the Red Scarf Project.  Lisa Miller started this project to raise money for Chinese Orphans. You can read more about Lisa’s story here.

Why red scarves: The Chinese have an ancient belief that says all people who are destined to meet are bound by an invisible red thread. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break. (Very meaningful to the families adopting these Chinese Orphans)

I chose the Opera Scarf that Margene shared with us earlier in the month.  I am making it a bit wider than the pattern calls for and on bigger needles.  Hopefully it will be finished and in the mail tomorrow.  It’s a fun project for a good cause.

Ribby..  The back of the Ribby Cardi is finished and
I have started on the sleeves. This is an easy, mindless project…..sometimes mindless is a good thing!   I love the feel of the lambs pride mohair and it is knitting up fast.  This is going to make a nice spring sweater jacket!

Even though it IS knitting up fast and it IS easy, I am finding that my nagging tendonitis and my now strangely sore thumbs is going to slow me down a bit.  I think that I will have to split my time up more evenly over the different fiber arts that I enjoy, instead of being so focused on one.  Maybe a bit more spinning and weaving and a little less knitting will help eleviate some of the pain.  Of course my DH says……"just stop for a while", but he just doesn’t understand.  I don’t think that I could ever just sit in front of the tv without a project in my hands………could you?

You know your having a bad day when……………….

Yesterday was just not a good day….in fact most of the week has been a washout.  Earlier in the week, my husband’s car died for the last time.  It is old, so it was to be expected…….however, yesterday as I was driving my daughter to work, the transmission in my car blew…..aagghhhh!!

After finally getting home and doing laundry, I noticed a small hole in the heel of my favorite Koigu socks…..then before climbing into bed at the end of the day, I put my other favorite socks on….my thick mountain color clog socks on because it is freakin’ cold here.  As my feet touched the cold floor, I felt the cold floor…..why am I feeling the cold floor with these thick cushy socks on I think to myself??  That would be, because there is a HUGE hole in the heel…aagghhhhhh!!!!!

You will also notice that there is a clump of blue wool in this picture.  I am going to try and needle felt the wool into the heel of the koigu sock, but I don’t know if the other pair can be saved.  If any of you are experienced darners and can give me some tips, please give me a shout!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrr

Did I mention that it is freakin’ cold??  As I am sitting here typing, the weather bug is telling me that it is -17….bbrrrrrr.  I headed up to the barn first thing this morning to fetch the bunnies water bottles as they are freezing so fast now.  Ya gotta love my morning barn gear…haha.  Lace and boots….the neighbors must think I am a wee bit touched in the head.

Having animals in the winter can be a challenge.  Rabbits will not eat, if they do not have water and of course, they need to eat to stay warm, so when it is this cold it is an endless cycle of thawing out water bottles.  Up and down the stairs with those big heavy buckets.   bbrrrrrrrrrrrrr…..

Keeping my hands warm and my fingers free to pry off those frozen bottles from the cages are these fingerless mittens that I made earlier this year. 

Pattern: Green Mountain Spinnery – Eric’s Glovelets
Yarn:  Mountain Colors – Indian Corn

Now that I am back inside where it is toasty warm, I am going to play with this new spindle.  The video made it look fun and I love the old antique serrated oak.  Spindling this way is a bit different and after giving it a whorl……..I can see I am going to have to go back and watch the online video again…LOL

As a foot note…….I removed the picture of George Bush from my blog and replaced it with a meaningful to me quote on peace.  Not because I have changed my feelings about him or this war, but after reading different blog comments, I feel that peace has to begin in our hearts first and if a picture is going to cause hurt or sadness in others, then I don’t want to contribute to that.  ~Peace~

We frail humans are at one time capable of the greatest good and, at the same time, capable of the greatest evil. Change will only come about when each of us takes up the daily struggle ourselves to be more forgiving, compassionate, loving, and above all joyful in the knowledge that, by some miracle of grace, we can change as those around us can change too.

Maíread Maguire