Merry Christmas from all us Woolly Critters!

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It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

I've gotten a brand new computer! It's been a little work to get everything back up and running the way I'm used to ... and a few things still need some tweaking....but now I have a much faster machine! While I was without a computer, I baked Christmas cookies, wrapped presents, cleaned the house and finished decorating, shoveled LOTS of snow, and managed to sneak in a few precious hours of rug hooking.

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I've visited some of my friends' blogs and they have posted wonderful pictures of their holiday trees and home decorating. I thought I'd show you a couple of our wreaths! This one is made from Princess Pine and it is hanging on my front door. I love this wreath because it looks so feathery and delicate. We've added a sprig of fresh holly...and Mother Nature added the dusting of fresh snow (more about the snow later....)

Here is the wreath hanging on the door to my studio. It is one of my favorite holiday decorations! Ken and I made this wreath last year and we used lots of vintage glass Christmas ornaments. I purchased some of them at rummage sales and some were old family Shiny Brights. It didn't matter if a few were broken - we just glued the broken side to another ornament! It took quite a few ornaments of all different sizes and it was fun to throw in a few odd shapes like the bell.

Last Friday, we got dumped with 9" of snow, giving us a total of about 12" on the ground. When we get that much snow, not only do we have to shovel the driveway, but we also have to shovel a path down to the barn and the animal pens. And since the goats and sheep have a hard time moving around with that much snow...it's up to their bellies in most spots...I shoveled paths and areas in their pens so they can get out of their shelters and move around. Despite the paths that I provided, Lumi plowed through the snow like a bulldozer and Emma leapt through the drifts like a long-legged deer! They both like the snow...and they love to eat it! We actually have more than 12" of snow right now but the temperatures will be warming up overnight and we will get freezing rain/sleet tomorrow so I'm sure we will lose some of the accumulation.

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We always have Christmas Eve dinner here with my in-laws. It is quite a ceremony to get out the Christmas dishes for our guests. When my boys were small, part of their Christmas tradition was to help Mom get out the special Christmas dishes and set the table. Stephen has volunteered to help me this year...I'll share some pictures of our Holiday table tomorrow!

Taking a little break....

I have to take a little break from blogging....for just about one week....my computer is going into the shop tomorrow and the computer guy says I won't get it back until next week (yes, he is THAT busy). Isn't it simply crazy how we totally depend on our computers? I kept thinking "what on earth am I going to do if I can't get on the internet or check my e-mails?" LOL!!! I think I'm going to sit down and seriously work on my rug hooking for one week!!! And maybe bake some Christmas cookies.....

I'll be back blogging again before Christmas.

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P.S. The phrase "Hyvaa Joulua" means "Merry Christmas" in Finnish!

In The Meadow We Can Build A Snowman....

Hmmm...looks like my son has toooo much time on his hands....that, and he has a weird sense of humor (like all the other members of my family)!!! Last night, he built a snowman in the goat pen for the goats to enjoy. And you know what? They DID enjoy it!

This is a not your ordinary, everyday snowman; it is a snowgoat (note the stick-horns on top of its head).

Looks like Sequoia is giving his new friend a kiss. More likely he's trying to pull the nose out!

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The sheep also got a regular snowman built in their pen. Before I could get outside to snap a picture this morning, Emma had pulled out the stick-arms and chewed on the snow body. That's typical Emma!

Walking In A Winter Wonderland

We are under the influence of a winter storm, which will last until tomorrow afternoon. Here is what it looked about 2 pm when the snow first started coming down.

I love the way the snow sticks to the tree branches and makes everything look frosted.
I'm going to heat the kettle for some ginger tea, put on a movie, and get my hooking project back on my frame! I love this time of year!

The Curly Girls

Here are my "curly girls"....

Lumi, the Finn Sheep. Very mild mannered and well-behaved. Sweet and gentle, with the face of an angel.

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Emma, the Wensleydale. A silly, adorable little girl. She has youthful energy with a streak of mischief. Very vocal about what she wants! She is teaching Lumi how to baa very loudly (bad habit).

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Yup, as you can see, we have snow in Michigan. Not just a dusting either....this is "boot-wearing" snow. And a lot more is on the way Sunday.....

Emma's fleece is growing back quickly. You would think that she'd be cold with snow on the ground but she never shows it, except for the fact that she likes to lay in the little shelter a lot. She's one tough "curly girl"!

You're Invited to a Holiday Show

"All The Trimmings" Show ~~~ Chelsea, Michigan

Saturday December 6, 2008

10:00 am to 4:00 pm

Looking for a one-of-a-kind gift for that special person on your list? Or maybe a unique treat for yourself (you've been good all year, right)????

Buy Michigan products from local artists at the All The Trimmings show at the Chelsea Fairgrounds. The selection includes vintage bags, antiques, jewelry, fiber art, tiles, bears, honey, paintings and pastels, counted cross-stitch, garden art, woodcarvings from Marlene Dusbiber, and fresh Christmas greens to deck the halls! And of course, I'll be there with lots of yummy wool and rug hooking supplies, books for needlecrafting projects, and beautiful hand-turned wooden sewing accessories...the perfect gift for the discriminating quilter, sewer, knitter, needle craftsperson, or rug hooker.

Come and join us in the shopping fun!!!

I'm looking forward to seeing you there!!!

for directions, click here for the Chelsea Fairgrounds website

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to family, friends and fellow hookers (no explanation-you know who you are)!!!

I'm finally back home after many, many weeks of traveling to workshops and shows. It was a pleasure to be able to spend time talking about and teaching what I love...rug hooking! I've made lots of new friends and I've been inspired by all the beautiful projects. But it is sooo good to be home! And now maybe I'll be able to sit down and hook a little too....

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I truly feel blessed and thankful...not just on one day, like today...but every day!

Girls Just Want To Have Fun (so let's get rid of the sweatshirt)

Well! As you can see, Emma decided that she didn't want to wear a sweatshirt anymore. She managed to pull both front legs out of the sleeves this morning and she was walking around with the sweatshirt hanging down from her neck (eek! strangulation hazard, for sure). With a small bribe of some hay, I was able to grab hold of the shirt and pull it over her head. Later (I'm sure she didn't realize that I was watching from the house), she ran around her pen, took a large "lamb-leap" straight up into the air, and kicked her back legs out...as if to say "Yippee! I'm free!"

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Isn't she a beautiful little character?

Emma's Big Day

Here's a few pictures of Emma's shearing day! It looks like she had a temper tantrum before she got sheared too....what a little stinker! She laid down, rolled on her back, and stuck her feet up in the air! Now who can deal with that? If you have/had young children, you can relate to this stunt....just like the kid who lays down in the aisle of the store and refuses to shop with her parents.

Emma is in the trailer and ready to go to Liz's farm. She looks a little scared, doesn't she? The next few pictures are of Doug, the sheep shearer, working his magic. He is really good at what he does and he's very patient with these struggling, freaked-out sheep. Talk about a tough job! Doug is like a "sheep-whisperer". He can handle any size sheep with ease and he works fast.

Yum, look at that gorgeous fleece...lots of curls...remember I've said before that I love looking at and touching a beautiful fleece...
Yeow! This picture made me nervous...zipping those clippers right down her neck....

So there's Emma's Big Day in pictures! Thanks to Liz for taking the pictures. I won't miss Emma's next shearing day in April 2009.

Sheep In A Sweatshirt

You've probably heard of a "pig in a blanket" but have you ever seen a "sheep in a sweatshirt?" Emma was sheared on November 1st. Look at those big floppy ears and long legs! It's always a surprise to see what a sheep or goat really looks like after all the fleece has been removed. We put a sweatshirt on her because it was a little cool after the shearing and now she has to get used to not having a wooly coat for a while. I'll probably remove her sweatshirt in about 2 weeks. Emma doesn't seem to mind wearing her sweatshirt at all! It is a little big for her and it keeps riding up her back, so I just keep pulling it down!

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After her shearing and on the way back to her pen, Emma had a little temper tantrum and threw herself down on the ground. No one could get her to stand up; she just kept flopping down and laying on the ground, so my son and Liz's husband, Al, had to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way down to the pen. Hmm! Just like a little toddler who can't have her way!

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Unfortunately I have been traveling a lot and was not there to see her first haircut, but my friend Liz took lots of pictures. Due to a technical problem, I have not gotten them yet but I promise I will post them when they arrive!

Sweet Emma

I haven't written about Emma in a while so here are some pictures of my sweet little lamb....

Her curly locks are quite long so I've arranged to have her sheared on November 1st. If it's too cold afterward, I'll put a sweatshirt or a little sheep coat on her until her fleece starts to grow again. She is so friendly when I am around and she loves lots of attention ( but she is shy around people she doesn't know and usually runs away). Sometimes when I bend down to scratch her back, she will lick my chin! Sweet little lambie kisses!

Fall in Michigan

Ah, fall in Michigan....there is no better place to be at this time of year! This is the view from my animal pens. What a beautiful and peaceful place to be in the evening when the air is cool and the setting sun makes the colors look so vibrant.

Last night when I went out to feed the goats, I discovered a little visitor not far away. The deer was not afraid of me. Five more deer stepped out from the trees later in the darkening twilight. Even though we see deer quite frequently, I am always amazed at their grace and beauty.
We're shearing goats today! They seem so happy to be free from their long woolen coats. But it won't take long before they're growing more mohair for next spring.
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Enjoy the fall colors...where ever you are!

Lil Witchy-Poo!

Isn't my little witch adorable??? I thought I'd share my progress on Smell My Feet. My time at my rug hooking frame has been limited lately since I've been dyeing wool and drawing patterns for the Newtown Hooked Rug show next week-end. But I've tried to sneak in a few moments here and there to pull up a few loops. Her hair is hooked from Wensleydale locks that I dyed a bright magenta hue (a real shock to my primitive mind but oh, so fun!) The next step was "dressing" her up in a purple dress with a prodded collar. I also prodded down the front of the dress and added "beading" accents. In case you don't know what "beading" is: it is hooking with two different colored wool strips at the same time, and each color is alternated. So much fun to do! Here's a close-up of my beading:

I have three old black glass buttons that I'm going to sew in between the rows of beading...Lil Witchy-Poo will have such a fancy dress! Doesn't she look so pleased to be wearing her favorite Halloween finery?

There's a few other little accents that I'd like to try (think glittery cording for stars)...but I'll save that for another time.

Have a great week-end!

Gobble, Gobble! A Feast For Your Eyes

"Tom" - adapted from Lori Brechlin Folk Art by Spruce Ridge Studios - - - (c) 2008 Kris Miller

Wowzers! Don't you absolutely love this rug?
This is Tom, a new pattern adapted from Lori Brechlin folk art. It was hooked by my good friend, Vicki Monroe and it took her less than two weeks to complete! She used a lot of Rebecca Erb's textured wools. I like everything about this rug but especially the tail feathers. They are turkey-perfect! Another great possibility would be to dig into your left-over scraps and hook the feathers in a hit-or-miss manner. Then use some of those "tail colors" in the triangles along the border to pull it all together. Let your imagination run wild!
Thanks, Vicki, for sharing your fun holiday mat!

What I'm Hooking Right Now...

Lately I've been trying to get back to my rug hooking. The evenings are getting cooler and it's getting darker earlier. It feels more like fall which makes me want to sit down and hook in the evening when the day is done! I'm actually hooking two projects at the same time. I switch back and forth, depending on my mood; if I'm tired...or inspired! When I want a nice easy thing to hook, I work on Lion and Lamb.

I am mixing three neutral textured wools for the background. The mixture gives so much more interest to the background than if I just used one. I like to work on the background because it doesn't require a lot of thinking...just cut up equal amounts of the three wools, toss them together in a plastic bag, and pull out strips randomly to hook. I hook round and round, echoing the shapes of the leaves and the animals....a great way to get a nice soft movement to the background.

Here's a close-up of the lamb...I used a nubby textured off-white wool and outlined with a soft gray boucle.

Here's a close-up of the lion. I am really pleased with the way his mane hooked up. I used a gold striped wool and cut it along the stripes. Then I hooked the wool in, being careful to place the stripes in such a way that they didn't blend with each other too much. Voila!

This whole rug has nice soft neutral colors, just so restful and lovely to work on. Ahhhh....

Below is my second project! I've been hooking on this a lot lately because I have had so many delightful ideas running through my head! I've decided to let myself have some fun and go a little crazy with colors and techniques. This is Smell My Feet, one of the newest patterns adapted from a notecard by Lori Brechlin/Notforgotten Farm. I fell in love with this little witch's hair! It's just so wacky and wonderful! This rug really gets my creativity revved up...

Getting back to my rug hooking frame has made me take inventory of all the unfinished rugs that are waiting to be completed. I tried to count...not figuring in the rugs that were completed but not hemmed (hey, the hooking part is completed, right?)...I determined that I had 5 unfinished rugs. Oops! Then I ran across another one in my wool closet so that made 6! It's OK, I know I'll finish them at some point. I love them all and they are just waiting for me to come back to them.
So how many unfinished rugs do you have? It's OK, you can confess! No one will know! Take part in my poll. It will be fun to see what the results are!

Yikes! It's Ike!

Hurricane Ike (ok, "tropical depression Ike") has passed just to the south of us today and has given us torrential downpours and cold gusty winds. We have already had too much rain this week-end! Our pond has overflowed its banks and there is low-lying flooding. We lost power for 18 hours...and the lights just dimmed again a few minutes ago. Are we in for another dark night? Michiganders are not used to this hurricane stuff! The goats and sheep are hunkered down in their little shelters, trying to stay out of the worst of it. They are probably soaked to the skin.

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If we don't lose power again tonight, I'm going to sit down with a nice hot cup of tea and work on my rug hooking. I haven't posted about my rug hooking in such a long time ... got to get back to what I love to do ... more tomorrow .....

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I hope you stayed dry this week-end!

I Love This Photo

My sister and I drove up to Michigan's Upper Peninsula at the beginning of the week. We came across this sign in a park at the Mackinaw Bridge and I just had to laugh! I think this picture needs a witty caption but I can't come up with anything appropriate. Leave me a comment with your captions and I'll pick the one that I like the best.

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Ready? Set? Start leaving those captions!!!

The Truth About Goats

"Do goats really eat tin cans?"

This question usually comes up after I've been talking to someone for a while and they find out I have angora goats. I don't know why folks automatically connect goats with tin cans, except that maybe we all watched too many cartoons when we were younger.

My answer to them is "No, they don't eat tin cans but....."

The best way to describe goat behavior is to compare them to a three-year-old child. They are constantly curious, always exploring, touching, tasting, and fiddling with things....except goats don't have little fingers like a three-year-old, so they use their mouth. How else could they explore the world around them? Zack (pictured above) is the master of chewing and "fiddling." He's learned to unlatch the gate (from the inside-thus we have double latches), he chews on my shirt and shoes or any loose thread on my jacket, and he's been known to take off with a stray paper towel or a pair of scissors. One of my older goats used to pull my husband's screw driver out of his tool belt (while my husband was wearing it!) and he'd turn and run as fast as he could across the pen. Trust me, goats love the chase and it's hard to get that stuff back once it's in their mouth!

I imagine that a tin can might contain some remnants of tasty food or maybe the label has been stuck on with some yummy glue. Or maybe it's just shiny and interesting to touch. So to answer the proverbial question...no, goats don't eat tin cans....but they would probably chew on it instead!

Oh, by the way, Zack also likes to chew on the fence post....

And the wire fence tastes good too...especially with a fresh crunchy coating of icicles!

That's Zack's twin brother, Zion, on the left. He's the Second Commander of the Chewing Brigade.

Moon Flowers

Ken and I went to a flea market in mid-July. We go to this particular flea market every year and I always find some sort of special antique treasure to drag home. This year, I did not find any antiques that spoke to my heart. But I did buy 4 little Moon Flower plants with the hope that I might nurture them along and enjoy the flowers. God may have given me a talent for raising animals but just about every plant that I touch is doomed. I can not get a plant to thrive unless it's a perennial like hostas or peonies, which come up every year and sort of take care of themselves without any fuss or effort on my part. I am always envious of other people's lush green gardens and colorful flower beds. I am a "green thumb-deficient" person.

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Imagine my delight when my Moon Flowers started to bloom last night! They remind me of the big floppy flowers in a Georgia O'Keeffe painting. There are lots of flower buds that are ready to burst open. Maybe the Moon Flowers and I will get along just fine.