20

 Today would have been Groucho's 20th birthday. She was the sweetest girl.  The oldest of my 3 tuxes.  I miss her and so does my tom, they were buddies.

I Have Vines Starting

 The sweet potato is coming along nicely.  Today I noticed some very red vines starting at the bottom.  It does take a lot of water if you are thinking of starting one. It is not too late.  I plant around Memorial Day and Dig around end of September.

We Have Roots

 The sweet potato is putting on roots.  I wonder how many I will get in my crop this year.

Starting the Garden

 One year when I was in grade school we were in Oklahoma City because my dad had a school for a new piece of equipment.  We had science on TV and yes this was in the 60's.  Our science teacher asked us to start a sweet potato and whoever got the longest vine would get a prize.  So my dad of course let me cos we would eventually plant it.  We went back home after my dad's class was over and teacher let me remain in the contest. I was to send a picture when it was over.  So I sent everything in and I won.  I do not remember what the prize was but just winning was enough.

For some reason this afternoon I was thinking about getting my seeds started because we do not plant here til after Mother's Day because we have had snow on Mother's day.  So I had a sweet potato in the fridge and now it is started.  I am going to do some bucket gardening this year.  Next week I am going to start the peppers and tomato.  And who knows what else.

Happy Chocolate Day

 Yes that is right it is Chocolate Day, however tomorrow it will be on sale so I will stock up and put it in the freezer.

It is also Ash Wednesday, hard to believe Easter is only 40 days away, where does the time go, we are already half way through February.

3 years ago Smudgey finally decided she would come in I wonder if she knew her time was drawing near and so she decided to come in and be taken care of.  I had a shelter for her outside in the front flower bed and under the deck plus she always had food and pets.  But she would come in for a minute and then paw at the door to go back out.  But this was a very cold spell in February and I have a feeling she was finally tired of being out in the elements so in she came.  She was inside for 1 1/2 years and she could have been her entire life but ferals live in their own world.  

I love female tuxes they are the sweetest girls.  She was my 3rd one, all sisters of another mother.  I will see you again some day Smudgey girl.

That is Smudgey laying in my big pot and I wonder why I got no asparagus that year. 

I Want One

 My FB feed is full of baby possum pictures.  They are so stinking cute.  Those little toes and toenails.  Many with their ears sticking out.  I want one.  However it is illegal in the state I live in to have one as a pet.  Besides I would not do it but then I want a baby pig too and I would call it Bacon.  I should move out in the country and have some animals.

I have a possum couple, he is quite large and looks old. She is very petitite. Sometimes they come up together and eat the dry cat food.  She often comes up on the deck and eats the bird seed.  

I think her coloring is very pretty and she is so cute.  I will just enjoy them while my tom and I look through the kitchen window and watch them. 

He is OK

 I looked out the window of the deck to see what feeders I needed to fill and look who was waiting for me. He looks ok, so he did survive after all. Thank You Lord for saving my baby.

January Good Riddance

 This has been a rough month, we spent many nights below zero and set some new record lows.  I have no idea how many days without sun and over 11 inches of snow/ice that would not go away because of no sun and temps either in negative or single digits.  I barely went outside except to fill the bird feeders all the time and put food out for the feral.

Speaking of the feral, Licorice, I fear he did not make it through the brutal temps.  I put straw in a shelter and had food out but it was perhaps too much. I have not seen him since the morning of the 18th.  I hate this because I had hopes of being able to bring him in some day.  I would have brought him in, but if I even put my hand out he ran.  I had him for 7 months and we do not always get to bring them inside.  They live in their own world.  I know he will be waiting for me someday and he can join all the other kitties up there. 

 

 

Since it was so cold I have been busy making charity items, nice to have all that yarn in my lap.  I have 5 hats done from the National Parks Hat book.  I have also been busy working on prayer shawls.  11 of them went to a prison and if just one woman turns her life around from knowing God loves her well it is all worthwhile to make them.  I have making plain hats as well.

 

I had crocus coming up before the brutal 2 weeks and my meadow sage had started growing. I did not cover it because I figured it was a lost cause and they would just die from the freeze.  Well was I wrong, when the snow melted and it got warm this week they are still there very green and growing.  I do not know why but we will see what happens til Spring gets here.  

Happy New Year 2024

 

63 Hats

 I bought this book because I make hats for the homeless.  It looked like fun and I have lots of little balls of yarn left over from all the hats I have made for years now.  I plan on starting on the 1st and hope I can get them all done next year.  I am starting at the beginning and keep going til I am done.  I try to make a hat a week, so I am gonna have to pick up the pace a bit to get these all done.

Groucho Marx

 A year ago I lost the sweetest little girl.  She was almost 19.  Not only did I lose her but I found the family of the little gray tom I found in my front yard.  It was a very tough day.

My Next Addiction

 Both my knit groups made these stars.  They are very addictive. Once you have made one, well can eat just one potato chip?  I bought this kit:  https://www.barrettwoolco.com/products/fabric-star-kit.

However you can just click on the link that is posted on the kit page and see how to make them.  Come on you all know you have tons of little pieces of fabric laying around your craft room.  I plan on making them for each month/holiday.

Why yes I am cutting out fabric for January as I decorate with snowmen.

A friend of mine gave me the table runner and I had a red bowl from my grandmother and since I made 5 stars they just all kind of go together.

Go watch the tutorial and make yourself some, bet you can't just make one.

Addictions

 We all have our addictions, shoes, chocolates, books, cats, yarn, etc etc etc.

This year I have a new one, they are bobble hot pads.  I found the pattern on okiegirlblingnthings,  She has some really cute patterns on there.  I made several for birthdays and tried to find yarn to make them look like flowers:  for instance I made sunflowers with a brown center, yellow bobbles and a green back.  I decided I had 3 craft Christmas parties to go to and went to my stash and grabbed all my Christmas looking dishcloth yarn.  You do not want to know how much I have (when Hobby Lobby went totally to their brand a few years ago, they put all the peaches and sugar and cream on clearance, i bought carts full).  

I wrote down how many I needed and how many each person got and ended up making 50.  They are so much fun to make and you can do a lot with the various colors.  I plan on making some for me next year for all the holiday months.  

My new addiction:  These are a few I made.  They are called Modern Round Crochet Potholder.  You can use them as a potholder but I prefer them for hot pads as the bobble keeps the hot pan up off the counter.  Go check out the pattern and make yourself some.  They make a great last minute gift and pair them with a dishcloth, well people will love them.