Pet Pics

 

  

It's not easy to get good pictures of Kelly, but I really like these two.  In some of the others I snapped, she had her tongue out.  Come to think of it, maybe she was expressing her dislike for the camera and the photographer?

 

Poor Callie.  Wrapped up in the cables for the laptop.  Usually, though, she's sleeping ON the power cord.

Recent Purchase

Shortly after Christmas, Sarah and I were at Lowe's, and noticed that a furniture line they were carrying was on clearance, with everything half price. I have been wanting to either refinish the bench I had in our front entry, or purchase a new one. From the picture below, you can see I went for the new one.
This detail is in several places on the bench. Isn't it pretty?
We're amazed at how much bigger the front entry appears with the smaller bench.

I'll leave you with a picture of Kelly. I've resorted to putting a sheet on the couch she's allowed to get on, and I change it out every couple of weeks.

Cuddlin'

Look who fell asleep together on the couch? Kelly (the dog) and Klaus (female cat, despite the male name). Too bad Callie (cat) didn't decide to join them, but she was too busy growling at me from the top of the recliner. I guess she was remembering the nail clipping Grace and I gave her earlier in the day.

Cute Critters

Kelly

Klaus

Not Much To Blog About

Yet another week is almost behind us. It's been a busy one, so not much going on in the crafting department. I did finish the needle page for Floral Needleroll and I purchased the wool felt and ribbon I need to finish it.
Phil gave Klaus yet another combing tonight. I caught her in between strokes.
It's been a rainy and chilly week. We've had a lot of thunderstorms (which scare the dog,) the latest of which was tonight. I snapped this picture shortly after 9:00 pm.
I am looking forward to a quieter week, and perhaps finally completing my fabric cutting. Of course, I bought more today, so the pile is not getting any smaller!

Dinner, Flowers, and Pets

The girls spent the day at my parent's house, helping by doing chores my mom can't do because of a shoulder problem. Phil and I had intended to have a quiet dinner, but since we didn't sit down to eat until 8:30, we had only 15 minutes before the girls came home. I made "Refreshing Shrimp Salad" from the current issue of Simple and Delicious. I originally thought I'd make Poppy Seed Dressing, but decided that a citrus dressing would be better, which it was. The only problem I had was that the shrimp Sarah bought was raw, so I had to cook and peel it.
We got some nice rain, so it was a good day to get out and clean up the gardens, and plant the rest of the calendula that Sarah grew for me. We discovered that my lavender died, so we pulled that up; it'll be replaced as soon as I can get to the garden center.

Does anyone know what this plant is? It's so rare to find a truly blue flower.
My Rose Campion (Sarah tells me that's the proper name for it - my mom and I always just called them Pinks.
Kelly let me take her picture today (I'm not sure why it's so grainy):
And here is our other kitty, Klaus. Klaus is a she; we adopted her from Phil's cousin. His cousin's children names her Klaus, after the cat in Treasures of the Snow.

Weekend Crafting

Yesterday was a cool, drizzly, and somewhat windy day and we needed the rain. It was a good day to hole up in the craft room and finish what I started on Friday: I tried to rearrange all the stuff I have on the craft table. The table is L-shaped, the longest part of the L is where Sarah and I have our sewing machines and sergers, but I have so many things in back of my machine that it's sometimes hard to sew because things hit the various containers. While I was working, I listened to Pride and Prejudice (on cassette tape) which I had borrowed from the library; I wanted to finish the story, so a rainy day seemed perfect to do so. Here's what I created:

Miranda Day Bag
Lazy Girl Designs

Here's the inside of the bag:

This is the first Miranda bag that I made using coordinating fabrics I bought back in October.

I love this pattern! The bag is roomy enough to easily hold everything normally I carry with me (including my iPod and cross stitch project), plus my Day Timer, leaving my hands free. I can also slip in a bottle of juice or water.

Country Garden is nearly completed. I am loving the variegated thread effects, which, unfortunately, do not show up well in the photo.
Phil is recovering slowly from his surgery. It's been ten days, but he's still sore. Part of that is his fault as he hurt himself working on the lawn mower a few days after the surgery. I think he learned his lesson. He had his chemo treatment last Thursday, and is feeling its effects (he seems to be falling into a predictable pattern with the side effects; at least he knows what to expect when.) His hematocrit (a measure of red blood cells) took a big hit, so I now get to give him medication (by injection) to increase his red blood count every 14 days instead of every 28 days. This is a normal response to chemotherapy.

I'll leave you with a picture of my kitty, Callie, right before she fell asleep.

This Week So Far

My week started with a lovely package from Michelle. While spring cleaning, she came across this pile of cross stitch magazines, and a few other goodies, which she wasn't going to use, so she offered them to me. Wow! There is at least one project in each magazine that's of interest. I definitely need to spend more time stitching. Either that, or ask God for another few lifetimes! (Just kidding - one is enough.)

I have been exhausted since Monday. I wake up feeling as tired or more so than I was when I went to bed. Needless to say, I haven't accomplished much except for getting my hair cut, going to the library with Sarah, and going to the dentist for a cleaning. I've put a few stitches in my various cross stitch projects, but that's about it.

Thursday afternoon Phil got his first chemo treatment. We started out time with the nurse, getting more information about Velcade, filling out and signing paperwork, and also correcting some misinformation she had. (That's a scary thing!) We learned that Phil has wonderful veins in his right arm, which is good since that's the only arm they can use. (He has a fistula in his left arm and due to liability issues, it cannot be used for anything.) The actual infusion took no more than 20 minutes from inserting the IV needle to its removal. They went slowly today, just to make sure he didn't have any adverse reactions. I did get a little work done on Love Ewe, which I carry in my purse.

I'm going to leave you with a picture of our dog, Kelly. She is nearly six years old, and has lived with us for three. She is a black lab and Chow Chow mix, and has the characteristic purple tongue of the Chow (which you can barely see.) Kelly is a very sweet dog, albeit big and enthusiastic, and truly believes that everyone who comes to the house is there for her. You can see that her tail was wagging when I took the picture; she's a great fan in the summer, but it gets cold in the winter time!