A split-second change in attitude

Don't you just hate how one little accident can ruin a whole year? At least that's the way it feels at the moment. I know, feelings are fickle. Maybe I'll feel better after talking to the insurance adjustor. Maybe what he offers us when he totals our car will buy a bigger skateboard than I think. Maybe I'll go to bed early and not come out from under the covers until 2011.

(Don't worry; I'll still draw a name for photo notecards. Maybe.)

Say what? (amended)

I'll tell you one thing, yesterday's forecast didn't say anything about THIS! Oh no, the weather was supposed to warm slightly, and then the wet front was going to move in and give us rain. Ahem. Not that I'd rather have mud, but I nearly had a wreck on my way home from Salem yesterday afternoon (it started snowing while I was there). There was ice under the snow on a bridge with traffic halted at the far end. I wasn't going fast, but still couldn't get stopped in time. Managed to steer the car between the SUV and the guard rail without hitting either one; lots of thankful prayers for that near miss!

Turned the dogs out when I got home; Jackson LOVES snow but Dozy wasn't so sure. This may be his first experience with snow; I don't know. But after a few tentative bites of the stuff, he and Jackson actually played in it.(Click to biggify; you'll see the glitter of Jackson's manic eye!)


And last night? Magic:
This morning Brian couldn't bundle up fast enough to get out there with his snowboard. With rising temperatures and falling rain, the snow is melting fast, but the icy slush made for a slick surface. He even "slid" down to the barn to do chores this morning:
That's it for now from . . .

Pup presents

Every year we give a gift to our dog(s), and often our friend who takes care of our canine companion(s) does, too. Rosie used to love opening presents - demolishing any box, for that matter (as does her brother Montie, who lives with the above-mentioned friend). Jackson and Dozer have no such compulsion, so we have to help them with their presents. What did they get this year? Identical Nylabone toys from us, and another Nylabone from Debbie. Of COURSE the singular toy was the most desirable, and was repeatedly stolen from one dog by the other throughout Christmas Day. (Since then, things have calmed down.)
I have to show you what Debbie got ME:Isn't that the cutest bag? The bulldog even looks a bit like Dozer! Dozer himself was a wonderful gift this year; thanks to his presence the wound left by Rosie's death has finally healed. But my heart is sad for a dear friend who suffered a similar wound just yesterday. Their dog was obviously not feeling well last weekend, and when they took her to the vet yesterday, a ruptured tumor was discovered and nothing could be done but administer the final mercy.

So short a life.
So big an impact.

That's it for now at . . .

Crushing crowds or crashing waves?

No after-Christmas sales for us; we went for the crashing waves!

Since we had no plans for Sunday, Rick suggested we head to the coast to look for migrating whales. No spouting whales were spotted, but we were treated to some spectacular surf.Those last two are my favorites; the late afternoon sun broke out and provided exquisite light just as my camera batteries were giving up the ghost.

Of course the dogs came along, too. They were happy, happy!
Brian got bored with watching the waves and wanted to visit the lighthouse. On the way we stopped at Cape Foulweather, the first Anglo-named site in Oregon. The panorama from that viewpoint is breathtaking! And the little white gift shop hanging on the cliff was the only retail experience we had yesterday (we didn't buy anything).
We ended with a visit to Yaquina Head Lighthouse at day's end. Here we left the dogs in the truck so we could go inside (the last two visits I walked Jackson while the other humans in our party went inside).
If you're still reading, you must love the coast like I do. And for that, if you tell me which photos in this post are your most favorite and how to contact you, I will put your name in the hat for a set of four photo notecards. You can choose one photo, or four different photos, or any combination that totals four. Drawing closes at midnight New Year's Eve. Just sharin' the love. :-)

That's it for now from . . .

Raveled

If unraveled means something taken apart by pulling a strand, then does raveled mean something made with yarn?

If so, these are raveled:Aren't they beautiful? When I dropped off the third 8-oz. skein of white alpaca at Wings and a Prayer the day before Christmas, the owner showed me these lovely items her step-mother crocheted for the gift shop with the yarn I spun! There were other baby items crocheted with mill spun yarn; they didn't look anywhere near as soft and lacy as these.

As mentioned, on Christmas Day I cast on the Knotty but Nice hat with my first spindle-spun yarn. It's coming along nicely, although my 3.5x40mm Addi turbos have painfully pointy tips. I've also spent an unprecedented amount of time on Ravelry (trust me, it didn't take much to make it an unprecedented amount!) adding finished projects the last few days; figured it was a good way to document them. Nothing terribly exciting, but if you're curious, I'm "sheepmademedoit."

That's it for now from . . .

Merry, and blessed

Rick's mom is snowed in with Rick's sister and her family in Lincoln, NE; my sister and her husband enjoyed an unheard-of white Christmas in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex, and we enjoyed a bright Christmas - crisp, cold, and clear - in the sunny Northwest!

We had a lovely day. It started with just the three of us opening presents, eating breakfast and doing chores together Christmas morning. The girls are enjoying their clean, refurbished henhouse (on Thursday Rick cleaned the coop, put down floor vinyl and fresh bedding, installed a couple proper perches, and put a slanting top on the nest boxes to keep the hens from roosting there) - so much so that they gave us five beautiful eggs today! (That's high production for this time of year.) The sheep girls enjoyed their fresh minerals and water (Inky was behind me eating her extra ration), and the horses all got a Christmas treat of apples. Around noon we joined good friends to feast on Christmas dinner and spend the afternoon socializing, playing (the kids), singing (Rick took his guitar) and knitting (I cast on that gift hat and my friend Pam is working on her very first sock). I really can't think of anything that could have made the day more pleasant. None of our relatives could be present, but we connected with almost all our immediate family on the phone sometime during the day to express our love. We have so very much to be thankful for!

That's it for now at . . .

Twas the night before Christmas Eve

Twas the night before Christmas Eve when the house was left quiet,
Because dear husband thought we should have a change in our diet.
So off to a favorite Salem restaurant he took us to eat,
Then he drove to the Mission Mill Museum to give us a treat.
It was the very last night of "Magic at the Mill."
For Christmas festivities this sure fit the bill!
Every building and bush was covered with lights,
And there men in bright kilts playing on drums and on pipes!
There were crafts for the kids and a cool model train,
All at a historic woolen mill I would love to tour again.
At the end of our visit we looked through the shops.
While I was a bit disappointed that sheep were not tops,
We found a wonderful welcome sign to add to our place.
You'll see it when you visit; it will put a smile on your face.
I'll close now with photos of our wonderful night,
And say Merry Christmas to all; may you walk in God's light!