Sunday, February 26, 2017

Snowy Sunday scene

Spent all day at a local dressage show, coaching a student and volunteering. It was cold and wet, and then snowballs started falling from the sky!

Seriously, those were the largest "flakes" I've ever seen. They didn't stick, but there is a possibility of sticking snow in the forecast. Fortunately, we have been able to keep the fire going with that "newer" firewood. I was in desperate need of warming when I got home this evening!

That's it for today from . . .

Saturday, February 25, 2017

Sunlit Sabbath gifts





That's it for today from . . .

Friday, February 24, 2017

February 24

A dusting of snow, an empty woodshed. Let's hope some wood in those stacks has cured enough to burn!

That's it for today from . . .

Thursday, February 23, 2017

It's a bird; it's a plane...

...it's a “bald vulture”?

Tuesday when I was driving home from work, I noticed a large bird on the ground in a field beside the road – and did a double-take. It was a bald eagle! I did a quick U-turn and pulled off the road to try for some photos. S/he started lifting its wings, then settled back down to its dinner. When I saw cars coming, I drove to a driveway to turn around and head back home again, then stopped and shot some more because the approaching car had stopped to do likewise. And why not? It was a remarkable photo op, if an ignoble activity.








Back at home, we had a much smaller, cuter visitor – more than one, actually. Chestnut-backed chickadees are infrequent visitors to our feeder; yesterday there were several here at once.
As for the plane, before I saw the bald eagle, I pulled over to capture the majestic thunderheads to the north. Serendipitously, a small plane came into view, headed for our little airport:
The clouds have been striking, and the sunshine at times brilliant. My daffodils are up and budding, and my daphne is about to unleash its heady perfume on our world.
Don't get too excited. We could get a little snow this weekend.  :-/

That's late for us at . . .

Monday, February 20, 2017

Life is just a chair of bowlies

(with a sweeping bow to Mary Engelbreit,
and a half-hearted apology for the bragging and photos that follow ;-)

After Rick's stunning woodturning debut under his client's tutelage, he has continued playing at our lathe at home. The first small bowl he turned here had a natural flaw that I've encouraged him to turn into a yarn hook. But he was on a bowl roll, so he set that one aside to try again. His third effort in Big-Leaf Maple resulted in an exquisite complement to the debut "salad" bowl. Then he tackled a chunk of black walnut, creating a vessel the perfect size and shape for a cake of yarn.








I think all of them are gorgeous, and could admire their beauty for hours while turning them in my hands to see the grain and chatoyance. Rick sees and comments on their "imperfections," and wishes they were better (with the exception of the salad bowl; he's pretty happy with that one). I guess that's okay, because that means he'll keep "practicing"!

That's it for now from . . .

Sunday, February 19, 2017

All the news that's fit to print

Sheep first (this is the Boulderneigh blog, after all!):
All the woollies are doing fine. Bramble is still keeping Nightcap company in the Ram-ada Inn:

The girls in the Sheep Sheraton aren't showing any signs of impending lambing so I suspect we're a month out from the first-bred older ewes' due dates. I think our church's annual women's coast retreat will land safely between the first set of lambs and the second set of lambs.

The boy band is co-existing peacefully in the wooded lot, growing beautiful wool. Dear deaf Benny didn't hear me approach this morning, so I caught some cute snooze shots before he woke up.




Knitting update:
I finished the owl hat but for the button eyes; so cute – and easy! I think it might be too short for its intended's taste, though, so I may be knitting #2 post-haste (there's plenty of yarn left over for another). I need to get back to the red fingerless mitts, too; I have to pick up stitches around the cabled band and knit the wrists, then add the thumbs.

Non-acquisition year update:
So far, so good! I had one little hiccup in January, when I spotted a bin of FitBit bands at the grocery store. I had worn out my basic black band so needed a replacement, but also spotted a pretty, patterned one in gray and white. I purchased both (for a grand total of $5) but realized the patterned one was an acquisition and returned it. Some of you might think that's a little silly, but I really do have more than enough of every thing, and this is a personal exercise in recognizing and being thankful for that. Besides, this new year is already smacking us with lots of unexpected, large financial challenges; every little bit not spent helps! Which leads us to...

Vet truck update:
This is a mixture of bane and blessing. I mentioned that the clutch had gone out on a trip over the hill and Rick had crept home in first gear. Once home he crawled under and investigated, but concluded it would have to go to a "truck doc." So he rented a tow-dolly to take it to the mechanic . . . only the tow-dolly wasn't big enough for an F350, so he had to call a tow truck. In the process of loading it, he and the tow truck driver discovered that the steering was non-functional – broken steering box. The driver noted that "Someone must be looking out for you;" amen! Now the big beast is at the Power Stroke specialist, who has diagnosed a host of heavy-hitting deficits. We're looking at $5000 minimum to get it back on the road, but considering the cost to replace it, we don't have any choice. Let's hope it goes another few hundred thousand miles (it has over 400K now)....

Heavey horse update:
Thankfully, my husband is a better vet than mechanic. ;-)  Lance is doing much better, and that makes my heart sing. After getting his immune system calmed down with dexamethasone injections, we're maintaining him with twice-a-day oral prednisolone. I'm hoping we can switch him to an aerosolized version or a bronchodilator, which have fewer risks of side effects.

Sports-mom update:
Brian played his last JV basketball game last week. The varsity team made it to the regional finals and won their first game Friday. Last night we attended game two. "Our" team lost the game; Brian and I lost our voices.  ;-)

That's it for now from . . .

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Poems, prayers, and promises


After two full days of non-stop rain
The sun broke through our skies of gray.


The good Lord knew my desperate need
And filled it in His timely way.

Actions taken, cost unknown;
Let the chips fall where they may.

Prayers continue unabated
That all, in the end, will be okay.


Wednesday, February 15, 2017

The sun also rises


The woman also knits.

I thought I posted this Sunday! The hat (same WIP, different light) has grown considerably. See the owls?

One day at a time, at . . .