My Guest Blogger Today Is:

Hi!
My Name is Smokey. Mom's busy today and said I could write the blog post for her. My brother Max got all the attention the other day with his blue sweater. Mom put my sweater on me today. Mostly because I kept scratching my owies and licking them. This morning Dad took me to see Dr. Woods again. I got to touch noses with the cat that lives there. She doesn't have claws which is a good thing!

I got some more medicine there. I like medicine. I get a little piece of chicken each time I get a pill. I think the pills are making me feel better. I have diabetes so it's taking longer to get rid of my skin infection.

This winter has been very cold but I like to poke around in the snow. Sometimes when Mom's not looking I eat a frozen poopsickle. Boy does Mom get mad. She calls me in the house and smells my mouth. I never really get a spankin'. She just says she is gonna do it!




Mom pets me a lot. I think she's pretty worried about me.




I can hardly wait for Spring! My back yard where Max and I play is all icy now. We have paths that Dad shoveled for us so we can run down to the trees where we go potty. It's too hard to run across the snow to catch my ball which is all I really care about doing. I hope the snow starts going away pretty soon! I heard Mom say the other day we should pack up everything and move to someplace warm. I don't think Dad wants to move though. He likes winter!




I have to rest up now. Dad will probably be home soon and take us for a walk. Mom hasn't gone for a walk with us all winter. She says it makes her knees hurt and she gets headaches from the cold. She likes to stay home and work on the rugs she makes. I think she is just about done with one she has been working on. I saw her taking pictures of the edge of the rug so maybe she'll show you in a couple of days. She has to go take care of our Grandma today. I really wish she'd take me along. I love to go see Grandma! It's a new place to sniff around and we get treats there sometimes! Well, bye for now! XXOlick lick Smokey

I Won A Lisa Leonard Designer Necklace!

Something amazing happened yesterday! After my usual morning routine of feeding dogs, Smokey's insulin shot and making sure things were set to go for the day, I sat down at the computer with my morning cup of tea. I usually have a couple dozen emails to open and delete. One email caught my attention. "Good News!" it said in the subject line. Yay, a little good news would be nice this cold and sunless Tuesday morning I thought to myself. The email was from Colleen Allison who has a blog called Freshvintage.
She also has another blog called FreshBlogTips. I clicked open the email. It read: "Guess What! You Won!" Holy Moly! How could it be? Me? Win? Yep! Right there in black and white! Click on her blog FreshBlogTips to read about the giveaway that I won.

Both of these talented ladies are making gigantic strides in the blogging and business world! Proving themselves caring, sharing individuals who are helping and empowering women to become successful at  blogging and promoting their businesses online.

Be sure and check out Lisa Leonard's blog and her online shop with her fantastic jewelry and hand made creations. It looks like she could use a little help on your prayer chains and healing energy thoughts right now too. Her little son David is undergoing some difficulties.

I'll be anxiously awaiting for my Lisa Leonard designer piece to arrive in the mail. It is perhaps the first piece of designer jewelry by a contemporary artist that I've owned. I intend to wear it close to my heart as a reminder of the opportunities yet to come. Had I not been involved in the blogging world and come across these ladies blogs, I wouldn't have won this necklace. In fact Colleen's FreshBlogTips blog was the first one I read that gave me the courage to start my own blog. Her candid approach and easily understood instruction gave me the boost I needed as a new blogger with no clue what to do.


Thank-you both Lisa and Colleen for your generosity and your leadership. With your help and others like you, women like myself can take blogging to wherever it is we want to go. If you haven't already taken the plunge into blogging and have been thinking about it, come on in! A wonderful world awaits you!

Is Winter Over Yet?

Max got a haircut yesterday. Today he is a little pouty but I think he feels much better. His fur gets like sheeps wool all matted together if he isn't groomed regularly. Smokey, our other furry guy, lucked out and didn't get a grooming yesterday. He has a skin infection and is on antibiotics. Yes, he's our diabetic dog so this is worrisome. The vet did a blood test for thyroid and that came back okay. Thank goodness, we don't need two of us in the family on thyroid medication. So we're not quite sure what's causing Smokey's infection. Let's hope it clears up soon. He get's a little Benedryl to help with the itching.
Speaking of itching, I'm sure itching for a change in this gloomy weather. We are all going a little nutty around here waiting for Spring. This is no easy time of year with taxes due, bills coming in, the wood pile nearly gone.......oh well. It's time for a little comfort food! This afternoon I threw together a nice scalloped potato and ham (left over and frozen from New Years Day) casserole. I added celery, onions, sour cream, a can of Crm. mushroom soup. It's baking right now. Dave has a couple of sporting events to cover tonight(he's the sports and outdoor editor for our local newspaper) so that should give him some fuel to keep going.
I've finished hooking and steaming the penny circle rug.

I think I am going to try a different type of binding than I've used before. Wool strips cut on the bias with a cording. I plan to use the wool jacket in the foreground for the wool strips. I have to dismantle the jacket first. I may change my mind and use a cotton twill tape which is how I usually bind my rugs. I've never whipped the edges on any of my rugs. For some reason I prefer the look of rugs that don't have the whipped edge. It's another one of my odd personal doohickies! I can't explain it!
I want to tell you about a new hook I just got. It's pretty darn nice. It has a sponge type handle. Very comfortable to use. It took a little while to get used to it because it feels so different in my hand. It's soft compared to the wooden handled ones I have been using. I've developed a knot on the end of one of my fingers from hooking and it's becoming really uncomfortable to hook. So I thought I'd give one of these babies a try. So far I really like it. And the best part is the price. Only 3.99 plus shipping! Here is the link to the company if you'd like to order one for yourself.http://www.mcgtextiles.com/detail.cfm?ID=15
I think it's always nice to pass on information about a product or something that I have found useful to my fellow rug hookers and bloggers. Hope you find it helpful.
Well, I have to run and get supper on for DH. Max is on the alert and waiting for him to come home. Daddy has to leave again Max to cover the wrestling and hockey teams tonight! So we better get that hot dish out of the oven!

Comin' Down The Homestretch On The Straight Of Grain

January 19th, 2010
For the record I am coming down the homestretch on my penny circle rug. I want this rug to be one that I'm very proud of the nice straight edges. It looks pretty good in that regard so far. When I was drawing this pattern onto the linen I took a lot of extra care to make sure I drew the lines on the straight of grain. In fact I pulled threads on the linen both ways and in the valley along the line of the pulled threads was where I drew the lines for the outside edge of the rug. The reason I take extra time doing this and measure a lot while drawing the pattern in the first place is this rug:

A rug I designed and hooked in 2006. I had only been hooking for about a year. Look at the awful uneven edges on this rug. I am embarrassed to show you a picture of it. To this day I like the design of the rug very much. But every time I look at it all I see are the uneven edges. Rather ruined what could have been a great rug in my opinion. So a little advice to new hookers and as a constant reminder to myself...Slow down, take extra care when you are drawing your lines for the outside edges of your rug. It wouldn't hurt to measure and check that any new pattern you buy from someone else has been drawn on the linen with nice straight edges and following the grain of the linen. That way you will always end up with a rug you can be proud of.

A Little Something to Make You Smile

Once in a while I get one of those forwarded email things that I actually forward. I got this one today from my sister.

A first grade girl handed in the drawing above for a homework assignment…

 After it was graded and the child brought it home, she returned to school the next day with the following note:

Dear Ms. Davis,

I want to be very clear on my child's illustration. It is NOT of me on a dance pole on a stage in a strip joint.

 I work at Home Depot and had commented to my daughter how much money we made in the recent snowstorm. This drawing is of me selling a shovel.

Mrs. Harrington

Sometimes it's the little things that add up to a pretty decent day. Sharing a smile, sending a thank-you note, being thankful for each and every moment we can share with a loved one.
My cold is much better, I'm off to help my Mom with a few things. I'm making a little more progress on the penny circle rug. Blessings to you today! Cathy G