So Ugly, They're Cute

We have a Wisteria vine that has taken over a corner of our porch.

Happily, this year it's blooming again. Last year, the winter wasn't strong enough for it and we didn't get any flowers. It usually blooms twice a year, so I'm hopeful that we're back on track.

Besides giving us shade and wonderful fragrance, it provides a great nesting place for robins.

This is when we discovered them on Friday (May 17, 2013)

We counted four ugly little babies in there!

And here they are this morning (Monday, May 20, 2013): 

We're trying to follow their growth, but I've already had to shoo Garfield off the porch once, so I'm not sure if they'll be able to survive in such an easily-accessible nest. Fingers crossed!

A Handmade (and almost finished in time!) Christmas

Every year one or two of us seems to make a present for some member of the family. I usually knit at least one gift; Mike will take the time to build or turn something. But this year was an unusually handmade-gift-filled year. And we almost had them all finished in time for the big day!

To begin, I knit Mike the Dwarven Helmet hat that he's been wanting for a few years now. I had to give it to him unfelted because I needed his head to test size, so that wasn't done in time. Here it is today: felted, but no braids. Once he comes in this afternoon, I'll get some braids and mustashe on!

Then there were the hats I wanted to make for all the little cousins: my two girls and my neice and nephew. Three of the four were finished for Christmas (the neice and nephew got theirs--poor Kat's was still on the needles). Here's baby Emma modelling hers:

And Kat's was finished the next day. Warning, the next photo was of her an hour ago after being in the snow all morning and ready for a nap. She is currently asleep!

Hopefully tonight I'll get a picture of all four of them in their hats together! Fingers crossed.

And now on to Mike's projects! They're awesome!!!

First, he and Morgan made me a sign for the farm!!!!! Here's what I got on Christmas morning:

They worked hard cutting and carving the sign from scratch. The lamb was a hanging sign that my in-laws had given me a few years ago, but the hangers had broken. It was resting in my studio until it could be fixed, but Mike snatched it up without me noticing in order to incorporate it in the sign. I love it!!! I'm not sure if you can see "Glen"--it's right under the lamb. 

Since Christmas morning, Mike has stained it and just put a coat of polyurethane on it this morning. Here's how it looks right now, drying:

The words and lamb need to be reattached, and it's good to go! And did I mention that it's completely reversable so that passersby can read it going both ways down our street? AND there's a tiny little M + A in a heart on the tree trunk. Aaahhhhhh.

And the grand finale is . . . . . a clubhouse for the girls in their room! We presented them with a ladder and a bow on Christmas morning, then Mike worked at assembling it the rest of that and the next day. 

Christmas:

The next day (with, from L to R: Kat, Morgan and Brendan):

The girls have slept up there every night since! Left to do: Morgan and I are going to build a paper machet tree on the front right corner of the wall to look like the clubhouse is sitting in it. We're also going to paint the clubhouse white and re-paint the room.

I'll keep everyone posted as projects are completed!

From my family to yours, I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and will have a Happy New Year!!!

Goats are Here!

Last night we had our two Angora goats delivered to the house! Angora's grow mohair, so they'll be great additions to the fiber farm. And they're wethers (castrated boys), so they'll stay nice and sweet (hopefully).

When they got here, they were due for a shearing (Angora's are sheared twice a year), so we decided to start fresh and get them clipped before putting them in their quarantine field.

By the time we were done, it was 10 pm and Mike and I were exhausted!

The boys did fine over-night and Kat and I went out for a visit this morning.

Starr was beside herself with curiosity . . .

Look at all those wrinkles!!

I don't know much about goats or mohair, but hey, I didn't know anything about llamas 18 months ago! Mike and I are fast learners.

The fleece off these guys is absolutely fabulous; soft and shiny--it's like touching a cloud. It was so soft over all their body, I couldn't tell how to skirt it. Finally, I just decided to keep it if it didn't have burrs or poop on it. I'm washing some up now to give it a test spin--can't wait! 

They came with the names Patriot and Roman, but we haven't decided if those will stick or get changed. I'll let you know!

Wordless Wednesday, August 22, 2012

June peeking around our willow.