Our Deer Friends

We wondered why the deer were always in our front yard. I guess we just never noticed the trees before but discovered they are very very big pear trees. Ok, pear trees go through a phase where they drop some fruit. The deer certainly love them!

A neighbor stopped by to ask what the deer were eating because he saw them every day on his way to work.

Photos aren't very clear when you take them through the front screen door glass, but this deer heard the click of the camera and looked at us.

It's times like this that make me really appreciate nature and living in rural America. Double click on photos to see the bigger pictures.

Bible Quote of the Day

"I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."(Genesis 9:15-17 NIV)

Busy busy busy

Ok, here we are almost at the end of 2008. Christmas, of course, has been very busy with shopping and trips to the post office. I think this year I gave the post office job security!

I've also been experimenting, as usual, with crochet. My bunny rabbit for Easter is improving.

Then I need to make some more Renuzit Air Freshener dolls. This was my first try at crocheting one. Acutally, I found making the dresses easier than I expected.

I had found a nice old doll, quite large, and a Red Riding Hood pattern I love the hooded cape! It was easy to crochet, but took some time. She makes a really nice bed doll.

Branson Review
As a former teacher, I have a tremendous respect for education. On the south side of Branson is College of the Ozarks. This is probably the most unique college in that students don't pay tuition...instead they work 15 hours a week building and working at the college. It's a beautiful place and quite an "attraction". Most visitors to Branson don't know this college has so much to offer visitors. Or if you live here, it's a relaxing place to just wander around the mill, museum, and the restaurant. The mill and the weaving studios are great. Students have items to sell as well. You just can't miss this place if you visit Branson. So below are links to various websites. Congrats to the staff and students of Hard Work U!!!!

College of the Ozarks...Hard Work U

Keeter Center brochure. This is a big place and just a real rustic beauty! It's located at the entrance to the college.

Restaurant menu at Keeter Center Remember, the students run the restaurant and prepare foods along with the chefs. Wow! Looks like a nice place to be New Year's Eve.

College Information This site has all the college education information

Ralph Foster Museum
If you enjoy museums, this one has a very good collection. Check out their site. Located also at College of the Ozarks

Edwards Mill Also on the College of the Ozarks campus. Very nice!

Bible Verse of the Day

"All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty." (Proverbs 14:23, NIV)

Have a very Merry Christmas!

End of 2008

Ok, so here we are at the end of another year. Wow, what a year this has been, too. With all the elections over, it's time to concentrate of making 2009 a good year.

Luckily, I've found my crochet has taken off quite well in sales this year. So for 2009, I'll be really busy creating items. I got a little bored making so many crochet top towels that I decided to experiment and play with the crochet. I've been having fun with agimurumi (a Japanese method of continuous single crochet in circles to make balls and cylinders then combining them to make toys) What fun!

Here's my winter penguin. Cute, huh? I've also experimented with several other patterns and I actually sold a couple "little critters" (the pig, a smaller penguin, a bear and the octopus).

Here's a picture of my experimental grouping on the left. Making these is just fun and a nice change from the towels and afghans. Right now I'm working on my own pattern for a small bunny with dress or coat (girl and boy) for Easter sales. When I'm finished, I'll post a picture of them.

Meanwhile, back to finishing my Christmas shopping.

Branson Review

Starting today, I will be reviewing some of my favorite places around the greater Branson area with links to their websites. (These are not paid advertising spots but are my own opinions. I hope they're helpful to you if you're visiting Branson)

Scrapbooks Forever
Wow, this is like a grocery store for scrap booking/card making/stamping supplies as well as classes. I am really amazed at all the items this store has in it and the ideas that are generated. You can spend hours in this place!

Shorty Small's Restaurant
This has always been my favorite restaurant ever since I discovered Branson and after moving here. We used to hang out at the one on Yellow Ribbon Rd, but the new one at Branson Landing is fun,too and right on Lake Taneycomo. The food is absolutely great...especially the ribs or the shrimp platters!!! And those cheese biscuits...wow! The link above includes menus at the various locations. Don't let the prices fool you...you will get a LOT of food! The atmosphere is very fitting for the rustic Ozarks.

Amish Country Store
There's just no way you can help but buy, buy, buy when you shop in this super-clean store. The furniture room is FABULOUS with excellent Amish made furniture (and made in America!) I absolutely drool over the well-made furniture and lamps. The bulk foods, spices and coffees are fantastic. I love to stock up on so many of these items. My favorite is the butter! It's just a really cool place to shop on the north side of Branson just down from Branson Mill area. The link above now has online shopping for some of the food products, but you just don't see all they have until you visit the store (utensils, cookbooks, candles, Amish made furniture and accessories).

Bible quote of the Day

"Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well." (Ecclesiastes 11:6 NIV)

It's Been A Long Time

Ok, so I've been a little busy and not kept up my blog. Check out some of my crochet projects.

This is what I call "car buddy". I crocheted the shoulderbelt cover and added a crocheted lion. It helps keep the car shoulderbelt from "cutting into" the grandkids necks when they're in their booster seats.

Aren't the Kleenex box covers cute? Each one takes about an afternoon to crochet. My favorite is the poodle on the pink and black striped cover, although the clown turned out cute,too.

The bear is my first attempt at making the Kleenex covers. I think this one took me the longest time to make. All but the poodle came from an Annie's Attic pattern book.

Sparkle just LOVES yarn! I walked out of the room after rummaging through the old yarn box and when I came back, Sparkle had already taken it over.

Too many resolutions!

2008 is finally here! Every year it seems as though I just can't wait for a new year to begin and the old one to end. 2007 was no different. The streets in Branson are easier to maneuver now that many tourists are gone. That means it will be easier shopping at the malls and The Landing. Today, of course, is also "football day" and game of the day for us is the Missouri/Arkansas Cotton Bowl game. Yeah...Missouri won!

Of course I made a too-long list of resolutions that I probably won't be able to stick to them all. You know...the usual...finances, house-cleaning, organizing.
Resolution 1: Use up all existing project materials in the house
I have too much yarn! I tried to think of all I could do to use up the odds and ends of Peaches and Cream yarn that kept getting tangled in the yarn box. Each ball was enough to make a nice size wash cloth, but there was never enough left to make another washcloth so I made small coasters/candle mats.
Coasters: I used a seed stitch for borders with straight knit every other row/purl every other row for a 3-1/2 inch center. The first and last 5 rows are seed stich and the 1st four and last four stitches each row is a seed stitch. I found this provides a really nice border.
Washcloths: I used the same seed stitch borders and a basketweave pattern for the center. This gives a nice texture to the cloth with the back and front looking similar instead of a definite "front" side.

Resolution 2: Do a better job of keeping up with my blog and website. Let's face it, I just need to budget my time a little better. At least for today, I'm on target...I posted here on New Year's Day! Now I need to work on my freelance site
Resolution 3: Save, save, save. Now this is almost impossible for someone who loves crafts as much as I do! My start today is to dump all the change out of my purse into the "piggy bank" for the emergency fund at home.

Resolution 4: Eat healthier this year. Now that the big "food" holidays are behind us...this should be a little easier. The past couple years I managed to avoid most pre-cooked, pre-packaged foods. 2008 shouldn't be any different. I am a big fan of natural foods and natural cleaning methods.

Bible Quote of the Day:

Say to him: 'Long life to you! Good health to you and your household! And good health to all that is yours! 1 Samuel 25:6 (NIV)

Next to nothing snow...but COLD!

We did get a little dusting of snow here along with some VERY cold temps (19 degrees at 7 a.m.), just enough to make these hills a wee bit slippery. So we'll just stay inside and watch tons of movies. It's weather like this that makes us stop and relax instead of rushing around town. Since it's Sunday, that makes it right...right?

Lucy and Sparkle adopted the little space heater along with Gary's warm slippers. Obviously, they could care less what it's like outside as long as they're warm and toasty. They think we bought the heater just for them! I'm just waiting for the felines to catch fire...they get so close! So if you want your cats to stay in one place all day...buy them an oil-filled space heater for Christmas :)

Yep...it's beginning to look like Christmas. We downsized so the tree is small, but I have fun decorating it. I made a few redwork ornaments this year and the rest, of course, collected over the years.
I also made the little primitive gingerbread men under the tree...they were fun to make and bake! My grandson said they looked like we could eat them. Well, if he said that, my project was a success since these little muslin guys are supposed to look and smell like gingerbread! Success! Next year I plan to make a really big Santa or Moose to sit near the back of the tree to hide those ugly wires to the lights!

In my hand embroidery mode, I made a primitive placemat. I'd make several more except that I ran out of batting. Embroidered in black floss on coffee/cinnamon stained & baked muslin with natural cotton batting fill.

Why is the photo black and white? Just because I like the old-time look of black and white photography.

Bible Quote of the Day

"Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest." Exodus 34:21 (NIV)

OK...so where's the snow?

For the past two days the weather reports have called for snow. I woke up early this morning expecting to see the first winter snow. Just rain and more rain. Looks like Silver Dollar City will be open after all. Oh, well...I should be thankful we're not snowed in. I found a great link to check our road conditions, though. MoDot does have a really good map at http://maps.modot.mo.gov/travelerinformation/TravelerInformation.aspx

Looks like I'll be catching up on some knitting projects today. And of course, setting up this blog spot...my very first. The good thing about having so many hobbies is once I get tired of one, I can work on something different. I need to get movin' and make a bunch of items for resale at the market in Branson. We all need extra money, right?

Here's the boys' field trip to The Discovery Center in Springfield. Maybe they'll be doctors some day? They were really fascinated by the x-ray machine and getting to hear heartbeats. But then again, they kept returning to look for dinosaur bones. It was an interesting place to take the grandkids. It was my first trip there, too. The Discovery Center has a nice website with some links to projects kids can do on the Internet. http://www.discoverycenter.org/sciencesource.php

I've always thought this is the best photo of Gary...knee deep in clear waters at Bennet Spring Park. Ok, for all you hunting/fishing fanatics, only 3 months till trout season, but here's a good link for Missouri seasons with open/close dates. http://mdc.mo.gov/seasons/
And how about recipes for wild game? http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/tv/nowwerecookin.asp
So here I sit, playing on the computer, drinking tons of coffee early in the morning, waiting for snow to fall. Back to the knitting project I go.

Bible Quote of the Day:

"If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks." Ecclesiastes 10:18 (NIV)