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What do you do when your dogs measure less than a foot at the shoulders and more than 8 inches of snow has fallen overnight… and it is still falling?. Here we break out the beach towels…
My dogs are Lhasa Apsos, a Tibetan breed. Although they are far from where they originated, they fit the description of ’snow mountain dog’ very well. While they don’t care for heat and humidty, detest the rain and even worse, puddles, snow on the other hand is a different matter.
As our weather turns colder, they become watchful, looking up and sniffing the air testing for possible snow. If they think it is coming there is a little bounce in their step in anticipation of a little fun. Once it gets here, they revel in it.
Good dog owners that we are, we diligently go out and shovel paths for them and clear a large area in the dog yard for them. And as always, they will run out and ignore the cleared areas, jumping into it, plowing through it, eating it, rolling in it and looking for the highest pile of snow and sometimes engaging in a
doggy version of King Of The Mountain…
Dafni and Karma playing in the snow
While they are out, we keep an eye on them… if they are in full coat or have not had the hair on their paws trimmed short, they can accumulate so much snow on their coat that it acts as great insulation and so mucn on their paw pads to act as snowshoes. But, if it isn’t dry snow which can be shaken off easily, it will all get too heavy and they will sink in the snow and have trouble getting free and just lay there in their insulated coats, paws tucked under till they thaw out.. Meanwhile accumulating even more snow.
How much snow can a 10 – 20 pound Lhasa accumlate? A lot! And it is almost impossible to get it out before bringing them in. They don’t shake it out cause it doesn’t bother them. Our solution is to use beach towels. Our mud room/back hall is right off the deck. Just before the dogs come in, I’ll throw a bunch of beach towels into the dryer to warm them up. Then I try to knock off any snow clumps or icicles from the dogs coats. When they come in, each dog gets a warm towel spread on the floor and as they roll in it, the towel absorbs water… avoiding many puddles all over the floors…
Gizzy rolling in a towel
The only other solution I’ve found that works well for quick thawing with no puddles is to put a dog into a wire bottomed crate near a source of warm air or use a blow dryer to dry them, neither of which I like to do, particularly with multiple dogs.
Schools are closed, travel adversaries are out… nice day to stay home, enjoy our first heavy snowfall and watch the snow puppies romp in the snow….
Several friends have mentioned that they don’t use their ipods because they dislike using anything in their ears and most stations for their ipods are too bulky or require a plug, thus not being very portable. I mentioned I use a small speaker unit for mine and was asked what it looks like… Here it is…
It isn’t very big at all, fits in a large pocket, has very good sound quality and batteries (I like to use rechargeables) seem to last forever. This allows me to take my ipod just about anywhere in my multiple floored house, studio, garden… away from home. Occasionally I will use the ipod with the earbuds, carrying it all in the little bag I made from yarn leftover from a sock project, which to my surprise won a first place ribbon at a fiber festival.
While the ipod is a modern gadget, I find that it is one of those things that simplifies my life. On there I have devotionals, music, tutorials, books and more, all of them free downloads. While there is nothing to compare putting my feet up and reading a good book, being able to listen to something on the ipod while I work is very enjoyable and keeps me from acquiring even more books than I do.
Another thing that helps keep life a bit simpler and uncluttered is the small counter area I planned when we knocked down the wall between the kitchen and dining room. Most of out friends and family liked to hang out in the kitchen with us and combining the spaces allowed us to create a seating /window seat area at one end and the message center area as well as an island for eating or food prep.
The message center is a small granite tiled counter on two bookcases with recycled cabinets above. On the left side of the counter is a slim wine cellar and more storage above for wine bottles. One of the cabinets holds glasses and such. The other cabinet holds coffees, teas, and snacks such as nuts. On the counter sits a wireless lap top, a one cup coffee/tea maker, and a few items we use everyday. When the letter holder fills up with photos, recipes, etc, It is time to clean it out. Artwook by the grandkids or other interesting photos or items such as the apple pencil holder I made many years ago, pencils and a family calendar iare all we need tacked on the wall. Cookbooks are in one bookcase, childrens books in the other. Often a grandchild can be found sitting on the floor looking through the books.
Altough most of the time the counter serves as a message center, it takes only minutes to set it up as a serving area for desserts and coffee bar. I like that I can monitor pc use by grandkids while I prepare supper, read a book, use my spinning wheel, etc.
Outside my window… It is very grey and blustery… feels like January … brrrrrrrr!
I am thinking.… About a son whose Birthday is today…
I am thankful for… a warm house. I did my 2+ miles this morning on my elliptical trainer, just too cold for walking or jogging outdoors…
From the kitchen… Hot pizza! With lots of cheese…
I am wearing… Thin layers of clothing, hand knit wool sweater, hand knit wool socks.
I am creating… Fiber batts for spinning and felting. Also working on personal notes to tuck into Christmas cards.
I am going… Nowhere, it is a good day to stay home and catch up on reading, spinning, knitting.
I am reading… Lots of things, mainly articles in magazines, online, doing a bit of research on several topics.
I am hoping… To hear good news about several family members.
I am hearing… Dogs barking… Our littlest Lhasa, Star likes to exercise her lungs as well as her legs when she is let out. Why is it that the littlest ones are so often the ones that run the show? Silly girl.
Around the house… Granddaughter Jessica says we are beginning to look like a library with the bathroom and laundry room being the only rooms with no books. Can one ever have too many books?
One of my favorite things… Someone gave us a collection of booklets of old paper dolls, uncut. Some are actually paper teddy bears. I remember playing with these types of dolls as a young girl. When I flipped the booklets over to see how old they were, I found the author/artist at the time lived less than 2 miles from us. I hope we can find out more about the person who created them.
A few plans for the rest of the week: sort out a yarn order that arrived today, finish my brother’s throw, start the guild newsletter for December, play with the drum carder, visit the museum in Corning…
Here is picture thought I am sharing…
To read more about The Simple Woman’s Day Book, visit her blog. http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/
Seasons End
Harvesting the last of the produce from the garden is one of the normal signs of transition from Summer to Autumn.
I was able to keep harvesting till just a week ago, covering plants at night until daytime temps were too low to be of much benefit.
This summer’s food and herb garden did not hold much, just a few plants given to me by friends that had little space for extra plants. I’d cleared that space of all plants last fall and so now all that remains is Sage & Chocolate Mint. There are plans to fill that space up again next year, having been able to remove an invasive weed we battled with last year.
The end of growing season, marks the beginning family season, when we spend more time with each other and not rushing around working on outdoor projects, going on trips, enjoying outdoor activities in the community.
This year we have a new Season of another kind. My husband retired last week. He is much younger than most people when they retire, but he is ready to move on, do the things he has not had time for, no more work travel, staying at hotels, lugging a heavy briefcase and laptop everywhere.
He is looking forward to having time to do what he likes to do best, work with his hands, pull out the shopsmith that has been tucked away for years, set it up and put some miles on it. His first project is a large shed that I can use as a potting shed but also as a summer studio facing the garden. I currently use most of the garage with the sheltered patio as my summer studio, once the new building is done that space will be his to use
Another milestone here is not really a personal one, but important to me for many reasons. This Saturday the guild will celebrate it’s first anniversary. We ended the year with 40 members and have been very busy meeting new people, learning new things, participating in demos and other events.. It has been a lot of fun, but also a lot of work.
In order to free up time (my studio work has suffered a bit and so has my writing) make things a little easier and more efficient for everyone, I’ve asked a fellow guild member to take over the discussion/business part of the meeting. I will help, but will have more time to set up workshops, work on the newsletter and guild blog. Saturday I will be doing what I like doing most, teaching the members how to weave using wheat to make small ornaments or favors.
Not only have I neglected updating this blog, I’ve also neglected the guild blog and my studio blog. There just wasn’t much time for sitting down to work on updates. I’m working on them now!
Some of the photos posted here were taken with my phone camera as my camera is a bit too large to carry with me at times… those photos are blurry….sorry! Maybe I should ask for a small digital camera for my birthday… hmmm?
May Day signals the start of serious garden work for me. I like to devote as much time as possible to the garden in May so that I can have all the heaviest work before the heat and humidity of summer arrives. Sounds like a plan, right? Unfortunately, spring did not cooperate. Like weather everywhere, we had unseasonable weather, too cold one day, too hot another, too much rain… etc.. A lot of things that normally get done in May did not get done and I’m a bit behind, enough that a veggie garden will not be started, I’m devoting my time to perennial or self seeding plants.
Guild Meeting happened on May 3rd – because the fellowship hall at the church was being used, we met in one of the smaller rooms upstairs. The room was fine for the number of guild members that showed up, but not many of us considered the fact that we’d have to carry things upstairs…. Better planning if this happens again. Easier to carry drop spindles and knitting up stairs, than spinning wheels, looms and library inventory..
Mother’s Day went well. For the first time in 4 years I got to spend a good part of the day with a special grandson, what more could I ask for?
Bringing in the Sheep happened on May 23rd at the monastery. I’d planned to help, but arrived just as the last of the sheep were going into the barn. I blame my tardiness on the new perennial garden, Chamberlain Acres, that is way to close to my home. I’d stopped to look at what they had and lost track of time. I can see this place is going to be a problem for me, I have a hard time resisting perennials, particularly from a local business. Anyway, last year it took longer to bring in all the sheep so I really thought I’d be there in time to help get the stragglers in. I was teased about my good timing when I arrived.. Oops!
Shearing day at Mt Saviour Monastery
is held on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. This year it was on May 24th. I went to watch for a while and to see if they needed help with skirting, came home with a Scottish Blackface fleece and another fleece that is either a Greyface or BFL fleece. The Scottish Blackface fleece will be used to make a hooked rug. No plans for the other fleece yet…. And no photos of this year’s shearing, I forgot to take my camera. I did take photos last year , there is a link to that post on the Monastery Wool project page
Mom’s Birthday, May 25th is when I plant special things like Dahlias, in her memory. No Dahlias this year, but I did add a few new things. And as if on cue, the dragonflies have returned, zipping around the garden as I work, constantly reminding me of Mom working alongside me in the garden.
Memorial Day – It felt odd to have this on the 26th when the 31st was actually the next weekend. I normally go to the ceremony that is held at Woodlawn National Cemetery after the parade. This year I stayed home and was surprised to find out that a ceremony and gun salute is also done at the cemetery down the street. How have I missed knowing that?
A Wedding was the perfect way to end the month. On May 31, a special niece was married. The wedding was at St Paul’s Cathedral in Buffalo. The old cathedral is beautiful and large, a perfect place to have a wedding. My niece Tanya had a maid of honor but no bridesmaids, choosing instead to have several teenage boys, including her 3 sons, as part of the wedding party. At the start of the ceremony, each boy presented her with a flower which she used to form her bouquet. As usual there were many smiles and also a few tears, particularly when hugging some of the elderly family members we haven’t see in a long time. My aunt cried when she saw Dad, which got her daughter going, which got my brother-and-sister in law going and they all got me going… Sigh… And as the bride and groom, Tanya and Dennis, walked down the isle after the ceremony, Tanya reached over and pulled Dad out of the pew and had him walk out with them.
Flowery Friday…
I was going to post photos of this and other plants in my garden blog, but we are in the process of putting our house up for sale and I’m debating what to do with all my plants. If I end up not being able to take a lot with me, I’m not sure I want to see photos of everything I’ve left behind, it may be a bit painful…
The flower in the photo is the single bloom on a hydrangea that my husband purchased several years ago as an Easter plant. While I know many plants that are forced into bloom don’t always survive easily, I always try planting them in the garden to see if they will thrive.
This particular plant has not done well, would grow less than a foot and then die back. I’m not one to baby plants, they either thrive or they eventually die or find new homes and are eliminated from the garden, but this one did neither. Finally, I gave up, pulled it out and temporarily placed it near the River Birch simply cause I wanted to give it another chance. Occasionally, I’d throw some discarded coffee grinds in that area.
I noticed about a month ago, that as usual the plant was about a foot tall, then a few weeks ago, I could see that it was actually going to have at least one bloom. On Monday I took this photo.
Yesterday I took this photo ….. The color is stunning! It seems to love the rather unkempt area under that birch. I’m adding this to my list of plants that I’ll consider taking if we move.
As for selling our home. We hadn’t planned to sell our home till next year. But, we found a simple ranch we like. It is smaller than this house, but easy to care for, less time consuming and gardening area that is pretty much a blank canvas. However, the purchase of that house is contingent to a quick sale of this one. Rather than stress over selling and moving, I’m just handing it over to God. I’m ok if we move or stay, after all, a home is more than just a house. But, it seems most friends and family are all hoping we don’t sell the house, because they all love this house, I find it very interesting and rather amusing.
Anyone remember that show where someone would try to finish a project in a weekend?
This weekend we had things that needed to get done.. mowing, trimming, and moving some furniture. We also wanted to go see a house that is for sale. Now normally, these things wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the kids were catering a wedding and so grandson Connor was here most of Saturday and till after noon on Sunday. *G* Does anything get done quickly with an almost 2 year old is helping? And to top it off, it was hot and humid which means we move a little slower. We did what we could with him around, but left the house visit and furniture moving till he was gone.
What you are seeing in a small room off our bedroom. I believe at one time it was a sleeping porch. It hasn’t really served any purpose the last few years. Even though we are thinking of moving in the future, I decided it was time to put that space to use. At the same time I needed a place to set up a library. We moved one of the bookcases out of a guest room and then wrestled the other one up the stairs.. If you have ever moved furniture up the stairs of an older home, you know what fun that is. Anyway, it all turned out well and I have been collecting books from all over the house and putting them in this room where I can sort through them, decide what I want to keep and what needs to find a new home. My legs hurt from going up and down stairs.
We also moved the matching desk into this room, added a desk chair, another armchair and footstool and it is very cozy, a great place to sit and read, listen to music or get some paperwork or pc work done. We already have an office/den to work in, but if we do sell our home, an extra space for parents might be a good selling point. It has a large window in each of the short walls. You can see the edge of the desk in the first photo. The second photo shows our garage from the opposite window… its a long way down! And the reason why we are considering moving… stairs…
Oh and here is our little helper, working very hard…
That refrigerator that died last week and caused me a bit of work and stress, moving or giving away food.
Well… its not dead.
We contacted a used appliance store that will pick up fridges that look good, repair them and then sell them at a very good price. The lady that Ruben spoke to asked if we had tried turning off the fridge for a day or so, letting it sit and then turning it on. Are we the only ones that have never heard you should try this? So, we did and of course it was roaring along rather nicely, cooling just fine.
If Mom were still alive, she would laugh and say … A Dios No Le Gusta Feo … which means… God Doesn’t Like Ugly.
I have complained about the noise that fridge makes, I could hear it a floor above or below. And while I like listening to music and such, I also like quiet, very much dislike the constant sound of a loud motor running. To me, it is the same as having a TV going all day. Of course, whenever I complained, I would stop and think that I should be grateful for a fridge that works.
That is the ugly part. Mom would have told me that I should be on my hands and knees Thanking God for providing us with the means to have things that other people would love to have. To be ungrateful is ugly.
So, now we have two fridges. The one inside hums and the other, in the garage for now, still roars and there is no guarantee that it won’t continue to have problems. We haven’t decided what to do with it. Every time I stop and think that we could have used that money for needed home repairs, I remind myself that I got exactly what I asked for.
The 3 days I spent running around dealing with moving food and finding a new fridge were days I’d really needed to catch up on studio work and customer orders, orders that I’m just now, a week later, working on.
Reminder to myself: Don’t be Ugly
We had our hottest day yet yesterday.
And so of course my refrigerater died.
Then we had a severe thunderstorm and lost our power for the rest of the day.
The dogs were as thrilled with the day as I was.
We did get much needed rain.
Once again, I’ve fallen behind on blogging and am getting nudges from friends and family wondering if I’m ok. I’m fine, just busy. I did a quick update on my garden blog and studio blog and now a quick one here.
Today is the first day of summer and the good news is that I have been pretty much allergy symptom free so far. This is a far cry from a couple of summers ago when I was on 6 different medication to control my allergies and asthma. Thank God I did so well this spring.
So, what have I been up to? Moving… not moving my household… but helping with packing up Dad’s home so he could move into his new apartment. And clearing out the 3rd bay of our garage so I could have a summer place for studio work.
With Dad, there was great concern over his living alone in such a large house that needs a lot of upkeep. It was a lot of work to get things packed and its not all done yet. I had to leave before it was finished and so other family members are doing that last bit. The important thing is that Dad is safe and likes his new place.
I took another trip out of town to visit Dad and that same weekend went to an Art Festival, walked more than 5 hours and only saw a little bit of what the vendors had to offer. One really needs an entire day to see it all.
So.. what did I buy? I passed up a pair of earrings. I liked them but wasn’t sure and decided to come back and see if they were still there on the way out if I didn’t find something I liked better. I ended up with no earrings, should have grabbed them when I had a chance.
I picked up a french rolling pin in an exotic wood. I’ve been wanting one for a while, but it may be some time before I try it, with it not being baking season.
I picked up a small birdbath, mainly cause it was cute. After I put it in the garden I stepped back and thought… it is too small. I’ve yet to see a bird use it. Why would they when there is a wider birdbath and even better, two large pots filled with water plants. There the birds not only get a drink, they devour the water plants… story for another day.
And I picked up a bug … It hangs on the screen door to the new workshop/studio…
Most of the other things I liked were too big to fit in the car with several adults and a baby, but I picked up business cards for places close enough to home for things to be picked up or shipped.
While there was much to see there, what impressed me the most was some hand stitched artwork. The detail in each piece was just amazing. Most of the people looking thought they were looking at paintings and then when they would realize what they were looking at, their mouths would fall open in astonishment. I was one of those. The work was exquisite! I need to save my pennies for one of their pieces next year. You can see some of the things at this website, but it doesn’t show just how gorgeous these are with the minute stitches. Sea Gallery
As for my new workspace, I really like it a lot. We removed all the stuff that had been stored in there. Then we set up some shelves and workspaces. It is very easy for me to just bring whatever I need from my studio and work in there. An overhead door at the back opens to a small patio facing the kitchen garden. When the door is open a fixed screen remains in place. On the side there is a window and a door which opens to a large patio near a parking area. Here I work on projects or workshops in the shade. There is another overhead door on the front but until a screen is fixed in place it stays closed most of the time. The last thing I need is critters or bugs getting in.
Garden work continues and takes up a lot of my time at the moment… I don’t mind. But as the bigger chores are completed, I’m finding time for other things like studio work.
Yogi, our oldest Lhasa, who is a one eyed dog has another eye infection and the gland has prolapsed again. And he seems to be having some other problem. I’m praying its not bladder stones. He’s on medication for everything, we shall see. At the moment the eye problem is of most concern as he only has one eye.
Gizzy, out other Lhasa also has an eye infection, but this seems to happen yearly during high pollen season. So far, not a problem.
Tomorrow (Sunday) I’ll be doing a spinning demo at the Big Flats Historical Museum open house. I’ll be taking my Great Wheel and my smaller wheel. Taking the Great Wheel any place is a challenge because of how big it is. The drive wheel alone is about 39 “inches wide. It will be taken apart and transported in a pick up. I’ll be taking my camera.
Lots more to share, but it will have to wait for the next post…..
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