Kat Toys

So, you just got a new kitten. Don't waste your hard earned money buying toys at a pet store! Look around the house...use your imagination. In the photo on the left are two items that are very popular with Pumpkin. The first is an empty water bottle with marbles inside and an old piece of stretchy material tied to the cap. He likes to roll it and drag it around.

The next toy took more effort to make. First I had to empty a bottle of wine. Then I washed the cork so my kitten wouldn't get high. I drilled holes in the cork, length-wise and across the diameter of the cork. I glued in some feathers and wired in a few pony beads. Much nicer than spending ten bucks at the store.

Finally...the simplest of all toys...two twist ties. Behold the video of Pumpkin with his favorite toy.

New Kitten, news...

August 31st I accompanied Jacque and Jesse (her grand daughter) to a home in NA that had free kittens. Jacque wanted a friend for her cat...she recently lost an elderly cat. We arrived and were greeted at the door and brought to the kittens' domain. Two white ones and one orange tiger.

I had occasionally toyed with the idea of a kitten, but I had certain considerations...such as, it had to be female, and the coloring would be a silver/black tiger. Well, Jacque chose her little white boy (Sugar) and I, unable to walk away and leave the little orange tiger, came away with a little boy who we have named Pumpkin.

I thought Steve would be upset, but he's not...guess he looks at it as another cat to tease....only this one has very sharp claws! The one who is really upset is Minou. She may be planning to run away.

The cooler weather is here in New England for sure. I actually had to close a window this morning. Last night we sat out for a while until the mosquitoes found us. We have had a stretch of beautiful weather lately. I especially like the sunsets this time of year...lots of pinks and purples. A favorite vine has bloomed; the Moon Flower. I hope to get a picture of it when it has multiple flowers.




A final note for this posting....I'm going back to school, Rhode Island College, to get certified in Special Education. It will take a while since it's not exactly in the budget. I'll chip away...one class at a time until that lottery number comes in.
Until next time...Enjoy your day!

Fitting End to the Summer

Steve and I drove to Mashpee to bike a trail with Linda Lee. It was a perfect day; not too humid, big puffy clouds, and few tourists. We set out a little after 1:00pm. I stopped a few times to take pictures along the way. I had my old camera...not enough power to capture detail or the egrets dining in the marshes. If I can outfit my bike with cushioned bags to hold my Nikon, I'll definitely haul it on our Fall trip. Yes, we are already dying to go back there, it was such a nice ride. We would like to stay a few days and bring the kayaks.


We stopped for lunch in Woods Hole (Landfall Restaurant)...lobster roll, french fries and a jumbo Arnold Palmer iced tea...excellent. After we ate Steve got some bottled water for us and we headed back to Mashpee. The sun was a few hours from setting. It felt like an autumn afternoon. All along the trail there were rabbits and their offspring munching away....very cute.


We made one final stop near the end of the trail and that was to get ice cream. I highly recommend the Shining Sea Bikeway.

Silver Fusing Class

I must sadly admit that I cannot light a gas grill, so I was a bit leary about taking a class in silver fusing. You use a butane torch to heat fine silver. I was able to create a few things without even so much as a scorch to the skin! We made headpins and earrings complete with ear wires. It was a great time and it's especially nice to meet people that love the craft.

Jewelry

Someone asked to see the jewelry that I've been making so I thought I'd post a photo. Quick description from top left cw:
1. coat hanger earrings-black wire, orange/blk. bead is a real seed.
2. glass blk./white dangles w/ red crystals
3. copper tinged leaf with turquoise and orange dangles
4. 28 g. wire macrame w/ pearls and copper textured beads
5. Swarovski crystal ring (on stretchy cord)
6. green glass w/wire spiral
My favorite place to make jewelry is the Bead Cache in Mansfield. The shop is small (cozy), and has the best selection of supplies, knowledgeable employees, classes...etc.
I am currently working with hemp and other fibers to make variations of friendship bracelets.
Take care

July 20, 2009

Hi ....just a short note and a couple of pictures.

Steve...stops in his tracks! What the....! Is this the biggest dragonfly you've ever seen? His eyes were like marbles. He flew up into a tree. Very cool.

Garden Festival at Tranquil Lake

Saturday we visited Tranquil Lake Nursery for their annual Summer Open House. They are located on River Street in Rehoboth, MA. As usual the fields of colorful daylilies were breathtaking (should have brought the camera). Try to visit in the next few weeks when the lilies are at their best.

Athyrium hybrid, “Branford Rambler”

Always looking for something unusual, I purchased a trailing fern for my shade area and two air plants. I put them on a piece of drift wood next to the garage. It’s very interesting how they get their nutrients…not from soil. They collect dew/rain and transport the water by way of specialized cells, to their plant body…cool! I may try to wire the TBX to a crook in the driftwood. The plant uses its short root system to hang onto host trees.

Tillandsia Hondurensis (left), and Tillandsia Brachycaulos X

Canoeing the Mashpee River

Here we are, me the grunt up front, and Linda Catalina, the rudder woman, crusing down the calm waters of the Mashpee River. We spotted a Green Heron feasting under a dock. Linda claims she saw some jellyfish. I think she was just seeing things and was a bit dizzy from steering us in a zigzag pattern for many miles.

Wanted
Ruddering Lessons
(for my friend)

Out of focus Green Heron

Summer is Finally Here!

Summer has finally made it to Seekonk. Our tomatoes and peppers are growing nearly as expeditiously as the weeds. Mother nature brings us all things....I happily watch the tadpoles turn to frogs and toads, and note the young birds, bunnies, woodchucks and opossums scurry in the backyard. Of course I am not so delighted about the consequences some of these little creatures bring about as they voraciously devour the flowers and vegetables. The carrot tops have been eaten as well as the entire snap pea population. Thanks to those adorable little bunnies, I have very few buds/flowers on my annuals.

Despite this downside of nature, I would never hurt these little creatures. This is not the case for the "Mr. McGregor" in the neighborhood. Last night as I was walking around the yard, there was a commotion by the trash bin. A large woodchuck appeared to be trapped between the garage and a trash bin. He was on his back making some blood curdling sounds. I moved the bin, but he did not run. He appeared to be in distress and died a short time later. My main concern is that he may have brought some of what killed him onto our property. I am worried that the dogs and cat might find it...whatever it is.

Steve finally hung some of the bird houses he made over the winter. I especially like the yellow house with the glass flower on the front. We bought lights for the pergola at the Christmas Tree shop. They are strands of silver stars with star cutouts in the (tin?). Uh oh...does that mean they'll rust soon? We also have some interesting lighting by the pond. Steve hung a gazing ball in the Mimosa tree and a large wine bottle stuffed with tiny lights. Last night he noticed that moths were flying around the globe. I'm hoping the bats will notice...we need help keeping the mosquito population down.I've posted a few pictures...I hope to be able to get one of the humming bird soon.

Take care and enjoy each day!

Steve can shoot flames from his head.

The glowing globe

A heart shaped bottle on the ground with lights inside and baskets of Impatiens hang from the Mimosa

I'm Back!

Wow...it's been months since I posted...that's what teaching first grade does to me. I spent most of my waking hours planning and gathering, grading and recording. I made more work for myself because I wanted to have the children experience more than the standard curriculum mandates.

We observed the lifecycle of frogs and butterflies, experimented with magnets and made a compass from a pin and some cork. We tested it with a real compass...ours worked fine! And thanks to Mr. Auclair for lending the class a microscope...we were able to observe many interesting things.

What ever happened to the old adage, “don’t like the weather, wait a minute. This is New England, It’ll change.” ????
I’m surprised that our tomatoes are doing so well. Some of the potted plants are suffering though. The soil is growing mold. I don’t know if I should cover them…or just wait for Mother Nature to have a change of heart.
The only thing that is really doing well is the mosquito population, especially now that my neighbor shut down the pump in her pond. It is now a 100 gallon breeding pool for the little disease carriers.

School is out (for me) for the summer. I didn’t get the job that I had last year and never heard from the director about subbing for summer school. There isn’t much out there for jobs. I’ve got to update my resume and get copies of my transcripts so that I can renew my certification. It’s hard to believe almost five years has passed since I graduated.

Here is a little bit of sunshine from the pond. Steve bought this yellow lily last year. The blooms are quite large compared to the white and pink lilies.

Adios for now...

Global Warming???

I just read an article titled "Global warming hastens arrival of springtime," (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23709253/ ). The author, Seth Borenstein, cites some signs of Spring that are happening months ahead of time. For example, a butterfly that typically emerges in April/May has been spotted recently "fluttering" in California. He mentions that various trees are budding much earlier than usual. This reminds me of a situation that happened last year. Steve and I noticed that the Wisteria was loaded with blooms in early Spring. I never thought anything of the timing though. I just couldn’t wait to see the pergola covered in beautiful orchid tendrils. A week or two later we had a heavy frost….that was the end of all those buds. The Wisteria bloomed later…but it wasn’t the spectacle we originally anticipated.

With the calendar announcing Spring approaching, in less than 24 hours, I wonder how the plants and creatures will fare. On my morning walkabout, I noticed a sure sign of Spring, but now I worry that it’s way too early for the Bullfrogs to emerge. I didn’t have my camera with me at the time, so no photo today of the very healthy looking frog. However, I thought my nature loving friends would like to hear the sound of the backyard babbling pond. Steve just jump started the filters yesterday. The fish are quite active now that the water is moving.

For the Birds

What a beautiful weekend. I feel terrible that I am inside, but I wanted to post a clip of the birdhouses that Steve built and he and I painted. I just love his bird condo. Six families can enjoy this "old barn" facade.

The next short video is of the single family homes that I painted. Once I know what I'm doing with the airbrush, I'd like to sell them to support my craft habit.

Till next time....

It's a Sign

I'm not much of a housekeeper so I'm taking this as a sign from Alyssa and Jillian that I should hold off vacuuming for a while. I mean really...look how uncomfortable Alyssa seems. Her body language just screams, "take a break...go have some fun...take us outside and fill your pockets with biscuits!"
Your wish is my command.

Trees and a Little Reminiscing

It’s beginning to look like a pretty nice day. No jobs for school…however, I’ll make the best of the day. I have a house plant that needs repotting. A trip to Home Depot is in order for a nice clay pot and a fresh bag of soil. Oh, yes, the African Violets are complaining about stale soil and cramped quarters too. Hopefully I can find specialty soils at HD.

This morning, as I was looking for a (per diem) job, my mind drifted to ways I could motivate kids to write. I found some interesting sites which I have bookmarked, but one site stood out. It has beautiful pictures of trees and sun kissed wooded paths, poetry, folk tales, lessons, and much more.

My love of trees probably began when I was very young. Our family home was surrounded by fields and wooded areas. My siblings, neighborhood pals and I could explore for hours, with nary a house in sight. It could be scary if you were alone!
My best friend Brian (there weren’t any girls my age in the neighborhood) and I had a camp in the midst of a circle of Birch trees. The camp floor was a thick, green moss…more luxurious than any rug could ever be. We loved that camp, but like everything else, its time came to an end. Soon a road was built and many new homes sprang up. To this day I still think about that enchanting space in the woods. I would like to create an area somewhere in my backyard. Unfortunately acreage is something Steve and I don’t have. I might have to settle for a mossy area under some Pines.

Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

Please enjoy this site…… http://www.spiritoftrees.org/spirit_of_trees.html

Veronica

There's nothing cuter than a newborn foal. This is Veronica, born 2/18/09 to Melody. I'm not sure of the sire. My sister and brother-in-law have a herd of these adorable miniature horses. I believe they have some for sale. Check out the website. http://www.lanewayfarm.com

Utopia in Grade 5

One of the most exciting reasons to have my own classroom would be to allow children to really use their minds and natural curiousity to learn.
Check out this great video.

Checking In

It is a beautiful sunny day here in New England, though it's a tad too chilly to spend lots of time outdoors. Steve took the girls out for a walk, and I rode along on my bike. Both dogs are doing well. Alyssa does her usual show dog prance, but naturally for a fourteen year old pup, she got tired before we reached home. Jill is her usual "knuckle-head" self, always switching sides as if she is trying to trip someone.


February (Winter Break) vacation starts Monday. We don't have any concrete plans except for Wednesday evening. We are going to the Providence Performing Arts Center to see BB King and Buddy Guy. Steve is such a sport to say he'd go with me. I know he would rather be playing video games. The Rhode Island Flower Show begins Feb. 19th. We went last year...it's pretty small, but if you need to smell soil and fresh flowers, it's a good choice. If you go...don't forget to stop on Federal Hill for dinner.

Steve gets the cool guy award for helping me make earrings today. I was twisting wire by hand. He took over using a drill...it really sped up the process. We just need a better way to hold small gauge wire. So here is a picture of the earrings and a book mark that I made using the drill and three sizes of wire. I've also include a shot of a wire heart neclace and earrings, and a wirewrapped shell. I broke up the shell, tumbled it in sand and water, rubber stamped the image, and wrapped the piece with small crystals. As you can see, I need a close up lens (obviously) and some lessons on shooting jewelry.

I'll be posting soon...hopefully with some more interesting stuff.

Stocking the Workshop

I’m so grateful that our basement is looking more like a workshop every day. Steve is cranking out birdhouses, and I have been painting them…I almost can’t keep up with him.

That's what instigated one of those “ah ha” moments. I have always wanted to get into airbrushing. Steve and I spent some time looking at products on the Internet. There were so many types and styles, not to mention price ranges. “Let’s ask an expert,” I suggested. So we jumped in the truck and drove two miles up Oakhill Avenue to Greg Dorrance’s amply stocked store.

I hadn’t been in a while, but the small storefront was buzzing with activity. Steve got into a conversation with some of the patrons while I wandered through the aisles. This is literally what I did….spotted a book on making puzzles with a scroll saw (I have one). Oh…here’s a cool book on metal embossing (I’ve been messing around with techniques for jewelry and scrapbooking). Hey, Greg has lots of paper for covering books and making journals.

This is a dangerous place for me to hang around; I wanted to buy everything. I had to interrupt the guys in order to save myself from financial ruin and to tell Greg the reason we stopped by. He was able to show us a few different air brushes. Even though Steve and I had decided to just look today, we bought the air brush that best suited our needs. I just had to have that “Metal Effects” book too. The best part of the experience was finding out that Greg carries all the tools and supplies that one would need to complete projects. For example, he had the metal foils and tools that I needed to experiment with using my new book. Did I mention good prices? I was pleasantly surprised!I’ll be posting pictures of finished projects soon.

Check out his site...he ships anywhere. www.gregdorrance.com

Hey, aren't I the avid blogger! Just getting to the second post one year later. Truth be told, I just returned from a Blogging 101 class at the Seekonk Library. I was intimidated by this blogging thing, but after listening to Michelle I feel confident.

What I would like to do here is post pictures and news about things that happen in this neck of the woods. One year later I'm still a substitute teacher...however I accepted a long term position that will begin in March. It will be wonderful to have a regular pay check for a few months. I'm hoping to save enough to go back to school for early childhood certification, and/or ESL.

I know it is only January, but my mind is on gardening and redesigning the landscape in our front yard. We seem to have garden pests who eat leaves and gnaw off the flower heads, but it only occurs in the front yard. We may have to find plants that grashoppers, beetles, and squirrels don't like. Any suggestions?