Nature Friday – A Walk in the Park

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here. Yesterday Charlie and I took a walk at the Webster Arboretum. I put my binoculars in my pocket but didn’t expect to find much bird action this time of year there. Now that the leaves are off all the trees we like to see if we can find birds’ nests that were previously hidden from view. It’s always amazing to see how close the nests are to the walking paths, and we never know they are there.

We were nearly back to the car when Charlie spotted a large light-colored object in a tree about thirty or so feet from the path. At first, we thought it was an old hornet’s nest but when I fished out my binoculars this is what I saw.

A Coopers Hawk staring back at me.

It certainly wasn’t a hornet’s nest but a beautiful Coopers Hawk. Based on its size we believe it was a female. Luckily, we had packed our camera equipment just in case we found something to photograph. I was sure that by the time I got my camera out and back to where the hawk was, she would be gone, but to my surprise she was there and stayed put for quite a while.

Here is a little video clip I took of her.

If you can’t see the video, you can go here to view it.

Ms. Cooper’s Hawk spent most of her time looking around for her next meal and preening a bit but wasn’t bothered by me at all. Since I had my long zoom lens on, I didn’t have to get too close to her, so I didn’t disturb her at all. Our observing the hawk pointed her out to some of the other people enjoying the park that likely never would have seen her otherwise.

The hawk kept an eye on some squirrels that were moving around behind her.

I’m glad I went back to the car and got my camera and that Ms. Cooper’s Hawk was so cooperative with me. Normally we would be joining the Nature Friday blog hop but they are on vacation until next year.

I hope all my readers have a Happy New Year!

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Merry Christmas!

Hi everyone! It’s Millie and Walter here. We want to wish all our friends who celebrate a Merry Christmas.

Here is the card we sent to those on our holiday card list.

Front of card.

Back of card.

We hope everyone is staying safe with all the cold and wintry weather across the country. More cards have come in since our previous report so we will be sure to do an update soon.

Merry Christmas!

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Wordy Wednesday – Our Christmas Cards

Hi everyone! It’s Millie and Walter here. We’ve gotten lots of Christmas cards from all over the world. Some by email and some by snail mail. It doesn’t matter how they arrive. We love all of them!

You’re supposed to look at the camera, Millie.

Our mom prints out all the e-cards we get so we can display them all on our ribbons. We wanted to lay down so you could see your cards.

I think there are some crumbs on the floor.

Here is a nice view of all the decorations on our fireplace.

Now we’ll give you a closer up view of all the cards. You can click on the image to make it bigger if you want to look for your card. There is one card missing that came in the mail today after we took these pictures.

When it comes to our annual contest between us and our parents, we are, of course, beating them by a lot!

Millie & Walter

22 Snail Mail cards

16 e-cards

Total Card Count – 38

Mom & Dad

11 cards*

Here’s the money shot mom was hoping for.

This morning was the first day in over a week that we had sunshine, so mom took the opportunity to take these pictures. It can be very dark where the cards are hung so every bit of light helps. There may still be a few more cards arriving so we will be sure to let you know a final count after Christmas.

*One card from our Mail carrier and one from our dentist! BOL!

We’re joining Comedy Plus for their Wordless Wednesday blog hop.

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Hooking on Hump Day – Craftvent Days 2-12

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here to tell you about the first few days of my Craftvent advent calendar. As I showed you in my previous post the first box contained the tools needed to complete the projects. Let’s see what was in some of the next boxes.

Stranded Hat
Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light (TML) + Tweed Yarn
Colors: Tart (red) & Tern (grey)

The projects started off with one of the more challenging patterns, a colorwork hat. Since I had done colorwork on some previous projects I wasn’t too intimidated by this one. It was worked from the top down and the pattern suggested using the waistcoat stitch that simulates a knit look. I changed the brim of the hat to a ribbed one instead of what the pattern called for.

Color Block Mittens

Color Block Mittens
Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light Yarn
Colors: Tart (red) & Antler (white)

The next pattern was a simple pair of mittens. I had never made mittens and didn’t know how the thumb was formed, but it was easy to understand the instructions.

Pom Poms and Tiny Buttons

Close up view

The day four box contained a couple of cute pom poms and some tiny gold buttons. The instructions in the box said that there are four hat patterns in this box so we get to decide which ones we might want to put the pom poms on. The buttons are supposed to be a decoration for an upcoming sweater.

Color Block Scarf
Madelinetosh Impression Yarn
Colors: Tart (red) & Carousel Horse (pink multi)

The yarn for day five is a lace-weight yarn that is 70% mohair and 30% silk. It was a bit difficult to work with, but the pattern was a simple scarf and worked up quickly.

Leather Stitch Markers

Close up view

Day six contained a set of stitch markers with leather adornments. I like having ones that have right side (RS) and wrong side (WS) designations. They will come in handy.

Color Block Socks
Madelinetosh Twist Light Yarn
Colors: Malmo (dark green) & Sorry, Not Sorry (light green)

The day seven socks were easy to make and worked up quickly.

Striped Raglan Sweater
Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light Yarn
Colors: Malmo (dark green) & Antler (white)

The striped raglan sweater was very easy to make. I’m glad I made some raglan style sweaters for myself in the past couple of years.

Birnn Chocolates of Vermont

Day nine was a nice break from hooking with a little chocolate break from Birnn Chocolates of Vermont.

Star Sweater
Madelinetosh Twist Light Yarn
Colors: Carousel Horse (pink multi) & Patriarch (bright red)

There were some missing parts to the instructions for this sweater but after referring to the knit version of the pattern I was able to figure out how to complete it. The star on the front is an applique. I’m just a bit disappointed that the star wasn’t crocheted in like it is in the knit version.

Star Mittens
Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light (TML) + Tweed Yarn
Colors: Antler (white) & Tart (red)

These mittens were similar to the previous mittens with the added star applique. I also wish this pattern was for the star to be crocheted in and not as an applique. 

della Q Accessories – Scissor Pocket w/ scissors

The day twelve box was another break from crocheting with the della Q Scissor Pocket and a pair of scissors.

Mini Millie and Walter had some fun trying on a few of the creations.

Mini Walter tries on the Stranded Hat while Mini Millie tries on the Color Block Scarf

The mittens and socks are a bit big on the minis.

The sweater colors work well with our furs.

I know that this has been a long post so thank you if you made it this far. It’s been fun working on all these little projects and I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing them.

I’m joining the The Loop Scoop Yarny Link Party (formerly known as Hookin’ on Hump Day). You should stop by to see some of the other projects people have posted.

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Christmas Crafting – Jimmy Beans Wool Craftvent 2022

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here. Today I want to show you what has been keeping my crochet hook busy the past few days.

You’ve probably heard of advent calendars where you open a little door or box each day in the month of December to count down the days until Christmas. Usually, the calendars contain candy or if you get one for your pet it might have toys or treats. This calendar from Jimmy Beans Wool is for knitters or crocheters and contains all you need to create cute holiday decorations. The kits were available in three colorways. I chose the “Home for the Holidays” colorway which is mostly greens and reds with some white and grey mixed in. At the time of writing this post there were only a handful of kits available in the “A December to Remember” colorway. 

Let’s take a peek inside.
I see lots of yarn that mom will love.

You aren’t supposed to peek until the proper day of the month, but Mini Millie & Walter couldn’t help themselves.

Look at all this soft yarn.
Mom’s going to like these colors.

The mini pups invited their friends, the boys from South Park to sneak some peaks in the boxes too.

Cartman: I think I smell some candy in here somewhere!
Kyle: So far, I’ve only seen yarn.

Those boys are known for being naughty!

Stan: Look at the yarn we found!
Kyle: You’re not supposed to take out the yarn before the proper day!

Mini Millie & Walter pitched in to help Cartman get to the top with the rest of the boys.

Cartman: Hold that line tight so I can get to the top.

My crocheted characters had fun exploring the Craftvent box. So far, I’ve been able to keep up with the projects since there are a few boxes mixed in that don’t have any yarn that gives you a day off (or a day to catch up).

Day 1: 3.25mm crochet hook and 2.75mm Double Pointed Needles

The first day contained the hook and needles that you need to work on all the projects. There was also a slip of paper with instructions on how to download the patterns.

Later this week, I’ll show you some of the projects I’ve created so far. They are all so cute!

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