I've got a loverly bunch of coconuts...

... along with various and sundry other bits and pieces ....
The one with the blue wig is definitely a keeper.  It is from a class by Judy Skeel...and I am very happy with it.  I still do want to do something with that one.  It had some amazing techniques that I think I managed to accomplish very well.  Just didn't feel impelled to complete the rest of the doll as it is in her pattern and so I quit.  Seems to be my MO some days.  The others...?  well, if you are doll maker, you will see the problems... although, some of them can be overcome with proper hair or banding or hats or something I suppose.... Most of them were trying to get a grip on how to put a second skin over the original stitched heads in order to hide the centre seam.  And..they did work.. sort of..... but, man, it's tough to get rid of wrinkles ..... as we know!

The tiny head is a bead.... haven't a clue what to do with that...although I did see some bead head angels on a Flickr site the other day.... perhaps a possibility.....

Doll Street is having a Boneyard challenge.  I have plenty of discarded or unused body parts and yet.... looking at them does nothing to tweak my imagination.  Who needs a head...an arm...a leg? ...to complete their doll.  Let me know the general dimensions or a size you are interested in....I may be able to help.

One leg has the beginnings of a shoe on it....hahahha.... from when I was making my ...erm... which doll was that now? ...... I think it was this one.... maybe .....

or , perhaps this gal..... who knows now. Years go by.........

Stuff accumulates........ my poor, poor crafting room.....yes....a whole room ....with a huge table and a large enough desk.... and I still have no room to work...and wouldn't know where to find anything to begin with...............

ohhhhhh...... look, poor little Rumpel....still unfinished .... .... I am pretty annoyed with myself now....

 Hey.... there's even a little mouse in there.  Obviously it's time to dig a hole.  No, not to throw myself into...but to make some room to play with some fun stuff in there.........

Break out those flannelette 'jammies!

Brrrr......  I hope you have them if you have weather like ours in your winter!  I love mine.  My 'jammies that is ...not my bitter cold weather.

After having such a lovely long and unusually warm fall, the thermometer has plummeted like a stone ..  and, this morning...it is -16C... but, the weather channel says it feels more like -24 C because of the breeze.  It is snowing lightly....just a few dainty flakes swirling around and up and down...like a flurry of tiny, light feathers..... not much on the ground really. .. just enough to make it miserable on some of the roads.  A good time to stay home.  Which I seem to be doing a lot of the past month, with the exception of my physio and massage visits.  Still working on my wonky elbow.  It is still preventing me from doing much with my hands too..... so.... I've been trying to do some tidying, cleaning ...(mostly using my left hand it seems) ...and... baking...with the help of my trusty stand mixer.

Eggnog has been in stores for weeks already if you can believe it.  Eggnog loaf....mmmm.....

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Apparently, the pronator muscle in particular is so tight it is tearing away from the bony knob (called an epicondyle) on the inner part of my elbow area.  My physio is using several 'modalities' as they like to call them... to work on it.  Everything from "dry needling" to magnetic massage, to ultra sound and interferential current.... and some heat packing and manipulation along with some neck and shoulder realignment ..... There has been some slight relief and the pronator is somewhat softer now...but, honestly.... I am shocked that it is taking so long to show any sign of improvement.  I was hoping that just not whacking any golf balls would help...but, after almost a month of not hitting anything it was not better at all....so I had to break down and start some treatment.  As slowly as anything seems to be healing, I am more than disappointed to say the least.  And..it has taken its toll on my sense of humour.  My motivation just seemed to disappear right along with my sense of humour, as well as my hope for immediate relief from the pain, and my feeling of usefulness.  I'm sure all my baking and cooking is just to prove to myself that I am not just a total slob sitting around... that I am actually worth something to someone, even if only to me.

This week, I am beginning to think about cleaning my crafting room...as it has become a repository for just about everything I didn't know what to do with or couldn't be bothered with during golf season and nice weather......... and now...acckkk!!  Where to begin!?

I think I need to purge.  Big.Time!  Perhaps it's time I even decided on what I am NOT going to bother with over the next 300 years and toss all of the stuff associated with those hobbies, crafts and endeavours.  Yep.  It's time.

Maybe I will have a give-away of various packets of "stuff" ... and somebody who will actually get some use from it can leave comments and I will happily send it to them.  That's the ticket.  I will get busy and package up 'things'... .tidy my room and get back to dolls and bears.... which in reality, will probably be the only two things I ever actually do in the hobby department......

My Christmas cactus is blooming...it loves this time of year.  Usually it blooms about American Thanksgiving time....that must be coming up soon....  and my other one may bloom for Christmas...I have no idea why, but somebody told me one time that there are different cacti and some do bloom for this time of year.  Here he is.... with a new little ornie that I found in my travels lately....

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AND::   As much as I want to win this little guy for myself.....I would like to send you to Cat's blog to have a chance to win one of her little sweeties.  Maybe a bit of karma will work in my favour if I share?.... heh heh.....

... and, my other little gift to me....

.... during the same week... Sylvester.  She named him ...but, I think I will keep it. Ta da...

isn't he cute?  Made by one of the girls that also belongs to the same cloth and clay doll site I joined a few years ago.  Her name is Veronika Lozovaya and she knits these little guys!  I am constantly amazed by knitters.  They make some darned amazing things.  I can't knit... have never tried it... maybe some day.  But, honestly, I already have so much 'stuff' to do.... I better not get caught up in another hobby/pastime....

 Who could resist this sweet little face?

She also makes some creepy cute things...but, as you probably know from my 'stuff'... this is more my style.  I love cute.  It almost reminds me of some of my own faces...maybe that's why I couldn't resist.  It's almost like cooking....I do love my own..... is that unhumble or what?

He has a wire armature inside and so is somewhat pose-able......

Mailbox fun....

I want to show you what arrived a couple days before my sister ...  from a British artist and needle felter....and also now... published author ..and.... best of all... blog buddy and friend.  I've been checking out her Etsy site off and on but seemed to miss when there were some available...but, this time... aha...there they were!  Ordered them on the spot!

Lovely little cards with such wonderful renditions of favourite animals... so sweet!  Top drawer quality.... and so professionally done.  The bunny in the corner is my favourite.... I could just weep right along with him...

And in this group....I especially love the little tin mice....

 Gretel also sent postcards of some of her needle felted creations... the hours she puts into her felting ... amazing!  Look at the detail ... and it's all needle felted.  Being a needle felter gives one an even greater appreciation of her works.
Look....that's the mouse in her book, Mrs. Mouse's Cupcakes....

Honestly...she spoiled me. I also got a little cupcake pin and some of her pink elephant stickers  .. oh...and... even a little hare looking at the moon ... a print of a lino cut.... good luck for my crafting room.  It's not framed ..just placed strategically on some cream and black background so you get the idea behind my thought for doing....

How I love it when "stuff" like this arrives in my mail box.... thanks so much Gretel.... love it all!

Baking, dusting, laundry,vacuuming, more baking.... ooooh....

I've already gained back two of those eleven pounds I lost...hahahha... doesn't take much does it?  Just your usual... eating more and moving less.... the only two things that can help with losing or gaining weight.....
My neighbour gave me some freshly frozen raspberries straight off her bushes in the back yard...and I'm hoarding them like gold.  For muffins and scones.....ohhhh....YUM!

The other day I baked some Barm Brack.  If you've never heard of it... check it out on the food blog if you want to see what it is... or give a loaf a try.  There are a couple of slices left if you hurry over for tea.... but only a couple.

The weather continues to be beautiful... +16C yesterday.  Brilliant, sunny, and with perfect clear blue skies..... sigh.... sometimes our fall is better than our summer.  A few golf courses are still open... albeit with mounds of leaves off the main fairways.  I can't take a chance... I can hardly get a glass to my mouth with that elbow now, so I'd better not even think about it.

Had x-rays yesterday to make sure there is no bony involvement...and next week... should begin some physio and massage.  But.. and, BIG but here.... am absolutely not booking any appointments for next week!  Has to be the following week, because......my sister is coming to visit !!...whheeee.....  first time since '05 !.... so hopefully the weather cooperates and stays beautiful.... and we can have an enjoyable few days together.

I know she'll miss her menagerie ... so I'll have to find some pets for her to talk to.... we don't have one.  But, I do know where there are some donkeys, and I should be able to find a cat or a dog...actually I know a dog walker...I'll call Joanne and see if she will drop by one day with a few of her 'day walker' guys.

Another amazing fall day here.... 7C and going up to 15C again.  Maybe I'll try to pull out some of the dead things in my plant pots outside.... and ...well, that's about all this silly arm will be able to manage I guess.  Going for a walk later too....

accckkkkk!! .... it's fall !!

The cone flowers have had it.  Leaves on trees are a strange mixture of still-almost-fresh-looking-green, or lime greens, ..  some brilliant golden, some deep burgundy and lots of in-between reds....  ...or already blown off in the strong gusty winds we had last week.  Wheeling up and down the streets.... stopping in gutters and little dips here and there...piling up...

Our little Hawthorn has the biggest fattest berries I've ever seen on it....

Sometimes don't'cha just feel like we're on a merry-go-round?  Spinning in circles and all of a sudden we get off and...whoa..... dizzy......... 

I feel almost light headed thinking summer has flown...  and the robins will be flying tomorrow.  Yes, they do leave exactly on the day.... the 15th of October.  Oh, alright... not all of them, but the smart ones leave the second they finish all the berries on our Mayday tree.  Tomorrow.

And.... even though we usually have great weather long into October, it is now heading for the other season.... which at this point I don't really want to think about (except for the decorating and the fun stuff... I'm ready to put up my tree any day now) ..  .  However, not one to be left waiting in a long queue of last minute tire changers...I did already get the winter tires put on the car.  I'm ready! 

Summer..... gone......wow......... I lost two whole months of it with my wrecked ribs and I absolutely don't even remember that part of it.  Really.  What the heck did I do?  Sleep through it?  Don't even know.  Must look back to see if I blogged a bit or what ..... it seems to have just disappeared.

Then.... I got back to golfing too soon, because I was fed up at missing out ... and practiced (probably a bit incorrectly as well) ... too much.  I wrecked my elbow.... but, I was determined to get in some ball whacking before the end of the good weather and so....I did.  I overdid and now..I'm paying.  Can hardly get my hand to my mouth to drink a cup of tea...or to brush and floss...it hurts so much when I straighten it out ...ouch..... so... off to physio I guess.  Must get it back in action before next season, and I know this type of thing can take a while to rectify.  My own fault.  Ice, Ibuprofen, physio and whatever else it takes.  I need to be ready to take some winter golf swing classes just after Christmas ..... yeh..I know...I'm a nut job.  Can't deny it.

I'm trying to get back into my 'other' life routine now.  Actually, seeing as the arm is not good enough to golf...I'm actually enjoying doing other things.  There is plenty that has gone undone for the past few months.  Lots to catch up on.  How do things get so dusty in such a short time span? hahahhaha..... oh, I guess it was longer than I thought.  It's a wonder any of my houseplants are still alive...I've even ignored them.  Gee...and poor Mr. BV.... guess what?  He's still around too!  Just kidding...I would never ignore him.  He's pretty special.  I did still manage to make some meals for him and if I wasn't around...left things for him to heat up for suppers..or great salads...he didn't lose one single pound ...but, I on the other hand, have lost 11 pounds over the summer!  Who says golf is not exercise?  Liars.  Or... they don't walk the 18 holes.... they must take ride'em carts.  

He particularly enjoyed this Chicken Kiev I made one night ....

I don't know how long it will be before I feel like stabbing wool.  It is small motor movements that seem to be the most painful.  Day at a time I guess.  Time will tell.

One of my new golfing buddies wants to make a little bear....hope I feel up to doing something soon so we can get at it long before the festive season.

She's on the plane....

For the giveaway, Krista had a choice of two of the little guys ....and she wanted a "smooth" one as I call them.  The others are "fluffy" in my books.

And, so.... little Fleur as she was known to me... has gone to live in the Yukon Territories of Canada.... hope she loves it there as much as Krista does.  Check out her blog sometime to see the amazing scenery Krista photographs.
Krista may change her name,  I don't know;  but the little gal said she was open to any nice name ..... and looking forward to new adventures too.... she's got a bit of spunk that little one.  At first she was a tiny bit apprehensive about leaving her CC buddies (curio cabinet bears)...but, after a while....she decided it might be fun to go out on her own...to have a big adventure.  She decided she could always send a postcard to her friends.
So.... she climbed into her travelling pouch.... felt her nice purple-y and pink sheets and declared them comfy..... and before I knew it...she was sound asleep and I decided she was ready to go.

that crazy bunny says it's time....

.....time to get on with making the draw for the winner of the little giveaway.... before he has to dash away or he'll be late for another very important date....

remember the interesting and wonderfully coloured "thing" at the bottom of the last post? .... Well, it was indeed a pot with the imprint of macaroni on the bottom.  It wasn't as if I had burned it on either..... it happens ever time I cook some pasta now.  I did burn spuds in that pot big time ....once.. and then, tried to scour it and clean it and even used vinegar on the bottom to soak things off.  I wonder if the vinegar caused some reaction even back then?  Who knows... but, whenever I do cook some pasta now...this is what I see after washing the pot as well as I can.  Hmmm... I don't know... perhaps I should toss the pot, but it is one of my good ones with a lovely copper core in the bottom, and it heats so readily and holds heat easily...that I hate to toss it.

Scratty Eddy made the draw for me... from several of the correct answers...tossed into his favourite cup.  I suspect he really likes that little cup because it is all his favourite colours....

Congratulations Krista!  You knew exactly what it was...hahha..... been there done that eh?  yeh, yeh....I know.... you weren't actually admitting to it...but, I think maybe............ you know....it happened .... once?

Anyway....  let's talk about what you won.  Or...maybe who.....



The thing about my little bears and creatures, is....they love to travel.  I even have a tiny hippo as far away as Malaysia.   Either of these little guys say they would love to come to live in the Yukon with you and Jimmy and Oreo... although, I would hide it from either of those two, as lots of cats and dogs just love to play with these little creatures... probably because they are made from wool...... sooooo....... let me know if you want a fuzzy one or a smooth one....

Thanks everybody for playing along..... and on another front.......

Mr. BV's office golf tournament yesterday... and our foursome did well enough to tie for first...but, in a count back of holes...we lost out by one stroke!  AAACCCKKK .... that close!  What a coup that would have been .... the guy who won was pretty confident that his team would win by a good margin because the other guy who usually wins was not there.... I don't think anybody thought we would be giving them a reeeellly good run for the money.  And... we had some lousy chip shots ...which if we had been just that bit more "on" our game....man....we could have won by several strokes!  hahah...that would have been something.... maybe next year.......

Gwendolyn, girl of many hats....

Gwendolyn took all the suggestions to heart.... well, she must have, mustn't she?  She's managed to find other hats, and, therefore...other duties.  It's not only golfing notes she holds now..... look at this...today she is holding a recipe...Energy Bars if you please.  And, ....the other day it was just hats......who knows how she found them.  The bears must have helped.  They are always up to no good it seems.

so...I got right on it...and made the bars.

YUM!!  Very tasty!  But.... they are still not the perfect recipe I am searching for... ooorr.. 'for which I am searching' if you must see it correctly.  I am looking for a truly tasty bar, but one which stays totally intact upon being sliced.  This one still crumbles a bit at the edges.... and still seems a bit softer than I want.  If you have a great recipe.... please let me know.....

I will post this one on my food blog eventually...and place a link to it so you can try it as well.

AND.....now...for a fun thing.

What is this?  Send along your guess in the comments....and if there is more than one who gets it correct...I will have one of the boys make a random drawing from a pot of names.... for a little prize.  Let me see..... perhaps I will give it til Friday so that a few more of my now long lost "regulars" might have a chance to drop by ......

Poor Gwendolyn..

she's been relegated.  To propping up notes.  Notes about golfing.  Golf lessons... golf swings....golf course holes and how to manage things...... I think she is doing a great job.

She is not impressed.

Two days in a row...

Hey!! ...this could get to be a habit!  You know what they say...do something for 21 days running and there you have it... a new habit is totally ingrained.  I'll be back into this by end of October.

Today.... more pelting rain.   Temperature has gone down to only +8C.... it is totally soggy now as well as darn cold.  Well, of course, that is comparatively.  As in compared to two days ago when it was a blistering +30C.  But, not nearly as cold as it will be in, ooooh, say... maybe December or January...when it could be a freezing -35C.... acckk! NOT even thinking on that just now...nope....absolutely not!

It is a perfect day for baking.  Turning on the oven instead of the furnace....making things smell nice and homey.  Bread...first on the list....then, muffins.... and then.... well, if I still feel perky.... who knows what else.  Maybe some biscotti.   The day is half gone though... and not much accomplished.... so maybe not more than that.

But.... it will be a good day if I get that accomplished along with some laundry and other odds and sods...

photos later.....
oh, alright...one for now... hen and chicks are changing colour.... and also being eaten by the bunny.... for the moisture I guess.  No rain for the past few weeks... we do need it today.

just stopping in to say hullo..

Been trying to get out there and hit some balls as often as possible... maybe overdid it a bit...my elbow is killing me the past few days.

Almost played Ladies Day today... but, after a whopping +30C yesterday...... today?....the temperature has plummeted to only +10C and the rain has begun.... driving rain as the winds are now gusting up to almost 30kph......sigh...... I feel like Goldilocks trying to choose a good day to be out there.  Too darn hot...too cold, rainy and miserable.  Boy...there are not many perfect golfing days around this area. Now I'm all discombobulated and don't feel like doing anything but having a nap...so...that's next.

I got supper ready earlier in anticipation of perhaps still getting out there.... it's so dark in the house I have to put on the lights and I can hear the rain on the roof...perfect napping weather.

Oh, just a minute....the dishwasher is finished...I could unload that...and...the washer and dryer need loads of laundry emptying too.... I guess there is always folding and ironing too...... yeh...... okay...I could manage that I guess.

 But, I don't wanna....... I just wanna be out there whacking balls.  There are only about 3 full weeks of golf left at my course.... and then....day by day at the city courses...... then, it will be months til we are able to get out again.... almost May usually..... and sometimes later, depending on the weather...not nearly a long enough golfing season.

What can I leave you with for a photo? ... can't just leave it with only words on here...that will  never do.... uhm...let's see.....

here's about how I feel.  My whiskers are just a teensy bit shorter than this...

hiya bloggy buddies.....

Contrary to popular belief...I am still alive and well.  I've just been totally lax in the blogging department and certainly haven't been crafting or making anything of interest....unless you count the great muffins and scones that come steaming hot out of the oven...on a hot and steamy day!  This morning it is cooler, cloudy and a bit drizzly.  A perfect bread baking day!

After being down and out for so long with the rib injury.... I have been overdoing it since they got better enough to swing my golf club.  Now... this week...my ankle is a bit of a nuisance.  I'm just not as strong and healthy as I think I am I guess.  What else is new?

My garden suffered while the ribs were bad...and I am trying to dig out some anemones that have totally taken over in every corner of every garden area.  I think that is part of how the ankle got bad in the first place.... well, that and stomping around the golf course.  I used to think that golf was supposed to be relaxing...but, it seems to me that we always have to hurry and it makes me irritated.  Especially my ankle.  They never tell the men in front of us to hurry up.... it is only if women are in a group that any of the marshals ride over to give you the hurry up sign..... hmmmm.... still the old boy's club ain't it?

We've also been chopping down the hedge between us and the neighbours,   It has been plagued with aphids and some other blight for the past few years...time for a fence and just some nice limestone rock along it.  It will widen the yard by a few feet and look much tidier.  So...that also means bundling and tying up all the cuttings... trying to get them to about 4 feet lengths..so the garbage guys will take them.  And..putting out only 4 bundles per garbage day...which is running into a month now.... maybe I'll try 6 bundles next time...but, eh....maybe not..he has been taking them... and that's a good thing.  The minimum charge at the city dump has become a lot more since I used to take things.... plus the charge for the weight of the load..... it gets silly....... so I'll resort to even sillier and follow their ever more stringent rules for garbage pickup.  If our black bins are not full...they don't take anything else sitting out there now.  So...we have to fill it up with bags of grass or other stuff... so they take any of the bundles of hedge sticks.... sigh...... they even left a chunk of carpet behind one day because my black bin was not full enough.  good grief.

While I golfed on ladies night...Mr. BumbleVee cut down more of the hedge..til he got stung by a wasp from a nest down in the dirt under it..... but, before that...he found a tiny nest with this little egg still in it and saved it because he knew I would want to photo it.  Don't know what type of bird it is... and hope the little hole in the egg is one made by the little bird himself and he made it to safety.... I don't want to know if it  isn't large enough for him to have gotten out of...... I'm pretending it is.

I've been to the fat farm...

...... and I gained 4 pounds.  Oh, just a minute...I guess I better elaborate.  I jokingly began to refer to my sister's little acreage as the fat farm because I figured I would lose some weight when I went there..... doing chores..picking weeds...scooping poo...turning compost piles..digging in the garden...more poo....feeding horses..more weeds and dragging 100 foot hoses around...  and chasing around after cats...and visiting and going for our evening walks after all day busy....whew...see what I  mean?..... But....  I always come away heavier than when I went there.  I have no idea how it is possible... it's just reeellly weird....because we are never still a minute... and are very busy.  However, I do bake and we do eat very well and ....oh, alright I see what happened.

So...  now I'm home and better get busy and lose that 4 pounds....  a few days of walking 9's and 18's on the golf course, and doing a lot of practice swinging ought to do it.

There is still snow on some mountains...and it was misty and raining at the higher altitudes all along the way....

Stopped at Finn's Creek for our lunch....

... and fairly flew along for several more hours.... lots of traffic and lots of stops for construction holdups....... summertime travel in this area...... arrrgghhhh...not a lot of fun.

Shadow....once a feral.  Still only seen by a very small "inner circle", which doesn't include any kids.  I feel quite honoured that he let me touch him and pick him up right from square one.  I think he thinks I am an extension of my sister somehow....  we look and sound alike...and somehow...he knows I am "safe".  He can be quite lovey with us.

...still keeping a wary eye on us....

Cleo.....keeping a wary eye on us too because she knows we will shoo her off the soft stuff.  She loves our clothes...the laundry...the comforters...the pillows if we are not careful.... and..of course... anybody who will give her a "crunchie"... but, she only likes to be petted and brushed...not picked up....

Hey.....  enough with the camera already!

Mister Thompson like to lounge on the bed...which is really high...and he is ah ...uhm... how to put it delicately...he is sensitive.... don't want to hurt his feelings...  somewhat overweight.... but, somehow still manages to get up there.  Vikki has dieted him a bit...and he has become more mobile and healthier over the years she has had him...his coat is now glossy and soft..it used to be awful ...stiff and dull.... but, still he maintains his husky stature.  He can't seem to shake it.

When I looked up and saw this on the way home I was all of a sudden transported right back to Portugal....    look!..... a castle!!

Oh, alright....it's a mountain.  Had me going for a tick of a second there.....

This little guy was the centre of attention at the rest stop on the way back.  He has his own little box behind the older dude riding the 'bike.  He wears his safety  harness and is clipped to a large steel ring on a very short strap..in case he should somehow get dislodged.... he loved his ride.  The guy was all the way from Montana so they had put on some miles... this was in the Rockies just outside of Golden B. C.

very dark, rainy and windy...

.... so, no golfing today.  Hahahha.... whew, finally a day off to do some housecleaning, laundry and stuff around here.  As you know, I lost two whole months to those damn injured ribs and now...  well, around these parts, there are only two months left of golfing season.  Arrrgghhhhh!!!  What a royal ripoff this year... missed most of it.  Next year I must. be. more. careful.  I want a whole season out there to see if I can improve my game and get more confident.  At the moment (for you golfers) ...my driver is working pretty good... but, my short game has let me down a bit.  Usually I am a pretty darn great putter and my chipping is good too..but, the long rough near the greens has taken its toll with chipping...and for some reason...I am having trouble reading the speed of the greens.  Oh, well...we know the answer.....practice, practice, practice.......

No time to bother with much blogging... it'll hafta wait til October at this rate.  Then, I'll have months to do that and other things that have been neglected.  Golf season is so short.. ... and must be utilized if at all possible.

In between golfing and yard work...I've managed to find a buyer for my motorcycle.... through a burly Harley guy that helped me unload the bike from the van when I had to take it to the dealership to have a throttle cable replace.  Sold our bike ramp too... to the guy that helped unload the bike.  He admired it and we said...it's for sale.  Sold!  ....and now ...we have helmets and other gear to sell and we will have finished with that chapter in our lives.  It was a fun ride....and Greg had fun racing....  til his accident.... but, moving on now that I know I have full blown osteoporosis and could break everything if I get hit or fall off......  my sister is happy that I will be safer on the golf course, I know..... although, with balls flying over trees from some of the long hitters...not always.....as a matter of fact..I might save my helmet and wear it while I'm out whacking balls.

Found this one morning while out watering before I left for a game....

Glistening like so many diamonds in the early morning sun......

I also found this......

..... I don't know exactly what happened here.  I knew the mommy robin was building a great nest...but, really I thought it was too close to the outside edge of the lilac bush.  Then, I didn't see her around for a few days and put my camera up at arms length to take picture inside the nest.  Only one lonely egg..... and now...nothing.  She hasn't come back.  I don't know if they just abandoned it after a particularly bad windstorm...or what.... nature is pretty cruel......

Buttercup arrived..

... and, it took almost no time at all.  She is Canadian.... didn't have too far to come... and Shelly sent her Express... wow!.... it's always such fun to see things so soon after admiring them on a site.  Check out Gingermelon ....for a bunch of cute little bears, dolls and elephants too.

I used to have an elephant when I was just a tiny kid..... but, haven't had one since.... it's time.
And I promise I won't carry her around in such an unladylike position!

Here is my new little bear buddy, Buttercup.
She is softest pale yellow with yellow and pink tiny flowered fabric ears and body.  She has a little pink felty rose in her "hair" ..

Her little feet are velvety soft and one sports a miniature heart of the same fabric as her ears.  Around her neck... a silver charm... a heart in an envelope.  Every part of her is carefully thought out and I love her.

The TBs (table bears) engaged her in conversation the moment they saw her.  Scooter rode past regularly waving and trying to get her attention....

Oh, hai.....I'm over here...yooohoooo... on the scooter?.... maybe I should try my no feet manoeuvre  to get some attention.. but, then again...maybe not....

She's got a few inches on this bunch at 5 inches seated ...but, they said they will introduce her to the CBs (that would be the 'curio bears') tomorrow..... just for the heck of it....

Thanks so much for little Buttercup Shelly!