Phoster Photos

No, that's not a typo, just me having a little fun with this post. I'm needing an excuse to post some photos of Savannah for her Houston foster mom who checks here regularly for a look at this special Westie. So here goes....

 

Months ago Savannah discovered a lizard on this crepe myrtle tree, so every day she goes back there to see if it's still there. (It's not.)

 

Lately there have been scores of baby lizards running around in the bushes. Savannah destroyed my herb garden last month over a baby lizard. Now she is focused on the jasmine behind the pool. This has become her favorite spot.

 

The patience of this little dog is legendary. She will sit like this for.ev.er! As far as I know she hasn't actually caught a baby lizard! But the fun is definitely in the chase.

 

A little "tap, tap" on the window will disturb her attention just long enough to catch a photo - if I'm fast! Because she spends so much time in the bushes, and since we have had five inches of rain in the last week, this wee white dog was starting to smell like mildew today. So we have had a bath this afternoon and she is sleeping that off.

 

So here's your update, Paula. Our girl is happily settled in after a year and a half. Thank you for the privilege of adopting her.

Special Birthday Party

Today is Adrian's Fifth Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADRIAN!!

Trends come and go so quickly these days. Nickelodeon and PBS Kids make sure that little people have plenty to do with their imaginations. At the moment, the Moza kids are into Team Umizoomi! At any given time you might hear the sounds of Bot, Geo and Milli buzzing around the house. So, for Adrian's party he had six of his church friends and neighbors over for playtime and a snack for lunch. His Mommy put together all kinds of Umizoomi crafts for the kids. I would say they all had an Umizoomi good time!

This evening Adrian will share his special day with extended family for supper. I'll post more pictures with Uncle Furfy, Mimi & Da, Auntie Jo, and Ludee & Papa.

Determination

A few days ago Savannah was in the backyard on critter patrol and apparently spotted a lizard or cicada in the photinia bush. Ever since then she makes a bee line to that bush whenever she goes outside and proceeds to sit and stare into the bush, hoping to catch another glimpse of her critter.

I have looked and looked in the branches of the bush... even shook the limbs to see if something might jump (or fly) out. To date I have been unable to see any living thing there. But that does not deter my dog. She has the determination inherent in her breed and the memory to go with it. Until she either finds her critter or is drawn to another area of the backyard, she will continue to take her stand underneath the photinia!

Meanwhile I was really happy to catch her smiling face in this picture. Happy hunting, Savannah!

Cute, Cute, Cute!!!

Several months ago I made a cute baby pillow to go with a quilt for my niece and decided that I would like to make some cute pillow covers for my grandboys. I even went to the fabric store and bought some material. Then I put it in a stack of other material, learned of a new baby arriving in the fall, and got sidetracked making another quilt. So this week, with little else to do, I came across that cute fabric behind my sewing machine and got myself all geared up to make the cases.

Even though one has dots and the other has stripes, these cuties are interchangeable as far as boys are concerned. Among the many items of interest in their playroom, trucks still remain high on the list.

It seems that with every pillow cover I make (without a pattern), the dimensions get a little larger! What started out as a cover for a 12 x 16 inch pillow has now evolved into a much larger case! I had a very flat, squashed down feather pillow from long ago and scrunched it into the striped case. It works perfectly, so now I need Meredith to look for another old, flat pillow for the dots.

And yes, those are pockets on the front. Who knows what three and five year old boys will put in them! That's just one more thing for Mom to check on at bedtime. *he he*

Some of My Favorite Photos

I thought I would post some of my favorite photos from our trip. I spent two full weeks going through two or three thousand photos of Bill's, Graham's and mine to put in a photobook. With that finally behind me, I'm just not up to doing another "photolog" here on the blog. But I would like to share some of my most favorite memories. So here they are, in no specific order.

This was taken on a Monday morning after leaving a very rainy Lyon and heading down the Rhone to a small town called Tournon. So much of the landscape in this area is related to wine. We could be looking at grapes from Beaujolais or possibly Burgundy. I really don't remember all the facts from the many lectures we heard on wine production. I know that the hills were alive with vineyards and each plot appeared to be planted in perpendicular directions. What we could see, but was hard to capture on camera, were the hundreds of sections of grapevines and all were claimed proudly by displaying huge billboards with names of vintners. We watched them for miles. It was intoxicating.

I loved being able to go back to Giverny and seeing Monet's gardens again. Late June is a fabulous time to see all the flowers in full bloom. We arrived so early in the morning that the maintenance people were still cleaning up the pond, so I was unable to get a good wide shot this time. However, the water lilies were in much greater splendor than before and I was able to capture them in several photos. This one brings out some of the color along the bank of the pond. Going the second time, I didn't experience the original "ooh, aah!" moments as I knew what to expect. But I could never be disappointed in the vast array of color and variety of flowers that are found there. Cameras were clicking all over the place!

One of the real highlights for Graham, Bill and me was the preponderance of Roman ruins and relics in this part of France. The Grand Circle brochure hinted at such a find, but we must have just read over those lines. Yes, we anticipated the Pont du Gard (pictured above) and even went the extra mile to take a special tour to see that structure. It was truly magnificent and the museum there was a real bonus. But we had no idea about what we would see in Avignon, and more specially in Arles. There is a 2000 year old Colosseum and Roman theater in the middle of the "old town!" We were flabbergasted! We have since learned that there are at least two other Colosseums in this part of France. Who knew?

This last photo is so typically French, it is the one I selected to make an enlargement for framing. The name of this restaurant is coincidentally the same name as the B & B where we enjoyed our home-hosted meal in Tournon. It translates "Old Mill" and must be a popular moniker for eateries that have found their way into these very old buildings.I love the colorful tables and umbrellas and the fact that diners can enjoy their meal right on the river and watch the many popular river boats like ours meander by, maybe wondering about the travelers ~ where they are from, what they think about France. This is what I'd like to do if I were magically transported to a new life in France!

As I find time I will post some more of my favorites here. I love looking back at our trip and remembering the special moments, the beautiful places, and the new friends we made.



Baby Pillows

Graham and I just picked up Bekah's baby quilt from Kingsland on Tuesday and I am so pleased with the way it turned out. I hope (and believe) that Bekah will enjoy wrapping little Sean Patrick in it on those cold Pennsylvania nights this winter. While I was waiting to get the quilt back I decided to make a cover for a little baby pillow to go with the quilt. I had one quilt square left over and it was the perfect size for an over-sized pocket on the pillow. While I placed a diaper in the pocket, it will be useful for just about anything Bekah wants to put in it.

It has a double closure in the back so that it can be easily removed and laundered.

The quilt is a crib size - a little larger than I usually make. But Pennsylvania nights are colder than the ones we have in Texas!

I came across the baby pillow pattern several months ago and have made this for new parents when I didn't have time to do a quilt. I think it's a quite unique item for the nursery. Here are some I have made and given.

This one went to my niece Tiffany for her little boy, Richard Wyman. There was also a quilt with this in the Winnie the Pooh fabric.

My nephew Rich and his wife recently welcomed their second son, Wyatt, and this Winnie the Pooh pillow fits into their nursery.

Our friend from Romania, Razvan, and his wife had their first child, a baby boy, in June. I slipped a burp cloth into the pocket!

When a quilt just can't be made in time for a baby's arrival, this sweet little pillow nicely fits the bill!

Cruise Photobook

Here is a link to my photobook on Shutterfly. Please check it out when you have some time.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8EcNmzhmxbMfI&cid=SFLYOCWIDGET