New videos

Pearl had an excellent second vet visit. She is up to 15.7 pounds. She is going up and down stairs and has learned to ask to have doors open. More later.

Awkward Age

Trust me when I tell you that Evelyn was just as goofy looking as a baby.


Well, almost.



Sometimes I think they sell Sammies at eight weeks to keep them from morphing into this sort of weirdness and ending up on the shelf for a couple of months.

Aren't these paws adorable, though? All our girls started out with spotted paws and bellies but they usually go solid, eventually (belly pink, paws grey).


But she has a pretty coat, I think.


And a darling little mouth.


Look at this spotted belly!



Trust me, this is a stage.



The cuteness will continue.



I think she has sort of a big nose but husband says it is perfect.


There never was a sweeter puppy.


Just like Evelyn - a long leggity beastie. Or a kangaroo.

Evelyn Strikes Back

If you get bored, the last twenty seconds show Evelyn fussing at Pearl. It is about time!

Setting Limits?

I put the next border on the Mariner's Compass and am now back in my comfort zone of straight lines. Except now, I want to add some more arcs.

We'll see.

We worked with Pearl so she learned how to work the dog door. She didn't learn as quickly as Jezebel, who had it down immediately. I suspect Jezebel learned so quickly because she couldn't bear to be on one side if I was on the other. She'd have gone through fire to keep from being separated from her family. Evelyn and Pearl took about the same amount of time to learn (very quickly). It took Sapphire forever but she was older when we got the door.

So now Pearl can work the dog door and go up (although not down) stairs. That puts Evelyn at a disadvantage because she has fewer places to retreat. I separated Pearl from her a couple of times today because she was being such a pest. As I am typing this, Pearl has a frozen peanut butter kong in her crate to let Evelyn relax (with a frosty paw).

Hard to know how to handle this. Evelyn ran Jezebel ragged and Jezebel wouldn't put her paw down. Moreover, she didn't enjoy the attention.

Evelyn seems to enjoy and love Pearl and is not adverse to setting limits most of the time.


But sometimes, like in the video I added, today, she seems to just put up with it long after she is having fun. That is why Pearl ended up in the crate. I am not sure that is the right thing to do but we're playing it by ear.

Here is a video of how ridiculous Pearl was, today.



And here is how Evelyn finally brought it to an end:



I can't say as I agree with Evelyn's tactics.

Progress on the Mariner's Compass Block

Turns out, arcs really aren't that scary, afterall!

I'm planning a mariner's compass medallion wallhanging and here are the blocks, to date:


Here is the back:


Here it is with the border pinned on:


Here it is on my beloved Janome:


Here is part way throught turning the fabric after stitching the border to the center. Glue stick figured prominently. I've mentioned how much I love glue stick -right?


Don't look too closely at the center.


More of the front:



Here is Pearl with her dad. The lighting is not good because I was only trying to play with the camera. I just liked the picture of the hat.


It is a really gorgeous day and the girls have been able to play out in the yard, all morning.




As cute as these picture are, they do not do justice to how adorable she is.

Saint Evelyn

The Continuing Evolution of Evelyn

Oh, thank god I was able to do some stitching, today. It's been more than two weeks.


I have wanted to make a "true" Mariner's Compass but haven't been ready to make the leap. Unlike Carol Doak's patterns, a true Mariner's Compass has arcs as well as points and those are scary. I bought this book and really like it. Lots of good instruction, photos and patterns. If I mess this up, it will be all on me.


I haven't put the border on the block, which is a tricky part. Hope I don't mess it up. This was about the simplest pattern in the book. Mariner's Compass blocks are so intricate that even a simple one looks pretty fabulous.


Did I mention that I am sooooo happy to get some stitching time? It calms me. It really does.

Guess who showed up,today?


ALPHA.


Seriously, there was a complete evolution in Evelyn, today. Like a switch was thrown. It was like she became more... I dunno... powerful. Confident, in charge, more expressive. It is as if she suddenly saw herself as on a different level than the pup.


Evelyn adores this baby. I am astonished how she let's her in her space and allows her to crawl all over her. She loves playing with her. And patient, good heavens. Look at this next picture - see the baby's paw? How cute is that?


But today was different. We used to laugh that we were the mom and dad, Jezebel was our little girl - and Evelyn was her dog.

Today, Evelyn seemed to morph into something beyond a dog. She sat with us on the couch. She set the baby in her place several times. She made constant eye contact with us when the pup was acting up. She is doing what Jezebel used to do, i.e., she is starting to be everywhere to keep track of everyone. To understand what a big deal this is, you have to understand that two months ago, I am not sure Evelyn even knew what to do to get fed. She just walked around and it appeared, apparently. If she keeps this up, I would not be surprised to see her go for a squirrel.


She got so exasperated with the pup, earlier, who was being unruly, that she lay down next to her and held her down with her chin. Sapphire used to do that.


All that being said, she has played lovingly with Pearl all day and is doing it now. But she glances over at us to see if we are as amused as she is. It does my heart good to know that instead of retreating to her shell with the vivacious baby, that she is coming out of her shell.


What a good day.