On a Sunny Spring Day

by | May 14, 2012 | Life | 1 comment

Afternoon at the river

Mother's day picnic with Greg's parents at the Fraser River, followed by much exploring of boardwalk, beach and grass.

Fraser RiverCleo by the river

1, 2, 3, swing!

1, 2, 3, swing!

Trike

Spotted at a yard sale as we drove by. Circled around the block and bought it for $10.

Owen on trike

Got the boy a helmet, and he went for his first trike ride (push)!

Nom nom nom

Played with neighbours for a while, till a peanut butter & jelly sandwich an hour before dinner was an absolute necessity.

A Home-Alone Crafting BONANZA

by | Nov 29, 2010 | Activism, Making | 4 comments

I'm on holiday with a friend this week, volunteering at the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and otherwise soaking in the stunning scenery of southwestern Utah (and a little bit of Las Vegas). Best Friends is a massive no-kill facility; we've met dogs rescued from hoarding situations, puppy mills and some surrendered by families who could no longer afford to care for them. You can follow along and learn more about the incredible work Best Friends does all over the world by following me on Twitter and Flickr. While I'm off playing with cats and dogs and bunnies, I thought I'd share some crafts.

A few weeks ago Greg went to a conference and I had the place to myself for five days. The universe shined on me those five days, as much as the universes shines, and as much as it directs its shine onto individuals.

During those five days home alone I was, as the athletes say, in the zone.

Between the Friday and Wednesday nights, I:

  • Knitted this slouchy hat:
    I used a button to cinch the too-loose brim of the slouchy hat I knitted.
  • Took a full-day quilting class at Spool of Thread and left with this nearly completed baby quilt (more thoughts on quilting soon) – can you tell I really love that chicken fabric?
    I took a quilting class at Spool of Thread.
  • Sewed my first zipper pouch, following instructions at Home Ec:
    I made a zipper pouch.
  • Sewed a patchwork pincushion, a la Home Ec:
    I made a pin cushion.
  • Sewed a potholder following instructions by Linda Permann:
    I sewed a pot-holder.

Oh, and I also read the second two books of The Hunger Games trilogy, got boatloads of work done, had a coffee date with a friend and kept Cleo fed and exercised.

Cleo likes the fall.

Friends, I want every day to be like those days (but with Greg in town).

Meet Cleo. Properly.

by | Oct 26, 2010 | Blather | 8 comments

Kids, my new iPhone takes video. And it, like, focuses. Thus I have entered the realm of people who take phone videos every day. Like, yesterday I filmed stuff for my next videoblog.

But for now, I'd like you to properly meet Cleo. You've seen photos over the years, but you couldn't possibly tell how funny she is from them. See, she talks like a Wookiee. (Yes. Using the command “wookiee” to make her speak would be like telling Chewbacca “dog” to make him bark. Whatever.)

And she learned to go away all by herself. That's because she was hyper as a puppy, and very annoying, and we were constantly asking her politely to get out of our face. Then one day we told her to go away and she did. Also, she doesn't like sitting or lying down on wet ground. An inconvenient quirk, living in Vancouver.

So tell me. What's your favourite of your dog's tricks?

Interview: Coffee with a Canine

by | Nov 30, 2009 | Blather | 1 comment

Cleo + Ball = FUNI don't often get interview requests out of the blue, and I certainly don't get them from non-crafts sites. So when I got an email from Marshal Zeringue over at Coffee with a Canine, I was both psyched and skeptical. And now my wee interview about me and Cleo is up over there. If you flip back a few weeks on the blog you'll see his interview with Charlaine Harris.

So today I'm pleased with the status of my geek cred. Congratulations to me.

He doesn't seem to have comments enabled over there, so if you're a dog lover and have something to say or ask, please do so here.

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