A Summer of Sadness

I think this has been the saddest Summer of my entire life. I don't mean to bring anyone down. I try to be a teller of funny and upbeat tales, but sometimes life gets a hold of things and drips sadness upon us. I think this Summer I have been flooded upon instead of dripped upon.

First I lost my beloved Chloe on June 20.

Then on July 26 we lost David's Dad. "Pops" as we fondly called him was 88. He was absolutely one of the kindest, most gentle hearted people, that I had ever met. He always called me Sweetie. David's kind heart and loving ways are a true reflection of his father. I held off on posting about Pops because.....

today... exactly one month after we lost Pops, I lost my Cutie. This photo was taken two weeks ago when I went to see her in VA Beach. I knew then I was giving her a kiss goodbye. She was 92. She was my "Cutie" grammy. She was one of my most treasured people. She too called me Sweetie.

"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy. They are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." --Marcel Post

Thank you Chloe, Pops and Cutie for making my soul blossom. For not only showing me love, but for giving it so freely. I love you all dearly and I miss you even more.

I'm ready for Summer to be over.....

shell

The Flirt

Razzy pulled me aside and proceeded to tell me that it is not entirely his fault that he can't leave Sugar alone and that he's sorry he acts like a love sick fool around her.

Apparently Sugar has an issue with Flirting! (click here to get an idea)

Upon hearing her name, Sugar tried to eavesdrop on our conversation.
Secretly, she really does love the fact that Razzy is so smitten with her.

I tried to console Razzy and tell him that even though Sugar is a big flirt and flashes her cute little tail in his face that he is a gentleman and needs to act like one. I told him that until he starts acting like a gentleman, no matter how much Sugar flirts with him, that she would have to stay in the playpen.

"Are you serious?" Razzy asked again. "Yes, I said.

He then proceeded to pout and be mad at me the rest of the afternoon.

To think... I thought bunnies were easier than kids. Yeah right!

bunny hugs,

shell

This week IGF my upcoming visits with friends I've been trying to see all year! Yippeee!

Stitching,Relaxing, Feeling Good

Sugar relaxing. She feels good.

The other day a friend said, "Shell you look really good. Do yo feel as good as you look?" What a compliment to this 41 year old pip squeak! I told her Yes! For the first time in my entire life I'm not under a tremendous amount of stress. I still have sadness around me, but something about working with bunnies and pulling a needle and thread is so comforting, soothing and down right good for the soul. So.... yes.... for the first time in a very, very long time... even though there are stressful things around me.... I feel good.


My latest stitchery. For sale on my site.

Love Sick Fool

Oh my! Oh me oh my! What has happened to my sweet little bunny boy Razzy? He has become weak in the knees like a Love Sick Fool over Sugar. Since I have some young (bun followers) on my blog, I will try to keep this "G" rated. However, like most cartoons, the adults get the point. So I'm going to start off with this video. This is exactly how Razzy is acting!



I called my friend Paula at Cape Fear House Rabbit Society to find out what to do. Razzy chases Sugar around constantly with this total "lovey" look on his face making grunting noises. Apparently, Sugar is still releasing hormones from her spaying and it has "awakened" some feelings in Razzy. In my sick sense of humor, this song comes to mind.

Sugar just wants to play, eat and poop, but Razzy won't leave her alone. Since Sugar is young, she could release these hormones for another 6 weeks! So back in the playpen she goes. I did make it bigger though so she wouldn't feel sad. Razzy sits and looks at me with a nasty look then stomps his foot showing his disapproval. He literally stomped it three times in a row the other night! He was really mad at me for putting her in the playpen.

Sorry you two. No unsupervised dates for several weeks!! Naughty! Naughty! Naughty!

The Bun is Done and So am I

After finishing his dinner, Razzy decided to have a seat in his food bowl and hang out. You know... just in case Mama were to bring dessert early.

I'm done with this photo album I made for a good customer. I love how it turned out. The image was transferred onto silk and those are vintage buttons. I hope she likes it as much as I do.

bunny hugs,

shell

Mystery Stitchery Reveal and Winners!

During the week of July 20 through July 26, I participated in Make Mine Pink's shop hop.
I thought it would be fun to do a free Mystery Stitchery. Each day the participants would visit my website and collect their free stitchery pattern. After collecting them all, anyone that wanted to enter for prizes would have until yesterday, Aug 10 to finish at least the "stitching" and send me a photo. I would then pick 3 names from the list of participants and award any pattern from my site along with a bag of fusible fleece.

I'm delighted with the results. I know there were many that joined in for the patterns, but only 5 were able to complete the project. So even though I said I would pick 3 names, I'm going to award all 5 participants! I'm so glad they had fun and enjoyed making my pattern. I'll be in touch with each of you regarding your prize!

Here are the finished pieces. You can click on each image to enlarge.

This first piece is mine. Of course, I had to bling mine up a bit and give it a mixed media look. I'll be posting it for sale on my site later if you're interested. The wooden decorative piece up top has a hanger on the back so you can just hang it up.

This next piece was made by Margaret Bouwmeester. Hop over and visit her blog if you get a second. She is an incredible bear and bunny artist in Canada! I loooove her work! I love all the little extra things Margaret did, like the bling around the snowflake and the added dimension of the berries. Clever!

This piece was made by Linda Livingston. She purchased Valdani Floss from me and used it in her beautiful creation. I love the extra beading throughout the piece.

Next is this elegant "Blue Christmas" piece made by my dear friend and quilt guild member, Peggy Geier. I'm in love with the tone on tone elegance of this piece and the subtle bling she added with the beads!

This next piece was made by Kathie Bogue, a member of my quilting guild. The fabrics and floss colors she used make me want a cup of hot chocolate with friends to celebrate a country Christmas!

This last piece was made by fellow quilting guild member, Gerri Olvaney. I like how she used all the same background fabrics and I love the white of the snowflake (hard to see in this photo). I imagine her piece being finished into a pillow. (just a thought). :)

Well there you have it! Congratulations to all of you and thanks so much for participating!

I'll be posting more free patterns on my site starting in September. So hop over and visit with me.

bunny hugs,

shell

Sugar in Bunnyville Part Two

So yesterday was the big day. Sugar and Razzy on their first real date.
They rendezvoused in my master bathroom as this is neutral territory. (bunnies are very territorial and can be cranky about their space sometimes)

Razzy hid behind the toilet wall and peeked out waiting for Sugar to arrive.

"Razzy... is that you???," Sugar said while exposing her pink belly that had been shaved from surgery.

Razzy, in his cool, laid back, manner made his way across the room to see this gal that just flashed her bare belly at him.

Then he stopped.... he remembered how forward he was last week kissing Sugar right away. He decided he would play it cool and lay down and just have a nice chat with her while getting to know her a little better.

Then came time for the kiss. Of course here Razzy is giving me the "mama... do you mind!! We're trying to have a moment here!!!" look. Ooops... sorry boy... just an excited mama with a camera!

After the kiss, Sugar stood up and asked, "hey... can we use the Jacuzzi?"

I took them both up to Bunnyville where Razzy gave her the grand tour. He pointed out all his favorite napping areas as well as the secret baseboard chewing areas that he doesn't think I know about. (naughty bunny) Sugar spent a good two hours exploring and having a total blast. She even did a big bunny flop! (if you remember from last week, that means, very, very happy in bunny lingo!)

Later I fixed them a gourmet dinner. They especially loved the dandelion leaves.

Then they settled down and spent the evening telling stories of their childhood. Razzy told Sugar that even though her childhood was bad, the rest of her life in Bunnyville will be a beautiful fairytale filled with love. That dreams really do come true and good friends always make your life more special. Oh and that mama is a crazy bunny lady and will spoil the crap out of ya!

The End. (well... of this tale anyway....hee,hee,hee).

Hugs to you all,

Shell

This week IGF fairytales and happy endings.

Just a Smile

Sometimes even when the day is kinda gloomy. When bad things are happening all around. When people are sad and dealing with heartache. I have to take a minute and just smile. I smile to remember that it makes my heart happy. That I indeed have good things to smile about. That life and the world and all the things in it are magical. That all I have to do is give "Just a Smile" to feel better and keep going. To remember that sharing a smile is contagious!

Here's a smile for you if you need it. (on the verge of laughing hysterically over David making dorky comments) Pass it along....


A beautiful sunset with incredible colors always makes me smile.


Ahhh yes... bunny butt hanging out of a cupboard really, really, makes me smile!

Hugs,
shell

Sugar in Bunnyville

Tuesday I spent a wonderful day with my friend Paula at Cape Fear House Rabbit Society while Sugar had her hysterectomy. The Doctor did a wonderful job and Sugar recovered remarkably fast!

So yesterday, Sugar left her temporary housing quarters in the Foyer and made the climb upstairs to Bunnyville. As I've said before, bonding rabbits is a journey and a process. You don't just throw them in together or somebody could get hurt badly. So she still has to be in the playpen a while to see how they get along. Not that I see any problems as they are both very sweet, loving and laid back bunnies.

When I brought Sugar up to the playpen, Razzy was in the litter box freshening up. Sugar decided she better do the same.

Then he approached her. She lifted her ears.
They both leaned forward ever so slowly.

Sniff, sniff, sniff.

Then Razzy reached through the bars and gave her a kiss.

They both turned away in embarrassment.

Sugar hopped under the fort to think about what had just happened.

Razzy laid down under the settee and apologized again and again

for being so forward on the first date.

Then made the move closer to the playpen to show his sincerity all the while hoping for another kiss..

Sugar was still not quite sure what to think of him.

Razzy decided that he was happy he kissed her and did the biggest bunny flop ever!

(all you rabbit people know that means "bunnies are very, very, happy" when they flop)

He then took a little nap while Sugar thought he was rather pathetic for throwing himself at her like that.

If all goes well, I hope to let them loose together next weekend in the bathroom (neutral territory) and then take them on the car ride in the "to go" box. We'll keep ya posted!

Bunny hugs,

shell

This week IGF Sugar recovering so quickly, Razzy being such a lovey and my friend Paula being such a generous person in caring for bunnies.