... A Visitor ...

It's deer season!!! ... If it's not, it won't be long...We live in a wooded area with a lot of brush behind us...You would think that we would see deer on a daily basis...but we don't...It's so rare to see a deer wandering out into our yard...So rare that I get all excited and run like crazy to get the camera...Sometimes I'm lucky and they are still there when I return but most of the time something spooks them and they are gone long before I can snap a picture... I was so happy that this one stayed put and let me take a lot of pictures!

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Now I'm hoping something else interesting will wander out of the woods...

Take Care,

Tina

~ Missing in Action ~

Just checking in to verify that I am still here!! Things are really starting to mush together now and it seems as if I just flow from one thing into another...I have doll bodies lying all over my keeping room...I renamed it "keeping room" because it sounds so much better than living room!

With a little luck and lotsa elbow grease, everything will be "fini" by next week...

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The Christmas season always seems to sneak upon me...I take a long breath after the Fall season and realize it's time to kick into gear for Christmastime!! Well, I'm finally in gear now and very busy... My formal change over to wynter will be next week ... We have a special event coming up at Early Work Mercantile in a couple of weeks...You don't want to miss it...so keep a weathered eye on the horizon...aaarrgghh!! I know, what's with all of the pirate talk? ...I live in an area that Blackbeard probably visited in his lifetime and people here are crazy about pirates...I guess it's finally rubbing off...No, they don't talk like pirates here...just me!!

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Guess what comes on tonight? ... Ghost Hunters!! ...I'm so happy because there are so many ghost shows on now that I'm practically watching one each night!! I've gotta go take a quick shower and prop my feet up and relax in front of the television...Oh, I"ll have some progress photos on my next post...until then...aaarrrgghhh!!

Take Care,

Tina

...Orange Thyme...

Can you believe that winter is just around the corner? It seems impossible that we are coming close to the end of Fall...For me Fall starts in mid-July when all I can think of are witches and pumpkins and tombstones...Eerie, I know, not many people think of tombstones...Anyway, I'm finding myself transitioning now from thoughts of Fall into thoughts of the holidays and winter...

That's why I thought I would post these beautiful photos full of vibrant orange... My pumpkins won't be around much longer. They are slowly beginning to mold here but they have been a source of beauty and inspiration this season...Now it's onto the next!!

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I have been designing and cutting out Santas and snowmen...I want to have them finished and ready to add to my website, ebay and Early Work Mercantile soon ...Keep watchin!!

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Take Care,

Tina

...Ode to Lazy Kitty...

You look so peaceful as you lie there

Twitching your whiskers and running on air...

You dream for hours in a deep sleep

about charming the birds and watching them peep.

Not a care in the world as you cuddle and purr

You're sleeping so soundly~Life is a blur

I wish my life could be more like yours...

I'll do that and you do my chores!

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My inner poet...

Take Care,

Tina

...Early Work Mercantile...

Another update on Early Work Mercantile...I have a couple of holiday listings for this month...I'm starting to get into a winter mood lately and I have a few unique Santas that I will be listing this season...They will all have a theme...Keep watchin and you'll find out what I mean!!

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Please check out our new listings this month...New and exciting things are ahead on Early Work Mercantile too so keep a weathered eye on the horizon...aaarrgghh!!

Take Care,

Tina

...Here Little Birdie...

Look what I found eating at the birdfeeder this morning...I love these guys and nothing sounds better than to hear a group of them cawing close by....However, I think these local crows have a misconception about their size...I find them in the birdbath(see earlier blog please) and now I'm finding them eating with the little songbirds!! Either times are tough (even for crows) or these birds have more of a country club mentality... My only complaint about their visits, however, is that I have to be quick as lightening to catch a shot of them and it's usually done with a zoom lens!!

Take Care,

Tina

... Wool and Chalkware ...

Time is ticking away and I spent this whole week avoiding finishing the quilt in the attic...I know I've gotta get that thing done...Maybe that's why I'm not doing it!!! Human nature is strange sometimes...I just can't forget about getting to this point on a couple of other quilts in the past...Only to mess up the quilting...after all of that work! ...Maybe my problems are more psychological...I'll never mess it up if I don't finish it ...right?... Here's my inner turmoil again...I've gotta finish it! I feel like the Grinch trying to decide if he's going to the Whoville celebration ..."Yes, no, yes, no, yes ..." One of my favorite scenes in the movie and me in a nutshell!!

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While sitting downstairs grappling with this quilting issue, I have been doing other things. I picked up my wool and my hook...Hoping to hone in on those hooking skills...I am still a beginner, you know... That's precisely why my design is so simple...baby steps... I do like how it's coming along and I'm learning how to keep my loops the same size...Unfortunately I'm gonna hit another roadblock because...I don't know how to finish a hooked rug...binding, I mean...I guess I'll get to that when I get to that!! I do have lots of rug hooking books around to help me...

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I know what you're probably thinking by now...but all is not lost, I'm determined to overcome these obstacles ...I am a trooper!! I also worked on my chalkware this week...I love the skeletons ...They look great beside the log cabin...like spooky tenants of the past...Boo! I still have a few chalkware pumpkins and a witch or two to finish up...piece of cake!!

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Now you know how I spent my whole week...wait until you hear about my weekend!!

Take Care,

Tina

...A Gathering of Wytches...

One of my favorite seasons is coming to an end...Wytch Season...It is time to start to think of Santas and stockings and red instead of black...I have just listed an abundant supply of wytches on Ebay to hold you over until next year...Please go see them if you get a chance...They'll be happy that you stopped by!!

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Take Care,

Tina

...Quiet and Cozy...

Today was such a wonderful day...it was overcast and misty with no hint of sun peeking through...I'm not dark or evil but I have loved cloudy overcast days like this my whole life..They stir up a warm feeling inside because they make staying inside a real treat...There's nothing better than fixing a pot of coffee and sipping that wonderful first cup because to me, the second cup NEVER tastes as good as the first!! All the while watching the wind blow the trees and the squirrels hop all over the yard...I have noticed that the squirrel to yard activity increases on these dreary but welcome days while they frantically try to remember where they placed their stash last fall...

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There was peace aplenty today ...I spent the day curled up in my favorite chair and my best kitty (E.B.) spent the day curled up in hers...watching the leaves blow and the fireplace pop and crackle...There's work to be done tomorrow...

Take Care,

Tina

...Slow and Steady...

Even though it seems as if I'm moving at a snails pace, I am one step closer to putting together my first quilt ever...I have been wanting to make one for years and years but other things always seem more important...This year I have made it a goal...It has to be done by Thanksgiving to give as a Christmas present to my sweet mama...She has been asking and hinting for one for years...This year it has to be done!!! I do realize that this post will come back to haunt me if I fail to get it done ...but that won't happen!! You see the inner struggle that I go through? All I need to do now is layer it and quilt it...probably the "Quilt in a Day" way...I love Eleanor Burns!! *** I will post my finally finished quilt for everyone to see before Thanksgiving...promise...

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I always have kitties follow me up into the attic when I sew...they are so content just looking out the window ...not a care in the world...

Take Care,

Tina