Gladys

Here's my latest Red Hat Lady. Her name is Gladys. She told me her name right away. Some of my dolls seem to have more self-esteem than others. She is a special order. Soon after I delivered my last Red Hat doll, someone saw her and said, "I want one too!" Gladys has a gold bead necklace that doesn't show up very well in the picture. Be advised that she is be-jeweled. And, of course, the earrings. I had quite a "Eureka!" moment when I found out that these dolls could wear real pierced earrings, and they were especially fond of the ones I purchased at the dollar store.

I was thinking yesterday, as I did my post on the crazy quilt, about how difficult it was to sew when TG and BCG were very small. I worried that they'd get too close to my sewing machine and maybe get a little hand under the needle. One day I had another one of those "Eureka!" moments. Since my machine is a portable, I was able to put it up on the kitchen counter. The foot pedal was on the floor, but I was able to turn the machine off easily when I had to be away from it for a few minutes. And most of the things I was sewing were small, so I was able to manage very well with the kitchen counter space. When the kids got bigger, I moved my machine into the dining room where I was in earshot of the goings-on in the family room. Eventually the dining room became my craft room.....until Thanksgiving when I had to evict myself.....

So today I took a little walk around the yard and ventured down the street. There are a few signs of Fall. It seems like just as soon as the calendar says it's the first day of Fall, the leaves really start getting with it.

Here's the house across the street. You can't really see very much of the roof, but it's new. Last week they had a crew out to replace the old one. Lots of tap...tap...tapping. And each Christmas they decorate the little tree with white lights and put a couple of those lighted Costco reindeer out. A nice couple lives in the house, and the man is a lawn-mowing fanatic. Sometimes he has been known to mow his lawn two or three times a week. I suggested to Mr. Gadget that maybe he is looking for an excuse to get away from the little woman. She seems nice, but you never know.

Well, I had a couple more neighborhood pictures to share, but Blogger has decided I've posted enough. It would be good to know this before starting a post, but it seems to be part of their job to keep me guessing.....I guess.....

I'm just about finished with the knitting for the shawl-collared sweater, and I'm anxious to get it put together. It will be a nice sweater to have for Fall...or those brutal...heh..heh..California winters. Not only that, I'm looking forward to our annual trek to Rhinebeck, N.Y. for the New York Sheep and Wool festival with my friend "the other Marcia." That always puts me in the mood to start a new project. We have a nice arrangement. She drives and I buy lunch and provide charming conversation along the way. Then I do my best to stink up her trunk with right-off-the-sheep, smells-like-the-farm raw wool for doll hair. Maybe she really enjoys the charming conversation......