Wee woolies.

Black cats may conjure up thoughts of Halloween for you,

but with snow already on the ground!!!  it's looking more like

Christmas up north.......

Evening view from under the shelter of our porch roof.

It looks as though winter is here to stay.

Anyhoo, it's time to start thinking of Christmas presents,

and I've got an idea for my knitting friends.

I wasn't feeling particularly creative over the past few months,

but when I spotted this book......

source

I couldn't wait to get knitting again!

Of course it appealed to my childish nature.  And talk about

instant gratification- I can whip up a sweater in no time that

somebody's actually going to wear!

I made a few changes to the cat pattern (stockinette stitch, color

variations, and pink inner ears) and I gave her a set of pretty

aquamarine glass eyes from my eyeball stash.  I've yet to hear a

 single complaint that her wool sweater is itchy or scratchy.

Each animal pattern in the book also includes a pattern for a....

....baby!!!!!

They're rather fiddly to knit and sew together,

but they're just so darn cute!

Kitty is a little fussy, but she quiets down when Mama keeps her close.

Little fingers need help to strap on the baby carrier.

Kitty's even got a Moses basket to snooze in when Mama's busy.

But kitty's in the baby carrier, so who's sleeping in the basket?

Why it's Baby Panda tucked under a pink blanket with her nonny in her mouth!

(A special request by Finley, a former nonny addict.)

If Panda looks a little top heavy, it's because I mistakenly knit her arms

with 6 stitches instead of 4, but that's our little secret.
Kung Fu Panda.

A happy blended family.

You know I didn't stop at one family.

woof.

Gotta love those puppy ears!

The dogs have a new home with Maggie,

but I've still got a few accessories to finish up for her....

and requests for more baby animals for both girls.
Maggie has an obsession with woobs (aka wolves), so maybe
the dog head with cat ears....I'll see what I can do.

If you're a knitter and have little ones to please,

this book's a winner!

Thanks for visiting!

Vickie

Frozen pumpkin.

Simply orange.

I've seen so many lovely rooms decorated in neutral tones for autumn,

but for me it's all about orange.  It's such a cheerful accent color

 that instantly warms and brightens our house as the days get shorter and cooler.

Peonies and olive bucket from Hobby Lobby 

liven up this corner of our living room.

I just plunked three bunches into the bucket.

Easy!

It's been so long since I've bought any new autumn accents,

but this pretty throw was 75% off, so why not?

A few items from my dwindling stash top my pie safe.

Orange candles and twigs from our yard decorate the mantel.

Cinnamon scented pine cones are a must during fall and winter.

These days I don't make a lot of changes for the seasons.

I have very little left in my decorating stash - and I'm not at all sad about it.

In fact, I just dropped off another load of stuff today!

I cut back all my hydrangeas today, but I didn't bring any indoors to dry.

It's been an awful season for outdoor allergies, so I'm trying to keep
our house free of my allergy triggers.

I bought a very inexpensive Wally World off-white area rug

to keep my toes warm and tide me over until......pigs fly, I guess.

It's not as blindingly bright as it appears in this photo, and best of all,

unlike my old red rug, it doesn't clash with orange.  :o)

Thanks for visiting!

Vickie

*I'm joining the party at:
The Essence of Home Share your Style