DOT -- Ornament Exchange

Yesterday the doorbell rang and my faithful "watchdog" Lucy barked. (Notice to burglars: rub her belly and she'll let you take whatever you want.) It was the mailman letting us know he'd left a package. Not just any package, but a package addressed to me and Lucy. We participated in the Dogs on Thursday ornament swap and our gift from Tina and her basset hounds Honey Dew and Sampson had arrived!


Since it was an ornament swap, I will first show a slightly blurry photo of the ornament we received. It's a yellow Lab just like Lucy!
Tina sent me a really neat cocoa gift. There's a mug, cocoa mix, and (this is very cool) some marshmallows with coatings such as hazelnut or peppermint to mix in. That's what looks like lollipops. I am excited to try these! I plan to sit in front of the fire with a big mug of cocoa and some knitting.
This being a Dogs on Thursday swap, there were lots of things from Honey Dew and Sampson to Lucy. The treats are specially formulated for big dogs (like my 88-pounder) and contain glucosamine and chondroitin for hip health. (Her dog food does too.) The bone is a pork femur and Lucy can't wait to get it into her mouth. The toy is a training dummy. I know she'll love retrieving this from the pond at the dog park. Lucy thanks Honey Dew and Sampson for the great gifts!
Lucy's rubbing her snout on the treat bag in anticipation of trying them.
They are shaped like hearts and very yummy!
Thank you, Tina, Honey Dew, and Sampson for the great box! Your email said it was your first internet swap and you did a fantastic job!

Merry Christmas to everyone!

an LYS in Canon City

I heard there was a new LYS in the town of Canon City, Colorado. That's about 30 miles west of my hometown of Pueblo. So Thanksgiving weekend I went to check out Anne's Knits and Such. It's a store that has knitting supplies in the left half and beading stuff in the right half. It's a nice shop with a helpful owner and lots of pretty yarn.
I like their motto!
I know I have enough yarn to last me two lifetimes. I don't buy yarn just for stash-enhancement here in Houston. But when I'm on vacation that rule doesn't apply. So I bought myself three skeins of Geode by Berroco. So pretty! (Sorry, no photo.)

The store's business card shows a bear and a moose winding yarn into a ball. The moose's antler's are holding the yarn while the bear winds. It made me smile.

Quilt Update

I took my quilt home to Colorado over Thanksgiving.  I needed some help from my mom with the borders.  She showed me what to do.  And I did it.  Look!  Excuse the grumpy look on my face.  Just look at the quilt.

I am now proficient at putting borders on a quilt!

Mom will choose some backing fabric and sandwich this thing together.  Cousin Cass is going to quilt it on her long arm machine.  Then I get to learn something new.  Mom tells me she's going to teach me how to bind in the next quilting lesson.  So stay tuned!