I Like Thursday: Happy New Year!

I've been wrapping up my end-of-year posts and don't have a whole lot left over for this week's I Like Thursday.

I love the cards I got from my sister for Christmas. These cards are all prints from her original watercolors.  It was fun going through them saying, "I know where that is!"

I like that I finished the braid quilt (still yet unnamed).  I just need to think of a name to label it, then figure out how to get good photos that don't involve Rob balancing atop a tall ladder.

I like that 2020 is ending.  Amen.  The last few years I have come to the end of they year hoping the next year may be a little easier, a little less stressful.  Good grief - they were walks in the park compared to this year.  But this year I seem to feel a bit more anticipation of better things being just around the corner.  Fingers crossed!

I have very much liked being part of LeeAnna's I Like Thursday group.  I hope you've liked reading them!

Finishes for 2020

I didn't do a 2019 finishes post, because the entire year was wrapped up in one quilt.  Not the case this year!  I did lots of different stuff.

Bias tape dress, Switch bag, masks, name tag
book caddy, tank top embellishments, coil bowl and sewing machine cover

Blogiversary #10

A decade of blogging.  How can that be?

With my blogiversary landing at the end of the year, it becomes sort of a-year-in-review.  And what a year.  I thought 2019 was crazy with moving, losing guinea pigs and various health issues.  This year had the chaos of two hospital stays and a pandemic.  NOT a year to repeat.   

I Like Thursday: Merry Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas Eve!  I love this year's card.  Didn't my sister do an amazing job?  Those guinea pigs look like they're about to ask for some carrots. 

I've said it before, I'll say it again - I like Jeeves and Wooster.  We're watching it yet again (I've started to read the books, too).  Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry are SO YOUNG.  Always good for a laugh.  Now that I'm reading the books, I appreciate how well the TV show captured the characters of the books. 

Chinese Man With Abacus

I've veered away storybook characters for this year's ornament.  Instead, my inspiration comes from the classes my nephew is taking at the Chinese Immersion school.  

I had made a Chinese man many years ago for my godson and initially thought to do something similar.  Both ornaments are Chinese characters, but went in different directions.  I'm quite happy with the end results, even with the struggle to get there!

I had a terrible time with body proportions.  Feet are too big.  He ended up with a short torso and is kind of fat.  Plus his hands are huge!  The big floppy sleeves were an unexpected challenge.  Plus, as I stated in the prior post, this is head number three.  I had all my technical issues with the basic body - after that, the rest came together.

I really liked his hair bun - I wanted to do something more elaborate, but was afraid it would break off.  I put a twist in the hook so it wouldn't interfere with the guy's hair stick (it seemed a shame if I made that detail, then hid it behind the ornament hook).

Heads Will Roll

Well, two of them did.

I fought with this year's ornament for days.  Body parts all over the place.  I beheaded the poor dude twice (although the second time was by accident).  I nearly had to disassemble the one good arm to make the second one because I couldn't make them even.

I Like Thursday: Gifts

Wait.  What?  It's Thursday??  How did that sneak in?  Okay - a quick, late post today....

One of Rob's favorite quotes is "Leave the gun.  Take the cannoli."  (I love the fact that the line was improvised.)  So last Friday Rob left the foster guinea pigs and took the pastry.  

I can live with that.

Chocolate raspberry bomb, lemon bomb (our favorite), chocolate cake and chocolate caramel coconut cake.  It helped ease returning Panda and Mango to Dakin.

Foster Floor Time

My foster guinea pigs from Dakin, Panda and Mango, have so much energy!  There was much thumpa-thumpa-ing at random times day and night.  These guys were always curious and wonderfully people-oriented.  On the other hand... they got in each other's faces every so often.  So to keep the spats to a minimum and for extra entertainment, they needed floor time.  Any way to run off some of that youthful enthusiasm.

Panda and Mango were fearless!  Wood floors?  No problem.  So they went everywhere.  I sat on the rug, armed with a broom to keep them from wandering under the curio cabinet or towards the living room with all those tasty power cords.  

I Like Thursday: Some Holiday Prep

Another week has flown by, with several small good things to like.

I liked the snow on Saturday.  It was pretty, but heavy and sticky (and froze solid, which was extra work on the driveway).  I finally put up the candles, which look so festive against the snow.  I haven't put up any more decorations.  I need to dig out some more lights. 

Foster Christmas Photos

Gasp!  Could it be?  A holiday guinea pig photo shoot??

Absolutely!

I honestly thought after Mabel passed that we wouldn't do another holiday card photo shoot.  However, we had two adorable foster guinea pigs this Thanksgiving, so we decided to keep the tradition alive.  Last Sunday was wonderfully sunny, so I dug out decorations and we wrangled us some guinea pigs.

Mango and Panda are seriously energetic and were tough to corral.  I had to keep the treats coming to get them to sit still.  Bolting off the table was not allowed!

I Like Thursday: It's December?

It's barely December.  I am already behind.  And no vacation time to take off this year.  Admittedly, covid is forcing things to stay simple.  But there's cookies that need baking and decorations to put up - the seasonal stuff I enjoy doing (and can still do this year!)

I love we were able to keep one tradition this year:  the annual wrangling of guinea pigs for holiday photos.  The fosters from Dakin were hilarious and we got several good photos (that I still need to weed through so I can post them).  

Another like - the fosters came back from their checkup today.  Panda and Mango are cleared for adoption, so we have them until someone else scoops them up!