squirrel momma

Building the Flock

In between Nut Boy's lacrosse, Squirrel Girl's track and Squirrel Man's birthday I actually managed to get a little birding done.

Baron von Trapp:

Alexander...

And a group shot of the flock so far:

Yes, I know they're a little strange.  Well, maybe a lot strange.  But I have to say, they've been very satisfying to make--pure playing for me--and I've got more in the works.

Funny, I have this strange desire to watch a Alfred Hitchcock movie...

Max

Meet my new friend.

His name's Max.

I named him that because he reminds me of another Max I once knew.

Happy Easter!

At our house it's a well known fact that a)the Easter bunny can't spell and b)he has the handwriting skills of a kindergartner.

But we figured out what he meant, and everybody got their quota of chocolate and silly toys--hope you did, too!

Chicken Mystery Solved

I'm sure you've been wondering for years what kind of chicken lays those chocolate Easter eggs.

Mystery solved!

I found the pattern here. It knits up really fast, even for someone like me who only gets her bamboo needles out once or twice a year. And if you get confused, I highly recommend The Knitting Answer Book, which pretty much explains everything you need to know when you only knit every six months (and promptly forget everything you learn).

Now I just need to figure out where chocolate bunnies come from...

House Guest

Is that a dust bunny under that old dressing table?

Nope! It's Maggie the chinchilla, who came home from school to spend spring break with us.

She may look all sweet and innocent in this picture, but we had to take the drawers out of that desk because she kept crawling up the back and trying to push them out from the inside. Other than that, and the fact we have to bribe her with Cheerios to get her back in her cage, she's awfully cute and snuggly. Like a warm ball of angora yarn. Well, maybe a squirmy, hyper-caffeinated warm ball of angora yarn, but definitely snuggly.

And as an added bonus, she's dusted under all my furniture.

Oinkel Q. Sidewinder

Meet Oinkel Q. Sidewinder, Nut Boy's favorite award-winning-slightly-late-birthday-present-plush-pig.

Oinkel was made from a pattern I found here.  I should warn you, however, that if you're planning to make an Oinkel of your own you'll need to print off the page with the main body pattern piece at 90%, as the scale is slightly off (I'm guessing it might have something to do with the original being intended for A4 paper).  And don't forget that seam allowances are NOT included.  

Now I just have to train the darn thing to hunt for chocolate truffles...