January Snow and Goat Girls

Anza climbs and Josie wails, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

I will post a video later--these girls are just too silly! Josie is busy wailing at me in this photograph. See her little open mouth? They want COOKIES!

I just added the video; sorry about the delay!

Dollmore Aga in Yellow

Dollmore Aga in Yellow, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

My mother sent me the yarn for the knitted shrug that is worn here by Dollmore Aga (Mia's Baby Doll). I received the yarn for my birthday last year and my mother hand-dyed it. It knitted up beautifully! The pattern is from Froggy Duds on etsy and was easy to make.

January Snowfall

January 14 snowfall, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

After one of the warmest winters I can ever remember, it suddenly decided to be cold and snow. We live east of the Great Lakes and the arctic air mass over the warm lakes caused a LOT of snow to fall. We got about 12 inches in one day (which is not as much as last year by FAR). It is certainly pretty! The snow started as rain first, then freezing rain, then slush and then regular dry snow. The freezing rain, slush and wet snow froze onto the branches and the whole yard looks like a winter fairyland. This was the view out the kitchen window yesterday morning before work (around 7:30 AM). Today, it's cold (-7 F) and the birds are flocking to the feeders! This next picture is a little blurry. It was still darkish outside and the camera shutter speed was slow.

PJ Kid

PJ Kid, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

I love making jammies for little dolls. They're so easy and so cute! This little set is made from flannel (one of my favorite prints with piggies on it!) and is modeled by Dollmore Aga, who still does not have a name! I'm considering Primrose as her name, but I'm still not sure.

Willa's New Overalls

Willa in heart overalls, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

Willa is wearing some new overalls that we made for Etsy. I'll list them in the next few days. There is a picture of the full outfit on my Flickr account (just click through the photo).

Bethany's New Outfit

Bethany's New Outfit, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

I ordered a pattern from Designs by Jude and made Bethany an outfit. It will be listed on etsy within a week or so.

Narsha in grey

Narsha, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

I had a suspicion that this dress would look nice on Narsha!

Some New Year Musings...

Well, I was having trouble gathering the energy the other day to reflect on the past year and think about the new one but I'm feeling much better now!  I am going to take this time to think about all those things in my life that I am extremely fortunate to have.  I'm really a very lucky person to have the life I have and it helps to reflect on that once in a while.

I'm so happy that I added those two little mischievous goats to my life!  I was thinking for a few weeks that I might be entirely crazy to get more pets, but they are so much fun and have such unique little personalities!  They really brighten my day!

I'm also glad that every one of my original 11 chickens is still with me and happy and healthy.  They are so funny and friendly and cheery and there is nothing more comical than watching a big, fat hen with a floofy bottom run across the yard to see me when I get home from work.  A running chicken is just a naturally amusing sight and one that I recommend for anyone who needs a good laugh!  The ducks, as much work as they are, are so cute and so funny, too.  Little Duck's children, who are still here, keep her company and keep her warm at night, so even though the boys are sort of pushy and demanding, I think Little likes them and since she is the whole reason I have ducks, I'm glad that she's happy!  The cats and dog are well, too, and happy and healthy, even though Toby is now 12, Zoe is 12, and Onyx is 11.  The Brother is still only 6, just a baby.   Here is Onyx, helping me put up the Christmas decorations!

I'm also quite grateful that the veterinary clinic is doing well enough in this economy.  I hope our clients continue to think we do a good job and keep bringing their little family members to us.  I am honored by the trust that they place in us and I'm so happy to help pets on a daily basis.  One of my resolutions from last year involved making sure that I practice according to my philosophy and I have definitely seen improvements in this respect and expect it to get better in the new year as we add a new doctor and a new technician.

I am happy to say that I did pretty well with most of last year's resolutions, with the exception of finishing April Cottage!  I'm still stalled on the living room, although it is more complete than before!  The next step is to get the ceiling paper and lights in the living room and finish trimming the room.  I want the finished result but don't much enjoy getting there!

So for this next year, what do I want to accomplish and work on?  Mostly, I think I need to concentrate on making sure that I reduce my personal stress level and this is 100% tied up with one of last year's resolutions to communicate what I need and want more fully to everyone.  I still need to work on this, although it's improving!  I also need to make sure I make time for myself and my own projects and learn how to say NO when necessary.  I can't help anyone by being over-committed and never having any free time for myself.  My crafting goals include making more outfits for the dolls I have and continuing to keep my etsy shop stocked with a variety of things.  I enjoy making doll clothes and it's a big stress reliever for me!  Mostly, in this New Year, I want to appreciate what I have in life, simplify, slow down and really enjoy my days.

New Wallet

Simple Wallet, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

I am probably the only person in the world that likes it when something wears out, because then I have an opportunity to make a new one! My old wallet has a hole, so I used a tutorial from Lola Nova to make a new one.

Here's the link to the tutorial, and thanks to the author:http://lolanovablog.blogspot.com/2009/07/summer-wallet-tutorial.html

Here's my color selection for the inside:

Oh, The Cute!

Gnome Dress, a photo by elizabeth's*whimsies on Flickr.

Happy New Year!  I do not have the energy this year to make a Resolutions post...perhaps I will do it in a few days.

This little doll was my present to myself for Christmas. This is a Dollmore Aga (Mia's Babydoll). She's about the same size as my Rosen Lied girls but appears much younger. She can share clothing with them, which is nice. Her face is painted by Dollmore and I'm happy with their work.  I was a little anxious to see how they did on it because I could not find any photos of this doll with the factory paint. She's so cute!  I'm looking forward to making more clothing for her. This dress is from basic patterns in Storybook Clothes for Dolls (10 inch size). The hat pattern I made up myself and the vest is also from the same book. The little bunny is from a pattern from Little Dear. Closer view of her face:



More photos are on Flickr.