The True Meaning of Christmas - Muttley's Story

I have been involved in animal rescue since I was a kid (although I didn't know it at the time) when I would bring home stray dogs and cats and beg to keep them. In a chaotic household of 5 kids (at least 3 of whom undoubtedly had ADHD, present company included), only one pet at a time was manageable, so off they would go to the pound. I was innocent of their probable fates at the time, and naively believed they would all find good homes.

Bitsy BonTon

So when it was time for me to go out on my own, and I was able to have my own pets, I always wanted the homeless ones. Even if I couldn't ultimately keep them, I would work hard and find them a loving home. Everyone of my pets has been either rescued off the streets or adopted from a shelter and they have each filled up my heart with their unconditional love. But that's not the only thing they have done for me. They have each and everyone taught me lessons that have shaped me into a better person, because I have learned to give unconditional love in return. What a blessing they have been, because otherwise I would not know how to reach beyond my natural selfishness and self-centeredness.

Chloe

So what does this have to do with Christmas? It has everything to do with it. In the Christian faith, we believe that God came to earth as an infant whose job was to teach us what it means to love fully and unconditionally without judgment, to take care of those who are in need, and to dedicate our own lives to this purpose.

So I do my little part to take care of fellow humans who are in need, but I really feel like I have been called to take part in caring for God's angels on earth - those furry, daily reminders of unconditional and grace. I am so fortunate to have gotten involved with Animal Haven, a small organization crammed into an old ranch house. I started off as a member of the Advisory Board and stayed on as a volunteer and more recently a foster parent. In the time I have been part of this great organization, we have set our mission to become not just a no-kill shelter, but to model how other kill-shelters can evolve to becoming no-kill.

Abbie

The shelter director just sent out our year-end numbers. We have broken all of our previous adoption records this year. In January, they jokingly set a goal of adopting out 2008 animals, not really expecting it to happen. Not only did they reach the goal this year, they have exceeded it and now think they can reach their new goal of "2080 for 2008"! With this joyful news came the following video about Muttley, a miracle dog. His story has touched me so much - as badly as he had been neglected, and then so badly injured, this wonderful creature is so full of love and joy. I haven't heard if he has a forever home for Christmas yet, but he is in foster care and being spoiled rotten!

So I believe that everytime one of God's angels is rescued, Christmas - the true meaning - happens all over again. I love each and everyone of you who show your support for animal rescue, in any way at all. When we help them to find them find loving homes, we are giving them the opportunity to make us all better people through the love and grace they bring in touching our lives.

Criquette Anne

Best wishes for the warmest and most loving holidays ever!
From me and my angels

(New Orleans) Snow Dogs on Thursday

Every New Orleanian I know desperately wishes for snow each winter. Or anything remotely resembling frozen stuff falling from the sky. I have experienced 4 snow events in New Orleans during the thirty-something years I lived there, and one of those lasted only about 10 minutes. But I remember them in great detail (except the big snowfall when I was 1 year old, but I have all of the pictures my parents took) because they were such wonderful and rare events. None of my nieces and nephews have experienced a snowfall in New Orleans in their lifetimes, until last week. I had exuberant phone calls from most of them to spread the good news. Sadly, it started melting later that day.

As I was reading the Times-Picayune (the New Orleans newspaper) online, I found some pictures of some residents who probably never saw snow before and will likely never see it again in their short lifetimes. But did they make the most of it while it lasted! These pictures made me feel so good, I had to share them with everyone today (although I realize that those of you who have spent the past several days without power may not feel in a frolicky mood when you see these).












And it wasn't just the dogs loving the change of weather...

Mike the Tiger (LSU'S mascot), wishing he could be traded to MU or points further north)

Here is one of the naturalized monk parrots that obviously wished to return to captivity - at least for the day.

But, before you start feeling sorry for the little guy's fate, rest assured that there are growing colonies of these urbanized parakeets thriving in such diverse places as Nashville, Brooklyn, Minneapolis, and Montreal. New Orleans' guys may be the toughest of all, since they survived Katrina. So what's a bit of snow?

Criquette Is Back In the Building...

....in case you didn't realize she had left.

I have been persona non grata since Thanksgiving because I ate way too many pumpkin desserts. Not really. I can never get enough pumpkin.

But I have been very busy doing the elf thing around here since I decided to make as many hand-crafted gifts as I could this year. Unfortunately, not much in the way of knitted goods, but wait until you see what I've been up to. I'll post pictures in a few days. As well as doing some decorating. And of course, working like a maniac, since this time of year raises everyone's stress levels, kids included. I'm seeing lots of social anxiety and perfectionism (the obsessive-compulsive having meltdowns kind) in kids the past few weeks, not sure why so many cases of these 2 types of anxiety.

And I had to have some minor surgery to my jaw last week in preparation for some dental work. Did I ever mention my dental phobia? Even 15mg of valium and nitrous didn't keep me from having a panic attack in the middle of the procedure. I wish I could bop every medical professional upside the head for each time they have said I would feel "a little discomfort". But, aside from looking like a one-cheeked chipmunk, mumbling instead of talking, drinking my meals and feeling very loopy for a couple of days, I'm feeling fine.

I hope to catch up with everyone's blogs over the next week and I can't wait to see what all of you have been up to. Especially all of my poor Northeastern buddies - hope you're all safe and warm and enjoying electric power! And if not, at least I know you'll stay warm in your beautiful wooly handknits. We're having a little preview of the nastiness that's heading your way later in the week. Our temps plunged from 63 to 26 in just 1 hour on Sunday (!!!), on Monday we had a high of 10 with wind chills at 16 below. Yesterday we got about 3" of snow (most of it during rush hour, of course) and tomorrow we are scheduled to be hit with a freezing rain/ice thingie, also during rush hour. The biggest problem tis week has been the very gusty winds, but the prairie without wind is like New Orleans without the humidity. You just learn to suck it up.

However, I'm getting lots of usage out of my thick alpaca scarfies and Hurricane hat, although I need a thick alpaca hat for cold days like we're having this week. I have a wonderful alpaca scarf that I made out of some gorgeous extra-super-bulky yarn that I received from Sonya in one of first swaps I joined. It is so thick and warm I can only wear it in arctic-like temps. It gets so hot that I have to immediately remove it when I get inside.




Thanks, Sonya, I always send good thoughts your way when I wrap it around my neck. And if Nichole doesn't get her power back on soon, I may need to send it to her so she and her pack can stay warm at night.

Of course, you know things are really bad when it snows in New Orleans (first time since 1988). Ironically, I sent a Christmas mix to my spoilee in the Mix swap that has the track "The Day It Snows on Christmas". It's a song by Allan Toussaint (famous for the hoochie-song "Voulez-Vous Couchez Avec Moi"). It's about all of these bizarre things that would happen if it ever snowed in New Orleans on Christmas, that's how rare snow is in NOLA. He was almost right. And you can listen to the song for free here.

I've actually started writing my DoT blog for tomorrow, featuring some special guests. See you then, and stay warm!

A Love Letter to Pumpkins

Pumpkins are quite possibly the most perfect real food item (I love chocolate but don't think of it as real food). They are very healthy, as pumpkin is an excellent source of beta-carotene, antioxidants and fiber. They are quite versatile - pumpkin can serve as an appetizer, salad, soup, main course and dessert ingredient and tastes delicious whether in a sweet or salty dish.


They are very appealing as decorative items - either brightening the entryway or as a centerpiece. They play a very important role in the most wonderful time of the year - it feels officially like autumn when the pumpkins come to market. And what would Halloween be without Jack-o-lanterns? One of my day-after-Thanksgiving rituals is to cut my decorative pumpkins in half and place them out in the woods for the wild critters and birds to feast on. Within the next month or so, they will be completely consumed, so they are also a good resource for wild life.


Today, like all Thanksgivings, I am not craving the turkey or fixin's. I start salivating for pumpkin pie. I plan my entire caloric intake on T-Day around the pie. I skimp on the potatoes and completely ignore the stuffing and rolls so as to leave ample room for the pie. I could care less about having leftovers of anything but the pumpkin pie - if there is a chance there won't be any, I have been known to bake an extra pie to enjoy over the days after T-day.



Speaking of pumpkin pie, I love it so much, it is my official birthday cake every year. But I don't just love pumpkin pie. I am an equal-opportunity pumpkin dessert lover. I make pumpkin goodies year round - pumpkin cake, pumpkin bars, pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins. I just downloaded some additional recipes that I am going to try over the next few months.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

Pumpkin Mousse

Now, grab your barf bags and try to imagine these yummy desserts made with turkey instead. Not the same, is it?

As I was surfing the 'nets for all things pumpkin, it occurred to me that poor pumpkins are treated like second class citizens, especially at Thanksgiving. Turkeys are given superstar status, while the poor pumpkins are relegated to the sidelines.

Superstardom has clearly gone to this diva's head, er, neck

For instance, how many pumpkins get the chance to get this up close and personal with the head Turkey every year? (Although on second thought,,, maybe that's a plus for the pumpkins).


Don't get me wrong. I like turkey just fine. Especially with mashed potatoes and gravy. But I don't find myself looking forward to Thanksgiving because of the turkey. To me, Thanksgiving means pumpkin-love!

All of this has gotten me to thinking....when you compare all of the benefits of pumpkins against the merits of turkey, pumpkins will win almost every time. Pumpkins are much cuter than turkeys:

Pumpkins come in a wider variety of shapes, color and size:

Whereas turkeys come in only 2 basic modes - light and dark:



Pumpkins are eaten by carnivores and vegetarians alike, which cannot be said for turkeys. Preparing pumpkins to be cooked is not nearly so messy as prepping a turkey (although you don't get leftover bones to make a delicious turkey gumbo the next day). And finally, knitters everywhere prefer pumpkins over turkeys, 3 to 1.


Don't believe me? Ravelry has 6 pages of knitted pumpkin patterns as compared to a paltry 2 for turkeys. So while it is clear that pumpkins are superior to turkeys in countless ways, I have to ask: Why do we have a national holiday for turkeys and not pumpkins? I would like to start a petition to make pumpkins the official mascot of Thanksgiving. Who's with me on this?

Happy Pumpkin Day from Criquette's House of Pumpkins to yours!

Music Mix Swap, Part I

I signed up for a swap I found on Ravelry where we make music mixes and send out 3 packages. I am loving it! I'm probably the most ancient person in the swap, by far and I think that both my spoiler and spoilee are the 2 youngest. They both seem like really interesting people and surprisingly, I seem to have a few things in common with both of them. My spoiler does an incredible amount of knitting for charity and raises chickens. Most people don't know that I have my bachelor's in Agriculture. I REALLY wanted to raise chickens. Maybe one day... My spoilee has bunches of pets and is involved in animal rescue. They both have eclectic taste in music, much like I do. And they knit. So yeah, it's fun.

I'm still waiting to hear whether my spoilee is happy with her first package, or if I'm totally out of touch with what older teens like. But I received my first package today from my very talented spoiler, Sarah, who did a fantastic job! It's like she knows me. I loved everything!

Chloe and Abbie knew the package had treats in it before it was opened. Abbie was leaping frantically and salivating (which is why she looks so goofy in this picture). They must be psychic.


Look at all of these goodies! Starting with the upper left, you will see "People Crackers" for the pooches. I had to open them immediately to get those 2 from driving me crazy. She also sent along some toys for the kitties, some Ghiridelli (one of my favorite chocolates)peanut butter squares, some melt-in-your-mouth crispy chocolate cookies (one pack was demolished immediately), a beautiful and very pettable ball of Elizabeth Lavold alpaca/wool/silk yarn in one of my favorite winter colors, a perfect-sized little box (for stitchmarkers and small accessories) with a great pair of handmade earrings. And of course, an intriguing music mix which I can't wait to hear.

This is probably the best notecard anyone has ever sent me

These are definitely my new favorites!!! I wear black just about every day and I just love the style of these earrings!

What about the rest of the goodies? I'll let the pictures do the talking. After eating many people treats, Chloe went off to Mr. C's office for a little nap.

There were some fun little mice with jingle bells on their tails. Bitsy, who has always ignored stuffed toys up until now, was the first to run over and claim one for herself.

But she left one for Criquette, who showed Bitsy the best way to kill a toy mouse.

And then there was the best toy of all - wind up shrimp sushi! Abbie was all over it and had to be scolded to "leave it." I am convinced she would have eaten it if given a chance.


Criquette wasn't sure what to make of this crazy orange thing that was spinning around on the floor. She spent a few minutes checking it out.


Once she was certain the sushi was safe, she got closer....


and snatched it up and ran off with it before I could get another picture! We laughed until it hurt. Priceless. However, once I located the sushi (under the bed), I reclaimed it, as it is the perfect addition to my little collection of crazy windup toys.

So as you can see, I have been blessed by the Swap gods and been given the best spoiler ever! Thanks, Sarah!

We're heading out now for a couple of days. I have a workshop to attend, but we'll be back before Thanksgiving. All of you have a great week and take care!

Dogs on Thursday Say: Koyotes Is Our Cuzzins

The woods behind our house serve as a wildlife highway. We regularly see or hear coyotes as they travel along the edge of suburbia, trying their best to survive in a world of expanding lawns and minivans. Like all of us, they are just doing their best to survive, day by day. I have no grudges against coyotes. In fact, I think they're quite beautiful. As long as they're not eating the local dogs and cats.

This is Charlie. He is not my coyote, but I wish he was.



He is an amazing animal companion and he has his very own blog.

He also has his own yarn (his mom must be a knitter).


Take a few minutes to go and visit. His human mom takes some of the most haunting and beautiful photographs of the west. Her book is coming out in early December. I've already signed up for my copy.

So what does this have to do with dogs? Well, coyotes are very closely related to our domestic dogs - they are both members of the Canine species (with different genuses). When Chloe and Abbie spot coyotes, or hear them howling, they react very differently than when they spot bunnies or squirrels or deer. The hair on the back of their necks and flanks will raise up and their barking is deep and serious, as in "guarding the house" (as opposed to the hyper and shrill excited "quick mom, let's go hunting! Let's go catch those things!"). And yet, their tails are sort of wagging at the same time. It's like they recognize the coyotes as distant cousins, but they don't want them to come and visit.

Although for Charlie, they might make an exception.

Dogs on Thursday: Back From the Big Car Ride

We got back from the lake on Monday. Criquette was in quite a snit and would have absolutely nothing to do with us, the little cow. Bitsy, the grump, is the one I'd expect to be sulking, but she came running out of her hiding place to greet us and actually let us pet her for a bit.


Chloe and Abbie, who spent much of their time at the lake napping, immediately ran to their beds and slept most of the evening. They were totally worn out from so much relaxing. I wasn't mentally ready to make the transition from the lake back to real life, so was in a grumpy mood myself.


I think the weather may be playing a role in this. I am being charitable by calling the weather "dreary". The entire time we were at the lake. On the verge of drizzling, on the verge of being cold, but overall, just yucky. This is how the sky looked on our way to the lake:

And it just got worse. We stayed in the cabin in front of the wood stove most of the time we were there, except to take the dogs for walks twice a day.

The cabin is as cozy as it looks.

Abbie and Chloe don't care if it's cold and yucky, as long as there are plenty of smelly things to investigate.

Abbie is checking out a small flock of ducks that had just landed in the water.


Abbie got too exhuberant on one of the walks and hurt her leg while bouncing around on a steep hill. She wouldn't put any weight on it for a couple of days and naturally got lots of sympathy from mom and dad, who even let her share the nest by the stove. Two days later, she jumped out of bed onto both legs and hasn't had a single problem since. I think she's smarter than she lets on, at least when it comes to scoring comfy places to nap!

I drove about 40 minutes over to the largest town, to visit The Yarn Basket. I shopped and hung out with some local knitters for most of the afternoon. The local gossip was quite juicy and vastly entertaining, like the stories about the very unattractive knitting guy who wears kilts with nothing under them and brings his 2 girlfriends with him to one of the knitting groups. I think I'll spare you the other bits on the basis of TMI. I guess there's more opportunity to get into all sorts of trouble living in a small town without much distraction.

This time I went in to the yarn shop with a mission so didn't end up buying much in the way of "oooh's" and "ahhhh's". I got an idea for a secret project and became very fixated on it during my getaway. I decided it should be felted, so I needed to purchase some wool that I knew would felt nicely and knew I couldn't go wrong with good old Lamb's Pride. I decided to also try the Galway wool, because I like the colors. It's unpleasantly scratchy which I suspect should make it felt well too. I also got a couple of skeins for my Ravelry Music Mix swap pal, a ball of Berrocco Comfort in a beautiful woodsy green colorway that will be a couple of men's chemo caps, a couple of skeins of rainbow cotton, and a couple of balls of red and green variegated cotton in a brand I am unfamiliar with.

The newest members of the stash

I liked the Christmas colorway, but what seems obviously dark green turns to black when knitted up. I don't really like it, but I'm not hating it, so I'll finish up the dishcloth and throw the remaining ball into the stash.

As far as the rest of the trip... doesn't it just figure that on the very last day of the trip, out comes the sun. Grrrrrrrr! But we had a great walk before packing up to go...

and all of our legs were working just fine

Goodbye, little cabin, we'll see you in the spring!

Our trip ended with this beautiful sunset as we pulled into our neighborhood. Abbie and Chloe voted for us to do this again next year!