My sabbatical has ended - and I am back at work. Getting back into the 'groove' is proving to be a challenge. On my first day, one of my dogs ended up in the ER. She is doing really, really well - but her recovery will be slow.

Motu is my eldest and she has had her own challenges for a couple of years. While I may feel my difficulties are unbearable - my Motu teaches me that life is good. It is all about good naps, dog bones and family. She goes on without a complaint and a tail wag. And while she may need help "getting up" - I realize that sometimes, I do too. But, when surrounded by love - "staying up" proves to be easy. I learn a lot from my pups.

Knitting, as always, is a great stress release. I am working on a SchoolHouse Press "Dubblemossa" hat. It is being knit from unspun icelandic ... I totally love the sheepie qualities: the smell, the lanolin and the long staple length. It does separate easily and it is pretty unforgiving if you need to frog, but, I am already perusing the site for more colors! I am using US size 5 as I will 'full' the finished piece to give it a wee bit of durability.

These are the two wheels I am using:

And if you can't wait to see my finished Dubblemossa - peek under kits and you will see Meg wearing hers!

Remember .... Inspire Art! Create Art! Buy Art! Be ART!! And maybe- just for the day, be has happy as a dog!... Comments, please!

Can you believe it is *after* Labor Day??

All I can say is "Wow" and "how very cool" .... bring on the cooler temps too - I really want to wear sweaters and wool sox!

If there is a 'down side' to all of this - it is the fact that the holidays quickly follow the falling leaves. But, the 'up side' is - I have started my Christmas Basket!

A few posts ago, I mentioned that I wanted to bring a basket of completed items to my family celebration and let the recipients choose their own gifts. The basket will (hopefully) contain scarves, mittens, hats, who knows what else ... and bracelets!

I bought these 2 kits from Earth Faire and I must say - I LOVE THEM! They are pretty, fun to do and it is so interesting to watch the finished piece develop.

Maybe they should go on your gift lists too?

Remember .... Inspire Art! Create Art! Buy Art! Be ART!! ... Comments, please!