Stepping Out

On this relatively cool sunny morning I took my first solo bicycle ride in Tennessee. The rolling foothills, farm fields and surrounding mountain ranges are beautiful. It felt good to be active and I really enjoyed my time away.....
I've realized that five-year-old's, sometimes cute and cuddly, are also wiry and bony. My nephew can use his toes like a crowbar, or knees like a wrecking ball, in attempts to take over my resting space. A "good" night is when he only "goes diagonal" two or three times. He will have to sleep by himself on a cot. But I will miss that little hand patting my arm or clasping my fingers before he is fully awake. No wonder his mother is dreading this child's first day of school.....
Last night I envisioned an abstract quilt, which hasn't happened in a very long time. I had better make it up before I lose the creative spark, yes?

Dotee Dolls Received

With Dotee Doll swaps still active, I wanted to show some of the whimsical dolls I've received. They are all so different! Some have beaded faces, some have wild hair. Many have embellishments and a few have bead tails. Dolls in these pictures were made by Kath L, Paula P, Cheryl B, Pam N, Marja M, Mary Jane B, and two from Barbara L and 'Berta F. Many thanks to the wonderfully creative people who have exchanged their art with me.

Spring Thoughts

Crimson cardinal whistles loud his sweet spring song.
I search with eye and ear to find the singer on the branch
but he is not so near.
Half-warmed gusts of wind
seem to waft the fragrance of fresh flowers.
But it is only the melt-
the earth caught half between winter and spring.
copyright 1990
.
Frog Serenade
The sweetest sound to my listening ear
is the chorus of peepers loud and clear
on a cold, damp night in spring!
copyright 1990
.
Spring's Fertile Beginnings
The strong green succulent sprout
pushes its way up through the mouldering forest floor.
Where once was death appears new life once more.
copyright 2001
.
To her true love she did bring
Spring's first heralds- pussy willows!
copyright 1992
.
Catkins
Pussy willows, fuzzy white, now start to show some green;
and soon where kitten bundles were, new leaflets will be seen.
copyright 2004

Blue Girls

To complete one side-swap, I needed to make some blue Dotee Dolls. Next will be a few more Fairies, this time, mint green. This is so much fun, do you think I will be able to stop?

Fairies & Mermaids, Oh My!

**

**

**

**

**

**

**

Here are my attempts at Mermaid Dotee Dolls and Fairy Dotee Dolls. The Fairies were the most fun. Who would have thought they would need skirts?!?! Eighteen (18) group participants will be exchanging sixty-four (64) Dotee Dolls. WOW!!!

Unexpected blessing

Five sunny temperate days afforded me the opportunity to get my bike down off its storage hook and ride through the countryside. I have decided that the reason I enjoy bicycle riding so much is that it is the closest thing right now to flying. Five more sunny days ahead may bring the total to TEN in a row. That has to be a record for this area! I plan to get outdoors as often as possible and catch some rays. Spring is, indeed, almost here. Yea!!!

While trying to live-trap and relocate some smelly skunks, one rabbit and one opossum have been caught and released. Still no success catching Pepe la Pew. I may have to change the bait.

Tonight I assembled three mermaid Dotee Dolls which turned out weird and cute all at once. I had to simulate seaweed, of course. One of three fairy Dotee's is halfway there, but I haven't figured out how I want to make her wings. Should be interesting. I am eager to see what the other participants in the group swap create. Pictures will be posted soon...

First Paper ATC's

A lovely woman named Jo in Spain agreed to a paper ATC swap with this theme: Green/Stamps. I had been saving used postage stamps for a while. Working with paper seemed a lot flatter, less dimensional than with fabric. I mimicked the gymnist postage stamp with a rubber stamped image, and extended the dragon's body using a piece of melted Tyvek. Small rubber stamped shapes accented with gold paint and sponged gold rubber stamp ink fill the background. I added fine border lines with a black marker. It's a good thing I didn't look at the ATC's she made and sent before making mine, or I would have felt very inadequate. On her two ATC's she extended the subject matter of the postage stamps by drawing and coloring in more of the images flowing from the stamps. They were truly works of art! Our next challenge will be even more of a stretch: stay tuned!