And even more...

A few more bunnies have joined the "herd" and a few were given away. Soon they will all be hopping over to my friends where they will bring some Easter Joy. I've branched out and made a couple of Easter Eggs too.

FYI--the appropriate collective for a group of rabbits is "herd." And a herd of rabbits live in a warren. My house has definitely become a "wabbit warren." 

More Bunnies

The bunnies are doing what bunnies do...multiply. 

There are 2 tribes...and I'm having too much fun making them...one or two a night! Happy Easter everyone!

 

4 Stars for Beauty and the Beast

I saw Beauty and the Beast this afternoon. Disney has created an interesting interpretation of the fairy tale. I came out of the movie smiling and happy. There were some surprises, which is why I gave the movie only 4 stars instead of five.  Emma Watson (she played Belle aka Beauty) is portrayed as a handsome girl who is good and sweet and caring, but not your classic "beauty." One of the lessons the fairy tale tries to teach is that beauty is more than outward appearances. Hence, if you are looking for a gorgeous Beauty to sweep you off your feet, keep on looking as it's not there.  In addition, if you are looking for a story that takes place in a tiny provincial town in medieval France, you will be surprised that the inhabitants of that village are not French. The cast is a multicultural group with alternative lifestyles. Surprise, it's the 21st century so Disney had to modernize things.   Lastly, I did not realize the movie was a musical. There is some dialogue, but like Les Miserables, a lot of the dialogue is sung. It works...but it was a surprise to me.  The story is wonderful. The fancy dress French costumes are glorious. Beast is truly a beast and kind of scary. There are some classic  Disney-type scenes that take your breath away. The ending is as it should be. Along with creating a wonderful movie, Disney added an unneeded social statement to a fairy tale that already teaches a good lesson. 

Bunnies

My niece asked me if I could crochet this Easter Bunny...

 I looked at the pattern and decided it was the most complicated piece of crochet I've ever seen! That's some statement as I've been crocheting since I was 7! But I was given a challenge so I started lookinng for patterns I could do. I  found one that I modified and it was still cute. To date I've made 2

One has "button" eyes while the other has child-proof embroidered eyes. I think I'll make a few more, because, like Bugs Bunny says, rabbits are good at multiplying! 

Lucky Seven

The seventh Project Linus blanket for 2017 is done! I've been calling it "Stained Glass." 

The colors are not showing well--the pinkish stripe is actually lavender and the light blue-gray strip is turquoise. It's big enough for a twin bed and that's why it took me so long to finish it...plus the fact that I made a huge mistake and I had to tear out 11 rows to make it right. I tend to make mistakes when I'm sleepy

.

Is it Spring?

I don't want to count my chickens...but I think spring is coming? There are all sorts of clues, even if Daylight Savings Time has not yet started. The hillsides are covered with a green felt of grasses and 

...there are a few daffodils in my garden. They are a surprise as I've not had the daffs bloom in over 5 years. I guess they need water?

The daisies are showing off too! I'm always happy to see them.   

The lavender is starting to send up purple flowerettes that are attracting bees while the redbud has a pink aura about it, but no blossoms yet...sadly, the rock roses are still "asleep." The rains bring the flowers!

 

Top Hat

I just watched the 1935 musical, Top Hat, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The movie focuses on a case of mistaken identity but the "story" is all about dancing. Classic Hollywood dancing. Fred looks incredible in his top hat and tails...and Ginger steals the show with her fancy wardrobe, including her fantastic feather and satin dress that she wears in the Dancing Cheek to Cheek scene. That's the best!  The movie is fraught with stereotypes, lack of story line, really bad sets, and a predictable plot. Don't get me wrong...the "story" is awful. But, you don't see a Fred and Ginger movie for the story...you see it for the dancing. I think Top Hat has some of the best dancing from the era. It's a great "feel good" movie. I'm still smiling. If you have a chance to see it for the nth time (where N is a big number) see it...and I'm sure you will have a happy grin on your face too.  

After the Rain

We have been getting a fair share of rain this winter and now we are getting ready for spring. The ponds and lakes are filled as they should be. 

This little stock pond is filled to capacity. 

One pond away, our permanent winter guests, this pair of Canada Geese, are getting ready for this year's batch of babies.

...and then there are the glorious reflections.

...and daffodils.

...and daisies. There are probably more surprises after the rain.

 

Priyo’s Baby

Remember I made a bunch of baby blankets on the last cruise? Today I received a picture of one of the babies...his name is Chiko and he came before the blanket arrived. His dad gets off the ship in May and that's when he will get the blanket.  

And Then The Rains Came...

After several drought years, we have had some rain. I'm sure you have heard about it in the news if you have not experienced it for yourself. When we arrived at Lake Cachuma on the last day of 2016 the lake was at 7% and falling

I'm happy to report that the local news folks are saying the lake is at 50%. This is great news. 

The "new" boat ramp is still high and dry (see the large chunks of concrete below---they weigh down the ramp...)

...but the old boat ramp 

Actually has some water along the bottom. There's a date (1963) written at the base of the ramp and it was covered today. That's good news. 

Here's another view of the new boat ramp...and it's still laying on the dry land like a collapsed snake. BUT look at the rest of the lake...there's actually water in it.

This is my "benchmark" picture site as I look at this view all the time. Today there is water in the foreground! 

All this bodes well for the water supply for Santa Barbara. In the next few days we will be driving north and we'll get to see how the rest of the state has "filled" up. 

 

 

Blanket 6

After a false start where I made two HUGE mistakes, I'm pleased to say I've finished the sixth Blanket of the year. 

This is possibly the most complicated pattern in my repertoire. This time I made it in mossy green, lavender and winter white. It's very subtle, yet pretty. It's soft, cozy and large (big enough for a twin bed). It will be donated to Project Linus where a teenager will find it cuddly and warm.

(In case you are wondering...we had about 20 hours of rain yesterday which is perfect weather for crocheting)

 

Blossoms

After the heavy rain the trees have started to blossom. Spring comes early to this part of the world.

The blooms are illusive -- here today and gone tomorrow.

Disc Golf

For the past several weeks, the folks at the Park have been working on project. Park personnel  

Created trapezoid-shaped forms and filled them with cement. The project started slowly as it rained and they could not work, but the rain stopped and more cement pads were laid. About a week ago, I spotted a team creating a new trapezoid pad and I asked what they were making and I was told they were making a Disc Golf Course. I asked the obvious question...What's Disc Golf?

He told me it is a game played with Frisbees and then he continued pouring cement.

This weekend, these turned up. There are 18 of them and they are baskets.

Apparently Disc Golf is a big sport...and Lake Cachuma is going to have a humdinger of a DG Course. The object of the game is to throw a frisbee from the trapezoid pad to the basket in the fewest number of throws. After completing 18 holes, the person with the lowest score wins. It might be a lot of fun...but even more fun is enjoying the beautiful location. Go to DiscGolf.com for more information about this sport.

 

From Last Year

Here's the baby that goes with a blanket I made last summer. Shes's 2 months old and pretty in pink!

Blanket 5 and a Boo-Boo

I finished the fifth blanket of the year last night. It's made of "leftover" yarn from previous blankets. I think the colors go together well!

Then I started the next blanket while I was looking at an episode of Murdoch Mysteries...

And this is how far I got before I realized I made not one but two errors in the first row! I restarted the blanket this morning and the second attempt is good! The pattern I'm using is very complicated and I should have been concentrating on the pattern instead of the story! 

Four

The fourth blanket is ready for Easter (so I've been calling it Pasquale -- Italian for Easter)  with muted tones of green, blue and lavender. The picture makes it appear 

brighter than it really is. I think it will be a good blanket for a young teen girl. 

Vetch

After the rain the vetch is beginning to grow. I liked this little flower as it looked back at me.

Green Three

Something that is not political...not too controversial...and probably unimportant...but

I just finished the third blanket of the year. It's a "left-over" blanket as it's made out of what is left over from the last blanket. Generally speaking I cannot get 2 blankets from a "batch of yarn" but this time I did. I like the way the variegated yarn weaves a pattern in the design. It is really cozy as I've enjoyed having it on my lap the last few nights. I'll start a new blanket tomorrow.

Morning Dew

It was 31 degrees when I started walking this morning. The grass was a crystalized fairyland.

Once I started moving, it was not too cold...so I walked 2.6 miles enjoying the quiet beauty.

After The Storm

It finally rained a bit in Southern California. It rained so much that the electric company had to deal with a lot of power outages including ours. We did not have power for 38 hours. We were thankful when the power was restored! 

The lake level has gone up a bit after the storm...but so much more rain is needed as there should not be any brown showing in the foreground of this picture.

The center part of this picture should be filled with water!            

This is the "old" boat ramp ... and           

This is the "new" ramp which is no where near the water!

The storm did bring down several trees and pruned a few more

As there are piles of twigs all over the place. We still need more rain this winter.