Lab Inspections

Good morning,

Erik and Elsa are inspecting a new bed for Penny. 

They both gave the new bed a "paws up."  Catherine purchased a second one, too, that isn't shown here.  That second one is for Erik. 

Very classy!

:),
Lois

Hibachi Dinner with Family

Good morning,

We had a lovely dinner with family at a nearby hibachi restaurant.

All the flare was there as well as

the fire!

Here are Catherine and Aunt Carol;  just out of sight are son, Don, and Grandson, Alex.

 The soup and salad was consumed while we watched the show of our main course preparations.

This was a yummy fun night out! 

 :),
Lois

Restaurant Lobby Artwork

Good morning,

We had dinner out with family a few days ago.  Since Kjell and I got there first, we had time to wait in the lobby of the restaurant where I snapped images of this lovely artwork.

I especially like this one.

Tune in tomorrow and I'll have some images of the meal preparation.

Lois

Rewards of Dock Diving

Good morning,

Last weekend both Wendy and Elsa competed in Dock Diving events.

Above are Elsa's ribbons!  This was her first competition and we are so very proud of her!  She qualified in all eight of her "splashes" AND took first place!

 Wendy also qualified in all eight of her splashes.

Catherine was so busy with the two girls that she didn't get any images of the event itself.

I've posted images from several other times the pups has gone dock diving.  This link will take you to several events and lots of images of this fantastic sports for our pups.  Be sure to scroll down to see the pups in action!

Dock Diving Images of Our Pups

Lois

Mr. Red Returns

Good morning,

Mr. Red and his family visit our garden often.  This time, I was able to snap a few pictures with my phone camera.

We don't use any chemicals in our back yard garden and it pays off.  We have so many beautiful birds who visit and nest in our trees.  Of course, this is also the place where our pups enjoy the outdoors and play.

Cardinals are ground feeders and just love the seeds and bugs they find here.

I'm especially partial to the cardinals.  My Dad lived with us for the last years of his life.  One of things he enjoyed the most was sitting on the patio watching the Cardinals in our garden.

Happy Summer!

Lois

Penny Update

Good morning,

Our sweet Penny is 14.5 years old.  It was finally cool enough to take her for a walk after a couple of weeks of terribly hot weather.

Penny loves her walks, but we don't walk very far.  She is stiff when she gets up (just like us), but then does pretty well walking after a few minutes.  We take it slow and easy.

It was late afternoon when we took this walk. 

Penny holds five championship titles and is a beautifully sweet soul.  She has always done whatever was asked of her, still loves her cuddles and food, and wags whenever she gets attention.  She deserves a comfortable retirement and we are doing our best that she enjoys it.

Penny is a joy to us all.  We look forward to celebrating her 15th birthday with her next January.

Lois

My Diet is Doomed

Good morning,

Catherine, our darling daughter, is definitely killing my diet!

Catherine made a double batch of her super delicious oatmeal cherry white chocolate cookies that sat on the counter yelling at me to eat them.

It was just terrible, but I managed to take care of that.

Lois

More Orchid Blooms

Good morning,

A few days ago I showed you the orchids at the bottom of this image as they began to bloom.  

A second orchid plant is now in bloom, also.  This beautiful white orchid was a gift for Valentines Day, 2018, from My Honey.  The white blooms are on a new stalk.

When purchased, it had blue blooms due to dye being added to the water.  Here's how it looked in 2018 when I received it:

Last year's post about this orchid is here.  This lovely plant continues to give so much joy this year.

Fascinating!

All the best,
Lois

Hibiscus in the Rain

Good morning,

I so enjoy the hardy hibiscus we have on our property.  They were here when we arrived 40 years ago and continue to grow and bloom beautifully.

So pretty!

Lois

All Lined Up

Good morning,

It has been hot here the past week.  Temperatures were above 100 F and the pups sure felt it.  Here are (from left) Penny, Elsa, and Erik one evening deciding if they want to be outside in the heat;  Wendy was inside in the air conditioning.  

We have had quick rest stops outside with lots of water in the water bowl when we got back inside.  It was just too hot to play outside.

Next week is supposed to be more comfortable.

I hope it's comfortable wherever you are!

Lois

This Week's WIP

Good morning,

This week's Work in Process includes the 80 squares of pink flowers on green that are already being put together with a hunter green border to become a Large Afghan Blanket and

this gorgeous turquoise, green, and yellow sweater.  There are a few more inches completed since I took this picture.

The sweater is sold.  The afghan will be available in the shop upon completion.  If you're interested in reserving the afghan, please let me know and I'll be happy to make up a custom order for you.  There are other afghans finished and ready to ship now - click here to take a look.

I work on more than one item at a time for several reasons including:  it gives my hands/fingers a rest from the same repetitive motions and large projects, i.e., afghan blankets, get too big to take along when I'm away from my studio.

 Kjell has been very busy, too, and recently finished this new design "Poseidon and The Vikings."  Gorgeous!  This is a beautiful companion piece to our "Vikings are at the Roots of Our Family Tree."  Both are available in the shop at this writing. 

What are you making, baking, growing this week?

:),
Lois

-------------------------------------------

Come See What Else We've Made!

EvensensProductions.com

Original and Traditional

Hand Crafted Designs
Made in the USA

------------------------------------------

Chicken Casserole

Good morning,

This quick meal reminds me of the meals I threw together for the kids after getting home from a long day at the office.

This wasn't planned ahead of time.  I just looked around the kitchen and put together what worked.  It's green beans, condensed cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups, five strips of bacon, and three chicken breasts.  While this was baking at 350 F for a little more than an hour I boiled potatoes, then mashed them with sour cream, butter, and a little milk. 

It sure was yummy, but we ate salad the next night to make up for all of the extra calories.

:),
Lois

Butterfly

Good morning,

This pretty critter stayed around long enough for me to get a couple of pictures,

but not long enough for Elsa to catch it. 

;),
Lois

Look What I Found!

Good morning,

Catherine has done some serious gardening in the front yard.  She has taken down large branches and lots of brush that needed to be cleared away.  She brought the large pieces to the back yard and put them in a pile at the side of the yard.

Elsa claimed this one as her own.  She tried to drag it into the house through the doggie door, but just couldn't make it work.  Now it's back in the driveway while she ponders another way to get it in the house. 

Fortunately, it is still outside!

;),
Lois

Trumpet Vine

Good morning,

Trumpet vines live forever.  We've cut this one back several times and the tree where it grew to great heights came down more than a year ago. 

Still, the vine lives and climbs on bushes and the ground, still producing bright orange flowers.

Sometimes, it's wise to let Mother Nature have her way.

:),
Lois

Bug!

Elsa:  Mommy!  Look!  What's this!

Me:  That's a bug, Elsa.  It's a beetle.

Elsa:  May I play with it?

Me:  Well, I doubt the beetle would like that.  And, be careful, it appears this one has pinchers.

-----------------

It's so much fun to have a puppy.  Elsa is six months old so this is her first Summer with all the wonderful experiences of the outside world. 

Crossing the Ohio River

Good morning,

I snapped these images while we were crossing the Ohio River on July 4 on our way to Riverbend to hear the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.

Ohio is on the left; Kentucky is on the right.  The white building on the left side of the image is the roof of our destination, Riverbend River Center.

While crossing the river I just kept snapping my camera and hoped I would get some shots between the rails and beams of the bridge.  I did pretty well this time. 

;),
Lois

Pork Roast for Dinner

Good morning,

There are days when I go look in the kitchen to see what I'll make for dinner that evening.

This time I got out a pork roast, the end of a jar of applesauce, some maple syrup, and lemon thyme from my patio herb garden.  I put it all together, wrapped it in foil, and baked it until the internal temperature was 170 F.  I opened the foil to brown the top for the last 15 minutes.

This was fantastic!  Pictured above is only half of the roast.  We made two dinners out of this.

The first evening I served it with salad and potatoes.  The second evening I served it with garlic butter pasta with very locally grown tomatoes (also from the patio garden), and wilted spinach.

What are you making for dinner this summer?

Enjoy!
Lois

Useless Box

Good morning,

We are having so much fun in retirement.  Kjell's latest project is a Useless Box.  Well, it does have a use. It's one heck of a fun conversation piece!

A friend of ours saw something similar (this is a concept that goes way back) in the office where My Honey used to work. Kjell designed his own version and here it is.

And, yes, it took lots of time....  ;)  Kjell's version is a beautiful work of art.

Click to see this masterpiece in motion.  What a fun gift for the person who has everything.

And, yes, we've already been asked if Kjell will make a similar one for the shop.  That's in the plan!

Enjoy,Lois

----------------------------------------------

Come see what else we've made!

EvensensProductions.com

Original and Traditional

Hand Crafted Designs

------------------------------------------------

It Must Be July

Good morning,

It must be July.  The Day Lilies are in bloom.

These came with the property when we moved in more than 40 years ago.

:),
Lois

Summer Harvest

Good morning,

We are enjoying the herbs and tomatoes from our little patio garden.  Perhaps next year I'll set up a few more pots with more plants.

It so so much fun to reach for freshly grown goodies from our own patio.

I hope all is growing well where you are, too!

Lois

Puppy Love and Kisses

Good morning,

Wendy (left) appears to be giving Elsa a big smooch here and they are great friends.  They are playing with the same toy and both want to chomp on the squeaker inside.

So cute!

Lois

It's all Coming Together

 Good morning,

It's all coming together for a custom order large afghan blanket.

A very nice lady asked me to make an afghan blanket to compliment a new bedspread she recently purchased.  These colors should blend beautifully. 

I'm especially partial to this color combination:  I have an afghan blanket that is very similar on my own bed.

All the best,
Lois

---------------------------------------------------------------

Come See What Else We've Made!

EvensensProductions.com

Original and Traditional 

Hand Crafted Designs

---------------------------------------------------------------

The E's - Elsa and Erik on the Wall

Good morning,

Elsa and Erik are "in the jungle, the mighty jungle...." 

The vines have taken over the stone wall that divides the lower and upper portions of our back yard.  That's fine (for now) and the dogs truly enjoy it.  They play hide and seek and enjoy chomping on some of the greenery.  It's for that "chomping" reason that we don't use any chemicals on our lawn.  We just try to keep up with cutting back what we don't want there.

Obviously, Erik is much better at hiding than Elsa!

;),
Lois

Simple Easy and Yummy

Good morning,

Several years ago when the grand kids were here I put out red and blue gelatin with cans of whipped cream so the kids could make their own desserts on the Fourth of July.

The desserts were such a big hit that we've repeated it again and again.  We had it again this week to the delight of the adults, too.

So easy, so fun, so tasty.

:),
Lois