WoofStock

So today was the annual fundraiser for the Heart of the Valley Animal Shelter in Bozeman, MT. Matt and I have been excited to go ever since we heard about it! Of course we spent all of our money this week on the move across town, so we weren't able to buy anything we wanted (which might not be a bad thing after all, we saw all kinds of stuff we wanted!) but we got some business cards and plan on donating once we get paid again. We watched the puppies do their dock diving (lots of fun!!) and some herding, and we were planning on watching the cat talent show, but found out that all the talented cats had been adopted! I snapped a few pictures while we were there, everyone had adorable dogs and I could have taken pictures all day!

Biggest Great Dane I've ever seen! His head came up to my chest!

Herding!

Some dogs didn't quite jump, this one walked down the plank!

We also talked to the nicest gentleman from Helena, who only sells cat toys that have met his cats approval (which I think is a great idea!) Matt, ever the businessman, mentioned my cat toys and we will be sending some to the man in charge of Cool Cyber Cats and Cool Cat Pics for his approval! Wish us luck!

Have a cat-tastic weekend everyone! :)

Lela and Norman behaving for once!

Montana Visit

Mom (Pam) came to visit me (Kirsten) in Montana this past weekend! It was a short visit, and we packed in as much as possible! There was a little yarn shopping, (a little...hah!) some regular shopping, a little hiking, and a lot of eating! Matt and I wanted to share our favorite parts of Bozeman with Mom, and give her a taste of what we like to do. We even got her to play Little Big Planet 2! It was her first time on a PlayStation controller, and I must say that after years of Zelda on the Nintendo, she picked it up pretty quick, even if the grappling was a little rough!

Enough talk, I know you want to see the pictures! To check out all the pictures we took, which sadly isn't very many, you can find them on our Facebook page!

Hyalite Canyon Reservoir

Pam and Kirsten, more worried about Alex falling down the rock face than posing for a picture!

Pam in her Jackson Electric shirt!

Sheep Shearing at Hide and Hair

A few weeks ago I was reading the March/April 2011 issue of Hobby Farm Home Cherie Langlois has an article called the Invasion of the Sheep Snatchers!  It is a great article about sheep shearing day.  This year our Fleece Snatcher (shearer) is going to be the nice Amish man who seared the girls last year.  Sorry I won't be able to take any pictures while he's shearing but he does a very good job.  The girls had a few nicks but that can't be helped.  Currently, my girls look pretty funny.  They are so wide that they have a hard time all fitting around the feeders!  After they get sheared they look like old men in long underwear!  I don't know why I think they look like that but the poor girls also don't know each other!  Every year it's the same thing they have to figure out who's in charge and every year Rosa (my youngest, smallest and loudest sheep) thinks maybe this year she'll be the one but it's always Buttercup!  She's the sheep with the spirit of adventure!

I had off work on Friday and I along with a friend drove to Blackberry Ridge.  We picked up last year's wool.  It is fantastic.  We have white and brown/gray wool and roving.  Lori Scharlau from Allen Creek Country Store and I combine our wool and have it processed together.  On Saturday I went to Allen Creek and we divided up the fiber.  My car is still full because I can't find room in my craft room!  Which has led me to a very painful decision - I must start to sell some of my yarn and roving!  I've been reading the book Sweater Quest by Adrienne Martini .  In the book she describes what I've become a SABLE. which means Stash Amassed beyond Life Expectancy!  So even though I may shed a few tears as I package up sold yarn and roving I know someone else will love it and use it to make some amazing projects.

If anyone is free this Friday morning - April 29th they can come and watch my sheep get their fleeces snatched!  Oh and not only is it interesting to watch it's a great aerobic activity.  We have to move the sheep from their pen to the garage.  Not really that far and 4 of the six girls always follow me with my grain bucket into the garage.  Then I have to go and get Marigold and which ever sheep she has talked into joining her in the grazing of the backyard!

I'll try to get some after pictures posted but for now I'll put up a few pictures of the girls from previous years.

There really is a sheep in there.  She's abut half sheered.  

Here's one of the fleeces laid out on the garage floor.  It's abut the size of a VW Bug!

Here's one of the girls looking like an old man in underwear or a goat!

So you can get an idea as to what Marigold looks like before shearing!

Contact me if you would like to buy some roving or yarn.

Lentil Soup

It's time to show off my soup again! This time I made Lentil and Veggies Soup. Start off with Beef base, onion, celery, carrots, peas, green beans, corn, lentils and red chard, and this is what you get!

I love this soup, and Matt is getting used to it too :) He is generally opposed to the use of lentils as a meat replacement, but he's getting used to the idea.

Matt was sick with pneumonia for the last few weeks, so we haven't been up to much, and I haven't even had the energy to knit! Hopefully I can get a good amount of work done tonight, and it shouldn't be a problem with all this fuel on hand!

Happy Wednesday!

Etsy Love

I've been playing on Etsy a whole lot lately, and even joined a team (I think I mentioned that earlier). I've been trying to check out all the shops on my new team, and it's proving difficult. Here are a few of my favorite items from some of the shops!

This item comes from Providence Vintage, it is a cute little fondue pot, in one of my favorite colors!

Here is a nifty book mark from SeaBelles, I love the little time piece!

If you haven't yet, you should for sure check out the shops on Etsy. Handmade and Vintage items of every kind are up for sale, it's great!

Locks of Love

Every few years I donate my hair to Locks of Love, an organization that makes hair pieces for children who have lost their own hair due to medical conditions. I think it's great that I can do something that means so much to another person, especially when it doesn't take much effort or work on my part. I just grow my hair, cut it off, and make someone's day! Here's the most recent cut, from January of this year.

Before

After

If you want to do something, to give to your fellow man, but don't know how...try Locks of Love. It's relatively easy, it's free, and you might really make a difference! (If you get your Locks haircut at Great Clips, the haircut is free!! Even better right??) 

Soup and Hats

I feel a bit like Crazy Aunt Purl right now, but I'm so proud of this soup that I have to share!

It is a Turkey and Veggie soup, with as many colors as I could add! The hotel we work at gave us both a turkey for Christmas, and this is the last of the meat from the first bird. The other bird will have to wait a while before it gets eaten...fourteen pounds of turkey between two people isn't easy to eat quickly!!

Anyway, I did the Rathskeller base (a restaurant I worked at in De Pere Wisconsin, where they taught me how to make things in the kitchen, mostly tedious things they didn't want to do lol!) which is soup base, onion, celery, and carrots. Then I added in a turnip, green beans, peas, and corn. This was my first experimentation with a turnip, and it seems to have worked out well, although I must say I am excited to make mashed turnips and potatoes in the (hopefully) near future. I might also use the turnip in a thicker soup next time, maybe puree them, as the root veggies do have a tendency to take over the flavor of the soup.

I've also been busy making hats, and Zach Hoffman has been busy photographing them for me! They are all up on Etsy for your viewing (or purchasing) pleasure! Have a great day, and if you need a moment of fun, go ahead and feed the fish below!!

Happy Hats!

It's been a good week for knitting out in Montana! I've finished two hats (well, mostly, the second hat is in need of a button closure that I hope to pick up tomorrow!) and I will finish a third tonight. It's been a while since I posted, and I've added a few things to the shop, including this scarf:

I've also 'hired' a professional photographer, a man with great eye for detail, and longtime friend, Zach Hoffman! You can check him out at his blog, and check out his work on our newest addition to Etsy by clicking here.

The Etsy shop is shaping up, finally, and I've even joined a Team! The Night Owls of Etsy, who focus on late night BNR's, and late night discussions. It works out well, because most nights before I joined the team, I just sat here talking to myself about Etsy. Or to the cats. (They give really bad advice though, I don't recommend it.)

I'm off to knit, and watch some Doctor Who! Happy Wednesday everyone!