Three Thank Yous

Pappy Update
Thanks to everyone for their prayers, positive thoughts and get well wishes for Pappy.

After three days of Deramaxx he's bouncing around like a youngster. We hope it was a onetime muscle pull and not something chronic.

He does have a large scar across the back of his neck where the problem started. Still, we've had him for over two years and it hasn't been a problem before now.

Cozy In Cables, Vest 1
Thank you to everyone who left a suggestion for naming this vest pattern. All the suggestions were better than anything I could think up.

I'm officially naming the vest Cozy In Cables, suggested by Lisa. It's the perfect name for several reasons: We're knitting vests in bulky weight wool to keep the orphans warm and cozy, it has cables, and Cozy In Cables has the same acronym as CIC, Children in Common.

Thanks Lisa and everyone else who made a suggestion.

My test vest is almost finished and, if life goes smoothly, I plan to have the pattern posted by Wednesday.

Outdoor Updates
Thank you to everyone who has sent an email or left a comment about enjoying the nature pictures and posts on Stitches of Violet.

Here are some brief updates on what's going on in the yard.

It's very dry and we have a burning ban that only a complete fool would ignore. Dry leaves make for easy raking, but I come in covered with dust.

This dryness is atypical. April in Michigan is normally a month of rain, mud, and an occasional tornado.

Another unusual thing is the large amount of wood ticks this year. We're finding them on our clothing, on our skin, on the dogs, and just about everywhere as they crawl around looking for a place to attach themselves.

They're flat, hard, and difficult to kill. I read once that they hate water so I delight in flushing them into the septic system. That's where this one ended up about one minute after I took this picture.

The bluebirds have five eggs now and incubation has begun. Estimated hatch date is May 1.

There are tree swallows sitting on the second nest box of the pair. No nest yet, but they buzzed my head when I walked out there this morning so I think they're serious about claiming it.

Looks like we have a fox den out in the dog walking field. It has three good sized holes that one of my little dogs could climb - or fall - into. No plans to disrupt the fox family, but I wish they had built their home elsewhere.

This morning I spotted an Eastern hognose snake and was able to identify it pronto. I'm learning.

Haven't seen the mink in a week or so. Soon the grass will be too long to see anything.

It's interesting and a little disappointing to see my hit counts cut in half since spring arrived and I've been intermingling nature posts along with the knitting posts. I hope it's only because blog readers are working more outside and have less time at their computer. I know that's true for me.