Dog – The Art of Cobwebs

The Christmas Donkey . . . and a new family member.

A Donkey, a new baby, and Christmas, are three things which just ‘fit’ together, don’t they? They make a perfect triangle, all [sort of] ‘glued together’ with love.

Many years ago, daughter No.2 had a toy donkey called Donald. He was rather a handsome looking Donkey, beautifully made and very special indeed – and when you squeezed his sides, gently, he made the ‘eee-orre’ sound, just like a real donkey does.

Daughter No. 2 grew and grew (as they tend to do) and one day, after having a bit of a sort out of old toys, clothes, ornaments, and ‘flotsam and jetsam’, and I’d made three piles of ‘stuff’: One pile to take to the Charity shop; One pile of things to throw away; and One pile of: ‘double check this’. Everything in that pile was to be checked by everyone in the house that no one wanted it or had any use. Donald the Donkey was added to that little selection of ‘double check this’ pile of things.

I asked No.2 if she still wanted to keep her donkey or could it be given to her sister for her baby to enjoy, (No.2’s niece). No.2 shrugged her shoulders and mumbled about not being bothered, so I took the donkey to Daughter No.1’s house when I next visited and offered Donald to her, and he was gratefully received.

A handful of months later, No.2 said that she wished I hadn’t given Donald away as she had wanted to keep him.

[BIG S.I..G.H.] “But you said you ….” … [small sigh]. I stopped talking, realising that it was a useless effort to remind her of what she’d said and how she’d said it. Donald had been gifted to her niece and I was weighted down with a painful guilt and heartfelt wish that I had been blessed, just for a moment, with fore-sight.

Daughter no.2 has never quite forgiven me for letting Donald go to her niece and I’ve felt the weight of motherly guilt about it ever since.

However … this Christmas, I thought of a way to try to fill the hole left by Donald – only this time in a slightly bigger, and more ‘grown up’ way.

I made daughter No.2 a donkey.

A ‘Faux Taxidermy’ Donkey.

Now don’t have heart palpitations … this isn’t made, in any way, from a real Donkey.

This is made from:-

A Paper Mache form
Fake Fur (of three different types/colours)
Strong Wire
Felt
Calico material
Hessian
Toy Eyes (like Teddy Bear eyes)
Eyelashes
Buttons
lashings of three types of glue
Sewing thread and needle
The use of my Dremel and a Pokey Tool
LOTS AND LOTS OF PATIENCE
and a PLENTIFUL amount of time.

I couldn’t wrap Donald the Donkey II up in gift paper as … well, it just felt so wrong to do so – he could suffocate! So, at Christmas, about an hour before D.no.2, Son-in-Law and Grandson arrived, I removed one of my framed pictures from the wall, and hung Donald II there instead.

She saw it the moment she walked into the living room, and loved it. I was thrilled to bits, because I worried that perhaps it was too big; too over the top; too realistic looking (apart from the buttons for his nostrils); or just ‘too‘. But no, she loved it. She liked it so much that she thought I’d made it for myself and instantly asked me to make her one! RESULT! lol. I got Mr.Cobs to take Donald off the wall and show D.No.2 the inscription on the back, which told that I’d made it for her for Christmas. I thought she was going to cry for a moment, she looked so happy and thrilled.

The making of Donald was pretty much just common sense, and being methodical. I’ll show you photo’s rather than explain ‘how to’, as the photographs basically tell you anything you might need to know if you feel that a bit of Faux Taxidermy is something you’d like to have a go at too…

Donald the Donkey began life as a paper mache Unicorn, as seen in the photo above.

After removing his Unicorn Horn, he had to be patched up and turned into a horse….

His Donkey ears needed to be made, so I constructed them using strong Garden Wire which had been treated so as not to rust. I kept the wire in place using some hessian, which I fed the wire through, and then covered the whole thing in Calico Fabric, folding in order to follow the ‘ear shape’ as I went, – and then held everything, including the wires, in place by hand stitching, where needed.

I covered both the ear armatures in fake fur and fixed it in place, then ‘tried them on for size’.

Once I was happy with the ears, I then went on to make a lower jaw for the Donkey. Unfortunately I got so involved in the making I forgot to take photos of this, but it was basically made in the same way the ears were made, and then fixed into place. You can see his lower jaw – which gives him the open mouth, and all round chunkier ‘Donkey look’, in the two photos, below:

He’s come a long way from originally being a paper mache Unicorn, hasn’t he! 🙂

~~~ ❤ ~~~

OK, so we have the Donkey … “but what about the baby”, I hear you say. (You did, I heard you say it!).

Those of you who read my last blog post will know that I lost my much-loved dog earlier in November. I’ve had dogs all my life, but when Mabel passed, I said “I’m not having another dog. They don’t live long enough and I end up with a heart full of love and no dog to give it to. I cannot bear the pain of losing a dog. I’m not having another dog ever!”. And I meant it with all my heart, as I sat there in the car, outside our vets, sobbing my heart out on the day I said goodnight to Mabel.

On the 14th of December I happened across an advert on a well known and reputable website, for breeders of puppies who were ready to find forever homes for their puppies. I looked at the photographs of these lovely little things, admiring them but not wanting any of them, it was just like a child looking at a picture book. I was happy to just enjoy other people’s dogs.

Then found an advert with photographs of puppy who I instantly felt as though I recognised. Not recognised his face, – but my heart ‘recognised’ this little soul. My heart KNEW him and it called out to him. An instant longing, – painful even, right in the middle of my chest.

[G.A.S.P.…] . . . “OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!“ – I called to Mr.Cobs…. “I’ve found our dog! I’ve found the dog which I know is destined to be OUR dog.”

“But I thought you said we weren’t going to have another dog?” – he replied from the other room.

“You HAVE to come and see this photograph! Seriously, it really is as if I already know him. My heart recognises him!”

And this photograph of a little French Bulldog puppy …. was the photograph I showed Cobs Snr…

We talked about this little baby for a while. Then we thought about it for a while, and then thought some more. Then I found the advertisement again and we discussed it some more. We eventually decided that I should phone the breeder and ask if the puppy was still available or if he’d already been reserved. So I did. And … he was still available to buy.

We made an appointment to go and see him on the following Tuesday, and . . . well, as the saying goes: ‘the rest is history’. He became our new baby. The new four-legged member of our family joined us exactly one week before Christmas Day, on the 18th of December. We had a list of names which we’d made, but once we’d met him we knew that only one name would suit him, and that name was … Hugo.

Now I won’t bore you all to tears about him here on this blog as I know that not everyone is a dog lover. But … I’ve ‘built’ a WordPress Blog just for Hugo and which is Hugo’s own blog, so if you’d like to read posts written by Hugo, in his words, please do visit his blog:- For the Love of Hugo – <—click (it will open in a new tab/window for you). You’ll be able to see more photo’s of him and get to know little Hugo himself. I think you might enjoy him. He’s a funny little scrap of adorable, dipped in magic dust.

Oh, and please do ‘follow’ him and make the chap even happier than he is. As a follower you’ll know when he’s posted something because you’ll get a message letting you know he’s written a blog post to you sharing his latest story or adventure(s), It’s just like any other blog – only, ‘For the Love of Hugo‘ is written by Hugo himself. 🙂

Well, all that’s left for me to say now is: I hope that your Christmas was warm and happy and without incident, and I make a wish for you to have a peace filled, joyous, contented and promising New Year. May there be something which makes you smile each day of this coming New Year, and may you remember to count your blessings regularly so that you know that you are indeed more blessed than you might initially imagine.

Very much love to you my lovely friend.

Oh! … P.S.. …. Some readers want to make comments after a post, but cannot find a place to do so.

In order to make a comment on any post – you have to actually click into the post rather than simply read it on the home page. Scroll up and click on the title of the post and then, when it’s loaded, scroll down to the bottom and you’ll find the comment box! It’s like a magic trick! lol. ~ C. xxx

“Say goodnight, not goodbye . . .

… you will never leave my heart behind. Like the path of a star, I’ll be anywhere you are.” ~ (lyrics borrowed from a song by Beth Nielsen Chapman).

*My beautiful friend, ‘Belly’, who never liked her photograph being taken, but put up with it just for me. Thank you Belle.*

It’s been quiet here on the blog for a few, short weeks and I’m here to explain. I had to say goodbye to my loved, beautiful dog and constant friend, Mabel. Some of you might remember me mentioning she’d been poorly and I’d been back and forth to the vet. Mabel was 14 and a half years old and I couldn’t bear to watch her suffer any longer. I had to make the hardest decision that a dog owner ever has to make, and said goodnight to her three and a half weeks ago.

I couldn’t type details before today as I couldn’t seem to find the right words. Nothing explained the pain of my loss, and still doesn’t now, but I realised I needed to share where I was and why I wasn’t blogging. My heartfelt thanks for the loving messages I’ve received asking where I am. You have lifted my heart knowing that you care.

Thank you for coming today. I promise my next blog post will be a happier, crafting for Christmas, post.

Sending my love to you, as always.

Coffee Sig

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Start Each Day with a Waggy Tail!

Happy Monday all!

I promised someone last week that the thing I was in the middle of making at that time, would cause a smile. And I hope that these two handmade cards do that very thing.

Can you imagine receiving a card, out of the blue, for your Birthday; to cheer you up; or just to say ‘hello’, opening it and finding this funny little dog inside…

That little chap looks like he’s kicking up the grass after he’s had a tinkle, doesn’t he? LOL!

BrownWaggyTail 2 — Camera at a slightly different angle so that you can see this really is a card.

I took the next photo to give you a side view, so that you could get a true idea of how much the back-end of this little chap stands proud of the card…

And then . . . well . . . I just had to make a taller, shaggy coated white dog – which I based upon a ‘Dulux Dog’ – or – an ‘Old English Sheepdog’, as they’re actually called. . .

. . . and from a slightly different angle . . .

The photographs sadly don’t really show the detail of the coats – the ‘shaggyness’ which I’ve sculpted in. The bodies look far more ‘hairy’ looking in real life – to the natural eye.

WhiteWaggyTail 3 — Another photo to show the depth of the clay dog.

And finally . . . a paws for thought . . .

. . . I forgot to take a shot of their feet, so dashed back to the craft room to take an extra photo. The photograph above shows the pinky feet of the white dog, and you can just about see that the brown woofer has pinky brown feet. But what the photo doesn’t pick up is that each paw has individual pads – just as a real dog does. In this case, each pad has one large central pad, and three little smaller pads around the front of the paw.

I think if I were sent one of these cards, for whatever reason, after displaying it as a card should be displayed, I’d frame it afterwards and hang it on the wall. It’s way too much fun to go into a drawer!

Now I’m very aware that not everyone is a dog person, so I gave some thought to what Cat people might enjoy . . . and [whispering]. . . “shhhh . . . something is in the pipeline for those people who love cats! Coming very, very soon!

Thank you so much for coming for a visit, and for sharing a coffee moment with me. I hope you found a smile or two looking at the Waggy Tails!

It’s really lovely to see you, and even more lovely to ‘hear’ your comments and chat, so please, do let me know you’ve visited.

Have a truly blessed rest of your day, my lovely blogging friends!

What I’ve Learned this Week

Hello 🙂 Happy Friday!

Well what a lovely week it’s been. I seem to have done a lot and achieved very little to show for it. But I’ve really enjoyed it, and that, after all, is what life is supposed to be about. Enjoying it.

The weather, here in the south of England, has been a bit chilly, and night-time get’s really rather cold. I’ve been getting Mr.Cobs to turn the heating up by around 9pm of a night-time, just to keep the temperature at ‘toasty’. Mr. Cobs has to control the heating because I cannot understand our heating control box thingy-ma-jig. I always end up pressing the wrong button, or combination of buttons.

So …. What have I learned this week? Well I thought I hadn’t really learned anything at all until I got thinking about it …. check this little list out:-

I learned that probably the worst thing a woman can hear when she’s wearing a bikini is: “Good for you!”

I learned that Bifocals are God’s way of saying, “Keep your chin up.”

I also learned about Honest Brand Slogans and how these should become ‘Law’ – such as:

Hallmark: “When you care enough to give a card mass-produced by  a corporation.”

Ritz crackers: “Tiny, edible plates.”

Gillette: “We’re just going to keep adding blades.”

ChapStick: “You’ll misplace it before the tube’s empty.” (ain’t THAT one the truth!)

Hot Pockets: “Every bite is a different temperature.”

I was reminded that I learned many years ago when Daughter No.1 was 15/16 years old that the four most beautiful words in our common language are:- “ I told you so”.

I finally found out what Instagram is actually all about. It’s ‘Twitter’ for people who go outside. Ha!

I still haven’t learned why my dog always barks like crazy and races to the door, all the time she’s running round in circles, when someone knocks on the door. She get’s SO excited, and yet . . . it’s hardly ever for her!

I learned that I’m more gullible than even I thought I was. . . . I heard, via a TV programme, that the Welsh word for microwave is ‘popty ping‘. So … before I added it to the list of things I’d learned this week I asked Mr.Google if this was true. The very first result which came up said it was true. So I shared the information with Mr.Cobs because I thought this was such fun. Popty Ping. Say it out loud. It’s kind of ticklish!

HOWEVER . . . I didn’t quite trust the first answer so did a little more digging around on Google and discovered that ‘popty ping’ is a made up word. The Welsh word for microwave is actually:- meicrodon. (And no, it doesn’t mean ‘tiny gangster’. lol). Shame … I rather liked popty ping. It was such a perfect description!

And finally … I learned: Women’s tears contain pheromones that lower the testosterone of nearby men. Would you believe it? When us gals shed a few tears, it makes the men nearest to us go all soft and gentle. From this I deduce that we should cry more often. Especially so when we want to buy ourselves a new pair of expensive shoes or maybe a handbag!

Well, I know why some of you are here. You just want some Jokes to spread happiness around the world this beautiful Friday. Ok … gird your loins … here are the Jokes:-

Q. What do Eskimos get from sitting on the ice too long? ….A. Polaroids

Q. Why does a Moon-rock taste better than an Earth-rock? … A. Because it’s a little meteor.

Q. What did the ghost say to the bee? … A. BOO-BEE

Q. Why didn’t the melons get married? … A. Because they cantaloupe!

and finally ….

Q. What do you get when you cross a tyrannosaurus rex with fireworks? … A. DINO-MITE!

Well that’s another week which we’ve put to bed and noted it in our diaries. Have you learned anything this week? Been somewhere exciting? Done something amazing? Do share your story. I love to read about what’s going on in your corner!

Anyhoo ... all that’s left for me to do is wish for you a truly lovely weekend. May the weather be kind, may your heart be happy, and, where ever you are or where ever you go this weekend, may your God go with you.

Have a blessed weekend my beautiful friend, ~

Things I’ve Learned This Week

Happy Christmas (well, nearly)!

We’ve all got two more sleeps before Christmas, and I would like to remind you that Father Christmas is STILL taking note of his naughty list, so don’t you think you can get away with swearing behind your mothers back, or blaming your brother/sister for breaking the window … OR blaming Grandma for that noise! (or the smell which followed it!).

On my own personal Naughty List is the name of one certain blogging site who, I think, must be doing some changes or updates or geeky gizmo stuff which has prevented me from working on this post yesterday and scheduling it to post in the early hours of this morning! I tried again to bring this post to the blog here, at around 9.30 this morning, but each time I loaded the admin pages, the whole thing stalled and eventually the window closed down. Everything else worked perfectly – I could get up any page on the web I asked it to – from Google to Amazon to an online newspaper site which is heavy on images and script (and adverts) and they all loaded perfectly. But WordPress … wouldn’t. So WordPress is currently on the Naughty List. Hmmmpff!

I’ve learned one or two things this week, and I’m here to share them with you. Have you got your drink ready on the side?; seatbelt on?; suitcase packed and stored in the over-head locker?; false teeth in the private cup to your left? Ready? Steady? GO ….

This week I’ve learned that I shouldn’t give my dog – the beautiful Belly [on Legs], one of her Christmas Presents early. I bought her an incredibly soft new blankey for her bed. It’s vintage Christmas red on one side – looks and feels like the most expensive velvet known to man. On the reverse is some sort of furry fleecy stuff which HAD to have been spun in Heaven. I’m convinced that it’s the stuff which Angels must sleep on.

The whole blanket looks like I’ve stolen a throw from Father Christmas’s house!

I couldn’t wait to give it to Miss Belly [on legs] so I untied it from its red ribbon, and held it for her to sniff. She got ridiculously excited . . . so I unfolded it and draped it over her bed. She sniffed …. wagged her tail and jumped straight on.

Well, this obviously hissed Alf Capone (Used Furniture Dealer – and one of our 3 Cats) off royally, and to show his hissed offness he clambered all over The Belly until she got cross and got off her new blankey and came to tell me to make him stop it. Sadly, Alf Capone (Used Furniture Dealer) by this time had snuggled himself into the blanket and when I mentioned his name (with a complaining whine to my voice) he gave me one of *those* looks which clearly said “You have NO chance of getting me off this blanket. EVER”

alf-capone-on-bellys-new-santa-blankey — Alf Capone snuggled down and pretending to be asleep on Belly’s new Christmas Blanket. tsk tsk.

The result of this was – the following day Mr. Cobs and I went back to the shop and bought two more of the blankeys. Both of them in the same colour as this red one, so that none of our four legs could tell the difference. Now all the beds in the Living Room match, and they all look like I’ve mugged Santa.

Now comes a warning.

Meet Sewchi. (Say it like you’d say Sushi – the Japanese cooked vinegared rice dish, normally combined with other ingredients such as seafood, vegetables, etc. Other rice dishes are available – as they say on TV here in the UK).

The above photograph tells you all you need to know about Sewchi. She’s not my cat. She belongs to Daughter No.2. Well, no, to be really truthful, she actually belongs to Little Cobs (Grandson), son of Daughter No.2 and Son-in-law. Sewchi was bought for Little Cobs, and he adores her. He’ll freely tell you that Sewchi is his “bestest fwend”. But, as the above photograph shows, Sewchi is a few sandwiches short of the full picnic.

sewchi-2 — Little Cobs and his Cat. Where ever he is, she is. He loves her, and the feeling is entirely mutual.

Daughter No.2 has now proven what I’ve always suspected . . . she, like the cat, has a few screws missing. Read on, dear reader. Read on. For this is a story which must be told . . .

No.2 is married to the handsome SiL, and they have miracle child, who most of you know by the name I call him:- ‘Little Cobs‘. She also has a dog and three cats. I think she’s copying me, but if she’s going to copy anyone then I can’t think of a better person. (yes, I really am joking).

She loves her animals and looks after them really well. Tiny tidbits of treats now and again, lovely bedding, special beds, toys, etc. They aren’t spoilt, but they’re very much loved.

One of the little ‘treats’ she gives her cats is Catnip. Catnip is another name for the herb Nepeta cataria and relative of oregano and spearmint. Nepeta cataria is a pretty common plant, often found along highways. HOWEVER …. Don’t feed your cat any wild Nepeta cataria which you might find along the side of the road, as it could contain an array of pesticides and very harmful chemicals.

There’s a substance in the make up of Catnip which it’s thought mimics a cat pheromone which binds to a cat’s olfactory receptors to produce catnip’s unique response. The effects of catnip on pets range from arousal to euphoria, and some cats drool and meow with pleasure.

You can find more about Catnip HERE.

No.2 was dishing out a tiny bit of catnip and turned around, forgetting that she’d left the lid off the catnip jar. Using the photographs that Daughter No.2 took at the time, I’ll help tell the story of

What Happened the Day Sewchi Catnipped Herself!

Sewchi is a truly beautiful British Short-hair Cat with incredible fur of soft, smokey grey. She really is a bit of a dopey sort of thing. She behaves and re-acts to things in such comical ways, but her over-riding best character trait is that she’s an amazing friend to Little Cobs, and loves nothing more than to snuggle with him or sit by him while Little Cobs is playing. However … like a lot of cats, she has a weakness for Catnip.

When she saw that the lid had been left off the Capnip jar she moseyed on over and ….

. . . stuck her head into the open jar, and took a looooong deeeeeep sniff. However, she couldn’t reach it with her nose, or her tongue, so she tried another way . . .

. . . this gave her more success (as you can see by the bits on the floor) … but it still wasn’t satisfactory to her. So she ‘accidentally’ tipped the jar over.

Ohh, she rolled in it, rubbing her cheeks, her head, her back … everywhere she could rub, she rubbed. She was so much in pleasure land that eventually, this happened . . .

See the pleasure in those paws? She lay on her back, on a fluffy blanket, and crashed into pleasureland. Her feet were curled up all tight and she was so incredibly happy at that moment that nothing on earth could have upset her. Nothing. Mummy could have offered her fresh Salmon and she couldn’t have cared less. She was the most ultimate H.A.P.P.Y. she could ever have been. A little later …. she slept it off, peacefully – if ever so slightly drunk.

And now ... she’s looking forward to Father Christmas bringing her own supply of the stuff of her dreams …. but Mummy doesn’t hold out any hope. Mummy says that she’s going to be fully in charge of catnip in future. Sewchi wishes you a very . . .

So … let that be a warning to all you cat people out there. Don’t expect your cat to be sensible about these things, because sensible doesn’t work when Catnip is involved. 😀 And I’ve learned that any Catnip toys I make for my own four leg family members will have to have very tough seams!

Oh … and it’s not just house cats or domesticated cats who like Catnip . . .

I’ve also learned this week:

US scientists calculated that Santa would have to visit 822 homes a second to deliver all the world’s presents on Christmas Eve, travelling at 650 miles a second.

If you have children or Grandchildren visiting or in your home coming up to Christmas day, there is a lovely Google Santa Tracker you can visit, both to track Santa’s progress and also some games to play and various bits and clicks, which you can find HERE <— CLICK

NEARLY 60 million Christmas trees are grown each year in Europe.

THE word Christmas comes from the Old English “Cristes maesse” meaning “Christ’s Mass”.

KISSING under the mistletoe is thought to spring from Frigga, the Norse goddess of love, who was associated with the plant.

THE highest-grossing Christmas movie is 2000’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas, which has raked in £175m so far. And … as a little bit of extra information … I’m actually watching this very film as I type this!

GOLD-wrapped chocolate coins commemorate St Nicholas who gave bags of gold coins to the poor.

THE first Christmas celebrated in Britain is thought to have been in York in 521AD.

Do we have a ‘Christmas spirit’ network in our brains?

A Danish study has identified what could be described as a “Christmas spirit” network in the brain. The researchers recruited a group of people who celebrate Christmas, and a group who do not. Using fMRI scans – which detect blood flow in the brain to identify which areas are activated – they investigated which parts of the subjects’ brains responded to be being shown Christmassy and non-Christmassy images. They found that certain areas of the brain were much more highly activated in the festive group than the control group when they were shown the former group of pictures. The Christmas spirit network exists in the sensory motor cortex, pre-motor and primary motor cortex and the parietal lobule; these areas have been associated with spirituality and recognition of facial emotion, among other functions.

Exchanging Christmas cards could be a form of social-climbing

Far from being an act of generosity, exchange of Christmas cards is sometimes used as an opportunity for social-climbing, as people are more likely to reciprocate card-giving with people they are interested in scoring points with. Previous research has shown that people reciprocate card-giving even with complete strangers. A study conducted in 2000 at West Texas A&M University took this a step further, arranging the exchange of nearly 600 Christmas cards between strangers of different social classes. They found that perception of high status increased the likelihood of a sender getting a response, and the effect was even more pronounced among low-income receivers of the cards. High-status strangers – such as doctors, lawyers and CEOs – received responses for 1 in every 5 cards they sent, with few recipients so much as asking about their identity.

Candy canes used to be “pure white”

Few things say Christmas more than those sugary sticks of red and white deliciousness. There was a time, however, when they weren’t red and white.(Although we imagine they were still pretty tasty.) The familiar Christmas treats started popping up around the 17th century as Europeans started using trees to celebrate the Christian holiday season and made special foods to decorate them with. Candy canes first appeared around 1670 when a cathedral choirmaster would hand out the all-white confections to children to keep them occupied during Christmas mass. While no one knows exactly who gave candy canes their stripes, one (unproven) theory has it that the “J” shape was once meant to stand for Jesus and the three stripes represent the Holy Trinity. (Red is meant to represent the blood of Christ). Chew over that the next time you bite into a candy cane!

~~~~~~

Mr. Cobs taught me something this week which I didn’t know before and I wondered if you knew this … so I’m including it so that you can quote this over Christmas, and everyone will knocked out by how clever you are. Not Christmas themed, but ….

Do you know where the ‘sleep tight’ bit came from when you say “Night night. Sleep tight”?

It derives from the fact that they used to use ropes on beds to support mattresses. And the tighter the rope, the more comfortable the sleep. Hence … Night Night, Sleep Tight.

I’d never heard that before!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A few jokes to tell once you’ve had your Christmas Day Sherry …

Knock Knock

Who’s there?

Wayne

Wayne who?

Wayne in a manger…!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Knock Knock

Who’s there?

Oakham

Oakham who?

Oakham all ye faithful…!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Knock Knock

Who’s there!

Anna!

Anna who?

Anna partridge in a pear tree.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Knock Knock

Who’s there?

Igloo

Igloo who?

Igloo Suzie like I knew Suzie!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Q: Whats the difference between the Christmas alphabet and the ordinary alphabet?

A: The Christmas alphabet has Noel.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Q: What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?

A: Claustrophobic.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

What do you call an obnoxious reindeer?

RUDEolph.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Q: What do you call an elf who sings? . . . . .

A: a wrapper!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Why are Christmas trees so fond of the past?

Because the present’s beneath them.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Why does Santa Claus go down the chimney on Christmas Eve?

Because it soot’s him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

and finally . . .

What do reindeer hang on their Christmas trees? 
Horn-aments!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

All that is left for me to do now is . . . . wish you a very happy Christmas. May Peace fill your home and love fill your heart. Presents are just such a lovely way of someone showing they love you enough to go to the trouble of shopping with you on their mind. However, the very greatest gift someone can give you is their time, for in giving their time, they are giving you themselves. So just because someone might not spend money to say I love and care about you, if they’re giving you their time, even if it’s just to stop and have a few friendly words at the front gate, then that’s a show of their respect and admiration for you, because, right now it’s a busy time of year, so if they spare a few of their minutes to share with you, then I think that’s the most wonderful, caring gift.

If I could send you a gift, I would send you a box of 365 rolled up little notes and quotes. One for each day of the coming year. Each note/quote would be designed to make you smile as you read it. For I would love to know that I could make you smile even on those days when a smile is the last thing you think you can muster.

Sending you the happiest of Christmas Wishes. Be good to each other.

Things I’ve Learned This Week

Welcome, dear readers, to the Friday Postcard from the land of Cobwebs, where you learn about the lessons life has taught me in the past week.

Without further ado, I’m going to plunge you straight into the shallow pool in which I paddle…..

I’ve learnt that it’s bloomin’ annoying when they suddenly take my hair shampoo off sale and instead bring out a NEW, IMPROVED variety, without any warning. Had they put out a notification that they were going to do this, I would have gone and bought up as many bottles as possible and kept them in storage, for use whenever I needed it. I’m now left with yet another seek and find operation to find a shampoo which doesn’t make my hair hang like it’s suffering with a bad bout of depression, or my head itch or burn. Or any number of combinations. Why do companies do this? It’s most impolite!

I learnt this week (and this one surprised the heck out of me) that (last year) the Hershey Company of the USA had British Chocolate made by Cadbury BANNED in the USA, and because of that two of the biggest importers of Cadbury Chocolate were no longer allowed import and sell the British Chocolate within the USA.

The Hershey Company banned (yes banned) Cadbury Chocolate from the USA! No I couldn’t believe this either so went in search of the truth. Turned out … it was true….

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcVpp0fGETM

Now I have a handful of friends who were born and bred in the USA and they all love British Chocolate. So I hope that they will continue to be able to find what they desire. However … a certain blogger – Chicken Grandma – will (next week) get her first taste of Walnut Whips which I’ve posted to her. If she loves them … I want her to be able to seek and find them so that she can keep up her supply. 😉

I’ve learned that when I’m not feeling too well, I really, really should stop what I’m doing and just let my body heal itself in its own time, and not push my luck. Because pushing my luck ends up costing me more days of not being too well. So give in, give up and go to bed. That’s the rule I’m going to go by from now on.

I learned the hard way that when I see some crafty item or another, and I fall in lurve with it, I should think carefully about whether I should buy two or three packs at the time … because that store where you bought your item from, might just put the price up to double the price you paid just two days earlier, once it finds out that crafters really, really like this item and want it on their Christmas cards! DOUBLE THE PRICE IN JUST A COUPLE OF DAYS! What a liberty! Grrrr! 😦

I realised (so I guess I learned this about myself this week) that I no longer take myself as seriously as I did when I was younger. I’ve found that I’m far more relaxed and more chilled now. Things don’t bother me like they used to. Appointments being cancelled … [shrugs] that’s ok. Just make another one. The store being out of stock of the item I travelled there just to buy …. ah nevermind. Find something else, or wait till they get it back in. Nothing really gets me angry or mad any more. I’m just the chilled out person I always knew I could be if I tried. Thing is … I’m not trying. It just seemed to happen!

I’ve learned that no matter how serious your own life is, everyone needs a friend to be silly with. Someone you can just be silly with. Harmlessly so. Innocent fun. Just regular silly stuff. Someone to have a laugh or a giggle with.

I’ve learned that my 5-year-old Grandson, Little Cobs, is apparently the Worlds Chief Fingernail Superintendent, and if he feels that my nails are too long for any Grammy of his, then he’s going to tell me about it over and over until I get my nail scissors out and cut that nail to a length he finds acceptable. (yes … this really did happen. I josh you not!).

I’ve learnt that Mr. Cobs and I are going to have to resort to trickery to get Little Cobs out of the house when he comes every Saturday for the day. His daddy drops him off with us, and the moment that front door closes, we cannot get him to come out with us in the car at all. He just doesn’t want to leave the house, not for weeks on end now – he’ll take his bike out into the garden and race around that, but that’s as far as it goes.

And … we think we may have figured out why. He knows that if he goes out in Grammys car, it could be that we’re taking him home. Soooo he might think that we’ll take him home if we go out, soooo … we’re going to swap things around. We’re going to pack a winter picnic in the car, then instead of Daddy dropping him off, we’ll instead go there and collect him from daughter and son-in-law’s home…. then we’ll go take him somewhere for this picnic (if it’s too cold to eat outdoors, then we’ll sit in the car and eat it). Then afterwards we can do something outside. Something fun. Even just kicking a ball around the park with Grandad or even something like a hunt for treasure on the beach (if the sun is out). Anything, just to get him outside having a bit of fun.

And finally ….

I’ve learned that the obnoxious smell which my dog can emit – particularly and only when her bottom is facing my way – be it in our bedroom, the living room or any other room – including my Craft Room (how very dare she) …. might turn me green; make me fall off my chair; go into debt to buy sprays and expensive scented candles which will disguise the smell enough to stop me vomiting …. but I’ve learned that I can actually live through them …. even when holding my breath and trying to make a hasty retreat to some other room where she can’t follow me!

Mr. Cobs let her eat what was left in one of our cats food dishes today which has caused her a windy pops problem … and if he EVER does that again I’m going to either:-

A) D.I.V.O.R.C.E him.

B) Cut his ‘pom poms’ off (yes we really do call them that ever since our youngest daughter asked us, when she was knee-high to an ant, “Why does Daddy have pom poms and I don’t?”. They’ve been ‘pom poms ever since. … or

C) Shave all his hair off while he’s blissfully snoring the night away.

Be Warned, Cobs The Bogey Man! Be Warned!.

Well … that’s a list of all the lessons life has taught me in the last seven days. Or rather … it’s the ones I can remember. So what about you? Have you learned anything this week? Has life taught you the secrets of how to stay forever young? Win the lottery? Be forever as beautiful as you are right now? What? C’mon, share what lessons you’ve learned this week.

If they’re tough lessons which require us all to gather around you and hug you … then we will.

If they’re lessons which require us to laugh … then we’ll do that easily.

But if they’re lessons that we can learn from, then we’ll willingly all sit in silence as you tell us what we need to know so that we don’t make that same mistake.

If you’ve learnt nothing at all this week … then for goodness sake tell us your favourite joke! We all need to laugh far more than we do. So come on… share your best joke with us!

Sending oodles of squidges from my corner to yours. ~

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Happiness, the greatest gift.

Ten days ago I was nominated for an award for this ‘ere blog of ~~mine~~ ours – ’cause it’s not just mine, it’s yours too. (Yes, you have to take the blame also).

The incredible Mrs. P from The Cottage on the Green (aka Craft Odyssey) who I absolutely love to pieces, – (Mrs.P is someone like me, she too has very funny bones) – nominated me for the Happiness Tag – because, she says, I make her happy. I’m funny?! HA! Who knew?! I thought I kept that part of me well hidden, but it obviously creeps out when I’m not looking and makes folks happy. (or is it that people laugh at me? Hmmm… I might have to think about that one. Sadly my one brain cell is busy typing this post at the moment so I don’t have any available memory. I’ll have to think about it another day).

So .. as I was saying before I rudely interrupted myself ... I’ve been nominated for the Happiness Tag and in order to officially accept the award I am to tell you 5 things which make me happy. 5? FIVE?? Only FIVE??? Oh. My. Dog! How on earth am I going to be able to pick just FIVE?

Well, lets see… I’ll start with the obvious – Mr. Cobs, Little Cobs (Grandson), Being Alive, My Dog, My Cats, …. oh, but that’s 5 already and I haven’t even got started yet.

Let me try a different 5: My blog. My Blogging Friends (aw they certainly make me happy. Half the time I’m sat on my side of the ‘puter screen hooting with laughter and trying not to leak! My eyes people, my EYES! [sigh]. Some folk!, in the gutter, looking up at the stars!). Shopping. Crafting. Living by the Sea. Oh heck…. there’s another 5!

Lemme try this again …FIVE, COBS, JUST FIVE GOOD ONES!: My Faith. My Memories. Old Photographs. My Wedding Dress and Wedding Album. No, that’s five.

Try again: My Children – before they turned into teenagers, because before that ‘teenager’ time, I was a Super-Hero in my children’s eyes. I could cook; bake; make; teach; love; cure; befriend; solve problems; read the best stories; make stories up from nothing; paint; create; juggle; do magic; make a wish come true; Google has nothing on me, for I was The Oracle and knew the answer to every question they asked. I could organise a party within hours; make costumes for the school play out of apparently no supplies, and .. oh all manner of Super-Hero Mom stuff.

Darn it … see my brain went off on journey of memories there. CONCENTRATE COBS!

Let’s see if I can do it with the aid of pictures …

This next picture with its caption comes remarkably close to the truth regarding what I saw Himself doing on Saturday morning (Saturday 24th Sept.) . . . .

... as I made my way to the bathroom to take a shower, his last words to me were: “I’m going to garden vac all those pine needles which have fallen in the garden”. And he did. Well done that man!

However … when I returned some minutes later after taking a shower and getting dressed, … he’d finished in the garden and was so happy doing his ‘job’ that obviously felt he hadn’t played nearly enough with his power tool so he’d moved into the conservatory with that same Garden Vacuum, and was sucking up the pine needles he’d walked into the house, … the mat at the door … and the rug in the middle, which he’d complained about the price of when I bought it… and yet, here he was, using the Garden Vac on the darn thing! (I cross my heart – he really did Garden Vac the conservatory!).

One down, four to go ..

NUMBER 2 … FUNNY TEXT MESSAGES FROM DOGS … and CATS.

And from the cat …

NUMBER THREE …. CRAFTING: Ohhhh I LOVE LOVE LOVE to craft!

NUMBER 4…. THE NAUGHTY ‘ME’ WHICH WANTS TO DO *STUFF*

I SO want to do this, just for the giggles

NUMBER 5 … Little Cobs ~ My GRANDSON.

I know I could sit here and tap out a gazillion words about Little Cobs, but most of you have heard them all before and you know that inside this little boy is a spark which ignites a flame of pure, unadulterated love and happiness within me, which makes my heart sing and my mind explode into symphony of musical flowers. Little Cobs is just 5 years old and has Cerebral Palsy and Autism. For a little dot of a child, he’s a massive blessing in my life.

I have already blogged about some of the albums I’ve made for him, but there is one album which I’m making just for him, which has some ‘magic’ about it, – because he loves magical wonderment. He loves that I can make up stories on the spur of the moment which have their own characters and some built-in wonderment which make his eyes twinkle and sparkle with delight. The book/album I’m putting together has a theme to it of “Wishes”. Wishes I make for him, (which you’ll see in this short video of delight from Duirwaigh), and these wishes are all there in a mix which includes dragons and fairies and things which delight and entrance him. Yes, Little Cobs is absolutely my biggest Happy of all.

If you’re still reading and haven’t wandered off yet, then here’s where it gets interesting.

I have to now pass this award onto 5 other bloggers, but they have to be bloggers which make me happy. It’s taken me days to manage to get this down to five, because all of the blogs I follow make me so happy that I’m impossible to deal with after visiting them. Apparently, Mr. Cobs says, that it’s like I’ve been on E numbers for 24 hours. But the rules say only 5 – so here goes….

I’ve nominated these blogs because the ‘owners’ are wonderful people who bring me much joy. But – nominated people: … if you’ve had too many nominations and don’t want to take part then there is absolutely no requirement to do so.

If however, you do want to take part … then you just have to tell your readers 5 things which make you happy. You don’t have to go round fishing for pictures, or anything like that. You can just make a list of five simple things (eg: Biscuits/Cake/Partner/Climbing Mountains/Bungee Jumping) … and that’s it. Then you have to name five other blogs to pass the tag to also … and ... once you’re done, you get to display the very wonderful (well ok’ish’) Happiness Tag (below) on your blog, which I made specially for everyone because I couldn’t find the right link to the tag, so I made a whole new, exclusive tag just for us to use. (you can size it down to fit in the side bar on your blog. I just left it big so that you could see it).

Thank you for coming and spending some time with me. I so enjoy your company – more than you’ll ever realise. And … when you comment, it really is like having my friends round the kitchen table for a coffee and giggle. I so love talking to you all and have got to know many of you as if you were here with me. It’s amazing what chatting in blog land can do. I’ve found it to be a very happy place with wonderful readers who have turned into friends.

Have a wonderful day out there… and … be good to yourself, and each other.

Sending my love to you in your corner, from me here in mine.

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Have a ~ WOOFLY day! ~ (a fun card ~ with a surprise inside)

An easy to pull together but lots of fun little card wishing the recipient a ‘WOOFLY DAY’. A wonderful ‘anytime’ card as the sentiment doesn’t tie it down to a birthday or any other day. It could simply be a ‘just because I saw it’ card, to make someone smile.

Made on a base of Kraft Card, scored and folded, and then put together with a mix of papers, a paper flower (two layers of petals), some red, dotty ribbon and 6 yellow buttons. The sentiment was tapped out on a computer and printed onto some card. Of course, me being me, I had to have a surprise inside ….