Homesick

In a blog that I follow fairly regularly, Shona of Lala Dex Press recently mentioned that she is homesick for LA, and I too haven't been home to Texas for quite some time, so her feelings resonated with me. Shona wrote that watching the Lakers in the playoffs has been helping stave off some of her emotions.

What helps me is the combined mention of small towns, truck driving, heart break, among others. Hearing about them warms my heart so much that my neck turns red. That's what happened during tonight's CBS special honoring George Strait as the country music artist of the decade. All of these topics were mentioned as well as a few others like Ocean Front Property, a song, admittedly, I didn't understand until I was 18 and left the heartland and saw the ocean for the first time.



I'm fortunate that I can keep the feeling going when I watch Walk the Line on CBS this Friday evening. It just happens to be my favorite movie, and I think my husband must think it's called Again! because that's what he says every time I watch it.

I've Got Stripes

I made a fun, striped elephant for my nephew who turns 1-year old today. It was another of Susan B. Anderson's adorable patterns that I couldn't resist. I changed the ears because her pattern called for them to be crocheted. The front of the ears are a little goofy, and if I make another one, I'll actually pre-write a pattern for them, rather than winging it again.
..

.
....

.
I also got him a frog. When my brother was little, he was constantly sick, and him having a fever of 104+ was not unusual. Now, my nephew is suffering the same fate. When my brother had his tonsils removed, he stopped getting so sick. But, I have to wonder whether it was something else that healed him. When he was at the hospital recovering from the tonsillectomy, he received a get-well frog that became a frequent companion, and who he gave the name "Tonsils". Creative, huh? My brother also named our childhood dog "K-9", after the movie, or so he said. I renamed the dog "Butt", after the person who initially named him "K-9".

Anyway, I'm hoping that the healing agent was the frog, rather than the tonsillectomy. And, from what I understand, my nephew will be needing even more healing powers now that his 1-year birthday party that was scheduled for Saturday was postponed because he came into contact with Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease during the past week.
.
And, how is an aunt to wrap this 1-year old's birthday gift? Well, in camo, of course. Happy Birthday, Kiddo! Try to find the camouflaged elephant and frog!.
.

And, I needed some stripes of my own, so I made what I've named "My Happy Hat", or what my brother would name "Hat". Now, I'm happily wearing my hat and singing the tune of The Legend.

.
.
.

Pictures to Make Me Smile

I have great friends who send me countless pictures of precious pets everywhere. I was fishing through my email today and spotted this one. So stinkin' cute that I just want to knit him a sweater.

It was a needed reminder of how cute the little critters can be as I was watching Wayne bat at and eat my spider plant while screeching in enjoyment.

Happy weekend, everyone, and if you have some precious animal pix, I'd love to see them.
.
.
.

A Must-See Motion Picture

I have the world's shortest attention span when it comes to watching anything on YouTube, but I watched intently as this story progressed one photo at a time. Amazing! I can't imagine the breadth of his patience and attention span. I truly want to meet him and tell him my life story just to find out. He might be the one person in the world who I wouldn't have to pay to listen to it.