Here are the last of the owl photos from Project Baby Owl 2013.  These come from three different nests here in the area, and all are equally popular with the photographers. See?  The city had to put up traffic cones with NO PARKING signs on them near this tree, but people still found a way to park and photo. We are all very into the owls around here. (Click on photos to make them bigger.)

They are amazing animals, and so well camouflaged as their feathers go from whites to browns. Now that they have grown up and flown the nest, the trees seem very empty. But I guess that means the skies and fields are full.

Sheri whowillnowfinditsafertodrivetowork
withoutcraningmynecktoseebabyowlsasIpassby

Happy Monday to you! It finally feels like Spring here.The icicles are melting, the snow is gone as of late morning (at least in our back yard), and the sun is shining and warm. (Don’t you love the way WH caught the drop coming off the end of the icicle?)

Now I’m just hoping my lilacs will still bloom. Of course I’ll be sharing pictures if they do. Lilacs are my very favorite flower, and our yard is full of different varieties! But enough of spring talk – let’s get on to the Monday Update talk. We just added in:

Biscotte & Cie – I absolutely love Louise’s self-striping yarn. This batch is in her fingering weight and it’s great not only for socks, but you will also enjoy using it for gloves and mitts and hats and scarves. I used it for socks and also used it for my Sockhead Hat, which is a great gift project. (And remember, we also carry her Gobelin line, which is self-striping on worsted weight yarn. I made this hat in the worsted weight.) Shown here in Arc-en-ciel, and yes, I did happen to buy a skein of this color for myself.

Three Irish Girls – Cashmerino Worsted. This is beautiful sweater yarn, but you should also try it for shawls, hats, scarves and vests. I used two different colors of the Cashmerino Worsted for my Winter’s Rhythm shawl and it feels so luxurious. It was soft and squishy to work on, and feels even better to wear. I also used it for my Camp Loopy mittens a couple of summers ago. (Off-topic – check out the Cake Batter Truffles recipe on that post. I need to make more of those. They are delicious.)

Three Irish Girls – Adorn Sock. A fingering weight yarn that you’ll love for socks, but also for shawls and lightweight sweaters. Sharon comes up with some really unique color combinations, which is always fun! I used a pretty colorway to knit up this sock. (Of course we didn’t get that color in this batch. But we did get Cottage Garden and Mairin – two of my other favorites.) Shown above in Storm Brew.

Fibernymph Dye Works – BFL Roving. Lisa’s colors are gorgeous, and this roving will spin up into a beautiful skein of yarn. BFL Roving is especially nice to spin if you’re newer to spinning, as the fibers are a little grabby, making it easier to work with. Of course experienced spinners love BLF, too, because it spins up so beautifully. Pull out your wheels and your spindles and get at it! Shown here in Candy Mountain.

Head on over to the website and check out all of these new things. And don’t forget to sign up for our Fall Giftables Club, if you’re interested. We have left signups open (and thanks to all of you who have already signed up!), but we’re about at our maximum number of spots and will be closing the signups tomorrow evening so that we can get our dyers working on the yarn.

Sheri whowouldreallyliketocastonstripeysockstonight!

We woke up to another 14+ inches of snow this morning (and it’s still going!). I have to say, it generally only stays around for a day or two, and then everything melts in the hot sunshine. I like it that way. I never get overly tired of being surrounded by snow and white and gloom all winter, because we just don’t have that here. I am, however, ready for spring. Last year, I posted this photo of our blooming lilacs on April 13th on my Facebook page. I’m ready to see those again.

Here are some snow shots from today. Maybe this will be it for this winter, and we’ll move into spring next!

And a few photos that WH took downtown today. Someone – or four someones – left their bike(s) out ….

Sheri wonderingwhatkindofweatheryouareexperiencingonthisMayDay?

Remember last year when I shared photos of an owl’s nest that is on my route to and from work? Last year, the momma owl looked so tired and had 3 big puffy babies to take care of.  Guess what? She has three more this year – still big, puffy and white. And guess what else? She still looks exhausted. (Notice – snow on the nest and no leaves this year. Last year at this time the leaves were out and hiding the babies a bit more carefully.) I wonder if it’s the same momma owl this year? Or are owl nests a “first come, first served” kind of thing? I found another nest at a different intersection this year, too. That one looks to have a momma and one or two babies. I’ll share more pictures if we get more later.

It’s fun to see the nests and babies from year to year. I used to hear owls frequently when we lived in St. Louis, but I never saw any nests, much less baby owls. Here we hear them, we see them, and we watch their babies and nests. Very cool.

What will you be knitting on this weekend? I am still working on my Nuvem. It’s a long knit, but I will love it when it’s done.

Sheri ormaybeitistimetostartsomethingnew?

March is the snowiest month here in Fort Collins, and we have had some beautiful snowfalls already this month. I am a big snow person and love waking up and finding everything covered in pretty white! Of course the sun is so warm at this altitude that even if things are snow-covered, it usually only lasts on the ground for a day or two before melting away in all of the spots except for the shady areas. Last weekend they predicted a blizzard with heavy snowfall, and we ended up with about 4″. Oh well. Paul (WH) went out photographing after one of our recent snows and caught some pretty deer photos. I thought you might enjoy them.

Hello cuties!

There seems to be an enticing bit of food somewhere up there.

No doubt hoping that the photographer leaves soon so that they can get back to eating with no interruptions….

Have a great Wednesday!

Sheri Loveseeingthem,butgladtheydon’tliveinouryard,
eatingourplantsandtrees

You all know that my hubby is a photographer and takes some really cool photos, right? I mean, besides all of the cool yarn photos he takes for us and the website. You can check out some of his other photos by clicking the WH’s Photo category on the right side of my blog.  ——>

He visited an Alpaca Ranch a couple of weeks ago and sent me some of the photos, which I wanted to share with you. (My favorites, though, are still the ones from this post. I like them so much that we enlarged some of the photos to put up at Loopy.) But here are the new ones:

I call this one Alpaca Duuuuude:

Alpaca Big Eyes:

Alpaca Bad Hair Day:

Alpaca Perm:

Alpaca Needing a Floss:

Alpaca on a Diet:

Alpaca Grass Nose:

Alpaca Grass Nose – a closer look:

Alpaca Grass Nose, side view. (I would love a skein of his beautiful fiber.)

Alpacas have a lot of personality, don’t they? They’re so curious. They probably think the same about us.

Sheri whohasalwayslikedyarnwithabitofalpacainit