The zoo and some knitting

We had a lovely trip to the Zoo today, the Hug-a-Bugs, my dad and myself.

We have two zoos in the metro area.

One is small, free and a little depressing.

To be fair, this zoo is attached to the Conservatory which is one of my favorite places in Saint Paul.

That said, the animal enclosures are pretty wee and the animals all look kinda sad.

The other zoo is Huge and Shiny and Glossy and has an admission price.

We went to the Shiny and Glossy zoo today.

At the Shiny Zoo, they have a farm set-up that is chock full of cute-ness.

We saw baby chicks and lambs and kids and baby bunnies.

The Hug-a-Bugs got some great opportunities to ride on animal statues.

We also saw some free-range wildlife.

It was a lot of fun.

Our MN Zoo is really beautiful. It is in the middle of a heavily wooded area and there are a couple of pond/lakes.

The animals enclosures are not as big as their natural habitats, to be sure, but they have some breathing room.

There is also a fantastic variety of animals.

A tapir, a python, flying foxes (which the Hug-a-Bugs call the Stellalunas), a pair of gibbons, sharks, dolphins, wolverines, musk oxen, just as a sampling.

We spent 3 hours there and even as we were leaving there were still tons of things to see.

We didn't even visit the majority of the outdoor animals.

Also, the kids got to spend some together time with Grandpa Geoff and that doesn't get to happen all that often.

All in all, a really nice day.

I went ahead and got the year membership. I can see us going quite often.

Now, on to the really important info:

I finished the christmas stocking I was working on and began the second.

I tried the short row toe for the second stocking and I love the result.

There was no discomfort of being on too many needles, too close together.

I think I have made a major, personal shift in the construction of christmas stockings forevermore.

Have a fantastic weekend,

Jess.

If I don't post tomorrow, Happy Birthday Donna!!!!!! Yay for birthdays!

From the cracking

"Those are ice webs from the cracking."

Elder Hug-a-Bug

I guess snow's not so bad

Advantage: Winter

The Pity Party ends today.

Hello.

I have been wallowing.

Sorry.





The weather is turning around here in Saint Paul.


I really like February. This is Winter's last stand and the battle with Spring is raging.


Monday morning we had lovely dense fog and the temp was in the higher 20s.

















The hug-a-bugs and myself went out for a lovely walk.


The fog was thick enough that we couldn't see across the Mississippi.















This is the storied Fifth Lamp. As you can see, visibility is at about 20 feet.


What greater harbinger of Spring can we have than fog? Maybe birdsong.

It doesn't register with me that we haven't heard birdsong for a while until I hear it again. Beautiful.
This morning it is pretty cold, but I can see an afternoon walk in our future! I think I'll look for the binoculars and we can have a Bird search.

On another note, I have finished the second installment of the Love From Wooly project-
A hat for Bobby the Bat.















Wishing a glimpse of Spring to you all,
Jess

Hola

It was fun to be away.

Now I am glad to be back.

Je vais a Paris aujourd'hui

There is a parisian-themed doll-clothes swap going on over at Sugar City Journal, and I received my first package today!

Thanks Lynne!

The Elder Hug-a-Bug couldn't wait to fill the purse with Duplos.

We had a lovely day today. The Hug-a-Bugs and myself went to the Como Park Conservatory.

It is always soul-nourishing to go to such a beautiful place.

For those of you who haven't been there before, it is a glass house full of gardens. There is a room full of ferns and a room with a terrific fish pond.

My favorite room is The Sunken Garden, seen here in a photo by the Elder Hug-a-Bug. They have different flower displays every 2 months.

Right now there are hundreds of giant Stargazer Lilies and azaleas and other pink and purple delights.

One other excitement lately is the shift in the weather.

There has been a little more warmth and a lot more sunshine!

Have a terrific Thursday!

Jess

Happy Thanksgiving

Why I love our park

This is the view from our park which is 1 block away and an easy walk for 22 month-old legs.

Also an easy ride on a trike for a 47 month-old.

I was feeling a little down today and this trip to the park was just what I needed.

The Elder Hug-a-bug is 4 years old in one month from today. The looming b-day is a source of some anxiety. With all of the toy recalls, I am hard-pressed to allow the mother-in-law to do her usual shower of gifts. I don't want to seem ungrateful, but I also don't want to risk lead-laden toys, or worse.

I think that I will trundle off to my rehearsal now.

see you all later.

Jess

Friday Craft Club

Just got back from Friday Craft Club.

There is a neighborhood group of ladies who meet every fri night and do fun craft stuff.

Tonight we were soldering stained-glass pendants to sell at a craft sale in December.

What fun!

I was talking it over with another friend who just joined (I joined about a month ago) and we agreed that we had until now had a narrow view of Crafting. Sewing, Knitting, Scrapbooking, these were things that we would expect, but cutting glass and soldering and making soap and building things from wood, these are pleasant surprises. The group of ladies in Craft Club are all full of talents and each brings something very special to the experience. I am really glad that I can be a part of that.



Whew, also, we always have fancy drinks, and tonight was hot buttered rum. very yummy, perhaps adding to the verbose nature of the post tonight.



I only have an update on the sweater, I have, sadly, been neglecting the quilt.

I am a little unsure of the fitness of my sewing machine to do the quilting. It gets kinda hot when I sew one long line.



The elder hug-a-bug is a little bit of a camera hog. in the next couple of pics of the sweater back (completed) she is sitting on top of it much like a cat would do.






Also, I was delighted to see that we still have blooming flowers in our severely neglected back garden.

Have a great weekend, all you out there in the web. I hear the weather here in Saint Paul should be lovely on Saturday, so go out and enjoy it.
Thanks for listening,
Punky