Progress Photo...

...but not of my knitting - this is of the sweet little chickies.
Aren't they just the cutest little things? I think they have already doubled in since since Friday. Look at those little wing feathers! These chickies are a big hit with everyone at work - people are stopping by just to get a look at the baby chicks. I've never had so much company in my little corner of the office - it's great!

...And Me Without My Nail Polish!

This weekend we took a drive down to Fortescue, and while wandering around, found an incredible number of Horseshoe Crabs. Most of them were doing what two young, healthy Horseshoe Crabs do this time of year. For my mom, I'm certain that these two crabs had the benefit of clergy before they, well, you know...

See all those little green beady things? They're the eggs, and they were everywhere! We were wandering around the boat ramp area, and found this poor little guy. I don't know if you can tell from this picture, but his tail is wedged in a link of rusted old chain.
When I say wedged, I mean wedged. I thought my sister was going to have to break his tail to get him free. Fortunately, she persevered and managed to gently free Mr. Crabby.

He is saying "Thank you, thank you...now put me down."
For over a half hour we worked on freeing at least 20 Horseshoe Crabs from under big pipes, rolls of chain link fence, and in other tight spots. If only I had my nail polish with me, I could have numbered them... Oh well, next time!

Now I have to get the chickens and their gear all packed up and head off to work. Happy Monday, everybody!

I'm a New Mom!

Well, technically, I'm just chick-sitting for family members who are on vacation this week, but I'm choosing to ignore that fact right now. Just look at these little sweeties!

Three Rhode Island Reds and three Buff Orpingtons. You might ask how they are getting along with Emma, Tara and Cooper, since Brittanys are bird dogs, but the dogs are choosing to ignore the fact that there are chickens in the bathroom. I'm not taking any chances on the bathroom door being ripped from its hinges while I'm at work, so guess who is coming to work with their new mommy. Of course, every morning on the way to work I stop at mom and dad's house, so the chickies came along and met their new cousin, Bessie.

I took some video of Bessie's first encounter with her cousins:
Then it was off to work, and I found a perfect little spot for the new chickies in a corner of the library.

Yup, they're working girls! Look how nicely they are settling in.

Hey, who is that extra chicken in there? It's Babs! The wonderful and quirky Babs from the movie Chicken Run! Haven't seen the movie? Rent it today! It's fabulous!!! I leave you with a final video of the chickies meeting their new friend Babs. Enjoy!

Dogs on Thursday (and an old friend)

The other day I was trying to get some good pictures for this week's Dogs on Thursday, but all I could get was some butt shots. See?
After a bit, Tara and Cooper wandered off, but not Emma. She was sure there was something on the other side of the fence.

She was right! This little guy is the second turtle the dogs have found so far this summer. We find so many turtles around here, I think we should call this place "Turtle Acres"! This turtle is extra special though. Do you see the bits of red on his shell?

That's not some ordinary turtle. He has remnants of Maybelline "Red Caviar" nail polish! Longtime readers might remember that I started numbering the turtles last year, and this guy is good ol' Number 5! Check out this post to see his pictures from last summer. This is the first turtle ever to come back and visit after getting a number on his back! Very exciting! I gave him a fresh coat of nail polish...

...and sent him on his way. Good job Emma, Tara, and Cooper! Goodbye Number 5. Come visit us again!

Dogless Dogs on Thursday

No new pictures of the fur babies, but I didn't want to let Dogs on Thursday go by without posting pictures of creatures of some kind. Fur, feathers, it's all good, right?

I came across these pictures while uploading some pictures of paperweights from my camera. (No, I'm not a paperweight collector - I had to take some images of them for work.) Anyway, this past week we had an early morning visitor to the museum. The museum's courtyard, to be more specific - just like the visitor we had a few months ago.

This guy hung around for a while, trying to work up the courage to fly back over the walls of the courtyard. He figured he might get a better head start from the top of the sculpture in the water fountain.


I think he looks great up there!
He eventually mustered the courage to fly the coop, so to speak. Bye, Mr. Goosie! Thanks for stopping by to brighten up our morning, even though you did poo on the sculpture.

Banker Saves Lives!

Check out this super-cute video!

Did anyone notice if that guy was wearing a wedding ring? Do you think he likes dogs???

All for Emma...NOT!

A couple of weeks ago, the wonderful Dogs on Thursday crew of Chan, Sue, Natalie and Nichole decided to have a contest to celebrate DOT's 100th post. It was great - to enter, all you had to do was make a donation to your favorite pet cause. Any kind of donation...money, time, blankets, food...whatever. I happened to be participating in a couple of Brittany transports around that time, so it was easy-peasy!

Fudge, one of Sue's very handsome Portuguese Water Dogs chose the winners, and guess who he chose? Me! Actually, according to Emma, she is the winner, but that's just because she thinks that any box that comes into the house is hers and hers alone. Nichole put together a fabulous prize box for all of the residents of Britknitterville.


Doggy shaped pasta, dog biscuit mix, collars and leashes, sticky notes, magnetic calendar, stickers, and more. One very special surprise is a set of three stitch markers made by Nichole. I just love her stitch markers - they don't snag on the yarn the way some do, and they are downright gorgeous!

The fur babes insisted on modeling their new collars from Aunty Nic. Emma chose first (surprise, surprise) and she claimed the ladybug collar. Tara said she would be very pleased with the dragonfly print collar.

And Cooper said the leaf collar's colors are sufficiently manly for a stud such as himself.

Emma says , "Fine, they can each have one of the new collars, as long as I get lots of belly scratches."
Everybody says "Thanks for our goodies, Aunty Nichole!"

Back to Work

Thanks, everyone, for the get-well wishes. I'm doing much better, and promise not to let another Dogs on Thursday pass me by! Cooper wanted to thank everyone for your kind and comforting words in response to this post. He's so glad to know that he isn't the only wimp cautious dog out there when it comes to evil thunderstorms!

One of the great things about where I work is the setting. Look who greeted me when I was walking to the building this morning. Mr. and Mrs. Goose.

Hey, Mrs. Goose is sitting a little funny... Hurt foot? Broken wing? No worries - it's just a little baby goose under there!
Hey, it's a little crowded in there!
Five little baby goosie geese!

That has got to put a smile on anybody's face!

Happy Mother's Day!

I've said it before, but it bears repeating, especially on Mother's Day. I have the best mom in the world. Truly...she's the best. I have no idea what I would do without my mom. (Dad, too, of course, but today it's all about mom.) :) Here is a picture from a few years ago. Just a few.
I think that was my first outing - they took me to Longwood Gardens. I was three months old in that picture. I guess my brother took the picture - he would have been maybe 6 or 7?

Here is a picture that I know my brother took - it's mom and dad from this past Easter. Don't they look great? I look at this picture and can't stop smiling.
My mom is truly the sweetest, kindest person I know. She's always thinking of others, putting everyone else before herself. She's also a bit crazy, and borderline wacko, but that just adds to her charm. I love you, mom. Happy Mother's Day!

What Day Is It?

It can't be Saturday. It just can't be. I've been sick, but still...it just can't be Saturday. That would mean I totally missed out on Dogs on Thursday this week. That would mean I called out sick three days this week. It just can't be Saturday.

Somehow I caught a nasty bug, and it turned into an upper respiratory infection, which has really wiped me out. How did that bug take hold of me? I've been taking an antibiotic for five weeks now for a wicked flare up of Rosacea, so shouldn't that have protected me from any nasty germs? Oh, well. My doctor gave me a prescription for a totally kick-butt cough medicine. It's good stuff, but it knocks me out. It's 5:30 pm, and I'm ready for bed. This is the first time in days that I've turned the computer on, and I'm so far behind in email and Google Reader, I'm wondering if I will ever catch up on everyone's blogs... Best not to try and get through it all right now. I think I'll take another swig of the cough medicine and slip off to a codeine-enhanced nap before bedtime. Do I know how to party on a Saturday night, or what?