Since I’d neglected all my other knitting to get the Fer-De-Lance socks done in time, I missed my deadline of completing the the barnyard sweater by the end of September.

Now, the deadline was self-imposed, so it didn’t really matter, but I want the darn thing off the needles and out of my face (not to mention, Christmas is creeping ever closer and I still have lots if crafting to do!)

So, this past week, if I’ve been knitting, it’s been only on the stinky thing.

And happily, I’ve completed the first sleeve! Only one more to go and this will be in the rearview mirror!

It’s no surprise how much I love my little squirrel picnic table. You’ve all seen the photographic evidence.

Well, a couple months ago, neighbour Krista suggested the perfect accessory for it. But it wasn’t until the other week when I finally found what I was looking for at the dollar store (when I was there for something completely different, of course!)…

The little chalkboard was meant to be a sign for an event table, or other display, but it was just the perfect size for a little sign for Squirrelington’s. Instead of chalk, I used white paint for permanence (I didn’t feel like having to renew it every few days).

I don’t know about you, but I think it classes up the joint a bit!

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Can anyone tell me where the heck September went? Seriously, it feels like it was only about a week long.

Here we are… at the beginning of October, and things are definitely slowing down in the garden. In a week or two, I’ll do a big weekend of winter preparations, but for now I’m just enjoying the blooms that remain.

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The mum in the back garden is just starting to bloom. As you can see from the second picture, it’s just covered in buds. It’s always pretty spectacular when it really gets going.

The marigolds are still blooming like crazy. They will go until we get a good, hard frost.

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This has definitely been my best year for nasturtiums, but even I didn’t expect them to still be blooming!

And I still never get over the fact that I get strawberries in fall! They are small, but still delicious!

Hey- did you know that Basil blooms? Well now you do. Leave it long enough and it will give you pretty white blooms that are similar to catnip!

My Mandivilla has been enjoying the cooler weather.

She’s just busting out all over the place with flowers. This big beast has to come inside for the winter – she can’t take the frost. I haven’t told Dave yet. He’s the one that has to lift her.

And last… October has always been a great time for roses around here… except this year. They are very unhappy with me after their move (hopefully we make up by spring). But Home and Family was one of the few that didn’t get moved.

And she’s putting out a few last minute flowers (tinged pink by the cold)

Rupert says Burton and Relic get entirely too much screen time, and he wants you to know he’s pretty awesome too

So far, I’ve got nine of the 12 flannel bear paw blocks completed for my brother’s birthday quilt. I still have three to go, but I laid them out just to get an idea of the size I’m looking at.

I’m aiming for a lap-size quilt, so with three more blocks, some sashing and a border, I should be right on target.

It will come as no surprise to any of you, that over the last year or so, I’ve amassed quite a collection of quilts.

That’s the problem with quilting… it’s incredibly addicting, but you can only make so many quilts for yourself and the people around you. Dave and I are definitely above the normal quota of quilts, and I’ve made at least one quilt for almost everyone special in my life.

But I can’t stop making them. And they were starting to pile up…

So I’m happy to announce the official opening of….

Bearbottom Quilts!

Naturally, it’s named after our favourite fluffbutt and diligent snoopervisor, Lord Burton Bearbottom.

The stock will mainly be small quilts (baby, children, and lap quilts), but if you are in need of one, I hope you’ll stop by for a browse and maybe a purchase.

I really need to move some out so I can make more and more and more!

I have always loved the Disappearing Nine Patch quilt block. It’s one of those blocks that looks somewhat complicated, but is super easy.

But just knitting, to get the best results, you need the right yarn – or in this case, fabric. I’;ve made a couple disappearing nine patch quilts, and none of them turned out quite the way I was picturing them. They were always too busy. I realized, that the ones I always admired, limited the fabrics to just three.

So on the weekend, I got cutting.

I’ve had that sea turtle fabric for ages, and have just been waiting for a chance to use it. With everything cut, I sewed together my nine-patches.

Then I chopped them up.

And then turn a couple pieces around.

And sewed them back together!

Just like magic. With that done, there was nothing else to do but sew them together.

Now the pattern can really shine!

Another great thing is that you can make a small quilt with this block in just an afternoon. It’s just that easy!

Now it’s tucked away, ready to be quilted whenever I get the chance to head up to Mom’s.

For backing, I have these adorable sharks, and more of those cute little crabs for the binding.

I am happy to say that I got the birthday socks done in time. They were finished up Friday night before bed. Saturday morning, I did a quick photo shoot…

(Relic helped) and then the socks were wrapped up. By Saturday evening, they were on the Birthday girl’s feet. (She wore them all night.)

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And then Sunday, I got the pattern typed up, and put on Ravelry, so now you can knit a pair if you so desire (you can take more than seven days if you like though!)

The pattern is for sale for just $1 until October 3, 2020. Don’t miss out!

The other day, neighbour Krista knocked on my door. In her hand was the most ENORMOUS dried sunflower head. A friend of hers had grown them and had wondered if I would like one to serve up a Squirrelington’s.

Naturally, I said yes.

It took a while for the patrons to come around…

And they were definitely not sure what to make of that giant thing. Eventually, they got used to the idea of it being there, but they still preferred the peanuts…

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But while the squirrels weren’t interested, someone was.

Every time I checked, there were more and more seeds gone.

It took a bit, but I was finally able to capture a picture. It’s not a great one, but it’s clear who the sunny snacker is.

Within a day or so, the whole head was empty of seeds. But don’t worry, I did save some to grow next year!

It’s that time of year, the fall colours are starting to show…

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Forget the trees, it’s all here in my backyard.