The Return of Zorro!

I have been wondering and worrying about Zorro - my feline garden friend. He showed up for his usual pats, pets, and a small dish of half and half about 6 weeks ago, and I haven't seen him since. Until this morning! I was so delighted to see him, looking sleek and beautiful, as he always had. You see, we have a lot of wildlife around here. Raccoons. Skunks. And....coyotes. Very healthy looking coyotes! Lately our neighbors have been telling tales of some very bad days for local cats, dogs, and chickens. I had finally resigned myself to the sad likelihood that Zorro had........well, you know. I was pretty sad about this too. I really, really liked Zorro, and we had spent a lot of garden time together.

And then, this morning...there he was!!! ZORRO! It was a VERY sweet reunion!! The first of many more mornings with Zorro!

True blue Summer!

And now Summer is truly here.
HAPPY 1st DAY OF SUMMER EVERYONE!
-flip flops
-playing in the sprinklers
-beach towels
-explosions of flowers!
-explosions of fireworks!
-popsicles
-ice cold watermelon
-cherry limeade
Some of life's very BEST things!
I wish you a Happy Summer!

Small visitors

Some of our small guests at Little Bird Farm are invited...


...and some of them are born here! These are our newest residents!

A vase full of SUMMER!

The long days of cultivating, weeding, watering and tending our gardens at Little Bird Farm pay off in extraordinary ways! When we share long evenings on the porch with friends, listening to the trickle of the water dropping from the bamboo water spout, graced by the color and fragrance of splendid flowers and new-mown grass, we feel so very blessed and happy! When we can step right out our door and cut beautiful flowers, bring them inside, and place them in a vase to enjoy in our home...it feels spectacular! It feels.....like SUMMER!

Sewing

Now that I am a grandmama, I am truly enjoying sewing special little outfits for our two precious granddaughters. Though neither of the little sweeties lives nearby, and I only get to see them every three months or so at best, I am trying very hard to get a feel for the "style" of each little sweet baby girl. It is enthralling to peruse my favorite online fabric stores, making difficult selections from the vast and various...and gorgeous (!!!!!) Japanese fabrics! I lose myself on these websites! As I carefully cut out each garment, stitch seams, gather ruffles and ruches, I think about these baby girls who have stolen my heart. I whisper little prayers for them, concoct special future moments for us to share, consider their little smiles and individual personalities - hoping to create a perfect little outfit!

My sewing skills used to be quite fine, but have gotten a little rusty. Sewing these tiny dresses, pj's, tops & gowns has tested my abilities! I have done a fair amount of ripping out seams of late! But that's part of sewing, in my experience! (When I sewed the Dupioni silk dress I wore to our younger son's wedding, I put the sleeves in backwards first, before getting them right! Bummer!)

Today our kids sent us pictures of precious Piper wearing a tiny gown I made! She looks so cozy in it! The fabric is a double gauze that only the Japanese can make so well - super soft! Perfect for the sultry, southern summer days Piper and her parents are experiencing! The print is the cutest tiny frog in an apricot color - on an ivory background. The apricot color mimics Piper's hair color! I wonder if she is smiling in this picture because she likes the outfit her grandma gigi made especially for her!