Zipper + ribbon = ???

I just completed another sewing project. Two of them, actually. Can you guess what they are? (If you 'know', shhhh! You can email me.)

They each only involve a zipper, a length of ribbon, and a strip of fabric backing... plus an extra loop of ribbon. Here's the first one:

This one is entirely hand-sewn.

Here's the second one, for which I used the sewing machine where I could, but it's still mostly hand-sewn:

I love the ribbons! Have a closer look:

Can you guess the designer of the ribbons, while you're at it? ;)

I'll give you the answers (plus photos) tomorrow............

Okay, whodunnit???

When I got up this morning, this is where I found my birdbath:

Is that the guilty culprit looking down at it in shame?

Or is she just feeling out-of-sorts because she's thirsty and her water bowl is upside down?

I seriously doubt that little featherweight Scoot could have done it. The bowl latches on there pretty good (and normally tips the other way for emptying), and it would take something a lot heavier than she is to stand on the edge and cause it to tip over and off. I suspect a racoon. Maybe it decided to take a bath and leaned a little too far to the edge? Or maybe it was walking on the edge? Nah, a 'coon would get its feet wet for sure. However it happened, I hope the culprit got the bjeebers scared out of 'im!

Meanwhile, back at the daycare....

Sometimes daycare providers just get so tired from taking care of kids that they opt for a little nap themselves while the kids are sleeping.

Nothing beats a good snuggle! I'd sure find a softer spot than that hard ol' linoleum floor, though, if I were her. ;)

Courtney also provides kennel services on occasion. That day, these kitties were also in her charge:

It's a mama and her playful kitten.

Courtney's assistant, Josie, decided some snuggling was in order at nap time, too!

(By the coloring, I'm guessing they're actually cousins!)

Josie gets a little treat for her services. Here they are on payday:

I don't see anything, do you?

Notice how she even camouflaged her eyes! That nose is kind of a dead giveaway, though.

Best tomato cages ever

I have sad/happy tomato plants this year. I hesitate to show them to you, because they're not the healthiest tomato plants I've ever had, thanks to our too-wet and too-hot weather. As you can see, they're dying from the bottom up from tomato blight and/or septoria leafspot. They also have few tomatoes on them compared to other years. From what I've heard, many other people are having the same problem this year. That's the sad part.

The happy part is the cages that are supporting the tomato plants! They are awesome! I had gotten one last year and liked it so well that I got another one this year. (I requested both as Christmas gifts, as a matter of fact... Santa musta thought I was a good girl.) They're called E Z Tomato Cages.

They're very strong... they'll last forever... no more bent wire cages. They set up easily, fold flat for storage and take up very little space. You can even get 2-ft. extensions to add on at the top if your tomato plants outgrow them. My plants are about 6 feet tall in the photo.

If you're interested, check them out on the web site. They might seem expensive, but they're worth it in my book. (Or you could request some from Santa. ;) ) You can grow a lot of tomato plant in very little space, but mainly you won't have your plants lying on the ground and in a lot worse shape than mine are right now.

On a healthier note, I do have some nice squash coming on this year. This is a baby buttercup.

Here are a couple of baby cantaloupe(s?) from my one-and-only plant. They're about 4" or so across, so it'll be awhile before we can eat them. More babies are on the way, too.

BTW, how are your tomato plants this year? Are they sickly, too?

Well.... our new water is clear and is flowing freely. Now once we get all the sand worked out of the pipes (it turns out that that bowl of 'gunk' was very fine sand instead of clay), all will be well (and I'll dare to do laundry again).