This week I found out that sparkle paper works in my button maker. Nice. I designed an “All Star” graphic in Cricut Design Space and cut it out with the electronic cutter.
Photo description: silver vinyl cut into the words “All Star” over a star outline, one of three designs weeded
The vinyl doesn’t stick well to the sparkle paper, at all, so positioning the decal was tricky, but not impossible.
Photo description: glitter stuck to the back of the silver vinyl
Including the mylar cover was a must, both to keep the decal in place, and prevent glitter from shedding.
Photo description: completed button with blue glitter background and silver “All Star” script with star outline
I quite like the finished button, it has flash and glitter, without shedding flash and glitter. Leaving trails of glitter is on my “very rude” list.
The Queen butterfly (Danaus gilippus) is a common butterfly in North Texas, and is the most frequently spotted in our Gregg’s Mist flower patch.
Photo description: Queen butterfly on a Gregg’s Mist Flower stalkPhoto description: Queen butterfly with wings open
In looking up the information on the Queen butterfly for this post, I found references for telling apart the males and females of the species. The males have dark patches on the hind wings, which are scent producing patches. So in my picture, it is a male Queen butterfly because the patches are evident.
Photo description: same butterfly zoomed in and a white arrow pointing to the one androconial scent patch
This is the other puzzle my sister introduced while she was visiting: a stuffed ball. She cut small strips of fleece, put a bit of kibble in each, and stuffed it into Missy the dog’s holey roller ball.
Photo description: dog kibble, pieces of blue and red fleece and a green holey roller ball dog toy partially stuffed with fleecePhoto description: Missy the dog taking out the fleece from the ball
I’ve been alternating food puzzles at breakfast time. If I use just one, she isn’t motivated and doesn’t attempt it.
I have high praise for the “Cat in a Bag” cat carrier. My big boy Thor, the gray tabby, went all popcorn Yoda last year when I put him in a traditional cat carrier for his annual vet appointment. So this year I tried the “Cat in a Bag” carrier (size large). I had a little trouble zipping him in because he is a large boy, but other than making sure I wasn’t zipping body parts, getting him in and the neck fastened wasn’t difficult or traumatic. He was apprehensive about going to the car, and once in the car I used the seat belt to secure the carrier through the provided loop. He made one lunge, didn’t go anywhere, and didn’t try to lunge again. I did have to move the seat up to give him scritches, and my youngest sat in the back seat next to him to offer comfort.
Photo description: large gray tabby in a mauve colored “Cat in a Bag” carrier strapped into the back seat of a Toyota Sienna mini van
The vet thought the bag was fantastic. He was able to listen to Thor’s heart and lungs through the bag, and only had to unzip it a little to do the examination and vaccinations. Thor kept his head tucked into the crook of my arm to hide from all the scary stuff, but didn’t have a full freak out. We confirmed his big boy status: 18 pounds.
Photo description: same cat a little more wide-eyed, same bag, same seat, on the way home from the vet
Going home was also easy. I got Thor inside and took him back to his favorite closet, fully expecting him to hide from me when he was released from the bag, but he didn’t. He followed me around for a few hours, then went back to him normal routine. Two thumbs up and four paws safely tucked away in praise of this product.
Today I present a photo dump full of squirrels. These are all taken from my breakfast table, looking out to the back yard over the last couple of months.
Photo description: squirrel standing on a bird ladder eating cornPhoto description: squirrel telling me that the corn is out and demanding to speak to a managerPhoto description: squirrel standing on the grape vine rail and looking at the top of a post for peanuts Photo description: young squirrel using the deer antler screwed to the tree as a perch for eating cornPhoto description: squirrel hanging from a repurposed chick feeder eating bird seed
Critters and Craft 