Lets start of by stating it has been a long while since I last updated my blog. Life kind of had it's way of keeping me busy. Being a mom to six, running a urban homestead, homeschooling and just trying to find some time to better my crafting skills, there's not a whole lot of time in the day to do all things.
We've had our ups and downs with learning the process and preparing in every which way we can with getting a house built on our land. Taking more time than I'd like, but we are getting there slowly, but surely. When I get a free minute I'm generally busy with looking at potential kitchen ideas. As we continue to put up with the lazy rental company that just doesn't do repairs, but allows you to be placed on a list of maintenance requests, which never seems to allow us to move up on the list. I continue to count down in my head every time something new pops up around the house needing to be fixed. I think I've counted down six months like three different times now. Hopefully I'm in my last count of six months starting this coming new year.
The house next to us was abandoned a year or two after we moved in, then stayed vacant for give or take 4- 6 years. We had the best of neighbors move in, then moved out after 2-3 years due to the rising prices of rent> Which also made our rent go up, but seeing we're temporarily stuck with this rental company, we've accepted it is what it is, until we can build and move moto. Within the last three months we had a new family move in next door. And let me tell you I had the highest hopes when I saw kids, that my kids might finally have some friends next door . Well that fantasy didn't last long. That bubble of a fantasy burst within the week. They moved their three pitbulls in to be outside dogs. Our dogs didn't take to kindly to there being dogs next door. Lots of barking, and running the fence line. Lots of time between my husband, older boys, and myself trying to get our dogs accustomed to the new dogs, without the help of the neighbors. The neighbor across the street called in a complaint that the mother dog was chained to the tree in the backyard, then suddenly disappeared. My husband and I took it as they likely returned her to their previous residence, seeing that our city doesn't allow pits. Things quieted down. Things were looking up. Until the two puppies started to come into their own, started challenging and approaching the fence. Our biggest dog Johanna is a Livestock Guardian, anything within in her fence is hers to protect, as long as the puppies stayed away from the fence things were good, until a puppy approached then started the new trend of barking. The new neighbors got into the habit of running the fence line, peeping their heads out from the front yard from their vehicles to cause her to bark. We started having to have Jo tay inside, which drove her crazy. Finally we had to put her back our during the day, in the hopes that she would deter the puppies to their space plus so incase they got the bright idea to snack on chickens, she could scare them off. Then the puppies learned to jump and dig under the fence to get into the neighbors trash as well as digging up my front garden. I tried my best with having patience, I know the dogs weren't allowed in our city but was willing to work things out, to be neighborly. So I walked next door and tried to come up with a schedule that we could try to organize the dogs each having their own time outside, so the barking could be minimized, the dogs escaping could be monitored, okay supervised I should say. That lasted all of once weekend before they went back to chaos. We got a noise complaint so I brought it up to the animal shelter, who intervened. One female puppy disappeared as yet again we believe to their prior address. We are now suspecting they were keeping them to breed. As of late the male puppy is fully grown, gets out of the fence every chance he gets, and unfortunately for us grabbed ahold of a duck we rescued and raised. We generally keep the chickens in their coops anytime we aren't home, dogs stay in as well as at night, having full view of the backyard from the backdoor. We had to take a sudden trip to my husbands work and upon coming home noticed the dog next door was free wondering the front yards. Th kids let the dogs outside in the back and that's when things went crazy. Jo realized the dog had gotten through the fence and grabbed one of the ducks and had tried to take it back to its own yard, failed so tried to bury it by their trashcans. At the time we didn't realize this, it came much later when my son was putting the chickens up for the night, that he couldn't find the missing duck, then followed the feather trail. I went to our camera footage to find the dog had did as stated and that one of the kids that had been sent out to deal with the dog had had to fight the dog to let go of the duck to drag back into the house. I did the only thing I could think to do. I walked next door with the duck in hand, phone in the other with the video footage and my son who lingered back in case things got heated. I informed the sister of the residents dog, the hence dead duck in my hand, and all that came out of it was she would tell the sister. That's it. Nothing no, sorry, no neighbor coming to apologize. They watched at the backdoor as my husband and I laid the duck to rest. That's it!
Now we've ran into other issues with these neighbors, the constantly come and go, banging everything, loud music. Needless to say trouble with the kids. Now I've had one camera placed at our front yard due to the thought of porch pirates' and cars robberies that have happened here and there. Never did I think I'd have to invest in cameras around our property. We've had the kids wiggling our vehicle doors as they go up and down the street. The end of our street the sat two basketball goals the older kids have broken, as well as an expensive rope swing. The kids tend to hang out outside until the parents get home from work, so being boys they get themselves into trouble. Myself and my son watched as we let the dogs out, as their oldest walked into our yard to wiggle our door handles, then turn seeing us, star, then run back to his to wiggle their own door handles as though it's perfectly normal to wiggle door handles. This being the same day, maybe an hour later that we'd been next-door about the duck. So naturally to my benefit they had the window open and I yelled clear as day. Don't come on to our property again and touch our vehicles again, our I'll get the police involved, with our camera evidence. So far things with the kids seem to be better, yet the dog still comes and goes as he pleases. The only thing we can do is keep the chickens in their coops, and to alternate dogs outside to keep his presence away from the yard. I feel trapped and helpless. So yet again there's that constant countdown in my head to freedom, T-minus 6 months.
Okay sorry, To spill our neighbor drama, just needed to get all that off my chest. On to the real reason of my post. Within the last year I have been playing around with my crochet. Within the last year the sudden realization came to me that besides kit/crochet baby items, I love to crochet amigurumi. So I've been playing around with new ideas. I saw a post on facebook of a baby cow lovely and created my own pattern. Then I saw yet another pattern which I fell in love with. Pennywise the Dancing clown. Upon looking more closely at the picture came to realize the eyes were needle felted. My husband cam in to the thought of trying his hand at needle felting. Now I've seen youtubes, and facebook posts before but never thought too much into to it. So I share the link to be surprised when my cousin's wife reached out asking to purchase a Pennywise. I accepted and began. I made my own pattern and slowly worked my way to the eyes last of all, because I was nervous. To my surprise it was easy and looked amazing. I had a client reach out wanting me to make a cow for her daughter's birthday and in the process thought I'll practice needlefelting eyes. SO I completed the Amigurumi Cow Doll and posted it up. I did not expect the the Doll would be a huge hit, I started to get request non stop. Then a lady suggested I share it to a cow lovers group on facebook. SO I though okay I might get one or two request or maybe even likes. I was wrong for a full week I got non stop requests for the Cow Doll and asked if I did more items cow related. SO I posted up my Cow Lovely, again I got the same response. I am now booked up until February on orders for cows. I joked with my husband saying I'm use to being the lady with all the kids, homesteader, knitter, crocheter, and homeschooler, Now I'm going to be the crochet cow lady.
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