Patriotic Ball

This will make a quick ornament soon.

 

Jupiter Layer Cake

Jupiter's almost done, and it looks a bit like a layer cake. Lopsided.

 

Waiting for Floss

This poor reindeer is waiting for more floss to get finished. It's been ordered and is on its way, but in the meantime he's definitely off balance.
 

Dannie's Cookies

A couple of weeks ago, our CLO held a cookie exchange. All good, right? Nope. It was at 10 on a Wednesday morning, which meant anyone who works could not attend. The CLO office here is notorious for not holding things when working family members can attend. Since I had talked about doing a cookie exchange BEFORE they scheduled one, you'd think they'd make it so those of us who work could attend. But no. So, when they posted photos of it to their facebook page, I kind of threw a fit about how they'd get better attendance if they actually included, you know, the majority of us who work at post. 

Dannie saw my comments and made these cookies for me, as kind of an apology to CLO and to mitigate my disappointment a bit. It was very sweet of her, and totally not who it should have come from.

Thank you, Dannie. The cookies cheered me up a bit and they were delicious. It's been a very hard December for me. Let's hope the new year is better.

 

Silly Grayson Ears

Grayson's ears sometimes do weird things, making him look handsomely silly. I am so glad his ears weren't docked before we got him. Especially in Turkey, it is common to dock the ears into less than half their length so they don't get ripped in fights later. They do this at about a week old. So traumatic. And so glad Grayson never went through it. He has beautiful, soft ears.

 

Skenderbeu And His Strongholds

This is the entrance foyer of the museum. It sets the tone. The map below shows Skenderbeu's strongholds.

 

Working On Gates

Gates are coming along. The top half of this part is now done.

 

A Second One Done

I have noticed a couple of counting mistakes, but it's done.

 

Top Nose Done

Still looking like a hedgehog, but at least the top of the head is done.

 

Three Months Of Cozyblue

These are September, October, and November. I am so very far behind.

 

Peeps Cheesecake

Leonora made these cute peeps mini cheesecakes. They tasted excellent too.
 

Grand Doorway

This door is the way in to the Skenderbeu museum. It is simultaneously a museum honoring Skenderbeu, the 15th century king, and Albanian communism. Needless to say, it was built in the 1980's.

 

Two Roofs

 I have two roofs and three flags. Two more roofs to go.

Ditching It

I am going to abandon this piece. Nothing about it brings me joy. I've decided not to waste my time on something I don't like.

 

More Than Half

More than half the piece is done. Still loving the colors, even if they are oversaturated in this photo.

 

Knotted In A Circle

The birds are ready to hang.

 

All About The Boys

Chad looking in control and Grayson looking silly back in March.

 

Ulpiana Archaeology Site

Up until the fifth century, Ulpiana was the place to be in the area. Now, outside of the very small part uncovered, it is a bunch of farmers' fields outside of Gracanica. It's a fascinating site. And beautiful.

 

Almost Four

A bit left to do on the fourth frog's feet and he's done. So I can move on to five.

 

So Much Bottle

Most of the stitching left on this is the dang bottle. So much black on black. But it's looking good.

 

Got A Hump

The reindeer now has a full back. Now to get the body.

 

Chocolates From Camille

Camille, one of Andreas' coworkers, went to Brussels for a weekend to visit friends. I had been talking about it beforehand and told her to eat all the chocolate. Instead of eating it all, she brought some back for me! Thank you Camille.
 

N'Katun

We had an evening dinner at N'Katun accompanied by the wedding next door. Food was still good, though. So good Andreas didn't take many photos.

 

Bedroom, Kitchen, and Embroidery

It seems even the wealthiest houses were crowded back in the day. The bedroom had several beds in it, plus a cradle. The kitchen was tiny. But the embroideries were beautiful.