Camp Tecumseh Week: Playing with Ponies

My horse room is currently a mess with models off the shelves and out on tables.

 And I don't mind a bit. I am having just as much fun as Kate and Susie are. 

I've shown them how to carefully remove a model from a shelf and then put it back.

And then we set down the ones they want to look at and add names to the models' labels if the girls want to have it "some day." (Much better than Mila's "When you are dead, Grammy," right?)

They are older now but still feel the pull toward unicorns and Pegasi.

They really enjoyed learning about glowies and how some are intentional (Ichabod) and others are an accident. (Stella.)

Going home with them are two Toys R Us unicorn foals and the 1993 stallion from the Drinkers of the Wind set, another Toys R Us piece.

That piece still has its tag on it from when their dad showed it. 

He was five or six.

Kate fell in love with my Zulu, too.

Initially I told her that I wasn't ready to part with him yet, so she put her name on a tag for "some day."

And then I changed my mind - why hang onto him when she clearly was in love with the piece? Why not let her have him now so she could make memories with him and as a reminder of the summers she visited me and spent time in the horse room browsing through my collection?

My second Flinka arrived and they enjoyed looking at her, too.

After they headed off for their day at camp, I discovered that Flinka was looking festive thanks to a set of sleigh bells that Jennifer Buxton gifted me with a few years ago. I had the set hanging on the shelf where I can see and enjoy them; the girls lifted them off their hook and slipped them on over her neck. I think she looks great in sleigh bells! 

By no means in this post finished, but the girls are in here with me now and I got out my live show accessories for scene building for them. There are squeals of excitement and lots of questions and things like, "Look at this! It's so cute!"

I simply cannot get any writing done right now; besides, I wanna play with those things, too! 

More coming in tomorrow's blog post for sure! LOL

Stay 'tooned!

The More to Come, Came

Here's the more to come that was promised in today's earlier post. (Scroll down if you missed it.)

My new business sign is coming along really well and I am loving it!

The woodworker sent me an updated picture yesterday. He's still painting it (there will be a red border around the perimeter) and he needs to seal it, and then he will attach some hardware so I can hang it from a tent pole. 

I still haven't gotten the photos that the publicist took of our presentations at Lisa's school, but I did get a few that were posted on the school's web site.

Me helping a student try on a wool cloak.

Leslie discussing what kids would do if they had lived at Fort Ouiatenon during the time when the voyageurs came down from Canada via the Wabash and were ready to trade, trade, trade!

Lisa had a girl in her seminar who actually plays the fife in one of the fife and drum corps that will be performing at Feast. She gave an impromptu concert!

Not only do I need to finish Lisa's robe a l'Anglaise, I am redoing my price tagging. In the past it started with a small piece of brown paper with the size and price written on it that was then pinned to the garment.

But you don't know from that minimal tag that the pattern on this shortgown is not paisley, it's an 18th century pattern called "botha" that is a rarely found in 21st century fabrics. 

(I've always wondered if George Lucas used that word for the Bothan people in his films. The name "Anakin" also has an interesting and apropos history, too. But I digress.)

Then I progressed to labels like this where I wrote in the size with a fabric marker. But still, I needed a spot for the fabric content so out came the brown paper and pin again. Time to look for another way to tag my clothing.

I found these inexpensive tags on Amazon. They weren't pre-strung in the photo, but the text about the item said they were.

Nope! Those holes were not pre-punched (all 100 of them), the jute twine was not attached (it wasn't even pre-cut), and they are definitely NOT "convenient to use."

I've been working on them ten at a time - punching out the hole, cutting the jute, stringing them through the hole, and tying them off. Forty are done and I can already see that I will not have enough jute to finish the 100 tags. 

Fortunately I have a huge spool of jute that I use when I prepare fabric remnants for sale.

It's more substantial than the jute for the tags, but I think it will work. If not, I have some heavy linen 18th century thread that I can use.

And fortunately I have this awl. It's hand forged steel with a deer antler handle. It was made to punch through leather and heavier items, but it also popped those holes in the tags quickly and easily. Grateful to have it.

(Next time I'll spend the extra $5 for the tags that were pictured as completely finished and save myself two plus hours of punching cutting, stringing, and tying.)

I do a lot of antiquing and thrifting, always looking for horses for my collection. But sometimes I find other things. This was a surprise.

Longaberger baskets are absolutely everywhere when I thrift and I have no interest in them, but this basket is not a Longaberger. It's something else. I recognized the craftsmanship right away.

That little basket was handmade by one of the basket makers who comes to Feast. And at $3, I snapped it up. It went for far more than that when it was sold at Feast.

Finally, I had the last two MRIs yesterday morning and already the findings have been posted in my online chart.  Of course, that doesn't mean I can read and understand them - they're in medicalese. (I spent some time on Google trying to figure out what they said.)

About those kinds of reports...

After I had my bloodwork tested by my hematologist in June, the pathologist's report that was posted said I had smudge cells which are cancer markers. The report recommended a bunch of tests to determine which kind of cancer I had.

My hematologist (who was furious at the pathologist) contacted me right away. "If that pathologist would have read the report I'd sent him, he would have known you have no spleen. And smudge cells are VERY COMMON in people who do not have spleens. Lynn, you do not have cancer!" (I am still thankful she called and let me know that so quickly!)

Anyway, after that experience, I learned to wait and hear what the doctor says about the radiology and other reports before coming to any conclusions about my health. And that happens Monday.

I'm ready to hear what it all means. Stay 'tooned.

Model Horse Busy x Three

Today I have a lot going on and I am feeling the stress. It's Model Horse Busy x three around here at the moment.

Model Horse Busy #1

Yesterday's mock set up for Indy Blooms went better than I expected - it looks like I will have some room on the table for a few sales models. Of course, those need to be sorted out, priced, and packed. 

The haversacks are ready to go into the car - I will put these in the back seat as is rather than putting them back in their tubs. This will save me time when I set up tomorrow afternoon.

Model Horse Busy #2

The show is held on Liz Larose's site, Pony Bytes, and the training and support given to show staff, stewards and judges is outstanding. Stewards have training on the formatting of entries so we can help those who are entering ensure that their models not only get into the right class, but that a formatting error does not prevent the judge from seeing their entry.

Most of my Breyer Boot Camp prep has been completed but today I want to review the suggestions and tips for helping these novice showers have a positive and fun experience as they learn how to show their model horses.

Model Horse Busy #3

Tick! Tick! Tick! Tick!  That's the sound in my head every time I think about Midwest Mini Mayhem. Prep for that has taken a bit of a back seat for me because I have been so busy with the swap meet and Breyer Boot Camp. 

But, prep has been happening.

I have been pulling out models that I plan to bring and am loosely grouping them by customs, resins, plastic, chinas, and pets/other animals on the shelf behind my desk.

Almost all my mini collections are in my sewing room and I gathered up the plastics, customs, and resins first.

I can transport them from room to room like this, but I would NEVER do this with my chinas!

Those tiny chinas are so fragile, so it takes much longer to move them into the horse room for tagging and packing.

Slowly but surely they are being added to the shelf.

I was doing okay stress-wise on preparing for this show until a question was asked on their Facebook page about tagging models. As I now understand it, the directions for tags is different from how mine are already tagged. That means I am going to have to retag them all. 

Good thing I buy my tags by the box, one thousand at a time!

Today will be busy - Nash and Molly are spending the day with us. A dear friend from Illinois is passing through town and Craig and I will meet be meeting her for a lunch. I plan to finish loading my car for tomorrow's swap meet, do that Boot Camp stewarding review, and then, if any time is left, start tagging my minis.

Model Horse Busy, but Model Horse Good, too!