MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

Not much sunshine today, so I am spending time inside - snoozing!  It's something we cats do pretty well, need no training for, can do at the drop of a whisker and, it has been said, something we do for about 17 hours a day.  Not me though, too much to do outside.

However, I haven't been outside much for the last couple of days because the 'visiting cat' is scary!  Yes, I know I don't scare easily and I normally take no notice of other cats, but he keeps chasing me and because he is about 6 times bigger than I am I have spent a lot of time recently hiding behind sofas, under chairs and in cupboards.  This is not the image I like to project!  I may be small, but I think big!  He argues with Jazz, but doesn't seem too bothered with Daisy, Coco or Poppy.  He sometimes nips into our neighbour's garden and rolls in her cat mint - probably high as a kite when he chases me!

Scary Cat hasn't been in our garden today, so it might be safe for me to go outside for a while.  Have to keep my eyes open though because he does sometimes curl up and sleep in one of the flower beds - ready to chase me as I wander by.

A mini post today, I am going to give the big outside world (my garden that is) another reccie - come back next week to see how I am managing my life with Scary Cat.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

How are you coping with this very hot weather?  I am very sensible and stay in the shade for most of
the day - being black and white means I have some sensitive bits and have to be careful.  We cats are struggling in this weather, but Jill and Richard make sure we have plenty of water - plus you can't beat a drop of pond water, water from a plant saucer or from a puddle.  Yum!

I forgot to tell you last week that Jazz had to go to the vets.  That boy is a regular visitor there and I understand there is talk of him having his own named seat.  Jazz had a very poorly eye and Jill had to give him half an antibiotic tablet twice a day and squish some eye ointment into his poorly eye.  Poppy, Coco, Daisy and I thought it was hilarious watching Jill and Richard trying to get Jazz to take his medication.  Not sure why, but they didn't find it so funny.  I have said it on many occasions, humans are weird!

Poppy caught a magpie last week, but it got away.  She dragged it into the hedge, and it shot out squeaking and squawking, followed by a rather embarrassed Poppy.  She doesn't appear to have tried to catch any since then.

It's hot inside, so I am off to find a cool spot.  I will be back next week and paws crossed, the weather will be a little cooler.  Before I go, please don't forget to take care of your animals in this heat:

Don't leave them in cars
Make sure they have plenty of water
Take dogs for their walk very early or late at night when it is cooler.

'See' you next week.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

Feeling incredibly guilty here, even more guilty than Jill is feeling - no blogging for absolutely ages.  Now, what excuse can I give?  Busy looking after foster kittens?  No, Jill isn't looking after them now, so my caring, helpfuness isn't needed.  Busy looking after my fellow house-cats?  No way!  They can take care of themselves.  I don't do 'looking after'.  Apart from the usual cat-like things that cats do, I have been busy just being me: beautiful!  It isn't hard work for me to be beautiful, but I do like to spend time on myself and despite Jill's saying my white sometimes looks grey, I don't believe her!  My black fur always shines and my white fur is always sparkling - nearly forgot my nose, which is always pretty pink.  Miss Perfect it is then.

Sorry, got off track there a bit.  Now, why haven't I blogged for ages and ages?  When you are small, or delicate as I like to think of myself, it can be difficult reaching a keyboard - I have asked for a smaller gadget, but as usual my request has fallen on deaf ears.  I have to wait until someone thinks 'oh, I wonder if Milly would like to write her diary' - yes, of course she would!  Every week I give a gentle reminder, a tap on the face, a delicate claw stuck in a knee, a live frog brought into the kitchen but sadly most weeks I get ignored - is that any way to treat a beautiful cat?

But as you can see, I am back!  My blog is alive and kicking and I am one happy black and white girl.  How did I manage it?  I brought in a slug that was stuck on my head!  As you can imagine, they gave in pretty quickly.

Have a good week everyone - slugs permitting, I will be back next week.

Milly

FOUR DOWN, FOUR TO GO

Hello everyone

Yet again, another month has disappeared since my last blog post.  Do you find that the days and weeks whizz by at this time of year?  I just feel this autumnal/winter-like weather has come a little too soon for me and I just want the warm weather to return as soon as possible.

In my time 'away' from blogging I have been on holiday (or rather we have been on holiday) to Malta, another of my Godalming Bazaar events took place on 4 October and I took part in a Wedding Fayre at the Frensham Pond Hotel yesterday.  Our holiday was lovely, very hot and humid but also very relaxing - for most of the time.  It did involve work for me as I took my laptop and various other bits and pieces so that I could keep on top of the event organisations side of my business - my latest event took place two days after we got home (not good planning on my part).  Here are a few photographs from our holiday:

The view from our apartment balcony.  The temperature every day was around 30 degrees, sometimes 34.  Humidity was also very high and this often created a misty appearance.

We visited Gozo, which is a small island off the coats of Malta.  Interestingly, it is much greener than Malta.  I was lucky to find some of my favourite animals, cats and these ones were supported by the local animal charity.

Back home and the weather here wasn’t so good and in fact on the day of the last Godalming Bazaar event, it tipped down until about 30 minutes before closing time.  Despite the weather, we had 354 people through the door.  Some may feel this is not brilliant, but the majority of you who are involved on either side of craft events, know that visitor numbers are often disappointing and I know that the venue I am using does not attract a big footfall for similar type events.  

The results of the day were that some stallholders did very well, some didn’t and some did better this time than last time – the life of a crafter at craft events is an interesting one.  There was plenty going on throughout the day: we had You Ukes playing from late morning to the end of the event, two lots of crafty make-and-take workshops and a face-painter.  Plenty to draw people in, and as the weather was poor, our refreshments people did a roaring trade.  

Here are some photographs of the event taken by Dawn Hart of Stonepit Crafts - thank you Dawn:

As the title of my post says, four down, four to go.  I have four more events that I have organised for this year and it's now on to the next one which takes on 1 November at the Tongham Village Hall.   Tongham is a village not far from me, it has a few shops and well supported activities take place in both the village hall and the community centre.  Fingers crossed this event does well for everyone involved.  The next Godalming Bazaar event is on 22 November - a Christmassy themed one I feel.

And finally......  Yesterday I took part in a wedding fayre at the Frensham Pond Hotel.  We had a steady flow of visitors and it was very successful for me.  I have to prepare 8 quotes for stationery ranging from just invitations to a full range of stationery.  I hope they all turn into confirmed orders - lucky for me they are spread throughout 2015 and 2016 so I will have time to work on them.  The most popular design was a simple one with a scroll at the top and a ribbon across the middle.  Here are a few pics from yesterday:

My lovely new pop-up banner.  The company I now use for my banners and flyers produce double-side pop-up banners.  Great if you are placed where visitors are walking by on both sides (back and front) of your stand.  I need to order one for the Christmas Pie Crafts part of my business, so might go for a double-sided one.

The scroll range of stationery.

I decided to go for a heavy weight A6 flyer rather than a business card - I feel it catches the eye of visitors to the stand more than a business card will.

Purple is still very popular.

One last finally...  I have two new foster kittens, both girls - one is tabby and white and I have named her Ruby and the other one is black and white and I have named her Pearl.  They are only 9-weeks old.  Milly has said she will add some photogrpahs of them to her blog post on Wednessday.

I am off to join up with the Handmade Monday bloggers - I have missed them recently and looking forward to seeing what they have been up to since my last visits to their blogs.

I will, hopefully, be back next weekend with some more bloggy news - have a good week everyone.

Jill

MILLY'S DIARY

Good morning

Woo hoo, it's going to be hot and sunny here today!  Summer's back at last.  I have spent too much time inside snoozing recently and that's not much fun for me.

Busy times here again; Jill has her next Godalming Bazaar event on Saturday - I have offered to help with putting the paperwork together, packing things into envelopes, but she has refused my offer of help.  She has told me that a wildlife charity (Harper Asprey) will be taking part in the event - I wonder if that's why she doesn't want me to help out on the day?

We have two new foster kittens: Boris and Barry.  As always, Jill says they are very cute - she so needs new glasses!  There is only so much cuteness in this world and I have all of it!  You can find out more about them on the Woking Cats Protection website and you can also check out Tom Tom's information on there too.

As you know I am a big supporter of the Woking Cats Protection branch and I am happy to blog about them and their wonderful work, however, you can imagine my surprise when I saw on Facebook that they are looking for a home for Ringo!  Come on Woking CP, surely he made enough money from being a celebrity to buy his own home - have things become so tough for him that he needs your help?  Has he hung up his drum kit?  Stopped talking about that tank engine he is so fond of?  I think my readers need to check Ringo's Facebook page out and make up their own minds.  I have to say the years have been a little unkind to him, he is very hairy and ginger now!

Off to catch some more sunshine - see you next week.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

I am guessing summer has finished?  A shame because I love the sunshine and it means I get to play outside for a looooooong time every day.

Hard though it is to believe, my post this week is not about me!  It is about a cat who is being looked after by one of the Woking & District Cats Protection fosterers.  Yes, I am writing about another cat, and even better (or is that worse) she is black and white!  Before I go any further I must point out that she is not as beautiful as me, but then that is never going to happen in cat-land

This black and white lady is called Tom Tom.  Okay, I know, why call a girl Tom Tom?  In my short life I had always been lead to believe that Tom Tom was a satellite navigation gadget - perhaps this particular Tom Tom is pretty good at finding her way around places?

Tom Tom is around 9-years old but as we all know, there is that special someone who releases the inner-kitten in all cats and someone reading my blog post could be that person.  She has her own Facebook page where you can read her daily diary and you can also read more about her on the Woking & District Cats Protection website.

Tom Tom has been with her fosterer for six months and as much as she loves being there, she would really like to be settled in her own home soon.  So come along you cat-lovers, if you have been thinking of adopting a black and white cat that is nearly as beautiful as I am, Tom Tom is the gal for you.  You can contact Woking CP on their website (click on the link above) and arrangements will be made for you to visit Tom Tom - just let them know that Milly has sent you and I am sure you will be able to see her very soon.  You will find Tom Tom sitting on the window sill waiting for your visit:

I will be back next week and it would be lovely to be able to say, yippee, Tom Tom has been adopted.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

It seems to be panic, panic, panic here at the moment.  Jill is getting ready for her three-day event at the Secretts Christmas Fair this weekend, Richard is on leave and wants to relax and our home looks like a warehouse!  I have asked Jill if it really is only three days she is getting ready for.

Very, very frosty here and I have never been out before in frosty weather, neither have Poppy and Coco.  We all spent last winter as inside kittens, so this cold wet stuff on our paws feels very odd.  As it is wet stuff and I don't do wet, I think I will be inside today making sure I keep warm and possibly snuggling up to Jazz.  Daisy is very sensible, she stays in as much as possible in the cold weather.

It's a very short post this week as Jill is telling me she needs 'my' laptop.  Cheeky devil.  I am off to find a warm spot to snooze in, but I will be back next week.  have a good week everyone - keep warm.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

Grey and soggy weather here, not good weather for cats.  Lots of leaves to collect and chase, but not many feathers to bring indoors at the moment.  Perhaps all the birds are wise to me and hide when I go outside.

The good news of the week is that Rosie and Violet have been re-homed.  A lovely family came to see them on Saturday and on Monday Rosie and Violet were taken to their new home.  We will miss them (well, I might not miss them all of the time) but I know they will be very happy with their new family.  Jill said there will soon be more kittens here, so I will be able to pull faces at them through the door.

This time last year I was a foster kitten here and it's quite hard to remember what that was like, because when I moved in I became the Boss Cat!  Despite being rather small I am in charge; I tell the other Pie cats what to do, push them out of the way if they dare to move in on my food bowl and I make sure I get all the comfortable snoozing spots everywhere - preferably on a lap.  However, I do remember what it was like to not have a home or have any idea where one might be found for me and there are lots of cats and kittens out there in the same position.  If you love cats and would like to adopt one, please visit the Woking Cats Protection website and have a look at the gorgeous cats and kittens (although not quite as gorgeous as me) who are looking for homes.  You can tell them that Milly sent you.

Don't forget to make sure your cats are kept in at night - particularly at the moment with these weird things around called bonfires and fireworks.  Not too sure what they are, but Jill and Richard have told us that they can be dangerous.

Have a good week everyone - see you next Wednesday.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

Woweeee, it is windy here!  Cats and kittens like windy weather, makes us run around more.  Lots of leaves to chase.

We had a terrific storm last night.  Lots of thunder, wind, heavy rain and some lightening too.  I wasn't bothered by it because I am a very brave cat.  Jazz lifted up his head, wondered what it was and then went back to sleep.  The rest of the Pie cats slept through it.  Jill sat with Rosie and Violet during the storm and they didn't seem to be bothered by it either.  Talking of Rosie and Violet, Jill managed to get some photographs of them which have been added to their page on the Woking Cats Protection website - here is a sneak peek of one taken while they were having lunch:

Jill is taking part in the Woking Cats Protection Christmas Fayre at Brook Hall, Brox Road, Ottershaw, Surrey, KT16 0HG on Saturday, 26 October 2013 (10.00 am - 1.00 pm).  She would love you to go along and see her and she can tell you all about me and how wonderfully gorgeous I am.  Okay, okay, she will tell you all about Rosie and Violet too if you would like to know more about them.

That's me blogged out for the week - the sun is shining and I have to make the most of it.  Jill said something again this week about the clocks going back this weekend - again, she didn't say where they are going back to!  Why do humans have to make a cat's life so confusing.

Have a good weekend - see you next Wednesday.

Jill

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

It's busy, busy, busy here!  In the garden I have lots of leaves to collect, play with and then throw all over the place.  I imagine they are all sorts of things: the red leaves are butterflies, the brown ones are moths and the few green ones that land on the ground are frogs.  I seem to be spending less time in the garden every day as it doesn't get light until much later than I am used to and gets dark even earlier than I am used to - Jill said something about the days being even shorter when the clocks go back.  Not sure what a clock is and have even less idea where it goes back too.

Rosie and Violet are still with us.  Violet was a little shy when she first came to us, not any more!  She is nearly as brave and confident as her sister.  Every morning and a couple of times during the day Jill tidies up their room - cushions back on chairs, covers over the back of chairs - five minutes later it looks as though I have been in there!  Toys everywhere, cushions often on the floor, water bowl sometimes splashed all over the floor.  I am sure I behaved much better when I was in that room.

It's Coco and Poppy's birthday tomorrow - they will be one year old.  Not as old as me because I am 14 months and 8 days old, so very grown up really.  What shall I get them for their birthday?  A mouse, a frog, how about a dragon fly?

A very late Milly's diary today - Jill wasn't around first thing to help me open the laptop.  I am off to play with more leaves now, although Richard tries to beat me at collecting them!

Have a good week everyone.

Milly

HELLO AUTUMN

Hello everyone

Last day of summer yesterday, first day of Autumn today - how mild it is though, quite muggy really.  Is there any other country where the weather is so frustrating?

It has been a hectic week making goodies for forthcoming Christmas fairs and because I was contacted at the beginning of last week with an invitation to take part in a wedding fayre today.  After a bit of negotiation over price, I agreed to take part and as I was going to be the only wedding stationery there, how could I refuse?  I am an early bird, but getting up early to go to work on a Sunday is not really much fun - I don't mind getting up early on Sundays if I know I can take my time getting going.  However, an early start it was and and when I arrived at the venue, I was surprised to be only the second exhibitor there.

The information received from the organisers suggested that if leaflets were to be included in the fayre's goody bag, they should be delivered or dropped off by Friday of last week.  The name of the person they were to be addressed to was an unusual spelling and I wondered at the time if it was possibly someone I knew.  A lovely surprise when I arrived at the hotel this morning, it was an ex-student of mine and I was so pleased to hear how well she had done since she left college.  Even nicer was that because of her enjoyment of a Unit she studied with me, Event Management, she had made a career in that subject - I love to catch up with ex-students and find out how they are doing.

The wedding fayre was very good, a steady flow of visitors throughout the day and I have three quotes to prepare, one of which is 99% a definite order, so I am a happy bunny. Here are some photographs of my stand and some of my wedding stationery, as well as a photograph of a gorgeous red Cyclamen I took with me.  At wedding fayres I always like to take either flowers or a plant on my table - I think it looks rather nice.

As everyone who takes part in craft fairs of any sort knows, it is exhausting and you can't wait to get home.  It was a good day and I met some lovely people - both potential clients and fellow wedding exhibitors.  I have a question for my blog readers though, how do you think one should dress for wedding fayres?  I feel it should be smart and certainly not casual.  One person today was dressed in jeans and baseball boots - am I wrong in thinking they hadn't really dressed for the occasion?  At the wedding fayre I exhibited at in August, one person was wearing denim shorts!  My feeling is that we are business people and as such should dress accordingly.  What do you think?

Thank you to everyone who left comments on my blog post of last weekend, I love to read them.  A message of Lesley, yes, I have lots of Christmassy decorated jute bags.  Would you like some pics of them?

I am off for a glass of wine, feet up and watch Young Montalbano - I love the 'old' Montalbano and this is proving just as good.

Don't forget to drop into Handmade Monday this week - always very inspiring and great fun to catch up with everyone.

I am also taking part in this week's Creative Mondays blog hop - great fun so do check out the participating bloggers.

Have a good week everyone - I will be back next Sunday and Milly will be here on Wednesday (catching up for missing this week coz those cheeky foster kittens, Rosie and Violet, pinched the laptop from her).

Jill

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

No sunshine here yet, but Jill says it is on its way, just overslept a bit.  The evenings are getting a little chilly now and although I stay outside in the sunshine as long as possible, I am glad to come inside for my tea and a snoozey evening.

I have been helping frogs travel around the garden this week - problem is Jill keeps taking them away and putting them back in the pond!  Doesn't she realise they like to travel?  Perhaps when it is too cold for me to be outside in the winter I could be a travel agent for wildlife?  How about Catford?  Kathmandu?  How exciting - as long as it doesn't turn into a catastrophe!

Jill and Richard have friends coming round for a BBQ this evening - I wonder if you can barbecue Whiskas Chicken?  Could be a whole new flavour range.  I have to help them with the housework today, so best sign off quick so I can disappear.

Don't forget that this coming Sunday (1 September) is The Gala Day at RSPCA Millbrook in Chobham.  If you are in the area, please go to this event and have a look at all of the lovely animals needing new homes and help them raise lots of money.  Even better, visit the Woking Cats Protection stand and find out about all the gorgeous cats and kittens needing new homes.  Jazz was adopted from the RSPCA Millbrook branch and Daisy, Coco, Poppy and I were adopted from the Woking Cats Protection - very special places and people to us.

Housework beckons!  Yeh, as if!!

have a good week everyone - I will be back next Wednesday.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

I began this week's diary really early, then I got side-tracked!  I had planned to post almost as soon as I had eaten my breakfast, but everywhere outside looked so good that I just forget my diary and rushed out into the garden to play.  Jill has been doing lots of plant moving, so there is lots of lovely soft soil to dig up - even if all I do is dig a hole and walk away from it, it is good fun!

My fellow kittens (and cats of course) are so pleased Jill and Richard moved their wooden pond container because we now have a giant water bowl in the garden - they are so kind to us.  I wonder if any frogs will make their home in this pond??  It does have a lovely lily in the middle, or is that a lovely Milly?

Woking Cats Protection are having a stand at the RSPCA Millbrook Open Day on Sunday, 1 September and Jill will be helping out in the morning.  If you are going to the event, please visit the stand and Jill will be able to tell you how gorgeous I am - oh and she will also tell you about Jazz, Daisy, Coco and Poppy too.  There will be lots of photographs and information about the branch's cats and kittens that are looking for new homes, so please do go along and support them.

The garden is calling me, well the frogs, flies and butterflies are.  I will be back next week.  Enjoy the Bank Holiday weekend everyone.

Milly

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO?

Hi everyone

I am sure we all have days (weeks?) where we wonder what we have done with our time - very little to show for it, but every hour has been jam-packed with work.  I think I mentioned in an earlier email that a friend of mine writes down everything she has carried out each day - she feels it is satisfying to look back at the work she has accomplished rather than as with a To-Do List reviewing what has not been completed.  I think I should do that.

However, despite feeling I don't have a lot of work to show for my week, I have made oodles of gift tags and am really pleased that I will have a large stock for the Ripley Nurseries event this month (31 August).  Now in the craft world (rather as in the fashion world) we know we have to be months ahead of real time and just in case there are any keen early Christmas shoppers at the event, I have made quite a few Christmas tags.

Here are some photographs of the newest sets and last week's ones which have now been ribboned and bagged:

We have also spent a lot of time working in the garden.  Pruning, planting, moving and general tidying up.  We have a big family get-together here at the end of the month, so want to make sure everything is looking good.  We moved a wooden-framed pond from one side of the garden to the other - it was empty, thank goodness.  We replanted it and not sure if the move was a good idea as the newest members of our cat family, Coco and Poppy, think it is a new water bowl for them!

We have a bumper crop of apples on our Worcester Pearmain tree this year - it is one of the late ripeners and is usually just right for picking in late October:

We didn't prune it at the end of the last season, something we regret given the very heavy crop.  Interestingly we had very little June drop this year, not sure if it was because of the weather or some other reason.  It is some natural pruning that is always welcome although at the time it happens it seems disappointing.  Nature's way of sorting out the duff apples from the good ones.

Among the many favourite plants in my garden is the Acanthus (Bear's Breeches).  It is a lovely plant and the flower stems are magnificent.  Here is a photograph of one of the flower heads after the white flowers have finished.  I want to split this at the end of the season as I have several other places in the garden where it would look good.

One last photograph, this time of Coco who has spent today dodging the rain and the garden sprayer.  She is relaxing here in the conservatory.  It is a hard life being a cat:

I have just had a quick look at this week's Handmade Monday post.  Wendy has chosen her Digi-Stamp Design Team and I already know that each team member's work is lovely and I am looking forward to seeing more of it.  Wendy has a mid-week paper-craft challenge - certainly looking forward to that too.  So, don't forget to nip over and have a read of this week's post and catch up with the other bloggers taking part.

Have a great week everyone.  Hard to believe it is nearly the last Bank holiday before Christmas, but hot though it may have been at times, it has been a great summer with hopefully lots more sunny days to come.

A friend and I (Lesley (the lovely Mad Dog Woman of Shackleford)) are trying to arrange a Macmillan Coffee Morning to take place on 27 September so watch this space as I hope to have some information about it next Sunday.

See you next week and don't forget to call in here on Wednesday to catch up with Milly's tails.

Jill

A POST-IT NOTE SIZE BLOG POST

Hello everyone

I hope your week has been good.  My post title says it all - this week's Sunday post is a mini one.  As usual a million and one things to do and as usual running to try to keep up.

I completed a wedding card a friend ordered from me, produced a wedding stationery quotation that was requested last week, made some gift tags and sourced materials for decorating bags.  A 'lots done' week, but not lots to show for it really.

For the gift tags I located prints of flowers which I attached to card.  I will punch a small hole in the top and add matching ribbon.  Gift tags always seem to sell well at craft fairs, so I am hoping these will be popular.  Here is a photograph of the tags:

Here also is a photograph of the wedding card I made for a friend:

This wasn't easy to make as the brief was to match the colours of a gift envelope that had been made by someone else.  Er, very difficult because how on earth do you find that out if you don't know who made the envelope?  I managed to find a shade of yellow and pink that were similar to the paper used and added hearts and other trims which also complimented those on the envelope.  A very frilly card.

that's my post-it note sized blog post for this week, I will be back next Sunday with hopefully lots more to write about.  In the meantime have a great week and don't forget to visit my fellow blogging crafters on Handmade Monday.  Milly will of course be back on Wednesday with her cats tails of Christmas Pie.

Jill

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

No sunshine in Christmas Pie today, but as it is dry I am outside - well I will be once I have finished this week's diary.  Jill keeps saying 'it looks like summer is over' - I hope not because I love the sunshine and all the lovely butterflies it brings into the garden ;0)

We have a large butterfly bush in our front garden and Coco and Poppy spend a lot of time underneath it!  Jill worries because she prefers us to be in the garden or in the field at the bottom of our garden.  We don't live on a busy road, but everywhere has the idiot who thinks it is fun to drive as fast as possible along a quiet road - usually with their windows open and the radio playing very loudly.  There has been the odd occasion when Jill has had to stand in the middle of the road and put her hand up to slow down an approaching car while Jazz has strolled across the road.  Does she panic?  Yes!  Jazz doesn't have a lot of road sense, in fact before Jill and Richard adopted him he had been involved in a car accident.  He suffered a broken jaw and damage to one of his eyes, one of his long front fangs was also snapped in half.

I haven't caught anything with wings recently - am I grown up now that I am one year old?  However, I was looking over Jill's shoulder yesterday and saw a Tweet from her friend Lesley about one of her chickens being on the loose.  What a good thing I wasn't there!

The sun is trying to come out, so it is time for me to go out too.  Have a good week everyone - I will see you next Wednesday.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hello everyone

Running late again today - I blame it on the heat, too hot to do all of the things I am supposed to do.  However, as you all know, I am Chief kitten in Christmas Pie and this means I have a long list of things to do every day before I have time for myself: kitten meals to get ready, playing with the kittens, training them, making sure they don't go into the front garden, showing them where the sunniest or coolest parts of the garden are.  A Chief Kitten's work is never done.

Life at Christmas Pie has rather slowed down recently - the weather has been too hot to do 'stuff' and lots of my time is spent stretched out in a cool place snoozing.  There are times when I wish I hadn't told Coco and Poppy about these cool places because they often get to them before me!

Meal times are good fun - who gets fed first?  Jill can only manage three bowls at a time, so it tends to be the three who can dive on them the quickest.  Coco and Poppy try to push me out of the way, but this sort of behaviour is just not acceptable from young kittens and I tell them so!  They also try to do the same with Jazz and as he is such a big softy he moves out of the way for them.

I am off to snooze again - as I said at the beginning of my post, life is hard for a Chief Kitten.

See you next week - enjoy the sunshine

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hi everyone

An early post from me today - too hot later on to be sitting at a computer.  Well, that's my excuse, I just prefer to be outside when the sun shines, even when it is HOT.  However, at the end of the day I like to relax:

Okay, I know I don't look very elegant, but I'm a kitten and we kittens don't do elegant until we are, oh, at least one year old.

Coco and Pops have settled in now and they have been 'out'.  I chase them sometimes, just to let them know that I am Chief Kitten here and very much in charge.  They are learning and already realise that as I am so much older than they are (a whole two months!) I know lots more than they do.

In my role of Chief Kitten I feel I should remind all of you pet owners out there to make sure your animals have plenty of water during this hot weather.  Remember, not only will they drink more but the water evaporates quickly too, so please keep their bowls topped up.

Don't forget to visit the Woking Cats Protection website to see how they are doing and if you are looking to adopt a cat or kitten, although they do not have any that are as gorgeous as me, there are lots looking for a home.

I am off to play now, kittens need training, Jazz and Daisy need sorting out too.  Have fun and stay cool.

Milly

MILLY'S DIARY

Hi everyone

Summer is here at last!  Woo hoo.  My black fur feels hot but my white fur is nice and cool.  I have been chasing lots of things this morning: damsel flies, butterflies and a bumble bee!  They all got away - better luck next time.

This is a photograph of me lounging on the garden table in between my 'chasing anything that flies' sessions - I did my bestest angelic look for Jill while she took the picture:

Jazz and Daisy are lounging a lot today as it is too warm for them - they are sooooo much older than me, so they need the rest.  Poor old souls.

One of Woking Cats Protection's lovely supporters is taking part in the Open Gardens Day event on Sunday, 23 June 2013 in support of the branch.  If you love gardens, do try to visit this one.  Lots of Cats Protection goodies will be on sale and you will get the chance to see photographs of the gorgeous cats needing homes.  You will be able to see photographs of Coco and Holly who are still looking for their forever home.

That's me blogged  for this week, the sunshine is too good to miss out on.  Enjoy the sunshine - I will be back next week with more 'tails' from Christmas Pie.

Milly

OH DEAR, WHERE HAS SUMMER GONE?

Hi everyone

The forecast for around here was that part of yesterday and today would be sunny - er, was it?  No.  Like everyone, I am so fed up waiting for summer to arrive.  I feel like I live in one of those weather houses - when the sun shines I rush outside to get some gardening done, when the heavens open I rush back inside to get some card-making done.

The Card-Making workshop I ran with Lauren of the Crafty Hippy on Tuesday evening went very well and we all had a fun time.  The Therapy Garden is a really great venue and ideal for the future events we are planning.  Here are a couple of pics of some of the card-making participants - everyone enjoyed themselves and were keen to know when our next event was taking place, which was good feedback for us.  Photographs of the cards I demonstrated are also shown here:

Photographs of happy card-making crafters

This was the first decoupage card the group made.  It didn't start out as a decoupage sheet, but by copying/pasting the original picture, I was able to show  that you don't need to buy something that is specifically created for découpage use, you can adapt anything.  Try to look at it with '3-D eyes' - what is at the front, what is the next layer, what is the 'flattest' part of the picture?  By using more sticky pads, the various pieces could be made more prominent.

This card gave the group more practice in delicate decoupage, the flowers needed more careful cutting and could be curved to represent the petals on the flowers.

I didn't start out as a fan of decoupage, but when I soon learned to appreciate how you can create and develop a beautiful picture.  It's a personal choice how many layers and sticky pads you use, and the effect created can be stunning.  I have seen some beautiful découpage prints created by very clever crafters and it is something I never tire of doing.

Lauren worked with the group to make two cards using her Stampin' Up materials and the cards were lovely.  Stamping is something I haven't really got into, despite having a large box of stamps and inks.  I must add this to my looooong list of crafting to-do's.

Still on a crafting note, don't forget to visit the blogs taking part in this week's Handmade Monday - lots of great posts with fantastic makes to look at.

I spent a little more time sorting out the new look of my blog - it took ages to get Blogger to accept the colour for web links included in posts.  Initially they were not showing up so it was impossible for anyone to see that there were links included!  Annoying really as it looked as though I was promoting something without adding the link to it.

I spent some time at our local hospital this week (a follow-up appointment to some tests I have been having over the last couple of months) - the highlight of which was a pre-op blood test!  I have major problems having blood taken and despite advising nurses, etc about the problems, they all still like to try to prove me wrong and approach me with something that resembles a road-drill.  I ended up with a very large black bruise on the inside of my left arm and puncture marks on the inside of my right arm and on both wrists!  The 'dots' could be joined up to make a square!  Oh well, I know it is for a good reason - but it is painful.

I hope you all have a good week and many thanks for the lovely comments left on my blog post last weekend.  If you would like to be a guest blogger, do get in touch - it would be lovely to get this up and running again.

I will be back next weekend and Milly will be posting on Wednesday.

Jill