I kept forgetting what day it was, and getting lost in the all things I have to do, and want to do. So, I decided I needed to break my toy making down into manageable chunks. I’m not very good with making schedules, because I can’t really tell how long it will take me to make a toy or a doll. They take as long as they take. Rushing only causes me to make mistakes. Instead of trying to make a time schedule, I thought it would be better to give myself sets of toys to work on, in numbers I can hold easily in my mind. Missing a self-imposed deadline only makes me feel bad, but striving to complete ten or twenty toys is an attainable goal that makes me feel more in control. Above is part of my first group, fleece Alley Cat Angel sock kitten on the way. I will be posting my new handmade stuffed animal toys in our Ruffing’s shop.
These are the first two art toys, in my first set of ten. I haven’t made any cotton print Hug Me Slugs for a long time. I had started these before, and left them unfinished. The appliquéd cotton toys tend to be challenging, especially in regard to stuffing them. Whenever I make any, I vow to never make any more. My first Hug Me Slugs were all of this variety, and I made quite a few of them. I’m not sure where I found the patience. I have other dolls of this type, still waiting to be finished, like my Lucy Dolls. Eventually, I will get myself to finish them. I was proud of myself when I finished these today, a green Hug Me Slug and a pink polka dot Hug Me Slug.
Feeling encouraged, after completing these cotton Hug Me Slugs, I picked up a few batik fabrics this afternoon. I’m going to hand sew fleece features onto them. I really like batiks, and have others in my stash I’d like to try too. I’ll see how my first experiments look.
I uploaded my TNR photos from Mother’s Day to the Alley Cats and Angels Facebook page. You can view the Spring Hope album here. My Mother’s Day photos start a few photos into the album. I added play-by-play captions too, like the last time. The fast food cat-trapping photos are in this album. The photo above is what my mom calls Marie’s jungle combat photo. There is a tabby cat on the roof, taunting Marie with her indifference.
The tabby eventually came down, and she was spayed and vaccinated the next day.
The kittens all saw the vet, got medications to take, and are doing well. The little hissing one stopped hissing too.
Our own Josephine, who also came from a hoarding-type situation, seems to have left her past behind completely. She is getting spoiled, and enjoying it very much. Tia suggested she needs someone to fan her with palm fronds now. I’m sure if Josephine ever learns of this, she will demand someone perform this task immediately.
