The Alpacas...It's Good To See Them Again!

As you know, I have done a couple of posts about the sweet Alpacas at Windy Hill Ranch

in Somis, California here and here.

Well, I visited Windy Hill Ranch again but this time there was a different purpose for my

visit.  The Alpacas had been given their spring haircuts...

And their fur had been spun into beautiful soft yarn.

The yarn I chose was from this sweet Alpaca named Yuletide...

I am told by her owner Alison of Two Trees Alpacas, that Yuletide  is very sweet but
she is also a diva of all divas!  Yuletide has given birth to seven crias and is said to be
a magnificent mother. But, a diva nonetheless!  Everything is on her terms. Yuletide rules!

Hmm, a diva loves the camera.    Look!  She's giving you her special smile...

I was thrilled to spend time with Yuletide(and friends)...

And have some of her yarn...

I love that the label around the yarn has her picture on it.  I chose the natural and the

hand-dyed light pink.  Alison does an amazing job with yarns.  The naturals are beautiful

and so are the yarns she hand paints and hand dyes.  I will probably just knit a scarf

from this yarn.  It's really too hot to think of making anything big like a sweater right now.

While at Windy Hill Ranch I snapped a few other pictures of the gentle, charming
Alpacas with their spring/summer haircuts...

Cute, cute, cute...

One of several herding dogs finding a cool place to relax...

Here is Alison with her most recent little cria.  Such a sweet little baby...

I really want to say a big "thank you" to Alison who was so kind to walk all over the

ranch with me and introduce me to her Alpaca family.

Alpacas are absolutely the most sweet and charming animals!

Now it's time for me to get busy and do a little knitting...

Have a great week!

Fields of Lavender

I recently drove up to the beautiful lavender fields in Ojai, California...

It was an extra special day because I met up with lovely Jermaine of  French-Kissed...



A path of dark purple lavender greeted us when we arrived to this beautiful

countryside...

The fields were radiant...

There were so many sizes and shades of the beautiful flower.  Webster defines

lavender as a fragrant European mint, with spikes of pale purplish flowers...

The sun was hot but a beautiful breeze was blowing.  Everything seemed so

peaceful and perfect...

The fields were full of bees but they were very friendly.  Hmm, I wonder if the lavender

calms them...

So many varieties.  These are just a few...

The scenery and weather were perfect for spending lots of relaxing time in the fields

picking fresh bouquets of lavender and taking pictures.  It really was a very special

place to spend time with a friend.  It is always so wonderful to have some time with

Jermaine from French-Kissed.  She is delightful and her posts are always so creative

and so very beautiful.

After bringing my bouquets home I decided to use the lavender in a few different

ways. 

I had a house guest coming for an overnight stay so I filled a french wire basket

with fresh towels and added a small bouquet of lavender, some lavender soap and

lavender candles...

I also added some roses from my garden and some rose petals...

And because I was in a lavender mood and had quite a bit of it, I decided to add some

of the culinary lavender to some rose and lavender macarons and assorted cupcakes...

And...I froze some of the culinary lavender in ice cubes to add to lemonade...

Today I also made a lemon loaf cake infused with lavender but it was gone before I

could take a picture.

I also want to take a minute to thank those of you who knew about my cousin's passing

and sent lovely emails to me.  Your words meant the world to me and I thank you so much.

If you ever have a chance to walk in a lavender field be sure to do so.  It is a lovely

experience. 

La Pouyette has a stunning post on old lavender and linen here. Enjoy!

Have a wonderful week.

I am joining Rose Vignettes for her Fresh Cut Friday party here.

Happy Fourth Of July!

WISHING YOU....

A VERY HAPPY...

4TH OF JULY!

I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday!