"Enter Bo-Peep!"

Okay! I know Sarah hasn't written since Thanksgiving and I have, but I'm sure she'll trump this later today. The problem is, she likes to sleep in sometimes, and I don't as much so I have more time. We are sick so we're not going to go to church today. Neither are the Wilsons. 7 of `em down with the same thing. :(

But I thought I'd tell about a present I am making for someone for Christmas. I am not sure who it will be for though... probably Gracie, though I want to send it to the Fuhrmann kids. I love writing stories and sending them to children! I have a little line of books I make for Abby called the Bramblewood Hedge tales. (Little did I know when I began that there was already a published series called "Brambly Hedge". I assure you, the name was my own entirely!)

Anyway, they are about various and sundry small animals, and usually are based off of something I saw and wanted to make a story about. I love assigning them quaint names like the cardinal "Admiral Popepeak" or the mockingbird "Col. Matthew Mockah" and then the red squirrel named "Rumpleton Derrydock" and then the quail named "Mistress Quakergarb"! It is loads of fun!

I admit. I've read too much Beatrix Potter and Old Mother West Wind in my day, and this week:) Anyhow, we accidently brought home one of the Wilson's cats in the load of hay Dad bought! I'm so glad that it didn't jump out on the way! The younger girls discovered her when they got home! Last winter we had a stray cat that we affectionately called "Miss Muffet". So it stands to reason that for the little while we are in possession of this kitty, she needs a name too. Since Sarah was reading Pride and Prejudice for the first time and couldn't be bothered with other literary things, I took it upon myself to name this lovely pussy. If I were any sort of a bloggie person I would have a picture of her, but it is cold, our camera is tempermental, and I don't feel like leaving this spot to go find her and make her pose. Nevertheless, please meet Little Bo-Peep! She is a very elegant puss and doesn't seem extremely shy.

So immediately after putting Abby to bed last night, I decided that Bo-Peep needed a story of her own. I wrote one about her life before she came here, and her ride over, and how she met Miss Cricket, (my black cat) and all that is left to be done is to nicely illustrate it. I haven't the time for watercolor paintings for it like I did for "The Twinkletoes' Harvest" so I have decided that I shall slide by with pen and ink drawings for now. (The only thing is that Bo-Peep has such a lovely tumbleweed-tabby coat and a white bib that it would look so very sweet done as a watercolor.) But with Daniel's big shebang in 6 days and me wanting to keep progress on the book, I will just do the quickest route.

By the way, "The Twinkletoes' Harvest" is a Bramblewood Hedge story about a family of meadow-mice that I did for Abby last year. Here is an illustration from it! -Rachel