Kristin Shields Quiltmaker

I Love a (Christmas) Parade!

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I know this is late, but that's how this December is going.  Enjoy!

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!

Hello!  Popping in again for a quick post to wish you a Merry Christmas!  Thank you all for being readers of my blog. I really appreciate you being here in such a busy world.   

If you are still shopping for gifts (or yourself), please consider buying local and/or from an artist.  Here's an Etsy coupon code for my shop just for my followers (shop link above): DEARSANTA will get you 10% off a minimum order of $30 (expires 12/18).  The shop will be on hiatus from December 19-January 5 for some holiday fun.  Happy Holidays to you!

Happy Fourth of July!

In Bend July 4th means it's time for the Pet Parade.  Pets of all sorts strutted their stuff.  You know how I love a parade!   

The famous flying doggie above and dogs cooling off after the parade below.

Happy Independence Day!

The best part of the July 4th Pet Parade!  This is Teacup the flying dog. She was a hit!

Bend Christmas Parade!

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You know how much I love a parade!  I hope you enjoy the slideshow.  

Parade Weather **

If you don't follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Flickr or Tumblr, or happen to get the local paper, then you haven't seen this photo yet!  I get a kick out of our daily duck parade everytime I see  it.  They go by the house multiple times a day, from the pond to the left of the photo, past our house and up the street to rest in the lawns of houses on the other street.  Why they do it is a big mystery to me.  They hardly ever stop in our yard to rest.  

Anyway, I admit to taking way too many duck photos since we moved in here.  I just think they are adorable.  It wasn't until I took this one that I knew I had a winner.  I posted it to Facebook and all the other sites above and after a while thought, what the heck, I'll send it to the Bulletin because they are accepting reader photos.  The Pacific Northwest has had an incredible weather week.  Heavy snow Tuesday into Wednesday morning when I took this photo.  None too soon as it turned to rain right after and became a squishy, sloppy, dirty mess.  So, I got an email from the chief copy editor on Wednesday night asking if I had taken the photo that day.  I said yes of course.  

The next day my photo was at the top of the article with three other snowy day photos.  Totally cool!  Well, my duck shooting (and I mean that in the nicest possible way) days are not over by a long shot.  Here's one the day after.  This is the "pond" that used to be the street in front of our house.

And here's a Hipstamatic shot I took this morning looking the other way, toward the river.  They come up from the river to the right of that house .  They are only heading back toward the river because I came out and disturbed them by taking a photo.  I'm sure when I left they went about their duck parade business.

Here's another one from December.  Well, I've said before how much I love a parade.  They are one of life's little pleasures and I'm just thrilled that we get to experience several per day here.

**Parade Weather is the title the Bulletin gave to my photo.  I think, really, that for a duck, any weather is parade weather!

Here Comes Santa Claus

Saturday was parade day here and you know how I love a parade!  It all started with brunch here at the house. Homemade cinnamon rolls, two kinds of egg dishes, hot spiced cider and fruit~yum!

Our spot to watch the parade was just down the road a bit.  It was chilly, but the sun warmed our backs and it was a spectacularly beautiful day.

Once again we had all sorts of adorable four footed creatures.

We had friends and family to share the day with.

We had lots of clever displays, including this little smart car/vacuum!

Santa's sleigh was filled with all  the goodies a Central Oregonian could need- mountain bike, kayak and paddle board.

The Polar Express float was just about my favorite.  Very clever!

Any beer drinkers among you might enjoy the CyclePub which is seen regularly on the streets of downtown.

Of course there were llamas!  I wouldn't skip the llamas.  Love these guys!

This is my favorite photo of the bunch.  Just look at that little tongue sticking out.  I think this dog did that the whole way along.

The Wells Fargo wagon is a comin' down the street.  

Finally, Santa came!  What a great parade and a perfect day. I'm looking forward to this week.  I have a studio that needs a thorough clean up and then I can get back to work on some old projects and some new ideas. I always look forward to that!

A parade for my birthday!

I love parades, no doubt about it.  This year the Sisters Christmas parade was on my birthday, so off we went to this adorable little town for it's short and sweet parade. I wouldn't have it any other way.

This girl seems to be always plugged in these days!

There are lots and lots of animals in this one and nary a marching band.  I do love to see all the variety of beasts though.  Llamas, dogs,

Ryan and Scrabble,

miniature donkeys, 

beautiful horses,

greyhounds,

the occasional beautiful vintage truck.

newfies,

and the big man himself!  Santa came into town in style.

After the parade, this is my favorite place to step in for a coffee.  They really do it up for Christmas!

I had a marvelous time doing my part for Small Business Saturday.  I found some interesting rustic fabric at the Stitchin' Post that I can't wait to try and some beautiful vintage buttons at the antique shops.  Later, we had a delicious dinner, presents and gingerbread cake at my parents' house.  My mom also really knows how to decorate for the holidays, so those photos will show up here soon.  The owl portrait is a gift from my sister!

It was a very good day.   Thanks for all the nice birthday wishes.  Happy Sunday to you!

PS: Don't forget to comment on the previous post to enter the contest for one of my handmade ornaments.

PPS:  All the photos here were made with my iPhone!  I had no idea this little gem would be so much fun to take photos with.  I got a phone, computer and pocket camera all in one.  Thanks Mark!

11.11.11

I love a parade!  Now that we live within the parade loop I think I'll be going to every single one!  Today the Bend All High School Marching Band was in top form.  I couldn't help myself, I marched right along with them.

Christmas Kayak Parade

On the Deschutes River in Bend.  It's exceedingly difficult to take photos with no flash on a bridge with lots of people and no tripod, but they are pretty anyway!