Mocha - a new little cutie!

To while away the hours while in hospital recently, I started hand-sewing this little fellow and have just put the finishing touches to him - introducing Mocha.

He's made from a luscious and dense grey/brown alpaca with a while alpaca muzzle & tummy, and sitting measures cm.   I've airbrushed his paw pads, and hand-painted his starburst eyes in shades of grey/blue.

He'll be available from my new website (www.nikkelbears.com) within the next couple of days, so make sure you drop by to check him out.

Downtime

I've been in hospital recently for the removal of an enlarged thyroid, and more disconcerting ... a small cancer within my thyroid.

A 2 hour operation ended up a marathon 5.5 hrs!  My surgeon reckons I gave her arm and shoulder muscles a real workout!

Anyway, good news.  Whole thyroid and all cancer has been removed, and I'm sporting a rather neat looking scar at the base of my neck which I'm told should fade over time.  And best of all - I have a skinnier neck!   Still have to undergo some radiation therapy (just to be sure) and then it's all plain sailing for me!

After 2 weeks off work, it was back to reality yesterday - you know the normal office stuff ... phones constantly ringing, the never-ending pile of filing to be done, emails by the truckload etc. etc. etc.  I think I prefer the peace & quiet of being at home listening to the wild birds flying overhead and in the gum trees and the odd dog barking.

I think I might ease myself back into this fulltime work thing & leave the office early for a few days yet.  

Sneak Peak!

At long last!  Here's a sneak peak at my 3 bears for the upcoming Black & White Ball in June.  

And of course, me being the 'expert' in photography had to do the Photoshop online tuition before I could even work out how to put a photo collage together!

Hope you like what you see!  Make sure you make a note of the dates: 1st - 7th June 2009.  Just go to www.teddybearsandcritters.com

Weekend Sleepover!

Hi everyone!

I've been a bit remiss lately with my blog - I've been very busy getting 3 bears ready for the Teddy Bears & Critters Black & White Ball. Will give you a bit of a sneak peak soon so stay tuned!

We had a wonderful weekend - our precious granddaughter Mikaela came over for a sleep-over at Nanny and Poppy's while Mum & Dad enjoyed a well-earned night out with friends. The little poppet helped me tidy up 'the bear room' and sort out my ribbons, and then Poppy showed her how to play cards on the computer ... well, she clicked the mouse on the card he chose actually!

She's so full of personality, as you can see from this photo.