My Person and I, along with other members of our Hitty house are heading north this week to the NorthCountry Hitty Retreat in New York. We are all extremely excited about this adventure, but part of the anticipation is knowing which of us will be allowed to come along. We know there will be at least one new Hitty coming home with us. We have not yet met her. She is the souvenir Hitty carved by Gale Lyons and cast in resin just for this event. We know she will be wonderful because Gale has a great eye for detail and is a fabulous carver. There will be all sorts of fun and goodies there to see, to do, to buy, to win.

Of course I get to go. Person has said that Lily Emiline can come, and maybe another two, but not too many since we are too hard to keep track of. One of us is supposed to have a costume for Halloween, but we have not yet made that nor chosen who will wear it. There is so much to do before we leave on Wednesday. Person says we need to start making lists. We will post pictures when we come home, of course.

Here at the homestead, so much has happened that we have gotten way behind in posts. I’ll attempt to summarize.

Our person sent off two of our Hitty lovelies to camp. Connie went to Camp Piney Woods in upstate New York, run by Julie Old Crow. She had a grand time with all the other Hittys there. Eva (born in Argentina) went to Sue’s in Maine for an entire month. There, she visited Great Cranberry Island, where the story of her ancestor was penned, as well as many other wonderful sites. She arrived home with many stories of her adventure. about which she is still going on.

Here at home, our person ran (with my able assistance, of course) Hitty Camp Wanna Do, which 12 hearty Hitty souls attended from all over the US, coming from California, Massachusetts, and places in between. It was a grand week, but Person was exhausted. I, however, am made of sturdy birch, and do not tire.

Of course Person’s new (new last March) full-time job keeps her going from morning till evening daily, and when she gets home, she isn’t much interested in more work. We have acquired a few new household members along the way, and some of them seem to be favorites, though of course Person would NEVER neglect ME for any other. Would she? Well, she certainly would never admit to playing favorites, even if she did.

Recently, she went to PA for a long weekend to carve again. She worked on a granny for us, but sadly didn’t complete her, so she’s been nibbling away at the wood now and then, trying to finish up Granny Gracie-Jo-Anna so that she can move in and begin her duties. We hope that will be soon.

School began two weeks ago, so now Person is involved in her teaching and tutoring again, and we think that she has even less time to play than before, which we find disturbing. She claims she wants to keep playing, so we trust her in that – at least her spirit is willing. If only she were made of sturdy birch, too.

This post is really just to let everyone know that we are still alive as we can be and well.

Hitty G, reporting for the Capital City Hittys

Exciting stuff is going on around here. Today, Connie Hitty boarded the postal bus bound for New York and Camp Piney Woods. She was so excited she nearly forgot to pack her swaps. Naturally, we are excited to hear how she enjoys camp and fares on her first trip away from home. You can probably sense the “excitement” given the number of times the word was used in this paragraph.

Previously, our Person had arranged for Hitty Eva (who recently decided to change her name to Ava) to see more of the U.S. by attending a month-long camp in Maine. As our little imigrant Hitty from Argentina, she is anticipating seeing more of her adopted country. This will be very special for her since one of the places she will visit is Great Cranberry Island where ancestor Hitty was born. Wow! We can’t wait for her to come back and tell us all about her adventures there.

And perhaps most exciting (we just had to use that word at least one more time) of all is that we are hosting our very first (hopefully of many years to come) Hitty Camps. Our Person is a former Girl Scout resident camp director with years of experience, so we thought she would be the perfect one to help us put this together. If you are interested in learning about how to send your Hitty to camp, check out Camp Wanna Do.

Early last week, we had unexpected visitors arrive. A tiny tot announced that her name was Peeps Hickory, and she brought along with her a little brown and black sheep, who she introduced as Little Bo. She was a PIF from Sherry who, along with Hitty Joy and Cousin Ida, have made it their business to rescue Hickory Tot Orphans of the Woods. We think Sherry must have known all about our house since she clearly chose the proper setting for these two. It’s not every household that would welcome a sheep.

Aren't Peeps Hickory and Little Bo just the cutest things?

Yup, a flock of friendly sheep belonging to the Capital City Hittys was right there with me (and L'Orange, who just has to be everywhere) to greet Little Bo and Peeps.

Now look who's suddenly shy!

Violet has come to us courtesy of B.L. Amburgey, and is not merely visiting but is here to stay.

Hitty Violet meets the Capital City Hittys for the first time.

What a thrill to welcome him back.

Geneva Grace declares she will NEVER wash that hand.

Earlier this week, I escorted Geneva Grace to visit the two schools where my Person teaches Advanced Composition and Research & Rhetoric courses. First we went to the University of Richmond. This semster’s Advanced Composition class is quite small. It began with six, but dwindled to only five, and on the night we were there, the only female class member was absent. However, Person lined up the fellows and made them (er, invited them) to hold us. It took a couple of shots to even get one suitable for publication.

Hitty Gracious and Hitty Geneva Grace with the four macho men at UofR

Here we are, being good and proper little Hittys in the office.

Oh my - there are no words to describe what Hitty Geneva found on the bookshelf. Person denies any knowledge of the find.

Here we are surrounded by our admirers. However, we noticed that several students seem to have ducked out the door before the picture was taken. Hmm.

Today, Saturday, Person’s daughter, Miss Legal Eagle, wrote to say that Wild Child had spotted a picture of Hitty Geneva on this blog. She immediately retrieved her dear friend, Hitty Rose, and the two listened raptly to Miss LE explain about Travel Hittys. Learning that Hitty Geneva was in town for only a short time, Wild Child and Hitty Rose immediately asserted that Hitty Geneva and Hitty Rose MUST meet. Could it be arranged? Certainly. Hitty Geneva was most obliging and agreed to stay on simply to meet up with this littlest fan. Stay tuned for the meet-and-greet.

Our yard was in desperate need of mowing after having lost our previous mower at the end of the last season to the sticky fingers of a thief who absconded with the instrument. Of course it happened about the same time Mister was released from his employment of 15 years (the depressed economy caused a downsizing at his company). So the yard just grew. While one person, after seeing a picture, declared that she would love to have this yard, unmowed, for her own, we can attest to the fact that she wouldn’t really if she saw the full thing in person as we do.

The neglect of the yard had allowed some flowers to spring up among the grass and weediness. Although these had been around for years and did not belong in the middle of the yard, we hadn’t really noticed since normally the grass was kept trimmed. Only the so called good fortune of lacking a mower allowed us to see the problem. I (HittyG) had previously rescued some daffodils from the center of the grassy area and relocated them, just prior to Geneva’s arrival. Now that Mister was not only gainfully re-employed, it was well past time for a new tool and the mowing to begin. Mister selected a lovely green version this time.

Hitty Geneva inspects the mower and says it looks like a good one, but cautions Mister to be careful using it as she has heard that they can prove quite dangerous.

Geneva had noticed that there were also some lovely little grape hyacinths out in the yard, and she enlisted my help in moving them to safety prior to their “beheading” by the mower.

We make the identification. Once confirmed that this was, indeed, a grape hyacinth, we were ready to track down others.

Aha - we have spotted the motherlode of grape hyacinths. Clearly, our work is cut out for us.

We had quite a pile that we rescued, but digging up the plants proved exhausting, and we finally had to stop.

Hitty Geneva helps with the watering in of the plants.

Don't they look great here? We are proud of our efforts to save them from certain destruction.

Posing with the Richmond Meerkats, a family relocated here courtesy of G3 and GoodWitch, our Person's DS and DIL

Unbelievably, he managed this via a plastic cover on the oil fill to the mower. Hitty Geneva simply tisk-tisked and applied first aid.

Thinking it a lovely joke, Hitty Geneva is pleased to be able to truthfully tell folks that we took her to Mexico.

After the home made salsa and chips, who needs dinner?

Since Hitty Geneva is by nature (no pun intended) a naturalist, we decided some outdoor activities were in order.

She had overheard Mister discussing the local labyrinth and decided that she would enjoy having the experience herself, since she had never been to one. I of course, have been to this one and also to the one at New Harmony, IN. The day was sunny, but windy, so we bundled her up in a shawl we loaned to her and her bonnet and sent her off with Person and Mister. The best labyrinth walk is perhaps best experienced solo.

This labyrinth is in a park-like setting, surrounded by an exercise track with various stations along the way. It is on the grounds of Union Theological Seminary.

This labyrinth is modeled after the famous one at Chatres Cathedral near Paris, France.

Wishing to get the most from her experience, Geneva carefully read the suggestions for walking the labyrinth.

Geneva sets off along the marked path. Interestingly, the way in is also the way out. On the way through to the center, one contemplates something for which she hopes to find a solution.

Progressing through the maze, Geneva encounters a turn.

The center is where Geneva is enlightened about the problem she had upon entering. She remains here until she feels ready to walk the same path back out in order to return to the world.

After her labyrinth experience, Geneva rests on the nearby bench to consider what she has learned about life and herself as a result.

She thinks exercise is a good thing, and despite being rather tired, both mentally and physically from her arduous walk through the labyrinth, she is determined to try just one of the exercises.

Geneva Grace performs a pull-up on the fitness bar.

It had moved forward slightly by the time we got the camera out to take the picture. See it at the crack in the sidewalk near the tree?

Oh my, it's a baby squirrel that must have fallen from its nest or been blown out in the wind.

We obtained this close-up of the baby, which clearly needed to return to its nest. Hitty Geneva Grace to the rescue.

We could not leave the area until Hitty Geneva Grace had quite literally climbed the tree to ensure that the baby squirrel got home.

The Capital City Hittys, for whom I speak, are so pleased to have been selected as a stop on the tour of Hitty Geneva Grace Stratton, named for the 19th century naturalist and author, who was better known by the name “Gene.” As the second of eight stops on her tour, we were fortunate enough to have Hitty Geneva’s arrival occur during a reasonably nice period of weather.

Hittys crowd the box in an attempt to get the first glimpse of our famous visitor.

Everyone wants to meet Geneva.

Becassine helps settle her into the guest quarters

Tucked in, lights out.

We got to the office early.

Geneva meets Miss Legal Eagle, our Person's DD and paralegal for the West End office.

She meets one of the attorneys

She learns to do input to the Best Case bankruptcy program

... to perform means testing and calculate 6-month income averages, ...

... and she answers the phone (hey, this is a call from the attorney of record - hi, Richard).

These are very nice pens, and so purple!! Geneva liked this job best.

Geneva Grace met the office monkey off Richard's back and up in the branches of the office Ficus tree.

We were not paying much attention to the mail lately, and so we missed seeing the little package for us. Tonight, Person opened it and were we ever surprised. It contained a very nice note from Hitty Joy and Cousin Ida (who live with Sherry, a HittyGirl) explaining that we were being asked to help with their rescue efforts of Hickory Tot Orphans of the Woods. They have passed along to us a small girl who was found clinging tightly to a small woolly brown and black sheep, from which she would not be parted. Now entrusted into our custody, she has told us her name, Peeps Hickory, and the name of her sheep, Little Bo. The message she brought with her says that Cousin Ida has house trained Little Bo – so considerate of her – and that she and Hitty Joy hope that Peeps and Little Bo will be welcomed by the Capital City Hittys.

Well, it’s crystal clear that Hitty Joy and Cousin Ida know how to place the little Orphans they find, for we modestly attest that Peeps and Little Bo could not have found a more suitable home than ours in which to settle. The evidence is in the photos.

Little Bo and Peeps Hickory

I greet them, accompanied by the Capital City Hittys personal flock of sheep.

OK, before you all start yammering about what a PIF is, I’ll just tell you that it stands for Pay It Forward. It’s sort of like a random act of kindness for HittyGirls. We do nice things for each other, sending little (and sometimes not so little) trinkets and tokens for the other person’s enjoyment. Our house as been on the receiving end several times with little wee gifties sent by various people. Recently, there was a lot of discussion on HittyGirls about Flat Stanley. He was a character in a book by Jeff Brown.

The book that started the project.

Judy Bee cuts images apart.

I (Hitty Gracious) addressed and stacked envelopes

Well, not everyone worked up to capacity

Working together, we got the job done.

If anyone recieved a Flat Hitty and wants to turn her into a paperdoll instead, we will be glad to ship you some clothing for her – just leave us a message or contact us.