Fran here for Fowl Friday! Well it is about time! Debra has been promising us our own page forever and now it looks like it is going to be a reality! She has been updating the website and we got a sneak peek at the link boxes. There we were "Fran & Freda" although since she is making the frames square my feet are cut off! Why she couldn't have cut off Freda's head instead I don't know. Freda as we know doesn't always use her head anyway. She never reads this so no worries...So by the next Fowl Friday our page, lots of pics and our incredible story will be revealed!

We were getting a little concerned as Debra has another cutesy type bird hanging around way too much! Apparently another whole blog is coming for that bird called "the empty nest chronicles". Anyway we are of the opinion cute is way overrated. I would much rather be "interesting looking & highly intelligent" and guess what, I am! Freda has half of it although she sees herself as the cute type. Anyone looks cute after a bottle of wine especially to a rooster!  There is a long weekend ahead, enjoy all, barbecue (just not c-h-i-c-k-e-n), swim, hang out with your peeps! Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

       Fran  & Freda hereit's Fowl Friday!

Apparently we have been kept in the dark regarding many things lately. It is not a good feeling at all! My intuition has been saying over and over something is not right, something smells foul, pardon the pun! Well with a little late night snooping some things have been revealed that Debra was keeping from us. Her reasons we can only surmise, we try to give her the benefit of the doubt. (At least Freda does, she is much more trusting than I am but then again look what happened to her and that rooster from Cape Breton incident.)

What we (I) have uncovered!
1. Debra has said no chocolate allowed. Yet late at night the aroma of brownies is in the air. Apparently someone is allowed to have them!

2. Absolutely no alcohol (apparently the result of Freda's slight indiscretion involving dancing, an empty wine bottle, a certain rooster who still remains nameless & Freda's getting knocked up to put it bluntly) yet often there are two empty wine glasses visible in the morning.

3. WE are not allowed to walk on the counters, the tables, the mantel or any of the furniture yet there is a whole flock of new birds who can apparently perch anywhere the choose. The pink ones sit everywhere, they do not even speak to us, their so perfect beaks are always up in the air as they twitter away or preen constantly.

We could go on forever about the injustice of it all! Yet we will rise above the indignities, pull up our big gal panties and get on with it! Happy Fowl Friday Peeps!

Fran here for Fowl Friday! Freda & I thought living here in this loft feline free would be so relaxing but no not at all! Debra loves to decorate, has a thing about birds apparently and is sticking them everywhere. It looks very painful as she applies it with sticky paper and then rubs over it very hard with this little flat thing.

On the way by with the ladder she stopped and looked at us with that "hey I just got a great idea look". That was a very scary moment as she looked closely at our feet. I know she was thinking we would be perfect hanging from the sloped ceiling over the stairway. How we would be stuck there I cannot even imagine.

Also it is not well known but Freda is afraid of heights. Being a bird it is something that has haunted her since she was a chick and she was thrown off the feeder into the dirt. So hanging above a two storey stairwell could send her into a lifetime of therapy.

Luckily Debra's attention was diverted and she went off to hang more birds above the storage unit. We are hoping she is finished "feathering her nest". Seems to enjoy it way tooo much! Anyway we were lucky this time! She is just way too happy these days and full of ideas.

Till next time, Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda and we intend to keep our feet firmly planted on the ground!

Fran here for Fowl Friday! Not meaning to complain (although Debra says we do often and loudly!) but life in the new city is not so good for us. Sure the loft with the big windows has a great view. We have met some friendly crows and the odd seagull, (I mean really odd, Freda is not the best judge of character but when this gull flew by backwards showing her well too much, we decided not to say "hi" to that neighbor!)

Other than that though Debra is either happily working away, entertaining or out leaving us alone way too much! We are even starting to miss those felines that used to live here. At least they paid attention to us although the missing feathers sometimes was a bit annoying! Anyway I guess we will just have to get a life as they say! Freda wants to get back on Hatch.com but considering the trouble she got into with the rooster from Cape Breton (she falls hard for an accent) that is not an option in this place! So for now we would appreciate any help with suggestions as to what we can do with our little feathery lives! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda

We made it!! We are fabulous fall fowl for Creative Homearts! Just go to projects and there we are looking mighty fine if I do say so myself! You too can now have your very own Fran & Freda! (Debra says we should come with a warning label and instruction book but what does she know!) Just keep the champagne flowing along with breakfast in bed and we are easy! (especially Freda, we all know about that rooster from Cape Breton incident) Anyway we are soooo excited, wish I was a rooster, would be crowing from the rooftops!

We are spending the day at home answering congratulory emails and ready to sign autographs for the multitude of fans who will stop by. (Debra says not to expect too much and she is supposed to be the optimist!) We don't care, we are ready with pens in hand um wing and in Freda's case foot. (Her fine motor skills are confined to her feet only!) So we are off to celebrate!!! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

Well Fowl Friday is here once again, sigh as if Debra really cares. No CHA (Craft & Hobby) show for us next week, no fluffy bed in a hotel, no pool side or the hope of room service. She is off on a fun family event and we are stuck at home! We also hear rumors of more trips which do not include us at all! She is loving her new life here, us not so much! So for all you fowl fans a trip down memory lane when life was really good for us!  Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

WELL finally Fowl Friday! The moving has finally stopped, when Debra does anything it is never halfway! Not content with moving both her daughters and herself once in three weeks, she decides to move twice in a week! We do approve, that being Freda and myself Fran of the new space! The loft is perfect for us of the bird persuasion and we have our own room! Debra calls it the guest room but hey we are perennial guests. Love the new towels, great for nesting.

The big windows have a great view of the water and sunsets, "romantic" some around here say as that certain someone goes floating by in a pink dress and dreamy smile. Anyway enough said. Freda's photoshop skills are nil but she wanted a picture in the big windows so here she is pretending to be an eagle, I am thinking seagull more realistic! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

 The day has come! The house is feline free! Freda and I are rid of the feline terrors at last! They left for PEI with Kate, we miss Kate but not the C A T S!!! Freda is doing the happy dance! I am afraid she is so happy she might pull a muscle or wear out her toes doing the dance! Debra left us for a couple days to get Kate settled in her new place. We partied just a little, well Freda did have some male company, a new rooster friend she met on Hatch.com. He swept her off her feet with his Frencch Canadian accent, he is from a farm up near Tracadie, NB. I don't find him particularly charming but apparently Freda does! Anyway we managed to clean up all the evidence before Debra got home! I think she was a litte suspicious with the clink in the garbage bag, Freda likes her wine!

So another week and we are out of here ourselves! Debra is off on a new adventure in a new city. She is smiling a lot and has a happy glow, kind of like Freda's but different. Freda doesn't believe in long term relationships but Debra is a committed kind of gal! So the summer is shaping up to be filled with adventures and travel, if we play our cards right we might be able to sneak into her suitcase now and then. If not we will have fun at home, Freda's Tracadie rooster has GPS and I am looking for a rooster myself. I need a little more intellectual stimulation than Freda does, so a rooster who can put more than three words together is required! So that is the scoop for Fowl Friday! Fran & Freda!

Debra is off tonight for a very special reason, the Relay for Life, twelve hour walk 7pm to 7am in honor of her friend Donna who lost her battle with cancer in April. She walks as part of Team Donna and part of a special event that is committed to celebrating the Survivors, honoring those lost and committed to treatment and finding a cure!

Fran here on Fowl Friday! We are two frazzled fowl! Debra has had us on duster duty everyday, not only is the feather duster getting thin but my tail feathers are falling out. No sympathy around here, Debra just picks them up and glues them into feather duster! 

Meanwhile those fluffy felines around here do nothing but spread their hair. Also they might be pretty to the human eye but bright they are not. I know Freda isn't the smartest chick about but she is a genius next to the feline trio. As I peck out this post, the youngest Bella is sitting in the screened window pressing her nose against the screen. On the other side of the screen a very large hornet is buzzing away. I wonder how big a cat's nose can swell? Guess we will find out! or not, Debra will probably rescue the fluff ball! The same fluff ball also thinks the fish bowl is a water dish, apparently climbing on a shelf and stretching as far as you can reach and putting your head into oversized bowl is normal for felines!

Packing is underway and Freda found out that packing tape also is very hazardous to feathers. I wonder what it might do to cats, if they were bald our dusting days  would be over! Hmm must ponder that thought and its execution. Debra is busy this weekend.....Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

Fowl Friday! Freda & Fran here! Well there is feathery fallout on the homefront! The nest is on the market and the traffic coming through has all hands, wings on deck. Clean, clean, clean! Debra has us dusting, mopping & wearing our already very bony feet to the bare... We are slightly suspicious as the feather duster somewhat resembles the feathers of a close friend, Debra assures us they are synthetic, however I am skeptical, they look quite real to me. I am definitely more of a feather expert than she is! So everyday we clean, hoping someone takes pity on our plight and buys this place. We are not cut out for hard labor! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

It is Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda! Big news we are apparently getting ready to fly the coop this summer. Debra is off this weekend checking out some new nests for us to feather. We of course put in a request for certain amenities, a word we have heard often this past couple weeks! I want an ensuite, Freda would like a jacuzzi to soak in. Her legs get tired from all the dancing and she loves her bubbles! A yard with a pool of course or at least a pond for us, ocean view and maid service. Debra has often remarked we have maid service already, her. Don't tell her but as a maid she is not so great, in fact we would fire her but since we don't pay her that is kind of hard to do and she does own the place!

So while Debra is gone we were given instructions to declutter the coop. That is not easy, you never know when one red rubber boot might be needed, bottle caps, shoelaces, shower cap with holes we got some good stuff! We can't part with any of it but Debra is tough and says we better smarten up or we could end up on Hoarders! Sigh so we will try to purge while she is gone! Wish us luck! Fran & Freda

Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda! You know the expression ...like a chicken with it's um head cut off, well that would describe Debra and her daughter Kate at present! They are having a big garage sale on Saturday, so big in fact we were slightly worried that we might end up in the craft section. Ah yes Debra has sections, did we mention she likes to organize everything! There is electronics, household, furniture, toys, holiday and crafts. Oops I almost forgot outdoor equipment and gardening which will be of course outside the garage. Then  items have colored stickers denoting their price point, red for $5, yellow for $3, you get the idea. Kate is serving up tasty muffins for those attending the sale.

Debra is downsizing and Kate will be leaving the nest shortly so stuff has got to go! Debra will never have a completely empty nest as she will always have us. We will be a little sad to leave this house but not sad that the felines are going with Kate! We will be able to shake our feathers without fear or frolic in the bath without furry intervention!

So at the crack of dawn Debra and Kate will be up and busy on Saturday. Freda & I have just requested they be quiet so our beauty sleep is not interrupted. Debra apparently said something I did not quite hear, had to do with chicken wings and supper I think.  Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

IT's Fowl Friday!!! Fran here! Freda well of course she is here too! (Body yes mind a little iffy) This week we have been travelling, not too far though and the transportation has been over bumpy country roads. Freda gets car sick so Debra's solution is just to put her in a ziplock bag (with an air vent). Not sure the SPCA would approve though! We were part of a presentation at the Keswick Ridge Quilt Guild. The ladies were so nice and we had fun! This weekend we are off again to the Scotiabank Relay for Life Fashion Show. No, we were not asked to model even with our great legs but we will be there to support the cause and Debra of course!

At home things are not good. It is spring and the felines in residence have spring fever big time! Their favorite toys to toss around are these brightly colored plastic coiled springs. These springs look suspiciously very much like our legs.



A coincidence we think not or at least I don't. Freda and thinking not a strong combination, I think it is all the dancing! Anyway even though Debra keeps us high on a shelf in her studio those cats keep eyeing us. It is very uncomfortable, we have watched them climb up to the fish bowl on another shelf and drink from his bowl. Beta fish are not too bright either, when the cat takes a drink he swims to the top, one day soon he is going to be a fish slurpy!

Life is never dull around here! Freda and I are going to start wearing leg warmers to keep the cats from eyeing our legs. Even though they have those coil toys everywhere it does not seem to be enough! So these chicken legs are heading for cover, I am thinking pink or purple striped leg warmers with a floral accent, Freda's choice animal print. She wants a new look for her profile photo on Hatch.com. (Watch out roosters)
Have a fowlish fun weekend! Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

It's Fowl Friday! Freda is busy laying and dyeing her eggs for the annual Easter egg hunt! Presently she seems oblivious to the fact her tail feathers are brightly multi colored as well! Debra's daughters were also in the kitchen making a rainbow cake so it is a color filled world around here! A perfect segue here speaking of color, Debra's partner Deborah Peyton, a talented illustrator and responsible for drawing us so delightfully! The two of them have been busy collaborating on designs for fabric. Here is a sneak peek peeps! Follow the Fowl!

Fowl Friday! Fran here without Freda today. She is nursing a twisted neck, nothing too serious but requiring an ice pack. She is not a good patient, quite demanding in fact! Bring me juice, fluff my feathers, scratch my foot, no the left one. Luckily I could escape with the excuse I had to write today's blog post. It is going to take me soooo much time to peck it out today! Then of course I have to clean the keyboard. Debra complains I spit or drool when posting. She is kind of a neat freak anyway although while she was finishing her book proposal this week things got a little on the messy side. The dust bunnies were getting scary, even the cats looked afraid! There was so much fabric piled up in her studio I couldn't see out the window! Yes I know I am not the tallest chick but still I usually have no trouble enjoying the view. There is a cute red cardinal who visits the old apple tree everyday.

However I digress...back to Freda and her neck. How did it happen, I am sure you all want to know and I can't wait to tell you! Last evening as we got ready for bed Freda decided to try something. I am not sure what she sees when she looks in the mirror but her body image is apparently not accurate. Beside the bed is a bird cage filled with dried hydrangea from the garden and roses which keep arriving regularly for Debra. (Another story for when she is away!) Well Freda decided to "stop and smell the flowers" and proceeded to do so by cramming herself through the bars. Apparently she thought she could fit easily but apparently she couldn't as she is slightly wider than the bars! Her neck was wedged and we had to pry her out. A little olive oil helped ease her out. The dove assisted and managed to be very sympathetic with only a small grin on her pretty pink face. Sigh I would give a million for those cheek bones! Anyway Freda's neck is slightly swollen but very soft from the oil. A weekend of resting will help, no Saturday night disco for her! Till next Fowl Friday! Fran  

 It is FOWL FRIDAY! Fran here with Freda as we all know by now the dancing fool! She has been trying some new moves which have resulted in her putting something out of joint! We have been immersed this week in a heated debate with a couple of apparently adorable "chicks" that Debra has out for her so called spring decor. Just what we need more birds and eggs around here. Freda & I seem to be lacking apparently in the too cute factor. We think cute is vastly over rated. Sassy and smart is in, that's us well that's me anyway, Freda is a little iffy at times but does surprise me often with her in depth analysis of the agricultural news. She keeps me current on how many roosters are within a 100 mile radius.

Back to these chicks who are barely dry out of some very strange looking eggs and yet feel they know everything! The big debate has been of course "what came first, the chicken or the egg?" They hold the position of the egg coming first or there wouldn't be any chickens. Freda and I maintain the chicken came first or how could there be any eggs to begin with. It isn't like a reptile one day long ago laid its usual eggs and surprise,  a chick popped out of one. What ever anyone believes we all came from some where to start this whole planet and so did a chicken! We are working on tracing our ancestry to settle this debate with these chicks who definitely need a feather cut!

The only break we have had lately is when one of the in house felines decided to "entertain" the chicks. They disappeared and were found later under the couch a little dusty and damp but fine. Now they are back perched on the sideboard waiting for more chicks to join them. Personally I think the chances of those "eggs" hatching anything else would be a miracle! So the debate will continue while Debra is busy finishing a book proposal and several deadlines. Her studio is, what did she call it earlier this week "creative frolic", we are thinking it looks like a fabric explosion! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

It's Fowl Friday! Fran here and as usual Freda is doing her own thing, dancing to Mama Mia this morning! Way too early for Abba personally but Freda is a big fan! Speaking of being fans we are the biggest fans of the most marvellous Ms. Margot Potter!  At CHA summer show we got a chance to meet her in person wearing of course one of her gorgeous tiaras. She is stylishly cool, writes awesome books on beading and crafting, is a fabulous Mom, talented performer, writer and all around one of the smartest, generous, honest and wonderful young women these two chicks have ever met.

 

Travelling with Debra does have its perks even if she doesn't let us order room service, we do get to meet some very cool creative people! Margot is on the top of our list. (ps. Freda hasn't washed her beak since Margot held it in this picture. Of course you can guess why she really was holding it, Freda is one chatty chick!) Follow the Fowl Fran & Freda!

It is Fowl Friday! Fran here & Freda who as usual is dancing around while I do the writing! Yesterday Debra revealed her addiction to making Bunnies but we know for a fact that is not the only "B" fondness shall we say in her creative life! In the latest issue of Crafts 'n Things magazine she has two Bird projects, she has designed Bird fabric. Just because we are not soft and fluffy with long ears and have ticklish feathers and scrawny legs instead is no reason to ignore a whole fine flock of feathery friends!

Designed for Dow featured in Crafts 'n Things

 
Here I am early morning, no makeup, no topknot consoling Oliver as his twin sister Olive left to seek fame and fortune in the latest issue of Crafts 'n Things!

So there you have it, the unvarnished truth, there are more "B" in Debra's life than she care to admit to! Lucky she has us around, her friendly fowl to keep her on the feathery straight and narrow! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

Fowl Friday got off to a late start due to some technical difficulties and Freda's love of bubble bath. She spends waaay too long in that soaker tub plus singing at the top of her lungs! Anyway I digress from the vital and disturbing issue of today. We are in the midst of a snowstorm, the snow is falling in big heavy wet clumps and Debra decides we need some exercise. The kind of exercise that requires going outside in the snow! We chickens have short legs, I am thinking Debra is aware of this by now after our being in residence for almost a year. Freda is fine she always rides on my back but moi! my short but so shapely legs will be buried along with the rest of me. I do not want to smother in snow, I have so much life ahead of me! The snow attire consists of a very fluffy scarf which might smother us even before we get outside!

Our protests are being ignored, Debra thinks there is a little too much fluff happening in our belly area so it is a walk outside apparently! Does she not think being chased around by two ragdoll kittens almost every day is a workout?! Sigh. If we are not around for next Fowl Friday you will know there are a couple pair of chicken legs sticking out of a snowbank in eastern Canada! We also do not want to miss any of the Olympics, the Canadian Women's Team took gold!!! Sigh, Debra has the door open, we have to go. Think of us in the cold blinding blizzard! Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

Fran here for Fowl Fridays! Freda is tooooo busy to join us. Once again she tries something new and she is oblivious to anything else! (remember the rooster from Hatch.com, need I say more) This time though she is using her mind and trying  Zentangle. Zentangle is doodling, using a fine pen and small squares of art paper to create beautiful artistic designs with intricate patterns. It is relaxing and frees the mind, not thinking Freda needs any freer mind than she has already! Anyway she has not showered or eaten since yesterday and has gone through three pens already. Her talent well Everyone is creative, (can't live with Debra and believe anything else! that is what I tell her anyway!) So Freda is doing her thing which seems to involve a lot of "chicken scratch" and marks that look like she walked all over the paper. (doing it in the dark last night she probably did!)

I am all for encouraging Freda but I wish she would get an easel!

Till next Fowl Friday...you know what Freda will be up to and me sigh I may have droopy tail feathers by then! Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda!

Debra is humming away getting ready for a Valentine weekend. Meanwhile Freda and I have been noticing Debra has been keeping a couple of things from CHA unopened. Curiosity is not just for cats so last night Freda and I sneaked into the office and opened the files. What we discovered was so shocking Freda almost screamed but I grabbed her beak and held it shut. She is still coughing up feathers! Apparently some stupid looking bird Debra made a few months ago with tape measure tail feathers, really! has been published in Crafts 'n Things magazine! Debra promised that WE were the only feathery stars in this nest! What have we gotten so far, just a bunch of empty promises apparently! Sigh we are dejected, droop has invaded are usually perky feathers. We want to be just another pair of pretty faces peeking out of somewhere!

So that is our sad story, yes we may be vain and superficial but someone has to be so it might as well be us! Fran & Freda fabulous Fowl! Follow the Fowl!

Fran here! We are back from Anaheim and the Craft & Hobby Association Trade Show (CHA)! Debra had us run ragged with all of the show events. Well not actually we got to sit in the booth all day looking pretty while she ran off to book signings and demos. At the end of the show though we got to spend time in the sunshine by the pool. We had to share our sunshine with Oliver Owl, Debra brought him along as well to keep us in line! That was funny as who was the first one to the champagne celebration and poolside? Freda & I think the JLo glasses are a bit much but hey his first time to sunny California. He was a bit star struck after seeing Carol Duvall, the Crafty Chica, Tiffany, Heidi and Aleene, the marvellous Margot Potter and many other of his crafty favorites!

It also did not help that little clones of Oliver popped up by the pool too! We just had to suck it up and let him have his day in the limelight! Here we are with his new buddies Fleur de Hoot and some surfer dude with a very fetching Mohawk!

           (Fleur de Hoot created by Marie Browning and surfer dude by Helen Bradley)

Not wanting to start any rumors but you probably notice in the picture that Fran and I are the only two standing and Oiver's glasses well slighty askew. While we were in the pool apparently a bottle of bubbly appeared and the owls pretty much partied hardy!

So apparently the saying about the wise old owl well then you have never taken a trip with one, try three! I know Freda has had her moments (the incident with the rooster from Hatch.com, the bottles and her dancing on the deck singing "oh what a night) however she is a tame turkey um chicken when compared to those owls. They know how to party!

So it is back to the snow, bikinis packed away and Debra busy on show follow up what ever that is. The only thing we are following is catching up on our favorite shows we missed. Remember to Follow the Fowls! Fran & Freda! We are lobbying for a FB Fan page, Debra pleeease!!!

Well less than two weeks till CHA! Debra is surprisingly calm but Freda & I really think it is because she is sleep deprived and so not really with it. The evidence being her overlooking our minor indiscretions of birdseed in the sheets and slushy footprints from the front door, up the cupboards into the sink. (the tub just seemed too far to go for a footbath!)

Want to meet us in person at CHA? Shameless self promotion here as our very divine Ms. Margot Potter would say! Stop by our booth in the License & Design #2639 section of the show, we will be there in the feathery flesh along with some other of our fowlicious friends like Oliver Owl!

Travel to the show we hear for us Canadian birds will be a little tricky, stuffed in the luggage between Debra's unmentionables, nice color choices though if you like pink, pink and more pink! We embellish but hey we are the height of embellishment ourselves.

So see you at the show just follow the bird tracks! Follow the fowl Fran & Freda!

Yesterday was the anniversary of a very special day, eighteen years ago on December 17th my youngest daughter arrived. Twelve days old on a very snowy day, a car seat hastily borrowed from a dear friend Claire to bring her home in. Her Dad went to school to pick up our nine year old, all she wanted for Christmas was a baby sister and her wish came true. I sat holding baby Katy when Amanda walked in, such a surprised look on her face, then excitement and happy tears. We placed a cradle under the tree and baby Katy slept there as the visitors came. It was a Christmas to remember always!

And now as it is Fowl Friday I turn over the blog to Fran who will fill you in on how yesterday was celebrated with the annual Gingerbread House creation! Each year the girls choose a theme for the Gingerbread House and at the ages of eighteen and twenty-seven there is no cute red and green with an elf here and there. This year the theme is a tribute to Michael Jackson's Thriller!

Finally Fran here. Well the table was littered with all kinds of stuff, the sweet sticky kind of which there is never enough!

The girls were all dressed cozy in hoodies and jeans while visions of tombstones were decked out in jelly beans!

When up on the roof there arose such a clatter, Kate tried to shoo us off, it just didn't matter.
We tried to stick a gummy worm here or there but the girls said no, twas so unfair!

Soon the house was finished with strange delight and for all it was indeed a very Merry Night!

'Tis the season, a sad season for fowls like Freda & myself, Christmas dinner we won't even go there! Meanwhile Debra goes about the house with the holiday music playing really loud, singing and dancing with lights twinkling here and there. We think she is way too happy these days and has completely ignored us all together for weeks! We are so sad stuck in this snowy landscape, one step outside and icicles start hanging from our tail feathers. The experience of sticks of frozen water on your person is not pleasant AT ALL! Our friends are all heading south, they are snowbirds ready to fly as soon as the Holidays are over. Soon they will be lazing on sandy beaches while we are here picking ice out of very delicate regions! Debra has been enjoying travelling south lately, you would think she might have offered to take us but oh no there isn't any room for two fowl when "lovebirds" are travelling.

So we can only dream of lazing in the sun and say Bon Voyage to our friends. We will have to be content with sunny afternoons and lazing on the sewing table inside along with those stupid cats who think that a sunny spot anywhere is wonderful!

The December issue of Creative Homearts magazine features two of our Snowbird friends ready to take off for warmer skies. Debra apparently created them, nice outfits, hope we at least get a hat and scarf set for Christmas! Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

Freda & I appreciate it is a season of thanks giving and gratitude especially living with Debra who celebrates both Thanksgivings, the earlier Canadian one and yesterday in honor of all her US friends. 

So what are we two chickens thankful for, I am sure inquiring minds want to know! First of all we are thankful we are not Turkeys, we lost many friends yesterday so Black Friday seems appropriate. Freda is wearing so much black today I thought she was getting ready for next Halloween early. We are thankful for a warm place to live although we really are lobbying for pima cotton sheets, 500 thread count. Not thinking that possible but one can dream! of course we would dream so much better on those sheets! hint, hint. We are thankful that chicken legs are not prone to cellulite no matter what we eat. We are grateful for tail feathers that do not droop well only slightly when wet but otherwise still very perky! Freda is grateful for still being able to see her feet even though she is in the family way. (I am thinking she is growing an ostrich in there and glad she has forgotten the reason she can see her feet, they are swollen and huge!)

Seriously though we are truly grateful for there is always some moment in each and every day that makes us do the happy chicken dance!  Follow the Fowl! Fran & Freda

We are in a frump! That is a cross between a slump and a grump fowl style. It is Fowl Friday and we are feeling fowlish!!! Not only did Debra head off to sunny California without us and leave us here to fend for ourselves with all these dreadful C A T S but she proceeds to send these delightful emails back, she has been to the beach, she has been here, she has been there, she has been on a tour of the famous Alvarado Street Bakery featured in the new Michael Moore Film! and got to tour Mrs. Grossman's Sticker Company and meet Mrs. Grossman herself. Pics etc all to follow when her highness returns!

Freda as you can see is literally climbing the walls in her frump stricken state, her tail feathers are drooping, some are falling out. We could be bald by the time Debra returns from this trip. Will she care, we think not as she wheels her bag by us draping a pink scarf over our little featherless selves! So gathering my wits, featherless as they are I must think of something suitable to greet her with on this return home. Hmm! all suggestions welcome, just keep in mind within the realm of the law yet slightly distressing or uncomfortable will work! Follow the Fowl, Fan & Freda!

Well the unthinkable is about to happen in this Fowl's world! Another feline is about to enter the premises. Freda was doing the happy dance when one cat just left with the oldest daughter moving out but another one arrives Monday! Bella Blue, another one of those hairy floppy ragdoll cats. What these people see in the feline species we do not know. Freda is so upset she is roosting on top of the bookcase in the office and of course her being in the family way, is there no consideration for her!

Freda & I were thinking of a hunger strike in protest but that seems a bit drastic, low blood sugar and all can't risk it. Any strike in general won't work as apparently it is a done deal and apparently our contribution to household life is next to nil according to Debra. Luckily she needs our very witty input for Friday's Fowl Friday blog, our words not hers exactly. (sigh) Well nothing left to do but accept the new feline and hang onto our tail feathers for dear life. Felines have a very strange affectation for feathers, I suggest much needed therapy for the condition! Till next Friday when we will be back hopefully with all our feathers intact! Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda! (Debra insisted so below is the feline who is arriving, yuch!)

Fran here! Debra is off to a big Halloween partay tonight so Freda and I are holding down the coop big time! Our first Halloween woo hoo! Costumes are in the works but we had to decorate the nest before anything else! Our monetary situation is somewhat limited but the dollar store has great stuff so we found what we needed. Debra has lots of scraps, glue so we raided the craft room. A big foam block, some sparkly fabric and we were all set. Note for next year, Fabri-tac by Beacon great glue but wicked on tail feathers, Freda kind of glued herself to the counter resulting in a missing feather or two! It was pull them out or leave her squawking with feet in the air! All in all we sparkled , glued and conjured up a frightfully fabulous nest for the big night! Boo to you all fowlicious friends!

Fran here! We just got back from Quilt Market in Houston! It was fabulous! Hot enough to fry a feather or two! We had a blast at the show! Fabric, fun & frolic and big news for us but we can't say, even if you try to pry our beaks apart. These chicken lips are sealed! Freda well she might be a different story, you know her and wine so keeping the bottles corked tight till the reveal!

We enjoyed the Hilton rooming with Phyllis Dobbs and of course Debra. Phyllis designs all kinds of fun fabrics with dogs and cats on them. We don't hold it against her she is a cool chick herself! Debra allowed us to look at the Room Service menu and drool how ever no such luck in having some cute server deliver it. It was a quick smoothie on the way to the show!

Even though we worked our pretty little tail feathers off in the Homearts booth at the show we still didn't get room service. Thinking next time we get our own room!

All in all it was a great trip! Follow the fowl! Fran & Freda!

Its Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda! Fran here, well in Canada where harvest comes earlier it is almost Thanksgiving, next weekend. Debra is busy adding touches of harvest finery around the house which involves lots of leaves, pumpkins and candles. Always ready to pitch in we decided to design and make a needle felt pumpkin plus! we got to put up the fall message. We are sharing our how-tos for the pumpkin, super easy! This is our first Thanksgiving so we are very excited, not sure what it all means and Debra keeps avoiding the menu subject for some reason. She gave us a bunch of block letters to put with our pumpkin. Her directions were to spell out the message and add our needle felted pumpkin. Seems easy enough even Freda was clear about what we were doing, ( a huge reason to be thankful right there!) We were quite proud when we were finished and finished our display, Debra's reaction to burst out laughing, ruffled our feathers a little I must admit. Apparently it was not "Gave Thinks" but rather "Give Thanks" was the correct message. Personally "Gave Thinks" worked for us, we think there is a big demand for getting thinks, you can never be too smart or thinking too much! All is well, sign has been changed but not till after our photo. Enjoy and make yourself a fuzzy pumpkin patch!  Follow the Fowl, Fran & Freda!

Needle Felt Pumpkin

You will need:
STYROFOAM TM Ball 2"-4" (depending on pumpkin size you want)
Wool Wisps (National Nonwovens) Orange Poppy, Ivy, Cinnamon
Clover Needle Felt Tool
Bone Folder

How to:
1. Press foam ball on counter to flatten opposite ends.
2. Cover foam ball with orange. Needle felt, add more wool if needed.
3. Use bone folder to score ball evenly.
4. Add thin strips of cinnamon wool into scored seams and needle felt.
5. Add 1" circle of ivy to top of pumpkin and needle felt.
6. Roll ivy into small cylinder and needle felt into stem shape approximately 2".
7. Hold stem in center of top of pumpkin. Needle felt stem into place.

Make several pumpkins in different sizes for a harvest display then "carve" spooky faces with black wool and use them to decorate for Halloween! We are just a couple of crafty chicks! Fran & Freda

Well it is Fowl Friday and it is supposed to be Fran & Freda but Freda is unavailable at the moment. If you follow us at all on Fowl Fridays well while Debra was away in Vancouver we were at home behaving. Behaving well not according to Debra, we killed her plants and Freda was slightly tipsy dancing around singing "Oh what a night!" The rooster she met on Hatch.com kind of stayed over too long and Freda enjoyed his company, I will just leave it at that!

Today Debra is like usual working on a couple deadlines in her studio, that requires her use of important spaces and equipment like her sewing table and fabric stash. Freda was found in the "family way" and chose both the sewing table and fabric stash to nest in. Impressed not! Debra is now constructing a nesting box for Fran in the garage after putting a load of pink fabric in the washer. Freda does like her pink! She is washing down her sewing table after and Freda will be comfortably nesting in the garage. Soon there will be little Freds & Fredas running around not sure how they will fit in with the four cats! There maybe a chicken coop in the backyard or we maybe sent off to some farm, city bylaws have to be investigated. Oh Freda, two glasses of wine and she is dancing on the tables and more! The rooster from Cape Breton long gone, he was a party animal, not a family guy. His profile read no kids, no way and child support well chicken feed does not come cheap! Anyway next Friday could be just Fran again, I may need a new sidekick, Freda will be busy after the chicks and wants to gain her figure back before appearing. Her feathers are getting a bit straggly looking.

Updates on delivery day will follow! For now Fowl Friday with Fran!

Fran & Freda are back! Fowl Friday found them being the biggest fans! My good friend and licensing partner Deborah Peyton finally agreed to create "portraits" of the fowl pair! Deborah has illustrated the last three of my books and created all of the illustrations on my website. She is a very talented cartoonist and illustrator. Her "Day by Day" cartoon strip ran for seven years and had a huge fan base especially her cat character who got his own fan mail. Her animals have lots of character and she has a special affinity for chickens having had a hobby farm where our conversations were occasionally cut short by her running after a renegade chicken. The fresh eggs were another welcome perk, I was hoping she would encourage Fran and Freda in the egg laying department but no such luck! However they can hardly contain themselves to present their "portraits" and tell all!

Fran here! What a day we had Friday! We got to pose for one of favorite people, cartoonist and illustrator Deborah Peyton! It was so exciting, we got to sit on her special drawing table. Of course feet were extra clean, no bits of sawdust at all between the toes. She suggested some poses and helped us to bend just the right way showing off our best features. Freda did inquire about Photoshop as she thought she looked a little chunky. Deborah was so kind she just erased the extra bits for Freda and got her to stretch tall to give a more elongated look. Freda was preening big time after that!

After our sitting with Deborah she took us out for ice cream and let us sit in the front seat beside her with the window wide open. Just threee gals having a good time! It was a great day and Deborah is a nice as she is talented and sure knows how to make a fowl look fabulous! Later Fran & Freda! 

It is Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda, they of course were very annoyed they could not go on the trip to BC, their wire legs were a security issue. So....they remained behind at home with some simple requests like water the plants and rules like no roosters allowed after 9pm. Well...in their own words!

Fran & Freda here, we were devastated at not making the trip to BC, left home to wilt in the heat and humidity. So what are a pair of chicks going to do, make lemonade (and other yummy drinks :) lounge on the patio. Of course we used the watering can diligently as can be seen in this garden shot. Who took the photo, well Freda's been having some success with Hatch.com and this cute rooster from Mactaquac happened to be in town. So he came over for the afternoon, the rules being out by 9, am or pm we were a little fuzzy on and he did make a mean omelet!

The watering can made a great patio accessory filled with flowers. Cousin Flora dropped by and it was party time on the patio. A lot of lemonade was consumed :), it seems to make everything delightfully fuzzy. Consequently we may have missed a pot or two when watering. Not such a big deal in our books, apparently though it was when Ms. Debra returned from her travels to discover empty bottles, an extra houseguest or two and....

Well the pot does look a little dry, dead was her verdict along with four more almost in the same shape. We pleaded our case of heat prostration and despair over being abandoned. The littered patio with empty glasses and Flora wandering unsteadily around singing "Oh what a Night" did not help our case. Next trip we are being cooped up with a sitter, sigh and we are grounded as if we could fly anywhere anyways, big deal! Keep flappin' Feathery Friends! Fran & Freda

It is Fowl Friday and what a fowl day it is! Fran here, Freda is just too upset to speak let alone squawk or blog! Well we were all packed ready to head off to the West Coast with Debra. New bikinis, sunhats and dos all in our bags, passports up to date and off we went to the airport. Then the "fowl" ups began, first of all we were not allowed to travel in our own seat, we had to bear the humiliation of a "pet" carrier under the seat. Two with it chicks stuck under the seat like a common household pet, did they not notice our designer luggage!? Security next and the nightmare continued, I guess wire legs are not a good thing when going through a metal detector, removal of legs not an option so....we had to remain behind as the three of them with non metal legs whisked off in style in the cool new executive pod seats. They were as happy as three peas in a pod and not at all sad to see us left behind. They said they were but ...they lied. sniff sniff! So Freda and I are left behind with the cats at home, such stimulating conversation awaits us, I can hardly wait, umm like which litter box did you use today or how many balls did you chase under the couch? There had better be some great souvenirs coming our way at the end of this trip! Freda promises to be back next week once she has stopped blowing her beak and crying. Poor chick she is bathing in despair literally, her feathers are soggy, the new do is done! So off to console Freda with some popcorn and a good chick flick, maybe ask a few close peeps to join us for a pity party. Next trip thick leg warmers and stowing away in the baggage compartment, these chicks were meant to travel, if a garden gnome can do it then look out world here we come! Fran & Freda!

Fowl Friday with Fran & Freda! Who are these chicks? Well one of them is no "spring chicken" but both are definitely "grade A"! Turn offs being cooped up, and anything too corny so I will stop with that and let them take over.

Fran here, Freda being the "spring chicken" that she is also thinks she can dance. She is a huge fan of the show "So You think You Can Dance" but she can't. Chicken legs do not a dancer make and just because you are wearing Xotic felt does not mean you look good wrapped around a pole either! She is still suffering from spring fever & her first attempts at online dating at Hatch.com. One wink from a Rhode Island rooster and she is ready to feather dust his coop. Me I tend to be more of a Chicken Little type, I like to do things for myself and raised my whole brood on my own. Enough about us, we want you to meet some of our very cool peeps. Our first post has to be dedicated to the original peeps, available at Easter time for more than fifty years their popularity has created a whole culture "Peepology." Who would have thought a blob of bright yellow marshmallow would have such an impact on the world. Enough peeps are sold every year to circle the earth! Personally we never met a peep we didn't like and during the danger season many take refuge in our coop, the smell can be overpoweringly sweet and a hot day creates a sticky situation but their gratitude is well worth it. Next week we are away at the CHA show in Orlando. Excited, slightly nervous strutting our stuff at the Designer Showcase and staying next to Sea World, (sharks, gulp). We will have lots of exciting news from the show to share on our next Fowl Friday! Fran & Freda