I’ve been in Tulsa since last Wednesday to hang out with family and work with my book photographer, Brandi Simons! My photo trips have been one of the highlights of my year since Brandi and I starting working together for my first book, Knitting Mochimochi, three years back. Brandi is a blast work with, and I’m always in love with the cute, hilarious, and beautiful images she somehow creates. And the fact that she lives across the street from my parents is incredible luck!

Since the books that we work on are always scheduled to come out an entire year later, it makes it difficult to share what we’re doing at the time, but I’ve remembered to snap a few photos with my iPhone this time. I can’t show much of the subjects, but here’s a peek of a couple of the shoots from the past few days.

Our prop list this time has been impressive, including everything from a rubber duck to a Jolly Roger flag to helium balloons. And we’re shooting in some of the most glamorous locations that Tulsa has to offer, including multiple bathrooms!

Any guesses of what the featured toy for this location was?

I can’t even express how excited I am about the photos Brandi has taken so far this time. Of course, I felt the same way last summer when she was doing the photography for Super-Scary Mochimochi. I’ll share another photo from that book in the final sneak preview tomorrow! (What-to-Werewolf and Toaster Ghost were the first two previews.) Just one more week before the on-sale date!

Thanks everyone for sharing your fun Pee-Wee’s Playhouse memories over the weekend! Your comments brought back even more nostalgic Pee-Wee times to me.

Today’s secret word is… WINNER!

The winner (AAAAAAAAHHH) of this original 1988 Pee-Wee’s Playhouse Fun Pak is…

Comment number 23, written by Kristen E!

Penny and Jambi were totally my favorites. :) You’re absolutely right – Pee Wee’s Playhouse made Saturday mornings more magical! I miss it!

Congrats, Kristen! May this Fun Pak contain a bit more of that magic for you.

These cards are relatively rare items, so I thought I’d open another Fun Pak and share what’s inside. The contents didn’t disappoint!

Stickers, temporary tattoos, one of those hologram image-thingies… and thankfully, no stale piece of 24-year-old gum. I hope the winner’s (AAAAAAAAHHH) Fun Pak is just as fun!

John has a new website! And it isn’t just any website, it’s new partner site of The A.V. Club, where I’m sure many of you read about movies, TV, and other pop culture stuff. My husband’s new project, called The Gameological Society, is dedicated to intelligent and fun discussion about games—mostly video games, but also board games, game shows, and sports. The idea is that games are a part of all of our lives, and thinking about them shouldn’t just be for the guys who think of themselves as “hard core” gamers.

I know there’s a huge overlap between knitters and gamers, so I hope many of you will check it out! (And that cute pic of Soupy on a laptop that you see if you scroll down a bit on the homepage? That’s my cat and I took that photo!)

What’s your favorite game these days? Please share in the comments!

I was recently in Tulsa for the holidays, and a visit home is no longer complete without a trip to Dwelling Spaces, a store in downtown Tulsa that specializes in fun products and art by locals. I’m usually charmed by something there, and this time it was this handmade plush creature.

When I was checking out, I asked about the artist and was told that it was Cindy Wills, the youngest daughter of the western musician Bob Wills. I was also told that this plush was special—the artist had recently passed away of cancer, and so there wouldn’t be any more of its kind.

I Googled Cindy Wells when I got home, and found a blog and a Facebook page, both of which feature her vibrant artwork in a myriad of mediums (from watercolor to hooked wool), and both of which end abruptly—maybe no one had access to these accounts to log in and post a proper farewell to Cindy.

I wish I had known about Cindy earlier. She clearly had a creative and bright spirit that touched many people. It continues to do so.