Friday, February 27, 2009

Why is it always windy on garbage day?

Good morning!

I can tell it's going to be one of those days. What am I talking about? It's been one of those weeks! I've been attempting to start a biscornu for several days. I've had the fabric stashed away for some time now. Yesterday I couldn't find the pattern for several hours...struggling with but first disease. Last night I finally found the pattern, and started a search for the floss. After several hours (and I DO mean hours!) I found all the floss I needed, but not the metallic thread. I know it's around here somewhere, but WHERE? DH was going out to take DS to basketball practice so I had him stop at the store for metallic thread but then discovered I needed beads... *sigh*. Needless to say, I didn't get anything done on the biscornu last night but gathering SOME of the materials. I was going to go out today But First... aw forget it, I'm not going out today, it's REALLY windy, and speaking of which, WHY is it always windy on garbage day? I swear half our recycling is strewn around the neighborhood, possibly the county. I see things flying past the window, I half expect to see Dorothy's house from the Wizard of Oz to go streaming by. The story of my life...Gone with the wind!

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Thought for the Day

Good Evening! Just had to add a few thoughts today...it's been a frustrating day. I hope you can read my little sign. I think if you click on it, it will become big enough for you to read.

Where to begin? I had "But First" disease today. I was going to start a biscornu, But First I wanted to check my e-mail. There were quite a few messages I wanted to answer so that took some time. Then I was going to check to see if any of my SAL's had posted the next installment, But First the phone rang and it was my friend who is going out of town so we HAD to talk for a little while and catch up on the news before she left. I then went back to check my SAL's But First I wanted to download something I saw I HAD to have. When I started the download, the printer acted up so I HAD to fix that. I shut down the printer and restarted it. The printer was still acting up so I had to restart the computer. In the midst of all this, Thomas (remember him?) decided my lap was the only place in the entire house that was fit to sit on. I had to reach around him to press keyboard commands, load paper in the printer, kick the computer and so on. I finally pried myself away from the computer and began to look for a biscornu pattern But First I had some patterns I needed to file away and there were patterns stored on the computer I remembered I wanted to print out today...back to the computer. But First I needed to change an ink cartridge. Finally I was done printing, I could finally file all my patterns I had piled up, I located my biscornu pattern. But First the phone rang again and it was DH reminding me of the things I needed to do before DS got home from school IN ONE HOUR!!! I can't believe I wasted the whole day and didn't even get the biscornu started or even one stitch stitched! I spent the remainder of the time before DH got home scolding DS every five minutes to START YOUR HOMEWORK but it was kind of hard to scold him too much, he was having But First disease himself. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. So...now the meal has been eaten, the dishes are done, DH has taken DS to basketball practice and I can finally start that biscornu... But First... where did I put that pattern? Oh Dear! Maybe tomorrow I'll get that biscornu started. *sigh*

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Good evening! Today has been an unsettling day. I couldn't settle into my spot sampler today so decided to start another stitch-a-long and another small piece that I can hopefully finish up quickly so that I have that needed sense of accomplisment. I know the ladies in Stitcher's Heaven Yahoo group will say I need to start a biscornu...and one day I will. But today is NOT that day.

I got the news a few days ago that DH will be traveling next week. I could give you a laundry list of the things that need to be done next week, but that would take too much room, and bore you to tears, so just suffice it to say that I need a clone NOW to accomplish everything there is to do next week. Maybe that's why I feel unsettled...or maybe not.

I know there are several out there that have a "military" background. I stated that I've moved 15 times in the last 25 years. That means that almost every two years I had to pack up my life and move (sometimes to a foreign country) and begin life anew. It was a stressful life and all I could think is that one day I would have roots and I wouldn't have to move again. But...as they say...the grass is always greener over the septic tank. So when we bought our first house a few years ago I thought this would be it! And now, I'm ready to move. It's not that I WANT to move, or NEED to move, it's just that my mind and body are telling me it's TIME to move. I adopted an older couple many years ago that were retired military. She told me that after her husband had retired she felt the same way and would redecorate her entire house every two years and that got rid of the "itch". That's cost prohibitive at the moment...so what to do? Today I started two new projects...and if that doesn't help...tomorrow I'll start a biscornu! *Grin* I'll let you know how that turns out!

Goodnight!

Sunday, February 22, 2009

*Blush*

After thinking about this a bit, I remembered that I did have my rebellion stage when I did stupid stuff as a teenager. Speaking of jumping off a bridge, when I was 17 I went rapelling. I call it my "dope on a rope" period. That's when I learned the value of my Mother's tirades about not doing things just because my friends did. I scared myself silly and am afraid of heights ever since...even a step stool gives me the shivers. Just to clarify things though, I was on a Girl Scout weekend, and there were trained Green Berets there teaching us the technique. It had snowed the night before, there was ice on the cliff, and I was wearing boots with no traction. Many factors leading to a disatrous first rappel. After stepping over the side and settling into what the soldiers called a "good position", my foot slipped and I was suddenly a** over tincups hanging in the air. I'll never be able to thank the person on valet enough when he stopped me mid air. Hanging there, away from the cliff, with slippery boots I was unable to flip myself over and had to wait for someone to come over the side of the cliff, draw near beside me, and flip me over. Feet back in proper position, he guided me the rest of the way down the cliff, where I kissed the ground and have left my feet remain there ever since. Later when I went to a organization day with DH's military unit, they were going to teach family members to rappel and were trying to get me to give it a go again. In my most authoritative voice, I respectfully declined stating "My Mother didn't raise no fool!" I only do a crazy thing once in my life, just to prove I CAN and then suffer the consequences for the rest of my life. Guess the apple didn't fall far from the tree after all. Ok, DS, I'm going to let up on you and give you one proverbial trip off the bridge just for education sake! (But don't expect me to watch!)

Teenagers!


Happy Sunday everyone!

I think today I'll introduce you to my DS, the teenager. DH and I were married for 11 years before our little bundle of joy came along. What a difference another person in your household can make! I always thought I would be a different kind of parent than my parents were, and still think I am to some degree (my mother would agree!) but now that he's a teenager, I hear these words coming out of my mouth that echo my mother's and are ones I swore I would never use. "Because I said so" is fast becoming my most used expression. When I was a kid I WANTED a reason, now I realize sometimes there isn't a good enough reason. Am I crazy here? Or have I reached the age of senility?

Don't get me wrong, for the most part he is a dream child. He has a good sense of what is right and what is wrong and is not afraid to tell you (or anyone else for that matter because he knows it all!) He makes good choices, he gets good grades, he hangs out with good kids and USUALLY does what I tell him, though it might be a few minutes, hours, days, decades later. I keep telling him to save his pennies because if he intends on using his God-given talents, he's going to need to go to law school, and that's expensive! This kid could argue that the sky is green and the grass is blue and win!

I remember being a teenager...when no matter how much face washing I did my face still looked like a relief map of the Andes. I washed my hair every day, but you could still drill for oil the next morning and strike it rich! When a cross look could make you burst into tears and a NO response to something you REALLY wanted to do made you have the most cruel parents in the world. Having lived through that and made it to the other side (being a parent now) I see why things were the way they were. Explain THAT to your teenager.

When he was little, I wondered why these little energetic bundles didn't come with an owners manual, I still think they should! I kept turning him over and looking for an OFF button because being an older parent I struggled to keep up! Now I wonder where the ON button is, because unless he's out playing sports, he's the new throw cover for our sofa. Couch potato isn't even a good enough description, it's more like couch slouch.

I hear myself using expressions like "I brought you into this world, I can take you out!" and "If your friends were jumping off a bridge, would you do that too?" Even now that we are the same height, we don't see things eye to eye. Please, parents to grown children, tell me there is a light at the end of the tunnel! I know that this hormone-induced defiance will one day end and the human I once nursed will emerge again, but in the meanwhile I need a little hope. Teeenagers....you can't live with them, and you can't kill them!
Before I posted this, I read it to my teenager, who began to argue that it isn't true...and you know what, he ALMOST won! Harvard Law School, here he comes, maybe HE can teach YOU a thing or two!

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Go Hawks!!!!

Good Evening! It was an exciting day here today. No, I didn't accomplish any stitching but I did get to watch the second to final game of the season of my favorite basketball team, The Hawks! Are they a Maryland team? Hm... you could say that... Are they a member of the NBA? No, but one day one or two of them might be! They are in the Upwards Basketball league and my son is a member. He's the tallest one on the team and between his height and his long arms, it's hard to get anything past him. We call him The Octopus. haha They played a team that had one tie, one loss and won six games. They were very well matched and were psyched to play each other. It was a GREAT game, very exciting and full of bumps and jolts. The teams bounced back and forth as to who was ahead and who was behind, and in the final second of the game.........they tied! The second half was the most exciting, because they came back from their half-time pep talk ready to play! I must say though, that the opposing team got a little rambunctious 4 minutes from the end of the game, two of the Hawks players were injured, one even blacked out for a bit. If they weren't going to win, I was glad they at least tied after that. Anyway, there was great rejoicing! Even the refs congratulated both sides on it being the most exciting basketball game all season. This will be DSs fifth and final season (he'll be in High School next year and that is the cut off for Upwards.) There is one more game to the season next week. Keep watching this space and I'll reveal the whole story of the season next week. Till next time...

Friday, February 20, 2009

2008 Finishes...But first...

Good Morning! I ran around my house like a crazy woman yesterday looking for things I had finished last year. Some I have framed, others I haven't but I thought I would show you a few this morning. But first...I had to get sonny off to school and wake up so I turned on the TV this morning to catch the weather and news when the picture went black. Ok, no problem, there's always the internet, I turned on the computer and couldn't get to a webpage. Ok, now there's a problem! Luckily the phone still worked! I called Verizon and after literally 5 minutes of automated messages and trying to troubleshoot with a robotic voice who couldn't answer my questions (and wanted me to log on to get more troubleshoot information) I got a human voice! He wanted me to find where the battery pack was plugged into the wall. Do I look like an electrician? He told me to follow the beeping sound. Hm...nothing beeping but my blood pressure!? "Look for the flashing lights", he says.....no flashing lights but there is smoke coming out of my ears! Finally I see a place FOR a light that says power. Ok, no power to the battery, the lights are dawning. "You must have had a power outage or power surge", he says. Nope, none of the clocks are flashing, but I do have a Tazmainian Devil for a pet running around here. I keep picturing our house in flames some day like the Griswald house from Christmas Vacation (I think that was the movie). No kidding, Thomas chews on electrical cords, though this one is 3 feet off the floor. Nah, that wouldn't stop him! haha Anyway, the power is now back on after a few jiggles to the power cord in the socket. Great, the TV works, but the internet is still out. Next to find the reset button on the back of the wireless router...but it's dark in that corner. OK, found a flashlight....but the batteries are dead. What is it with batteries today? I feel like I'm in another movie...Batteries Not Included! The second flashlight is dead too. Good thing we didn't have a real power outage!! Finally, one that works! The reset button is pressed for 10 seconds, it takes another 30 seconds to power back up and voila! I have internet! Life is good again! I've spent so much time on the phone with this fellow I feel like I've known him all my life, I even know the name of his wife and kiddies! Maybe I should invite him over for dinner? Nah, I have a webpage to work on...so here goes!
I made this little beauty for DH for his Birthday in January. It is a blackwork chessboard. It was my first attempt at blackwork, and although I enjoyed it tremendously I think I'll pass on blackwork for a while. Here is a close up picture of some of the blocks. I found this in an Anchor book teaching blackwork designs. The fun thing about this is that I didn't put a wire on the back, I cut a large piece of felt so it doesn't scratch the table!
Next are some Carriage House Samplings pieces I did. They are done on 40 ct fabric so are quite small....but I love them!
These last three were my favorites to work on. The face is from the stitching studio "Mouth of the flower". I have the companion piece to work up "Family of Birds" one of these days!
Next is a heart design from Wiehenburg and I should have gotten this one framed for Valentine's day...what was I thinking? Oh well, there's always next year. And last is a Quaker Sampler from Midnight Stitching. I've forgotten the names for both of these, but I'm sure you can find them on their sites. Ok, that's all for today that's fit to print so I'm off to download the next page of the Christmas Quaker and see if I can get caught up on that. See you later! (I hope)

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Spots before my eyes!

I knew this day would be interesting when I woke up from a nightmare. I'm laughing about it now, but it was sheer terror when I woke up. One of the silliest dreams I've ever had and I rarely have nightmares. I dreamt I had a job and I went to work even though a volcano was erupting and I knew the floes might reach the city I was working in. I worked all day though hardly anyone was there and when I got ready to leave I learned that my boss wouldn't pay me for that day, AND that the building was surrounded by molten lava, there was no way out and the building was now on fire. That's when I woke up, heart pounding and palms perspiring. If I were to interpret that dream logically I think it might mean that the economic pressures of the day are beginning to weigh heavily on my mind. I'm vowing here and now to stop watching the news! ha ha
I worked very hard on my Spot Sampler yesterday and gained a few inches. This project is time consuming because of my obsession with trying to make the colors geometrically uniform. Some of them I am throwing caution to the wind, as you can see if you click on the picture. I wish I could make them a little lighter but haven't figured that one out yet without compromising the color.




This next picture shows my favorite spot (it used to be another, but this one came out so well...my eye tends to rove toward this one now when I look it it). Trust me, it's luck they come out the way that they do! It's the whim of the overdyed thread so I rejoice when I see one I REALLY like!


Last but not least here are some of the things I've been doing instead of a biscornu at this time. I'm making them for a special reason which I can't divulge just yet, but need to make a few more. They are bookmarks, and my first attempt at finishing them. Some I have sown the bottom, some I have fringed...not sure which one's I like best. If you have a suggestion of a better way to finish these I would love more ideas!

So there you have it! I will have to put my spot away today as I need to work on my Christmas Quaker before I fall miserably behind on that one! And awaaaaaay I go!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Meet another member of the family


I've been trying to think what I'll add to this space. There is more to me than just stitching...so I thought I would introduce you to my companion and major source of entertainment, Thomas. No, it's not my husband (although he does come in a close second)...it's my cat! If there was a process in which to determine his mental health, I'm sure he would be deemed certifiably insane! I adopted him from a rescue organization and I think he must have been abused as a kitten before he was rescued. When I picked him up he nestled into my arms and began to purr the loudest purr I've ever heard. I thought to myself "Who would want to give up this wonderful, obviously affectionate, cuddley ball of fur?" It wasn't long before I learned the undeniable truth. I adopted the Tazmanian Devil! Doesn't he look adorable in this picture? That should have been my first clue...it's always the cute ones who cause the most trouble (I should have learned THAT from marrying my husband!) The good thing is that he adores me, but that's because I don't put any pressure on him. When he wants to sit in my lap, I let him. When he wants food I feed him. When he wants a scratch behind the ear, I'm more than happy to pamper him. (I was an Army wife, I was trained well, what can I say?) If I'm not home, and he's hungry, it takes several meows, some pats with his paws escallating to unsheated claws and a few nibbles on the leg to get DH to acknowledge that he's not performing his duties as chief of staff pro temp. Needless to say they have a love-hate relationship. DH hates Thomas, but loves me so I'm allowed to keep him. About a year ago, Thomas (who is strickly an indoor cat) escaped (DH SAYS he didn't see him run out when he took the garbage out) and went missing for two weeks. I mourned and missed him, DH rejoiced and started getting rid of all remnants of "the cat". Two weeks later I saw him peeking in the front door, bedraggled, thin, and pathetic looking. I couldn't believe he had survived 2 weeks without pampering (we live in an area where there are foxes). It wasn't long before the bedraggled, thin and pathetic looking creature in the house was DH. Now I was rejoicing and DH was mourning. Thomas is fiercely territorial. Do NOT touch his scratching post, his kitty bed, or his catnip mouse. Don't even come near them or you'll be subject to the wrath of Thomas! DH used to tease him by "playing" with Tom's toys. Now he only needs to walk by and Thomas will bar teeth, pull his ears back, and hiss at him. He's even been known to draw blood! The most amazing thing is that he is only like that with DH. And that is my constant source of entertainment! Until next time....

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Welcome!

Welcome to my little corner of cyber space! After TONS of encouragement from ladies from the yahoo groups I belong to I finally started my own blog. Grab a comfy chair, a cup of tea and let's get to know one another! Since everything is new to me, I'm not sure exactly what I will put on this blog, but some of my interests are spending time with my family, cross stitching, stamp collecting, sudoku puzzles, reading and movies. I'm currently a stay at home Mom and from the looks of things that's not going to change for a while, though I would love to have a job that I wake up every morning excited to sink my teeth into.
For the ladies in my yahoo group, here's a taste of what I'm working on!











Above you'll find my spot sampler from Wiehenburg spot sampler mystery SAL (I am REALLY behind in this one!). The link to this one is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spot-sampler-mystery-2008/ It is stitched on 36 ct Clay over one using Egyptian Nights from The Thread Gatherer Silk-n-colors


To the right you'll see Grand ABC from Gazette 94. The link to this one is http://gazette94.blogspot.com/ It is stitched on 36 ct Natural linen over one using DMC 815 and DMC 3865

Below you'll find my Christmas Quaker from Wiehenburg Christmas Quaker SAL. The link to this one is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wiehenburg_christmas_quaker_2008/ It is stitched on 32 Clay linen over one using DMC 816, 3362, 898, 680 and Madiera Mouline 2401 (White)


I'm also working on Alla Turca SAL from Pelin Tezer available through Stitchers Heaven Yahoo Group. The link to this one is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StitchersHeaven/ It is stitched on 32 ct Black linen over one using Weeks Dye Works Tobacco Road.



The Carnation Quaker Mystery Sampler SAL from Wiehenburg is working up nicely as well! The link to this one is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wiehenburg-samplers/?v=1&t=search&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=group&slk=3 It is stitched on 32 ct Lambswool linen over one using DMC 815 and 520.


I have more that I'm working on, but this will give you a taste of what I'm doing. I hope I didn't overwhelm you! Please enjoy your stay and check back soon for more news!