Well, it's about time!!

Good Morning!  It's been kind of a crazy week here (I'm beginning to think I live in crazy town).  Little Miss Sassy Pants came to stay over night on Sunday night.  Monday was a holiday but her parents had an appointment with Little Miss Cranky Pants early in the morning.  To save them some craziness we offered to have Miss A stay with us and as always her stay was full of busy fun.  She really is a delight!  Her parents have decided to share the girls and I have each of them one day a week...different days.  So Miss A came back for her regular day (now on Tuesdays)...and again, we had another day of fun.  We made ornaments (each year I measure the girls heights, cut a ribbon, and put them in a clear plastic ornament.  I attach a tag with their name and date and a little saying:  

Inside this little ornament 

You will plainly see 

A ribbon length of (measurement) 

To match the height of ME

I also include how much they grew from last year.  It's going to be a fun thing for their trees when they are older.  I'm not sure what I've done with previous years, but I'm going to search for them and make a box for all the ornaments I make for them.  Hopefully their parents will keep track of them.  

After Miss A left on Tuesday I started a new project (I have a TON of WIPs, but why not start another one?  LOL!!)  I have had this pattern in my stash for AGES.  I'm not even sure when I bought it, but I had it kitted, lost all the items for the kit...kitted it again, found the lost kit...and then decided to use a different fabric.  I had it all set to start on January first, but started something else instead.  I tell you, the older I get the more scatterbrained I become.  LOL!!  I finished a project on Monday and thought...I need something that will keep my interest...and my eyes fell on The Romantic Stitcher by Passione Ricamo.  It's about time she saw the light of day!  

I started Tuesday night.  I worked on her on Wednesday, and Thursday, and then...it was Miss Q's day to visit.  Now Miss Q is barely 3 months old.  Babies are a lot of work.  I really enjoyed my time with Miss A when she was a baby.  Miss Q is quite a handful and by the end of the day I'm exhausted.  But...bonding at this age is so important, I'm so glad I'm able to spend time with these precious girls.  So...I didn't have as much time to stitch this week.  Hopefully next week will be a little better.  So...here is where I finished last night (Friday).  

This weekend is International Hermit and Stitch Weekend.  I was promised to have the whole weekend to stitch, let's see how much I can get stitched!  Wish me luck!! 

 As I was typing this, the kids texted to see if they could come over to look through some stuff they have stored here....well there goes the weekend!  LOL  You didn't wish me luck fast enough...hahahahaha.  Happy Stitching!  

I love cardials!

You can probably guess by the amount of cardinals I stitch, that I love them.  They were one of my Mom's favorite birds.  Now when I see them (especially a pair of them) I think of my Mom and Dad.  Lately they have been on my mind a lot.  I found this lovely pattern, and kept circling back trying to decide if I would buy it...and then I did when I saw that it was on sale.  I stitched this on 28 count Confederate Grey over 1 and I adore how it turned out.  

I may redo that finish as it seems kinda tiny in the 4" frame...lol.  Although I do like the look of the woodgrain around the outside.  Decisions decisions...what do you think?

That's all I've been up to lately, except for taking care of my beautiful granddaughters.  

I've had them a lot over the past few days, in fact I'm waiting for one of them right now!  So I'm off to have an adventure on this cold cold day!  I hope you are safe and warm and happily stitching wherever you are today!   

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing you and all your loved ones a very Happy Valentine's Day!  I had one last finish (the Primrose Cottage Friday Freebie for February).  I just didn't have time to fully finish it but thought it was appropriate to post it here today.  Spread the LOVE!

 

I stitch when I'm stressed...

I first want to thank those who have been reading and commenting on my blog.  I'm sorry I've been so slow at answering.  It's been a little crazy here the past few weeks.  I'm bailing out my canoe but the water is rushing in faster than I can bail.  When life gets a little overwhelming, I turn to my stitching to help get my mind off the craziness around me.  Having said that, I've been stitching up a storm!!!  

Since my last post, I've been working on Valentine's Day pieces.  I have decided I want to decorate the mantle of my fireplace for the different seasons.  Right now I have winter pieces there, but I'm ready to switch over to Valentine's pieces.  You saw the first one I stitched last week.  Since then I've stitched four more pieces and today I fully finished all five of them!  Yup, you guessed it, I'm stressed to the max!  So let's get started!  

Last week I finished You Have My Heart by Hands on Design.  Today I fully finished it into a frame I found at Home Goods.  I was so excited to find heart shaped frames, I nearly bought them all but settled on only two.  I was afraid to finish the heart shape into an ornament, and even finishing it this way was a challenge, but I'm satisfied with this finish!  Stitched on 40 count natural over two.  This was a fun stitch!  

Next I stitched Fruit of the Heart by Jan Hicks Creates.  This is stitched on 28 count antique ivory over one.  This came out so cute this small, and it fit perfectly into this little frame I found at my local thrift store.  I love the little hearts on the frame.  

Next I stitched Opalescent Heart by The Sweetheart Tree.  I found this pattern in the June or July 2007  issue of The Gift of Stitching magazine.  I couldn't find paillettes for a reasonable price so I used two different sizes of sequins and while they look ok, I wish I could have had the sparkle of the paillettes.  Should I ever win the lottery, I will buy the correct items to finish this properly...until then I'll settle for the sequins...haha.  It was stitched on 28 count natural over two.  I took a piece out of this frame and substituted the Valentine's Day piece until after February, and then I'll switch the original item back.  I'm trying to be as frugal with my finishing as I can.  I love that I can do that with certain items.  I really like how this one turned out!  

Next is Valentine's Day 2013 by Passione Ricamo.  I love her dainty and vibrant designs.  I have stitched this a couple of times for other people, but I decided this year I would stitch it for MY valentine.  Again, it fit perfectly in one of the frames I found at Home Goods.  This was stitched on 28 count ivory over two.  The frilly contour of the heart fits it perfectly!  

And last is Rose Heart by Roberta Rankin.  I don't remember where I found this pattern, but it was a freebie.  I stitched this on 40 count antique white over two.  I have stitched this before for others, one was made into a teacup pincushion.  I have always thought this was so pretty, and this year I decided I would make one for ME!  I found this adorable little frame in Target in that little area of inexpensive items at the front of the store.  It was a set of two (the other is an oval) for $3.oo!  It's tiny, but this heart fit perfectly!  

I would have a hard time choosing my favorite of all these.  They will be gracing my mantle starting tomorrow.  I haven't stitched today (I have a running record of 1076 consecutive days not counting today) but I did kit another Valentine's piece (Primrose Cottage Friday Freebie for February) and will start that as soon as I finish here.  I'm not sure how I will finish that one just yet, but I'll let you know as soon as I finish it!  And that's all the stitchy news I have for today.  

If you don't want to hear the family news you can stop reading now (I gave you fair warning!).  I want to thank those who have been faithfully praying for my husband and me.  You hum through life and to be honest, other than the cancer I had 15 years ago, we have enjoyed pretty good health.  Recently my husband (who is a REALLY bad patient) has had a few hiccups.  This latest hiccup started in the form of kidney stones.  Then diverticulitis.  Then more kidney stones.  After two different tries to get rid of them, this last procedure was a little more aggressive which culminated in some pretty scary side effects.  The last procedure was yesterday....what should have been a 2-3 hour procedure turned into a 6 hour marathon.  As I sat in the waiting room stitching...and watching the clock...I saw people arrive, get called back for their "appointments" and leave...and still no sign of my husband.  To say I was biting my nails toward the end was an understatement.  I'm so glad I had my stitching along with me.  You can get a lot of stitching done in a 6 hour stretch!  I won't go into all the gory details, let's just say he had a pretty scary episode when they were waking him up from anesthesia which prompted them to watch him closely for TWO HOURS.  I wish they had told me something...or maybe I'm glad they didn't...but when they finally released him they told him...if you feel at all unwell, call 911.  That sure didn't allay my fears at all.  I have to say, I watched him pretty close and except for one little episode, he made it through the night better than the last time.  I made sure he ate when he got home a fairly bland meal, and kept him moving gently until it was time for bed.  He is feeling much better today.  He will need to make another appointment soon with a different doctor, but I'm VERY thankful for those who have been praying.  I know things could have gone very bad last night but I trust God that it will all work out for the good.  So please keep praying for him until they resolve everything.  I sincerely appreciate your prayers.  I'm thankful for those who have been praying, I'm thankful for things to occupy our hands and minds...and I'm thankful for a merciful God who watches over us.    It's going to be even more busy around here.  I'll answer emails and post when I can.  Until then I hope you understand if it gets quiet in my corner here and there.   Until then....stay safe, stay warm, and keep on stitching! 

Be Like Dory....Keep On Stitching

Seems like ages since I updated my blog...I've been stitching, in between spending time with the youngest granddaughter and being nursemaid to DH.  I'll be like Dory but instead of swimming I'll keep on stitching...lol!!  It's been a crazy week!  (Just looked back to see how long it had been...it's only been a week??  Good heavens WHAT A WEEK!!)  Where to begin?  

Let's start with some stitching.  Because of the nature of my week, I've been trying to find small projects that won't need a lot of paraphernalia to carry around.  I decided to just continue working on the letters to Merry Christmas by Owl Forest.  These are being stitched on 32 count Summer Khaki over two.  I fully finished the letters C and H, though it took longer than the other letters due to being so busy.  That's ok, that's two less letters I need to finish.  Here they are!  

I got a little bored working with the same colors and fabric, and decided I wanted to decorate my mantle for Valentine's Day, so picked out a couple of small Valentine patterns to hopefully fully finish quickly.  I started with the newest freebie from Hands on Design.  This is called You Have My Heart stitched on 40 count natural over two.  It's supposed to be stitched on 32 I think, but I didn't have it on hand or couldn't find it at the moment...so I did the best I could.  I like them small anyway.  It's supposed to be finished into a heart and I will as soon as I figure out how to do that...haha.  The template will be too big now so I'll have to work a little with it.  

I have more kitted up byt I really like this design by Jan Hicks Creates, also a freebie.  This is being stitched on 32 count antique ivory over one.  I'm hoping it will fit into a little frame I have that I found at the thrift store.  Here is the beginning.  I hope it works up quickly but I guess it will depend on what the family needs right now.  

So what is going on with the family?  Well, first off, I've been keeping the lovely Miss Q a few days.  She was here last Friday and then this past Monday.  She reminds me of that poem...There once was a girl who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead.  And when she was good she was very very good, but when she was bad she was horrid!  LOL!!  The minute she decides she is hungry you better be ready with that bottle!  Otherwise she turns into a demon child with an ear piercing scream.  You can tell when it's coming as she holds her breath, her face turns a lovely shade of purple...and then she lets you have it!  LOL!!  Don't get me wrong, I love this child...but I doubt my ears will ever be the same.  Hahaha.  But...let's start at the beginning.  

I want to thank those who have been praying for Mike.  Please don't stop!!  He has had a rough go, and it's only the beginning.  The procedure last Thursday didn't go as well as they hoped, and he will have to repeat it next Monday.  Lord, give me strength.  I love the man dearly, and I sincerely believe he was in pain, but it was nearly 48 hours of no sleep, no food, and no water which made him even more uncomfortable.  Which also meant I got very little sleep too.  

Friday dawned bright and early when Miss Q was left with me for the day.  She wasn't a happy camper that day either.  I'm not sure if it was her not feeling well, or the noises coming from upstairs where Mike was not entirely too quiet either.  It's possible between her screaming and him doing his thing they kept each other awake.  My nerves were shot by the end of the day when the kids asked if they could come for dinner.  I politely declined and went and screamed into my pillow.  LOL!!  Ok maybe I embellished that last part a little bit....I didn't scream but I sure felt like it.  My mantra for the day was "I love my family" over and over and over and...well you get the idea.  Please laugh with me, I'm really not complaining, I don't mind caring for my family.  Just some days are harder than others.  Saturday and Sunday were spent trying to get the Mr. to eat and drink and I finally dragged him out of the house for some fresh air and a trip to the grocery store to see if something there would make him hungry.  He finally had a little something to eat that night...and by Monday morning he was ready to go back to work.  He had lost 7 pounds over the long weekend.  

Monday afternoon Miss Q came for the afternoon.  Mike was feeling a little better after he returned home from work so he thought he would help with her.  Um...I think she prefers Gigi...lol.  Here is the contrast between him caring for her...and me.  

I'm beginning to think I'm the baby whisperer as even the kids can't put Miss Q down for a nap, but she will for me.  Maybe it's the quiet?  Maybe it's the temperature of the room?  Maybe it's how dark our living room is in the afternoon with the lights out.  Whatever it is, she will nap for around 30 minutes for me if she has a full tummy and the house is quiet.  The kids are in awe.  LOL!!  I let the kids talk us into going out that night to eat.  Tuesday was my rest day, and by then I truly needed a day!  That's when I got most of the stitching done.  I'll have the rest of the week to myself during the day so I'm going to take advantage of it.  Fingers crossed I'll get lots of stitching done!  LOL!!  I think I deserve it after this past week.  There is a storm headed our way tonight with ice/snow/sleet/rain predicted.  I'm praying it misses us, but we'll see.  It will be interesting if they have delays or even days off because of it.  I truly miss my quiet times  haha.  

Please continue to pray for Mike as his next procedure/adventure will be Monday the 10th.  Let's hope they can finally give the man some good news.  Poor man, seriously.  He doesn't do sickness well.  Until the next adventure...stay safe, healthy and warm, and Keep On Stitching!