February/March Goals

February Goals:

1. Work on Woodland faerie
**yep, got her arms and most of her face done.
2. Work on A Time For Everything
**yep, almost finished the autumn scarecrow
3. Work on The Fortunate Traveler
** yep, almost done with the verse
4. Work on Deepest Love
**yep, finished most of her tail and some of her veil/wrap
5. Work on Herbs & Spices
**yep
6. Mail Melissa's present
**yep mailed 2/14
7. Mail AAS (Adopt A Stitcher) package to Harsha
**yep, mailed 2/24
8. Start on Cathymk's present
**yep and even finished and ready to mail
9. Finish Nicki's RR
**yep, finished 2/12
10 Start on Easter Exchange for Becky.
**yep finished and ready to mail


March Goals

1. Work on Woodland Faerie.
2. Work A Time For Everything.
3. Work on The Fortunate Traveler.
4. Work on Deepest Love.
5. Work on Herbs & Spices.
6. Work on Our Days. (anniversary gift)
7. Finish Easter Exchange.
8. Start on Summer package to Harsha.
9. Start/Finish Renee RR.
10. Start on Laurie RR.
11. Mail Easter Exchange.
12. Mail Renee RR fabric.
13. Mail Cathymk birthday gift.

I was able to put a little time in Woodland Faerie last night. I had wanted to finish all the one over one stitching but the frog visited and I had to rip out about half of what I had stitched. My kids said she looks like a zombie right now without her eyes and mouth done. LOL..I have to agree it looks a little creepy.

As much as I wanted to finish the verse on The Fortunate Traveler I decided to go ahead and work on Herbs and Spice. I finished the mustard, tarragon, and started on the cloves. I can't wait to start on the backstitching so that it will look more like something than just a blob of colors.



Tonight I will be working on Woodland Faerie. I am hoping to finish the one over one stitching on her face & neck. :)

Catching Up

After finishing Unicorn and Fairy Magic yesterday, I decided that I was going to finish my piece for the Easter Exchange. It didn't take me too long but I did run into a small snag and temporarily considered finishing some other way. However, I was able to work through it and it came out looking great.

When I finished the Easter Exchange piece it was only about 5 pm. All I had to do was cook dinner and the rest of the evening was mine to stitch away. Since I didn't work on The Fortunate Traveler this week I decided to work on him. I only have a few words left to do and then I am done with the verse but there is more one over one stitching.



I'm not exactly sure what I am going to work on today. I might just go ahead and finish the verse on The Fortunate Traveler but after that I am either going to work on Herbs and Spices or Our Days. I would like to be able to work on both today but I'm not sure if I am going to be able to today.

Unicorn and Fairy Magic Finished (Finally!)

I was supposed to work on Herbs and Spices last night but Deepest Love kept calling me.



I was going to work on HS this morning but the lady from the LNS called to tell me that my order of beads were finally there! I have only been waiting on them since September. So needless to say I didn't waste any time getting out to the LNS this morning. This all means that I was able to finish the beading on Unicorn and Fairy Magic! Yippie!!



I stitched Unicorn and Fairy Magic from Mythical Fantasies Collection by Stoney Creek. The fabric is 28 count evenweave that I dyed rose pink. I am planning on getting this one framed for Krissy's room.

This Month's Stash

I realized today that this month has been a pretty good stash month for me. While Renee was here I purchased the following charts:

Leaf (The Crossroads Collection)-Bent Creek
Country Seasons-The Prairie Schooler
The Brat-Enchanting Lair
Summer's Magic-Dragon Dreams
2006 Cross Stitch Pattern of the Day-Madeline Lake

I did some stash shopping this week and came home with:

Mermaid of the Pearls-Mirabilia
Silvery Moon-Ladybug Lane
Autumn is in the Air-Brittercup Designs
1/2 yard of 32 count White Belfast Linen
2 spools of ribbon
bag of batting
dark green fabric dye

This month I also got some goodies in the mail.

4" Gingham scissors-Vash
Seasonal Arches-Lynn

All that and I am still thinking about making another trip back to the LNS for more stuff! LOL

Deepest Love

I did squeeze some time in yesterday to stitch on Deepest Love. I worked on the leaves and filling in some of her tail. I am thinking about working on her a little this weekend. On a normal day I stitch from 2-4 hours however since I have been working extra hours I am only getting an hour or two in if I even get to my stitching that night. Also normally, I can work on my stitching at work but the owner has been in town so that means no stitching at work during my free time.



Wednesday night I didn't work on The Fortunate Traveler. Wednesdays tend to be a little hectic since that is youth night at the church for the kids. By the time everything was done and ready for the next day it was 11:00 pm! So, I just went to bed instead of stitching. I am hoping to have a non-stop weekend of stitching and try and catch up on some of my projects that I didn't get to work on.

A Time For Everything

Like I said yesterday I didn't get to work on A Time For Everything as much as I wanted. I still have to put on some more french knots and the lazy daisies.


Some time tonight I am going to work on The Fortunate Traveler. I don't know how much I am going to get done on it since I am planning on making a run out to my LNS. I just feel the need to buy something! LOL

Life has been a little chaotic with me working extra hours. It's not the job but trying to get my normal daily stuff done in a shorter amount of time and still do some stitching! Normally, I can do my stitching at work but right now we are busy with going thru the files and updating them by hand. Nope, my boss doesn't believe in files on a computer all are done by hand!!

Thank you everyone for all the wonderful comments on Melissa's placemat and WF. They were greatly appreciated. :D

I worked on Woodland Faerie for a little bit yesterday. I should be able to finish the one over one stitching next week! Yippie!



Today I worked on A Time For Everything but I didn't get much accomplished on it either. I wanted to put a little time each night into my mom's gift but I didn't even look at it. My work hours have increased from 3 to 6 hours a day so I have lost some precious stitching time. The bright side is that it shouldn't be like that for long.

Birthday Exchange

Melissa's present finally arrived! This is the first time I made a placemat and I had fun stitching it. I got the pattern out of Cross Quick Feb/Mar 1989. I stitched it on 28 count evenweave that I dyed myself. I really like how it turned out.

Our Days

I had a good stitching weekend! I finished Cathymk's present. I love how it turned out! I also finished the stitching on Becky's gift. I even figured out how I am going to finish it! I even got started on my mom's anniversary gift. I am starting to scare myself with being all caught up on my exchanges/RR's!

Here is the start of Our Days by Ursula Michael:

Today I will be stitching on Woodland Faerie with Christine D. I really like this pattern but right now I am stitching the one over one and I feel like I am moving like a snail with this pattern. I know it will go faster once I finish the one over one stitching but it is just getting to that point that is taking forever.

This and That

I didn't get much stitching done on Herb & Spices last night. I only got the stem and the leaves of the mustard done. It was just one of those days when everytime I think that I can sit down and stitch something comes up and I have to put it back away.

I should be able to get some stitching/finishing time in today! I have already done the grocery shopping and picked up some more fabric and embellishments to work on Cathymk's present for the Birthday Exchange. I am hoping to finish it later today. :) If I do get that done then I can work on finishing the stitching for Becky for the Easter Exchange. I haven't decided what I am going to finish Becky's into yet but I do already have the fabric so I will work on the finishing next weekend.

If I am lucky enough to get those two things done this weekend and still have stitching time left I am going to start on my mom's gift for her anniversary. I was going to have it framed myself but after talking to mom about it we decided that I would just mail her the fabric and my grandmother would have it framed. My grandmother gets a great discount at her local LNS because she worked there for 20+ years. P

I want to thank everyone with their comments on Deepest Love! All those wonderful comments makes me want to stitch her even more!

Lauren-I am stitching her on 28 count Monaco evenweave. I dyed the fabric myself with some royal blue Rit dye.

Deepest Love

I worked on the tail of Deepest Love last night. I worked on her till 1:00 am and still didn't want to put her down! Out of all my projects in my rotation I think this one is the prettiest so far.



Today I will be working on Herbs & Spices. I am really close to finishing all the stitching on this one and hope to start the backstitching soon. I want to finish it into a spice cabinet for my kitchen. Mike is supposed to make the box for it but he hasn't started it yet. I think he is hoping I will forget about it. I don't think I will. LOL

We have no big plans for the weekend as Mike's hip is still bothering him. My biggest goal for the weekend is to work on the Easter Exchange and to finish Cathymk's birthday present.

SBQ of the Week

Today's SBQ was suggested by Heather and is:

Comment on your comments (giving and receiving): Do you love comments or hate them? Do you check them every day, never check them, or find them helpful? And finally, are you convinced no one is reading your blog if you don't get any?

I love comments on my blog!! In "real life" when I get comments on my stitching I get embarrassed because non-stitchers think that it is really complicated to stitch so I feel that they give me too much credit. It isn't that way with my blog. I feel that my stitching friends are honest about their comments and aren't just trying to be nice. I check my comments at least everyday and sometimes more than once a day! I feel that they are really helpful in keeping me motivated on the current piece I am working on.

When I first started blogging I didn't think anyone read my blog and was thrilled when I started getting more comments. I was worried that nobody was interested in what I was saying and more that I was boring people with what I had to say.

As for stitching on The Fortunate Traveler yesterday, I didn't get as much done as I wanted to but Mike hurt his hip V-Day evening so he was home yesterday. He really needs to go the doctor but he is a stubborn mule and won't go see him.



I am hoping to get some good stitching time in today on Deepest Love. I love this pattern and could work on it non-stop!

Last night I finished the half stitches on A Time For Everything and I started on the backstitching. I even managed to make some decent french knots! I did notice I missed a few stitches on one of the pumpkins but that can be easily fixed next week. I can't wait to work on her some more next week.

I will be working on The Fortunate Traveler today which means more one over one stitching. I really like the looks of one over one stitching but it is sure a pain in the rump! It isn't so bad on FT because most of the one over one is done in one color unlike Woodland Faerie where there is about 4-5 different color changes.

Woodland Faerie

I stitched on Woodland Faerie last night. It felt good to put some stitches in her since I basically haven't worked on her in two weeks. I got most of her other arm done and I am pretty pleased with the amount I got done. I didn't think that I was going to get a lot done on her since it was Mac's birthday but I lucked out and Mac was playing his new computer game most of the evening which left me to stitch.



Today I will be working on A Time for Everything with Becky. I am looking forward to stitching on this because this is another one I haven't worked on in a few weeks. I am not for sure how much time I will get put in her today as I have to go to Mac's Valentine's class party. This could prove to be interesting as I am the only parent who is helping out today. Mac and I made brownies for the party last night. I am still finding chocolate all over the kitchen!

I want to thank everyone for their birthday wishes for Mac. He had a good day at school which always makes for a pleasant evening. He even did his homework without a fight. I think it had something to do with that he couldn't play his new computer game until it was done. LOL

Happy Birthday Mac!

Today is my baby's birthday. Okay, so he isn't much of a baby anymore since he is turning 8 today. I can't believe he is 8 years old today. When he was born he was 2 1/2 months early. He weighted 2 pounds 14 ounces and was 14 inches long. I had several problems with my pregnancy and was on complete bed rest the entire pregnancy. Try doing that with a 3 year old and a 4 year old running around the house!

The odds of Mac being born alive let alone having a normal life were definitely stacked against us. The doctors honestly thought that if he did survive the birth that he would be severely handicapped. Just a small list of problems he had were Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia, a grade 4 brain bleed, and slight Cerebral Palsy. We have been extremely blessed and Mac has overcome all of the initial problems.

Fast forward 8 years later and he is as healthy and energetic as any other boy his age. We were warned of that he could have some learning disabilities from his brain bleed. We have noticed that he has some problems in Math and Reading but I honestly can't say that it is a learning disability. I think it is more that he just doesn't like those subjects.

Yesterday evening I finished stitching Cathymk's piece for her birthday. I even found some fabric in my stash that will go perfect with it! Now, I have to figure out how I want to finish it for her. I also started on the Easter Exchange for Becky. Unfortunately, I can't show any pictures until they are received.

Happy Birthday Mac!!

Winter Arches

This morning I finished stitching three of the Winter Arches for Nicki's RR. I chose to stitch the snowman because it isn't winter unless you have a snowman! I stitched the candle because we always candles around during the holidays. I stitched the tree because I love to decorate our tree every year. I had fun stitching them because yesterday it snowed a little here. Not much but enough for the kids to go out and catch snowflakes on their tongues.



Now I can start on Cathymk birthday gift for the birthday exchange. I have a pattern picked out to stitch. I am not sure on how I am going to finish it yet. I never really can figure out how I am going to finish it until I have the fabric picked out. I am hoping to get the fabric next weekend.

Herbs & Spices

It rained for the most part here yesterday so I was able to get some good stitching done. I worked on Herbs & Spices. I finished the saffron, thyme, vanilla, rosemary, and started on mustard. I only have 6 more to go before I start the backstitching!



I realized yesterday that my mom and step-dad's 10 year wedding anniversary is coming up in April. I decided a while ago that I would stitch them a wedding sampler for their present. I am going to stitch Our Days by Ursula Michael. I am going to have to get started soon so that I can have it done before April 19!



Jenn-Here is what The Fortunate Traveler will look like, if I ever get it done. LOL

SBQ of the Week

Today's SBQ was suggested by Nancy and is:

Describe your "perfect" project. (Include the designer or specific pattern, the fabric, the floss, and anything else that would make that project "perfect" for you.)

For my perfect project I would have to have no interruptions from the kids or the phone or just everyday life happenings. The design would be something with a fantasy theme(dragons, fairies, etc). My fabric would be 28 or 32 count linen that I would dye myself. I would use DMC floss and possibly some Kreinik. It would also have to have some beads to make it extra sparkly.

I would stitch non-stop in my recliner for hours at a time only pausing for a potty break. As soon as it was finished I would take it to the LNS to be framed. When it came back it would be hung up for all to see instead of waiting in the WTF pile. It is a nice dream, isn't it?

Since my rotation has been out of wack and some projects didn't get any attention the past week or so I worked on The Fortunate Traveler last night. It was more one over one stitching. I am getting there slowly but surely.




Today I will resume my normal rotation so I will be working on Herbs & Spices. I hope to get a lot accomplished today as I really need to do some stitching. Stitching for me is calming and relaxing. After the past week I need something to relax me!

Vash-I want to thank you (again) for the awesome scissors! I LOVE them! I am looking thru my patterns so I can stitch a fob for it.

Lynn-I received the patterns yesterday and believe me they really made my day! Thank you!!

January/February Goals

January Goals
1. Start TW Woodland Faerie SAL with Christine D.
**started 1/2/06
2. Start A Time For Everything SAL with Becky.
**started 1/3/06
3. Work on Fortunate Traveler.
**started 1/4/06
4. Start Mirabilia's Deepest Love
**started 1/5/06
5. Start Herbs & Spices
**started 1/6/06
6. Start/finish Melissa's present.
**started 1/7/06-finished 1/21/06
7. Start on Cathy's RR fabric
**started 1/21-finished 1/21/06-hand delivered to Renee on 1-27-06
8. Start on Lottery Exchange
**started 1/8/06-finished 1/16/06
9. Mail Renee's RR fabric to Laurie.
**mailed 1/13/06
10. Start on Adopt A Stitcher package for Harsha
**yep, adding something each week
11. Start on Nicki's RR fabric.
**barely made this on started on 1-31-06
12. Work on ABC Bears
**nope didn't even look at it
13. Finish my afghan
**nope didn't work on it

February Goals:
1. Work on Woodland faerie
2. Work on A Time For Everything
3. Work on The Fortunate Traveler
4. Work on Deepest Love
5. Work on Herbs & Spices
6. Mail Melissa's present
7. Mail AAS (Adopt A Stitcher) package to Harsha
8. Start on Cathymk's present
9. Finish Nicki's RR
10 Start on Easter Exchange for Becky.

Back Home

I am back home after driving for a total of 18 hours in three days. We drove to Garfield Arkansas in the Ozark Mountains for my MIL's funeral. We left around 6:00 am Sunday morning and got back around 9:00 pm last night. The funeral went as well as could be expected. I won't go into details but the services were beautiful and respectful.

While we were there my FIL wanted me to have the two pillows I made for Alice for Christmas in 1994. These pillows were my first pieces of work I finished and gave to someone. My MIL loved nature and the animals. Ever since I gave them to her the pillows have always had a home on her couch. I was always honored that she chose to display them year round in her living room. I decided that instead of me keeping them I would pass them down to my daughters when they get their own place.

The patterns came from leaflet from Cross My Heart called Endangered Species II. They need to be cleaned but it warms my heart to know Alice liked them enough to use them.

Snow Leopard

I want to thank everyone for their concern and thoughts. They were greatly appreciated during this rough period. It has been so chaotic the last couple of days. I will be glad to get back on our normal schedule.

Rest Well Alice

We got the phone call yesterday that we have been dreading yet all the while knew it was coming. My mother-in-law passed away in her sleep. She had been fighting cancer in the kidneys, lungs, and in her bones. Her funeral is being held on Monday so we have been scrambling around trying to get everything ready to make the 9-10 hour trip. We will be leaving around 5:00 am and hopefully we will arrive around 2:00 pm.

My MIL passing yesterday was the worst thing that happened but overall it was just a horrible day. It didn't start out looking good either. When we woke up we discovered my puppy dog had broke her tail. We are still trying to figure out how exactly she did it! So by 7:30 am I was on the phone with the vet. She is doing a lot better today. My friend is going to puppy-sit her for me until we get back next weekend. The other bad thing is since we have to leave tomorrow that means Renee's visit is being cut short.

I didn't get a lot of stitching done this week but I did manage to get some time in on Deepest Love. I am definitely taking some stitching with me I just haven't decided on what to take with me.

SBQ of the Week

This week’s SBQ was inspired by my visit with Dawn and is:



With the exception of your online stitching friends, do you have any other stitching buddies?

I have a couple of stitching buddies but none like Renee! My other friends are into stitching because I have taught them how to stitch. My first buddy, Nancy, is my next door neighbor that I taught a couple of months ago how to stitch. We haven't been able to really sit down and stitch together because she has a 2 year old daughter and can only get a few minutes at a time to stitch.

Another one of my buddies is my brother, Jerry. I didn't intentionally teach him how to stitch. He has lived with us on several occasions (those are multi blog entries!) and was always interested in my stitching so he learned from watching me and asking me questions. He has been known to call me at midnight to ask me a question about stitching.

I also get to share my hobby with my daughter, Allie. I taught her about 4 years ago starting out on plastic canvas and now she is on aida. Krissy knows to stitch but she gets frustrated easily and puts it away for months at a time. My son has started to learn how to stitch on plastic canvas and he works on it non stop for a few days and then wants to pick it up again. I think I am pretty lucky to have family and friends who share my passion!