March/April Goals

March Goals

1. Work on Woodland Faerie-yep, got a fair amount done on her too!
2. Work on A Time For Everything-yep
3. Start Mystery Exchange-yep, and ready to mail.
4. Finish Dani, the Stitching Dragon-yep made it into a flat fold
5. Start a new large project-nope didn't start, but I did get one kitted up
6. Finish last 2 PIF gifts-sadly no I didn't :(
7. Mail out PIF gifts-yep, mailed out to Jenn and Carol

**I finished Cottage Garden Fairy "officially"


April Goals

1. Finish all cross stitching on Woodland Faerie and start back stitching.
2. Finish A Time For Everything.
3. Mail out mystery exchange
4. Mail out Debbie, Jenna PIF gifts.
5. Start Seasons in the Snow by Little River for the 4 Season SAL on the FGBB.
6. Start Griffin Kitten by X's and Oh's.

I spent the day cleaning and doing laundry and Zoey spent the day sleeping!

Spring is Here

The signs of Spring are everywhere! The grass is turning turning green and the trees are starting to bloom. Of course, that means that everything is covered in a layer of pollen including my mini van. Originally I was going to wash the mini van last weekend but since rain was in the forecast I decided to wait and see how the weather actually turned out. Everyday this week it looked and felt like it was going to rain but nothing happened. So, today I had enough of looking at the pollen on the mini van and took it to the car wash. When it was done it was so nice, shiny, and pretty. That lasted exactly 10 miles to my house. When I got out of the mini van I noticed that it was covered in pollen...again!! Ugghh! To make matters worse, as I am typing I hear the distinct sound of rain hitting the roof. Double Ugghh!

I worked on Woodland Faerie again today but not enough progress to post. I only got to work on her for about an hour and a half today. I am planning on working on A Time For Everything tomorrow. I picked up the floss I need to stitch the leaves so maybe if all goes well I might be close to finishing it within the next week.

Have a great weekend!

SBQ of the Week

Today's SBQ was suggested Cindy and is:

Do you have a system for organizing freebie charts in your stash? If so, what is it? Do you print out copies of all of the freebies thatyou find on the web (that you think you might actually stitch) or doyou maintain electronic copies of them until you are ready to stitch them?

At first I kept the sorted out by theme but that didn't seem to work out great. Now, I have them sorted by designer. Although, I don't think it works out any better. I have been thinking about keeping them sorted out by designer and sorting each designer by theme.

I used to print out all the freebies but I now I print out the ones I know I am going to stitch. I keep a copy of them on my computer and I keep them saved on a disk. I

I had a good stitching day today. I was able to finish the flower border on Woodland Faerie. I am getting so excited that the finish line is getting close. Although, I have to keep reminding myself to not get to excited since I still have all the back stitching left to do. :)

One Page Left

I finished the 5th out of 6 page today on Woodland Faerie. Only one more page to go!

Up, Down, and Ouch!

I jinxed myself yesterday by planning on having a good stitching day. I hadn't put in more than 5 stitches on Woodland Faerie when I stabbed my middle finger with the needle. It went straight up under my fingernail. Ouch!! Good thing was it wasn't my stitching hand but bad news is it is on the hand I hold my hoop. See what happens when I try and plan things! Here is what I managed to get stitched.



I still have 2 PIF gifts to finish and mail out. I am enjoying doing this because I get to take the time and think about the person and the gift. To me that is the best part of doing an exchange or in my case a PIF. So, Jenna and Debbi, I haven't forgotten about you ladies! I'm just taking my time trying to pick out the perfect pattern. :)

We went and visited Mike's step dad earlier today. We had a nice visit. It was another pleasant day so we helped FIL with getting his garden ready. I happened to remember my camera so I was able to take a picture of this beautiful framed piece. It was stitched by Liz (my step sister in law) and was meant for my MIL but she passed before Liz was able to have it finished. I know my MIL would have loved it because she was an avid bird watcher.



I didn't do any stitching today but I am planning on a day of stitching tomorrow. The kids are on Spring Break this week so I don't have to get up early. Whoo-hoo....who would have thought that sleeping in till 7:00 am would be such a treat?! I do have a few errands to run in the morning but the whole afternoon and early evening can be devoted to stitching. Now, the only problem is what do I stitch! :)

Leaf Border

I didn't get a lot of stitching done today because the weather was beautiful outside so I spent most of the afternoon outside with the kids and the dog. Anyways, I worked on the leaf border for A Time For Everything. I didn't get very far when I ran out of the green floss. Oh well, I need to make a trip to the LNS later next week anyways.

Dani, the Stitching Dragon

The weekend is starting off good for me. I finished all the stitching on Dani, the Stitching Dragon and I even finished it into a flat fold. I had some interesting moments while I was putting the flat fold together. Normally, I use regular craft glue but today I discovered it was empty so I had to use my glue gun. I have to say I prefer to use craft glue than a glue gun and I have the burn to prove it!



I am quite pleased with how it turned out. I chose some dark blue fabric with stars to use for the finishing fabric. It has it's own place of honor in our bedroom on top of the mirror on my dresser. It has a ledge that I keep different stitched projects on for display.



I am not sure what I will be working on this weekend. I kind of have an itching to start something new but I don't know what I really want to start!

Have a great weekend!

What Day Is It?

This week I have had the hardest time keeping track of what day it is for some reason. Tuesday I thought it was Thursday and today I thought it was Friday! I really hate when that happens because that makes for a long week.

I started out today finishing the back stitching on the spring scarecrow on ATFE but I ended the day working on Dani, the Stitching Dragon. When I was in Friday mode, I decided to make a quick trip to my LNS and check and see if the last of my order had arrived. It did and so now I can work on finishing Dani. I am thinking about finishing her into a flat fold for me. :)

A Good Day

Today turned out to be a pretty good day. Krissy passed her sports physical with no problems. She was a little disappointed to learn that she has to continue to take her iron pills as she was a little anemic today. Dr. L was in such a good mood I thought that I would be able to sneak out of there without him wanting to check my iron level. Wrong! My iron count was normal! Whoo-hoo!! I can honestly say I do not remember when the last time my iron count was normal. I think it was when I was around 12 or so.



With all my errands today I didn't get a lot of time to stitch. I worked on a little of the back stitching on ATFE. For some reason I seem to be stuck on this scarecrow. I am not having frogging problems. I just can't seem to find any stitching time this past week. It doesn't look like it is going to get any better next week either because the kids will be home for Spring Break.

My second PIF gift has arrived safely at Jenn's home. I simply fell in love with theses Britty Kitties! I stitched it on some oatmeal linen and like before the fabric I used is what is in the picture. I originally was going to make it into a pin keep but after some minor adjustments I realized that it would work better as a hanging ornament. I was pleased with my end results. :)



I get to spend the morning at the doctor's office tomorrow. Krissy has to go in and get a physical for school. Krissy is trying out for the Pom Squad. This could prove to be interesting. One would think that coordination is required to be on the team. Well, my daughter has the gift of clumsiness! A prime example was just the other morning when she got on the school bus and missed the step. She has a huge bump and a nasty colored bruise. Another example is when she was 7 years old and twirling around and hit her hand on a door jam breaking her left pinky knuckle. That was 4 weeks of pure torture because she is a left handed person! her! While most parents are thrilled if their children make the team, I will just be thrilled if she doesn't break a bone!!

First PIF Received

This afternoon, Carol, emailed me to let me know that she recieved her PIF gift that I mailed out over the weekend. I was astonished that it arrived so quickly!

I stitched Britty Kitties from Brittercup designs. I stitched it on 28 count oatmeal linen. When I was ready to finish it I was having hard time deciding how to finish it. In the end I decided on turning it into a flat fold. It is a little smaller than a normal one but it still turned out cute. I refer to it as a "mini" flat fold. :) The fabric that it is sitting on is the fabric I used on the flat fold.



I worked on A Time for Everything again today. I finished all the cross and half stitches on the spring scarecrow and started on the backstitching. If I am lucky I just might be able to finish the border before Spring is over.

3 Little Beads

I had a pleasant surprise for me at my LNS when I got there. Part of my order had arrived! Now, I could put the last 3 beads on Cottage Garden Fairy and say it is "officially" done. I actually had the stitching and most of the beading done in November but I kept forgetting to place an order for three little beads.



Have a great weekend!

Off to A Good Start

Today's SBQ was suggested Danielle and is:

If you had $500 to spend on stitching-related items, what would you buy?

Here is where reality sinks in...I would never spend that much on stitching stuff at one time! Remember I have 3 kids so there is a "need" every day from them. So in my dream life, the majority of my purchase would be patterns and fabrics.


I am planning(hoping) that we will have a quiet weekend. I already got the house cleaned and most of the laundry done. It is amazing how fast I can get my house cleaned when my kids and Mike aren't around! I have a few more loads of laundry to finish but I think I can get it done tonight. Then the weekend will be mine to stitch!

Yesterday I worked on A Time For Everything and got the scarecrow's dress finished. I am getting excited as this one is getting close to being finished. :)

The weather has been kind of funky today. Perfect weather for tornadoes which means I am constantly looking at the sky. So I pretty much stayed close to home with the exception of the quick run into town to get the rest of my floss that I forgot to get the other day. I was able to work on WF for a couple of hours today.

Internal Time Clocks

I have to say I absolutely hate when the time changes! My whole internal clock goes into shut down mode. It was bad enough that I was going to have to get up at 5 am by my internal clock but Zoey decided to bring her ball and lay between Mike and me and did a pathetic "mew" to try to wake one of us up at 4am by my internal clock. She was successful in waking us up but not in getting one of us to play!

I originally thought I wasn't going to get to do any stitching done today as I had to and get plates for my new van and get my AR driver's license. I got halfway there and realized I had left my birth certificate and marriage license at the house and I was too far to turn back and get it so I only got plates for the van. Looks like I know what I will be doing tomorrow!

I finished adding the blending filament to the fairy's wings. It is really sparkly! I was working on the green plants when I realized I missed 2 colors that I need. Grrr...maybe if if doesn't take to long to get my license I can stop by and pick up the colors.

I am have been working on my PIF gifts and I have 2 ready to mail out. I was hoping to be able to mail them all at once but I am not sure if it going to work out that way or not.

Stash and Fur Babies

Today has turned out to be a pretty good day for me. I was able to get my normal shopping done early enough that I could stop by and see if my order was in at the LNS. Sara was upset to tell me that my order hadn't arrived but it was quickly forgotten as she had just moved a bunch of her patterns to the clearance. My self control just flew out the window and didn't come back for about an hour! My daughter, Allie, dragged me out with 40 skeins of DMC and 11 new patterns. You just gotta love the clearance section!

I don't have a progress picture of WF because I haven't finished adding the blending filament to the wings but since I got my floss there will visible progress soon. :) Instead, I have a couple of pictures of my fur babies to share. Girly is a 2 1/2 year old Labrador/terrier mix and is a whopping 13 inches tall from floor to shoulder but she weighs 40 pounds! Her partner in crime is Zoey, a year old kitty. They both share traits of a dog and a cat. Zoey loves to play fetch and will bring a ball back to you every time and Girly likes to groom herself like a cat!



The two of them have an excellent relationship. It isn't unusual to see Zoey pounce on Girly with all her claws out and then the two of them roll around on the ground. Now, to me, this is normal because growing up on a farm I always had a dog and a cat and all of them have gotten along. However, I am amazed when someone that hasn't had both or no pets before asks if my dog tries to kill my cat because dogs are "supposed" to chase and hurt cats. That myth is completely wrong.



Now I am not saying they are complete angels because they are far from that! By far, Zoey has the ornery crown and thinks that 4 am is the time to bring a ball and drop it on my head! Girly has an internal clock that is eerily on time...which means on off days there is no on/off button I can hit!

SBQ of the Week

Do you use your needle, a seam ripper, or something else when you have to frog stitches? Why do you use the method that you do?

When I have to rip out stitches (which happens to me often) I use my needle to pull the stitches out. I guess the reason that I use a needle is simply because it is right there. If I used my seam ripper I would have to dig it out of my sewing box.

I worked on WF today but I didn't do any of the cross stitching. Instead I worked on adding the blending filament to the wings. I think after I get that finished I will work on a little bit of the back stitching. I am a little bored with all the greens plus I ran out of a couple of colors and I need to make a run to the LNS which I intend to do this weekend.

There hasn't been much going on around here this week. Believe me I am not complaining! Since there hasn't been a catastrophe this week I have been able to get some stitching done on Woodland Faerie. The problem with focusing on one project is I end up not having much to blog about.



I want to thank everyone for their comments about Woodland Faerie. They are really helping me stay motivated. :)

Slow Progress

It has been a pretty normal day around here for me. I got the cleaning and laundry done so that means the rest of the day is left for me to stitch on Woodland Faerie. I did work on her for awhile yesterday. There isn't a lot of progress but at least it is progress. :)



Tomorrow looks like it is going to be a busy day for me. I have a bunch of things to do and not enough time. That seems to be the story line of my life lately!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. :)

Future Projects

It is a pretty quiet weekend around here. No extra kids spending the night! I haven't done any stitching today because I was running some errands earlier. Later tonight I am going to pick up WF and work on her some more. Although, it looks like I am close to being finished on WF, I still have lots left to do. I have to finish the cross & half stitches, and then all the back stitching left to do!

I have been looking at my patterns trying to decide which will be my next big piece and during this process I have made a list of my next projects both large and small. When I started this list I figured I would be able to come up with 20 different patterns with no problem. That wasn't so! Even though I have lots of patterns, I found it difficult to pick out that large of a number that were screaming at me. So, my list isn't complete and could change at any time. :)

1. Millennium Angel-Mirabilia
2. Above the Clouds-Teresa Wentzler
3. Mermaid of the Pearls-Mirabilia
4. The Brat-Enchanting Lair
5. Legends of the Dragons-Karen Weaver, Teresa Wentzler, Jennifer Aikman-Smith
6. Blessings of the Season-Abby Middleton
7. Garnet & Carnation-Black Swan Designs
8. Leaf-Bent Creek
9. Pumpkin Pete-The Trilogy
10 Winter Wonder-Dragon Dreams
11. Imagination Creation-Dragon Dreams
12. Moonlight Visit-Sandra Parlow
13. Dragon of the Summer Sky-Dragon Dreams
14. Gargoyle 2-Enchanting Lair
15. Griffin Kitten-X’s & O’s
16. Dragon Lake-Black Swan Designs
17. Night Butterfly Fairy-Lanarte
18. Seasons in the Snow-Little River
19. Snowie-Twisted Threads
20. ?????

March Goals

I am a few days late posting my goals for the month so here they are

February Goals

1. Work on Woodland Faerie
*yep, worked on it for a few days
2. Work on Footprints
*yep, finished this one
3. Work on A Time For Everything SAL with Becky
*yep worked on it
4. Mail off Winter Wonderland Exchange for the SBEBB
*yep, mailed and received

March Goals

1. Work on Woodland Faerie
2. Work on A Time For Everything
3. Start Mystery Exchange
4. Finish Dani, the Stitching Dragon
5. Start a new large project
6. Finish last 2 PIF gifts
7. Mail out PIF gifts

Woodland Faerie/A Time For Everything

Today's SBQ was suggested by Danielle and is:

Do you find yourself stitching faster when you are getting to the end of a design?

Well, I don't know if I actually stitch faster as I get closer to the finish. I do know that as I get closer to finishing I tend to spend longer periods of time stitching which results in more stitches.

As I said I would I am posting a progress picture of Woodland Faerie. Now that I have Footprints done I am geared up and ready to get her finished.



Today I worked on A Time For Everything. Again, I ran into not having all my flosses (ughh!!) that I needed with me so my stitching was kind of sporadic.