A White Christmas

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Everywhere you go.....

That pretty much sums it up for me today. :) As I type we are in the middle of a blizzard warning. If the forecaster are correct by the time the storm ends we will have anywhere from 12-18 inches of fresh snow. Yep, I am getting a white Christmas. This will be the first one for me in at least 17 years!! You guessed it.....I am excited!

This snow storm put a little damper on visiting my family which saddens me as this would have been the first Christmas I had celebrated with my mom and brother in close to 20 years. *sigh* Guess I couldn't have it all this year. However, my mom thought ahead and sent the kids presents over here earlier this week so that they would at least have their presents from her on Christmas Day.

I wish I had more to blog about but I don't and I still have a few presents left to wrap so I had better get to wrapping so I can head off to bed....cuz I KNOW (for a fact!) the kiddos will be up and ready to open gifts early in the morning!e

Merry Christmas to Everyone!

No Stocking This Year

I had really hoped to have this stocking done this year but it looks like that is not going to happen this year. I can't say it isn't because I haven't had time to stitch it because in reality I could have had it done. I can blame it all on not having any mojo for this design anymore. However, one of my New Year's resolutions is to get this one finished ASAP....mainly just to get it out of my hair! So it looks like I will be stitching on this one for the rest of the year or at least till New Year's Day.

On New Year's Day I plan to start a new piece. :) I am planning on starting Home of a Needleworker from LHN. I can't wait to start it! What is your New Year's new start?

Have a great night!

Gentle Encounter Finished

Look! I have a finish! Not too bad for a month's worth of stitching. :)

Gentle Encounter

Stoney Creek Magazine Nov/Dec 1991

Start Date: November 15, 2009

Finish Date: December 16, 2009

Snow and Stitching

Yesterday was a perfect day for me to stitch! We had snow flurries start around noon and continued throughout the night. :) While we only got about 1 1/2 inches of snow it was still enough for me to enjoy it. However, tonight it is supposed to start snowing again with the threat of lots more snow. :) If we are lucky it will be enough to call off school tomorrow. That is bad isn't it....I look forward to snow days more than the kids. lol

The whole day wasn't totally devoted to stitching as I took Megan out for a little bit to see her reaction to the falling snow. She wasn't too sure about it but at least she wasn't scared of it. Now, Allie and I had fun chasing each other around and throwing snow onto one another. Yep, I am a big kid when it comes to snow. :)

Anyways, here is my result from being curled up on the couch stitching away on Gentle Encounter. I am just a little over halfway done and hopefully I will have a finish soon!

Happy Stitching!

First Byline

I'm so proud of Allie!! Her very first printed byline in a newspaper! Okay so it was just her high school newspaper but every good journalist has to start somewhere. :)

Holiday Stitching

I hope everyone that celebrated Thanksgiving had a good day! We had a pretty good day. Ate way too much but it was good. We spent the morning/lunch with my mom and step dad. Sadly my brother wasn't able to come as he was sick and with mom just being released from the hospital nobody thought it would be a good idea for him to come and give her his yucky germs.

Then we spent the afternoon/supper with Mike's dad and step mom. I can say by the end of the day I had probably put on at least 10 pounds! LOL. Oh well, isn't that what New Year's resolutions are for?

Nothing real exciting has been going on around here lately. Pretty much my days are spent chasing Megan around the house/yard and taxing the older 3 kids to and from school and activities. It was pretty nice over the Thanksgiving holiday not having to take them and pick them up from school but now it is back to the same routine....at least for a couple of weeks until Christmas break. :)

I did manage to get some stitching done over the holiday break. I worked on Gentle Encounter and at least got her head done. I am hoping tonight I might be able to finish the snow on the tree limbs to the right of her.

Before I go I just had to share this cute picture of my little Eskimo baby. :) We are officially ready to go out and play in the snow. Now, where is the snow?

Have a great day!

Gentle Encounter

Saying it has been a busy week for me is putting it mildly! In between picking kids up from school or soccer practice and taking Krissy to her job (and picking her up) and parent/teacher conferences for Mac I haven't had much time to do anything! However because I "needed" to stitch my stitching time was from 11pm until about 1 am....who needs sleep anyways?! LOL

I decided yesterday to have a day of stitching and watching The Pretender. I love this TV series. Too bad they cancelled it in 2000. They really need to bring it back. If all goes well I might even get to watch some more of Jarod (Michael T. Weiss) today! :)

Here is what I have been working on this week. I'm not sure if I mentioned it on my blog but I decided to start a new project. It is called Gentle Encounter from and old issue of Stoney Creek magazine.

Last week we got a letter from Devin. :) He is doing fine, a little homesick, but otherwise boot camp seems to be okay for him. I miss him terribly but it helps knowing he gets to come home for Christmas. I am counting the days down!!

Have a great week!

A Soccer Mom

I meant to get this posted yesterday but I didn't get a chance to which also means I didn't get a chance to do any stitching either. :(

Remember about a month ago I said I was done with sports practice until Spring. HA! I was wrong! Krissy and Allie decided to go out for soccer. While the season doesn't officially start until March they are in the "conditioning" season which means twice a week they meet for workouts/practice. I guess it is official.....I am a soccer mom now. Oh, and if that isn't enough to keep me running around Krissy has gotten her first real job. She will be bagging groceries at a local grocery store after school in the evenings.

I'm off to try and get a little stitching in tonight. :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

A Gift for Megan

Wow 2 posts in one day! I am starting to get a little scared of myself! lol Yesterday Megan received a wonderful package from Michelle. Michelle sent her this gorgeous pink sweater! I know she was concerned if the sweater would fit or not but I was pleased to tell her that if fits perfectly. :) I know Megan loves it because when I tried to take it off of her she started crying and as soon as I put it back on her she stopped and started smiling. I do believe that Megan is going to be a girly girl....which is fine with me as the other 2 girls were complete tomboys until they hit their teens. :)

Thank you so much Michelle!!!

After our little photo shoot today Megan was nice enough to take and extra long nap and let me stitch peacefully until the kids started rolling in from school. I was able to stitch a couple of the presents. If I can keep getting in the same amount of stitching in every day I would be done with the stocking within a week. Notice I said if .....I am not holding my breath on that one but it would be nice to have this one finished so I could move onto something different.

Have a great evening!!

A Stitching Update

I hope nobody has a heart attack but I actually have a stitching update! Saturday and Sunday I had my own SAT. :) I would have rather been at the hospital with my mom but Friday I started not feeling well so I had to stay away from the hospital. As you can see I am just about to the halfway point on Mine All Mine. Yay! However, due my non stop stitching I ran out of DMC 922 which just happens to be one of the main colors. Darn it....now that means a trip to Hobby Lobby. :)

My mom was released from the hospital on Sunday and is quite happy to be home in her own bed! I can't say I blame her those beds are never comfortable.

Have a great day!

A Crazy Week

It is hard to believe it finally Friday! It has been stress filled week for me. My mom had a triple by pass AND a heart valve replaced on Tuesday. The surgery took 6 hours but I did have some to divert my attention. Devin was sworn into the Army that same morning so I spent part of the time at the swearing in ceremony. It was a sad/happy occasion for me. I was sad to see him go but happy that he is doing something that he wants to be doing. I was worried I would fall completely apart but I managed not to become a pile of mush. :) I did get teary eyed as I gave him hugs good bye.

Devin being sworn in as a soldier of the Army.

As an official soldier of the Army. :)

Devin saying good bye to his baby sister.

As for my mom, she is recovering from surgery pretty good. She is extremely sore but is up and moving around slowly. :)

Also this week was parent teacher conferences for the girls. Krissy has a GPA of 4.125. She is taking 3 Honors classes this year. She had a total of 6 A's and 2 B's. :) Allie has a GPA of 3.875. She is also taking 2 Honors classes. She had a total of 5 A's and 3 B's. :) I am extremely proud of both girls!!

With everything going on this week I haven't been able to stitch much. :( I have decided to focus on Mike's Christmas stocking until I get it finished. I am only about 25% done so I really need to get my rear in gear and get it finished!

Have a great weekend!!

A Finish!

I finished the fob! Yippie!! I love this little fob because it goes so perfect with my scissors. :)

I definitely needed this little happy dance! I think it may have gotten my stitching mojo running again. :)

Happy Stitching!

Cheetah Scissor Fob

Okay, nobody faint but I actually finished a small design yesterday! It took me nearly a week and half to get it completed but the stitching is finally done. :) This is a freebie from Sharon at Cross Stitch Happy and the pattern can be found here.

My goal for the day is to finish this into a fob for me. :) Now, if I actually get it accomplished that is totally different story!

Have a great day!

24th Wedding Anniversary

Sunday we celebrated my in-laws 24th wedding anniversary. It was a pleasure to be able to celebrate this milestone with them. :)

As you can tell from these picture Megan was quite happy to have cake and ice cream. I know I am a bad mama for taking Megan's shirt off but that child WILL NOT leave a bib on and I really didn't feel like ruining a shirt. Besides I really don't think she minded too much...LOL.

Apparently, the cake was so good she had to rub it all in her hair!

It was so good she had to make sure she got every last bit of it!! :)

As for stitching.....there is none. As a matter of fact I haven't even been able to do anything craft wise lately. Sadly, I don't think I will get much done at least for another week or so. My step son leaves for the Army and my mom will be having open heart surgery.....all on the same day!! I hope by the time it is all over I will have just a little bit of hair left on my head.

Today will probably be another non stitching day for me as I have to take Mac to the doctor this afternoon to get some booster shots. Then I get to fly to the girls' school pick them up and then come home and make supper. By the time supper is done, kitchen cleaned, it will be time for Megan's bath and bedtime for her. If I could just squeeze in an extra hour or two in the day I might be able to get everything done and still have time to stitch!

I want to thank every one who has been leaving me comments lately because I have been a terrible commenter myself. It is nice to know that a few people still actually read my ramblings.:) Thank you!!

Have a wonderful day!

Homecoming Dance 2009

Saturday evening was the Homecoming dance for my 2 oldest girls. Seriously, am I old enough to have 2 girls going to Homecoming?!

Allie and Krissy

Allie and Krissy

Allie and Kyle

Krissy's corsage

Allie's corsage

Both girls had a great time at the dance or at least that is what I was told. It must have been true because they both fell asleep almost immediately after they got home from the dance!

An Award

This post is WAY long over due!! Mary from Mary's Craft Nook gave me this award a couple of weeks ago but things have been crazy for us and I haven't gotten a chance to even breathe!

The rules of the "One Lovely Blog Award" are accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

1. Babs-Borduurmeisje

2. Bev-My Wee Stitchy Blog

3. Cindy Mae-CindyMae's Stitching Korner

4. Jackie-Jackie's Stitches

5. Juls-A Fairy Princess Dreams and Stitches

6. Lula-Made By Me

7. Maren-Stitchery Doo's Blog

8. Mae da Rita-e so o que sou agora

9. Wendy-BorduuSter

10. Chiara-Chiara's Loft

11. Chiloe-Chiloe's Corner

12. Dee-Tangled up in Sticks and String

13. Jenni-The Foster Family

14. Shel-Stash of Sanity

15. Renee-Incoherent Scribblings

**Not all these blogs are new to me but all the same, they are very lovely to me!

No More Softball

Softball season is officially over! No more games or practices to go to! :) Actually, it is a little sad as I enjoyed watching the games but I am not going to miss the cold weather and cold bleachers. I still think it is crazy to play softball in the fall. In the good old days (you know when I was a teenager...lol) we played in the summer and never had to worry about it being cold.

Hopefully, now that I will have a little more free time (at least till spring) I am hoping to get more stitching done. I finally started on Mike's stocking this week. I'm not sure if I will post picture of this one since I have done it twice already. However, my plan is to work on Mine All Mine for a day or two and then switch to QS Fairy Tales for a day or two. That is my plan, now, if I actually stick to it, that remains to be seen. LOL

Needle Roll Finish

It was a pretty quiet day around here today so I managed to finish Pine Needle Roll into an actual needle roll. This one turned out a little skinny for my liking but that is what happens when I use the fabric that came with the kit. Oh well, it still looks good to me. :)

I hope everyone is having a good stitching evening!

Little Stitching, Lots of Games

I didn't get a lot of stitching done this past week because it was a blur of softball games, concessions stand food, and lots of shivering! Thursday and Friday's games were miserable for everyone. It was terribly chilly, windy, and rainy. Normally, I love that kind of weather but not when my butt is on a frozen, wet bleacher. Thankfully the end of the season is basically next week. There last home game is Tuesday and then it is off to Lincoln for districts at the end of the week. State games are the week after that but it all depends on how well the girls do at District games.

My HAED wasn't calling to me this week so I started and finished a small design from Sheperd's Bush. It is called Pine Needle Roll. I have started finishing it into a needle roll. All was going fine until it came to doing the hem stitching. This is one stitch I can't seem to do automatically which means I really have to pay attention to what I am doing or I end up messing up. Which I did no less than 4 times tonight! So, I have put it away, and hopefully tomorrow things will go a little smoother for me. :)

Pine Needle Roll

from Sheperd's Busch

Have a great night!

Page 4 Done!

The day started out so great yesterday morning when I(finally!) finished page 4 on QS Fairy Tales minus 8 little stitches of 3773. However, I corrected that today by running past Hobby Lobby today and bought some DMC flosses. I was going to start on something new once I finished page 4 but I decided to keep working on this HAED while I still have the mojo for over one stitching. Page 5 seems like it will be a quicker stitch....not as much confetti stitching on this page! :)

I want to thank everyone for the birthday wishes for Megan. She had a great day getting lots of new toys and clothes.

Have a great day!

One Year Ago.....

It is hard to believe that one year ago today Megan arrived in our family, even if it was 7 weeks early. You started out only weighing 3 pounds and 15 inches long. Well now look at you! You are 22 pounds and 28 inches long!

Happy 1st Birthday Megan!

I haven't been posting lately because I have been busy watching 6 (yes 6!) softball games for the past 3 evenings! The bright side is no more games until Monday. :) Of course next week I have to go and watch at least 6 more games, more if varsity wins at the tournament on Friday/Saturday.

Krissy batting which was a line drive to center field. :)

I have been able to sneak in some stitching during the days so I am slowly making progress on QS Fairy Tales. I am really hoping to be able to finish page 4 this weekend. Then I would able to start Mine All Mine (again) on Monday.

Have a great night! :)

Fall is Here!!

It is officially Fall today! Yippie!! With Fall arriving that means snow will be here soon. :) Oh I am sure after the first snow I will be complaining it is too cold to go outside but for now I can't wait to see the first snowfall of the season. :)

I had a small surprise waiting for me in the mail yesterday. :) Anne S. sent me a bunch of hoops and this gorgeous hand made fob!

I even had a pair of my favorite scissors that just happened to need a fob. :) Thank you so much Anne!!!

Along with the fob Anne sent me a bunch of hoops for me to use. As you all probably know, I am a hoop stitching kind of girl. I have tried scrolls and free hand but hoops work the best for me. With all the new hoops, I now need to make a stash dive and see what projects that are screaming for me to start. One design pops to mind immediately. Gentle Encounter by Stoney Creek.....but the nagging voice in the back of my head reminds me I need to start on Mike and Devin's stockings.

I worked on my HAED yesterday and I am getting close to finishing the page(page 4 I think). Finishing a page on a HAED is like a mini happy dance because it takes me sooo long to finish a page.

Speaking of stitching....that is what I am headed off to due for a bit while Megan is somewhat calm. :)

Happy Stitching!!

Quiet Weekend

It has been a fairy quiet weekend for us. Krissy had 2 softball games yesterday but I didn't go to that one as it was over an hour away and I honestly didn't feel like trying to keep a baby entertained for 2 hours of driving and 3 hours of softball. So instead, Megan, Mac, Allie and I hung out around the house for the day. This meant I was able to get some nice progress on QS Fairy Tales. :)

Today has been a pretty relaxing day. I haven't even gotten in my van once today! :) However, most of the day has been spent chasing after Megan. She has become quiet the little Houdini in figuring out how to get around barricades. It is hard to believe that she will turn 1 year old in a week!

I hope everyone is having a nice relaxing weekend!

From Baby to Toddler

Yesterday I watched my baby emerge from baby to a toddler. :) Little Megan took her very first steps unassisted! Unfortunately I did not even have my camera ready for it. :( Mike was putting his shoes on to leave for work and Megan started fussing (she knows putting on shoes means going someone is leaving) and I looked at her and told her to walk on over to daddy......and she did! I am not sure who was more surprised us or Megan. LOL. By the end of the evening she was taking 2 steps before falling down. We are so in for it now!

My butt fell asleep again tonight sitting on the bleachers cheering for Krissy and her team. JV lost but Varsity kicked butt! It looks like the 2nd week in October will probably be the last of the games. Whew....at least I will get a little break before Track seasons starts.

I didn't get to stitch any today but I did finish these 2 pieces this week.

Fraidy Frog

by Just Nan

Let it Snow

by Country Cottage Needleworks

Have a great night!

Wednesday

It is Wednesday. The only reason I know that it is Wednesday is Krissy has no softball games tonight! :D I am not kidding when I say my butt literally went numb last night sitting on the bleachers. I really need to invest in one of them bleacher chairs.

I have been stitching on QS Fairy Tales when I have had a spare moment which has been very often lately. At the rate I am getting this one stitched up I will be lucky if i get it finished before 2010! (I am not even at the halfway point yet !)

I hope everyone is having a great week so far!

Fraidy Frog

I am so glad it is the weekend! It has been a hectic week as Megan has developed her first cold. Which means nothing is making her happy. :( I have had to put her in the van and drive her to sleep for the past few nights! Can we say spoiled little girl? LOL

If that Megan being sick wasn't bad enough I caught her dang cold! I woke up this morning not even wanting to get out of bed but I had to because Krissy had a softball game EARLY this morning. I had to have her at the field by 6:50 AM to get warmed up for the game at 8:00 AM. At least I get tomorrow off from games. :) Next week Krissy has games, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.....I swear when the season is over I am parking my van and not going anywhere for a week!

You probably guessed that I didn't get much stitching done this week and you are right. It took me nearly a week to finish this small design from the JCS Halloween issue by Just Nan. I still have to stitch the back square and do some personalization. I think this one might be a surprise gift for a friend....that is if I get finished in time for Halloween!

Fraidy Frog

by Just Nan

I have no plans for the rest of the day other than attempting to take a nap when Megan takes her nap.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Housework Never Killed.....

Today was the first day I was able to pick up a needle since last week but I wasn't as productive as I had hoped I would be. I first started out working on my HAED design but I quickly got frustrated with working over 1 so I put it away. Then I decided I would work on something from the WTF pile. I came up with finishing Housework Never Killed Anyone. The finishing went fairly smoothly and here is my result.....

Housework never Killed Anyone

by Lizze*Kate

stitched 2/1 on 25 count fabric

After I finished Housework I decided I would stitch an ornament from the JCS Ornament Issue. However, only after I finished the outside square did I realize I was off by 2 rows of stitches. Problem was I didn't realize I was off until I was just about halfway done so I ended up ripping out most of what I stitched today. *sigh* Guess it just wasn't my day for stitching.

Happy Stitching!

My Children

What a great weekend it has been for us! I have a little explaining to do before I continue with my news. Before Mike and I got together he had a son (Devin) with another woman. I haven't said anything about him before because the last time I/we saw him he was 2 years old......That was until today. :D

L to R

Devin, Allie, Krissy, Mac.....Megan was zonked out.

All of us are thrilled beyond thrilled to have Devin back in our lives. The girls are tickled to death that they have an older brother to pester. Mac is happy also because he can teach him all those dangerous tricks on bicycles and skateboards.

As you can guess with all the commotion going on around here I haven't had much time to stitch. I'm not sure if I will get to stitch tomorrow or not. We have plans on taking all the kids over to the in-laws for dinner.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Rain with Attitude

I love days like today! It is cool and raining (just a nice steady rain no T-storms) which means I stayed indoors and stitched. :) I made it to HL yesterday to buy the colors I needed so I was able to finish Rain with Attitude this morning. :) I absolutely love how this design turned out!!

Rain With Attitude

by Stoney Creek

Start-August 2, 2009

End September 3, 2009

Fibers-DMC

Fabric- 28 count hand dyed with tea

I will probably just work on my HAED for a bit before I start anything new. I need to get started on Mike's stocking (Mine All Mine) but I am procrastinating as long as I can because this will make the 3rd time I have stitched this pattern.

That pretty much sums up my day so far. :) I hope everyone has a great day...rain or shine!

Packer Softball

I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday but by the time we got home from Krissy's softball game I was just too tired to do anything that required concentration and that included stitching! At first I didn't think I was ever going to make it to Krissy's game. In the process of trying to make sure I had everything I needed for the game (extra bottles, blankets, etc) Megan decided to dump the dogs' water bowl over the top of her head! Grrr....I had just gotten her dressed and now I had to do it all over again. Oh yeah and she is in the stage when you take a piece of clothing off her that means for her to move as fast as she can to get away from you.

We finally got everything packed in the mini van along with us and head off towards the ball field. I found the school no problem it was the darn softball field that took me 45 minutes to find! I even stopped at the football game and asked for directions and nobody could tell me how to get to it. They just kept pointing in a direction saying it was off that way. Ugghhh!!!!! It would have helped if they had told me it was behind the soccer field instead of pointing in a general direction. I finally made it there and luckily I didn't miss much of the game because the bus picked the girls' up late, making them late for their own game.

Krissy 1st base for JV

Varsity Line up

Today is free from softball games but it picks right back up tomorrow afternoon with a JV game(if it doesn't get rained out), another JV and Varsity game on Friday night, and another Varsity game Saturday morning....at 9:00 AM. That early in the morning and me trying to find a ball field could be an interesting trip!

My plans for today are to head off to Hobby Lobby when Megan wakes up from her nap and then I am going to attempt to stitch my heart out on my snowman until it is time to pick Krissy up from ball practice tonight.

Have a great day!

Autumn is Near

Autumn is almost here! Yeah! The weather today was perfect fall weather. It was just chilly enough to lounge around in pants and a comfy sweatshirt. :) I have also spotted a few trees starting to turn colors. I guess you can't tell I love this time of year. :P

Today was a pretty quiet day which is good because I was able to do some stitching. As you can tell by the hold in the shovel I haven't had a chance to pick up that color. It is a good thing I waited because I ran out of 2 colors today. It wasn't a surprise I was just hoping I wouldn't run out. I am hoping to make it to Hobby Lobby some time Wednesday (that is the only day I won't be going to a softball game).

If I am able to make it to HL on Wednesday I definitely see a finish for me this weekend. :)

Happy Stitching!

Blue Angels

The past few days have been busy for us. Thursday Krissy had 2 softball games and Friday she had another game. Thankfully we get a small break and the girls' don't have a game until Tuesday.

Saturday was a busiest day of all. The kids and I went with my soon to be SIL and her son to see the Navy's Blue Angels perform. This makes the second time I have seen them perform and I am in complete awe of these very talented people. Most of my amazement comes from the fact I am scared of heights so it amazes me that not only do they get in a plane willingly but they also do tricks willingly. I swear just watching them come flying towards the ground at that rate makes my stomach jump up in my throat!

Here are a few of the pictures I took....

Look close at this one......one plane is flying right side up and the other is upside down! Amazing!!






Notice how close the top two planes are?

We took it easy today and just lounged around the house which meant I was able to get some stitching done on my snowman. I only have one page left to stitch and I will be happy dancing. :) I will try and post a picture of my progress tomorrow sometime.

Have a good night!