My Poor Blog!

I can't believe I haven't posted in so long! One of my New Year's resolutions is definitely going to be to return to Blogdom!

Happy Halloween!

BOO!

Oh we stamp and crush through the underbrush!

The elephants were back at Pete's Pond this morning. I heard a bunch of splashing and looked up to see two little ones rolling around in the water, having themselves a great time. They were so amazingly cute! Not the best shot here, but that's one of them laying in the water. When it was time to go a big, leader-type male elephant stood away from the pond, facing the trail, and waited while the rest of them gathered around. They started down the path, stopped for a moment to blow dirt on their backs, then lumbered off together. I seriously <3 me some elephants!

Home again, home again...

It been a loooooooooong week for for me. My mom called a couple of weeks ago to let me know her latest PET scan wasn't good so my brother and I got together and coordinated a trip down to visit her and my dad in Florida. I wanted my kids to be able to see her, too, so flying there was out of the question. We just don't have that kind of money. It's a 1200 mile trip so I split the drive over two days, spending the night some place in Mississippi. I think the hotel was next to a drag strip but we were so exhausted it didn't faze us a bit. We got to my parent's house in Lakeland around 7:00 pm the next day. We stayed for three days, just hanging out and watching the World Series playoff games on TV. My mom is a HUGE Tigers fan so that's our team. We headed back home Tuesday, stopping for the night near Hammond, LA and finishing up the drive yesterday. Let me tell you, it's good to be home!

It's traditional for us to put together a jigsaw puzzle when we visit my parents so here's the crew with our completed puzzle. I can't say I was much help with this one! From left to right is my mom, Tammey (sister-in-law), Evan (son), Sarah (daughter), and Steve (my older brother). If you look close you'll see my two nephews and other brother in the photos on the end table.

My dad got us all hooked on Pete's Pond so check it out! If you're patient you might get so see some interesting critters. We saw a herd of elephants there this morning, and we've seen monkeys and lions, too. Not at the same time, thankfully!

SBQ

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Vash and is:

Which way do you stitch, i.e. do you stitch /// followed by \\\ on top, or the other way around \\\ followed by ///? Are you left- or right-handed and do you think that this affects the way that you stitch?

I taught myself to stitch and it just felt natural for me to go \\\ first and cross my stitches going ///. I use my right hand for the big things like writing and throwing and whatnot, but I also use my left for quite a few things, too. I know I stitch the opposite way from most people, so I was always hesitant to participate in round robins because of this. As I became better acquainted with the online stitching community I learned that it wasn't such a huge issue, there were many ways to stitch and no one method was "correct" as long as all your top stitches were going in the same direction. The only time I have switched the way I stitch was when I participated in stitching a baby afghan for an online friend. We were repeating several patterns for the afghan squares and I wanted my section to match everyone else's. :-)

I know it's October when...

My favorite flavor of Blue Bell returns!

MMMMMMM!!!

SBQ

Today’s SBQ was suggested by Sharon and is:

When you find yourself making a lot of mistakes in various stitching projects do you find it better to muddle your way through or do you take a brief break from stitching? If you do take a break, how long do you take?

I hate stitching mistakes! The figuring out where I went wrong, the ripping out, the re-stitching! I count and re-count so many times when I'm working on a piece that I honestly make very few mistakes. When I do, I always get myself back on track and keep stitching. If I take a break it is usually a brief one right after I've discovered the mistake so I can work out my frustration doing something else, like washing dishes or sweeping the back patio. I think my kids have learned that if I'm out back with the broom it's probably not a good sign. :-)

We're back from El Paso!

Whew! What a drive that was! There is pretty much a long stretch of nothing once you get past Sweetwater, which is not even halfway. We saw a lot of cactus, cotton fields, yucca plants, and those oil pump things that look like big drinking birds. I always feel sorry for the ones that aren't running anymore. They look so sad to me. We got to see a beautiful sunset on the way back. Of course, I saw it in my rearview mirror, but still... gorgeous! We forgot the camera, but this gives you an idea.

Ooooh... a nice surprise in my mailbox! The kit of the month I ordered from Shakespeare's Peddler! I couldn't resist those fall colors and I fell in love with the verse... "Come said the wind to the leaves one day, come o'er the meadows and we will play. Put on your coats of scarlet and gold, for autumn is here and days grow cold".

I didn't get to do my monthly Christmas stitching on the 25th, so I did the time warp dance and worked on my fir tree yesterday. It's not far from being finished but I'm not gonna cheat anymore this month. There's so many yummy fall projects I want to do! They finally had some nice pumpkins at the grocery store today so I snatched one up before all the good ones were gone. Although, I know as it gets closer to Halloween I'll feel sorry for the rejected pumpkins and end up buying one. And naming it. Is there help for people like me?

Monster Mash Time!

Frank is finished! Attaching the spider button was a nightmare (Frankenstein... nightmare... hehe!) and his legs came out a little stubby, but that will just keep him from scurrying off!

Taking DS1 to Ft. Bliss in El Paso tomorrow. It's a 9-10 drive but that's 9-10 more hours I get to spend with my son! We're doing laundry and getting him packed. It's gonna be soooo quiet around here with him gone. :-(

Lizard Friend

This little critter decided to hang out with us while we were doing yard work today. I spent part of my childhood in Florida and my brothers and I used to catch these guys and keep them in coffee cans. To this day the smell of ground coffee makes me think of lizards! A strange association but it always makes me smile! :-)

The last couple of mornings here have been a little on the chilly side. I love snuggling back into bed with a cup of coffee! This morning I made some mini banana nut muffins for the kids. They smell so good! Wait a minute! Is that the 2006 Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament issue?? Yes, it is! DS1 and I were out running errands and doing a little shopping yesterday and I popped into Barnes and Noble to check for it. I was soooo happy when I found it hidden between some scrapbooking magazines! I snatched one up with a clearly audible "YES!" This got raised eyebrows from a fellow sitting close by, but he had a lapful of hunting magazines so I gave him my best to-each-his-own look and skipped off to the check out! Wheee!! Christmas ornies!!

Wow! I've been so busy lately I haven't had much time for stitching or posting. Here is what I've been working on over the past couple of weeks when I've had a chance to pick up a needle. Frank seems pleased with his new hairstyle, don't you think? I still have the backstitching to do, and then rest of the border, plus the spider button to figure out. I was hoping to get to it this evening but DD wanted my help listing some things on Ebay and before I knew it, it was 11:00 pm. My list of things to do tomorrow is a bit shorter so I might just start my day with some stitching. :-)

I got so frustrated this morning trying to find a chart I knew I had, that I decided I needed to do something about my lack of organization. So I pulled out anything and everything that contained a chart or kit or half finished project and started sorting through all of it.





What a mess! Where is that chart?





It took me a couple of hours, but my bits and pieces are back where they should be. I now have a relatively well organized "to do" basket filled with my current projects and a few others I hope to get to soon. All of my kits are in one box, and the rest of my charts have been sorted into folders and stashed in a nifty plastic filing box. I ended up with a pretty big stack of things I no longer want so I'm planning to auction them on Ebay. Best of all, I found the chart I was looking for! :-)

Labor Daybor

Woke up to a drizzle that continued the entire day. While I'm grateful to finally be getting some rain here, why does it always happen on the one day of the week I'm allowed to water? Grumble!


We had a nice Labor Day supper, nothing fancy. BBQ ribs, hot dogs, corn on the cob, and pasta salad. I think the rain put us all in a lazy mood!




Hmmm... is it too late for September goals? I still need to work on those.

Rest In Peace

Steve Irwin

Feb. 22, 1962 - Sept. 4, 2006

I'm so excited it's finally September! Autumn is almost here and cooler temps are just around the corner! Hooray!

I noticed a lot of bloggers posting lists of what they would like to accomplish each month, which I think is an excellent idea. So I will work on my own list and post it later today. But first... coffee!

This Week's SBQ

This is my first time to post a response to an SBQ. Here we go...

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Carolyn and is:

How do you share your finished pieces with others? Do you frame them, scan and/or photograph them, or do you have another method that you would like to share?

So far I have just been taking pictures of my recent finishes and posting them here on my blog to share. I would like to someday have an online photo gallery with photos of all my past finishes, but for the time being the blog keeps me happy. In the real world, I have several of my finished pieces displayed around the house. Some are framed but I also have a few pillows and hanging doodads here and there. I wish I was better at actually finishing my finished pieces so I could display more. :-)

It's Raining Cats and Dogs!

Literally! We've had quite a dry spell here in North Texas this summer, but today it is finally raining! We all stood outside and watched it pouring down. Then it got boring so we went back in. :-)

Anyway, this is one of those fun SamSarah designs using some wonderful Watercolours. I can't tell you how much I love overdyed fibers! I've had this puppy (haha!) nearly finished for ages, but I wasn't satisfied with the way the cloud turned out. So last night I endured a frogging session and today while it was raining I restitched it. It looks 100% better this time! The only thing missing now are the buttons, which I'm absolutely positive I bought... I think...

Mississippi Memories

I've been working on this old relic while trying to decide what to start next. What I need to be doing is going through my stash and deciding what stays and what goes. If I'm not in the right frame of mind when I do it, then I'll end up keeping way too much. Sigh.

In other news, DS1 is home on leave. The noise level in the house has quadrupled. I imagine the grocery bill is next.

The Little Fir Tree

One of the fun things we did waaaaay back when I was a CompuServe stitching "CISter" was designate the 25th of every month as a day for holiday stitching. Today being the 25th, I decided to resurrect that old tradition and work on something Christmas-y. This is yet another Secret Needle Night kit (one of these days I might actually run out of them!) called The Little Fir Tree. I'm at a good stopping point on it so... until next month, little tree! :-)

All Done!

I'm really pleased with the way this came out. Okay, I'm not 100% happy with where I put the buttons, but I can still play around with them. I'm going to have to schedule a finishing day soon, now that I'm an expert triangle stand-up thingie maker! :-)

I finally got started on adding the beads to this one. I was hoping to finish it tonight but my daughter brought home Fargo, which is one of my favorite movies, so the beads will have to wait! I did get the sun completed and I must say it looks fabulous!

I needed a project today, so I decided to make a test of one of those triangle stand-up thingies before I make one for real. My "guinea pig" was something I stitched a million years ago when I first started cross stitching. It's really not my taste anymore, and not something I would care about if I totally screwed it up. The whole thing probably took me two hours to put together, which I think is a bit long but there was a lot of sewing involved and I'm not as adept with a sharp needle as I am with the tapestry kind. I had to pull it out of my thumb on several occasions. Ouch! I made a few mistakes but overall I think my trial was a success. Most of my goofs could be concealed by some trim if I wanted to go that far and add it. I learned a few things, and I'll definitely feel more confident when I make the next one.

Summer Suits Me

Almost done with this one. I love the way the sun turned out, all shiny! I still need to add the beads and buttons but I'm not in the mood for a tiny needle.

Another Finish!

Happy Everything!! Isn't it cute?!?! Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to do with this one!

Two New Projects

Between work and other things this weekend, I didn't have much time for stitching, but I did manage to start two new projects. Go figure! First we have Summer Suits Me, the new Secret Needle Night kit. It's done in Fyrewerks metallics on a sparkly tula, plus there's beads and buttons galore.

The other project I started is a little tuck pillow kit from Pine Mountain called Happy Everything. I love stitching these because they're so quick and easy, and when you're done you just stick it in the pillow and VOILA!

Short, Stout, and Finished!

I had myself a stitching holiday today and now I'm all done with the teapot! I forgot to iron it before I attached the buttons, so I'll be re-doing those. No finishing kit yet, but my son is camping the mailbox for me.

What did arrive today is the new Secret Needle Night kit for August. It looks like it should stitch up really quick. I love the little fish buttons! Looks like this one is going in the To Do pile. :-)

MMMMMMM...

Monkey bread! We only had one can of biscuits so it's a little on the small side, but it was still plenty. And very yummy with my coffee this morning. We used cinnamon biscuits so it was extra tasty. :-)

No work today! Yay!

Woohoo! Got the handle finished last night! It looks nice and rope-y. After the spout is done there won't be much left! I'm excited to have this one almost finished!! I'm already thinking about what project to tackle next. :-)

The Daily Update

Still plugging away on the lighthouse teapot. I'd like to get the handle done today and maybe start on the spout. That way it will start to look more like a teapot. :-)

I ordered the finishing kit for it yesterday. It'll be one of those triangle stand-up thingies. I've never made one before so it will be a learning experience, I'm sure.

My First Project

The cross stitch bug first bit me back in 1985 when I saw a co-worker stitching during her lunch break. She took me to the nearest Michael's and showed me where the floss and fabrics were, and let me borrow a book of charts. I was pregnant with my first son at the time, so I decided I'd stitch something for him. I taught myself to stitch between all the feedings and changings and baths and 2am baby bouncing marathons. It's a wonder this one was ever finished! :-)




Today my son is a soldier in the US Army. He's currently at Ft. Lee in Virginia for his AIT, and will be heading to Ft. Bliss in El Paso next.

Lighthouse Teapot Part 3

I wasn't able to get much done yesterday, despite having the day off. Too many distractions, plus I really wasn't in the mood for stitching. We'll see what I can get done after work tonight.

It's hard to believe it's August already. It'll be time to pull out all my fall projects soon. :-)

Lighthouse Teapot Progress

My progress as of 7-31. I don't have to work today so I should have time to work on it some more. :-)

Lighthouse Teapot

This is my current work-in-progress. It's the June Secret Needle Night kit from the Silver Needle. I've been receiving the kits for almost a year now, but this is only the second one I have actually stitched. I have some catching up to do. :-)