Of Needlework and Such

I'm Still Alive!

2010-06-23T14:08:00.001-05:00

I have been without a computer since the middle of January and only have limited time at the library on the public computers. So I am still alive but without technology! I am sorry to say that I am not stitching much right now either...have some home projects that have taken priority. But as soon as I can, I hope to start blogging again!

I'm On The Edge

2010-01-03T21:33:00.003-06:00

Well, not exactly on the edge, but too close to it.

I ended up starting my project that I had decided not to start after all on New Year's Night. Last night, I had time to sit and stitch on it for 3 hours. And at the end of that time, I realized that the left hand side is only about an inch and a half away from the edge of the fabric. I always leave 3 inches all the way around, so I'm not sure how this happened. I got frustrated and went to bed.

After thinking about it and looking at it a few times today, I think I'm going to start it over on a darker fabric this time. I could spend time pulling the stitches out and saving the entire piece of fabric that it's on now, but since it is on 28 ct and I use a #24 needle, it may not look very good if I do that. I'm just going to cut off the messed up part and use the rest of the fabric for something else. But it's getting late to be starting anything new tonight, so I will wait until tomorrow to tackle it.

The piece is called Raise A Glass Of Cheer by Blackbird Designs. I love it! I hope that 2010 will be a better year for me than the last 3-4 have been, so I'm doing this one in anticipation of that...

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T22:44:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year!

I spent last night and today doing some of my favorite things...watching tv and stitching. Last night I watched Four Christmases and A Dog Named Christmas. One was really funny, and one was really touching. I had read the book A Dog Named Christmas last year, and as far as I remember the movie was pretty close to the book. I hate when they change the book up for the movie. Today I have been stitching and watching a Law and Order: SVU marathon on USA.

I had planned to start a new project, but I'm working on some Christmas ornaments that I really wanted to get done this season, and so I kept working on them. I think this will be a year when I try to get some WIPs finished up. There are several that I am going to work on as soon as my ornament binge is over. I have done several ornaments and what will be pinkeeps during this holiday season...I'll have to get pictures posted soon!

I hope everyone has a wonderful 2010!

My Christmas Presents

2009-12-25T00:51:00.004-06:00

Wednesday was the day for nice Christmas presents it seems. I ate dinner with three of my closest friends and got not one but two gift certificates to my LNS! We had a nice dinner and it was great to just be able to spend some time with them.

But my greatest gift came earlier that day, when I met with the regional manager and was offered the job that I had written about earlier! I start January 4th, and I'm really looking forward to it.

Thanks for all the good thoughts and good wishes...it finally paid off! LOL

Merry Christmas...and God bless us everyone!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-20T14:27:00.002-06:00

Merry Christmas from me and my furry little family!

Belated Blogaversary To Me

2009-10-11T11:51:00.003-05:00

No, I have not fallen off of the face of the earth...LOL

Yesterday was the anniversary of my blog...1 year! Does it still count if I really only wrote for about half of that time? :) My life got busy and it impacted everything.

About the time of my last post, I started a new job after almost 2 years of not working. It was with an agency that does school-based therapy (I'm a mental health therapist...not to be confused with just being a mental therapist LOL) and since the school year was almost over, I got to start at the beginning of the summer program the agency does for the kids to ensure that they keep receiving the services that they need until school starts again. I thought I was going to die by the end of the summer! I am the kind of person who goes inside in late April and doesn't come back out until October or so. Not this year! We went swimming every Monday afternoon, and every other Thursday we went to a local water park for the afternoon. I am not supposed to be exposed to direct sunlight due to one of the medications I am taking, so I stayed sunburned for a good part of the summer. Despite all of that, it really was kind of fun. I came home so tired from the heat and the kids that I didn't get to stitch much, and my blogging and blog reading suffered for it.

Well, as of about 2 weeks ago, I am once again unemployed. I was still in that initial probationary period, and they decided that "it wasn't a good fit" for me. I think that means 2 things really...one is that the director is one of those people who is kind of fake and I'm one of those people who is definitely real and I don't think she liked that, and the other reason is that the hospital that the agency is affiliated with is cutting staff and since I was one of the highest paid therapists (due to my 15+ years of experience)...

I was really hurt by all of that because I really liked the job. I had a really good interview on Tuesday of this past week for another agency and I'm am hopeful about that. This agency does not have much in the way of benefits, but it does pay better so I'm hoping things will even out in the end. The guy who interviewed me said that there has been talk about putting together a benefits package and offering it but that this is not something that will happen anytime soon. The hours are much more flexible but it's a contract job where you are paid by the billable hour instead of by salary and I have never done that before. I have been thinking about it and there are a lot of positives so I guess I'll wait and see what happens. Keep good thoughts for me.

I have had time to start stitching again though. I am currently stitching Midnight Watch by Blackbird Designs and also a small freebie that I got from The Sampler Girl's blog a while back called Quaker Boo. Autumn is my favorite season, and for some reason I'm into Halloween this year as well. I always like it for the memories of my childhood and just for the spirit (no pun intended) of it all, but this year I'm into stitching Halloween designs as well. I also have a larger fall piece started that I will get back to by the end of the month and then in late November it's time to start stitching Christmas stuff...my favorite favorite season!

I hope to do better about writing here and reading the blogs that I follow...I do go catch up on them periodically but I rarely have time to comment.

So hopefully...I'm baaaack!

Question For Other Blogspot Users

2009-05-09T12:21:00.002-05:00

Blogspot is really messing with my OCD! Does anyone know why it seems to randomly changing the spacing in posts and how to set the spacing you want? For example, my posts are usually single spaced, but then suddenly they will seem to be spaced at double spacing or more frequently, one and a half spacing (between single and double spacing). This is driving me crazy! Help me fix it!

The only pattern I can see to it is that after you insert a picture, everything after that picture will be spaced wrong.

ANY ideas?!?

Some Pictures

2009-05-09T11:23:00.000-05:00

I am so behind in writing! I have had lots of stuff going on, and hopefully I'll have time to update things shortly...

Meanwhile, here are some pictures of recent finishes.

Irish Coffee by The Sampler Girl:

Hippity Hoppity by SanMan from their newsletter:

Bunny Tuck by SanMan:

I bought the fabric this one is stitched on from a remnant basket at my LNS and then found that it was just perfect for this!

I have some other pieces that I am just about finished with (some only need charms sewn on, etc) so look for more pics coming soon!

Happy Gotcha Day Rose!

2009-04-21T22:15:00.001-05:00

I can't believe that it's been 8 years since I got my darling Rose!!! Daisy had gotten sick and had to be at the vet's all day. I went to pick her up, and being Daisy, she would not let anyone reach into her cage for her. They asked me to come back and get her, and on the way, I passed a cage with Rosie in it. She looked amazingly like my dog who had died about a year previously, and although I thought about it a week, I went back for her. I had been looking for a playmate for Daisy, and this dog needed a home (the vet had been keeping her for the city animal control since they were out of space there) and the rest was history. I remember going to meet her for the first time on Saturday after considering it for a week, and when I sat down on the floor of the vet's office, she crawled into my lap and sighed. That was it. I guess it really wasn't unexpected, since I had bought a collar and leash to take with me! LOL

I love you with all my heart, Rose. Thank you for 8 wonderful years, and here's looking for many more!

A Dog-gone Good Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-11T22:53:00.000-05:00

I have not been posting due to issues with my computer...I can be typing along, and suddenly the cursor moves to another line or part of the page for no apparent good reason. That was irritating enough and then the monitor on the laptop went out. So I now have a laptop with a screwy cursor that makes it hard to type AND I have it hooked to an external monitor that won't sit in front of the laptop so I have to keep turning around to see where the cursor went next. Sigh. The next time I have disposable income, I'm going to replace this stupid system.

However, today was just too good not to write about! An animal rescue organization here did their Fourth Ever Dog-gone Easter Egg Hunt. This involved the "hiding"of 3000 treat-filled eggs in a local park. Then, when the organizer yelled "Go!", a pack of dogs went running for the treat-filled eggs. This was the most fun I've had in a long time.

My friend Cathy and I had planned to go; I sent an email to my friend David (he of the Christmas photos fame) earlier in the week, but didn't hear from him and really didn't expect he'd want to go. The Christmas photo excursion is about all the dog fun he needs for the year. So Cathy and I decided to take Rudy, because he's great fun and would love to hunt out and eat eggs, and Rose, because she is such a sweet little soul that she can easily get overlooked in the shuffle and gets less time with me than the others because she acts out less and demands less. So I really wanted to do something fun for her. I thought she'd love to sniff out treats...heaven knows she loves to eat them. I felt really bad because Daisy would not get to go, but there was no way I could manage an extra dog. So when David called last night and said he was going too, I was really excited. He volunteered to take Daisy, who is not always friendly and who can be fear-aggressive at times. She used to hate him and would try to bite him every time she saw him, and then suddenly, for some reason known only to her, she became his best friend. She usually does well away from home turf though, so 3 humans with 3 dogs set out to get the eggs.

This is how the eggs were "hidden":

I had wanted to keep track of how many eggs each dog found, but we quickly lost count. Rudy had the best time of all. He found and ate one egg (the treat and was working on the egg itself) before the beginning of the hunt, and that only got him interested in getting more. He found about 7-10 I guess. I was trying to leave some for other dogs since there were big knots of people all in a similar area, but apparently I was one of the only ones to do this. The idea seemed to be like little kids - grab as many and as fast as you can! Cathy and Rose got about 10...she said that Rose was not really interested in looking for the eggs, but was really interested in the treat inside once it was opened for her. David and Daisy found about the same amount...I'm not sure how interested she was in finding the eggs either. I had really thought that since they both love to sniff things out that they would be into it.

They had plates of cookies out on tables with signs by the plate that said "These are dog cookies" or "These are human cookies". The dog cookies were so colorful and had been dipped in icing of some kind and looked so good that it was hard to tell the difference without the signs! There were buckets of dog treats of various kinds all over too. Before I had thought of it, David had started a collection for a "doggie bag" for Bosco, who did not get to go. He is untrained and undisciplined and an incredibly strong 75 lbs so he had to stay at home. I looked in our Easter basket at one point, and was surprised at what all David had collected for him! There were metal garbage cans filled with these decorated cookies, so we brought quite a few home...not to mention the treats from the eggs, and some kind of little drop cookies and something that looked just like Pepperidge Farm Chessman cookies.

There were contests for owner/dog look-alike (and the announcer said that you could pick whichever end of your dog that you wanted for the contest lol), an Easter parade for the dogs who were dressed up, and some other contests that we did not stay for. The dogs had a wonderful time sniffing new dogs and new people, and got lots of pets.

And Rose got her picture taken by a photographer who was covering the event for the local newspaper and has her picture on their website!

Speaking of photos...there was a wooden board with the Easter bunny painted on it, and the face was cut out so you could have your dog's picture made as the Easter bunny! I won't get the official ones until next week, and then I'll have to find a way to scan them in to post them, but in the meantime here are some that Cathy took while the photographer was taking the real ones...

Easter Rose:

Easter Daisy:

Easter Rudy:

This was so much FUN!

Sisterhood Award Revisited

2009-03-24T12:56:00.001-05:00

In my excitement of receiving an award, I forgot to post the picture of it in the post! LOL I added it to my sidebar, but completely forgot to post it too...

So here we go:

I'm Winning the Acadamy Awards of Blogging!

2009-03-24T12:34:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Jan at Belafonte Notes, I have been given another award! This one is the Kreativ Blogger award! I have to nominate 8 blogs this time, and fortunately I have seen this award before it was on some of the other blogs I read, so it whould be easier to do and not duplicate...

The Rules:

1. Copy the Kreativ Blogger Award into your blog

2. Make a link to the person's blog who nominated you.

3. Nominate eight (8) other blogs

4. Add their links to your blog

5. Leave a comment on the blogs that you nominated telling them that you have sent them an award.

And the award goes to:

Stay Kreativ!

Sisterhood Award

2009-03-22T13:04:00.000-05:00

I have not been posting because my computer is messed up and it is a challenge to get anything written with it. when I get some patience, I'll catch up on all the latest doings here.

Meanwhile, I want to thank Pam at My Stitchalong for the Sisterhood Award! When I put it in the sidebar, I noticed that my other award is not there! So I added it too.

So now I get to nominate 5 blogs! Here's how it works:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate 5 blogs which show great attitude and/or gratitude.
3. Be sure to link to your nominees in your post.
4. Let them know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received this award.

These are the blogs that I'm tagging with the award:

Rachel at What Looks Like Crazy On An Ordinary Day
Cathey at Pumpkin Patch and Co
Stephanie at Stephanie's Stitching and Musings
Paula at Paula's Stitching Place
Sharon at It's Daffycat

Ladies, I really enjoy all of your blogs!

Thank You Stephanie!

2009-03-04T22:37:00.001-06:00

Thank you to Stephanie who pointed out that the lovebird freebie is by Midsummer Night Designs. I knew that Blackbird Designs didn't look right when I typed it earlier!

A Finish and Some WIPs

2009-03-04T12:56:00.000-06:00

This is a freebie called Lovebird Freebie...I think is is by Blackbird Designs but I'm not sure:

This is Sense and Sensibility by The Sampler Girl. I love the fabric I am stitching this on, both the color and the feel of it while I am stitching, but I have run into a couple of dilemmas. In the house, the windows are supposed to be open. I'm not sure that it looks good on that color fabric though. I played with some cream colors, and finally settled on one to fill in the windows, thinking it would make them show up better. Tell me what you think! Another issue with this is the words "Sense and Sensibility" are in a gold color that don't really show up as well. I have another gold picked out and I may redo those. I don't know if you can see them with it still in the q-snap or not.

And this is my new March project! It was so windy and pretty here on March 1st that I decided to start Prairie Schooler's Daffodil Sampler from the leaflet Daffodils.

Belated Valentine's Greetings

2009-02-19T13:27:00.000-06:00

I hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day...I piled up on the bed with my 2 favorite guys (and my 2 favorite girls) and we watched tv and stitched. Not unlike every other day here. Anyway, here are some "heart-shaped" finishes...

This is The Trilogy's Secret Crush:

This is a Hob-Nobb Design called Hearts:

And this is a 2006 limited edition kit from JBW Designs called Simply Love...the stitching is to be mounted on the pillow with the buttons shown:

I am stitching a little Blackbird Designs complimentary chart called Lovebird Freebie, and then I think I'm going to get back to some of my WIPS...since I started stitching on my Sense and Sensibility piece a couple of weeks back, it has been on my mind...

Some Women Are Gluttons For Punishment, Or My Interpretation Of Jane Eyre Accompanied By WIP Photos

2009-02-04T21:19:00.001-06:00

I spent 4 hours today watching the BBC mini-series version of Jane Eyre starring Timothy Dalton. And it provoked lots of thought, let me tell you!

First of all, let me say that I was an English major for 2 of my 4 years at college. I started out as a psychology major, but changed it after the first year when I discovered a true love for literature. I had always excelled at English in high school, but this was a whole new world and I was ecstatic. For 2 years I was ecstatic until I realized that unless I did actually manage to marry and live happily ever after, I was likely to wait tables for the rest of my life. So my senior year, which was supposed to be all electives and a real blow-off year, I went back to psychology and finished all the degree requirements in that year. While my career has nothing to do with literature, it is still something I really like.

That being said, I sat down to watch Jane Eyre. I vaguely remembered the storyline...after so many of those period novels, and after the passage of 25 years (has it really been that long?!) things do become a little fuzzy in the mind...

If you are not familiar with the story of Jane Eyre and want to be here is a synopsis...mine that follows is a tad different.

So she goes to Rochester's house to be a governess to his ward and from the very first he is a jerk and talks to her worse than the servants. Somehow, she finds this charming, and despite being ridiculed, yelled at and talked down to, she falls in love with him. I can see how, him being such a prince and all (ahem). While she is living in this house and falling in love, she hears strange laughter from the 2nd floor and is not allowed to go up there. Red flag#1. Then in the night, someone sets fire to Rochester's bed with him in it. Coupled with the strange laughter, this should be a burning (no pun intended) red flag #2. He's evasive and won't answer any questions about it. Then a visitor goes to see someone on that upper floor and ends up torn up from bite marks while there. That is not only #3 but a most definite out...as in out of there. But no. Meanwhile, he is planning to marry some stuck-up witch from down the road and this just breaks her heart. I'd call it good fortune and a pair that deserve each other, but anyway. So after leading her to believe that he is in love with this beast Blanche while she (Jane) is proclaiming her love for him, he proposes to her instead and admits to just trying to make her fall more madly in love with him. Too bad that the burning bed thing didn't work out.

Apparently this is just good courtship, because in spite of the fact that he is not honest about his feelings and toys with hers, and there is maniacal laughter from the upper parts of the house, and he refuses to do anything about the person who tried to set his bed on fire, she is eager to marry him. I would not spend one night in that bed after it was set on fire and the pyromaniac is still lose in the house. But that's just me.

So the happy day arrives, and just in time to prevent the ceremony arrives an attorney to announce that Rochester is already married to someone named Bertha and cannot marry Jane. They all trudge back to the house and go in the upper room where his poor deranged wife is confined (except for when she is burning bedrooms of course) and she turns into a snarling animal at the sight of her husband...which actually may be an argument in favor of her sanity. Jane is so overcome that he flees the house. First sensible thing that she does. And the last.

She is taken in by 3 siblings who turn out to be her cousins who have just discovered that they have lost the inheritance they were expecting to another relative. Guess who the relative is? And because she is such a good person, she divides the inheritance - which was all hers- 4 ways so that they each are rich. Now, I'm all about family, but if I had just been through what she had been through, no way would I part with a cent of that money until I figured my life out. Jane is a good person, just somewhat misguided (or else I am mercenary, you decide).

So these cousins are living in harmony and doing well, and the male has decided to go overseas to be a missionary and wants her to come with him...as his wife. Hopefully they were not actually first cousins. I would not want to see the offspring of that. She is not in love however, and will not marry him.

Now, let's stop and consider a moment. Love has led her to almost make a bigamous marriage to a man who keeps his insane wife locked up in the upper reaches of his house (except of course when she escapes to try to kill him and tears hunks of flesh out of her own brother when he comes to visit) At some point on some of these country walks, she perhaps should have come to realize that her man-picker is broken. This new one has a quarter of her fortune and does not yell and as far as we know, is not married. I'd bet it all on that horse.

But while he is trying to convince her yet again, she gets a good case of the hallucinations and hears her beloved's voice and goes running out into the fields yelling "where are you?". A good answer would be in the nuthouse, but alas, this is not true. So she is inspired to go searching for him, and finds that his manor where he had lived with his wife and his wife-to-be has burned to the ground. Using all the clues we've uncovered so far, who do you think was the arsonist? Yep, Bertha the Batty, playing with fire. However, Rochester did try to run back into the blaze to save Bertha...she ended up running from him and jumping to her death. See how she may not be so insane after all? In the process he has lost his sight and one of his hands. He has moved to some little secluded place with only 2 servants. So she goes there to find him, and takes a tea tray into him in place of the female servant. Once he figures out who she is, he STILL raises his voice to her and talks badly to her.

This would have been it for me. I would have grabbed that tea tray in both hands, swung it and cracked him upside the head and told him he better adjust his tone. She, however, falls to kissing on him and professes her love.

AND SHE MARRIED HIM! After the fates and destinies gave her all those chances to get away!

The moral is that some women are gluttons for punishment.

I had decided to get out one of my (many) WIPs to work on called Sense and Sensibility. It seems to be an especially appropriate thing to stitch.

This I where I started:

And this is where I ended:

I think I'll watch Wuthering Heights next...Cathy and Heathcliff are crazy too if memory serves.

Recent finishes

2009-02-02T14:57:00.000-06:00

I have been away from my longer than I realized and certainly longer than I intended, but I do have something to show for it!

This is a Bent Creek special edition kit called Wish Upon A Flake. I have had it for years and years. It will have a stick attached with ribbon loops and buttons to the little tuck banner when it is finished. I also have not ironed and trimmed the fabric so that's why it looks so "puffy"!

This is Let It Snow from the JCS 2008 Ornament issue. Mine will probably get finished as a little decorative pillow instead of as an ornament.

This is an old Heart In Hand kit called Valentine's Day Roundabout. My patience was sorely tried doing those stupid satin stitches last night. Obviously it is fresh off of the hoop. Just so you know, I do iron my stuff...eventually.

My Blog Is Fabulous!

2009-02-02T14:08:00.000-06:00

I received this honor from Cathey:

I am supposed to award it to another 5 people who have fabulous blogs and then tell 5 things I am addicted to. So...

I am addicted to:

My dogs...they are my children and my family. I am an only child who has lost both parents and although I do have some aunts, uncles, and cousins, only 1 elderly aunt lives in the same area. I had a beagle for 17 yrs when I was growing up who was my best friend, so I guess I have always looked to dogs for companionship and comfort.
Books...again as an only child I fell in love with reading early on. I knew hw to read some when I started the first grade and was bored to death while the teacher put up these big posters for the group to read. There was a picture of a boy that said "Mike" and then 2 kids that said "Mike and Jeff" and then 3 kids that said "Mary, Mike, and Jeff" and we were supposed to remember what word was what. I looked at them and said who it was and was ready to move on to another poster, and everyone else was still struggling over Mike and Jeff. I have always loved to read, and my passion is historical fiction. Some historical romance, but mainly just historical fiction. Wonderful examples are Sharon Kay Penman and Diana Gabaldon. I'm still trying to get back to my Eleanor of Aquatine series by SKP.
Historical drama movies...I love "period pieces". I recently watched Braveheart for the first time and thought it was one of the best movies I have ever seen. I've been having a festival of movies and stitching lately.
My computer...I spend WAY too much time on here. I am either reading the message board at 123Stitch, playing games (especially at Pogo.com) or as my friend David puts it "reading the internet".
And last but far from least...my stitching of course. Since I have not been working for the past year, I have gotten back in the habit of lots of stitching. Hopefully this will continue once I do go back to work. In the past, I have had a very comfortable routine of working all day, and then coming home and settling in to stitch all evening. My idea of the perfect life!

And then the award goes to....

There are a couple of more that I think are great blogs but those people have already been awarded so I tried to find people who had not.

Thanks for the compliment Cathey!

Winter Welcome

2009-01-18T15:00:00.000-06:00

I've been busy! I have been stitching pretty steadily in the evening while working on the house during the day. Here's what I have accomplished!

This is Waxing Moon's Winter Welcome:

And this is Winter Welcome in the frame it will go in:

This is the frame that the model was framed in. I thought it was too cute!

Info on My 'Tis The Season Finish

2009-01-11T11:46:00.000-06:00

Thanks for the compliments! The thread for the scarf is Bethlehem by WDW. The fabric is Silkweavers 28 ct Brandywine lugana. If you want to see what it is supposed to look like: 'Tis The Season. As you can see from the description, it was supposed to be stitched in Belle Soie, but I couldn't afford to get those, and I really like the way it turned out.

Not that anyone asked, but I am pretty impressed with myself with the colors I picked, so I'm listing my color conversions. I did not try to pick things that exactly matched the Belle Soie although I did try that at first. I found colors I liked that worked together, and used those.

Belle Soie to Crescent Colors:
icing = khaki mocha
fresh raspberry = razzleberry
collard greens = English ivy
noir = Zach black
Chester's blue = deep sea blue
blue lagoon = blacksmith blue
carrot cake = fallen leaves
love dove = lunar eclipse

DMC:
318 = 646

The scarf on the snowman was supposed to be red and green, and the one on the cat was green (I think). Anyway, I had the WDW Bethlehem that I had used in one of my Christmas ornaments and I really liked the color, so I just used it instead. If I stitched it again, I would used a deeper grey or black for the mouse though. I wish he stood out a little darker so he was more noticeable.

Some Recent Finishes

2009-01-10T21:35:00.000-06:00

I spent some time earlier today sewing on charms, etc and now I have more finishes to show!

This is Snow Tuck by SanMan Originals:

This is Magic Hat by SanMan Originals (yes, I know there are hoop marks, but it will be an ornament and that part will be cut off):

This is Stockings Were Hung by SanMan Originals:

This is 'Tis The Season by Val's Stuff...I left off the words and changed the colors:

And this is tonight's finish hot of the qsnaps! It is Warm Hearts by The Trilogy:

Decisions, Decisions

2009-01-06T12:36:00.000-06:00

Well, I debated for a day or so, and finally decided to take out what I had done on Inspiration. Since that was not much, it was not really a big deal. What settled the matter was measuring. Although the piece of fabric...which is huge by the way...looks almost square, it should be slightly longer one way. So before I created a disaster, I decided to remeasure and make sure I was stitching the right way on the fabric. When I measured, I remembered that I had done a smart thing. Since this piece is large, I had decided to leave 4 inches all around instead of 3 inches. That meant I had an extra inch that would help the fabric stay in the qnap better. I tried to use 11 inch qsnaps but it's just too much to handle without my arm getting tired. This should be a joy to stitch, not a chore. So I went back to my 8 inch qsnaps. I started the border again last night, and it was SO much easier to stitch. I really enjoyed it. I realized that I had been avoiding it because it was not comfortable. So I hope to get some done on it now.

Last fall and on through Christmas I had been stitching smaller seasonal things and really enjoyed it. I had picked out several snow-themed things that I was really looking forward to stitching as soon as the holiday stuff was out of the way. Then I saw the Inspiration SAL right at the end of the year and it was kind of an impulse thing. But that leaves me with my snow things that I still want to stitch. I have done Got Carrot? and started on The Trilogy's Warm Hearts. I think I'll still stitch on those which should be fairly quick and easy. I am loving the feeling of accomplishment of finishing so many things lately.

I also finished a design called Snow Tuck by SanMan Originals that I have to cut down and put in the little tuck hanging that it goes in. I hope to get that done later today and then I can post a picture. I also have 2 more ornaments that I finished that just need charms sewed on, and I'll try to get them done and post pictures of them as well.

Got Carrot?

2009-01-03T20:36:00.000-06:00

This is Bent Creek's Got Carrot? that I started a couple of days ago. I stitched all day while I was doing laundry, and this was all I wanted to work on. Isn't he darling? I love the little bunny eyes!

About Inspiration. I'm not sure what to do. Since this is a big piece, I counted down and in 3 inches because I left 3 inches on each side for framing. That is what I always leave. So even though the edge of the top border is in just a little from that 3 in and 3 down point, I figured it would be ok. I didn't think that the side border was more than a couple of stitches out. Well, after stitching the border on the first page (there are 30...) I am finding that it is hard to keep the left edge of the fabric in the qsnap. I don't want to take out what I have done, but I'm also thinking that it is not very much, and I will be stitching on this project for at least a year, and I really don't want to fight with this fabric. It makes my stitching more irritating, and there are enough irritating things in my life as it is. So I put it up for tonight and I will wait and see how I feel in the morning. Why is it only the big things that I mess up on? why can't I mess up on some small little thing?! Sigh.

New SAL For Inspiration by Rosewood Manor

2009-01-01T22:58:00.000-06:00

A day or so ago, I saw a thread on the 123Stitch message board about a SAL for the year 2009 to stitch Inspiration by Rosewood Manor. I have had this kitted up but had not planned to stitch it just yet. However, the idea of a SAL, which I have never done, just sounded fun. So I have set up a blog for those of us stitching it to share progress. I started mine today and got the border from the 1st page done.

I also started Got Carrot? by Bent Creek. It is one of their older Zipper kits. It is on 18 count linen, using 1 strand of perle cotton over 2 threads. Well, what I read was "18 ct...you stitch over on on that...ok...." So I got to about the middle of the chart and realized that this was in no way centered on the fabric and in fact it would not fit if I kept stitching it where it was. Because it is a kit, and had perle cotton which I don't happen to have laying around, I had to carefully unstitch what I had done so I could save the fiber to use again. I had counted up from the center as if I was going to stitch it over 1, and then proceeded to stitch it over 2. Sigh.

But I got it all put back in, and got further than I had been too. AND I started my SAL!

Happy Stitching New Year!

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T19:54:00.000-06:00

I am stitching tonight and sitting on the bed with my dogs. May not sound very exciting, but it's one thing that I absolutely love.

Happy New Year to everyone!!

Sensory Overload

2008-12-27T21:30:00.000-06:00

We went to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra last night. If you have never heard their music it's definitely something to check out. I have tried to go see them for 3 years now and finally made it this year! In 2006, the tickets were sold out when I tried to get them. In 2007, I had tickets, and good ones at that, but I was sick and could not drag myself out of bed, so I gave the tickets to my friend David and he and his mom got to go. I heard later how good it was. Well, last month, David told me that Mannheim Steamroller was going to be here, and we made plans to go. I had a friend who was going to go see TSO with me but then her plans changed and so I started trying to persuade David to go to that with me too. We were talking about it at Thanksgiving, and I heard again from both him and his mother how good the show was last year. I finally got him talked into going with me and ordered our tickets. When I went to his house for Christmas his mother gave me a Christmas card with a note in it that said "IOU 2 tix to the concert!" She bought our tickets for us for Christmas! I was so excited and surprised!

So we went to see TSO last night. There are really no words to convey what that experience is like. Spectacular is the only thing that comes to mind. We were at an arena which seats 18,000, so it's a pretty big place. We were on the top level and at the very top of the top level...there were only 4 rows above us. They have amazing lighting...lots of lighting effects and lasers that were really awesome. Somehow the lasers appeared to be glittery...I had never seen anything like that before. But combined with the cool light show was fire. I like fire, although I'm scared to death of it. This was pretty intense fire too. From our vantage point in the rafters we could still feel the heat from the bursts of flame! I'm sure I sat there with my mouth hanging open the entire time...and it was a 3 hour show. The musicians are very talented and they gave a great performance. Their technical crew must be awesome too...the lights were synchronized perfectly with the music and were right on the beat. I have never been to a concert that impressive.

I was as overwhelmed as a 2 year old at a 3 ring circus. I have to say, I got cable tv and done been to the county fair twice, and I still ain't never seen nothin' like that.

Here Comes Santa Paws!

2008-12-24T18:01:00.000-06:00

Here is our picture from Pet Photos With Santa:

Merry Christmas from us all!

Gotcha Bosco!

2008-12-23T23:31:00.001-06:00

I can' t believe it was only 2 yrs ago that I got him! It's been a good 2 yrs. I have never had a big dog before this, and he has been a real joy. He has recently started coming and laying on the bed with us (me and the other 3 dogs) in the evenings while I stitch and I love getting to spend more time with him...up til this point, he stayed in the den on the couch while we all hung out on the bed.

I have written all about getting him in my very first post.

Happy anniversary Bosco! I am so glad that I have you!

Gotcha Rudy!

2008-12-21T22:45:00.000-06:00

I can't believe it was 5 years ago today that I got Rudy. I was determined to get my mother a dog from Christmas (yes, I know it's not good to give pets for Christmas, and that's why I made sure I was prepared to take it myself if she didn't want it) and she had wanted a dachshund. I found a really darling little dog on a shelter website, and by the time I contacted them, he was gone. So I started looking at other shelter websites, and found another one...also gone. While I was happy that these shelter dogs got homes, it was not making my plans any easier.

So I looked in the paper and found an ad for someone selling miniature doxies, $250 each. They advertised that they had one for $150. So I went to look. I don't think I knew enough about puppy mills at the time, but knowing what I know now...I'm pretty sure he came from one. His mother died from an infection right after he was born. Probably from being bred way too much. Anyway.

So I drove out to this incredibly rural area, and found this guy with the dachshunds. He had one 9 month old who had been there since he was born. He had scars on his face and looked cowed. The guy said that he got in some fights in the kennel. He growled and snarled at me when he was brought out in his cage, but he eventually let me pet him. I knew she wanted a dog younger than that (although she probably would have been better suited to a little bit older dog, but she wanted a puppy) so I asked about the dogs that were $250. There was one left. He also brought out this darling beagle/dachshund mix, but we needed a dachshund, and the little black one it was. As soon as I held him he started to bite and pull at the neck on my turtleneck shirt. My heart was lost. I had not planned to bring him home that day, but the guy refused to hold him, so I wrote a hot check to pay for him (it was Sunday and I knew I could get it covered the next day) and put him in one of my dog crates that I left in the back of the truck. I put it in the front seat with me with the opening facing me so he could see me through the wire door and so I could stick my fingers in and love him while we drove the 45 minutes home. I had to stop at Petsmart to get him some things. I got him stuff for Christmas and then we went home.

The other dogs were not too impressed. Daisy was scared to death of him and walked in wide circles around him if she had to pass him. It was hysterical. Rose went over and tried to pick him up by the neck. At first I thought she was trying to bite him and kill him, but turns out she had a strong maternal instinct and she was trying to pick him up. She assigned herself as his nanny, and if he was into something or whining and I didn't hear, she would come get me. They are still good buddies.

I already posted the story of giving him to my mom (it's in the very first post I did if you missed that story and want to read it). I wish I had one of his puppy pictures on the computer. He was only the length of my foot! Maybe after Christmas I can get a scanner and scan some of my older (pre-digital camera) photos in so I can post them!

Happy Anniversary Rudy! You are the light of my heart!

Eureka! Pictures!

2008-12-20T13:55:00.000-06:00

Finally! This morning, I got the buttons glued on the ornaments that I have been stitching while watching Hallmark Christmas movies.

This is Ho Ho Ho:

This is Happy Jolly:

And this is Gingerbread:

Since at least one of those pictures is blurry, here is one of all 3 of them:

Those were all by SanMan Originals

This is Glory To God from the 2008 JCS Ornament Issue:

And this is a Trilogy kit called Believe:

I Have A New Follower!

2008-12-15T21:26:00.000-06:00

You would think we were still in high school and I had just gotten my yearbook signed or something! LOL

I know who most of the people who read my blog are (Mainly from the 123 stitch message board). Do I know you from there too? If so tell me who you are?

I noticed that you don't have your name on your profile, so if you would rather not post who you are publicly, email me? Or if you want to be anonymous, that's ok too...

Can you tell it's close to Christmas? I have a new present and I want to unwrap it! LOL

I got my pictures reprinted today so I can start my cards...and I got my letter that goes with them written. It's a bit longer this year...that's what happens when you don't send out cards for 3 yrs in a row. Could also explain why I haven't gotten many the last year or so...

Still problem-solving on how to get my Santa picture posted. It's too good not to share!

The Prodigal Blogger

2008-12-14T23:17:00.000-06:00

I have at last returned to the blogosphere! I have been planted in front of the TV watching Christmas movies and stitching my heart out! I did finish Glory To God (with the dress and wings restitched, and I have to say that they look much better than before...no more wine while I'm stitching! LOL) and have finished 4 ornaments from SanMan Originals secret shop. They have buttons that go on them that need to be glued on, and I keep thinking that I'll get that done and then photograph all of them and post them here, but it keeps not happening. Too much Hallmark channel.

I decided that I am going to do Christmas cards this year if it kills me. I have to go tomorrow to have reprints of our pet photos with Santa pictures done so I can enclose them in my cards. I have not forgotten to post them here, but I have no way to scan one into the computer so that I can post it. As soon as I am gainfully employed again, I am going to buy a printer/scanner.

I'm Still Alive

2008-12-06T11:34:00.000-06:00

I have been neglectful in posting this week. I have been busy stitching however! I started the Glory To God ornament, and was making pretty good progress. I did not like the way my stitches were looking on all the white in the angel, but decided ok, I'll deal with it. When I got almost to the bottom and found a mistake, I didn't even try to find where it was...just took almost the entire angel out.

Meanwhile, I had gotten my order of Secret Shop charts from San-Man Originals, and there are several little Christmas ornaments that have buttons or charms with them. I figured that I could finish one in one night of TV, so I started one. Well, it took two nights, but it is done and looks cute. I thought I could finish another one last night, and got about half of it done, when I did something I have never done before. I looked and realized that there was not enough room at the right side for the rest of it to fit. I've been stitching for 25 years and never had that happen! So I started it over and I like the fabric I'm using this time a LOT better.

I have never made so many mistakes and had to take so much out in all my years of stitching as I hav in the past 6 months or so! Must be stress...heaven knows I have had enough of it!

I'm watching movies all day on Hallmark Channel and one on Lifetime so hopefully I'll have another finish by tonight and will get to post some pictures!

New Start

2008-11-30T18:29:00.000-06:00

First of all, thanks for all the nice compliments on the Autumn Leaves and the Autumn Is In The Air finishes! I really appreciate you taking time to look and comment...

My next project is from the JCS Christmas Ornament magazine for 2008. I started Glory To God by Little House Needleworks tonight...I have a great start on it too! With all the good Hallmark movies this week, I ought to be able to finish this one pretty quickly!

Autumn Is In The Air Is Finished!

2008-11-29T17:09:00.001-06:00

I have been stitching like crazy on my Autumn Is In The Air by Brittercup since I finished Autumn Leaves. I REALLY want to stitch some Christmas things, but this was about halfway done, so I made myself finish it first. It was really touch and go last night because I had to take out everything I had done the night before. I tried to just deal with it being a stitch off one direction and a thread off in the other direction, but it made parts of it look crowded since it was too close together without the extra stitch, and so I decided to give in to my OCD traits and do it over. It looks a LOT better so I'm glad I did! Here's a picture:

Now on to stitch some Christmas oraments from the 2008 JCS Ornament Issue...

Thanksgiving Memories

2008-11-27T12:40:00.001-06:00

You are going to want to skip this one if you are squeamish about animals hunting other animals, which is what animals do, but it can be upsetting if it a domestic animal hunting. To me anyway. I think about this every Thanksgiving morning and it's only in the last couple of years that it has not really bothered me.

Funny (now) Thanksgiving story...

This took place in either 2001 or 2002...I think it was 2001. I had both Daisy and Rose, and I got Rose in April of 2001.

My mother and I always had orange rolls for breakfast on Thanksgiving, and so I had them in the oven and went to get her up. I went back to the kitchen and got them out and was putting the icing on them where I heard a squeak from outside. I looked out the kitchen window, and Daisy and Rose each had one end of a rabbit. That upset me on several levels...number one, I LOVE bunny rabbits and have a collection of them (not the real ones obviously with 4 dogs and a cat) and this one had just gone to bunny heaven, and number two, my dogs had something that had recently been alive and were playing tug-of-war with it. I was horrified. So I ran out in the yard, still in my polar bear print pajamas, and started yelling at them. Rose, the more compliant and easily scared of the 2, immediately dropped her end and came down to the patio. Daisy, now triumphant with the trophy, took off for the back part of the yard.

Now, what a thinking, sane person would do is get something to lure the dog away from whatever it is they shouldn't have, secure the dog, and then go deal with the situation. I was not thinking, and there are some who question my sanity, so what I did was grab a shovel and take off for the back part of the yard too. I ran after her and of course, she did what dogs do when being chased: she ran like mad. So I ran too, a fat woman approaching middle age in polar bear pajamas. She continued to run, and continued to carry her trophy. So I continued to huff and puff and yell after her, and for some reason that made sense only in my mind at the moment, started swinging the shovel. I would have done a medieval Celtic warrior proud.

At this point, the back door opened, and my mother stepped out on the patio to see why her daughter had gone berserk. She had picked up one of the orange rolls and stood there munching and watching. That agitated me further and so I started yelling at her to come help me. Around a mouthful of orange roll, she said "What do you want me to do?" in a tone that implied 1) I'm in my 70s and if you think I'm chasing after that crazy dog, you're crazier than she is, and 2) I'm eating my breakfast. All this time, Daisy kept running until I stopped for a minute, and then she would stop and stand over her prize and when I started running, she started running...never dropping her trophy for a minute. At some point in the chase, I started crying.

Seeing the orange roll gave me the idea (finally) to get some kind of food and see if I could lure her to me. So I quit swinging the shovel and screaming and went to get some cheese and managed to get her close enough that I could grab her. She had some blood on her feet and legs (which is surprising given that the rabbit didn't seem to be really hurt...other than being dead I mean) and once I dragged her by her collar into the house I had to clean that up. When we got in the house, my mother was sitting at the table eating orange rolls. I was still crying and now was blubbering that after having a taste of blood Daisy was going to revert to a wild wolf dog and I was going to have to put her to sleep because she would attack every warm-blooded thing in her path.

We all recovered (some of us more slowly than others) and went on to have the Thanksgiving that we always had...with the exception that some of my relatives thought is was entertaining to tease me by asking if we were having rabbit stew instead of turkey. We did have turkey, by the way.

I am wearing those same polar bear pajamas this morning as a matter of fact...I love these pajamas.

Thanksgiving Morning Musings

2008-11-27T12:11:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! This holiday is kind of bittersweet for me - when my parents were alive, my mom had the family (aunts and uncles) over and cooked dinner here. My father died in January 2000 but we kept having the dinner...I think that 2003 was the last one. My mother was diagnosed with lung cancer in April of 2004, and that year she cooked a small dinner for just the 2 of us. She died in March 2005. One of my fears about losing my parents was the holidays. I have a wonderful friend named Chanin who, in mid-July, announced that I was coming to Thanksgiving and Christmas at her house that year. She will probably never know how much that meant to me. The next year, I was dating Bosco's former human, and he and I spent the holidays together. Last year, my friend David (the Bosco wrangler of the Santa picture experience) invited me to have the holidays with his mother and their family. I have known him since we worked together at the first job I had out of college (has it really been 23 years?!) and know his family as well, so I ate Thanksgiving dinner with them. Part of my family's Thanksgiving dinner was mashed potatoes and green peas, and his mom fixed those for me at her house too. One of my other friends invited me to come hang out at her house and watch movine and stitch, but I couldn't do both, and dinner won out! LOL Last Christmas, I was really sick, and slept through Christmas. I am going to dinner at David's again today, and possibly Christmas as well.

What I'm thankful for today is the wonderful friends I have who understand what it is to be alone in the world and invite me to be a part of their families. It is an indescribable comfort to know that there are people in my life who love me like family and are there for me. I am also thankful to be able to love and be there for them.

I'm thankful that I had the great parents that I did and that I got to have them as long as I did.

I'm thankful for my dogs, who are the love of my life, even though they are sometimes the bane of my existence.

I'm thankful for a secure and safe home, and a car to take me where I need to go.

I'm thankful for the fact that I had enough money in savings to help me get through this year of being unemployed.

I'm thankful for my health, especially for my vision that allows me to stitch and read, and for my hearing that allows me to hear music.

There are so many other things in my life to be thankful for as well...I am truly blessed.

It's Finally Finished!

2008-11-25T00:33:00.001-06:00

Prairie Schooler Autumn Leaves is finally finished! I sat and watched 2 movies on the Hallmark channel tonight and finally got the rest of the bottom filled in. I went to my LNS on Saturday and met with 2 of my friends and we stitched for the afternoon. I think I'm going to work a little bit on the Brittercup Autumn Is In The Air piece, but as of Thanksgiving Day I will start Christmas themed things. I have several ornaments from this years JCS Ornament Issue that I have kitted up and I'm looking forward to stitching some things that are seasonal that will actually get finished that season! LOL

Snip, Snip, Snip

2008-11-19T18:13:00.000-06:00

Rudy got neutered today and we both survived it. This is the dog that started out being my mother's dog and then I inherited him. She didn't have him neutered because she was too afraid that something would happen to him. Then I wouldn't have him neutered because I was too afraid something would happen to me and he is a very special dog to me for obvious reasons. So when Rudy had to be put under anesthesia to get his stitches 3 weeks ago, I sat in the waiting room crying and waiting for him to die...but he didn't and I realized it was now safe to get him neutered. So he went this morning for the Big Snip. He's doing fine...he has pain pills for tonight and tomorrow...but he is sticking pretty close to me. Tonight is a good tv night, and I think we are going to go get on the bed and stitch all evening. That should keep him kind of calm and quiet and let me spend some time being close to him. It's a good thing I don't have kids. I'd be a permanent nervous wreck.

Shiba Inu Puppies

2008-11-18T19:53:00.000-06:00

Just in case you have not seen this, it is VERY worth checking out: Shiba Inu Puppy Cam These little furballs are absolutely precious and watching is all of the fun of puppies and none of the work. I just want to sit in the middle of the pen with them and let them crawl all over me and breathe their puppy breath on me! LOL

Update on Autumn Leaves

2008-11-18T13:22:00.000-06:00

Here is Autumn Leaves through last night...I am in the home stretch now! I"m ready to finish it so I can start some Christmas things!

Pet Photos With Santa

2008-11-16T23:52:00.000-06:00

The annual Pet Photos With Santa was this weekend. This is a fundraiser where, for a $15 donation to whatever animal charity is sponsoring it, you can have you and your pet's photo taken with Santa. This year, it was sponsored by CARE for Animals. Sometimes they have one and sometimes it is the Humane Society of Pulaski County (I have a warm spot for them since I have 2 of their dogs). I am more than willing to support either one.

Of course we went and had our pictures taken. This is a tradition with us, and has been for some time now. It started back in 1992 when I first heard about it after moving back to North Little Rock from Conway where I went to graduate school. I took my dog at the time and we had our picture taken with Santa and framed it for my mom for Christmas from the dog. She loved it, and we started going every year, she and I and whatever combination of dogs there were at the time. We missed 2-3 years scattered in there, but by and large it has been an annual tradition. The Christmas before my mother passed away the following March, she and I and my 2 dogs and her dog (Rudy, my inheritance) were supposed to go but she was in the hospital on the date of the photo shoot. So my aunt is in that one with us. Now it's just me and the dogs.

So this weekend was it, and my friend David (who is a saint and prince among men) went with me to help. He did this last year too and after it was all over, he told me that I needed to find some new friends. In spite of this (and because he had all year to recover) he agreed to go with me again this year. It should be noted that I have had friends go with me and help me in the past, but he is the only person who has been willing to repeat the experience. It should also be noted that David is, as they say, a cat person. He likes dogs ok - as long as they don't lick him and he doesn't have to take care of them for any extended period - but what David looks for in a pet is a cat.

This experience involves gathering up all 4 dogs (remember one of them is the size of a small horse), getting them settled in the car (or at least all 4 of them in the car with all the doors closed), transporting them to the location, getting all 4 dogs into the building, trying to get all 4 dogs to settle with Santa and I, trying to get all 4 dogs to look at the camera, trying to recapture any dogs who escape from Santa and I, getting all 4 dogs back in the car (again, with all doors closed - because having the dogs in the car and having the dogs closed in the car are two very different things), getting the dogs back home and into the house while simultaneously leaving the cat and most of the cat food outside the house, and then deciding if it is too early in the day to have a drink.

We ran into a couple of little snags last year...the pictures went off great, got some good shots, dogs looked good, I didn't look too bad, etc...but the ride home proved to be a problem. David ended up sitting in the back seat with them because the front of my CRV is just too crowded with 2 people and 3 dogs. The original plan was for he and I to sit in the front and all the dogs to sit in the back...you know, like a family kind of. Nope. MY family wanted to sit in the front with me. So what we finally worked out was girls in the front, boys in the back. I drove and Rose and Daisy sat up front with me, David and Rudy and Bosco rode in the back. Bosco is part Lab and part Pointer and approximately pony-sized. He wanted to sit in David's lap. So David spent the first half of our journey trying to squirm out from under Bosco while little Rudy the lap-sized dachshund sat on the seat next to him. David spent the second half of our journey helpless as Bosco got carsick all over the backseat...and Rudy. This probably played a large part in the comment about finding new friends.

So this year we knew to be prepared and take some towels just in case. Last year, the only material we had with us was my suede coat which was no good because Bosco threw up all over it too. David got in the car and immediately started covering everything up with towels. Rudy apparently remembered last year too, and he was NOT getting in the backseat with Bosco. He planted himself firmly in the passenger seat with Daisy and refused to go anywhere near the backseat. So Rose got put back there. She doesn't get along that well with Bosco because he plays too rough and she is timid anyway and is scared of him. But she was the best choice. Daisy LOVES her Uncle David, and LOVES to give kisses and would have LOVED to be in the back with him. However, I may have mentioned that David cannot stand to be licked, and I didn't want him to jump out and run at the first red light. When we left the house, David was on one side of the backseat, Bosco was kind of all over the back seat, and Rose was on the other side. By the time we got about 3 miles from the house, Bosco was halfway in David's lap and it appeared from looking in the rearview mirror that there was a kind of shoving match going on. I couldn't tell who was winning but my money is always on Bosco having been the receipient of his shoves before. So we made it to the location without any major mishaps, and all got out of the car and into the building where there were numerous volunteers who all started taking dog's leashes. The way this works is that David wrangles Bosco and I get the rest. It about evens out.

So I got signed in and gave them my check and went around the partition to where the long-suffering, wonderfully patient Santa waited seated in a sleigh (or a plywood imitation of a sleigh). Well, the seat of the sleigh was completely covered with butts...and that was just me and Santa. I had Daisy in my arms, and from there it gets fuzzy. Bosco was going to sit at our feet...no options there since there was no room for him anywhere else. Rose was not interested in telling Santa what she wanted for Christmas, and in fact gave herself an early present and took off. The volunteers caught her and put her back in the sleigh and I think the way we ended up was that I had Daisy, Santa had Rudy, and Rose was being pulled back in from the side of the sleigh on her leash by Santa. All I could concentrate on was my anxiety about us having a good picture...usually I just trust the photographer to get the dogs to look and I sit and try to smile and remind myself that for 364 days a year I do whatever these dogs want, and it is not too much to ask for them to do something I want for one damn day. Usually there is not this much trouble getting them all settled. After several attempts, the photographer came over to me and showed me that there were a couple that she thought were good and said that she would print the best ones. I had paid for 2 sittings so I could also have one of the dogs with Santa...I have no idea what will come from that! I know while I was still in the sleigh, David was standing by the photographer laughing his head off. We finally either got done or the poor photographer conceded defeat and we left.

We got home with no shedding of bodily fluids (unlike the year that Daisy was a puppy and peed on Santa and my arm where I was holding her...good times, good times) and got into the house (Rudy only got a couple of mouthfuls of cat food and no mouthfuls of cat, thank goodness). It was too early to drink, so we went to do errands and I took David out to eat to thank him for his help. He really deserves a 5 star restaurant, but all I could afford was a dinner buffet at Golden Corral...

He tried to reassure me that he thinks there are some really good ones and that I will have a couple to pick from. I felt really uptight about it but I'm feeling better as time goes on. The one she showed me looked ok I guess...it was small on the back of a digital camera and of course I wasn't wearing my glasses...that's a story unto itself. I get to go pick the pictures up on Tuesday Nov 25, so I will have to find a way to scan them and post them here...

Info on PS Autumn Leaves

2008-11-12T22:06:00.000-06:00

Pumpkin wanted to know what material I was stitching this on...it is 28 ct lambswool jobelan. I do not usually like jobelan because it is "stretchy" to me. I like lugana. But this is what was quickly available on the day that I was determined to start this. I think the pattern actually specified 32 ct lambswool and did not specify linen or evenweave.

I thought I'd get more stitching done tonight than I did. I just couldn't get into it as much I guess. I laid on the bed and petted my dogs though, and that's more important really.

Update on PS Autumn Leaves...And Real Autumn Leaves

2008-11-12T15:40:00.000-06:00

This is where I am starting today with my PS Autumn Leaves:

I plan to stitch for the rest of the afternoon and evening, so hopefully I will have something to show for it tomorrow! I am really enjoying stitching this! It looks like it will get finished in time to start something Christmasy to work on during the Christmas season too. I ordered Christmas Kisses today...may be my next BAP! I've had my eye on it for a while now.

And here is a picture that was taken this weekend of some real autumn leaves reflected in the lake in from of my house:

Hope you enjoy!

Unstitched

2008-11-10T21:04:00.001-06:00

Rudy got his stitches taken out today. That was quite a production. First off, he decided to act out in the waiting room. We were ok until a large chocolate Lab came in, and Rudy started acting like this was his sworn enemy and he was solely responsible for the continued safety of us all. He puffed out his little chest (as much as he can since it's so low to the ground heehee) and drew himself up to his full height (of what? 10 inches? maybe?) and started a barking frenzy. This dog was easily 4 times his size, and he backed up when Rudy started his fit. We got him put in the exam room about that time. The other people were laughing about it, thank goodness. So Tough Man gets on the table and the vet starts to run his hands over his back (which I do every night repeatedly while we are in bed trying to go to sleep) and He Man starts to whimper. Oh great. Well, the incision had healed over the stitches in part, so the vet had to disturb the healing process somewhat (sounds so much nicer than had to pull some of the scab off) and oh my, let the yelps begin! So after me and the vet wrestling Tough Dog we finally got the stitches out. I have to put Neosporin on it for a few days to help the healing process again. Well, while he was there, I asked the vet to please cut his nails. Rudy has the cutest little feet. They are brown with little black tips on each of his toes. And because they are cute, I play with them all the time. And he is fine with that (unlike some of my other dogs who would try to take some fingers off). However, as soon as Dr. Allen picked up a foot, the yelps began again. He is such a drama queen (Rudy, not the vet...the vet is a good guy). He started with little yelps, and by the time we got to Foor Number 4, he had graduated to loud they-are-operating-on-me-with-no-anesthesia-and-using-a-chainsaw-for-a-scalpel yelps. I had my body laid across him to get the final few done, and I laid there thinking "This entire waiting room can hear this and they are laughing their tails (how punny) off at this dog who thought he was going to tear a huge dog apart limb from limb and now is yelling at a toenail clipper".

Here are Rudy's cute feet :

You can see from his facial expression and by the look in his eye that feet are still a VERY sensitive subject! LOL

Happy Anniversary

2008-11-10T21:01:00.000-06:00

You know how when a relationship is brand-new you celebrate all the little anniversaries...oh, it's the 1-week anniversary of when we first went out and all that stuff? Well, today is my 1-month anniversary for my blog! Happy anniversary to me! LOL

Paula Vaughan

2008-11-09T22:16:00.000-06:00

I LOVE Paula Vaughan. If you have never heard of her, she is an artist who does wonderful watercolors with quilts and flowers as main themes. Leisure Arts used to adapt her works for cross stitch, although I'm not sure what the status of that is currently. I have all of her leaflets/books. I LOVE her work. Here is her website: Paulav.com and here is a list of leaflets: Paula Vaughan leaflet list. On the leaflet list, click on the title of a leaflet to see a picture. If you are not familiar with her paintings or her cross stitch patterns, it will give you a flavor of what she is all about.

Anyway, in going through my UFOs the past couple of days I came across 2 different PV pieces that I had started and never finished. One is Delicate Beauties which just needs to be backstitched (no small feat when you consider all the flowers and stems etc in there) and one is Quilting Lessons which is done except for filling in all the white on the quilt and then the backstitching. I changed my mind about what material I chose for Quilting Lessons and so I never finished it. Well, when I looked at it again, I realized that it would be perfect in my bathroom. So I got it out to start filling in the quilt. This is what I am starting from:

I started Garden Party at the first of this year, and didn't get very far before I got involved in something else. However, I think my focus for the new year is going to be to get some of these PVs that I have wanted to do forever stitched and framed for my den.

I Won! I Won!

2008-11-09T21:39:00.000-06:00

I tend to avoid Ebay, because I find too many things that I cannot live without, and it's just easier not to know what you're missing. But every once in a while, I'll look something up. Well, last night I decided to look for a couple of Lizzie Kate kits called Joe Snow and Sally Snow that I look for periodically. No go for the Snows (and so it goes) so I decided to look for a couple of Just Nan kits I missed out on. They were both exclusives for The Silver Needle in Tulsa OK...one is called 20 Flowers, and for the life of me I can't remember the name of the other one but it is a companion to the 20 Flowers one. Someone on the 123 Stitch board had these listed not too long ago, but they were sadly overpriced, and there was no way I could afford them. Well, no go on finding them either, but guess what I DID find?!

Just Nan Snowflower Lace

This was a class project from years ago, and I looked for it off and on forever on Ebay and never found it. So I gave up. Last night when I was looking for the 20 Flowers piece, I saw it listed! I yelled loudly enough that one of the dogs came to investigate in case this was the kind of excitement that might lead to me feeling generous with the Milk Bones. The opening bid was $8.55 and so I bid on it and won it tonight for the original bid!!!!! OH I'm excited!!! It said that the porcelain rose button is included although the rest of the embellishment pack is not...but I can always buy the beads and any other special stuff so this is not a problem.

There was a round of Alpo Snaps on the house tonight!

It's Kinda Pitiful, Really

2008-11-06T23:43:00.000-06:00

So I am still less than a month into the blogging thing, and the novelty hasn't worn off yet. A couple of people have listed me in their "blogs I follow" lists, and that had me all excited! Then tonight I had a comment from someone I don't know AND a new follower...I'll just be too exited to sleep! LOL

In Loving Memory

2008-11-05T23:14:00.000-06:00

Eleanor Hope Stephens Tanner

November 5, 1928-March 28, 2005

Today would have been my mother's 80th birthday. She was born on November 5, 1928. She got married to my father on her 26th birthday, so it also would have been her 44th wedding anniversary as well. She passed away from lung cancer in 2005; my father had passed away in January 2000. This day is always doubly sad for me. I realized that I don't even have any pictures of her or of them to post since I got my digital camera after she died and I don't have a scanner.

Anyway, happy birthday Mamma. I miss you more than you could even imagine. I love you.

Thank You

2008-11-05T23:11:00.000-06:00

I have gotten some really nice compliments about this piece and my stitching. I just want to say thank you to all who have left me nice comments. Makes my day!

The Leaves Are Changing Colors!

2008-11-05T14:09:00.000-06:00

Here is a picture of the PS Autumn Leaves piece as of the end of last night...

I am planning on sitting and stitching on it all evening tonight too. There is another PS one called Thanksgiving Comes Again that I would love to have time to stitch this season, but unfortunately I won't. After I finish these 2 seasonal ones, I found several things in the 2008 JCS Ornament Issue that I want to stitch, and those should be small things that I can accomplish in the actual season! LOL

I am having such a good time with this piece. I'm so glad I put the other ones up and started this.

Pictures of WIPs

2008-11-03T23:09:00.000-06:00

I had meant to post a picture of my Autumn Leaves WIP this weekend, but never got time to do it. I took a picture of both the PS Autumn Leaves and Brittercup's Autumn Is In The Air since I plan to work on that too. I sat and stitched on the PS one tonight but I'm too lazy to take another picture and post it. I got some of the leaves down the side done though and so it has more color to it now. It's really going quickly and is a lot of fun! I've been watching That 70s Show first season on DVD and stitching all evening...with dog petting breaks of course!

Prairie Schooler Autumn Leaves

Brittercup Autumn Is In The Air

Weekend Update

2008-11-01T22:47:00.000-05:00

I got an comment from a friend asking me if I had figured out what had happened to Rudy...I completely forgot that part when I wrote my entry yesterday! LOL The best I can figure is that he cut himself on a nail. I have a storage shed in my back yard that is raised off of the ground and has wooden latticework around the base of it to cover the sight of the concrete pillars it is sitting on and to keep live things out. Well, after we moved here, the biggest 4 legged live thing decided that he wanted in, and so he rammed a hole in it. For a while it was almost impossible to get them out from under there, and then they got bored with it. Rudy trapping and killing his possum under there Labor Day weekend did create a resurgence of interest, but that also died out fairly quickly. I had checked when they first broke in and there were no rough places to hurt them, and really there is nothing under there except a rotting tree stump (and apparently there was a possum) so I haven't worried too much about getting it repaired. Believe me, with all the drama of this house etc, that shed is the very least of my worries right now. However, he must have cut himself getting under there somehow. The next morning when it was light, I went to check out the situation and there is a new larger hole on one side that DID have a nail pulled loose at the top of it. I guess that maybe he cut himself trying to get under there...although the hole was more than ample even for his little fat chunk of a dachshund self. He and Bosco play really rough but I have never seen them bite at each other on the back and I really don't think this was Bosco. He has done his share of hurting the other dogs without meaning to - he has bitten both Rose and Rudy hard enough to break the skin and leave marks (he does not understand that big teeth and little ears don't play nicely together) - but this didn't look like a dog bite. It was not a puncture, but a tear. Yuck.

Rudy is doing better. Of course he slept with me last night even after I wrote and said that he would not. I came out of the bathroom just as I was going to bed and there he was, looking up at me with a hurt little look and he headed to the bedroom looking over his shoulder at me and that was that. He snuggled right up next to me and rubbed his little nylon-stitched back on my bare leg and everything of mine tightened and quivered, but he stayed. He slept at the foot of the bed more than usual, but I woke up and found him touching me several times. He does not understand that his incision is supposed to be tender and hurt a little bit. Or else he just does not care.

Here's something funny in all of this: The material they sutured him up with is purple!!! At first I didn't see it because he is a black dog and purple matches him so well! LOL But as the swelling goes down and I can see the stitches better, sure enough they are purple. They match his collar. I'm guessing that is not why they are that color though...

I have also had some comments asking me about my friend Cathy (she who went to the hospital in labor with the intention of refusing to leave until she delivered her child) and people have asked how she and the baby are...She did have her baby (although not the night she went with the intention to remain there). This was not a planned pregnancy and she had made the incredibly unselfish and loving decision to place her baby for adoption. Her little girl is healthy and well and is now with her new adoptive family where she will be loved and spoiled beyond all belief. The adoptive parents have 2 dogs, so they are ok in my book! LOL I find this to be one of the most awesome things I have seen for a while. I watched her developing pregnancy, and continued to be struck by how unselfish a decision this is. I have so much admiration and respect for her for doing this. And what is just astonishing to me is that she has not gotten support from most of the key people in her life. I don't understand.

My Halloween was great! I turned out all visible lights, ate the York peppermint patties shaped like little pumpkins with orange filling all by myself (mostly...Rudy got a bite of one to take his pills with) and stitched and watched a marathon of The Munsters. I got a LOT done on my Autumn Leaves! I sat and stitched tonight and started watching season 1 of the tv series That 70's Show. I end up watching more than stitching when I watch that because I am enjoying revisiting all the clothes and shoes, etc. Just in the first cd of this set alone, I have seen 2 pair of shoes I used to have and one purse. I knew I should have held on to that stuff. Only thing different about the 70s and 80s retro things now is that I know how ridiculous they look and won't wear them again! LOL

I'll post a picture of my Autumn Leaves at the end of the weekend. It is stitching so fast and is so fun to stitch!

Paula asked about my L&L Celtic Autumn and whether or not I am still working on her. The answer is not right now. I decided that I wanted to do some smaller seasonal things that I could actually finish in the appropriate season (thus the frustration when the small seasonal projects got derailed) and I have not gotten back to her. Probably I will continue to do seasonal things through the holidays and then get back to her in earnest after the first of the year. I thought I might actually set some stitching goals for next year...I have never done that and have always thought that it should be fun not a goal-driven thing, but I may kind of outline some things I would like to get finished in 2009 anyway. I guess I need to start thinking about that.

As far as books, I am still trying to read The Grenadillo Box but I am having a hard time getting into it for some reason. I did finish the first of the scrapbooking mysteries by Laura Childs and really enjoyed it. I have started the second one and have also just barely started the first tea shop mystery. Maybe that's why I can't get into the Janet Gleeson book?! I start books like I start cross stitch projects, but the difference is that I actually finish the books! LOL

I don't think there is anything else to update on...at least not right now...

New WIP

2008-10-31T23:19:00.001-05:00

I had a revelation Tuesday night, while I was laying on my bed watching It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown and You're Not Elected Charlie Brown and NOT stitching...this is supposed to be something that I can find pleasure and relaxation in. It is not supposed to be something that creates any degree of anxiety. And if it does, then there is a problem.

So I have put aside...indefinitely...my PS Pumpkin Patch and All In A Moon. I was really enjoying stitching in hand again, but I'm not happy with the tension and the way it looks. It does not make any sense whatsoever to me to continue to take out and restitch the same part over and over, trying to get the stitches to lay like you want and still not be happy with them. And that was what hap been happening. I put in that top line on Pumpkin Patch 3-4 times and was still not content with it. I really wanted to stitch something seasonal, and I still have my Brittercup Autumn Is In The Air that I plan to finish, but I wanted to start something by PS because I really wanted to stitch something of theirs. Another one that I have had semi-kitted is PS Autumn Leaves, so I started it. I am stitching it with a hoop instead of a q-snap. It is easier for me to be able to have my left hand under my work to help guide the needle etc and it is harder for me to do that with a q-snap. My left hand is the one that I have not yet had the carpal release surgery on yet and so it gets stiff and painful fairly easy. If I ever go back to work and have insurance again, I can have surgery on that one too. When I had the right one operated on, they told me that the CTS was severe in the right and moderate in the left and that I needed to have surgery on both, but the right was basically an immediate necessity to avoid permanent nerve damage. Anyway, all medical stuff aside, I am using a hoop and really pleased with how my stitches look. I have always heard how evil hoops are and I know they do squash down the stitches that get between the rings of the hoop, but my q-snap squashed my stitches too. My worry is how this will be in the long term since I tend to stitch with overdyed floss now and can't wash my work like I used to. When I used to wash everything, it was no big deal...they would fluff back up after it got washed and ironed. This is actually in DMC so if I need to wash it I can.

I have too much stress about too many things (employment, financial, etc) in my life to let my hobby stress me out more and keep me from enjoying something that does relax me and give me pleasure.

But the dogs sure did enjoy laying on the bed that night and getting petted instead of laying on the bed and watching me stitch! LOL

My Night At The Emergency Vet Clinic

2008-10-31T21:49:00.000-05:00

By the time I got home, I was too tired and too stressed emotionally to write, but we had some dachshund drama here last night.

Rudy and Bosco were outside playing, and I went to let them in to feed them dinner. The girls were already in the house. Rudy had a blob of something on his back...looked like Bosco slobber which would not be out of the ordinary at all...so I went to wipe him off and realized it was blood. I don't do blood and guts. I don't do it more when it is coming out of someone I love and care for. Fortunately, nothing was actively bleeding, or it would have been more exciting than it was. But Rudy had a gash on his back that looked to be about 1-2 inches long and about a half inch wide when the skin was stretched. That was it for me. I do not want to see insides of anything, and most especially not my dog. Of course I was already in my jammies, planning to stitch all night. Of course when I got out of the shower, I just pinned my hair back because no one was going to see me; I was going to sit home and stitch. So I threw on a sweatshirt and some jeans and pulled my hair back in a headband and grabbed Rudy and we headed to the emergency vet. I had been on the phone with my friend Cathy when I discovered that spit was really blood and I called her back on the way to explain my "OMG-that's-blood-I-have-to-let-you-go-Cathy-bye" comment as I slammed my phone shut. The whole time I was driving to the vet ER I kept wondering if I was over-reacting, because I get freaked out over something being wrong with my dogs and I follow the better safe than sorry rule. They probably have gone to the vet for things that ordinary normal people would not take a dog to the vet for more than once. Anyway. So we get to the vet, and give them the story and they weigh him. He weighed 27.5 lbs. That scale better be wrong. No way has he eaten 5 lbs of treats trying to teach him to come here and to not pee in the house. I have not gotten 5 lbs of results, that's for sure. So they vet comes in a checks him out and goes to have them figure an estimate for me so I can decide what I want to do. What the hell does that mean? I want you to fix my dog, that's what I want to do. So just about the time that the tech came back to give me my options (sew my dog up? is that one of my options?) the exam room door opened and my friend Cathy came in with a bottle of water for me and a pet for Rudy. So she got to hear them start talking about the pre-anesthesia bloodwork and the "catheter just in case we need to get in there quick". I think they told me that the estimate was between $275-325, but I got lost at the word anesthesia. Rudy is not neutered because I refuse to put him under anesthesia. My mother was always afraid that something would happen to him and that she could not stand that, so she didn't have him neutered. And after she was gone, I was afraid that something would happen to him and I couldn't stand that, so Rudy is an intact male. (Now this is not all paranoia...I did adopt a little dog from the shelter a few years back who died on the table being spayed...although a good bit of it is my irrational fear of losing my dogs) So what I heard was that they were going to potentially kill my dog with anesthesia and charge me more than I had in my checking account to do it. I agreed to the pre-surgery bloodwork because I figured that was one variable I could control, and they barely gave me time to kiss my dog goodbye before they took him away. Up until that time I had been fine. Thank God Cathy came to sit with me...it would have been an unholy 2 hours otherwise. They finally brought me my dog with a 2 inch Frankenstein-looking stitched-up wound across his back. He got some pills for pain and inflammation, and some antibiotic, and he has to go to our vet in 7-10 days to have his stitches - all 6-7 of them - out. So obviously I did not over-react. I WANTED to react when I had to write that check for $405.43. I don't even know what the extra cost was. I just wanted to get my dog and come home. Cathy followed us home so that she could help me get Rudy settled in while the other 3 went outside, and finally everything settled down and got quiet. Except for Rudy. Who was not quiet at all. He had to stay separate from the other dogs so they won't lick him and possibly hurt him and he was NOT at all ok with that. He whined. And whined. And whined. And made mournful noises. And it just about killed me to have to make him stay in his crate. Bedtime killed me worse because there was no Rudy snoring right up again my neck.

I have kept them separate for most of today...I started letting him out with all the dogs but Bosco because Bosco is the one who will try to play too rough with him. I have let him out all evening though, and they have been really good. He basically just laid on the bed with me while I stitched and watched a Munsters marathon. He looks like a Munster-dog right now.

I think he is going to have to spend tonight in his crate again though because he burrows and I'm afraid he will rub his back and get his stitches caught on the blanket or something or that I will hurt him by accident in the night. So it's about time for the chorus to tune up for the night...what a sad little lullaby.

Pumpkin Patch WIP

2008-10-27T21:29:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd post a progress picture of my PS Pumpkin Patch. This is really fun to stitch. Here it is last Friday: And here it is as of tonight:

Whodunit?

2008-10-27T10:54:00.000-05:00

I discovered a great series of books this weekend. I have had a couple of books in the series for a while, but this weekend, I decided that I wanted something set in modern times to read too when 18th century England got too heavy, so I picked up Laura Childs' Scrapbook Mysteries series. I read about half of one laying in bed last night. They are set in the French Quarter in New Orleans, and they have all the slighty kooky characters that you would expect from that area. The series centers around a woman who owns a scrapbooking shop. There is lots of detail about scrapbooking, which is interesting to me although I am not involved in that. If you like mysteries, you may want to check these out. She also had a series of Tea Shop Mysteries that revolve around a tea shop in Charleston.

Happy Birthday Rudy!!!

2008-10-25T21:13:00.000-05:00

My darling dachshund Rudy is 5 years old today! He had a good birthday; it was another gorgeous day and we sat outside some and I stitched while they chased things and rolled in things and chewed up things. Then after I came home from dinner, we all had a bone filled with some kind of beef-flavored stuff that is supposed to taste good for dogs I guess. Well, all 4 of them had the bones...I just had a caramel sundae for dessert with my dinner.

Happy Birthday Rudy!

Turn The Page

2008-10-24T20:58:00.000-05:00

I have not written an update on books in a few days...I finished The Spiritualist, and it was VERY good. I kind of had the whodunit figured out, but not the way it played out and certainly not the why of it all. Then I picked up a book called The Thief Taker by Janet Gleeson that I just finished yesterday and it was REALLY good. It was set in the late 1700s London and involved a cook geting embroiled in a mystery of 3 murders and a theft. It was one of the better ones of that type that I have read recently, so I started another one of hers called The Serpent in the Garden. I have only read a few pages, but I am going to get in bed and read for a while in just a bit. I have her other one too, and I expect that I will start it once I am done with this one assuming that it turns out to be as enjoyable as the first one.

I guess I'm just in the mood for something darker around Halloween...I'm still looking forward to going back to the middle ages for my Sharon Kay Penman trilogy!

It's A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood

2008-10-24T16:55:00.000-05:00

It was so beautiful here today! I think the high was around 65, and it was sunny. The dogs and I sat outside and I stitched while they chewed on sticks and chased squirrels. I hope to post a picture of my PS piece by the end of the weekend. My LNS has a get-together the last Saturday of the month for stitchers and they gather and stitch all day, etc. I have not been in a while so I hope to go tomorrow...if so, I should make progress on my Pumpkin Patch!

I live on a lake, which is good and bad, depending on how you look at it. From the standpoint of mosquitoes, it's very bad. From the standpoint of scenery (usually) it's good. This is the view from the top of my driveway (I live up a hill as well):

There are ducks but not as many as there used to be because we suddenly got a huge Canada geese population. They are pretty too, but they chase off the little white ducks and mallards, and they chased off my pair of swans that I was enjoying watching. The neighborhood homeowners association is trying to deal with the problem. They have rounded up 63 of them and relocated them, but a few days after that happened, I counted 11 in my front yard again. They are messy and they are noisy, and they are tame enough that they do NOT move to get out of the street for traffic, which means that if they are in the road, and they don't feel like moving, you are just stuck. There was a whole group of them swimming by today but of course by the time I got back with my camera they had moved on. I did take this picture of my little white ducks though:

For several years now, there has been this one lone Muscovy duck:

If my swans come back, I will definitely have to get a picture of them. They are so pretty! The subdivision I live in has 4 lakes, and the swans are currently on one of the others. Maybe they will come back here.

Once the leaves start to change, the lake is really pretty. They went through a few years ago and cut down all the trees at the end where the main road is, and really thinned out the trees on my side...no one is sure why either. So it is not nearly as pretty as it was when I was younger, but it is still pretty enough. I'll have to get a picture of that too.

Romeo and Juliet - Or Just Juliet

2008-10-23T20:18:00.001-05:00

A couple of mornings ago, I let my dogs out and before I could get their food set out and let them back in, they started one of their barking frenzies that they do to let me know that we are potentially being invaded by some passerby on the street. This was a more frenzied frenzy than the usual frenzy though, so I walked around the house to see what was up. I found my neighbor standing there, who told me that one of the dogs that belong to the neighbors who live behind me was loose and that was the cause of the ruckus. I got mine back inside and fed and went out front to see if I could catch this little dog and notify her owners.

Now, first you need some history on this little dog. Her name is Juliet and she is part beagle and part Jack Russell according to her owner. She is an older girl. Juliet spent one afternoon with me about 2 yrs ago. The house I am living in is the same house that I grew up in and lived with my parents in until I moved out on my own. When I was cleaning it out after my mother died, I looked out the front window and saw this cute little dog running loose. She was willing to come to me but had no collar or anything to identify her so I went and put signs up and kept her with me. She was content to be in the house and so I let her lay inside since I was working in the front of the house and could see if anyone was walking around looking for her. Well, it got dark and time for me to go back to my own house, and I was trying to figure out what to do with her. I put her outside for a little bit while I thought about it, and while I was in the house, I heard her barking. I thought "Oh there goes the G____'s little dog barking" and about that time it hit me: the G_____'s little dog was barking in my backyard! So I found a number to call them and left a message. I decided to go put a note on their door and let them know that their dog was in my backyard but that I had to go home and for them to please come get her. About that time the phone rang, and it was Mr G____'s granddaughter who was now living in the house since her grandfather had died and had the care of his 2 dogs. She came right away and thus I learned that my afternoon companion was named Juliet.

So Juliet was once again on the loose. After my day with her previously I learned from some other neighbors that it is not at all unusual for Juliet and her friend, a grey poodle, to be out running wild. She was out front and I called to her and she came to me and we went in the kitchen. She now has a collar with a tag that says "I'm lost...please call" and has 3 different contact numbers. I tried the first one and it was a place of business. I started to explain what I wanted and a voice on another line told the receptionist that he had it and asked me where I was. Turns out he had gotten a call about 10 min before from the guy 2 houses down from me who had the other dog. The current owner is Mr G___'s son. When he came to get Miss Juliet, we talked for a few minutes, and he is apparently remodeling his father's home with the plan to move in. Meanwhile, Juliet and Lucky (her little friend) are living there alone. He comes by morning and night and feeds them and checks on them. They are in the yard during the day and in the storage room at night. But apparently Juliet is a digger (explains why she was all muddy and got my clean nightgown all dirty!) and they get out during the day. I had a new sewer line put in a while back and still have the rocks that got dug up in the process. The grand plan was to build a retaining wall across the terrace in the back, but so far that has not happened. So I offered him as many of the rocks as he needed to line his fence with so they can't dig out. My mom had done the same with the fence in this house years ago when we had a beagle who was a notorious digger.

That has been the highlight of the week, I guess. I am still working on my PS Pumpkin Patch. It is fun so far. Of course, it will be Valentine's Day before it is finished at the rate I am stitching lately...

Halloween Foursome Finished

2008-10-21T20:26:00.001-05:00

Well, I finished my Halloween Foursome last night, and I'm not happy with it at all. I don't usually stitch on aida, so I switch out the aida in kits for some kind of linen or evenweave. I am always careful to get the same size so all the beads, charms, etc will still be in proportion and so that the finished piece wil fit if it is to go in a pillow or frame. So I don't know what happened, except that something did, and I'm frustrated by it. The kit came with 14 count aida; I used 28 count monaco. Same size, right? You would think. But my little finished foursome does not fit in the included tuck pillow. I have trimmed and tucked and pulled and scooted and edged and eased and scrunched and everything you can think of...and it just doesn't fit. Here is a photo:

See how it touches on the corners? And this was the best that 30 minutes could produce. Oh well, by the time I get it back out for next year, my frustration with it will be past and I will be able to enjoy it anyway...

So after I finished with that, I kept "unstitching" AIAM...I am almost to a point where I can start stitching it again! Yay!

And since I finished something, I got to start something (I wonder if this explains my constant and steady number of WIPs?!) So I started Prairie Schooler's Pumpkin Patch. I'm stitching it in hand too and really enjoyed it last night. I may have discovered the cause behind my recent (several year) stitching slump. I have been stitching some, but nothing like I used to and not enjoying it like I used to either. So I am really excited about this! Hopefully I will get enough done in the next few days to warrant posting a WIP picture!

I have gotten some really nice comments on my blog posts, and I want to take a minute and thank you all. If you read and have not posted to any posts, leave me a quick note so I know who you are? There was a list of stitching blogs posted at the 123 Stitch message board recently, and I just wondered if anyone decided to come read mine...besides the 2 that I know of!

Off to watch L&O:SVU and stitch some pumpkin patch...

Pumpkin Day

2008-10-21T13:42:00.000-05:00

Well, apparently there is a day devoted to pumpkins...at least in Canada, according to my friend Cathey...so since I love pumpkins and autumn, I'm going to recognize it too! I just posted a comment on her blog about wanting some roasted pumpkin seeds, and that prompted me to look for a recipe. My mom made these for me every Halloween when I was little. I have seen a dozen recipes, all with different ingredients, but what we had was just plain old butter-and-salt roasted seeds. I was able to find this recipe on Allrecipes.com today...

ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds
2 teaspoons butter, melted
1 pinch salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
Toss seeds in a bowl with the melted butter and salt. Spread the seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes or until golden brown; stir occasionally.

This sounds exactly like what we used to have! I had not planned to carve a pumpkin this year, but the more I think about the seeds, the more I think I may have to. I can't buy a pumpkin to get the seeds and then just ignore a perfectly good jack-o-lantern-to-be!

Violin Pyrotechnics

2008-10-19T19:09:00.000-05:00

I went to see the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra last night with a friend who had an extra ticket, and the program was titled Violin Pyrotechnics. The soloist was a 16 yr old girl named Shannon Lee who was an absolutely amazing musician anyway and all the more so for being only 16.

I spent yesterday before the symphony stitching some and got the ghost put in on my Halloween Foursome. I also got more of All In A Moon taken out...I got to a point where I have about half of what I have to rip out done now. I probably should have just started over...it would have been quicker time-wise, but when I bought this fabric they only had a small piece left, and plus I really can't afford to get a new piece anyway.

I stitched for a couple of hours tonight and made good progress on my little Halloween Foursome. I have most of the 3rd motif done now. Here is my WIP as of tonight:

I could probably finish it if I could have a night of uninterrupted stitching. Of course, that is a pretty big IF...

Ever Have One Of Those Days?

2008-10-17T21:34:00.001-05:00

I had one today. To start with, I had to pay bills and that is always stressful and tense anyway. Then just everything I touched went wrong. I was out running errands and looking forward to going home and going to bed (yes, I know it was just after dinnertime, I did not care at this point) and my pregnant friend Cathy called to tell me that she did not know if she was in labor for real or not, but she was going to the hospital and she would call me and let me know. I had planned to be there with her (although not in the delivery room thank God...I would just be in the way laid out there on the floor) so I came home and tried to relax until I heard from her. Then I got really sick at my stomach and decided to come out of denial and admit that I had a migraine. Called to let her know, and she told me that she did not know if she was really in labor for real or not but that she had announced that she would not be going home and coming back, so they needed to plan on doing whatever it took to deliver a baby tonight. Last I heard, she was laid up in a bed attached to monitors and sounding very irritable. I really wanted to be there to support her. Instead I'm going to go to bed with a book and read for about 5 minutes until I fall asleep.

I finished Sepulchre last night. I'm still trying to decide if I like the way it ended or not. In some ways I do but in some ways it seemed to not really fit with the rest of the book. Overall, I thought it was really good though. In keeping with the time of year, I started a book called The Spiritualist by Megan Chance. It's set in 1857, so I"m still in the 19th century...although I'll be returning to the middle ages after this most likely. I really want to read the new Sharon Kay Penman book, and I need to go back and re-read the 2 that preceed it first. But this was just too good of a book for this time of year! Hopefully it will be good...it certainly started out that way.

I have been too tired to stitch in the evening, which is not good because I will never get the Halloween stuff that I have started this year finished in time, let alone do the 2 designs I have picked out that I really wanted to do this year. After Halloween is over, I will stitch on some autumn things until I feel like Christmas, and then I will stitch on some holiday things, and then after the first of the year hopefully things will get back into my regular WIPs! Maybe I should set some stitching goals for 2009...I have seen other people do that, but I really just want to stitch what I want when I want and not feel obligated or pressured into getting anything done or finished. It's supposed to be fun and relaxing (can't prove it by my recent attempts though LOL) right?

Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May

2008-10-16T10:39:00.000-05:00

I was looking at charts on the Heaven and Earth Designs site today...they have several John Williams Waterhouse paintings that have been adapted for cross stitch. I was adding to my wish list (or course!) and added this one called Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May:

The title is the first line from a poem by Robert Herrick (1591–1674) who was a 17th century poet. I really wish I had been more attentive in my 17th Century British Lit class in college...I had to look up the title of the poem. It is called To The Virgins, To Make Much Of Time. It is a beautiful poem with an important message.

I Don't Count

2008-10-14T22:40:00.000-05:00

That's the only explanation for it. Because I was so frustrated at having to take out so much of AIAM, I picked up a small Pine Mountain Design tuck pillow with a Halloween chart called Halloween Foursome. There is a difference between mine and the one in the photo though...mine is an older kit and instead of the boo charms, mine has a little candy corn button and 2 little star buttons that go in the same place. Made good progress on it last night. Stitched on it for quite some time tonight and all of a sudden the ghost's arm didn't fit. Sure enough a row toward the top was off. So I took that out and started putting it back in and decided that until I learn how to count again, maybe I ought to leave things that involve numbers alone. At lease this time it was only about 7 rows!

So I am going to read instead. What I ought to be reading is the blogs that I enjoy and try to read as often as I can, but instead I am pretty caught up in this novel called Sepulchre by Kate Mosse. I have had her other book, Labyrinth, for some time, but of course now that I want to read it too, it is nowhere to be found. Anyway, I am not a fan or horror or really anything too creepy, but this has been a really good book so far. Definitely a good pick for this season. The Tarot features largely in the novel, and it makes me want to learn more about it. That kind of thing fascinates me, although I don't think I'd favor it over the Episcopal church! :)

I love historical novels anyway, and have read some really good ones lately. If you are interested in the War of the Roses period of English history, you will love Anne Easter Smith's books A Rose For The Crown and Daughter of York. They were the kind of books that you get so involved in that you miss the characters like you would miss friends once the book is finished. One of my favorite authors, Sharon Kay Penman, has just released the 3rd book in her Eleanor of Aquitaine series. I am planning to re-read the first 2 since it has been ages since I read them. I can recommend The Sunne In Spendor though...it is also about Richard III and I read it just after the Anne Easter Smith books. It was excellent. I have been stuck in medieval England for some time now, so I had to move to 19th century France for a bit! LOL

On a holiday note: Here are a couple of fun Halloween things...

Halloween Hangman Game
Pumpkin Simulator

Hopefully my mathematical abilities will have returned by tomorrow night and I will be able to stitch without incident. I am determined to stitch some Halloween designs during this season this year!

Rudy Is Ready For His Close-up

2008-10-12T22:39:00.001-05:00

First of all, thank you all for the compliments and comments on my new blog! I am pretty excited about it, and it certainly adds to the thrill to have people tell me how much they enjoyed it so far!

I have had one "complaint"...this from a close friend tonight. She told me that I need a better picture of Rudy since you can't see his face very well in the one I have now. If you click it so that it enlarges, you can see his little face better...but here's for you, Cathy:

This is Rudy in my back yard earlier this week, possibly the same day that the other picture of him was taken. I have been trying to get some updated ones of all the dogs, but Rudy is hard to photograph because:

he is a black dog with dark eyes, and so usually in pictures he shows up as a black blob, and
he is in constant motion

This is Rudy from Christmas 2006. The reindeer antlers are obviously supposed to be on top of his head, but every picture I have where they are in place like they are supposed to be is blurry. Did I mention he is in constant motion? He tolerated the antlers for long enough to take some pictures, but after that he was done with them. I saved them in case I decide to try again. I'm still recovering from my first experience with it right now!

Every year at Christmas there is fundraiser for one of the animal rescue groups here and they do pet photos with Santa for a nominal donation. And we go every year. I had a friend help me last year since I have 4 dogs, and as if 4 dogs were not too many to start with, 4 excitable and anxious dogs are even more challenging. We were successful and if I can get the photo scanned, I'll post it. Right now I am without a printer or scanner. I mentioned needing help again this year, and was told that what I need is a new friend! LOL! But that will be a fun picture to post.

I did not get to stitch any tonight because I took one of my good friends out to eat dinner for her birthday, but I did take out the letters that needed to be taken out of All In A Moon and then started on the moon itself earlier today. I'm glad I'm doing this. It will look so much better.

I'm so disappointed

2008-10-12T00:19:00.000-05:00

In the first few days of October, I started a cross stitch pattern called All In A Moon by Miss Crescent's Crowne. You can see a picture of it (and the next one called All In A Sleigh too!) here: http://needlecraft-corner.com/dg-misscrescentscrowne.html. This had been one of the most fun things I have stitched in ages. I think that's for a couple of different reasons. I'm stitching it in hand rather than using q-snaps or hoops or scroll frames, and it makes it so much easier for me. I used to stitch everything in hand or with hoops and then got introduced to q-snaps and then scroll frames and then I got the idea that I was not supposed to stitch anything in hand and have been frustrated ever since! On a whim, I just decided to try with this piece and it has been so enjoyable. The other thing I am doing differently with this piece is that I am using a larger needle. I know that they are supposed to stretch the holes out on your fabric, but I have tried using both size 24 and 26 (on either 28 or 32 count fabric) and do not see any difference. I'm sure on 40 count fabric it would indeed look like someone tried to stitch with a pickax. However, my stitching projects on 40 count are few and far between. There is a REAL difference in how comfortable it is for me though. So I am using my size 24 needle which I know some people consider on the same lines of a railroad spike in size. That's ok. I have fibromyalgia and carpal tunnel syndrome, and I can feel the needle and hold it better.

Ok, so I have been working on this piece as much as I can in the evenings (some evenings are more successful than others...depends on the collective canine attitude) and I got excited and decided that I'd take a picture of it before I started stitching tonight since I anticipated being able to stitch on it for a while. The plan, and it was a good one, was that I would then post the picture of it when I started stitching tonight and the picture of it after I finished stitching for the evening. The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

I had worked on it for maybe 30 minutes, and one of the letters would not line up with one of the other letters the way it was supposed to. Have I mentioned some OCD tendencies? I cannot stand for a piece to not be just perfect and will take out an amazing amount to make it so. I spend the better part of the next hour trying to figure out how in the world these 2 letters could NOT line up since everything was spaced the distance that it should be spaced from the things it was spaced from...????? So I finally started looking at the moon itself instead of just the letters and lo and behold, the moon was a stitch off. Go back and look at that picture again. You see the letter G? Everything below it is messed up. I just sat there and thought "no way am I taking all of this out! It will just have to be one stitch too far one way and I'll eventually go on to become obsessed with something else and it will all be ok" So I kept working on the letters. Until I realized that, my OCD notwithstanding, it will NOT all be ok, because the letters will be touching each other. And even if they are different colors it will look stupid. And every time I look at it, I will have that same "it's touching" anxious feeling in my stomach. Sooooo...it will have to come out. It might actually be easier to start over come to think of it, but I will try taking this out first. If it looks like my spike of a needle has done too much stretching of fabric holes, then I'll deal with that when I come to it. This certainly wreaked havoc with my plan to finish this in a timely manner and then stitch some other cute small Halloween things.

Maybe instead of my original plan to post pictures, I'll instead post the one of how it looked when I started tonight and then one of how it looks when I unstitch it. Sigh.

The Cast of Characters

2008-10-10T19:33:00.001-05:00

My name is Suzanne and I live in North Little Rock Arkansas with my four dogs who are really my short hairy children. Allow me to introduce them:

This is Daisy...she is a rat terrier/beagle mix from my local Humane Society. She looks like a Jack Russell Terrier and has the personality and behavior of one too! She has at times been a true "terrier terror". I can't believe she was 9 years old in June. Daisy's mother was a full-blood rat terrier according to the Humane Society where Daisy was born. She was dropped off or wandered up as a stray and had puppies the next day. I had just lost a dog to bladder cancer and wanted to adopt a sheler dog, but I really wanted a puppy. They told me about Daisy's litter which was being fostered until they were old enough to adopt. They let me know when they would arrive, and I went eagerly to meet them. However, all but one had gone on a field trip to a local pet store that does adoptions through rescue groups to be seen and possibly adopted. That one was so sweet and cuddly. Trying to be sensible, I waited for the others to return so I could meet them too. There was a littler of 6 and one had already been adopted by the time I even found out about them. I decided I should meet the other 4 before I committed myself to Daisy, who by this time had been playing with a ball with me on the floor and crawled into my lap for a nap when she got tired. The others returned, with potential families on the way right behind them. I guess things happen for a reason. And really, after all that time with Daisy, how could I have NOT taken her anyway???

This is Rose...she is a dachshund/Lab mix. I don't know how it happened either! She was another rescue, but from my vet this time. She had been hit by a car and was brought by the driver in to the vet's office to be euthanized since she was unable to move. The vet determined that she was not in any pain, and wanted to wait in hopes that she would regain movement. Within a couple of days of her accident, she got her functioning back! So they spayed her and started looking for a home for her. Daisy ate all of my mother's prize Rose of Sharon bush and got good and sick and had to go to the vet for the day. When I went to get her, I passed Rose's cage and commented on how she looked almost identical tol the dog I had lost a year or so ago. I had been looking for a companion for Daisy, and after thinking about it all week I went back to meet Rose in person. I took a leash with me, so I think I knew what was about to happen. I sat on the floor and she came into the room and crawled into my lap and sighed. It was a good thing I had the leash. She had been adopted twice and had been returned to the vet's office both times. He made the comment that if it didn't work out, I could return her to him. I thought that was really strange, as he knows that when I adopt pets, I adopt them with the commitment to make it work. The trip from the shelter is a one-way trip as far as I am concerned. She looks so sweet and calm, doesn't she? The first day that I left her alone and went to work, she ate through the plastic pan in the bottom of her crate and then ate through the carpet, the padding, and right down to the concrete floor...right smack in the living room in front of the entertainment center. This was not so entertaining to me. The second day I left her crate on the floor in the kitchen with towels in the bottom of it (since we now had no plastic liner) and I came home to find her AND her crate in the dining room on the carpet, which now had a hole identical to the one in the living room. Who knew that a dog could walk across a kitchen and drag a wire crate wtih her? I knew I was not going to be able to pass this off as a phenomenal accident by a mutant rat to the apartment management staff, so I called the vet. He diagnosed separation anxiety and put her on some medication so that she could be calm when I left. The medication worked like a charm, and ironically, she is the one that I never have to worry about leaving out of some kind of confinement. This "free" dog cost me a small fortune when I moved out of the apartment.

This is Rudy...he came with registration papers that state he is a miniature dachshund. He weighs approximately 22 lbs. That is not miniature in my opinion. My vet just looked at him and said slowly "noooo, he's a standard". Well, he was supposed to be a miniature. My mother claimed to never want another dog after the beagle we had for 17 years died. That was in the mid-1980s. But about 10 years ago, she had a friend who had miniature doxies, and she was just enraptured. So for Christmas, in 2003, I decided to get her a dog. Before anyone says that you are never supposed to give pets as gifts, you are right. I had decided that I would take him if she refused. But I knew she needed some companionship. I found 3 dachshunds at shelters in the central Arkansas area, and all were already gone by the time I tried to get them. Well by that time, it was about 4 days before Christmas, and I was determined to get her a dachshund. I really believe strongly in rescuing animals from shelters, and it galled me to have to pay a breeder for this one. Knowing what I know now, I recognize that this guy was likely running a puppy mill, so maybe I inadvertently rescued him anyway. He stayed with me for 2-3 days before his debut at my mother's house, and I was in love with him by the time Christmas got here. As I walked in that evening with him in my arms, she looked at me in the dim light of the carport and said "What have you got there?" and when I held him out and said Merry Christmas she said "Suzanne, I TOLD you I don't want another...oh look! Come here!" She loved that dog and treated him like a baby. The first time she went out of town and I "dogsat" she told me that I had to hold him and rock him a little bit when he got ready to go to sleep. I thought like hell that would happen but that night when he sat at my feet and whimpered and looked up at me with his where-is-my-mamma-and-why-don't-you-love-me look...Sigh. My Mamma passed away in March 2005 from lung cancer and we had agreed that when she got too sick to deal with him that I would go ahead and take him home with me. He stayed with her throughout her illness and did not come home until the morning she died. He is a handful and she had trouble managing him at times (an elderly lady and a feisty puppy) but they loved each other very much. I joke and say that he is part of my inheritance. Why didn't she just leave me money and jewels?! LOL

And this is Bosco. He is of indeterminate heritage. We got Bosco from the Humane Society, who had categorized him as an Australian shepherd. O-kay. The vet said that he was predominately Lab. That fits. But from the time he came home, I had looked at pictures of pointers, and Bosco looked almost identical, to me at least. In surfing author's websites recently, I discovered romance writer Edith Layton holding Bosco in the photo on her website! See the resemblance for yourself at http://edithlayton.com/. So I wrote and asked her about her dog and what she thought it might be, and she wrote back and said that her dog, Daisy (how interesting since I have a Daisy too!) was also a rescue and was half pointer and half foxhound. I KNEW Bosco was a pointer! He can certainly push you to the point of frustration when he wants to, that's for sure...Many thanks for Ms Layton for her correspondence with me and her wonderful work with rescue organizations in her area. Bosco was the result of my then-boyfriend who wanted a dog of "his" since the other 3 were mine. He wanted a big dog who could go running with him and would wrestle in the yard with him. Something in Bosco called to something in him, and a week later, after agreeing that we were not going to get another dog right now, Bosco came home. I agreed ONLY because Bosco was going to be an outside dog. That was the agreement. So on the way to get Bosco, he asked if I was going to let him come inside in the cold. I agreed to that and said that there was no reason he couldn't sleep in the laundry room in the winter. Why the laundry room? Why not the kitchen? Because he's going to be an outside dog. The laundry room is heated and cooled. He'll be fine. Then he remembered as a child they had a dog that was chained outside and did not have a dog house to get in to get out of the weather, and he remembered standing at the door and crying because of the dog out in the rain. We can't let Bosco just stay out in the rain. I pointed out that we would have a large covered patio (we were getting ready to move) and we could put a large doghouse on it and the only reason Bosco would be out in the rain was if he didn't have sense to come in from it. So Bosco came home. The house where we were living at the time was old and there were several places in the backyard where Bosco could have knocked boards down and escaped. And it was 3 days before Christmas. What if he knocked something down and got out and something happened? He needs to stay in until we can get the backyard secure for him. Well, the long and short of it is that almost 2 years later Bosco has not yet spent one night outside. The relationship turned out to not be a match made in heaven after all, and in addition to some painful memories I am also left with Bosco (in all fairness, the then-boyfriend could not take Bosco with him and asked me to keep him since he knew I could give him a good home).

So that's the motley crew...who are currently demanding my attention. I seem to have fogotten that the world revolves around the needs and desires. Nothing like trying to stitch with "the pack" clamoring for attention! :)