Dad's Surgery

I got up yesterday morning thinking it was going to be a normal day. My sister called to see if I knew when they were doing my dad's angioplasty, my parents had decided to tell me after it was over so I didn't even know he was getting it done. I live a couple states away and they didn't want to worry me? Not great and they won't be doing that again. My dad had an ECG done a few weeks ago as a part of his pre-op for a knee replacement. It came back funny so he did a stress test, he's had a couple of funny ones but they didn't think it was anything. Monday the cardiologist recommended he have the angioplasty to rule out anything. Long story short he's having a quadruple bypass tomorrow morning. Lots to be thankful for, they discovered it before he had a major heart attack, his heart is otherwise very strong, he has good doctors but it's still very scary. He's only 65 years young and never had any symptoms so this is all very unexpected. Luckily I was able to get very cheap tickets so I flew home yesterday afternoon. I was actually out the door at 2:oo yesterday afternoon. I love this picture of my dad, he was in his early 20's here. Please keep him and my mom in your thoughts and prayers!

Another PIF and Goals

I got a gorgeous beaded scissor fob from Karin in the mail yesterday. The really neat thing is she made the beautiful red and blue heart shaped bead herself. Thank you so much Karin!

I so appreciate all the great advice I got on goal setting from everyone. Karen and Chelle even posted their perspective on organization and setting goals on their blogs :-). I love to "think out loud" and getting so much feedback is wonderful. I am realizing I can be organized and accomplish a lot without being so wrapped up in my daily "to do" list. I've also decided Karen and I must have been separated at birth we are so much alike, LOL. The long and short of it is I am going to have some overall goals. I want to meet my timelines for exchanges and gifts, I love participating in exchanges and stitching gifts. I also want to finish some of my UFOs and I do like having a list of projects I want to work on over the long term. I am just not going to plan quite so much of my day in respect to what I am stitching. I want to leave room to change my mind :-). Speaking of which, the new BBD loose Feather is in my hot little hands and I am going to stitch it as soon as I finish a PIF and an exchange piece I am working on.

DT Sampler Game Board WIP

My DT Sampler Game Board is coming along nicely :-). I had a few missteps, I didn't care for the linen I had originally purchased. The weave was too "loose" so I ended up pitching it, literally, in the trashcan. I pulled out a beautiful cut of 28 count lambswool instead. I also wasn't crazy about a few of thread conversions so I made a couple of substitutions. Now I am happy, happy with my linen and fibers and I am making progress :-). I've set it aside to work on a Valentine exchange and a PIF challenge piece.

I've been thinking about setting stitching goals every month, it's just not really working well for me. I love making lists but then I feel obligated to cross things off. I am a little compulsive about my list, LOL. It's a lot of pressure and sort of takes the fun out of things. For instance, the new BBD loose feathers is winging it's way to my house and I really, really want to start it but technically it's not on my list for this month. What's more it's not on my list of 50, not that I can't make adjustments... :-). I am not sure how to make progress without setting goals, but there's a part of me that just wants to stitch what I want to stitch and see what happens. Maybe I should not be so specific about the which and when and be a bit more general, I'd like to finish two pieces this month and make progress on a couple others or maybe I should just work on what I feel like working on at the moment? I'd be curious to know how tied you all are to your goals, rotations and lists?

My First 2007 Finish

My Bent Creek Spring Snapperland is done! I am thrilled with how it came out. I change the colors in the border, brown flowers aren't my thing, so I did them in WDW Sweetheart Rose and GAST Antique Rose. I also changed the chicken coop section. My grandmother always lived in a house in the country and kept chickens. Some of my fondest childhood memories include staying with her and collecting eggs. Once I found a snake in the coop but that's a whole different story, LOL. I wanted to remember my grandmother, Audie Pearl, by stitching a cute little old lady with a bun and a dress. She was just the sweetest person.

I am on to Drawn Thread Sampler Game Board. I have joined a Stitchalong and I need to stitch four blocks :-). It is suppose to be a very cold weekend, temperatures aren't getting out of teens and we are expecting snow, good excuse to stay home and stitch. We are planning a relaxing weekend in front of the fireplace, lots of movies, games and hot coffees. My DH has been mumbling under his breath about moving to Florida for two days, LOL. I hope everyone has a nice weekend!

A PIF Received

I received the most gorgeous Pay It Forward gift from Cathy, a hardanger fob and doily as well as a very pretty piece of linen and skein of silk. I was thrilled because I've never tried Hardanger and now I have two intricate, beautiful pieces in my collection. I've already put the fob on a pair of scissors I received from Adana at the SB retreat. Thank you so much Cathy, it was such a nice surprise :-). I love opening my mailbox and receiving an unexpected package. I think this PIF challenge was such a great idea and I am so glad I have the chance to participate. Now I need to get busy and start surprising a few ladies myself!

Happy New Year!

I can't believe it is 2007! I love the new year, the possibilities of a fresh start, making resolutions, and for me, a chance to get organized :-). I always make a few promises to myself and most years I manage to keep one or two of them, LOL. My stitching related resolutions are:

1. Continue the 10-25-50 challenge. I've put my 50 pieces on the sidebar of my blog. All I can say is thank goodness for birthday's and Christmas's. I will be asking for stitching stuff. I've allowed myself a few exceptions, the BBD Loose Feathers and hard to find, OOP charts, and limited edition pieces.

2. Stitch every day, I am very blessed to be a homemaker with lots of time to call my own so I should be accomplishing a lot more than I do :-).

3. Finish at least three of my UFO projects, the pieces that come to mind right now are SB The Promise, SB Victorian Sampler and DT An Open Heart.

4.I doubt I will finish it this year but I am going to work on ATS a few times a month. My friend Vicky convinced me to continue stitching it over one and we are going to work on it together twice a month. She's stitching it over one too. To be sure I don't waffle I'm giving the over two start to Vicky's mom, Danya, to stitch.

5. I want to finish at least one ornament each month.

6. I would like to frame at least one or two projects a month. I have several pieces stored away that need to be on my wall.

My goals for Janary are (amended 17 January):

1. Finish block 2 on CHS Village of Hawk Run Hollow.
2. Finish BBD Summer House (over half finished with this one too).
3. Finish Bent Creek Spring Snapperland (I am 2/3 of the way done) (finished 12 January).
4. Work on Frances Burwell (my Christmas start) (I have the first 4 bands finished).
5. Work on Sarah Moon (my New Year start) Worked on her 1 January, that's it).
6. Finish one of my PIF pieces :-), I have four to do, still room for one more!
7. Do two squares a week on DT's Sampler Gameboard, I am participating in a stitchalong with several other ladies, DT Sampler Gameboard Blog (coming along nicely, as of 17 January, I have 6 blocks done and a nice start on the border).
8. Finish Valentine Exchange piece.
9. Work on ATS (worked on it 16 January).

I wish everyone a wonderful, blessed New Year with lots of finishes! I am hopeful as always I will be the person God created me to be, keep at least some of my resolutions and get lots of stitching time :-).

A Few Finishes!

December actually turned out to be a very productive stitching month for me. I stitched my mom's Christmas present, several ornaments and gifts and a couple of scissor fobs for myself.

My mom's "wall" is now graced with CHS's Maria P. Oliver. She did tell me she needs at least three more pieces to complete this display, LOL. She was also drooling over my CHS alphabet piece, I think I may manage to keep that one but only because I am stitching Long Dog Sampler's The Token for my parents 45th wedding anniversary.


I also stitched and finished several ornaments, BBD Blackbird, two La D Da, the cardinal and heart and Brightneedle's No Peeking all for gifts and exchanges:

I did HIHN's Say Your Prayers over one as a fob for my friend's jewelry box. She asked me to do it several months ago. I've put a quarter next to it to show how tiny it is:

Finally, I did two scissor fobs for myself. I stitched With My Needle Eliza's Pyn Pillow for the red Gingher Sophia's. For the pink scissors, I can't remember their name, I did Lizzie Kate Life's a Stitch over one:

I plan to blog a lot more in 2007, time sort of gets away from me, LOL. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year :-).

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! I am the only one up, my parents, DH and kids are still sleeping so I thought I'd do a quick blog update before the chaos begins, LOL. I've been so busy this month finishing ornaments and gifts, getting ready for Christmas in general. My mom's gift is Maria P. Oliver, I think it's safe to post a picture, she will be opening it here in a hour or two. I am thrilled with the molding, the picture doesn't do it justice. I hope my mom loves it too.

We arrived home after much angst, we had our second blizzard in three months last week which shut absolutely everything down, As you can probably guess I live in Colorado :-). All the roads leaving Colorado were closed and there was some question as to whether we'd make it to the midwest to celebrate Christmas with our families. The highways finally opened early Friday morning and we decided to chance it and leave the state. The first 200 miles or so were not a bit of fun, but my DH managed very well and got us through safely. It was an easy drive after that, we are just so happy we made it home.

Today I am starting Frances Burwell, she's my Christmas present and has been sitting shrinkwrapped and waiting since early November. I am dying to open the box, play with the fibers and put the linen on scroll rods! I am hoping in between helping my mom in the kitchen, visiting with my sister and her family and keeping everyone content, amused and well fed I will find some time to stitch.

I hope everyone has a wonderful, happy, merry Christmas day and a blessed New Year.

Secret Stitching & Family

Since I can't post any of my current stitching pictures I've decided to post a picture of my sweet DH and our dog Shelby. She is definitely her daddy's dog, LOL. Shelby will be 14 in May, we've had her since she was a tiny puppy. We aren't certain what her breed is, only her mother knows for sure :-). The mom was a cow dog, the owner said the father was the cocker spaniel, I don't think so. She's more of a sheltie mix.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving, company was perfect and food was delicious :-). It was just a very nice, relaxing day. We also managed to squeeze in a couple movies while my parents were here, the Prestige and Happy Feet. Both were very good but Happy Feet was my favorite! My mom, my DD and I shopped on Black Friday. I didn't actually buy much but it was fun to see what was out there this season. Instead I took advantage of Cyber Monday. I sat down in the morning with my cup of coffee and the laptop and did most of Christmas shopping for my DH and the kids. It's so much easier than fighting the crowds, plus I can look for on-line coupons and comparison shop. I have a few things I will need to get out and shop for but the majority of my shopping is finished.

My finger is healing nicely, I took my stitches out on Saturday. I used my Ginghers and a pair of tweezers, LOL. It is such a time bust to have to go to the hospital and wait, I just couldn't be bothered.

I have two openings in my PIF challenge. I would love to stitch for a couple more people. If someone is having trouble filling their pay it forward, maybe we could swap gifts?

I am madly stitching on Christmas presents. My goal is to have the ornaments finished and my mom's piece at the framers by Tuesday. My DH has been gone for a week or so and will be gone next week too. My DS is traveling for work next week too so that leaves my DD and me at home by ourselves. Translation, no cooking and lots of stitching time. Hopefully I will finish my Christmas pieces up and have time to do some personal stitching. I got CHS Green Tree out and put a few stitches in for my Thanksgiving start. On Christmas day I will start Frances Burwell, it's in the closet ready to be wrapped and put under the tree. I didn't even take the shrinkwrap off so I haven't actually seen the chart, linen or threads :-). On New Year's day I plan on starting Sarah Moon. I really should finish Sarah Tatum first, last year's New Year's start, but I really want to start something new that day.

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season!

What a Week and Pay it Forward!

My week started out well since my parents decided they were going to visit us for the Thanksgiving holiday. I am very excited because I haven't seen them since July, they will be here tomorrow. We got more good news on Wednesday. Our DS, who is in the Air Force Reserves and has been at school in Arkansas since March, is finally finished. He will be home tomorrow as well. We will have a full house for Thanksgiving which makes me very happy.

I really enjoy cooking, one of these days I am going to take some gourmet classes, and planning the menu for a large meal is an all day process for me. I think I've found the right combination of old favorites and a few new things. Thursday I went to do my grocery shopping which is another all day event by the time I go to the commissary, Sams, track down the specialty things I need and put everything away when I get home. I was almost finished putting things away, I just need to run the trash out that's when my week went downhill.

When I was pushing the trash down I cut my finger to the bone, thankfully I missed the tendon. Jeff, my DH, had to take me to the emergency room to get stitches. I have 9 stitches in the pinkie finger of my right hand. The only bright spot is I am left handed. Unfortunately, my left arm is also very sore from the tetanus shot they gave me. I did manage a few stitches yesterday, I had to be sure I could still stitch, LOL. Note to all, when you go to the ER for a cut, be sure you bring your shot record. I am almost positive I had a tetanus booster 4 years ago but since the doctor couldn't confirm it he insisted on giving me another one. I can't get my finger wet for 10 days, we'll have to see how that goes. The worst part is it took the medic quite a while to get set up. The cut is in a very awkward spot and she was nervous so it took a long time to stitch. Unfortunately, it took so long that the shots to numb it wore off, the last 4 stitches were not fun at all. She did offer to re-numb it but I'd already been there for over two hours so I told her just to finish it. It's going to make cooking and all awkward to say the least. I am hoping in a day or two as it closes the swelling and pain will decrease. It's a half moon cut on the side of my finger next to the middle knuckle. I am so not impressed, in the big scheme of things it is a minor inconvenience but still annoying.

I did get a little stitching done this week on Maria P. Oliver, not enough that you'd want to see a picture yet so instead here is a picture of where it will hang in my mom's house. This is my mom's 'wall' my sister calls it the 'Katrina wall', lol. I know it looks like my mom is out of space but she will make room for Maria P. Oliver and she is already talking about the next wall. Several of my stitching friends have suggested I teach my mom to stitch, I must note here my mother is an accomplished seamstress but she's not a stitcher. She'd prefer to leave that to me and I am happy to accommodate her :-). She loves her wall and I enjoy deciding which piece to stitch next for her. I have the next two or three pieces already picked out and kitted to stitch for her:

If you compare it to my smaller "wall" that goes up the stairs in my house, I need to do some serious stitching to catch up:

I have many other stitched pieces in my house, and if I pulled them together on a wall I would have a very nice display. I want a wall like my mom's without leaving bare walls everywhere else in my house :-). I have a long way to go. My goal is to make major progress in 2007, a little more time stitching and a little less time on the computer would help.

Finally, I signed up for Su's Pay it Forward Challenge. So now I am paying it forward, the first five people to sign up, via my comments section, will receive a stitched item from me sometime in the next year. After you sign up in the comments section email me at n2stitchkd at yahoo dot com so I can get your info. There is a catch of course, you must continue the gift by blogging this challenge yourself!

I hope everyone has a wonderful, happy Thanksgiving!

Chit Chat and My And They Sinned Dilemma

First I want to discuss my dilemma. I have started ATS twice and almost finished the first 8 1/2 by 11 page on both pieces, the first over one and the second over two. This is an older WIP picture, I have the cloud done too now and I am still going back and forth. I am so conflicted about which way I want to stitch it. On the over one side: I keep thinking if Vilma ever finishes And God Created, won't I need to finish AGC over one too? And do I want to do two projects that big over one? I love, love how it looks over one and I've seen it finished over one it's beautiful. On the over two side of things: It's not an issue of wall space, I definitely have room to hang the finished pieces if I did them over two, although the framing cost would be a lot. I also wonder if it's easier to see all the detail and symbolism when the piece is stitched over two. I desperately need to make a decision before I go any farther on either piece. And no, stitching both ways is not an option, LOL. I just can't make up my mind!

I had a productive week, I stitched and finished an ornament and I am almost done with my second one. Unfortunately since they are gifts, I can't post pictures but I will after they are given away. So now I only about half a dozen to go :-). I am planning on making big progress this week, I don't have quite as much in my schedule so I should have lots of stitching time. What I need to do is limit my computer time, LOL. Hope everyone has a great weekend and lots of stitching time!

Weekly Wanderings Pt. 2 10-25-50 Plan...

I've been considering for a couple of months how to be a bit more realistic about how many needlework projects I have and what I can actually accomplish in this lifetime. I've thought about going on a "stash diet", doing a two for one kind of thing, finish two projects in order to purchase one or just trying to be a bit more discriminating. I've decided to do the 10-25-50 challenge, Hastur Torres. It's a great idea, essentially I have to finish 10, 25 or 50 projects from my needlework stash before I can purchase anything new. Of course there are rules and exceptions :-).

The purpose of the challenge is to reduce the number of pieces in my needlework stash that I have not stitched.

The Rules (as modified to suit me :-):
1. Have fun reducing my stash.
2. There is no time limit- people have different size projects they would like to work on.
3. Thou shall not purchase any new patterns until 10, 25, or 50 projects have been stitched, 50 for me. Pattern size does not matter.
4. You can make some exemptions.

My Exemptions are as follows:
a. Blackbird Design's Loose Feathers Automatics
b. Autumn Snapperland Pieces, I am on auto for these also.
c. Limited Edition Pieces, this includes the Needleprint Ackworth Martha Brady and Ann Trump and any piece that has a limited availability that I feel I cannot live without :-).
d. My penance for these exemptions is I will not count Christmas Ornaments as a part of my
50 finishes.
e. I may purchase linen and thread only if I do not have what I need in my stash.
f. Finally, I may substitute anything on my list of 50 projects from stash I currently own as I desire.

5. Gifts, gift cards, trades, RAKs (stash sent by others randomly) and patterns bought with gift
money are not a violation of this challenge. Frances Burwell and the Proper Stitch are both Christmas gifts from my DH, can you tell I do my own shopping, LOL.
6. Freebies count as part of your total and you can aquire them at any point.
7. The offical start date for me is Nov 1, 2006.

My List of 50 projects:

1. Bent Creek Autumn Snapperland
2. Bent Creek Spring Snapperland
3. Bent Creek Summer Snapperland
4. Birds of a Feather Happy Hearts Sampler
5. Birds of a Feather Peace
6. Birds of a Feather Sally Spencer Sampler
7. Birds of a Feather School House Sampler
8. Blackbird Designs Be Kind Be True
9. Blackbird Designs Quaker Garden
10. Blackbird Designs Strawberry Garden
11. Blackbird Designs Summer House
12. Blackbird Designs Truly Thine
13. Blackbird Designs Tulip Manor
14. Brightneedle Lo, How a Rose Sampler
15. Brightneedle Ghosties and Ghoulies
16. Carriage House Samplings Alphabet Sampler
17. Carriage House Samplings Green Tree
18. Carriage House Samplings Hearts and Flowers
19. Carriage House Samplings Houses of Hawk Run Hollow
20. Carriage House Samplings Maria P. Oliver
21. Carriage House Samplings Stitcher's Prayer
22. Carriage House Samplings village of Hawk Run Hollow
23. Cross Eyed Cricket Acorn Tree
24. Ewe & Eye & Friends Alphabet Basket
25. Ewe & Eye & Friends Basket 1 Miniature
26. Ewe & Eye & Friends The Heart that Gives
27. Hillside Samplings Tree of Life Sampler
28. Historic Stitches John Foster
29. Just Nan Silkwood Manor
30. Little by Little Reward of Plenty
31. Long Dog Designs The Token
32. Needleprint Sarah Moon
33. Shepherd's Bush A Mother's Heart
34. Shepherd's Bush Autumn Blessings
35. Shepherd's Bush Busy
36. Shepherd's Bush Christian's Stocking
37. Shepherd's Bush Elisabeth's Stocking
38. Shepherd's Bush French Heart
39. Shepherd's Bush Happy Haunting
40. Shepherd's Bush Jillian's Stocking
41. Shepherd's Bush Reed's Stocking
42. Shepherd's Bush The Promise
43. Shepherd's Bush Thoughtful Hearts
44. Shepherd's Bush Victorian Sampler
45. The Drawn Thread An Open Heart
46. The Drawn Thread Marriage of the Minds
47. The Drawn Thread Sampler Game Board
48. The Examplarery Frances Burwell
49. The Scarlet Letter Sarah Tatum
50. Trilogy A Gathering of Hearts

I am committed now, I've put it out there in writing :-). It's a good thing there is an edit feature, seriously though it is a great idea and I really want to do this. I am fortunate to have any number of wonderful designs in my stash. Lately, I have been feeling like I am more of a collector than a stitcher and I want to be a stitcher!

Weekly Wanderings & House Haunting Progress

The Blizzard of 2006 came with a vengeance. But what a fun day, we had cider, soup, hot coffees, and played games. I got to stitch and we watched movies, all in all it was a cozy day of relaxation for us. We got 18 inches of snow, it you are particularly interested there are more pictures in my album, the link is on the left.

I am making good progress on my SB House Haunting. I really think it's a beautiful piece. I would love to sit and work on it until it's finished but Christmas is coming quickly and I don't want to be caught up in the last minute stitching rush. It makes December unbearable for me when I have gifts to finish. I usually do small ornaments to go with gift cards, participate in a few exchanges and I stitch something for my mom and sometimes my DH. I'd like to be finished up by Thanksgiving this year. I spent Thursday selecting and kitting up ornaments. Since they are gifts and exchanges I won't post a list or pictures until after they reach their new homes :-).

I am off to do part two of my post, my plan for managing my needlework stash...

Blizzard, Chit Chat and my Latest WIP

I just love this Fob and I wanted to share a picture of it. My friend Vickie made it for an exchange we did at the Shepherd's Bush Retreat. It's so gorgeous in person, the picture doesn't do it justice.

On another note, we have a blizzard in our forecast for tonight. Someone pinch me, isn't it still October? I cannot believe it, 40-60 mph winds and 5-12 inches, whiteout conditions. I've been to the grocery store to pick up a few things and cancelled my dental appointment for tomorrow. Of course the weather here is very unpredictable, we could end up with a whole lot of nothing, but just in case the order of the day will be SB House Haunting, Pasta Fagioli and Italian cornbread, oh and vanilla coffees and maybe some hot apple cider :-). Hopefully my DH and DD will be able to stay home with me and enjoy the day, it's too soon to tell. We'll have a much better feel for what the weather is going to do this evening when the storm system gets a bit closer.

I am moving along on House Haunting. It's been a bit of a pain, I had to unpick everything I did at the retreat, somehow I got my linen turned around and I was stitching in the wrong direction. Some of it was over one and I cut a thread and then had to reweave the linen. Then I started again, and was off on my counting and had to unpick a bunch of stuff again. I've decided starting in the middle is not the thing to do on a sampler. This time I started from the top middle so I am sure my count is good :-). Maybe I will add a post blizzard WIP picture!

Autumn Chit Chat

This is the piece that I had framed by Jill Rensel, she's the person who does all the Shepherd Bush's pieces. I am thrilled with it!

I posted some goals last month, I didn't accomplish quite as much as I had hoped:

1. Complete one block of VoHRH. I'd actually like to finish it by the end of the year, but realistically one block is probably all I can get done this month :-). -- Not, did get the outline done!
2. Finish HIHN Harvest Home Sampler --I did finish this one :-).
3. Finish Trilogy Secret Pumpkin Patch --Finished this one too.
4. Finish Indigo Rose Scissor Fob --Decided as cute as the Essie Friends were, I just wasn't that interested so I sold them!
5. Finish CHS Stitcher's Prayer, I am about halfway done. --Got a few stitches done but not finished yet.
6. Finish BBD Summer House Loose Feather, I am also about halfway done with this one. --not a stitch!
7. Start CHS Green Tree Sampler --nothing!

I think instead of setting goals month by month I am going to decide what I want to accomplish the rest of the year.

1. Finish 3 Christmas Ornaments for exchanges!
2. Finish CHS Stitcher's Prayer, I am still a little over halfway done.
3. Finish the Shepherd's Bush Retreat piece, Happy Hauntings! BTW, the retreat was really wonderful :-).
4. Finish a Christmas gift for my Mom.
5. Finish at least 3 more blocks on CHS VoHRH.
6. Finish EEF Whimsical Hearts over one, I am going to finish it as a scissor fob.
7. Finish With My Needle freebie Eliza's Pyn Pillow, it's going to be a scissor fob too.
8. Finish EEF Alphabet Basket, it's been a UFO for quite a while.

If I by some small miracle I finish all of these, I'd love to finish my Snapperland pieces and Shepherd's Bush Autumn Blessings.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful fall season, This is my favorite time of year, the leaves changing, the coolness in the air, and anticipating the holidays. I happen to love baking cookies, decorating and spending time with my family. This year we are going home for Christmas, my DH is in the Air Force so we don't live close to any of our extended family, and going to Illinois for Christmas and New Year's is really exciting for us.

A Finish & Goals for the Month

It's finished! A few problems along the way, but it's done. I got to the bottom section and realized that I had cut the fabric too short. I think it may have been a Freudian slip, because I wasn't crazy about the people at the bottom. Instead, I substituted a band from Celtic Band Sampler, by the same designer. I think it came out very nice and today it's in the mail to Jill Rensel's Studio for framing. I can't wait to see what she does with it.

It's the beginning of September, time to set some goals for the month. I didn't quite meet my goals for August, but hopefully this month will be better :-). I have a few exchange gifts that I want to complete, a small little birthday gift, and then I can stitch on whatever I want! I also have the Shepherd's Bush retreat at the end of the month and i am counting down the days until I leave. This is the second retreat I've been to so I know a little of what to expect, but the projects are a mystery until the first day and the Shepherd's Bush ladies always have a few fun surprises up their sleeves. I am staying with 6 other women, we are all good friends and looking forward to the extra long slumber party, LOL. It should be a wonderful time and I can't wait!

My goals for the month of September:

1. Complete one block of VoHRH. I'd actually like to finish it by the end of the year, but realistically one block is probably all I can get done this month :-).
2. Finish HIHN Harvest Home Sampler
3. Finish Trilogy Secret Pumpkin Patch
4. Finish Indigo Rose Scissor Fob
5. Finish CHS Stitcher's Prayer, I am about halfway done.
6. Finish BBD Summer House Loose Feather, I am also about halfway done with this one.
7. Start CHS Green Tree Sampler, if I am really lucky and my needle is turbo charged I will get this one finished too. I'd like to leave the last three with Jill Rensel for framing.

I guess I'd better get busy stitching!

Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend, it is raining and we don't expect it to get out of the 60's today. It feels more like November than the beginning of September. I think a big pot of chili and cornbread, lots of movies and stitching may be the order of the day. I will have to see what my DH thinks when he gets up :-).

Updated Anniversary Sampler & Ramblings pt. 2

I am making progress on the Sampler that I am doing for my DH's grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary. We feel really fortunate to be able to celebrate this special occasion with them and we are looking forward to the trip to California. I am hoping to have this piece finished up sometime Monday or Tuesday but that may be a bit optimistic :-). I want to send it to Jill Rensel Fine Art for framing. Jeff's grandparent's are very "artsy" and I think they'd love it if the matting had handpainted touches on it.

I've been thinking a lot about simplifying and being a bit more practical about what I can and can't accomplish. I am fortunate to have a large number of designs in my personal collection or stash as we stitchers call it :-). Lately though I am realizing that I have more than I can finish in this lifetime. What strikes me is the excess of it, it's not that I don't love my hobby or that I never want to purchase a new project again but I do want to feel like I am being a little more discriminating in what I do get. I am really serious about this. I feel like I need some balance in this area of my life and I want to change the attitude that is behind accumulating all this stash. I've been chatting with some of my stitching friends about how to accomplish this and I've made the decision to go on a "diet". My start date will be 1 January, I wanted to start a the beginning of the year. I will go cold turkey, no fibers, linen, or charts and I am going to do it for {gasp} 120 days so the end date is 1 May. The only exception will be my autos, the Loose Feathers and BC Snappers and those only through the Autumn Snapperland series. After that if I still want to do them they will fall under whatever my new standard ends up being. Between now and then I am going to be very discriminating, I think whatever I get is going to go under the Christmas tree. When I am done with the "diet" I am considering possibly a two for one thing where I can't get something new until I finished two projects with a few exceptions, but I am not sure yet. I don’t want to think of this as restrictive but as an effort to simplify and be a little more practical about what I can finish. It's definitely not to take the fun out of it either, because like I said, I love my hobby. I just need a bit of balance. I know I am not the only one who feels this way because when the subject came up several of my fellow stitchers resolved to join me :-). That said, this is a personal thing that I want to do for myself and I certainly don't think because I feel this way everyone else does. I think everyone should do what makes them happy and allows them to enjoy stitching to their heart's content!

Ramblings and an Anniversary Gift

I am working on an anniversary gift for my DH's grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary. It's all cross stitch so I am hoping to finish it by the end of August. We are going to California to celebrate with them and I'd like to have it framed and ready to go way ahead of time since the week before we go to visit his grandparents I will be at the Shepherd's Bush Retreat. I let my DH choose the piece it's Homespun Samplar's Wedding Band. If I could stay away from the computer I might get more done, LOL.

I spend way to much time surfing and piddling on my laptop and I need to be a bit more disciplined about how I am using my time. I know I can't be the only one who has this issue? I have so, so many projects I'd like to do but I can't seem to stick to a rotation. I haven't got much done this year in general, the problem seems to be a lack of focus. I tend to skip around from project to project and I am not actually finishing very many pieces. So I've kitted several projects and they are neatly packed in my stitching bag, my new rule is I have to finish two before I can add anything to my project list.

Projects:
Bent Creek Spring Snapperland

Bent Creek Summer Snapperland
Birds of a Feather Green Santa Ornament
Birds of a Feather Peace
Birds of a Feather The Night Before Christmas Ornament
Blackbird Designs Be Kind Be True
Blackbird Designs Quaker Garden
Blackbird Designs Strawberry Garden
Blackbird Designs Tulip Manor
Brightneedle Ghosties and Ghoulies

Brightneedle No Peeking Ornament
CHS Green Tree
CHS Maria P. Oliver (gift)
CHS Stitcher’s Prayer
CHS Village of Hawk Run Hollow

Heart in Hand Needleart Happy Heart Day (gift)

Heart in Hand Needleart Steeple Sampler (gift)
Shepherd’s Bush Autumn Blessings

Shepherd's Bush Thoughtful Heart
Trilogy Harvest Home Sampler

Trilogy Secret Pumpkin Patch

By the end of the month I'd like to:

1. Finish Granny and Paw's anniversary present, Homespun Elegance's Wedding Sampler
2. Finish Trilogy Harvest Home Sampler
3. Finish Trilogy Secret Pumpkin Patch
4. Finish First Block of CHS The Village of Hawk Run Hollow Finished

The long of short of it is, I need to get busy stitching, LOL!

VoHRH Block 1

I've finished block one of CHS Village of Hawk Run Hollow. I had a few issues with the thread conversion, the DMC colors were a tiny bit orange for my tastes. I've changed a few of them and I am much happier with the overall tone of the piece. My plan is to do a bit of personalization with the names. I am going to include both my family names and my DH's family names. I am trying to decide it it's too morbid to add my grandparents who have died intitals in the cemetary portion of the Village?

Spring Snapperville

I've just finished the first half of this piece from Bent Creek, it's called Spring Snapperville. Now I have to wait for the rest of the series to come out. I did change the color of the border flowers a tiny bit, the pattern called for the flowers to be stitched in GAST Harvest Basket and WDW Cocoa. I just couldn't do it so I changed the colors to pink :-).