A new month

I am so glad that February is here as January wasn't the best of months for me and ended last week with my youngest daughter Rachel being admitted to hospital with chest pains. Thankfully she is out now though she has to take a strong course of antibiotics and as she is three months pregnant it was a very worrying time for her with all the drugs that she was given when she was first admitted.

We've looked after her daughter Lily for most of the weekend and it's been lovely to hear her shout my name when she wakes up in the morning and even her singing away at 4.30 one morning was a joy. I can't believe that she will be two years old on Sunday, it doesn't seem five minutes since she was born.

I thought that it was about time that I posted a photo of my Travelling Stitcher SAL as I think this is the last week and I'm nowhere near finished yet.


This is what I had done by the end of the second week but then I couldn't find the cable to attach to the camera to download the photo. I have done a little more since then but not a lot so I must try this week and stitch a bit more.

I hope that wherever you are that the weather is better than it is here, very wet and windy, just the sort of day to sit and stitch if only I could get off here!!

hugs,

Belated New Years greetings and part 4

It seems such a long time since I've felt like blogging, I haven't felt well since way before Christmas and a bit of a health scare set off my panic attacks again, though now that the pills have kicked in I'm beginning to feel so much better.

We had a lovely Christmas with all the family here and we enjoyed it so much that we decided to do it all again for the New Year as it was my birthday but things didn't go to plan as both Tony and I went down with the Norovirus which was sweeping the district. We were both really worn out so I spent my birthday on the settee under my duvet.

I've not done a lot of stitching but I have managed to finish my Prairie Sampler off and make a start on the Travelling Stitcher SAL which I'm enjoying and Chris has introduced me to Gimp so I've been playing around with that programme for a while and I think I'm beginning to understand it at last.Today is my eldest daughter's birthday, I can't believe that the last 31 years have gone so fast, so Happy Birthday Sharon and I hope that this year is a good one for you.

Sharon, Kim and Rachel

This is a picture of my three daughters taken at our 30th weddding anniversary party last year, it's not very often that I can get a photo of all three of them together.

That's all my news for now,

hugs,

Part 3

Part three of Prairie Sampler is finished so by this time next week it should hopefully be finished.



I've run out of one of the threads though so with any luck it will arrive in time for me to finish on schedule. It's been lovely stitching this and I'm hoping to get it framed before Christmas.

It's been wet and windy again today, really miserable weather, so I'm making the most of sitting by the fire and playing with Lily. She's decided that she likes grandma's cakes!



I can't believe that Christmas is so near, we've been trying to sort out how we can get ten round our small table this year, I think there's going to be a lot of furniture moving. I've nearly done all my Christmas shopping which is a first for me as I usually leave it until the last minute but it's been a lovely experience shopping for grandchildren this year and I get to play with the toys first.......

hugs,

Sue

Part 2

This is the second week of stitching on Prairie Sampler and so far I'm keeping up with it and still enjoying doing it.


I've not done any other stitching this week, just had a quiet week catching up on housework and sleep.

Still raining heavy though it's not too cold but just the weather to snuggle up in front of the fire with a good book.

Hugs,

Prairie Sampler and GOF

I thought it was about time that I updated my blog as it will soon be time to show part 2 of Prairie Sampler and I haven't even posted part one. I've really enjoyed doing this, though at first I wasn't sure how I'd get on doing it in four weekly sections but it's been easy to keep up each week so it's made me think about how I usually start a new project.


I'm not over keen on the fabric that I'm using, it's 28ct permin linen in amber which has the look and feel of brown paper and creases terribly so I don't think that I shall use it again. It's a lot darker than the photo and it does look ok with the crescent colours that I'm using.

I've also finished the exchange for the Gift of Friendship that I do two or three times a year.


This year I chose to stitch a pendibulle as I'd never done one before and the only problem was finding a pattern that would fit into a corner but I don't think it's turned out too bad. I know that there aren't many in the GOF group that know that I have a blog so I think it's safe putting it on here.

Apart from a little stitching I've been looking after a poorly pussy cat. One of my daughters cats that she left here when she moved out got hit by a car three weeks ago. She broke her bottom jaw, split her top palette and her skull. Thankfully the vet managed to operate and wire her jaws up but the downside was that she had to be fed every couple of hours through a tube in her throat which was a bit tiring to say the least. Luckily for me she had the top wire out at the weekend and she's back to eating normally so just the bottom wire to come out and hopefully she'll be as good as new.

Hope everyone is keeping warm and dry, it's bucketing down here....

love and hugs

Come and join us

Chris and I are doing a SAL for LHN Travelling Stitcher. It will start on January 2nd 2010 so there's plenty of time to get your name down and join in the fun.

You can find all the details here so please take a look

LHN Starlight Sampler

A finish at last.

I've only had the bottom border to do on this for ages but I've just not had the time to finish it but I finally knuckled down to it yesterday and here it is.

It's been lovely to stitch and so lovely to see it finished.

I have joined in with a SAL for LHN Prairie Sampler, link is in my sidebar, and although it doesn't start until November 1st I thought that I'd get myself organised so the threads and fabric are waiting for me to start.

It's a beautiful sunny day outside so I am going to brave the spiders and do some much needed gardening

An exchange and a proposal

My gift came today from Wendy Jo for the autumn/halloween exchange on Exchange Heaven and it is absolutely gorgeous.


The finishing is perfect and the colours so rich. She also sent me a piece of fabric that I shall certainly find a use for. Thank you Wendy Jo.

My other news is that Rachel, my youngest, phoned me last night from her holiday and told me that Darren had proposed and she had accepted. Me and DH knew he was going to ask her as he came and asked for our permission last week which I thought was rather nice. Of course we said yes as he's been so good for Rachel since she met him 18 months ago and after her first disastrous marriage she deserves someone who'll take care of her.

I managed to get some more stitching done on starlight last night until the spiders started invading the house. We had two giants crawling round the living room but thankfully Tony caught them both otherwise I'd have still been jumping up and down on the settee, I am such a wimp!!!

Have a good day whatever you're doing.....

love

Autumn sunshine

It's glorious outside today and DH keeps saying why don't I go out in the garden and enjoy myself like I usually do when the sun is shining. Well, as everything in life, there is a reason why I don't like gardening in autumn.........I'm terrified of spiders. I don't even like going into the greenhouse to pick the tomatoes in case one falls on my head from where it's been lurking, waiting for me to walk into it's wonderful web! I can sit and watch them from the safety of the conservatory and marvel at the intricacies of their spinning, but oh how I wish they'd do it somewhere else.

On a brighter note, Elisa has received the stitching that I sent to her as her exchange piece for Exchange Heaven.
I loved stitching this and made it into a needle book for her. I really must learn how to use my camera better than point, click and that's it!

Lily has gone away for the week with her mum Rachel and Darren, her first proper holiday and I think if things go to plan for Darren there will be news to tell when they get back. I am going to make the most of it and try and get some stitching done though to be truthful I really ought to do some decorating before it gets too cold to keep the windows open, but it's so much nicer and oh so much easier to sit and stitch.

Joshua is growing fast but still no news of his appointment for his clicky hip. his neck has responded well after visiting the osteopath and Sharon says that he might only need one more visit and then she can carry on with the exercises herself. Poor little chap he's had so much prodding since he's been born but he still smiles away.
Hardly any Beatrix done this month but starlight sampler is coming along nicely.....

hugs

Exchange received

It's cold and wet and miserable here in Derbyshire, so I'm sitting here doing nothing apart from catching up with tv and putting my feet up. Not much stitching going on either as it's been a busy few weeks though that is going to be remedied soon hopefully.

I received my exchange from Lucy on the Exchange Heaven exchange. The theme was "Home" and this is what she sent me.



This is so apt for me as I'm never without a cup of tea in my hand. Lucy charted the design herself, isn't it lovely.

This is what I stitched for Wendy Jo; I made it into a door hanger and added a little pincushion to match.

I made a little pocket on the back and trimmed it with lace, I read on her blog that she liked red so I hoped that she liked this.

Hoping to get my LHN Starlight Sampler out again soon, it's been too long since I've sat and stitched.