April

Another month beginning and like most of last month it has started with April showers, we've had a few sunny days but not enough to get out in the garden and tackle the big things that need doing but there's always something indoors to keep me busy and it's meant more time for stitching.

I've had this chart for ages and each time April comes round I think that I will stitch it, well finally I made the effort and it was such a quick stitch I wish that I'd have done it sooner, I've just got to decide what I'm going to do with it next.

April Showers by Shepherd's Bush.

This is another chart that I've had for years but never got around to doing, I've never made a needle roll so I shall see how it turns out once I've got a cardboard tube to wrap it round. 

Gentle Stitches by Shakespeare's Peddler.

I nearly have a finish with Sunflower Susan, just a bit of backstitching to do but I'll save that until next time and hopefully a nice new start.

As I said the weather hasn't been to good and the tubs of polyanthus, pansies and forget me nots are suffering from so much rain even though they are quite sheltered from most of it but they still add a splash of colour when you walk out of the back door.

The Amelanchier tree never fails to put a smile on my face with its lovely blossoms, always there at the beginning of Spring making a lovely show.

The lupins are growing......

the pear and the blackberries are making growth, and the raised beds are getting dug over

and we have seeds germinating in the greenhouse. There are still more to sow as we usually do extra for the girls to take home.

The only problem we have now is that the garden is still too wet in the borders to actually do any digging and the weeds are taking over but there's still time and I can't get stressed about the garden as that is my happy place where I spend most of my time in the Summer.

We've had a lovely Easter weekend with the girls and grandchildren popping round. I've only had one Easter egg and that's hardly been touched as I'm trying to be good. The weight has been creeping back on over winter so it's time I did something about it before it gets too bad so it's back to counting calories and saturated fat until I lose a few pounds and my cholesterol levels go down too.

I hope April is a good month to you all, Take care,

Sue xx

Spring

Oh how I wish the weather would cheer up, we seem to have constant rain though I have managed to get out in the garden over the weekend even though it was so damp, but it was an enjoyable couple of hours and hopefully the weather will improve soon. There's not a lot of stitching been going on though I have sorted through some patterns and have decided what I want to stitch next as well as finding something to stitch for my next exchange so that should keep me busy for a few weeks.

I finished this stitching, Spring by carolxstitch, into a little pillow. I really enjoyed putting it all together. It's a really dull day here so the photos are terrible.

It was Mother's Day on Sunday here in the UK  and I'd asked for Spring flowers and Jelly babies from my daughters. It's hard to think of anything these days, I have everything I need and I don't like them spending their money . I did also get vouchers for M&S, a book, a mug and some chocolates which have already been started. I love daffodils and as I've hardly any growing this year they've made a welcome presence in the house. I don't know why they haven't grown unless they've been eaten but we shall plant more this Autumn and hope that they will grow.

I decided that I'd try and make this cushion cover, I'd seen someone making squares on Instagram and it looked so simple which it turned out to be. I only used some odd scraps of fabric to see what it would turn out like but I think I may have another go one day.

I have some knitting on the go, my daughter bought me some wool for Christmas and so far all I've knitted is the rib and now I'm not sure if I want to knit the cardigan or the jumper that I originally thought of. Luckily the rib is the same for both of them so I could knit either once I've made up my mind. 

The socks I showed in my last post are finished and ready to be given away so that's another job ticked off the to do list.

I've also done a lot of reading this year, I seem to be getting through quite a few. I only read in bed so perhaps the books I've been reading are not as long as usual.

Hopefully I'll be back soon with more stitching updates and some photos of the garden if we ever get some sunshine.

Love Sue xx

A little knitting, a little stitching and a bit more.

I've been meaning to make a blog post for the past couple of weeks but to be honest there's not been a lot going on around here lately, we've both not been feeling to good, me with a bad back and Tony with a swollen eye and then he lost his hearing in his left ear. He's partially deaf in his right one so conversation has been a little comical at times. He was sent to the hospital within a week of seeing the doctor and he's got to go again to see the consultant in six to eight weeks or whenever he gets an appointment through. He's actually a lot better now but it will put his mind at rest if he can speak to someone again.

I'm still plodding along with this pair of socks that I started before Christmas, just the heel to turn on the second sock and then the foot to do so it shouldn't take me long if I get my finger out. The wool is Christmas wrapping paper by Rosie's moments and it's been lovely to knit with.

I've also put a few more stitches into Sunflower Susan by Lesley Teare, I wanted to get this finished for last Autumn but it wasn't to be, maybe this year I can finish it.

I finally finished my little quilt that I started last year, it only needed quilting and the binding to put on. I tried doing free motion quilting but my machine wasn't up to it, I think I need a bigger one! I've had my machine for years and it's been such a good one, it's served me well over the years and I don't think it would be worth paying out for something bigger as I can't see me making many more quilts even though I loved making it. It's not perfect by any means but I had a go so I'm happy with it.

I don't know why but I can't get going so far this year, maybe it's with us both feeling below par, usually Tony's got some project or another going on in his workshop but he's hardly been doing anything lately. I can't wait for Spring to arrive, I know we shouldn't be wishing our lives away but I think we'll both feel better once we can get out in the garden. The hellebores are about the only thing that are flowering and always make a nice show but there are hardly any daffodils or tulips coming through in the garden though I did find a couple of pots behind the greenhouse with some sign of life so that was a nice surprise.

Granddaughter number one, Lily, had her 16th birthday last week, she's been taking her mock GCSEs which should have been at the beginning of the year but the school was closed down just before Christmas due to it being in need of some serious repairs so in the mean time the pupils have been to different schools until something was sorted. A temporary school is being built until a new one can be sorted but it shouldn't have been left to get so bad in the first place.

Granddaughter number 2, Becky has been in some dance competitions two so far this year. The first one the group came second and then last week they came first. They were doing a dance to Cabaret and if I could find a photo I'd show you but whenever I download photos from my camera or phone although I can see them in my albums I can't get to put them on here. That's a job for another day.

The three grandsons are doing well, two of them are football mad and the eldest just likes his computer although saying that he can do a lot on it that I'd never be able to do, maybe I should ask him to sort my photo problem out. 

Well I've waffled on enough now and I can't think of any more exciting news so I'll press publish and see if that works for me.

Take care all,

Sue xx

Happy New Year and happy birthday to me

Happy new year everyone, I hope it's a good one for you all.

Another year older as it is my birthday today which will be spent doing anything that I want to do, but remembering those that I've lost this year and raising a glass to them all for all the love we shared and  wonderful memories we made along the way.

 So to all my friends and family here's hoping that 2024 will be a happy and kinder year,

take care all,

love Sue xx