a little bit of stitching

A cooler start to the day, even the birds seem quiet this morning after their antics over the past week or so. We have had so many baby birds this year, the garden has been like a flight path with all the comings and goings of the parents feeding their young.

We thought we'd missed the baby wrens but there they were at the bottom of the garden trying out their wings, it was so lovely to watch them and so comical. Thankfully we've not had a problem with cats this year, I think it must be too hot for them. Our old cat Gizmo just lies and watches everything going on, I don't think he has the energy anymore to chase anything. He's very demanding at the moment, wants his food put under his nose and shouts when he doesn't get his treat at tea time. He is nearly 18 so he should be looked after.

It's been too hot to stitch, I've only managed a little bit on Sunshine Susan but every little helps.

I finished my exchange piece but then Tony accidentally tripped over the rug while he was passing me a cup of tea and most of it ended up in my basket where I keep my stitching. Thankfully most of them were in bags but the exchange piece got soaked. I tried to wash it in cool water but the colours ran so badly that it ended up in the bin as there was no way I could save it. I did manage to send something else.

I was lucky enough to win a chart from Maggie at Black Country Wench a couple of weeks ago, such a lovely Autumn chart.

The garden is growing well, some of the bedding pants I grew are flowering and most of the veg is now appearing despite the two days of dreadful thunderstorms when I thought everything had been flattened but most of it bounced back the next day. The wind pulled the climbing hydrangea off the roof of the outhouse but it was due for a cut this year and it takes a lot to kill it. The roses lost most of their petals but other than that no more harm was done and the garden really needed the rain.

Tony has been busy repairing the shed roof, he frightens the life out of me when he's climbing ladders and walking on the roof, can't tell him that he's getting too old to be doing things like that though, it doesn't work. He never had much time for the garden when he was working but he's always out there since he's retired and it's keeping him busy.

That's all I can think of for now, take care all, Sue x

A finish and a lot more in the garden

I finally have a finish to show, it seemed to take ages doing all the confetti stitches and it does look better in real life, I'm not very good at taking photos so this will have to do.

Summer by Rosewood Manor

A few more stitches have been put into Sunshine Susan by Lesley Teare, I want to get this finished as it's been hanging around for too long but the colours are lovely.

I've been stitching for an exchange and making a few bits and pieces to go with it but I'll show them another time, I don't think my partner reads or even knows that I have a blog but I don't want to spoil the surprise.

We've been out in the garden again while the better weather has been around, shame it seems to have gone into hiding this week. The seeds that I sowed in the garden are coming through, we just need to keep the pigeons away from them or like last year there will be none left for us.

I love roses and this year we are having a lovely show,

as you can see we lost the tree fern even though we wrapped it well in the cold weather.

The baskets outside of my craft room window are beginning to fill out.

And the fish are getting more lively now that it's warming up

and what a better way to start the day than making some homemade bread.

Well that's about it for now, the sun's shining so I'm going to make the most of the rest of the day.

Take care all, Sue x

The garden and some stitching

Hello all, missing in action again but I have been busy in the garden and trying to catch up with a little stitching when I can keep my eyes open in the evening. My knee still keeps playing me up but it's been manageable if I take things slowly especially coming down the stairs.

Some sad news too has slowed me down as my sister passed away recently and coming after the death of my brother before Christmas it's made me feel sad and a little bit alone but Tony's been good, giving a hug when I need one and I've really needed a few just lately.

I've had lots of time playing in the greenhouse and most of the seeds have grown so I'm hoping that with this warmer weather they will make healthy plants. We've had some problems in the garden this year, the cherry tree has been attacked by cherry aphids, little black beetles that attack the leaves and growing fruit although the blackbirds usually beat us to the fruit anyway. One of the peonies that I've had for years has either got wilt or blight so we've dug it out just in case. We've had them so long, just a bit of tuber from my Mum and Dad's garden but thankfully the other three look ok for now.

The wisteria is blooming again and the fronds of the ferns look so lovely when they are just unfurling.

Tony made the archway and the gate leading to the vegetable patch, hopefully the rose and clematis will flower this summer and cover the arch

A few of the seeds we planted this Spring.

And the beans and onions are starting to grow.

A new start, Summer by Rosewood Manor,

and a little shawl that I knitted at the beginning of the year that I forgot to post.

Well, that's about it for now, thankfully the weather has improved and the garden and my stitching is keeping me sane. Until next time, take care all, Sue xx

A week of April gone already

..... and I haven't posted since January. We've once again been decorating and making myself a craft room, not one of the bedrooms this time as every time I grab a bedroom for me one of the girls come home so I'm not taking any chances this time.

Just as we'd about finished everything I decided to give everywhere a good clean and that's how I've ended up with a dodgy knee for the past four weeks. I was only kneeling down to polish a little table when I managed to roll my knee and twist my back at the same time.

It has made me feel so miserable and so old and the physio who I've spoken to twice on the phone keeps hinting that at my age I should expect a few aches and pains, it didn't stop him giving me lots of exercises to do though. 

I've not done much, I've been trying to do a little stitching but I can't get into it at the moment.

Hoping that I can get back into my stitching soon as I have another exchange coming up.

The garden needs a lot of love after we moved a lot round at the end of the year and we've been to the garden centre and bought a few seeds and compost to get me started. I put some tomato seeds and a few flower seeds in trays but there's a lot more to be done and if I could just get a bit of motivation going I'd be ok.

I don't think the weather is helping, it never seems to stop raining lately but I shouldn't complain, at least it's filling the water buts up in case we have another hot summer.

I've been watching a pair of robins starting their nest in the climbing hydrangea, I think we may have to put some netting over it as last year the magpies kept stealing the blackbirds eggs that were nesting in there and I don't want it happening again. We have a pair of magpies and pigeons that steal all of the bird food so we may have to sort something out for the smaller birds this year.

Well it looks like the sun is out so I might head outside and see what I can do, take care all,

Sue xx

Back again

Time has been flying by again, the last time I posted was in Summer when we were doing so much in the garden which took us through to the end of October when we had to stop due to it raining most days. 

The greenhouse got moved from the middle of the garden, it's now at the bottom of the veg garden where it looks much better. We moved a couple of the raised beds and we also had to chop down one of the apple trees as it was falling over and a little pear tree that very rarely produced any fruit, sad to see them go but more space to play around in now.

DD moved out in August into her new home with her boyfriend so after moving all of her furniture out of the bedrooms it was time to put ours back but not before we'd decorated a couple of the rooms upstairs. 

Now we are into January and as usual DH has got the decorating bug again so we are wallpapering the stairs and landing. We didn't intend to; we were hoping to just strip off the old wallpaper and paint the walls but after we started it we remembered that it was old lime plaster underneath and not in a very good state of repair so more paper is going on for now.

Not a lot of stitching going on though I did join in the Gift of Friendship again. I sent to Marina and as opening day was in December I can show what I stitched for her.

I really enjoyed stitching this

I received a lovely gift from my partner Deb, she really spoilt me with all the gifts that she sent to me.

The first three pictures are of the gifts that she stitched for me and the last one is the rest of the package, so many goodies I didn't know which to open first.

I've no resolutions of what I'm going to do this year other than make the most of it. Having lost my brother to a heart attack at the end of last year it makes you think what your priorities are and mine at the moment is to make each day count.

Hopefully I'll be back soon with another catch up if I can find something to show, not a lot of motivation at the moment with these miserable wet days that we're having but there are bulbs pushing through the soil so Spring must be around the corner.

Take care all,

Sue x

Exchange time

July has come round again so quickly and that means that I can show what I stitched for my partner who just happened to be my daughter this year. I've had this chart for ages, in fact I have at least three of this one that I have been gifted over time so I thought I'd stitch the needlebook but made it up a little different to what it should be. I forgot to take a photo of the inside but there was just a pocket to put the scissors in and  a few homemade pins tucked away inside. I also made the project bag which she said she'd like after seeing the ones that I'd made for myself. Unfortunately I'm still waiting for my exchange to arrive so I can't show what I have received but I'm sure it will turn up soon.

 

I started something new, after looking through some old cross stitching magazines I saw this chart of Sunshine Susan by Lesley Teare  from 2004 and I needed something to cheer me up so the pretty colours will certainly help.

I'm still spending time in the garden though I've still not got much energy but it helps to be outside even if I just manage to do a bit of dead heading. We have a wasps nest at the bottom of the garden in the compost heap so I'm keeping out of the vegetable garden while they are flying about, there seems to be so many of them.

The two photos above are of two new additions to the garden, I love dahlias and these were on sale from the garden centre a short walk down the road from us. It has recently been extended so lots more plants to tempt me.

The rudbeckia and delphiniums are growing well and if you look close in the middle of the tree branches you can just make out the first flower to open in the tulip tree.

DH is working away cutting down the hedge at the side of the garden, it has grown too tall so we are cutting it to a more manageable height before we get too old to do it, it's a shame really as it makes the garden more private but while he's been cutting it down he's found such a lot of deadwood so it needed doing.

That's about all to tell for now so I'll go and make a cuppa and decide what to do next.

Take care, love

 x

Catching up with myself

Hasn't it been a hot one this week, even Gizmo has been finding it hard to get somewhere in the shade. He's getting on a bit now and finding it all a bit too hot. 

There's not been a lot going on as both Tony and I have had covid which has knocked us for six. After all this time of staying safe, not going out too much and wearing our masks we caught it from DD who is living with us at the moment. She was so upset that she'd passed it on but at least we're getting over it now.

I've not done much stitching other than for an exchange that had to be done but I've been playing about with gifts that I've been given by my daughters. Rachel bought me this diamond painting and although I've not done much I've really enjoyed what I have done.

This lap quilt was a gift from Sharon ages ago and I thought I'd have a go at that too, I shall do some more on it when it's not so busy in the garden.

Another new one for me, a long stitch, and although I'm enjoying that too it's really making my fingers sore with the stiff fabric but I shall persevere.

We've spent a lot of time in the garden, mostly sitting looking at it while we've not been feeling up to doing much else but I'm so pleased that we have somewhere nice to sit and relax. Just a few pictures of the garden below.

These two little acers were on sale at the garden centre just down the road from us, they seem quite healthy so I hope we can keep them growing.

Another little plant that popped into my basket at the farm shop yesterday, a little calla lily, such a pretty colour.

While I've been not feeling like doing much I sorted through boxes of magazines that I've kept for years, loads of cross stitch and knitting magazines and lots of sewing patterns and knitting machine patterns too. My knitting machine has been up in the attic for many years, I'll have to get it down once DD has found somewhere to live and I'll have somewhere to put it. I was going to get rid of some of the magazines but when it came to doing it I just decided to put them all back as who knows when I might need a pattern or two.

That's about it for now, I shall go and pick the blackcurrants and strawberries before it gets too hot and then another sit out in the garden planning what to do next.

take care, Sue xx