Goodies!

Thank you so much to all of you for your happy wishes on my pregnancy! You are all so sweet! We are very excited :) Dawn asked how far along I am. Based on the first day of my last monthly period I am 7 weeks along and due on Feb 2nd - which is actually my birthday! We will have our first visit with the OB on the 30th of June.

Here is a picture of Cuddle Bug the other night reading to his new baby doll (his practice baby brother/sister) whom he named "Baby Billy." He's so cute!


I got some wonderful goodies in the mail the other day! I got this incredible collection of charts (and 2 kits) from Jacque over at "My Needle's Delight!" Thank you Jacque! You are so kind!! I love each and every design! Some of these charts are designs/designers that I haven't heard of before which is really exciting for me as a beginner :) I don't deserve such a wonderful gift but I will treasure it and will enjoy every stitch I make on these designs - they are from such a lovely blogger!


I also got an order from Handcrafts Online. I ordered some linen, a finishing kit for LHN's "Peace" thread pack and some CC threads I needed.


I really need to get to some serious stitching now with all the fun new goodies I have!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful and productive week! I am hoping my next post will show some kind of stitching progress!! I need to get my tin done for the Monthly Finishing Challenge. I haven't even started that.

Thanks for reading and for all your kind comments and well wishes!

I was RAK'ed!!

Thank you all for your kind comments wishing me well! I have determined the cause of my exhaustion and nausea, but more on that later.

The most exciting thing happened to me on Friday! I would have posted sooner but with Father's Day weekend we just didn't have any time to slow down and blog in a way that would do justice to the incredible joy and excitement this particular happening brought me! The mail-woman brought me a package! Don't you just love mail that doesn't have "account number" in the upper right corner and a return envelope so we can mail the sender our hard-earned money - I know I do! This particular package had "My Mark" as the return address which really got my mind going because I didn't remember ordering anything! I tore into it immediately and found this gorgeous thread holder inside and a letter from Monique explaining that this beautiful gift was from sweet, wonderful Michele of Just Another Stitching Blog... !! Oh Michele, I don't know what would prompt you to do something so undeserved, but I treasure it more than I can tell you! You have made me feel so special!! You are so thoughtful and generous and I am moved by such a beautiful gesture! Hugs to you!


Isn't it beautiful?! DH was thoroughly impressed when I showed it to him :)

And while we're on the topic of happy, wonderful, very exciting things like my new thread holder...

I have an explanation for my constant drowsiness and the nausea that's been plaguing me on and off just about every day for the past few weeks. I'm pregnant! How crazy is that?!

Thank you again for all my kind visitors and for all your sweet well wishes. And thank you again, Michele for your incredible Random Act of Kindness that still has me walking on air :)

Peach Tree Cottage

I would love to say that I've been stitching non-stop on LHN's Peach Tree Cottage since Saturday. But that just isn't the case. Instead, I've been yearning to crawl into Peach Tree Cottage and rest my eyes. I imagine it's decorated shabby-chic inside, with country touches in every corner and perfectly worn furniture that has a story to tell. I would tuck myself under a heavy quilt in one of the upstairs bedrooms and take a nice, long nap. That's how I've been feeling lately - like I want to shut out the world and sleep. Exhaustion is really no fun, and tackling it when you are the sole care-giver of a two year old until 5:30 every evening is especially no fun. I really need to shake this!


This is all the progress that I've made on Peach Tree Cottage since I started it (barely) Saturday night. Most of this was actually stitched yesterday when I was feeling a little less tired and a little more productive. I am loving this piece. The colors are fantastic and I really love the design. I wish I could force myself to spend more time on it. Maybe I'll get over this lethargy and really get busy with this project! Here's hoping!

You are all making such amazing progress with your projects! Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my amateur stitching blog and post comments and suggestions. I appreciate it more than I can say. You all inspire me so much!

A Finish and Goodies from Becky!

Yesterday was my goal for finishing "A Place We Call Home" from Country Cottage Needleworks. Well yesterday came and went and there was no finishing - but there was a box from BeckySC on the front porch! It was the gorgeous wooden box she made from the "Good Deeds" Littlehouse Needleworks/Crescent Colours Thread Pack! It is so beautiful!! Becky's finishing is perfection! I am so taken by her generosity to send such a stunning piece to a stitching/blogging newbie like me! Thank you Becky!



Today I got another package from Becky! 2 fun mail days right in row and both of them with return address labels from BeckySC! Lucky me! This time it was 10 whole charts! She sent the 4 seasonal arches charts from Bent Creek that I she set aside for me as well as 6 "grab bag" charts! Becky really spoiled me! And every single chart is beautiful and so perfectly me you would never guess she picked the 6 randomly :) Thank you again Becky!! I know this post is riddled with exclamation marks, but I'm really just that excited :)


And finally, I did finish "A Place We Call Home" from CCN! I put the finishing stitch in it just as David Archuleta was performing his final song on American Idol tonight. Happy dance! I loved stitching this piece and I truly expect that I will do it again some day - as a gift for someone perhaps. It was such a lovely stitch and I had only 3 minor run-ins with that dreaded frog during the entire time I worked on it. It was my first CCN finish and I loved it as much as I expected I would.

"A Place We Call Home" by Country Cottage Needleworks

Stitched on 28 ct Cashmere Country French Linen
DMC, Weeks Dye Works, and Crescent Colours fibers
Stitched 4/25/08 - 5/6/08
Thanks for reading and for all your support!!

A Fun Mail Day!

I've been forbidden from checking the mail because DH is expecting Mother's Day related mail. So today when there was a little box sitting next to the front door, I had to wait for DH to inspect it before I could tear into it :)

One of my favorite craft blogs is Scissors. Paper. Glue. Jen is super creative, very crafty, and takes the most beautiful pictures! I read her blog for fun and inspiration. So you can imagine my surprise and joy when she offered to send some of the yummy looking Japanese candy she mentioned in this blog entry! Well today it arrived and she really out-did herself! It came packaged so perfectly - beautiful, sweet, and creative just like her blog! She put the candy in a darling little mug with a rooster on the handle, wrapped it in clear cellophane, and tied it off with a cut of bakers twine (which she sells in her etsy shop by the way)! Jen's presentation skills are unsurpassed! And lucky me to be on the receiving end of her generosity and creativity :)

Spoiled Stitcher

I am one spoiled stitcher and it's because of how incredibly sweet other stitchers are! I mentioned before that Terry was super sweet and emailed me because she wanted to gift me the LHN "Night & Day" chart from my wish-list. Well it came in the mail today and it arrived with a friend - the LHN's "The Princess and the P" chart! She said she was going through her stash and found "a little something extra" to include. That is so kind! Thank you so very much Terry!! Don't be surprised when your kind gesture is returned one of these days :)


I've been plugging away at CCN's "A Place We Call Home." I love working on this. The colors are so sweet and delicate. I'm a slower stitcher so it's coming along slowly but I hope I will have it done by the middle of next week at the latest. The colors in this picture look so washed out because it's over-cast. My goal for today is to have the row of flowers in the middle done and "Together we've made a" added to the text. I'm going to do the white of the house last so I don't have to risk it getting soiled. I wash my hands before handling my work, but I still worry about white.


Thank you for reading and for all your comments!! I appreciate them more than I can say :)

The Genorosity of Stitchers

When I was contemplating starting this blog - something Michele of X Marks My Spot suggested I give a go at - I was really nervous. I felt so out of place. I have only been stitching since December and everyone else is so experienced and incredibly talented! I have found other hobbies in which the experienced hobbyists have something of an "elitist" attitude that isn't friendly or welcoming to new-comers. Michele assured me that I wouldn't find that kind of mentality among stitchers. She said stitchers are some of the friendliest people around. So I took the plunge and started a blog. Soon enough I felt comfortable commenting on other stitchers' blogs as well. And Michele - you were so right! Stitchers are friendly and warm. They love to share their knowledge and their talents with experienced stitchers and newbies alike. And today was just another example of how wonderful and sweet the stitching community is.

The amazing BeckySC is giving away several beautifully finished items on her blog to whomever wants to give them a home. I didn't feel worthy to claim anything for myself - but I'm a serial commenter these days and I wanted her to know what a beautiful gesture I felt that was. One of the things she is giving away is a box finished with the LHN "Be Rich in Good Deeds" design. I felt like that summed up exactly what she was doing and I mentioned it innocently. She emailed me and said she wanted me to have it!! I am so moved!!! I know it sounds silly but I seriously teared up. That is such a generous and sweet thing to do. I am so humbled by Becky's talent and to own something that she made and wants me to have is something really special! Thank you to the ends of the Earth Becky!!

The stitching community is a wonderful thing to be a part of!

PS - Becky is also giving away several charts to anyone interested in them.

Plate-Tectonics

Let's just set the record straight. I'm from Arizona. I lived in Arizona from the time I was only a few months old until 11 months ago. It's all I had ever really known. We have "natural disasters" in AZ, sure. But mostly just forest fires and flash flooding. So if you live around a city and you haven't built you house in a low lying area near a river bed, you're pretty much safe and sound as far as Mother Nature is concerned. Imagine my shock when DH discloses to me after we move to St. Louis that there are several fault lines around this part of the country and there are earthquakes! Tornadoes, earthquakes, floods... That is just not right!

Last night at 4:35 AM we woke up to a rumbling noise and our bed shaking - no - the whole house shaking! I was petrified! I prayed silently until it was over. DH says "I think we just had an earthquake!" Okay - not funny! Cuddle Bug woke up. We were all awake. The news chimed in with a report of a magnitude 5.6 earthquake with the epicenter about 150 miles from us. Now they're saying it was a 5.2. Either way, any movement of the ground is too much in my book! Then we felt another one this morning at about 10:15 - this time a 4.6 according to reports. I'm ready to pack up and head back to AZ where the land is dry, yes, but it doesn't move and that's good for me!

I'm hoping to get a start on a new project today. I should have pictures of that as soon as I can get the time to put needle to fabric. It's been a very busy week around here!

And thank you all for your wonderful comments on my needle roll! So many of you said things like "I knew you could do it!" and that you liked the design I put together! It made me feel so good! The tutorial was wonderful and it was much easier to do than I expected once I got started on it. You are all so kind!!

Fun in the Sun

Cuddle Bug and I had a fantastic weekend visiting my twin sister in Illinois! We went to a little carnival, decorated capes, went to a karaoke party, had chocolate fondue, and Cuddle Bug even helped make Baklava! I'm really not the type to put pictures of myself up on this blog but this is the best picture I have that doesn't have a close-up of Cuddle Bug (and I'm a nervous mom about putting close-ups of CB on a blog accessible by the general public). Please ignore my unruly hair - I'm growing it out for Locks of Love.


DH stayed home - slept in uninterrupted, went rock climbing, played roller-hockey, and watched movies with his aunt and uncle. We all had a nice weekend.

In stitching news, I finished my tin but don't have any good pictures to post. I gave it to my sister this weekend when we went out there and tried to get some good pics but they all turned out blurry. She promised to email some better pictures. It turned out great for a first time - if I do say so myself. But you'll have to wait for pictures.

I also visited a needlework shop in the tiny town we were in to visit my sister. I was a little less nervous to go in there since I won't be a regular or anything. It was super small and filled to the brim with needlework goods of all kinds! I tried looking at the linen to see what they had, but it was a bit of a disorganized mess. I did end up with a pretty little piece of WDW linen - very neutral, the color is called "linen." I was thinking it would be suitable to try a needle roll on. If I decide not to use it for that, I can always stash it away. And I picked up a Calico Crossroads design that my sister really liked - so I'm going to do that for her. DH has given me a rule that I am to have no more than 10 unfinished charts at any given time. The new chart takes me to 8, but it should be a quick stitch and I've got some linen coming from Mary Kathryn to do 3 other projects. So I'm thinking I have things under control.

Well I'm off to visit all of my blog reads I've been missing out on for the past 4 days! I have all my blogs in Google Reader and it's great! I don't have to go searching for unread posts.

Thank you all for visiting and for your wonderful comments!

Handcrafts Online sale

For anyone interested who doesn't already know, Mary Kathryn is having a "Spring Cleaning Sale" over at her web-shop Handcrafts Online. She's updating the sale page frequently - things coming and going. And she's also offering free shipping on orders over $25. I was turned on to her by Michele and I love love love ordering from her! DH reigned me in this morning when I had filled my "shopping cart" much too full and was toying with the idea of pressing "check out" and entering my billing info. Why did I even ask him about it? ;)

Speaking of Mary Kathryn, she did the most wonderful thing for me. I've mentioned previously about my fear of the LNS. I'm much too intimidated to venture in there just yet. But I want to get started on some of these projects I've collected and I need nice linen for that. So Mary Kathryn sent me a bunch of little linen samples - all labeled with printed descriptions and placed in little baggies. She took her own time to do that and even sent them without a dime from me for the scraps or shipping! It is so kind. I received them in the mail today. And my goodness are they lovely to touch! It is really true that stitchers are some of the sweetest people out there!

My Friendly Neighborhood Craft Store

I made it to the craft store tonight despite the rain. I got the last of my necessities to make my pinkeep for the Monthly Finishing Challenge. Hopefully I will have something to show for it tomorrow. If not, I've got a few more days to churn out something at least a little respectable for the challenge.

While I was there, I tried to get all the supplies I needed to make a floss ring tag according to Staci's tutorial found here. Did everyone hear that Michele ended up with the beauty from that tutorial? Staci is so sweet! Anyway, long story short, I couldn't find a set of eyelets that came with the setting tool. So it will take another trip to another craft store to manage that. :)

Alphabet Tree Finish

I don't know what's wrong with me. All that I'm certain of is that no matter how hard I try, my eye lids won't stay up. I'm ready for a long nap. And that's convenient because Cuddle Bug just went down for his. Today is going to be a better nap day for the little monster than yesterday - I can just feel it!

Despite my lack of energy, I did manage to take pictures today.

Here is the Alphabet Tree finished up. Now I just need to get to work on the pinkeep finishing, but that requires (another) trip to the craft store.

And finally here's a picture of the new goodies the mailman delivered yesterday. I got the "Love and Faithfulness Thread Pack" from LHN/CC and Mary Kathryn of eHandcrafts threw in a free LHN/CC chart as well. It made my day!


Today I made it out to Target. I needed a small set of plastic storage drawers to organize some little crafting supplies. I got Cuddle Bug a little pad of paper and some other small stuff. But I managed to forget the one real necessity I went there for: size 4 Pampers Cruisers. Ugh. So now I have to make another trip out sometime today. It's moments like this I wonder how I ever left DH talk me into the idea that 'sposies are so much more convenient than the cloth we were using up until a year ago. Oh well. Such is the story of motherhood I suppose.

I'm off to read everyone's blogs. I've gotten over my shyness and fear of leaving comments and now I try to comment as often as possible. I so enjoy reading all of your wonderful blogs! And thank you all for visiting mine :)

Setting Aside the Stitching

I really love reading everyone's sweet comments. Sometimes you start a new hobby and there's a bit of an "elitist" attitude among the more experienced hobbyists. It's threatening and un-friendly. I worried that I would find that in the stitching world. Michele assured me I would not find that attitude among stitchers and she was absolutely right! You are all like my little cheering section! I really appreciate it!!

I didn't get anything more done yesterday on my pinkeep stitching. We had a busy night out (I still don't know who got voted off American Idol - will have to watch that on Tivo later) and we ended up at my BIL's house sifting through old photo albums and boxes of pictures. There will be a memorial "celebration of life" on Saturday for my FIL and we are putting together a video collage of his life to play in the background. It's my job to scan about a million pictures today.

And that means that Cuddle Bug's nap time (aka "Mommy's Stitching Time") is going to be scan time. So I don't anticipate getting the alphabet tree done this afternoon if today at all. The next few days are packed full of things to do since Easter is sneaking up on us really fast. Today I need to get get photos scanned, meet my SIL to pick up more photos before mass tonight for Holy Thursday, then back to church tomorrow for the Good Friday gathering, the memorial for my FIL and the Easter Vigil mass on Saturday, and then Easter on Sunday. Somewhere in all of that I have to get some ironing done and fit in regular tooth-brushing so DH isn't afraid to kiss me. How will I find the time for it all? There are just some days when there's no free time in sight. But I don't mind a little mayhem. I know it will all get done. And in the meantime, it's looking like that pinkeep will just have to sit on the back burner until I can sit down with it for a breather.

Progress and Set Backs - Oh the Profanity!

First, I have to say how flattered I am! There are new visitors around these parts! Vonna gave me a mention in her blog yesterday much to my surprise and honor and it has brought other stitching bloggers around to my little piece of the world wide web! I was so tickled that she mentioned my blog since I admire her skill and really enjoy reading her blog. Thank you Vonna! And thank you everyone for your nice comments! You are all so wonderful!!

As far as the pinkeep goes, I was certain I would complete the stitched part of it yesterday. I was on track. Things were coming along and everything was going well. And then (and this is not suitable for little ears), there it was - the dreaded F Word! FROGGING! It was my fault entirely. I knew when I picked the dark blue for the letters I was taking a big risk. In the end, I hated it. And I decided I hated it after I had completed half of the alphabet. Every letter I added I became a little less confident in my bold color choice. And finally, I had no choice left but to undo it and start with a fresh color. Well it turns out the second shade of blue I picked out was no good either. The blue just wasn't going well - there was nothing in the design to pull the blue in and make it seem like it belonged with the rest of it. So bye-bye blue, hello green! I am much happier with this choice and since so many of you commented that you liked the colors I was using in the previous post, I figured it was best to stick with the winning combination! Now I'm finally back on track. Hopefully this will get done tonight, but there are no guarantees when a toddler runs the show.

Here is my progress thus far:


This is a design from Blue Ribbon Designs. I think it is so beautiful. It was meant to be mono-chromatic but obviously I went with a few colors. I am completely infatuated with their "Poinsettias and Pines" design. I've seen some of you have completed that and it so incredible. Some day I hope to have that to hang on my wall in the winter months.