Happy Dance 2010!

My very first happy dance of 2010! I would have had Poinsettia House done a week ago but I got distracted working on the quilt. I ran out of thread for the quilt a few days ago, though, and was waiting for JoAnns to put their thread on sale today. So in the meantime, I got back to work on this one and put the final stitches in it Friday night. I love it! Every stitch was a joy! And I only had 2 - very minor - visits from the frog. This was a gift from sweet Vonna so all my thanks go out to her for making my first 2010 project so delightfully wonderful :)

Poinsettia House by Littlehouse Needleworks
28 count linen using recommended CC and DMC fibers
Stitched 12/31/09 - 1/15/09

After reading about Harmien's frustrations, I was especially conservative with the Clay Pot. And I am so glad I was! By the end of it, I had only two little threads remaining. So keep that in mind if you're planning to do this chart too.

To my shock, I have another finish to add to my 2010 list - Lady Scarlet's Secret Garden! I actually started this one over the summer when I was in Boston visiting my dad, but I only got as far as finishing the border. When I brought it home it just got set aside. I picked it up yesterday afternoon and got all the stitching finished by the time I went to bed last night. Today I picked up some beading needles while I was at JoAnns and got the beads added. This was my first time adding beads and I'm pleased with my results! This one is going straight to the top of the finishing pile!

Lady Scarlet's Secret Garden by Just Nan
28 count cream chashel using recommended DMC
Started 7/09; Finished 1/17/10

In other news, the weather was finally nice enough to try out the new running shoes DH gave me for Christmas (we exchanged running shoes this year). They are NICE! I hope to get a lot of good use out of them this year and finally get the last of the baby weight off.

I hope you are having a beautiful and productive long weekend too! Thank you again for all your sweet comments. I really do appreciate them so much! Happy stitchy wishes to you all!

Life is full of Choices

I've got two napping bugs upstairs and a little quiet time on my hands.

What I should be doing:

• cleaning the bathroom
• folding the laundry that's been sitting in the corner of the bedroom for 5 days
• vacuuming the rugs
• sweeping the floors
• unloading/loading the dishwasher

What I am doing:

homemade-fresh-out-of-the-oven banana bread, tea, and Littlehouse Needleworks

Ahhhhh. I love naptime.

Snow, Sewing, and a Finish

Thursday we got the first "significant' snow of the season here in St. Louis. I have to say, as a transplant from the desert, I absolutely love that we experience 4 seasons here in the midwest! But I perfer to admire the snow from inside where I can sip some (spiked) hot chocolate and wear my down booties that keep my toes so toasty.

So speaking of the snow, I must say that DH is such an amazing husband and father. I don't talk enough about him on my blog. He's doting and patient. He deals with my mood swings and my lame attempts to pick a fight from time to time. He rubs my feet, makes my coffee exactly right, runs out to the craft store for me when I run out of the thread I need to finish a project, prays with me, tells my I'm not chubby, and sits in the corner of my LNS playing with the kids all the while telling me to take my time and get whatever I want. And that's just the husband part of him. As a father he blows me away! He's on the floor putting together Lego train tracks into crazy loopy shapes with bridges and switching tracks. He plays peek-a-boo and asks what the specials are when Cuddle Bug plays restaurant in the playroom.

So what does that have to do with snow you ask? Well Thursday, that was my husband taking a vacation day to take Cuddle Bug sledding for the very first time! Those are the moments that will add up in the lives of my children. They will look back and think "my dad could have gone to work that day, but he took a day off and took me sledding instead!" And he showed my sweet boy how to make snow angels and build a snow fort too. I love him for the husband he is to me and for the father is to our children :)


So now that I've gotten past the sappy part of the past few days, I have a few things to show off.

First up, I finished LHN's "Peace" thread pack into a pillow on Friday. I finished the stitching on this one last year and I had the finishing kit from Mary Kathryn's ONS. It just needed to be completed. So I went ahead and did that on Friday.


Additionally, I've been sewing up a storm working on my first quilt! Knock on wood, but so far so good. I got all 42 blocks finished and sewn into 7 rows of 6 blocks each. Soon enough, barring any unforeseen hiccups, the top of this one will be finished. I am loving how this is turning out and really enjoying the process! If it turns out as I hope, this will be my birthday gift to LadyBug when she turns 1 exactly one month from today!


I haven't gotten to put too many more stitches in Poinsettia House. My fingers have been too cold to hold the needle and I kept dropping it. I finally set it down. I hope to get some more stitches in it tonight after I've warmed my fingers up with a cup of coffee. I hope everyone has been having a wonderful weekend and staying warm! Happy stitchy wishes to you all!

Poinsettia House and Ginger Blossom

I'm just popping in to give a little progress update on Poinsettia House. The trim has been painted, the windows installed, and some snow fell as well. I really love this piece more with every stitch I put in it!



And look what the UPS guy brought today for my quilting adventures! Some Ginger Blossom and Kona cuts from Fabric.com. And let me just say that they were very generous with these cuts!


Happy Wednesday and happy stitching to everyone!

A Little House, Space Ships, and Red Corduroy!

I am happy to report that I got some (fairly) adequate stitchy time in over the weekend! This is where LHN's Poinsettia House stands to date:


I made it out to JoAnns yesterday to pick up the 3865 DMC I had run out of. No one seemed to notice on my last post that the last row of snow on the rooftop was only half cross stitches! But I've replenished my supply so all is well.

I promised some pictures of my recent sewing adventures in my last entry. So here goes.

This is the library book bag I made for Cuddle Bug using this tutorial.


He picked the fabric out himself and I think he did well! I made the library card pocket on the front extra deep so his card would fit deeply in it and wouldn't fall out when he bends over. I call this one a success! He loves to take it to the library and fill it with new books. And Daddy got a hook to hang it in his bedroom so all his library books would be tucked away there instead of getting mingled in with his huge personal library!

Now despite the fact that I make an effort to not post pics of the bugs on my blog - because I'm a crazy neurotic mother - I can't bring myself to crop off LadyBug's face on this picture to show off the dress I made for her to wear to the family Christmas Eve gathering. So for your viewing pleasure....


It's red corduroy - soft and comfy. This was my first time sewing in a zipper and I would call it a good first go! Next time I know what I would do differently. And check out those butt ruffles! I added those myself since the pattern didn't have them. I absolutely love how this dress turned out! And I made it a little bit bigger so hopefully it will still fit for Valentine's Day :)

I hope everyone else had a great weekend! Happy stitchy wishes to you all!

A New Year, a Fresh Start

Welcome 2010! 2009 went by way too fast. It was a big year for us in many ways: LadyBug joined us, Cuddle Bug went off to school for the first time, I went back to school, we lost our beloved grandfather, my sister got her master's degree, and my brother got married. What a year it was. I can only hope 2010 will be filled with as many blessings and a little less heartache :)

I got started on LHN's Poinsettia House yesterday (thanks to dear Vonna who gifted this to me in our Christmas exchange). WOW I am absolutely LOVING this! Everything about it makes me happy: the fabric, the colors, the design, and oh my goodness those needles! Please indulge me for a second while I go on about the needle I am stitching this with...



Vonna included a package of Piecemaker needles with this chart (along with the fabric and the Crescent Colours...spoiled me!) and she told me that they are her very favorite needle to stitch with. In fact, I can quote her as saying "Piecemakers slip through like a hot knife in butter." Well that got me excited! I already knew I would love them. I mean I consider Vonna to be a foremost expert on all things cross stitch so if she says they're good I believe her! But I couldn't have imagined I would love them as much as I do! You know when you're expecting your first baby...humor me here... You know you are going to love that child in a way you've never loved another human being before, but you don't really understand the depth of that love until they place that baby in your arms and you hold him/her for the first time! That's how I feel about these needles! Okay, that might be a bit of a stretch, but I only mean to say that I knew I would love them, I just didn't realize just how much I would LOVE them until I crossed my first stitch with them! My poor husband had to listen to me go on and on all night about how much I was loving this project and how the needle is just perfection. I feel like I can stitch a little faster with them even (I'm a very slow stitcher). By the end of the night, DH said "aren't you finished with that yet? I mean geez the needle is so good I thought you would have finished that whole chart by now!" He thinks he's cute...

Last night I also managed to get squares cut to start work on my first quilt! I took a beginning quilting class in October and now I've gotten the big idea that I should start my first quilt. I made a table topper in the class. I guess I'm feeling adventurous... Wish me luck!


I still need to show off the dress I made LadyBug for Christmas and the library book tote I made Cuddle Bug the other day while he was napping. But those will have to wait for another day. Something to look forward to right?

I hope everyone's 2010 has started off right! Happy stitching!

2009 in Review

Well 2009 is coming to a close. I don't know about the rest of you, but for me the whole year went by really fast!

I'm joining in with the fun over at Su's and posting my 2009 Stitchy Review.



I completed 16 projects in 2009. Not terribly impressive on it's own, but throw in the fact that my biggest project this year was the LadyBug and I think I have a reasonable excuse for not being more productive.

My favorite finishes of all this year were my exchanges with dear sweet Ranae and Vonna. Thank you both for the wonderful exchanges. I enjoyed them more than I can say!

Christmas, a New Year, and a New Look

We had a wonderful Christmas this year despite LadyBug's fever late Christmas Eve night and on into Christmas day (it figures, right?). As you can clearly see, my bugs were spoiled (again) this year. I guess it pays to be the only grandkids on both sides...



Besides the festivities, I have a finish to show you (and just in the nick of time, too)! I put the year on this one months ago. But it got set down and, for some reason that has yet to be determined, it didn't get picked back up. Please tell me I'm not the only one to forget a WIP! It narrowly escaped needing a do-over on the year until I realized it was sitting there unattended and picked it up to finish it! Phew. So here it is in all it's finished BBD glory. The fabric color is off completely. It's actually a winter white in person.

Something Sweet by Blackbird Designs
Thread: recommended CC, WDW, and GAST
Fabric: 28 Count winter white linen
Started: 6/6/09
Finished: 12/30/09

And in case you haven't noticed yet, I went ahead and made myself a fresh new blog layout to ring in the new year! I'm loving the clean white background.

Wishing you all a blessed 2010!

Still On Cloud 9 over My First Exchange

What a week! After being sick last week, this week I had 2 huge midterm exams. I was completely overloaded this week. Has anyone else been forced to take statistics? Wow! That is an intense class!

But now here it is Saturday morning...the exams are behind me. Cuddle Bug is curled up on the couch watching Miffy and Friends on PBS and LadyBug is upstairs taking her mid-morning nap. The floors - that shamefully have been neglected for 2 weeks - have been swept and vacuumed. No more stale Cheerios on the rug under the table for LadyBug to be stuffing into her mouth when I turn my back for a split second (did I mention she's "crawling" now...it's really more of a butt scoot but she's very good at it). Now I can exhale.

Ahhhhhhhh.

So now I can mention that I am still absolutely living on cloud 9 over my exchange from Ranae! That was one of the most fun things I have done in a long time! Milling over charts, picking out just the right thing to stitch and deciding how to finish it. Picking out fun things to keep the exchange piece company in the box during it's travels. It was an absolute blast! And then there's the excitement, the anticipation of finding a box on your doorstep! Oh my gosh...it is fantastic!!!

Of course I forgot to get a picture of my piece before I taped the box shut. Wouldn't you know? It wouldn't have been right if my first exchange went perfectly. So I had to make at least one amateur mistake, right?! So there you go, no picture. But fortunately Ranae took a wonderful picture and has kindly given me permission to post it to my blog.



This is part of Tanya's Quaker Boo freebie she posted last year. I have wanted to do this one since she posted it. I went back and forth over this and a Bent Creek design. I really wanted to do this chart, but I couldn't decide if it's poor exchange etiquette to use a freebie chart or not. It was my favorite since I thought it would make the most interesting finish, so I went for it anyway. Anyone want to set me straight on this? Anyway, I did the large octagon motif over 2. Then I stitched 4 slightly varied versions of the pumpkin motif over 1 and hung those from the bottom 4 corners of the octagon. I put mine and Ranae's initials on the back along with the year. My pillow ornament finishing wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination. But Ranae didn't seem to mind.

Ranae, thank you so much for offering to exchange with me! I had so much fun doing this with you! You are wonderful! My flatfold from you is gracing my living room window sill, and I seriously can't help but smile every time I see it!

Hugs for Ranae and all the amazing stitchers out there who continue to inspire and support me in my stitching adventures :)

My First Exchange!

After a rough week - everyone in the house was sick except DH - I had a very exciting pick-me-up!

Ranae and I had arranged to do a personal Halloween exchange, and look at the amazing lovelies that came in the mail for me!!



I couldn't have dreamed of a more incredible exchange! I have been walking on cloud nine over receiving this! Thank you Ranae for such a sweet package!! This is my first flatfold and I'm going to use it as a reference to try one this finish myself. Isn't it darling? And look at that trim! So festive! The little stickers walked off in the hands of my 3-year-old, so he keeps calling the package "our Halloween package." What a goober! And check out that scissor fob! Isn't it fantastic?! This was so much fun!!!

Ranae's package from me is in the mail finally. It's off to it's new home. I have to admit, my exchange pales in comparison to the beautiful package she put together for me. I just hope she has as much fun getting her package from me as I did getting mine from her :)

H-A-Double L-O-Double U-Double E-N spells Halloween!

I cannot believe it's been about 6 weeks since my last entry! I've been getting into a groove with school, and I've been working on exchange stitching. So I haven't had too much I could show for myself around here.

But, I did get a little something finished up yesterday that's worth a show! So here it is. Overcast days make for poor pictures, but I wanted to share anyway.





It's the La-D-Da ornament from the JCS halloween issue. I stitched it 1/1 on white belfast linen with DMC. I love the way it turned out! This was my first time doing a coffee dye and I really think it gives it something special! I took a cue from Alma at the BBD blog and wove a fiber from the linen into the piece to give it a little haphazard mended look - adding to the old, worn feel of it. Cuddle Bug ran off with this one and put it on the doorknob of his bedroom door. I'm not sure that's where it will stay.

School has been going well. I've been getting into a rhythm with that. I have 2 online classes and 1 in-person class. So far, my grades have been good. And I'm really enjoying my biology class. Last night was our first exam in Bio and I got the highest score in the class. For myself, that always feels good. But I hate when the other students ask what I got and I have to tell them I got the high score for the class. I feel so self conscious about it in the classroom setting. But when I get home I want to shout it from the rooftops :)

Cuddle Bug is in his 2nd week of preschool today. He only goes for 2.5 hours twice a week (Tues and Thurs). It's been a big adjustment. So far we haven't been there without tears. But he comes home busting at the seams to tell us all about his fun! I'm hoping it won't be too much longer before he can't wait to go back.

Thank you for coming and reading my little ol' blog and leaving such wonderful and supportive comments. The stitching community is so warm! I enjoy you all! Sending you all happy stitchy wishes!!

Welcome Fall!

2 entries in one day! That's unheard of on my blog!

I just wanted to post this little freebie from Monique. I managed to whip this one up during naptime. Thank goodness for naptime...I think I would be useless without it!!

Sorry for the terrible picture. I know if I wait until morning to take a picture in natural light I won't find the time tomorrow.

Fall Freebie from My Mark Designs
1/1 on 32 count coffee-dyed linen scrap
DMC thread
Stitched and Finished 9/22/09

It's That Time of Year

Thank you everyone for your incredibly kind and supportive comments on my last entry. I don't know what to say. Stitchers are easily some of the most amazing, sincere, caring, and generous people in the world! Thank you for making me feel so good!!

And thank you everyone who offered to do personal exchanges with me! I hope to make time to do one with each and every one of you in the near future. Ranae and Vonna are on my list in the coming months! I've been busy at work getting things together for those exchanges and I have to say that I am incredibly excited about it! Thank you ladies for offering to join in the fun with me!

In between organizing myself for my first exchanges, I have made a little bit of progress on "Something Sweet" from BBD. I am loving this project now as much as when I started it! I have already picked out a spot on my wall for it too! Now if only I had a lot more open time to work on this one!


These are the weeks that get a little crazy around here. I'm sure many of you commiserate with me that this time of year gets hectic. And I don't even have "school aged" children! DH works for a university, and it's move-in time and student-tech training time. That means he works some days on the weekend (like yesterday) and he works extra long week days. We miss him. I feel spoiled to have a husband that (usually) works regular work hours. These extra hours remind me not to take his (mostly) predictable schedule for granted!

On top of that, I am headed back to school myself this year. I mentioned before that I was going to start taking classes to begin working toward my BSN. Well I have 3 classes this semester starting a week from today (8/24). Biology, Statistics, and Economics. Wish me luck! This surprise came in the mail from my mom and my sister to get me ready for my new role as student! And when I finish school, it can carry stitchy projects! Lucky me!


And we decided to find a preschool program for Cuddle Bug. We are hoping to give him more social interaction with children his own age. We found him a preschool class that meets only two days a week (Tues and Thurs) for 2.5 hours (9-11:30 am). I'm hoping that will help him to open up a bit and not be so painfully shy around other kids. We will see! He starts that in September.

So we've been working hard around here. But it isn't without it's joys and celebrations! Ladybug turned 6 months old a week ago. We had a half birthday party for her and she had her first bite of "solid food." The adventure begins with that! Smeared sweet potatoes and sticky diapers. Fun! I cannot believe she's already 6 months old!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend full of crossed stitches and relaxation! Hoping you all have a great week and happy stitchy wishes!

A Beauty from Ranae

I am such a flake! I completely forgot to mention and extend my thanks to sweet Ranae for sending this gorgeous issue of Sampler and Antique Needlework Quarterly to me! Ranae gave this away on her blog and I was the lucky winner. It has been forwarded on by several stitchers and I intend to pass it along once I've gotten my fill of it! Thank you Ranae!


I got some stitching in yesterday. As usual, it was not enough to make nearly the progress so many of you make on a given day, but I will take what I can get! I am hooked on this piece. It is a marvelous stitch! Brigitte, you should definitely start this one (IMHO)! You may even finish before I do! :)



Today I read this very honest and vulnerable entry on the blog of an incredibly talented stitcher. She says she feels insecure about her stitching sometimes. I am in awe of her skill. Her projects are bigger, bolder, and stitched with more mastery than I could dream of achieving! I relate though. I'm terribly insecure about my stitching and my finishing. I desperately want to participate in all of the gorgeous exchanges so many of you do, but I hate to think someone will get my pitiful stitching in exchange for a masterpiece they made! I follow the HOE blogs just to oogle everyone's creations and packages! Maybe I will get the guts to do it myself one of these days. In the meantime, it was special for me to read that even some of you gifted and experienced stitchers feel insecure about your work sometimes. Not because I enjoy hearing people feel this way, but because I know I'm not entirely alone in my feelings sometimes.

Thank you all for your support! I love reading your comments. They mean a lot to me! Happy stitchy wishes everyone! HUGS!

Another Lobster Roll Please!

Well all I can say is finally...finally a little something worth showing!

Thank you all for your suggestions and comments on my last post about scroll bars vs. q-snaps. I set out finally having settled on some q-snaps. Well wouldn't you know that my Hobby Lobby would be all out?! Just my luck! So circumstance effected my decision making in the end. It was either wait a week for some q-snaps to come in or get some scroll rods and get stitching! I chose the latter, naturally.

I must say that I like the scroll rods so far. There was a bit of a learning curve with them - trying to figure out how best to go about getting my fabric on the rods and twisted taut. But I managed. And they've been doing what I paid them to do. So I'm pleased! I will be giving q-snaps a try next time I need something though. As some of you said, I guess I can only really decide what I like by trying both.

I made some progress on my BBD "Something Sweet." It's coming along swimmingly considering it sat idle for nearly 2 months and I get very little quality stitching time - what with the bugs demanding my constant attention and all. But I'm enjoying this more than I can describe! Who could have known that BBDs are such an absolute joy to stitch?! Here's a little progress pic for you to feast your eyes on!


And as I mentioned in my last post, my month-long absence was not only taken up with longing for needle and thread, but also with a little fun in the sun! DH and I dragged our incredibly awesome bugs on a long 2-day car ride from St. Louis to Boston because we're crazy like that! We spent 5 full days in Boston enjoying ourselves to bits, and then we drove 2 more days home! I would just like to say that even though our bugs are only 3 years and 5 months, they are amazing travelers! We had our moments (Cuddle Bug had to pee on the side of the road for the first time and that involved a huge meltdown "NOOOOO! Only dogs pee on the ground!" - yes, that's a quote) and I'm nursing the Ladybug so you haven't lived until you've been pumping in the passenger seat and crawling into the backseat with a bottle every few hours. For those of you wondering, running the car heater and setting the (fresh from the cooler) expressed milk on the dash does bring it up to body temperature, but be prepared to sweat utilizing this method in mid-July! Seriously though, it was easy considering the ages of our little ones! They spoil us.

We were there visiting my Dad and his wife who live just outside of Boston in a great little beachy town called Hull. And we took it easy...way easy. We didn't cram a bunch of sight-seeing or tourist stuff into our trip (since we've done all that during previous trips there). We mostly hung around my dad's water-front townhouse, ate lobster, and enjoyed the view and good company. We did take the bugs to the New England Aquarium and managed a trolley tour. Oh and we took my dad's kayaks out a few times and spent a few hours at the beach. It was more fun and more relaxation than other vacations I've been on! We came home from our trip not feeling like we needed a vacation to recover from our vacation! And that's how we know it was a success.

I leave you with a picture of the view from my nursing spot at my dad's. This is where I sat several times a day and nursed the Ladybug. Oh how I long to be back there now!


Thanks for visiting, and for all your wonderful comments, help, and suggestions! And happy stitchy wishes to each and every one of you!

That Lonely BBD

Thank you all for your sweet comments about my 3 problems on Friday. And an especially big thank you to everyone who encouraged me to get that Cheesecake Factory! I'm going to be letting DH know how you all feel ;)

I didn't find any time to pick up my current stitching project this weekend as I had hoped. I'm working on BBD's "Something Sweet." I started it over 2 weeks ago, but haven't touched it in over a week. So it's only got 1 week's worth of work put into it - which isn't many hours considering I have 2 small children. It will get some quality time this week I hope. Pay no attention to the stairs. I will be fixing that mistake! Oops.

Something Sweet by Blackbird Designs
Thread: recommended CC, WDW, and GAST
Fabric: 28 Count winter white linen
Started: 6/6/09

We had a good Father's Day. Cuddle Bug and I got up and made Daddy the usual Father's Day breakfast of cinnamon rolls. When they were ready we woke up Daddy and Ladybug and all had a wonderful breakfast. We gave Daddy the gift we had prepared for him. Then we loaded up into the car and drove to Ironton, Missouri to spend the day with some family. It was wonderful and low key. I finished up the day very sick. I think I had become terribly dehydrated in the heat. My head was pounding and I was dizzy and tired. I guzzled a bunch of water upon returning home, took a bunch of advil, and laid down to close my eyes for a bit. 2 hours later DH woke me up to nurse the Ladybug. I felt terrible to have napped so long on Father's Day, but I was really not feeling well at all. DH assured me he didn't mind.

This is what we gave Daddy for Father's Day (one of the rare moments you will get to see a picture of the bugs or see their names on my blog):


I have a question for all you wonderfully helpful seasoned stitchers out there in blogland. I am stitching my BBD project in a hoop. I find it makes my stitches more even and consistent than stitching in the hand. But it's leaving ring wrinkles in my fabric and I'm finding it impossible to iron them out. Since I'm using hand dyed fibers, I can't get it wet to force the wrinkles out. Any suggestions???

Well that's about it around these parts. I hope everyone else had an incredible weekend! Sending you all wonderful stitchy wishes!

Sewing, Finishing, Living

A few years ago (when we were still living in Tucson, AZ) my mom awarded me ownership of a little piece of equipment I will always associate fondly with sweet mom-made summer dresses - her old Kenmore sewing machine. All these years it's been untouched (short of the 8 moves we made in less than 2 years, that is). I hadn't a clue how to use it.

Well since my mom was in town for my sister's graduation - Congrats Steph! - I made it a point to get out the sewing machine for a little how-to! And this is the fruit of that lesson:


A little dress for my Lady Bug! It is terribly flawed, and please let's not even bring up the little diaper cover that was supposed to go with it! But I'm actually very proud of it! So I pat myself on the back! This is only the beginning of my sewing adventures!!! I am hooked!

Speaking of Lady Bug...guess who is now rolling from her back to her belly! They grow up way too fast!

On the stitching front, last week I made time to finish my "Paper Whites" by LHN into a little pinkeep. This is even complete with a hem-stitched pocket on the back! And I did a bow using Vonna's method. I'm more than pleased with the way it turned out! It's easily my best finish to date :)

Paper Whites by Littlehouse Needleworks

Stitched 1 over 1
Thread: Recommended DMC
Fabric: 28 Count natural linen
Stitched: 5/1/09 - 5/8/09
Finished as pinkeep: 5/21/09

Other than that, things are going well around here. I started thinking seriously in the past week or so about going back to school. I went to the University of Arizona straight out of high school, and after about 4 years there, I was miserable and still had no direction and no degree to show for myself. I just couldn't find anything that felt right. So after a lot of contemplation, I left school to start a family. We've been very blessed that DH can support us and I can stay at home with the bugs. But I still want to have my degree. Now at 26, I know what I want to study and what I want to do outside of being a mom and wife. I want to be a nurse. And that brings us around to today.

My sister's passion - besides boy bands of the 1990s - is student affairs in a university setting. She just graduated with a masters degree in College Student Personnel. So my talking about going back to school gets her blood flowing! Today she went with me to the University of Missouri - St Louis to poke around campus. I just wanted to see the university and planned to make some calls next week to speak with an adviser there. But, leave it to my sister to have me seated in an adviser's office in the College of Nursing before I even knew what had happened! I left there with a lot of answered questions and a plan. That leaves me both excited and terrified! But nothing happens if we don't just commit, grin and bear it for a while, and follow through. So, that's that...I'm going back to school! And, with 2 small children and commitments to my family and husband, I give myself 3 years. I expect to have my BSN in 3 years. You heard it here first :)

Tweet Tweet

It sounds like many of you had very nice Mother's Days. Mine was no exception!

DH and Cuddle Bug got up and made me a wonderful breakfast! We had french toast made from french loaf (not a stick in sight) that was divine! And it was accompanied by country potatoes, canadian bacon, and fruit salad! It was so yummy! We spent our afternoon at The Magic House where moms got in free. Then we joined DH's (surviving) brothers and mother at Baileys' Chocolate Bar for drinks, cheese, food, and dessert. Yummmm! If you're ever in St Louis, do be sure to give Baileys' Chocolate Bar a visit. It's a slice of heaven in my opinion. And I'm not just saying that because my BIL is the owner ;)

I also laid claim to my Mother's Day gift - Lady Scarlet's Secret Garden from Just Nan! Can you believe my LNS has had this all this time and no one took it home???? It was displayed on a low shelf, fairly out of sight and all wrapped tight in its packaging. I caught sight of her in a passing glance. I think it was fate :) DH saw my excitement and purchased her on the spot! He's so wonderful!


I've been running around for days trying to stay ahead of the game with house work. My family comes into town tomorrow and I have a list a mile long of things that need accomplished before they land. I am so excited as tomorrow I will be meeting my brother's fiance for the first time! Then Friday we head to a tiny little town in Illinois where my sister is graduating with her masters degree. This will also be the first time everyone in my family - except my sister - will meet the Lady Bug. So much to celebrate! Now if only my family could get together without the drama...

Somehow I did manage some stitching in all the housework though! I saw this little feathered friend on a few other blogs and had to have her for myself! I started this Tuesday afternoon when I found a free second and put the final stitch in her last night before bed. I can't help but notice that my bird is lighter than everyone else's (including the model). I checked the numbers a million times to be sure, and it seems my DMC 613 is lighter than everyone else's 613. I bought the skein brand new yesterday and checked the numbers and labeling repeatedly. I'm not sure what happened. But I like her just fine so she shall stay as she is. I'm thinking it's a genetic mutation or a recessive gene exhibited from one generation to the next.

Eggs...etera #109 from The Cross Eyed Cricket

Thread: recommended DMC
Fabric: 28 Count Mystery Linen (unlabeled scrap from LNS)
Stitched: 5/11/09 - 5/12/09

Still no finished finishing to show. I couldn't commit to finishing when the little birdie was calling to me :)

Off for more chores and a cup of coffee!

Thanks for your comments, help, and support! Sending you all wonderful stitchy wishes!

Cross Stitch Heaven!

DH declared yesterday that for the last few days I have been "in cross stitch heaven!" And he's right!

Friday I got started on a new project - something small and (ideally) quick. I started LHN's "Paper Whites." This is another chart I got from generous Jacque! I'm hoping it will be finished by the end of this week, but with an infant there's just no way to be sure.

Paper Whites by Littlehouse Needleworks

Stitched 1 over 1
Thread: recommended DMC
Fabric: 28 Count natural linen
Started: 5/1/09

Saturday I went to my LNS to pick up some charts I ordered. I picked up a few other things as well. But I cant show all of it because some of what I purchased is actually going to be part of an upcoming bloggging project I have planned. So pictured is what I can share. I fell in love with the little Eggs...Cetera bird after seeing him on several other blogs. I got two small cuts of fabric as well. The JBW chart and Crescent Colors floss are actually not for me. I picked them up for my sister who is giving them as a little gift to a good friend of her's who stitches.


I also made a pretty great find in my LNS and it was purchased as my Mother's Day present. I almost fell over dead when I saw it sitting on a little shelf down low! I can't say what it is yet, as I have to wait for Mother's Day to claim it as my own. But DH was quick to get it when he saw how excited I was to have laid eyes on it!

And then yesterday I got a chart in the mail from wonderful Tracy at Ink Circles. She sent me an Ink Circles chart of my choosing as a door prize from her "booth" at the Needlework Show! My entry was all about how I never win anything and my twin sister wins everything! It's been my lot in life! Let's just say that when I finally won my first raffle after watching my sister win raffle after raffle growing up, I won a washcloth folded into the shape of a bunny! My sister, however, won (in the same raffle) a calculator with matching pen, clickable pencil, and pencil case! As a 5th grader, I was especially disappointed. But I got the last laugh, because I got me a fantastic Ink Circles chart for sharing my story! Tracy is so sweet to offer such a prize to me! I scooped up "Croakworth 2008" as my winnings :) And I still have that washcloth bunny! So there!


Finally I wanted to share with everyone two awesome giveaways out there that you can enter! First off, Steph over at Where'd All My Money Go?! is offering an amazing prize to celebrate her 10,000th blog hit! You can enter her giveaway here. Congrats to Steph for her amazing milestone! And Edgar is having a blogoversary giveaway to celebrate his 2nd blogoversary. So if you haven't already, you can enter his giveaway here. And congrats to Edgar on his blogoversary!

Thank you all for your sweet comments on my fob! Happy stitching to you all!

Fabulous Fob

Thank you all for your sweet comments on Peach Tree Cottage! And for your wishes on Cuddle Bug's 3rd birthday and all the birthdays we had in April! I think the mayhem is finally over!

I did manage to get a project finished in all the hustle and bustle these past few weeks. I put the final stitches in this one and did the finishing last night. DH was such a sweetie and took care of the kiddies while I worked on this to get it finished!

I got this chart from sweet Jacque - who no longer has a blog of her own. But she's wonderful and this was in a big pile of charts she sent me last year.

A Sampler Scissors' Fob by Forget-Me-Nots in Stitches
Stitched 1 over 1

Thread: DMC of my choosing
Fabric: 32 Count Twilight Blue linen
Stitched: 4/19/09 - 4/28/09
Finished as scissor fob: 4/28/09

This chart is off to Mary Kathryn now. I came across it on her wishlist during an Google search of this designer. I hope she will enjoy it as much as I did. And thank you again Jacque for giving it to me!

Big hugs and lots of wonderful stitchy wishes to you all! I so appreciate your support and kind words!!