The Dreaded LNS

I did it! Today I went to my LNS for the very first time! I was very nervous - would I become intimidated and overwhelmed? At least I had a practice-run when I went to a needlework shop in Illinois where my sister lives - somewhere I didn't have to worry as much about what kind of an impression I made since I wasn't going to be a regular. This was even better, though! The shop space was much bigger so I could actually peruse the inventory without being stared at by the employee(s) and without digging through piles of stuff. It was a very nice shop! And since I have spent the last few months perusing the world of ONS and getting help from all of you wonderful stitchers, I mostly knew what I was looking at at any given time and didn't feel overwhelmed or entirely ignorant :)

DH tricked me to get me there. He said he needed me to go so I could show him things I might want so he knew what to get me for Mother's Day. Only when I got there and I was pointing out all the goodies they have that are on my wish-list did he tell me he had already ordered stuff online from my wish-list. He said he knew I was nervous to go for the first time so he decided to manipulate me into going. Isn't he sweet? :)

I did walk away with a few scraps of linen and evenweave that were all $1 a piece and I knew I could use for smalls of various types. And I also walked away with a new chart - the last thing I needed since I've got several projects waiting in the wings already and BeckySC has been much too kind and is sending me charts for free that she is finished with. But I couldn't help myself. I'm sure I've bit off more than I can chew with this one but I just couldn't stop myself. Anyone who knows me knows Christmas is my very favorite time of year. I've become obsessed with the idea of making stockings for my children that they will (in my idealist mind) treasure every year for all the hard work their dear mother put into making those beloved Christmas keepsake stockings of their's. I am infatuated with the whimsy and sweetness of the Shepherd's Bush stockings and I think Harry's Stocking is perfect for my little Cuddle Bug. So today when I saw the chart at my LNS - I had to have it. This may very well be much too adventurous a project for me but I guess you can't know without trying. I don't have the fabric for it or anything, so I won't be starting it right away. But ideally I would love for it to be finished by Christmas. We shall see.

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!