Ladybug Address

Patternut and others wanted to know where I found the Ladybug with the Umbrella. I looked until I found it! It's here: http://www.borduurblad.nl/. Click on "Patronen" on the left. The Ladybug is "Patronen van borduurblad 11."
I've been very busy today working on the angel for Lynzee. I'm going to go ahead and send in the one I have finished. I'm not sure I will get the 2nd one finished in time. I am still having problems with it. I can't seem to count it correctly. Maybe it's just not meant for me to stitch that pattern! lol I would show a picture of my progress, but somebody (not me) unplugged the printer/scanner, and I don't know how to plug it back up. So I'll show it tomorrow.
Better go. It's getting late and the dogs want some attention. Happy stitching!

PM Girls and a New Start

First, an update on my progress on Precious Moments girls. The flowers are still hard! But I've had to put them aside for a few days. I went to Love Quilts to check out the squares that they have received. I was looking a Lynzee's squares. I thought her squares were due Mar. 30. I noticed a lot of her squares have been sent in, so I checked the date on hers and they are due Mar. 1! I have one of the squares for her finished (Jeanne Love's Angel), but still need to do another one! So - I've been working on another one for her. I have to mail hers in the next few days! The picture below is the 2nd angel I am doing for her.

This is Rose Buddington designed by Linda Connors from Calico Crossroads. I didn't have any white 14 count Aida and Love Quilts requires WHITE cloth. So I looked through my stash and found some WHITE 22 count Aida. I'm stitching her over 2 threads. She'll really turn out better a little larger.

This is my progress on her so far. I have had a hard time with her, also. I did a lot of her pinafore and then realized I didn't have it centered right. I took all of that out and started in another place and did another big section wrong. After I got that out, I put her aside and did housework - dusting, vacuuming, etc. My den looks great. Then I started her over for the 3rd time and it seems to be going along okay now! I'm going to "hibernate" tomorrow and just work on her! Better go and get busy now! Happy stitching!

Bug's Done!

He's finished! I really like the way he turned out! I had problems with the backstitching. The graph didn't show all of the backstitching, so I just did it the way that made sense to me. I think it turned out pretty good. (PS: I found the address for this pattern. It's here: http://www.borduurblad.nl. Click on "Patronen" on the left. The ladybug is "Patronen van borduurblad 11.) Now I just have to turn him into a pillow. I'm glad I took a break from the PM girls. I am ready to get back to them now!
I subbed yesterday at a middle school very close to my home. It was a good day. We watched a video the first half of each class, and then they worked on a couple of worksheets. I even got in a good bit of cross stitching. I have a little ornament that I work on during my breaks when substituting. I keep it in my school totebag. I'll show a picture when I get it finished. The teachers at this school get 2 planning periods - back to back. So I had 1 hour and 40 minutes free time! And all the classes were first, so I was finished with classes at 1:15 pm and then they came back at 2:55 for announcements and dismissal. I love to sub at this school! In addition to the great breaks, the kids are very good, and I rarely have any problems. When I took the 3rd period group to lunch, we passed the office. At the end of the day, the secretary said, "I watched you take that class down the hall to lunch. I have never seen that class go down the hall so quietly!" I have very few problems when I sub. I have 2 rules: (1) I will treat you with respect as long as you treat me with respect; and (2) no one can do anything that keeps anyone else (including the teacher - me!) from doing what they are supposed to do. I explain how they show me respect and how I show them respect. I also tell them what we will be doing that day in class and how they need to behave so that everyone can do what they are supposed to do. I also tell them the consequences for breaking a rule: they have to move their desk facing the wall and copy the rule they broke several times. I also tell them right off the bat that I am the teacher that day and that we will do things my way, not their teacher's way! That stops them from telling me what the teacher "lets" them do or what they are "supposed" to do. When I had my own classroom, almost every time I had to be out, the subs would believe everything the students told them that I let them do! I would come back to a totally destroyed classroom with many things missing! One sub believed the worst thief in my class when she said I allowed them to go in my cabinets and closets and get whatever they wanted. That student took almost everything I had! When I leave a classroom, it looks just like it did when I entered it that morning. I don't let the kids go in the cabinets or closets at all. The other teachers always tell me they have overheard the students telling other students, "You can't get away with anything with that sub!" lol But when the day is over, a lot of them will come by the classroom to tell me goodbye and when I go back to that school, kids will call me by name and say hi and will be disappointed if I'm not subbing in their class! So it's still very rewarding to be a "teacher," even if it is part-time! Have a happy stitching day!

Little Ladybug

I decided to take a break from the Precious Moments girls. Some time back I found this little ladybug somewhere on the net. He was a freebie, but I don't know where I got him. I've been wanting to stitch him. So I decided to stitch him up quickly and then get back to the PM girls. He's holding an umbrella that is red with black dots on it. I have some really cute ladybug material that I'm going to use to make a pillow with him. I want to hang him on my room's doorknob! I'm stitching him on white 28 count Monaco. I like to stitch red!
I'm going to substitute tomorrow in a 6th grade science class. That ought to be fun. I've subbed for this teacher before and he usually leaves good lesson plans. I'd just rather stay home and stitch, but I really need the money! I need to figure out a way to make money on my stitching! lol Better go - have to get up early tomorrow. Can't stay up late tonight like I usually do! Happy stitching, Everyone!

Going Crazy!

The flowers on this piece are going to drive me crazy!! There are A LOT of flowers and a lot of quarter stitches! I have to get this done quickly, but I'm not really into it. I will be glad when I get it finished! Not much happening around here, except stitching! Hope everyone has a happy day!
P.S. I can't believe what just happened!! I have an electric tea brewer. I got it for Mother's Day a few years back. Well, I started it up while I was blogging and I noticed it sounded a little funny. So I went to check on it and the tea wasn't going in the pitcher. It was all over the counter and on the floor - a real mess!! It has done this before - I'm sure I did something wrong. While I was trying to clean up the mess, I knocked over the dogs' water bowl and had another spill to clean up!! I think I need to go to bed and pull the covers over my head!! lol

Precious Moments Update

This is my progress on the Precious Moments square for Georgia at Quilts4Kids in Australia. These little sweeties really have large heads! lol It took me all day to do her hair! I was almost finished with the skin colored part on her face and realized I was off 1 square. I had to take it all out and do it all over again! I wish I was better at counting! Thank goodness I taught Language Arts and not Math! lol I didn't stitch much yesterday. I was really tired after spending Thurs. with my mom. I slept almost all day yesterday! I've felt good today. I did some housework - dusting, the dishes, laundry, etc.
DD is very happy right now. She went out tonight with an exboyfriend that she still likes a lot. She was very excited when he called her. She is so dramatic about everything! I guess it goes with her age. I liked this guy, too, but he really did her pretty dirty. I don't want her to get hurt again! But I know if I say too much, she will resent it. She's still so young - only 17. She'll be 18 in May. She thinks she is grown! Guess I'll have to keep praying that God continues to watch over her for me!
Better go and stitch some more. Have a happy day everyone!

Bees with Bows

DD took this picture of her pillow with its bow for me. I really wanted her to also show the hanger but she thought I just wanted the pillow up close. It's hanging on her bedroom door. I am very happy with these little pillows! And as you can see, it's not real FLAT like it was in a previous post! lol
I spent yesterday with my mom. She LOVED the Chocolate Covered Cherries pillow. She ran around the den hanging it on everything, trying to find the perfect place for it! She was very surprised when she opened the candy box and saw the pillow instead of candy! I did include a couple of candy bars so she wouldn't be too disappointed that there was not Whitman's candy in the box! lol It's so much fun to stitch things for other people!!

This is what I am working on right now. It's in the booklet Precious Moments: Friendship by Gloria and Pat Designs. It's for Georgia B. at Quilts4Kids. It's much harder than what I usually do for charity. DD was sitting beside me when I was trying to choose what to do. I asked her which one I should do. She told me this one and I signed up for it. Then she said, "Oh, I thought you wanted me to pick out something for you to do for me!" So it's very hard and now I have to do 2 of them!! lol

This is my progress on it so far. I started this using my new Q Snaps, but I'm not used to using it yet and it really slowed me down. Since I need to get this done quickly, I changed back to my old faithful hoop! I'm having to force myself to stitch this. Right now it's just pastels and I'm not too crazy about pastels. I love bright, vibrant colors. But I keep telling myself that I like the colors and I can fool myself pretty easily. lol!!

And last but not least, this is my progress on Little Moon Welcome. I'm not going to get to stitch on it very much for a while, because I have to finish several squares for charity first!
That's all my news! Need to go stitch on the Precious Moments piece. Have a happy stitching day!

Chocolate Covered Cherries Pillow

It's not easy to see in this scan, but this is the Chocolate Covered Cherries Pillow finished! I used brown material for the border and back. I braided the threads that I used to cross-stitch it and used that for the hanger and the bow. I am really happy with the way it turned out! I was going to give it to my mom today, but it took me longer to finish than I thought it would. Plus Mom didn't feel well today. So we are getting together tomorrow, and I will give it to her then.

DD and her BF really liked their pillows. They turned out very cute with red bows and red ribbon hangers. They both hung them on the doorknobs of the doors to their rooms.

I am starting a Precious Moments chart to send to Quilts4Kids in Australia. It's 2 girls with flowers. I'm using my new Q-Snaps, and really like them!

Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day! Got to go! Happy stitching!

Valentine Fun

I've been busy today finishing things for Valentine's Day. I finished the piece above by making it into an ornament. I had originally intended to give this to DD, but I changed my mind and hung this on DS's crypt. I usually put something on his grave on special days. I used a suction hook to hang it. It gave me a good feeling to put it there! I'll go get it in a few days and hang it in his room with the others.

The picture above is what I did for DD and her BF. I first started this on off white Aida. But yesterday when I went to a nearby fabric store, they had all their cross stitch stuff for 30% off. So I bought this pink and some blue Aida and some white Monaco. I really like this on pink. I stitched one yesterday and another one today. I have made one of the pillows. It's below. I'll have to make the other in the morning. The girls won't let me sew anymore today.

I also changed my mind about using the bee fabric to make the little pillow. I saw this yesterday when I was at the fabric store, so I went back today and bought some. It was half price. It looks squashed because I mashed it down on the scanner. It's not really this flat! lol I am going to add some bows and a hanger. Then they can hang them on the doorknob of their rooms. I didn't make a tuck pillow this time. I decided that's a little too much work for me. I can just sew on the borders and the back. The tuck pillow takes too much measuring. I couldn't get the center opening the size I wanted it.
When I was at the store today, I saw a sale table. So I went and rummaged through the things to see if there was anything I wanted. AND you won't believe it! But I found 2 Q-Snaps for 60% off. They were just $3.50 a piece! I've been wanting to get myself one! I bought both of them - one for me and one for DD. I love it when I find things on sale!!! I tried stitching using the Q-Snap . I really like it, but it is heavier than a hoop. Well, got to go. I want to watch House and DD is threatening to turn it to something else. Have a happy day!

First Tuck Pillow

This is the first tuck pillow I have ever made. I really like the pillow, but I used the Tuck Pillow Pattern Maker at Cyberstitchers and I'm not real happy with the extra space around the cross-stitched piece. That's my fault because I didn't specify how much border to leave around the stitched piece. But I love the pillow and it was so easy to make! I think I will make another tuck pillow for this cross-stitched piece and stitch something else for this pillow. I love the fabric with the jack-o-lanterns and the black cats. I got this on sale after Halloween last year.
I have finished 2 more of the little birds for the cards. I think I will make one more for my sister and maybe one for my niece if I have time!
I'm trying to finish some of the things I have stitched. I might try a flat fold next. I'll show that tomorrow if I get it done and it turns out decent! lol Have a happy stitching day!

My First Card

I got the little bird finished and made it into a card. I am very pleased with how it turned out! I'm sending this one to my friend, Sherry. She has been such a good friend since my DS died. We were work friends, but not that close. But since my DS's death, she calls me very often just to see how I'm doing; she sends cards on every occasion; and she sent me a beautiful live wreath for my front door at Christmas. She exemplifies what a true "friend" is!! I hope she enjoys this little fellow! I'm going to try to get a few more made, because I have other "true friends," also. Happy day to everyone!

Busy, Busy

Day before yesterday I spent the day with my mom. We had a good time - just talking! So I didn't get in any stitching! Yesterday I stitched a good bit, but couldn't post, because DD and her BF were on the computer all day. DD is back to her old self - pretty much. She even cooked chocolate chip cookies last night! It was the first time she has cooked them. She cooks a little. (when she absolutely has to! lol) In addition to stitching, I cleaned out the frig. I have a bad habit of saving leftovers and then never eating them! There were so many UFOs (unidentifiable food objects) in there that there was no room for anything else! The worst thing about cleaning out the frig is having to wash all those containers! My dishwasher is on the blink right now, so I had to do them by hand. But it feels good to get it done!
Now to the pictures above: The first is what I am doing for DD's BF for Valentine's Day. I have to finish the bee and add the word "bee." I like this pattern. It was another freebie, and I know this one was at Cyberstitchers. I found some really neat fabric to make it into a pillow. It's lime green with bees and music notes on it. I can't wait to make it. I'm going to try a tuck pillow. I've been wanting to make one, but have trouble making myself get out the sewing machine!
The second picture is another little freebie ( I LOVE freebies!), but I don't know where I got it. I want to make some Valentine Cards to send to my friends. I thought this would be perfect for friends' cards because it's not mushy! Also it's very quick to stitch up. I don't know if I'm going to get them done in time or not. All I have to add to this one is the backstitching of the vines, but I don't have the right color thread. I'm going to look through my thread boxes to see if I can find a substitute, but I just haven't done it yet. And the last picture is my progress on Little Moon Welcome. I am really enjoying this. I really like stitching on this fabric, once I get in the "rhythm." I mostly stitch on Aida, but I am trying to branch out to other fabrics. I bought some linen, but haven't found a pattern that I want to stitch on it yet. I got it at a great bargain. It was half a yard regularly $24.00, and I got it for $7.00. I can't wait to stitch something on it! Well, that's all my news. Got to go and stitch! I wanted to tell everyone that I really appreciate the comments that my cyber-friends leave. They really brighten my day! Thank you everyone! Have a happy stitching day!

P.S. I found the site where I got the Valentine's Day Stamp (see Feb. 3rd's post). It's here: www.amonamipierre.net. Click on the top picture. Then scroll down the page and click on Free Charts written in red on the left. Happy stitching!

Little Moon Welcome

This is my newest start. I'm doing this one for me! It's a freebie and you can get it here: www.brookesbooks.com. But when I do something for myself, it seems to go slower. Go figure! Plus I stitched a large portion off one thread!

This is all I got done and I worked all day on it! You can see where I had to take out part of it - a BIG part. It was the roof over the windows. I'm doing it on 28 count Monaco tea fabric. It's 2 over 2. I'm only going to work on it a few days and then get back to the charity stitching.
Today has been a rough day. DD wasn't in a very good mood and she took it out on everyone in the house - especially me! Her exboyfriend's grandmother died. She had visited his grandmother several times. She got very upset. I know she's still trying to deal with my son's and my father's deaths. She just goes berzerk whenever she hears that someone has died. She also got very upset that Anna Nicole Smith died! She has a lot of anger built up. She has been in counseling, but I'm not sure it helped very much. I try to be understanding, but she just kept yelling at ME - like it was all my fault. She stressed me out so that I took another migraine headache! Got to go ! She HAS to have the computer right this second!

Alisha's Square

Happy dance! It's finished! I had to do it fast because I have another one to do for Quilts 4 Kids in Australia, and it can take up to 6 weeks for the squares to get there. This square and the other I have to stitch are due March 30th, which is about 7 weeks from now! The first 3 I sent have been received! I was so excited when I found out they got there safely. It's neat to think that some of my work is in Australia, a place I have never visited! I really like the way this square turned out. I wasn't sure I would like it at first. I don't know if anyone has noticed, but I had to take out some of the stitching. There were 2 symbols that were almost identical and I thought it was only 1 symbol. So I had done parts that were supposed to be purple and I used rose. I guess I could have left it the way it was, but I really thought the purple would make it look better. I think it was worth me taking it out and doing it over in the right color!
Today was clothes washing day! So I stitched in between putting clothes in the washing machine, then putting them in the dryer, and then folding them. Now each family member has to get their own clothes and put them up. lol Better go- it's getting late. Have a happy day!

A Perfect Day

After I backstitched some of this, I really like it! The colors are really coming together. I guess this will be another one that I want to stitch for myself. The list is really getting long! lol
I'm sure some of you fellow stitchers out there in cyberland think all I do is sit and stitch. Well, it's almost the truth! A typical day for me is getting up whenever I wake up, taking a shower, and eating breakfast. Then I do a little housework, IF I feel like it. lol Then I stitch some and watch TV. Around noon, I fix some lunch. Then I return to my stitching and TV. Sometimes I take a nap in the afternoon. I take breaks all day to let the dogs go out or to play with them or brush them. Then I fix dinner, or call delivery, or get DD to run out and pick us up something. After washing dishes and spending time with DD, I go back to my stitching and TV. Now somedays are different. I substitute teach about 2 or 3 days a week. When I get home on those days, I have to take a nap. I don't get much stitching done on those days. And we definitely have take-out or delivery on those days. About once a week, I spend the day with my mom. We sit and talk all day and she usually takes me out to dinner. And I call her almost everyday and we talk for at least 2 hours! My life now is very different from the life I had before DS passed away. It was teaching ( and I really put my whole heart into teaching and loved it!), keeping my house as spotless as I could, running my kids all over the place, (they didn't have cars then), trying to be the perfect daughter - trying to be the perfect everything! And that's why I almost had a breakdown. I love my life now. It's exactly how I want it. And I have to stitch or I go crazy thinking about my son!! I miss him so much!! I guess I'm a little mushy today because I visited his grave yesterday. I don't go as often as I did at first. I don't really feel like he is there; I feel him with me all the time! I don't have any doubts that I was a good mother - I spent a lot of time with my kids and tried to make lots of happy memories for them! I was very close to my son and am to my daughter. So - I am very happy with my simple, peaceful life! I wish for all of you out there the kind of life you most want. And a little advice - don't try to be the perfect everything. It's not worth it in the long run. Make as many happy memories with your family as you can and remember to do things just for you. Have a happy stitching day!

A Little Stitching

This is my latest start. It's a charity square for Alisha at Quilts 4 Kids in Australia. It is another freebie. I'm not sure, but I think I got this at Cyberstitchers. It has flowers and a watering can. I'm using the colors suggested, but they are really kind of strange. We'll see how it turns out. My head is still bothering me a little, but I was able to do a little stitching. After writing about how Coco is my "stitching buddy," Sugar decided SHE wanted to be my "stitching buddy." So she has wanted to sit in my lap all day. Since she's twice as big as Coco, it has made stitching a little difficult! lol And Coco is very easy-going and always gives in to Sugar. So he got down and let her sit in my lap. The frame for the piece I did for the new baby, Thomas, is ready. I'll go get it tomorrow and get that piece framed. Then I can take it over to my nephew's. Well, better go and do some more stitching before bedtime! Have a happy day!

Migraine

Didn't get to stitch today. I woke up with a migraine - that's what I get for mentioning them in my post yesterday. Usually if I talk about them, I get one. Maybe I'll feel better tomorrow!

Valentine for DD

My latest finish!! I have been working on this all week as well as the Chocolate Covered Cherries. This is a Valentine's Day gift for my daughter. It's a freebie called Valentine Stamp, but I don't know where I got it from. It was a pdf file and my printer had reached its limit on pdf files, so the words did not print, just the graph. I tried a google search, but couldn't find it. (I found out where I got this - it's here:http://www.amonamipierre.net. Click on the first picture. Then click on Free Charts written in red on the left side.) If anyone is planning to stitch this, I would recommend not doing it on white material. I added the backstitching around the outside because you could not see the white around the edge. It didn't look like a stamp, so I backstitched it with gray thread (DMC # 318). I think it looks okay. This was pretty hard to stitch. It has 5 shades of red and 4 shades of blue in it! It's 2" by 3". I am going to put it on padded cardboard with red self-sticking felt on the back. I'll show a picture when I get it done. I actually did some housework today. lol
My parakeet, PD Bird, bit me. He must think I haven't been showing him enough attention. I'm the only person he will let stick a hand in his cage. I don't know why he was mad at me - I cleaned out his cage today! lol
I realized that I haven't told anything about my dogs - "The Kids." I have 2 poodles. The oldest is Sugar, a black female. She is a miniature - weighs 11 lbs. She is 5-yrs-old. My aunt gave her to me, because Sugar was bad to get under her feet and she is elderly and was afraid she would trip on Sugar and break her hip. Her daughters had given her Sugar to keep her company after my uncle died. I have had her 3 yrs. She gave her to us after we got Coco. Coco is a chocolate brown toy poodle. He weighs 6 lbs. He is 4 yrs old, and we've had him 3.5 yrs. They get along so well. Coco is my "cross stitching buddy!" He sits in my lap while I stitch. When he decides I have stitched enough, he will bump my left elbow to tell me to stop. I usually stop a few minutes and give him some attention. When I first started stitching again 2 years ago, he wasn't happy at all! He would lay on top of my pattern so I couldn't see it! He also does that when I am reading! They both sleep with me. I think Coco is half cat or lived with someone who had a cat. He licks his paw and washes his face like a cat does. He also sits on the top of the back of the loveseat in front of the glass sliding doors. He looks just like a cat sitting there. I don't know how I could have survived the last 2 years without them! They constantly entertain me and keep me laughing! And if I cry, they get up in my lap and lick away my tears. When I have a migraine headache, I put a cold washcloth on my head. When they see the washcloth, they will get in bed with me and lick my face. Sugar tries real hard to talk to me. She will get in my lap and stare me directly in the eyes. I know when she does this, she wants something. I say, "Okay, what do you want?" She will jump down and take off to the door if she wants to go out, or to her bowls if she needs water or food. I can ask either one where the other one is and they will look around and then go to where they are and stand there and look at me and then back to where ever the other is hiding. Sugar is very sweet and can actually give a good hug! Coco is a little stiff, but he gives marvelous licks! I am so thankful that God brought these 2 precious little creatures into my life. (and PD Bird, too, even if he is mean sometimes! lol) Happy stitching everyone!

Chocolate Covered Cherries Address

Some fellow stitchers wanted to know where I found the Chocolate Covered Cherries pattern. Believe it or not - I did a google search and put in "cross stitch chocolate covered cherries" and found the site! I was shocked! This is where you can get it: www.caseybuonaugurio.com. Go all the way to the bottom of the page and you'll find it. I'll post some more later. Happy stitching!

Chocolate-covered Cherries

I just finished Chocolate-covered Cherries. I really enjoyed stitching this. These colors on the Monaco Tea material really complemented each other. Doing this made me feel warm all over. I'm going to have to stitch this for myself later. I'm going to make this into a pillow for my mom. I have to get some material first.
All the snow is gone. It didn't last long. Not much happening around here, except stitching. lol
I'm going to try to finish the Valentine Stamp for my daughter next. Hope everyone has a happy stitching day!

We Have Snow!

Here's Jeanne Love's Angel finished! Happy dance! I really like her, but as I said earlier, I'm not real happy with the backstitching. I will definitely use all brown for the backstitching next time! She will go to Love Quilts soon for Lynzee's quilt. I am going to stitch another angel for this little girl's quilt. They really needed more squares for hers. But I'm taking a little break from the charity squares.
Well, this time the weatherman was correct and we got SNOW! I love when it snows because I use it as an excuse to do NOTHING! Except cross-stitch! It's sleeting outside right now, but the snow is still beautiful. DD and her BF have been having a ball out in it!
I have been busy this morning kitting up some new projects. I'm going to do the chocolate-covered cherries freebie (I'm not sure where I got this pattern) for my mom for Valentine's Day. She loves them, but she has told us not to give her anymore candy because she doesn't want to gain any weight. I'm going to make it into a little pillow. I have a Whitman's Candy box that I am going to put it in to give to her. She loves Whitman's Chocolates, too. That way she will think I have given her candy and will be real surprised when she sees the pillow, and she won't have to worry about gaining weight! lol
I also put together the material and threads for Little Moon Welcome, another freebie that I got at www.brookesbooks.com. I am doing both of these on Monaco Tea 28 count material.
So today I'm going to work on Chocolate-covered Cherries for Mom and maybe work some on the Valentine Stamp for DD. I'm also going to do something for DD's BF for Valentine's Day. I just haven't decided what to do - I might do the Valentine Stamp for her, too. Haven't decided yet. Better go and fix us some lunch and get started stitching! Have a happy, warm day!