I'm Back Again!

It's really been a long time since I've posted! I couldn't get my scanner to work and DD finally found her digital camera so she could take pictures of my xstitching and download it for me. I don't like to post without pictures! My life isn't that exciting anymore! lol

The picture above is one of my finishes. I started this a couple of years ago and finally finished it about a month ago. It came from an old mag, but I photocopied it (just for my use - did not violate any copyright laws!) and I don't remember which mag it was. I really enjoyed this. It's a tribute to my dad, and I can't wait to get it framed! I meant to edit the picture before I posted but forgot, and then couldn't figure out how to delete it from this post. I'm on DD's laptop and not real good at using it!

I have many more pictures to post, but it's very late around here. Really it's very early in the morning, and I will probably add some more later! Have a day full of happy moments!

Not Forgotten, After All

I am so glad to know I haven't been forgotten. Thanks, Carol and Chiloe, for your comments! They were so wonderful to receive!

I haven't substituted any this school year. I've been sick a good bit; they have a new calling system, and I haven't gotten many calls to the good schools; and I just decided I don't want to sub! If I'm careful, I can make it on my retirement pay, and I have more time to stitch! lol
The only problems are the furry babies; they are spoiled rotten! Especially Bebe! She sits in my lap constantly, which has really slowed down my stitching! She is curled up in my lap right now; so, I'm typing EXTREMELY slowly!!

I am very close to finishing the piece for my sister. I have run out of one of the colors. I went ahead and finished everything but that color. I just haven't felt like going to the store for it.

One of my resolutions this year is to finish as many UFOs as possible. But I have so many, and I do so enjoy starting new pieces! Have any of you started something, put it aside for a while, and then didn't like it when you went back to it? I have a couple of things that I really don't like anymore, but I've put so much work into them! That's why I'm going to make myself finish them. Until a couple of years ago, I only worked one piece at a time. I enjoy working on several pieces at the same time, but I've gotten carried away and have too many! Anyway, that's why I'm going to finish my UFOs. Maybe the ones I'm not that fond of anymore will make good gifts next Christmas! I'm also not going to let myself get so many UFOs again.

Speaking of Christmas, we had a very quiet but happy Christmas this year. (Well, last year now! lol) I worked so hard on the cross stitching, I didn't even get the house decorated. We didn't even have a tree. It's the first year that has ever happened! But my family still got together; and DD, her dad, and I still had a fun Christmas Day. DD wanted money this year. Her dad and I gave her money, and I picked up a few other gifts for her. But I'm not going to do that again. It wasn't as much fun, and it looked like her dad and I didn't give her very much.

Well, Bebe is driving me crazy! I'd better go and rock her. I just can't understand how she got so spoiled. lol Have a day full of happy moments, and may God bless you!

A Long Vacation

I haven't posted in ages!! I've had a rough year - especially the last half! I've been sick a good bit - getting old, I guess. Last month my mom fell and broke a bone right above her right wrist and crushed some bones in her hand. She ended up having to have surgery and spent 2 nights in the hospital. This all happened when I was too sick to go see her or help at all. Also, I was having trouble with my car.

Back during the hottest part of the summer, DD and I were driving over to a friend's house and on the way, the car choked down and would not start back up. We had to sit in a hot car for quite a while. We guessed it had overheated. We finally got it started again and made it to a little store down the street before it conked out again. No one could come and get us right away; so, we ended up spending almost 2 hours in the store. A neighbor finally came and picked us up. DD took me back to the car the next day, and it started. I was able to make it home with DD following me. I really couldn't afford to have it fixed right then, and I got sick - so - I just didn't drive and stayed around the house. Luckily, my brother used to be a car mechanic. So, after Mom got out of the hospital, he came over and worked on it 2 days. It turned out to be the thermastat, a hole in a hose, and some expensive control thingy for the radiator. I had to force him to take some money for his labor. I had to pay a good bit for the parts, but he really saved me a lot of money. At a mechanic shop, the labor would have cost me a small fortune. He ended up having to take almost all the motor apart! Then I was on my way to visit mom and had a flat tire on the interstate. At first, I didn't realize it was a tire; I thought the motor had blown or something. Luckily, I was near an exit and was able to stop at a little market and call my brother. He came right over and put the spare on. The next day he took my car and picked up a new tire for me and put it on. I am so glad my brother moved so close to me! Needless to say, I'm driving my car as little as possible!

This is not all the problems I have had, but I'll save the rest and tell about more in my next post.

Now for some less depressing news. We have a new little grandnephew in the family. My nephew and his wife had Elijah, their second son, in July. He was small - only 6 lbs., which is the smallest baby born in our family in a long time! He is precious.

DD is still in college. She's doing much better on her grades. She is working in a daycare with afterschool kids. She loves it and is now thinking about being a teacher! She's really a natural, and she gets it honestly. Two of my mom's sisters were teachers; my mom substituted some; four cousins are teachers; one cousin is a teacher's aide; and I am a retired teacher! She really didn't have a choice. lol

Now - finally- a cross stitch update! I really wish I could post some pictures, but we still haven't gotten a new monitor. DD got a thingy that wirelessly connects her laptop to the printer, but it's not working right now. I got the pieces for the baskets for my mom and niece finished, but ran out of time and didn't get my sister's finished in time. I put the first 2 on the tops of the baskets, and just taped the unfinished piece to my sister's so she could at least open it at the family Christmas party. Hers is an angel. It is really gorgeous. I brought it back home and have almost finished it. I ran out of a color and haven't gotten to the store to get another skein. She had a fit over it and really didn't want to give it back to me! lol I'll get DD to fix the wireless thingy so I can scan it and post a pic later.

Guess I'd better go. Neighbors are shooting fireworks, and the furry babies are going crazy! They want to sit in my lap! HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!! Have a day full of happy moments, and may God bless you!

Too Hot and Dry!

It's another HOT, humid, dry day here in the south! We desperately need some rain! But it does give me an excuse to stay inside and stitch! But, seriously, pray that we get some rain soon!! We had a very dry summer last year, also, and we are losing trees and other plants! I've been staying at home and "hibernating."

I finally had to tell my mom that I needed to stay at home and try to heal emotionally. I really feel better! However, we had another stressful event. Right after my son passed away, my mom was in the hospital with a ruptured artery near her stomach. Luckily, she had gone to the hospital for a stress test and while there realized she was bleeding. They were able to quickly do surgery and repair the artery. But while she was in the hospital, she also had pneumonia. She was so sick! Well, her doctor keeps a close watch on her lungs because she already has ashma. A couple of weeks ago she had a CAT scan of her lungs. Her doctor told her they had found some nodules and that she needed to go to her lung dr. for further tests. It scared us to death; of course, cancer was what we thought. I thought I was taking it real well and wasn't too worried. My sister went with her to the dr. I called her at noon and she had just gotten home, It was not cancer. They told her the nodules were very tiny and at her age it wasn't really reason to worry. When she told me, I went to pieces!! I am so thankful!! But it set me back some.

However, I have been stitching a good bit, when I haven't been asleep. I have never slept so much! But I think it's what my body needs to recover from all the stress I have endured! I have done several small pieces. I did a patriotic piece - a freebie -with Uncle
Sam on it. He is so cute! I also finished the charity piece - the little boy angel sitting on the moon. It was a quick stitch and I enjoyed doing it. I got it in the mail yesterday. I started the ornies for my teacher-friends, but I won't describe them because some of those friends read my blog! I'm working on another patriotic mini - it's by Lizzie Kate. It says, "Liberty" and has some stripes and stars on it. It's very small. I saw a button at the LNS that I want to put on it. It's a heart with the flag on it. I'm going to get it tonight. It's Stitching Club night. I haven't been to it since Mar., but I'm planning to make it tonight!

I did make it to the LNS earlier this week! It was the first time I left the house in 3 weeks and, of course, my first trip out of the house would be to the LNS! lol I had ordered some material and thread and it had finally come in. Of course, I bought other stuff, too. DD went with me. She stitches every once in a while. My fabby is 28 count Summer Sky Jobelin. It's for a piece I want to do. It's in the April 2008 issue of Stoney Creek Cross Stitch Collection. It says, "Prayer changes things." I also got the GlissenGloss thread it calls for. It's Twilight and it's really beautiful. I've never stitched with a silk thread before. I'm really looking forward to starting it, but I have many things to finish first. I did get it kitted, though.

Back to my new stash! We got the pattern "Footprints in the Sand." I've wanted to do this pattern for a long time. But it will be a long time before I get to that! We lucked up and found several patterns we liked that were on sale! Katie picked out one by Forever In My Heart. It's "Here's to Women." It says "Here's to good women. May we know them; may we be them; may we raise them." I really like this, too. I got 2 patterns from Heart in Hand and they both included the buttons to go with them. One is "Winter Medley" and the other is "Spring Medley." I wish she had also had autumn and summer, but she didn't. Maybe I can find them later. All 3 of these patterns and the buttons were 75% off. I got them all for less that $7! I so love to find things on sale!

But I'm very proud of myself! Yesterday I went to Michael's to get a picture stand for the picture I did for Katie to give her dad. And I DIDN'T BUY ANY STASH!! I looked, but resisted buying anything! Amazing for me! lol

Well, that's about it for today! I hope everyone is doing good. Have a day full of happy moments, and may God bless you!

Feeling Better

I've been very busy stitching. I'm working on the piece for my mom's basket. I'm about half finished with it. I've also done several little pieces. I love to do small, quick pieces! A little bird house to make into a scissor fob, a piece that has little houses on it and says "Love begins at home." I've also started a charity square for Love Quilts. I had taken a break from my charity squares, but I'm motivated again! Oh! I almost forgot the piece I did for DD to give her dad for Father's Day! It says, "Dad - some day my prince may come, but you will always be the king of my heart." It has hearts and vines around the words. I didn't stitch one of the little hearts and sewed a little heart charm on it. Now I just have to frame it today. She's going to see her dad tomorrow because she has to work today. I also want to do a piece in memory of my dad. I have it kitted but haven't started it yet. It's from a very old mag and says "Thank God for fathers who not only gave us life but also taught us how to live." It has a couple of deer and trees on it - silhouettes. I wish I could show some pics!

Life has been pretty quiet around here. I finally told my mom that I was going to "hibernate" for a week or so! I have been through so much the last 3 or 4 years! I'm just staying at home and resting! I told her I need to heal emotionally! I do feel better. I have not let myself feel guilty that I wasn't going to see her every day! I have come to realize that I can't help anyone else until I take care of myself!

Things have been better with DD. I watched a Super Nanny show last week and she was making a little boy go to time-out. I had a brain storm and decided to try humor on DD. She had brought in a couple of gift bags from the garage and, of course, left them sitting on the table. I told her to put them back in the garage. She said, "I will - later" - her favorite thing to say and then she never does!! She went to her room. I marched in her room and told her to look me right in the eyes. (I even made the motions with my hands!) Now - remember - she is 19-years-old! I said, "I want you to go put up those bags. If you don't, you will have to sit in the "naughty chair" one minute for each year of your age - 19 minutes." She was about to leave with her best friend, who used to work at a day care. BF says, "That's what we used to say to the kids at the nursery!" Well, DD got mad, but she stomped off and put the bags where they belonged. I told her, "Thank you, Sweetie. Now tell Mommy you are sorry and give me a hug." She did but she was MAD! She then stomped off. But a minute later she came back to where I was sitting and hugged me and said, "I'm sorry, Mom. I love you." I couldn't believe it actually worked! She has been much better since then. You just have to try to use your sense of humor when raising kids, especially teenagers!!

Well, that's about it for me today. I've been trying to catch up on reading blogs. Most of us seem to be slack about posting lately. I guess life gets awfully busy sometimes! Take care! Have a day full of happy moments; and may God bless you!

A Gift Becomes a Present to Me!

Still without a computer of my own! I really miss posting! Things have been pretty quiet around here. My family got together again last week at a seafood place to celebrate my daughter's, my sister's, and my great-niece's birthdays! We had so much fun! I made a little hanging pillow for my sis. She turned 50. It had a very curvy lady in a gold evening dress holding a champagne glass. It said, "Golden oldie? Not me!" It also had the number 50 done in gold braid. I wish I could post a pic of it! I really can't figure out my mom. We all had such a great time, and then the next day, she said it made her too tired and she didn't think we should do it again! I'm wondering if it bothers her because my dad's not there and she misses him so much. I've also wondered if she feels guilty having a good time without him! I told her we were going to do it if it's only the 3 siblings and our kids. I really hate it that the only memories DD has of my family are trips to the hospital! I told my sis that I get the feeling that Mom doesn't want us to get together, and she said she got that same feeling! Mom's very bad to talk about other family members negatively, and we think she's afraid we'll tell each other what she says. You can't stop her. She is a wonderful person, but the last few years she has gotten very negative about everything! But we're going to get together, even if we have to do it without telling her!

I've been pretty busy stitching! I did a neat window scene looking out over a beach with a boat in the distance and a pitcher and glass of orange juice on a table. It was supposed to go on a retirement card for a former colleague, but I got sick and didn't make it to her party and decided I would keep it myself. I'm going to make it into a flatfold. It reminds me of beach trips my family took when I was little! I also did a quick little bird house that I'm going to make into a scissor fob. So after my little foray into quick stitches, I am now working on the big piece for my mom for Christmas. It is a very country piece. I really like stitching with the deep, rich colors! The only problem is I made a working copy of the chart and put the mag away in my HUMONGOUS pile of mags. The pattern has leaves and the chart says to stitch the outline of the leaves in green and the center of the leaves in blue! I can't decide if it's a mistake. I guess I'm going to have to go through those mags and find the original with the picture and see what they did on it. I've got to get my mags better organized.

I'm also going to start a new piece (that will make a hundred and one things I have started and not finished yet! lol). It's a fairly simple piece in memory of my dad. It says, "Thank God for fathers who not only gave us life, but also taught us how to live!

I'm in pretty bad shape today. The last few months have been pretty bad. As most of you know, my 18-year-old son was killed in 2005 in a car accident. Some people might think that it gets easier with time, but it doesn't. It gets worse!! My son's death was so sudden! I think my brain instantly went numb as a way of keeping me from going insane! For a long time I went around feeling like I was in a dream and wasn't part of this world anymore. Nothing seemed real. Now it's like it's becoming too horribly real to me and it's so hard to keep on going. I have flashbacks to the day they came and told me. I can't help it - I start screaming and my throat closes up. I have to take anxiety pills and I'm on a lot of depression meds. Right after he died, we found a stack of letters that we and he had written while he was at different camps through the years. I didn't read them - I just put them in my drawer with the last shirt he wore. Last night I decided to read them. I could HEAR his voice in the letters he had written. He and I were so close! In one of the letters, he wrote, "There's nothing better than writing a letter to your momma." I really cried and cried. I didn't get to bed until 5:00 this morning. I got up at noon and feel like I've been backed over by a truck! The only way I keep going is by constantly praying. I have witnessed so many miracles since my son's passing! I know I couldn't go on if I didn't have the Lord walking with me and holding me up!! Well, that's my little sermon for today!

I'm going to have some lunch and start stitching. I really want to make a hugh dent in the pile of Christmas gifts I have to do! Have a day full of happy moments;and may God bless you!

Long Time, No Post

It's been a long time since my last post! I think my computer screen is gone for good this time!! I can't afford a new one right now, so I'll have to use DD's laptop for a while. But that means I can't show any pictures, and it's very rare that her laptop is free for me to use.



Anyway, I have been doing a lot of cross stitching! I've finished the Birds and Birdhouse. Happy Dance!! It is really pretty. Maybe someday I can show it to everybody! I also made a Mother's Day card for my mom. It was a flower wreath with "Happy Mother's Day" inside it. She really loved it and now wants it framed, after she told me she doesn't want anything else cross stitched to hang!

I've also finished a small freebie called "Summer House." It was in a newsletter I got from somewhere. The name of the site was not on the page with the pattern and that's all I saved. I am so proud of myself. It called for Crescent Color threads, which I don't have; so I choose my own colors. It's the first time I've chosen my own colors for a piece!! I used a couple of WDW threads that I had and DMC threads. I love the result!! I really wish I could show a pic! I'm planning to make it into a tuck pillow. I have so many things that I need to "finish"finish!

I'm working on a couple of new things. DD's birthday is this week and I'm doing a birthday piece for her. It's a freebie I got from Rainbow Gallery. It's a birthday cake. My LNS doesn't carry the Rainbow threads, so I also chose my own threads for this piece. DD's favorite color is purple; so I'm making it with purple, white, and brown colors - some WDW and some DMC. It's really fun to choose your own colors! I'm also working on a card for my sis. Her birthday is 2 days after DD's. I have a sister piece that I'm going to frame for her, also. I also have been invited to a retirement party for a dear teacher friend later in the month, and I'm going to do a card for her, also. I don't have time to stitch something big for her, so I'll buy her a gift.

Last month my family started a new family tradition. Well, really I started it! We don't get together often. I finally figured out why we don't. When my dad was alive, either he or Mom was in the hospital every few months! Of course the whole family would gather at the hospital and be there the whole time - so those hospital stays became our get-togethers! We really saw a lot of each other!! Anyway- back to our new tradition. We are getting together on each family member's birthday! Last month was the first one - my brother's birthday. We met at a restaurant. We had a great time! However, my brother wasn't there! He has been very sick, but we decided we would get together whether the birthday person could be there or not! lol
So we're getting together for DD's, my sister's, and my great-niece's birthday next week. Dear great niece's bday is in the first of June.

I just got a big box in the mail while I was sitting here writing this! I ordered several cross stitch books from that Bargain Books site. I won't let myself open it until I finish this! lol Guess I'd better close because I just can't wait to see my new books (which are my Mother's Day present to myself!!) I'm going to read some of your blogs as soon as I can! Please forgive me for being so lax about that, but DD doesn't let me use her laptop often. I think about my cyberfriends very often, though, and hope all of you are doing great!! Have a day full of happy moments, and may God bless you!!