Good-bye 2009!! Hello 2010!!!

I can not believe this year past so quickly. I know people say that all the time, but it was just super fast for me this year. I am very happy to say that the textbook is finished. The publisher was nice enough to send me a framed copy of the cover. Isn't it really nice?

(Hobbie's stocking I painted in 1991 and Nicholas's stocking)

I have been stitching like crazy. I finished Nicholas stocking and it is so pretty. I am happy to say that both my boys had handmade stockings for Christmas for the first time. So glad I only have 2 children...

I also finished this Tournicoton piece. Very festive...

I have just two more projects to complete in the next two days. One is this pretty LHN piece (Poinsettia House). I should finish it tonight. It was very fun to stitch and very quick. I also want to finish Barabara Anna's Winter Biscornu tomorrow.

Now, for the 2010 goals. I really need to get to stitching. These are just a few of the many patterns I have hoarded over the past few years. I stopped by Shakespeare's Peddler yesterday and got the fabric for the Holiday Game Board and Quaker Christmas. I also ordered the fabric for Quaker Virtues, RTR Sleepy Hollow and Cross Eyed Cricket Sleepy Hollow. Now I have 20 projects lined up ready for stitching. Some are easy, some are not so easy, but at least I have the materials to work on them. I know I will still purchase new patterns as they become available, so I'm not even going to try to say otherwise (no use ending the year as a blatant liar). But I will plan better this year and finish even more.

I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year's Eve and Happy New Year to you all.

December goals and stitching updates...

Wow!! It has been a while since I updated my blog. It isn't all my fault though. Our computer crashed right before Thanksgiving. Hobbie decided it was time to make a change and ordered a new iMac. We love it.

I have been stitching some over the past month. I am still working on some of the same patterns though. I have made some great progress with Nicholas's stocking. Just need to finish Santa, the two reindeer, and the sky. This should be finished in the next week, just in time for Christmas.

I have also been working on the LHN Two Red Houses. This is a very easy stitch. Not much left to do...

And, isn't this just too cute. This is a Tournicoton pattern. I love her designs. My nephew, Theron, picked the fabric for this one. Just the two reindeer left on this one also.

Well, the semester is finally over. I have to admit that I really enjoyed teaching this semester. I had some really great students that worked extremely hard. Several graduated yesterday and fortunately have jobs lined up in January.

The next five weeks are going to be so nice. No class, no textbook writing. I do have some data analysis to do, but that is fun for me. I plan to spend the next two weeks at home working on my craft projects though. Plus, several of my stitching friends and I have a three-day stitching "retreat" planned. We are going to gather a different person's house each day and stitch and eat and stitch and eat. It should be a lot of fun. I am hosting the first day and have a very festive menu planned. I will post pictures next Monday.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas season. We will be finishing up the decorating today and will be attending a party tonight. I just love Christmas.

Long overdue update...

I have been stitching a bit this month, but my progress is slow. First, I finished the CCN Gingerbread Cottage. I think it is really cute. This will be a present for one of my sisters.


Next, I finished LHN Two White Houses. If you are familiar with the piece you will notice that it is a bit different from the original. I was at a friend's stitching and mentioned that I didn't like the alphabet in the pattern and she suggested that I not stitch it. Can I do that? Well, yes, you absolutely can. So, I followed her suggestion. I really like this pattern and will finish it as a stand up for my Thanksgiving decorations.



Finally, I had this little piece in my stack of "to do". It was very easy and very cute. I will finish it as a pin keep.

I am still stitching on LHN Two Red Houses, Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler, and the stocking for Nicholas. I might be able to finish one of these in the next few days.

I can't believe that November is almost over and the holiday season is here. Fortunately, this year I am in a much happier mood.

November is going to be a great month for stitching...

I am so excited about how well I am doing with my list of projects. This summer I decided to work mainly from my existing stash and try to get some of these older projects completed. Well, the new patterns that came out in early fall were wonderful, so I did purchase several new things, but I have really plowed through a lot of my older stuff, too.


This month, I wanted to finish some of the Halloween patterns that I have collected. I posted some of the smaller ones on my blog last month, but I am happy to say that I have finished one more. This is L'automne d' Anne by Tournicoton. I really like her designs. This one looks like a child's coloring page to me. It was a lot of fun to stitch and turned out really cute. I really love this designer too...



So much so that I also purchased her newest Christmas pattern this weekend. I still need to find the right fabric, but this is in my bag of "Things to stitch" for November.


I am also making great progress on Theresa's Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler. I really love this one. The fabric is 40 ct, which is very small for me, but I love working on it. I stitch on this piece while I watch Ghost Whisperer, just to get the mood right. I am hoping I can finish it in the next week or so because I have the Jenny Bean Christmas sampler in my bag also. I need to pick up the fabric and threads still, but can't wait to start on that one.


This weekend, I went through my basket of patterns and picked out 5 projects to add to my list. These include LHN Two White Houses, LHN Two Red Houses, CCN Gingerbread Cottage, Barbara Anna's Winter Biscornu and The Trilogy Autumn Tree. I have already started on the Gingerbread Cottage and Autumn Tree. Actually, I am almost finished with the Autumn Tree (very small piece). These are the patterns I hope to finish this month. Keep your fingers crossed because I just have a feeling that my fingers will be moving at supersonic speeds this month.

Several finishes and some progress photos to share...

So, I am just lame at updating my blog. Sorry, but I do have some great updates. First, I finished a couple of Halloween/Fall patterns that I got from Shakespeare's Peddler this summer. She was running a clearance sale and I picked up the following two patterns. I really like the moon pattern. The Fall Fling piece will be finished as a pinkeep. (Sorry, I didn't rotate the picture before I uploaded it.)


This past weekend we had a girls' day of sorts. This is a picture of me and my youngest nephew Leif (he came to visit for a while at the end of the day). My younger sister wanted to organize a scrapbooking day for several of our friends and in the process raise money for the church. Though we only had 6 people attend the event, it was a lot of fun. We started with scrapbooking. I'm not as excited as scrapbooking as I was in the past, so it didn't take me long to change gears. We all eventually switched to stitching.



Now, I am so excited about these next two projects. I started L'automne d'Anna a while ago, but have made quite a bit of progress this week. The piece reminds me of a child's coloring book page. It is also a lot bigger than I thought it would be, but I really like the colors.


Have you seen Theresa's new Jenny Bean samplers? She released the Halloween sampler at market and just finished the Christmas samplers. I love these. I started the Halloween sampler yesterday. I am stitching on it while I watch Ghost Whisperer each night. Hopefully I can finish it by Halloween. This one is a lot of fun to stitch because of the variety. The letters are not all the same style, so it doesn't get boring. You check out the Christmas sampler at Theresa's blog. I can't wait to get it next month.

Wow! Is it October already?

These past few weeks have been crazy. First, though, I have a lot of finished projects to share. Theresa from Shakespeare's Peddler was on her way to market and I wanted to finish some of my stash so I would feel guilty buying some of the new wonderful things she would bring home. So, I went through my basket and pulled out all of the small Halloween and fall projects and started stitching. I even had a stitching day for the girls so we could all sit around and gossip and stitch all day. So, here are some of those projects...


This is a Trail Creek pattern that has been sitting around for awhile. I didn't buy the buttons, so I just went through my scrapbooking stash to find something appropriate. (Aren't you impress, Lisha?)


I got this pattern at a stitching retreat a year or two ago. It was very easy to stitch and quite cute. I think I will finish this as a no-sew cube.


Don't you just love biscornus? I found this pattern online and don't know why it has taken me so long to do this. I just think the spiders are perfect for the little witches. Cute, cute, cute.


And this is another Barbara-Anna biscornu. I think I purchased this pattern last year. I changed some of the threads because I don't have access to Anchor here in Hattiesburg. But it is still very cute.


And finally, Trilogy's Halloween Line-up. I bought this one quite a while ago and kept putting it at the back of the stack. It was a very fun stitch. I love the spiders on this one too.

I have restocked my stash a bit. I now have Shakespeare's Peddler Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler (love this one), including the fabric and limited edition threads. I just might start this on later this week. I also picked up Lizzie Kate ABC Christmas, Blackbird Designs Midnight Watch, and The Primitive Needle Witches Hallow. All three of these are very pretty. I don't know if I will stitch them this year or wait until later. We will just have to wait and see.

On a different note, this has been a very dramatic month. It seems like every week something was happening. Fortunately, mostly good things. Patrick's band performed at their first contests last weekend and made all superior at both. I also attended my 20 yr. HS reunion. It was nice to see everyone.

The boys are very excited about their Fall Break. They will be out of school Friday and next Monday and Tuesday. Fortunately, I don't have to be at work Thursday or Friday, so I have a bit of break myself. I need to catch up with some research and textbook writing though.

Have a great week...

Another finish!!!

I finished Blackbird Designs Moonlit Garden. It is so pretty. I really want to frame this for October. This was a fairly quick stitch. Once the house and moon were completed, everything else came together pretty quickly. A friend told me that the pattern would sell on eBay for a nice price. I checked out current auctions and was surprised at some of the prices. Of course, since Tucker (my 4 year old nephew) sat on the pattern, I can't advertise it as mint condition.



I am also working on Halloween Line Up. This is a lot of fun. I really like the spiders. I have two more lines (pumpkins and owls) at the top and then the row of trick-or-treaters at the bottom. This should be finished soon.

Well, I don't have any other photos to share, but I am working on a few other projects. I have Nicholas's stocking. The stitching is slow, but I am oh so close to finishing the leaves. I really believe that once I finish the leaves, the rest will move at a much quicker pace.

I also started a Tournicoton pattern. It is a Halloween pattern that is really cute. It is all DMC floss, so I am making great progress with it. I will try to post a picture later this week.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week.

Happy Labor Day!!

I know, I know, I have been very bad about updating my blog. But, I have been very busy, really. Of course, the boys went back to school at the beginning of August and my classes started in the middle of August. Even though I am only teaching 3 classes I have over 300 students to deal with. To top that off, I had to fly to Dubuque last week for a meeting about the textbook. AND I have been sick most of the last two weeks. So, there are my excuses.


But, I do have some stitching to share. I finished the LK Boo Club. Isn't is adorable? This was a very quick and fun stitch. Can't wait to get it framed.


After finishing this, I have been bitten by the Halloween/Autumn bug and have picked several appropriate projects. I am so very close to finishing the Moonlit Garden piece from Blackbird Design. I have just a few more stars, leaves, and a pumpkin to stitch and then the verse. This is my project for the rest of the night.

I have several other fall themed patterns kitted and will show some pictures of those when I have enough stitched to be recognizable.


One last picture to leave you with. This is Josey, our wild cat. She is almost a year old. It is amazing how big she has gotten. When I first brought her home she could fit under a ball cap.

Have a great week.

I really did try to update my blog...

but for some reason, I couldn't upload pictures earlier this week. That's OK though because I have a finish to share and some new projects. First, the scarecrow is finished. He is really cute. I have to admit that I did not enjoy stitching him though. These older patterns just have too many color changes.


I have made some good progress on Nicholas's stocking. Can you see Santa's legs? Again, this is an older pattern from Leisure Arts, so there are constant color changes. Once I finish the last branch of holly leaves I think it will be a lot easier to stitch. I love the pattern on this fabric though.


My new projects include the LK Boo Club. I love this series of pattern!!! Each pattern stitches up very quickly and it is so easy to stitch. Can't wait to finish this one.


And my last project is the Blackbird Designs Moonlit Garden. Again, this is a pattern that I think is just really cute. I love the checkerboard pattern house. This is a lot of fun to stitch and seems to be moving along pretty quickly.

I got up early this morning, got the boys off to school, did a quick grocery shopping trip to a local store, and headed to the office this morning (all before 9 a.m.). The textbook is moving right along and I had two chapters on my desk to review and send back to the publishers. One was due next week and the other at the end of the month, BUT I decided to work really hard and get both ready to mail today. Mission accomplished. I dropped them off at FedEx on the way home. And finally, I had to prep some for a project that we are starting next week. We were able to get everything ready and before noon. SO, since I was so productive at work, I can spend the entire weekend stitching and stitching and stitching...

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday Update...

Since I have kind of let my blog slip this summer, I have decided to be a bit more active and post progress pictures of my stitching more often. I may not post every day, but I will try to be better. Yesterday was a big day stitching-wise since I finished the Shakespeare's Peddler sampler (see last post for picture) I had been working on for some time. I also stitched on an old pattern I have had lying around since 1995 (the same year my now 9th grader was born). This little scarecrow is quite cute. I know, it is a bit old-fashioned since I am stitching it on aida, but I really like it. I only need to finish dressing the poor guy (shoes and hat) and he will be done. I watched "Becoming Jane" while I stitched on this one yesterday. I love that movie.


Today I will stitch on Nicholas's stocking. I bought the fabric for this project in Feb. 2008. Last year I finished one of the stockings for Patrick, just in time for Christmas. This Christmas, Nicholas's stocking will be completed. I haven't made much progress, but the leaves are the hardest part for me (lots of color changes). I have just a few more branches and then I can stitch Santa (my favorite part). My rotation includes two days of stitching on the stocking, so I will post an update photo on Friday.

Hope everyone has a great day.

July was a very busy month, stitchingwise...

At the beginning of the summer break I decided to limit my new stash purchases until I had finished some of the UFOs in my craft basket. I had several projects that have been hanging around for some time. I have a bad habit of thinking I have to do things even if I don't like them anymore. So, my original list including 17 projects. Sharon was visiting me last week and we were looking at all of my projects and she asked me if I really liked all of them. When I admitted that I didn't like a couple of them she convinced me that I didn't have to stitch them. What a relief!


So, I did finish several projects this past month. I am most happy about finishing SP A Weary World Rejoices. It was a slow start, but once I got accustomed to the smaller thread count of the fabric, I was able to finish it. I actually finished the date this morning.


I also completed the three Summer Bungalows from CCN. These are really cute and were very easy to stitch. I have big plans for finishing these.


LHN Winter Wonderland had been forgotten in my stitching basket for quite a while. I pulled it out and was able to finish this one in about a week. I love it. I think the fabric is perfect.


I also finished this JBW Christmas tree. I only had the border to complete, but had run out of floss and couldn't remember what I had used. Marie sent me a skein of Victorian Sampler thread that was a perfect match. Thanks, Marie. This will be finished as an ornament for my tree.

The boys go back to school at the end of the week. Next week is a free week for me. Classes do not resume until the 17th at USM, so I have a bit of free time to enjoy. Of course, I need to prep for the fall semester (I am teaching a new course and using a different textbook in my other classes this semester). But I planned to enjoy my time off.

I have several projects kitted up and ready to go. Hopefully, this month will be another productive stitching month for me.

Not a lot of stitching to share...

Well, I haven't stitched as much as I wanted this week. I have one finish to share though. This is another silk gauze piece from my stash. I really, really like these projects. They are so cute and quite easy to do. Theresa has almost convinced me to stitch one of my stash patterns on silk gauze (she sells the gauze at her store). Maybe after I have finished my stash purge I will try a small project.

Speaking of my stash purge. I mentioned in my last post that I have sworn off buying any more stitching stash until I complete the 17 current projects I have in my "to do" basket. Well, at present, I have 6 projects underway (CCN Summer Bungalows, A Weary World Rejoices, Nicholas's stocking, LHN Winter Wonderland, JBW Christmas Tree, Scarecrow from an old magazine). The CCN project and JBW project are almost complete. I should have those done this week. I have also completed two other projects from the list and given them to my sister, Sharon as a PIF gift and an ornament exchange. I don't have pictures to share though. That leaves just 9 projects to go.


By the way, we went to the beach this past Monday and had a great time. If you are ever on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, consider catching the ferry to Ship Island. It was a fun trip and a beautiful beach.

I have been very busy...

The summer is just flying by. I am teaching two classes this summer, so that is taking up some of my time. The textbook is also eating up a lot of my free time. BUT, I have found time to work on some of my existing stash. Last weekend I went through all of my patterns and kits and discovered I had 17 projects that were either started or kitted. What an eye opener. I need to avoid the stitching store for a while. Since our budget is tighter in the summer I made a Summer resolution to not purchase any new patterns until I have completed these 17. (I still have lots of other patterns in addition to these, but they aren't kitted, so I don't feel as guilty about those.) Fortunately, most are pretty simple. I have actually completed several.


The first photo is of a silk gauze Christmas tree. I purchase the kit at Hobby Lobby when they were clearing out all of the stitching kits. Talk about tedious work. That is quarter next to the stitched piece! Glad I got this one out of the way before the eyes get any worse.


This is another CCN pattern (Summer Bungalows). I love here patterns. I'm not sure if I like it on this fabric as much as I thought I would, but it is still cute. Plan to finish this as a needlework case.

I forgot to take pictures of my other two finishes. I completed LK January Flip It last night. This will be finished as an ornament for my sister, Sharon. Also, I stitched the Silver Needle Witch Way kit for Sharon also. I am very late completing some PIFs and this is one of them.

As I finish these projects, I am posting the patterns on my wishlist page. If you see something you like, check out that page. The link is in the sidebar.

Have a great week.

Lots to share...

I haven't cross stitched much this week. I have been very tired, especially today. I don't know if it is the weather or if I have some type of bug, but I have been very lazy today. Anyway, instead of cross stitching, I have been sewing. I made a pair of pajama pants for my dad for Father's Day. He was very happy. Apparently, his old pajamas are beyond repair. That got me started on a sewing frenzy.





I finished my summer and fall stitching bags also. This is a project that Lisha and I signed up for at our local quilt shop. We learned to make these really nice charm totes. Well, if you know how to make one, why not make lots. I made two last year, a winter tote and a spring tote. I then made one for my mother for Christmas and my sister for her birthday. Well, I pulled out the supplies and finished my summer and winter totes.


Now, I can change with the seasons. Nicholas thinks I should have one for each day of the week. (Careful, boy. You shouldn't make those types of suggestions to a person with my type of personality.)



Finally, I finished Nicholas's rag quilt. Isn't it adorable? It was very easy. I have the material to make one for Patrick, so maybe I will work on that next month.

Hopefully, I will get more cross stitching done over the weekend. We are getting together at my younger sister's house this weekend to stitch and talk. I'll let you know how that goes...

Have a great weekend!

Two finishes this week...

I finished LK ABC Lessons this weekend. I think it is so pretty on this fabric and can't wait to have it framed. This was a very nice piece to stitch. It was easy enough to stitch while watching TV.



My other finish is O'Starry Night from Little by Little. Very easy pattern and very cute. It is stitched on Smoky Blue Lugana (28 ct) from Silkweaver. Isn't it perfect? This would make a very pretty ornament.

The past few days have been so busy that stitching time has been limited. Hopefully, once the next few tasks on the textbook are completed I can relax a little bit. Also, I have declared a ban on buying any new patterns or fabric during July. The stash is getting a bit outrageous. There are at least 3 kitted patterns in my "to do" pile that I can work on, not to mention all of those UFOs and WIPs. If I focus on some of these projects, maybe my savings balance will increase over the next month. Who wants to be my accountability partner? Lisha?