just popping in

Thought I would just pop in for a minute to say hi. I probably owe some emails and I'll get to it. As for getting around to visiting blogs - my reader count currently stands at 1000+. It might take me awhile to catch up.

Since I hate to do a post without a pic, here are a couple.


Hubby has been on a kick of trying different wines. Sometimes he lets me tag along to pick out something. How do you pick a wine? I look for the pretty blue bottles! Can you see what it says?


Sold! It actually was pretty good! I need to soak the label off so I can add it to my collection. I'm going to do another bottle tree in the back yard - hopefully soon!

Okay - back to reality. I'm so far behind, I think I'm ahead. Really.

I went to the annual 3 Stitches get-a-way over the weekend. This was our (the girlfriends and myself) 5th time to attend. (it was the 13th get-a-way for the shop) We had a great time. The weather was wonderful. We were even a bit chilly at times! Since we all know how quickly summer (and super hot temps) arrives in Texas, the cooler temps were welcome, even if it was a bit windy. We are still having nice weather today.

From the retreat I went to my parents for a couple of days. My mother had surgery yesterday and I didn't make it home until after 10:00pm last night. (and I got up at 2:44am yesterday!) I haven't even unpacked yet. I did drag out the old make-up bag since I needed to go to the grocery store and, well, we don't want to be scaring folks! I'll get to the unpacking in a bit and I'll try to get pics of the weekend up soon. It will be limited to pics of projects and purchases since I never seem to get around to taking people pictures while we are there. Just too much stitching and visiting going on to remember things like that! LOL. We all signed up to go again next year!

Hope you are having a great week!

A few flowers

Since we finished painting on Saturday, we decided to do some planting on Sunday.


I decided to go with geraniums in the front bed this year - we will see how they work out. They are white with a little pink on them. (should have taken a close-up pic. will try to do that later)


Found these ivy geraniums and decided to try them on the front porch this year. Ferns don't work - too much sun. I really like these so I'm hoping they work out.


There really is a little wire 'wheelbarrow' under that petunia!


I stuck with the tried and true (vincas) in the round beds. That, with seven bags of fresh mulch and the front yard is done for now.

I'm going to take a little break. Need to catch up on some stuff around here. Does your house to to pot when you take on projects? Mine sure does! I will try to catch up on reading some posts if I have time to get on the computer but I won't make another post until sometime next week.

Enjoy the rest of the week!

Way up top

So, how do you paint all the way up to the top of stairs? Especially when the stairs have a curve in them? After much thinking and discussion (like for over a year!) and trying, unsuccessfully, to rent something to help with the process, this is what we came up with.

Doesn't it look fun? No, I did not get up on the ladder.


but hubby did.


(before)
This corner has been much cussed and discussed


(after)
but I am happy to say it has finally been painted!


before - looking up


after- looking up


before - from the kitchen/breakfast area


after. So much better!

Now I can start thinking about maybe hanging something on those walls and since we own the concrete blocks and the ladder we will have them when I find just the right thing to hang.

We actually managed to get all the painting done on Saturday so we worked in the flowerbeds on Sunday. I'll show those pics in the next post.

Hope you had a great weekend!

Weekend plans

Stacked and ready.
What are your plans for the weekend?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Have a great day!

French Alphabet Sampler

I purchased this chart in 2005. Love it, but I don't think I have touched it since 2005. I pulled it back out last week after I finished Home of a Needleworker and I am going to try to work on it a little each week - maybe then it won't take me 3 hours to figure out where I am when I pick it up each time! :)



The design is 12 (full) pages and I've finished one and started on the second. I stopped the border at the edge of page one and the chart has no overlap so it took me a bit to figure out what I had done but I think I've got it now.

I am stitching with silk thread and my hands are so rough I have to be really careful not to pull the thread.

Anyway - after a dreary Monday (now I have 'Rainy days and Mondays' playing in my head) we have sunshine today! It was a bit on the cool side this morning but by the end of the week we will be having 80+ temps. I start getting cranky when it passes 80.

I think I hear laundry calling!

Have a great day.

A day late

Yesterday was an anniversary for baby boy and his bride. They have been married for 4 years. I should have posted this on Friday - or dragged my lazy self upstairs yesterday, but I didn't so here I am posting a Happy Anniversary wish a day late!
Jason and Ashley dated all through high school and got married while they were in college. I have tons of pictures but thought I would just share a few.


May 2004


Feb. 2005


April 2005 (senior prom)


May 2005 - High school graduation


Wedding day - 2007


December 2009 - Minnesota


Aug 2010 - the weekend before they moved to New York.

Happy Anniversary Jason and Ashley. Love you both and miss you every day!

Finally finished!

I finally finished Home of a Needleworker! I don't know why it took me so long to pick it back up - I didn't really have that much left to do. Oh, wait, I remember - I hate frogging over one! I have no idea how much of this thing I actually stitched twice. Everything from changing my mind about colors to the inability to count, but is finally finished! I have a white frame here but I'm not sure it will fit. I need to measure and see - if not I'll take it with me whenever I finally get around to taking Silent Sampler to pick out a frame. (no - I haven't done that. I really miss instant access to framing!)



On a totally un-related topic - I really hate super sticky price labels! I mean, I know they have to stick, but I also know they make them that will peel off without leaving sticky residue all over the product. Not so bad when it is a glass or plastic product but it is the pits when it is a paper product!

Have a great weekend. I'm off to see if I can get any more sticky off before I put this product in a gift bag.

A little bit of green

I wasn't sure if this hosta would come back or not but there is a little bit of green poking out of the dirt! Yeah! This is in a pot on the patio. (also looks like it could use a drink) I haven't touched the flowerbeds out front yet and have still not decided what I want to do about flower beds in the back. I miss the beds I had at the old house. :( Maybe this weekend we might at least think about doing something outside.

I'm 'this' close to finishing Home of a Needleworker - just the right half of the bottom border to go. Maybe I can get it finished tonight. (I had to take some out last night - I hate frogging over one!)

Found out that both baby boy and his bride will be in Texas for the summer! Even though they will still be several hours away (they are both working the Shakespeare Festival in Kilgore again this summer) and working every day we should at least be able to squeeze in a few visits - even if it is only to drive over and take them to dinner. At least it will be closer than New York for a couple of months. I know they are where they want to be, but man do I miss them!

I'm off to see what (if anything) I can actually accomplish this afternoon!

Talk about lazy

That is pretty much all you can say about my weekend! I spent the majority of it in my stitching chair. I worked on Home of a Needleworker (getting pretty close!)



and I did a little on my quilt. I can't say that my quilting stitches are looking any better yet. I've finished 3 (out of 20) blocks so far. It was kinda nice to have it to work on this weekend since it was a bit cooler than it has been the last couple of weeks.

The hubby has been after me to watch 'The Godfather' for as long as I can remember. He put it in Saturday afternoon and since I was sitting in the chair anyway I kinda half watched it. Can't say as I see what all the fuss is about. I guess it is a guy thing. I really don't have an opinion one way or the other, but at least I can say I've seen it now.

Since we were gone several days the past week and I was such a slug over the weekend I seem to be pretty far behind on most stuff. (okay - some of it I would be behind on even w/o being out of town) One of those things is blog reading. I've tried to catch up a bit by reading and not commenting but I still have nearly 600 posts to get through.

Last thing before I get back to reality - my friend Carolyn is having a giveaway over on her blog - stop by and give leave her a comment! Just One More Stitch.

Nothing new

I got nothing new so I pulled out a couple of pics from a few weeks back (before I started the cabinet re-do)


I made this quilt top (my first!) a couple of years ago and it was still packed in a box so I pulled it out and made a sandwich.


Then I had this really 'bright' idea to hand quilt it instead of machine quilting. Stop laughing. I find I rather enjoy the process but it looks like crap. My stitches are uneven on the front and on the back they seem to go every which-a-way. I've finished two blocks. I might eventually show a really, really, far away shot but I won't be showing any close-ups of the quilting!

I should be cleaning house. I'm not. The weather is perfect for working in the yard. I'm not. I'm thinking I might go quilt a little or I might stitch a little or I might just take a nap. Who knows.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Then and now

So, I'm not sure exactly how long ago this first picture was taken, but things haven't changed too much there until this week. I'm sure there is a closer picture of the bakers rack somewhere but I didn't take one right before moving it out and lazy me doesn't really want to look too hard right now. Anyway - this is what the breakfast room (area? not really a room - anyway) looked like with the bakers rack.


I had to move the two pictures hanging on that wall since the new cabinet is wider. The one on the left went to the kitchen (had to move something for that) and the one on the right went by the front door.



Not sure how things will turn out in the end, but I pulled a few things together to put in and on the 'new' cabinet. The plate is one that I picked up in PA back in September. It has been hanging out in a box until I decided what to do with it (and all the others I bought while there) The bunnies I made years ago and usually bring them out in the spring. I haven't put my Easter stuff out yet and these will likely move when that happens. (in fact, all this could move at that point) Hubby brought the vase for Valentines Day (along with real flowers) for now, I'm going with the faux. (since I already had them)

The taller pic in front of the mirror is the one I moved to hang the Country Kitchen Sampler in the kitchen. Haven't decided exactly where to hang it yet but it won't stay here. The Rise and Shine may stay, may not.


I put some cookbooks on the top shelf. Some stemware on the next two shelves and more cookbooks below that. The fruit bowl will eventually end up back on the breakfast table and on the bottom (that is partially covered by the bottom of the door) is more stemware. I decided not to put the divider back in behind the drop-down desk. I thought I would get more use out of the space if I used it for cookbooks. (I'm saving it though - might use it somewhere else eventually but I don't want to get rid of it in case I want to put it back in here at a later date) The basket holds all those 'church' and 'organization' type cookbooks that don't like to stand up straight. I have more in a kitchen cabinet - they are some I rarely use and are in a cabinet that I have to climb up on a ladder to get to so I'm leaving them there.

The white table is still to the right on the angled wall - I didn't step back and get a full shot today - creative cropping and such. :)

Well, sounds like doggie nap time is over - best go see what they are up to. Hope you are having a great week! Our weather has been wonderful the past few days!

Oh the joy. . .

of watching paint dry.

Almost finished with the cabinet. See that drop cloth behind the shelf supports? That would be my next project. :)