Happy New Year

Let me start with a New Year's video from my family and me!

And if that wasn't enough fun, here are a couple of photos to make your day!


When my dad passed away 14 years ago, we realized we had very few pics of him. Because he was always behind the camera rather than in front. And while we have many, many memories of him, sometimes you just want to remember by seeing a photo.
So I made a vow to never let that happen to my family. And to make sure that my grandsons would remember the fun they had with their great grandmother, Papa James and myself, along with everyone else.
One of the best gifts my DH got me a few years ago was a Flip Video. If you are not familiar with this check out "The Flip" on Google. It is a small video camera that does a nice job, can fit in your pocket and at the end of the day, simply plugs into your computer for a simple download.
I want to wish you and your families a VERY Happy New Year. I pray this next year brings you peace and joy and lots of stitching!
Thank you for being my online friends. Each of you are very precious to me!

Did you have a good Christmas?

Hope you did! I know I sure did!
I went to my daughter's house on Christmas Eve to share Christmas with them and brought my grandsons back with me for this week to celebrate New Year's Eve with them along with my husband and mother.
Here is a video of my grandsons on Christmas Eve:



My mom, James and I went in and got each one of the kids a big gift. We got my oldest, Trent, a Legos Harry Potter Mansion set and the youngest, Craig, a Big Foot the Monster animated toy.
Here are some before, during and after photos:



They really liked their gifts. We woke up at 7:30am to find the oldest in his room. He had completed 7 of the 10 levels for the Legos Mansion and was on the 3rd instruction book (out of 3!). We asked if he had slept and he assured us he did, but who knows how early he got up!
The Big Foot monster was enjoyed by all. If you haven't seen it, type in "Big Foot the Monster" on Google and watch the video. Then imagine that it is twice as funny because it is!
This year was particularly special to me. My daughter's family got a new house this year and she has her own living area (they live with her husband's family). She has a fireplace and lots of space to decorate.
I brought down ALL of my holiday stitching, from Christmas through Valentine's Day through Easter and on through the Fourth of July, Halloween and Thanksgiving. I also brought a framed sampler I had made for her in 2000 that I had been waiting to have her have in her own home.
You can see some of the stitching in the photos (the little bears and the stockings). She also received all of my stitched ornaments, some of which were made from friends that are no longer with us (and with whom my daughter grew up around).
It was quite fulfilling to pass along my stitching while I am still around to see her enjoy it.
I pray this next year brings all of you plenty of great needles, patterns, fabric and threads and that all little froggies that would get in the way of your stitching stay away.
I wish you happiness and peace and all the good things life has for you.
I thank you for your friendship and support. You all are the best!

Merry Christmas (and I am back!)

Let me start by saying thank you to Meari! Her little e-mail reminded me I have neglected by blogging friends. Not only have I not kept up to date on blogging I haven't kept up to date on reading your blogs. I promise to do better on both accounts.
Work has been really busy. I have taken on more responsibility and by the time I get off, I just want to lounge in the chair and not do much of anything. Not even stitching, so I have none to show you.
My husband and I did get away (despite hurdling some obstacles) to Austin to a comic book convention. Yes I said comic book convention. My DH collects them and we had planned the trip awhile back.
This was not my first convention with him, but was the best one yet. If you are into people watching, this is the place to people watch. People in costumes, old actors and actresses from television and movies. We met the original Batman and Robin (Adam West and Burt Ward). James had his pic taken with them both and also in the Batmobile. Ghostbusters were there also along with many others.
There was one guy who I think really thought he was Batman was there also. He had a better costume than the original. When he left, he got into a 1969 black Corvette with the Batman logo and all the bells and whistles on the car. Clearly he wasn't married because a wife would say "you spent how much on the costume and car?!!!"
It was really good to get away with my husband.
My grandsons are good and are coming here next week. I will pick them up Christmas Eve and bring them here on Christmas Day to stay a week with us.
I do have a funny story about my youngest, Craig. He had a solo (he is 6) for the Christmas musical. He was supposed to sing the first part of Rudolph and then back off the microphone (and he doesn't need a microphone anyway he is so loud). But he sang and never left the mic. He was dressed in a tux and a top hat. His gestures and singing had the audience in tears. But the best part was the end.
After he finished singing, when the rest of the kids were leaving the stage, he bowed and said "thank you. I will be performing all week. Be sure to try the buffet".
What a hoot!
You might remember (or not it was so long ago) my last post that I had stitched something for a fellow staff member who was expecting a baby. Well she had that sweet baby girl last Sunday. So we have a new addition to our office!
We have kept pretty much low key this holiday. In fact we have already exchanged our gifts to each other. I got a mini notepad from James and James got a digital drawing pad from me. Mom got her favorite button down nightgowns from us and a new television from my sister & her family.
It's hard to keep presents from each other when they come in via Fedex, UPS, etc. I love online ordering. And we don't have a tree to put them under anyway.
James and I did manage to go to the company Christmas party last Sunday. Here is a picture of us:

And with this picture, I will leave you with a wish and a promise. A wish for you to have a very Merry Christmas and a promise that I will keep up with you all more in the coming year. You all are such blessings to me!

First baby gift

I have started stitching baby gifts for my office friend who is having a little girl around Christmas.
This is a little DMC finished girl bear doll that I found on Ebay. I remember when DMC made these and I wish they still made them. I have a set of Christmas bears that are really cute.
The only problem I had is that you just stitch the bib part of it and it was 18 count. I haven't stitched on 18 count in a very long time and it was challenging to me.
Here is a pic of the finished bear:

This is just one several projects I am going to be working on. I forgot how much fun it is to stitch for a baby again!

And the winner is...

KAY!
But alas, I don't have an email for you! So if you would shoot me an email at dwooleybooger@yahoo.com, then I can have 123stitch send you your prize!
Thanks for all the nice compliments of my pictures. The butterflies must have been on their way south. Monday morning we had record lows and I haven't seen a handful of the lovely beauties since Sunday. Glad I got the pictures when I could. They will have to last me through the winter until next spring!

Butterflies and a blogversary!

I didn't stitch this weekend, but rather spent it outside in perfect weather, watching butterflies! Our local arboretum has a butterfly garden and I bet there were 30 of them on one bush alone. I saw so many different colored ones and different sizes. Sometimes they would just take flight together and flutter around. Breathtaking!
Here are some pictures:





I also discovered that on October 6 is my 2nd blogversary! Wow! How time flies by when you are having fun.
I have so enjoyed the online friendships I have formed from this blog and my other, Stitching for a Cure . You all have been a blessing to me.
To celebrate, I am giving away a $20 gift certificate to my favorite ONS, 123 stitch!
You don't have to jump through any hoops to win. Simply post a message on this post and give me a way to contact you if you win! I will be drawing on the morning of Oct. 7th.
Good luck to all and thank you for two great years!

Another finish

I finished this little piece off this weekend. It is the last Stitching For a Cure project I will do for 2010. I still have to do the binding around the piece and put a bow on it, but the stitching is done.
Again I changed the fabric and the colors for the freebie, C is for Cure from Just Cross Stitch Magazine by Lizzie Kate.
If the fabric and colors look familiar, they should be. I used the same fabric and threads on Lizzie Kate's Chicks Rule.
I just loved the colors and thought they were very appropriate for Relay For Life.
I can now focus on some stitching "just for fun". We have a new recruiter in our office and she is expecting a baby girl at Christmas. I have been really wanting to do some stitching, esp. for a baby girl. And since I think my daughter is through giving me grandchildren, harassing the office staff to have babies has become my new hobby.
I found the cutest patterns to stitch and am going to do a little pair of white lace shoes, a hooded towel, a diaper cover (so cute!) and a little sign that says "Shh! Baby's Sleeping". I really hope since she is new and doesn't know me as well as the others do that she won't think I am a cross stitching stalker!
On another front, the cooler weather (if you can call 94 degrees cooler!) has made my garden go back into full bloom. I have a BUNCH of grape tomatoes and a couple of larger tomatoes on the vine, the peppers (yellow banana and green) are growing like crazy, my basil is just taking off again, the strawberries are in bloom and I have the tiniest little mint leaf starting. And oh yeah, I have this giant "Jack and the beanstalk" bean plant that is taking over everything. It has blooms all over it and I hope it produces some beans.
I even sat outside this morning with my DH and had our coffee in our lawn chairs without dying from a heat stroke. It is so nice. Rain is on it's way tonight and will cool off things even further.
Hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

Finally stitching

I am finally stitching in my new chair. And as I anticipated, it is a great stitching chair!
Just Cross Stitch Magazine has a freebie pattern by Lizzie Kate called C is for Cure. I stitched it up on Strawberry Milkshake lugana by Silkweaver and changed the colors. I think it is really cute!

I am so looking forward to fall and cooler weather so I can stitch outside again. It has been almost unbearable here. We had 23 days of over 100 degree temps. It just makes you miserable when it is that hot for that long.
We have a new employee in our office that is expecting a little girl around Christmas. I have been waiting to stitch for a baby for so long! I could hardly wait to pull out the baby stitching stuff I have socked away. I hope I don't overwhelm her! Seriously though I have a little cotton baby blanket with 6 1/2 inch by 6 1/2 inch squares in each corner. I bought it for a really good price and it has been just waiting for me to pull it out and stitch on it.
Hope you all are having a good start to the school year and looking forward to the fall season ahead of us!

Just had to share

Just had to share these two new pictures of my grandsons and daughter. Aren't they just cute as a bug?



Hope everyone is staying cool (HA! If you live where I am, the coolest it gets is 80 degrees and that is at 5am). But think cool thoughts and soon it will be fall.
I finished Time For God and took it to the framers. It is going to the family I spoke about earlier that lost a child and their home to fire. I think they will love it. I will post a pic when I get it back.

What's wrong with this picture? (and also the winner(S) announced!)

My grandsons, daughter and son in law came to visit this past weekend. Here are some pictures:



These pictures were taken at a local amusement park we have here. I took my daughter there many times from just less than age 1 until she refused to go anymore. In fact, they have some little boats that go around in a circle. When she was a baby I put her in the boat in the back and there were two side by side steering wheels. She had never stood up before so I felt safe. Imagine my surprise, when the boats were going around, she grabbed both steering wheels and pulled herself up for the first time. Scared me to death!
It was fun seeing my GRANDSON enjoy this park now. It is different when you are a grandparent.
They have a train that goes completely around the 1 block park. My grandson and daughter really enjoyed themselves on it.
What is wrong with the picture you might ask?
Well I actually have TWO grandsons. At least I think I do. I barely saw the 8 year old this weekend. When he was in the house he was in my spare room watching TV or on my husband's PS3. But he mostly wasn't in the house. My son in law and husband took him to a video gaming place called Lansharx here. He loves going there with "the guys".
What happened to my little baby? The one that I held and rocked and who later sat on the arm of my chair and told me everything about his life? Eight must be the magic age when they turn away from "little" boy stuff and go on to "big" boy stuff. Granted, when he was here he did tell me a number of times he loved being at my house and he loved me! So that is good.
Right before he left, I made him stand still to take a picture so I could prove he was really here.

While my daughter was here, we decided to make it a "girly" weekend along with the visit from the boys. Friday we got our hair cut and then that night we colored each other's hair. My daughter went a strawberry blond color and it is very pretty. I did my usually reddish brown color but this time I tried something daring! I put a frosting cap on and highlighted my hair. It turned out great. Not very light highlights, just real subtle caramel colors. Next time I will leave the bleach on for a little while longer.
Then on Saturday we went to a nail spa and got "the works". We both got pedicures with a mask, hot wax and hot stones. Then I got a manicure and she got solar nails. Very, very nice.
We then went shopping and I found a couple of blouses that I liked (you know I have lost 39 pounds now! So new blouses were in order!) and I bought a new pair of sandals. She found some sandals and a lot of jewelry!
We had lunch with friends. One of my former co-workers was in town and so we had lunch with her and also my manager from work. We went to Panera Bread and had a blast. Here are a couple of pics:


After we went to the park that evening we topped the day off with facials. So now I feel very pampered!
And now for the moment you all have been waiting for! My grandson chose a name at random and the winner for the LK Scissor kit is: DEBRA! I will send you an e-mail to get your mailing address.
BUT WAIT! I decided it was so hot we needed some sunglasses to keep the sun out of our eyes. And to keep us focused on cooler weather, we need Mrs. Bones to remind us Halloween is on it's way. So we did another drawing for these Mill Hill kits:


The winner for these two kits is: CAROLYN!
And, I decided I would give away the pattern for Time For God (it is gently used) and that goes to JANET of Cross Stitch Bibs!
I will shoot an e-mail to all the winners asking for mailing addresses! Congratulations to all the winners!

Time For God (oh and a giveaway also!)

I am pleased to announce I am now through with my pity party. And I am stitching again.
Many of you will remember I had been stitching on Time for God by LK. I only lacked a little on it, but I lost my stitching mojo and hadn't worked on it for awhile. Well, I worked on it today and I am almost through. All I need to finish it is the little border at the bottom.
Here is a pic of it:

This has been a very spiritual piece for me. It seemed like during each verse I was stitching, something in my life was occurring that related to that. Such as when I lost my little dog, Alex I was working on the verse "Hard times, Trust God".
And while I was stitching on it, I kept thinking this piece was meant for someone special, but I didn't know who. I debated on friends, on the minister that had married James and I, and on my daughter. And while I know all would appreciate it, I just kept thinking it was meant for someone else.
Last week God spoke to me. There was a family in our area that had a house explosion. They lost their 18 month old son and the father was seriously burned rescuing his sons. Their 3 year old son was also burned in the fire. And the house, well, it was bad. Really bad.
This family lives in Gatesville, the little town that I worked on one of my Relays with. A little town I have fallen in love with.
And while I don't know this family, I have come to know about their lives because we have done a number of blood drives for. Here is a video clip of one of the stories about them.
Gatesville Family
I now know this piece is meant for them. I plan on finishing it and then giving it to the family in the next few weeks. I know it will mean as much to them as it has to me while I have worked on it.
And also last week, I couldn't help but read on many of your blogs that this heat is taking it's toll on you. So I thought it was time for me to do another giveaway.
Since generally Christmastime means cold weather, I decided it would be a Christmas related giveaway.
I am giving this Christmas tree shaped scissor holder to one of you who leave a message on this post. I will draw a name from all the entries on July 31st. Christmas in July! Here is a picture of the kit. By the way, it is a limited edition Lizzie Kate kit that has the bells and stuff with it. All you have to do is provide a couple of strands of DMC. And it could easily be made into an ornament.

So just leave a message with a way for me to contact you (your blog name or email addy) and maybe you will win a little cool in the summer!
PS. Thanks to all of you for your support during my pity party! It is good to see I have friends in the good times and the bad!

A change

Well, since it is hotter than Hades here in Texas now, I decided my spring background for my blog was a little outdated.
So I searched and I thought this one screamed my name. I wish I had the money to redecorate my house the way I redecorate my blogs. Oh well...
Hotlips had her last bloom yesterday and I meant to get a picture of it, but messed around until it was too late. Now last year she surprised me and popped out more blooms after her initial stalks. We shall see what her highness decides to do this year.
I have been very bored at home. Not bored enough to stitch or clean (LOL) but bored none the less. Since it was raining so much the past few weeks and now has been so hot, I can't sit on my patio and enjoy my back yard. And for the most part, my zucchini have bit the dust and the tomatoes, well let's just say I am highly disappointed. I still have blooms but no tomatoes. And don't even get me talking about the peppers. But we do still have cucumbers.
I think part of the reason I am so bored is that I am still trying to find my way through this "less stress" lifestyle. When I had 3 Relays going at once it was almost like a high feeling. And now, I have to watch how much I do outside of work. My job is extremely stressful. Fun, but stressful. And the roller coaster of high blood pressure, normal blood pressure, high blood pressure, normal blood pressure is driving me crazy.
My dear, sweet husband got me a new chair just after I got out of the hospital. This is the absolute best chair. It is wide enough for me, low enough to the ground that my rear end can sit all the way back in the chair and my feet still be on the ground, it reclines, it rocks, it reclines and rocks, it goes all the way back, almost like laying down and the fabric is fake leather so it doesn't get hot or stick to me.
I have sat in the chair, slept in the chair, rocked in the chair but not stitched in the chair. I did get my stitching out and found that the chair is absolutely fabulous to stitch in, but alas I still did no real stitching.
So what is up with me? I should be enjoying this freedom of all this extra time, but no. I. Am. Not.
My daughter and grand kids are coming on the 30th of this month so I can tell you I will be busy then. And most likely, no most definitely, not bored!
So how is your summer going? Lots of stitching, cold drinks and air conditioning? Or are you too busy with kids and family to stitch?
Definitely check back here to see if I get out of my slump and see new pics of the family. I am sure there will be some!

Hotlips Returns!

This photo was taken too close up, so it is a little blurred. But I couldn't wait to share that Hotlips has returned for her 3rd year. And is she going strong. I didn't have my camera available to catch her first three blooms this year, so this is her fourth. And she has around 5 more ready to pop out and about 10 more just kind of hanging around.
The blooms only last a day. I love opening my back door to leave to go to work and be greeted by one of her beautiful blooms. Makes the summer heat almost worth it.
So enjoy her while you can.

Only 6 more months!

For those of you who are struggling with the heat like we are in Texas I have really good news for you! GUESS WHAT I JUST FIGURED OUT!!!




It's Just 6 More Months Until Christmas!
So Chill Out Baby! Frosty is on his way!

We did it. We have a new baby!

James & I have a new baby. But I must warn you before you go any farther. The outcome of this new little one is not good. She will be sliced and cooked until tender.
Oh no! Tell me it ain't so! But it is.
Because our new baby is a 10 inch zucchini squash! The first real produce from our garden. You remember the garden, don't you? The one James sweated and worked on about a zillion years ago?
A funny thing happened today when I was checking out said garden. We have had a number of blooms on the squash, the cucumbers, the tomatoes and the peppers. We even had a cantelope vine come up from last year that has blooms. And we have had one tomato pop out that has been green for since Memorial Day. But nothing else.
So I am looking at the squash plants for a sign of a yellow squash and I see this green baseball bat thing at the front of the garden. I check it out and it is a HUGE zucchini squash. That solves the question of whether we planted zucchini or yellow squash!
I brought it in and showed James. Photographed it and put it on Facebook. Admired it. James looked for more siblings, but alas there were none.
Here is our beautiful zucchini (before I slice and cook it!)

As a side note, for those of you who have read this blog for awhile now, Hotlips is getting ready to make her first appearance this year. This beautiful reddish orange daylilly is in her 3rd blooming year. There are 3 shoots from the first pot and each have 2 or 3 blooms on them. I will post her debut later when she erupts in all her glory!
Now where is that butcher knife?

A little scare

On Friday morning I had a little scare. Well, actually it was a great big scare.
I woke up at 4:00am to chest pains. They were in my left shoulder, up my jaw and esp. in the middle of my back. My pulse seemed to race and I was nauseated.
I waited until 7, took a shower and then called my sister, my manager, my husband and then an ambulance. I didn't start crying until I called 911. I know, waiting 3 hours to call seems crazy and it was, but I kept thinking the signs would go away.
When I got into the ambulance my blood pressure was 200/108. Normally I am in the 140/78 range. 200/108 for those of you who don't know is stroke level.
They gave me some nitroglycerin and some aspirin. When I arrived at the hospital, they ran blood work, gave me lots more nitro and then did a CAT scan. It took about 5 hours to get my blood pressure down.
All the tests came back looking ok, but they kept me overnight. My cardiac enzymes were ok through the night.
My primary care doc said they have seen 300 cases since Dec. of a virus (not contagious, environmental) that sort of mimics a heart attack. Chest pains, nausea, light headedness, are all signs of the virus, along with extreme tiredness. He thinks this may be what I have.
But just in case he has me seeing a cardiologist. This all happened on a weekend of course and they don't do extensive testing on weekends.
I have to have nuclear stress test done. I have had one in the past and said I WOULD NEVER do that again. But never say never, because I have now scared myself into agreeing to have one.
Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. This is a very scary time for my family and I.
Oh and by the way, just after I called the ambulance, I put a little stitching project in a bag I took with me. You have to have your priorities in line!
New note: I have an appointment for the stress test on Wednesday, June 16th with a visit to the cardiologist on June 21st.
Since I last posted I had another episode, but not as bad. I went to my doctor to find my blood pressure was up to 208/120. They got it down before I left the office and put me on a blood pressure medicine. He is not sure why all of a sudden my b/p has taken to being this high, but for now I am feeling much, much better. It is amazing what a little pill can do for you.
I want to thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. It is what gets me through this rough patch in my life!

Happy 70th Birthday to my Mom & Happy 5th Anniversary to my husband James

For those of you who don't know, I got married on my Mom's birthday. So on May 28 we have two celebrations in our house!
First off, tomorrow is my sweet Mom's 70th birthday! She is a fiesty 70 year old if I do say so myself. I hope she has the best birthday yet!
Her grand daughter Jennifer and more importantly, her two great grandsons, Trent and Craig are coming to see her this weekend to wish her a happy birthday. She will enjoy that, along with the turkey and dressing I am making on Sunday for Memorial Day (yes turkey and dressing for Memorial Day. Go figure!).
My sister Brenda and my Mom's other grand daughters, Sabrina and Sierra will be over to wish Mom a happy birthday I am sure. Sabrina just finished another year of college and Sierra starts high school this next year. And my sister is almost finished getting her degree and is an honor student. My mom is so proud of them all!
And I made cupcakes for a bake sale, but left her a few on the side.
Second off, it is my 5th anniversary with my hunk of burning love husband, James. I waited 44 years to get married. I was waiting on James.
He is the love of my life, the one I waited all my life for, the man of my dreams. I am spending the best years with him. He holds my heart in his heart.
Thank you James for 5 wonderful years.
So I hope you all have a great Memorial Day weekend. I know I will!

Happy Mothers Day to all!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you out there!
Today we celebrated Mother's Day by James and I taking my mother and his mother out to lunch. It was quite an expedition. We started out going to Golden Corral at 11:00 and when the cars wrapped around the block we knew we weren't going there. Then we went to Cheddars, same song, different verse and ended up at Applebee's.
We had great food, wonderful drinks (I had 2 pomegranate martinis with the last one being simply colored vodka, but really good!) and lots of fun.
I know my mom didn't stop laughing (and she only had rootbeer!) the entire time she was there.
Here are the pictures from the day:
James and his mom, Judy

My Mom, Jan and me

James and I

And finally all of us

I hope all of you have a wonderful rest of your weekend and a glorious week!

A new ring!

Well, the bad news is, I never found my wedding ring. Makes me sick, but we can't find it.
Good news is, my husband bought me a new wedding ring. We found the perfect one from James Avery. It is a silver heart shaped love knot.
This is significant to me for one, the love knot means our love will always be. And James has always told me "you are my heart". That is why the heart shape is important.
Here is a picture of it. Please ignore my un-manicured hands!

I love my sweet, forgiving husband James with whom I have been married to for 5 years on May 28th!

A question

I am interested in this scroll frame stand.
I started working on Warm Water Wash. Actually, I put the fabric on the scroll frame and put exactly 6 stitches in it until I realized that my holding a 24 inch scroll frame and stitching wasn't going to work.
So I started looking at scroll frame stands. And I like the look of this one the best. Now I need your help.
Have any of you used this frame stand? If so, do you like it? And I need to hear from my "big" girl friends on this also.
My biggest question is am I going to be able to position this in a way that I can stitch and my stomach doesn't get in the way. There, I put it in words.
I know I am not the only one out there that has this issue. And until I can lose more weight, I still want to stitch!
I would love to be able to take it outside with me when I stitch in my new chair as well as in my living room chair.
So, how about it friends? Have you used this and if so what do you think?

The Garden

Have I told you all how wonderful my husband James is? Well, let me tell you again.
Today he worked six hours in the sun putting in a small garden for me. He had to rototill the rows, hoe up the grass, bricks, rocks, etc, put in some top soil, plant the plants and then he watered everything down. And in the famous words of my mother (if you knew her you would understand) "I Supervised!".
I am sunburned as red as a tomato. But it was so wonderful to see it taking place.
The pics I am about to show you doesn't do it justice. We have a little scrap of a back yard, but he made the most of it. We have red, yellow and hot banana peppers:

Broccoli, zucchini, cucumbers, grape tomatoes and regular tomatoes and for Craig, carrots:


My daughter gave me a topsy-turvy for Christmas and we planted a grape tomato plant in it:

We moved my Mother's peach colored roses to the other side of the yard with the other rose bushes. And with the wagon of petunias & snapdragons it is quite colorful!

I also have strawberries, mint, lemon thyme, more petunias and of course, hot lips (which isn't blooming yet):

I know everything looks pretty rough right now, but soon I will have a garden full of colorful, fresh vegetables! I can't wait!
James, I love you so much and thank you so much for doing all this for me!

Some stitching, some flowers and a new addition (very long post)

I know it has been awhile since I posted anything here. Truth is, I went through a grieving period and a period of depression.
I had to put my sweet little dog to sleep Wednesday a week ago. She was 15 and had gotten very sick. It was probably the hardest thing I ever had to deal with, short of my father's death 14 years ago.
Alex the puppy was about 2 or 3 when she came to live with me. Her previous owner had treated her like a queen before his death and when she came to live with me, she made it clear she would accept nothing less. She ruled the house and I loved her dearly.
I miss her more than words can say.
I had not felt much like stitching until today. I finished a verse in my "Time For God" by LK. I think it is appropriate that the verse is "Hard Times, Trust God" for this has been a very hard time. Here is a pic:

I only have one more verse to do and then I will be finished. I haven't decided who will get this piece. My husband and my 5th anniversary will be in May and I am really thinking of giving it to the Pastor that married us. He is a dear family friend. He took me to summer camp when I was a teen, presided over my father's and my grandmother's funeral and then married James and I.
While I have really loved doing this piece, I want to do something a little more colorful before I dive into LK "ABC's of Aging Artfully". Those shades are muted much like these are and I have the need for color.
Here is my next piece. It is a Raise the Roof Design called "Warm Water Wash". It is a wide piece and I am going to have to get some 20" scroll rods to accommodate the design as well as the extra fabric to frame with.
I purchased this on E-Bay and it came with threads, buttons and the patterns and was half the cost of what it was on most ONS. I really love patterns that come with the threads and everything so all I have to do is pick my fabric. Especially when they are GAST or WDW.
Here is a pic of the new project:

This spring has been very good for my flowers. A combination of cold weather to kill the bugs and lots of rain has brought out the best in my roses. My pink rose bush is fuller than full and my yellow rose bush is doing better than ever.
My dear husband, during my grief, helped me plant some petunias and snapdragons in my wagon. Our plan was to rototill the back yard (the grass is a bunch of weeds anyway) and plant a garden. But last weekend all the rototiller had been rented out and this weekend it has rained, rained, rained. So on to next weekend for the garden.
But my husband did purchase this wonderful 2 chair set with an umbrella in celebration of my 20 pound loss with WW. I have now lost 23.4 pounds (I didn't weigh this week yet). I love this set. I can take it with me to Relays and the umbrella will keep the sun out of my eyes when I sit and enjoy my garden.
Here are some pics of my flowers and my new chairs:





And we seem to have a new addition to the neighborhood. My husband has been telling me he has seen a bunny in our yard, as well as around the neighborhood in the early morning hours. And while we sat in our yard Friday morning, he appeared in the area between my house and the neighbors. My husband snapped a photo:

What I have now seen (but don't have a pic of) is that there are at least two bunnies and from the kissing they were doing, I suspect it won't be long until we have more! They are cottontails and when I told my youngest grandson that I thought the Easter bunny forgot to go back home, he told me that he had seen the Easter bunny and he talks. So I needed to talk to this bunny and if he talks back, it is the Easter bunny.
Here bunny, bunny...

Happy Easter and an update on Time For God

Happy Easter to you all!
I worked some more on Time For God by LK. I have finished another verse. It is the "Quiet Times, Worship God" verse. I thought this was appropriate given that this is Good Friday. I have spent a great deal of my stitching time reflecting on my worship time.
I can't tell you how much I enjoy working on this piece. I think it is because while I am working, I am quietly spending time with God. It is well with my soul when I work on this piece.
I hope all of you have a wonderful and safe Easter weekend. Thank you for reading my blog and sharing your thoughts with me.