Oh Christmas tree...

It is hotter than Hades here in Texas. Today it was a mere 101 degrees, with a heat index (whatever that is) of 106 degrees. Too hot to go out, too hot to do anything but complain about the heat.
But here I am in my air conditioned house (thanks again Mom & Brenda for fixing it). And I am in my favorite Christmas t-shirt. Yes t-shirt. Here in Texas you can wear a short sleeve t-shirt with penguins and snow flakes and Christmas wreaths on it at Christmas time because we only have one day of winter and that is on January 26th or February 2nd depending on when I have scheduled a pedicure that I have to wear sandals to.
You may also ask why I would be wearing a Christmas shirt in July. Two reasons. One is that the thought of cooler weather makes me think of Christmas and the second is that this is Saturday, the day before laundry day and this is what I have to wear around the house. Really, it is just a comfortable shirt that I enjoy wearing around my house.
But back to Christmas. It dawned on me that this is August. A week into August, nearly half the month has passed. Soon it will be September, then October, then November and THEN! December! And Christmas will be here.
Now actually my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. It is the start of the "holiday" season and before I get tired of Jingle Bells and a thousand decorated trees. It is a time to reflect on family and giving thanks for what God has given us. Cooler weather is here and there is a Christian group that has a children's festival every year the weekend of Thanksgiving that I love to go to.
So for all of you that are going through the dog days of summer here is a thought:
THERE ARE ONLY 10 MORE PAYDAYS (if you get paid every 2 weeks like me)UNTIL CHRISTMAS!
Have a good weekend. As for me, where is that fan???

New hair

I told you that the gray streak would be disappearing from the middle of my head. And yesterday it did. Then today my daughter went blond!
So here is a picture of my daughter, Jen and I with our new hair!

This has been a fun week! The boys went to VBS each morning and Jen and I hung out. Then in the afternoons we went out and about, bowling, swimming, movies, all sorts of things!
Tonight is the VBS carnival and then tomorrow they will all be gone. Whew! I will be ready for another vacation to recoup from this vacation!
Just kidding. I will miss the little boogers until their next trip here.

Having fun with family

I started my vacation at 12:01pm on Friday. My mom went to a Mary Kay party with her hairdressers and my husband was out on the road on Friday night so I had the house all to myself for a couple of hours. First time in I don't know how long!
Then my dd and her husband (and of course my 2 grandsons) arrived at 10:00pm last night. Let the partying begin! We all got to bed around 1:00am and then were up at 7:00am to go to Austin to a Pizza Park.
This place is about one and a half hours from the house. We loaded up two cars with my mom, my dd & her husband, my grandsons, my husband and myself and off we went. The park has just about everything you want to do and more from putt putt, to go carts, to bumper boats and lazor tag and video games.
Here is a pic of the entire family before all the activities:

Now the gray streak that is going down the middle of my head will be going away this week.
My grandsons and DD are here for a week. My DH is also off most of the week. Our plans include the boys going to VBS every morning, and then all of us going to the movies, bowling, the spray park and then those that are brave enough, going on the slip and slide at the house in the evenings.
I don't think I will get much stitching in...

The Toy Society

I am a member of The Toy Society amongst other things. I say I am a member. I just did my first toy drop yesterday.
If you are not familiar with The Toy Society, here is the link: The Toy Society
Basically you make a toy and then place it out somewhere that someone will pick it up (hopefully a child that will fall in love with it!).
I did a hankie baby. Some of you might remember me asking for a pattern for hankie babies. Well after searching and not being able to make one from the directions, I purchased one on Etsy and then took it apart and made my own.


You place the toy in a ziploc bag with a note from TTS that explains everything along with a tag on the outside of the bag that says "Take me home. I'm Yours".
Then you "drop" the toy off somewhere and pray that someone picks it up.
Mine was picked up within the hour. I had a "spy" watching out for me.
Hopefully the person that picks it up will then send an e-mail to the Society (directions are in the bag) and I will know who got it.
Let me tell you something. This was about the most fun I have had in a lot of years. It was like being a secret Santa in July. My heart was beating and all day I wondered who picked up my toy.
To see what I dropped, go to the blog. It is about the second or third one down.
If you are a crafter, I encourage you to try this. It will make you smile and that my friends is a good thing!

Update on HOT LIPS!

Well, bless my soul, Hot Lips isn't gone for the summer but rather took a short vacation. I came home today to find a shoot from one pot that has about 5 blooms on it (although still in the beginning stages) and the other pot has a shoot that has a few blooms on it (I can't tell how many yet).
This is such a surprise because last year once the initial blooms died, there were no others!
I will keep you updated when they blossom!

Goodbye Hot Lips

It is a sad time at the Wooley-Karl house. Hot Lips is gone for another year. She gave me so much joy this year. This was the second year she resided at my house. Last year, there was just one of her, with 3 little offspring.
But this year she divided into two and gave off 21 beautiful offspring.
Who or what is Hot Lips? Why she is the most beautiful day lily you have ever seen! Or in this case, day lilies! Here is she is, on the last day of the season:

I purchased Hot Lips last year and she gave me 3 blooms. But she got so large I divided her into 2 plants and held my breath. I had never raised a day lily so I didn't know what to expect. I kept her in two pots and then about a month ago she sprang to life, giving me a new, bright orange open blossom just about everyday. Sometimes 3 or 4 a day. But day lilies do not last long. I would come out in the morning and there would be a bloom. But by the next morning it would be withered away. I think Hot Lips just was so hot she exploded each day!
This year, I think she will have one pot that will have to be divided, so next year I will hopefully have more blooms.
Goodbye sweet Hot Lips until 2010. See you next year!

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July to all! And to all those who are keeping us safe this 4th of July and all their families, THANK YOU!
Please stay safe this holiday. I had a minor accident yesterday while with friends. We were hit from behind and all of us were jarred up quite a bit.
It was due to simply not paying attention. The young woman had a dog with her, talking with her friend that was with her and had her leg propped up on the side of the door.
Throughout the day yesterday and today I have observed many people swerving in their lanes, one even going up on the curb. It was most likely not due to drunk driving, but rather texting and talking on the cell phone and not paying attention.
And because of silly behavior like this and because we know there will be fools out drinking and driving and because of the sheer volume of traffic on the road this holiday weekend, there will more accidents on the road, some quite severe.
During this season, there is a greater need for blood. And because people are out of their routines and because school is out, there is less blood available.
So, if you can donate blood, please do so now. Donate and donate often. You can make a REAL DIFFERENCE!

Got new stash

I received this package of goodies from my friend Tara in one of my Yahoo groups! It has my favorite 28 count fabric, 4 fat quarters of fabric and several charms, including some cute angels and some ribbons to use on my SFAC project.
I can't thank Tara enough for her generous exchange package. I hope she likes the one I have sent as well!

A Vacation

My grandsons and daughter are coming to visit me the end of the month. My husband James is also going to be off for the week with me so we have lots of fun planned.
But one of the best things we are going to do just involves my husband, myself and some wild women!
Now before you get any kinky ideas, we are going to see Roller Derby in Austin! Check out this site: http://www.txrd.com
I have been a huge Roller Derby fan since the 1960's when my parents, sister and I would watch them on TV on Saturday nights. Then A&E did a reality show about the Texas Roller Derby girls. Oh my! My favorite team is the Holy Rollers. With names like Miss Conduct & Punky Bruiser, who can go wrong?
My daughter is going to stay home that evening with my mom so we can go down the road to Austin to see them. It is like a dream come true! Ok, to some it might be a nightmare! But I CAN'T WAIT!

Is it really almost July?

I cannot believe it is almost July and I cannot believe I haven't posted since May 30th. Time has just gotten away from me.Now, on to the stitching world. Several weeks ago I participated in an embellishment exchange with my Yahoo group. This is what I got from Lizzy.

There are some great eyelets that I can use with my Crop-a-dile and some purple ribbon. Then there are these beautiful silver, lacy looking butterfly charms that I can't wait to put to use. Thanks again!
I am also participating in Rene's hardanger online class. Here is the fabric, threads and beads I chose:

The fabric is 28 count and is called Waterlilly. In case you can't see it, the color is this really pretty light green. The threads and beads are ecru. I can't wait to see how it all turns out!
Well hopefully in the next weeks I will work out my issues. In the meantime, keep stitching!

Now what?

I just started this candle wrap for my SIL's unity candle. Her wedding colors were burgundy and silver.
I called her to chat and to let her know I was working on the wrap. Imagine my surprise when she told me she was in the process of packing to move out. Her fiance had told her this morning that "he didn't want to get married anymore". Her wedding date was June 27th.
What could I say? She, like me, had waited a long time to find the right person. She thought she had found her soul mate, but it was not to be.
So now my question is: NOW WHAT? Now what do I do with this piece of needlework. Maroon (burgandy, actually) and silver are not the most popular colors.
I received the pattern from my friend Sandy who had made a couple of needleroll ornaments for my stitching for a cure project.
Since burgandy is the color for hemangiomas, a type of non-malignant cancer, I highly suspect (that is a phrase my grandmother used all the time. I will have to tell you more about her later) that I am going to make this into a needleroll ornament also.
I have already stitched the biggest part of the reverse double backstitch. It also has some herringbone stitches and your choice of a Rhodes heart or butterfly, along with some beadwork for flowers.
In the center where I was going to put their names, Sandy put the word cure on one and the word hope on the other. I think I will do the same.
This linen band will work nicely for a needleroll I think.
But I am truly sorry it is not going to be used for the purpose it was started for. I had dreams of them celebrating their 10th anniversary by lighting the candle.
I pray God has something even more special in line for my SIL.

Lions, and tigers and bears, oh my!

We have had so much fun this weekend. First of all we went to the zoo here, which was so lovely. The animals were quite playful. The pictures do not do them justice! For instance, what you can't see in the bear picture is that we were just a pane of glass away from touching that bear's nose. He was in the water, eating an apple! And the tiger was pacing.

This elephant was showing off for us. She would raise her trunk and flair her ears for all the photographers wanting to photograph her.

This baby bison was born just 3 hours before we photographed her. The umbilical cord and placenta were still attached to the mom. She stood up on her wobbly legs and tried to nurse, then had to lay down.
And finally, I told my husband I wanted to see a waterfall before I left this earth. While I may not see one in nature, this zoo had 4 of them and they were absolutely beautiful.
Here is a picture of my two grandkids and me in front of one of them.

We have had a wonderful weekend. Saturday we went bowling. The entire family, DD, DH, SIL and of course the grandkids. It was so much fun. I taught my grandson to "shake his tail feathers" when he threw the ball for good luck. That little bony rear end of his could really move!

And my daughter was amazed how great my grandkids could bowl!

One of the best things we did was to take my mom out with the whole family to our favorite hamburger joint. We wanted to take her to watch us bowl, but it started raining and she got soaked so she had to go home and we had to go without her.
Here is a picture of her with my daughter.

All in all it was the perfect weekend. Just perfect!

Little things

Little things mean so much. Like a dandelion picked from a field by your grandson for you.
My dear husband James did one of these little things this weekend.
The steering wheel cover on the vehicle I have been driving leaves a black residue on my hands and sometimes my clothes. It is much worse when it gets warm. I suspect it is some kind of adhesive that is oozing from the seams of the cover. This winter it hasn't been a problem, but now that warmer weather is here it seems like every evening when I drive home I have black on me.
I mentioned in passing how it irritated me and that I needed to go and pick up a new steering wheel cover to my husband.
That night when I returned home, there it was. A new steering wheel cover.
I know, I know. It is just a steering wheel cover. Probably only cost a few dollars.
But it meant so much to me. And was just so sweet of him.
Yep. Little things mean so much!

My anniversary

I will celebrate my 4th anniversary on May 28th. For those of you who don't know, I waited until I was 44 to get married for the first time. Did the whole big shebang. White dress with a 4 foot train, church wedding, my boss giving me away (my dad passed away before I could get married), just everything!
My husband is 14 years younger than me. He is my hunk of burning love!
Seriously, he is the man I waited all my life for and the love of my life. God truly blessed me with him.
I am thankful I have had 4 years with him and pray for many, many more! James, I love you!



These are pictures of the unity candle I had at my wedding. My good friend Lenna stitched this candle wrap for me. It is beautiful.
I am attempting to make one for my sister-in-law who is getting married this June. I pray I could do a job close to as nice as this one is.

Happy Mother's Day!

This is Donna's daughter, Jennifer. I have hijacked her blog to wish her a very special Mother's Day! My mom is my best friend and I love her more than words can say! I wanted to hijack this to let her and all her friends know the top ten reasons why I love my mommy!

1. She is just as crafty as I am if not more!
2. She listens to me rant about my kids (and then tells me how it's my fault!)
3. We both love the spa and always know when in doubt hair and makeup is the perfect present!
4. She taught me how to cook.
5. She loved me enough for both a mom and a dad.
6. She is the prettiest lady in the whole wide world.
7. She can make me smile.
8. She cries at all the emotional shows on TV (but still makes fun of me for being the same way).
9. She gave me her beautiful eyes.
10. She gave birth to me and raised me to be the mother I am today so I can celebrate this day too.

I love you mommy! Now you have speakers so turn up your volume and listen to the CD I was going to burn for you, but this works better!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all! We all had a mother, good, bad or indifferent. I have a lovely mother. Her name is Jan.
Let me tell you about my mother. She and my father married when she was 14 and he was 17 and no she wasn't pregnant. She didn't have me until she was 21.
At the age of 30, yes, 30 she had a massive stroke. Then 6 months later another stroke. They did an angiogram and found out that she had a rare benign tumor on her heart valve. She became the 3rd person in Waco, TX to have open heart surgery to remove the tumor.
But the stroke had done major damage. At that time they didn't have the clot busting drugs they do now. Or the physical therapy techniques. So everything mom lost, was lost for good.
Included was her eyesight in her left eye, the entire right side of her body was paralyzed and most importantly her speech was gone.
She is now 69. She has lived this way for 39 years. At first she could walk with a cane, then a walker. She has fallen so many times she has pretty much broken most of her bones. Her spine is a crumbling mass of tiny fractures.
So now she is in a wheelchair. When she stands to transfer into the bathroom or into her chair or bed, she is completely bent over, like she is reaching to pick up something.
But let me tell you something the stroke did not take. HER SMILE. She smiles all the time. Everyone that sees her can't help but smile. Strangers in the places we go just warm up to her.
She is pretty much confined to home, but Saturday is beauty shop day and we better not miss beauty shop day or all he-- breaks loose. Lord help us if it is raining or icy. The next week will be miserable if she misses beauty shop day. They treat her like she is a celebrity there. They make coffee just for her and even after she is done getting her hair done, they wait for her to finish her coffee.
Today my sister, her daughter and my sister's boyfriend joined us for lunch. This is a picture of my sister & her daughter & Mom & me.
Tell me the truth. Didn't her smile make you smile too?

I am baaaacckkkk!

Thanks to my mom and sister I am back online with a new computer! I will have lots of pictures to and more updates to post. Right now I just have lots of catching up to do. Thanks so much for the prayers and kind thoughts. It has been stressful, but we are getting through it!

Update from Donna's daughter

This is Donna's Daughter, Jennifer. Donna had a lightening strike on her house. All 4 of her TVs are out, the water heater is out, the dishwasher is out, the hallway light is out and most importantly her computer is gone. She will not be online until she gets computer access again.

My Saturday and the infamous biscornu

I had a lovely Saturday. My EGA had our annual May luncheon and despite some minor catering problems, it was wonderful. The food was good and the fellowship even better. I laughed and talked and ate myself into needing a nap afterward. Here are some photos of the luncheon:





And now about the biscornu. I passed out the fabric, threads, etc and instructions for the biscornu at the luncheon.
I had stitched most of the top of the biscornu before my friend Lenna took it over for me in an effort to keep my sanity (I only needed 3 small specialty stitches on the top). She did the backside and put it together.
It shouldn't surprise you that with all the problems I had with it when I was stitching it that I would have problems with taking a picture of it now that it is finished. I took 10 photos, all of which are blurry. Here are two of the best (if you can say best in this situation).


Now, let me give some people their "props". Thanks to Lenna for finishing this for me. You are an angel. Thanks to Mary Ann & Dana for helping me with the supplies for this project. Thanks to Mary for sending me her finished biscornus to show as examples. And thanks to all of you who have encouraged me.
I will be giving this little jewel away at a later date. I still have to teach the class this month and next. Wish me luck!
P.S. You might have noticed I now have a Facebook Badge. I am now on Facebook. Come visit me there if you like. I know NOTHING of Facebook but had many requests to join Facebook so I gave in!

Flowers, bees (or wasps), and water

My Sunday was lovely. After feeling like crud last week, I think I am finally turning the corner. Today I felt more like "myself" than I have in weeks.
My husband took me to the arboretum and to the lake for a lovely drive. Yesterday was cloudy and rainy most of the day, but today was beautiful.
I know this is supposed to be a stitching blog and I have done a little stitching (I will show later), but lately "spring fever" has caught me and I have loved seeing all the wonderful flowers and taking pictures of everything.
First, here is a lovely peach colored rose. The wasp was enjoying it as much as I.

And then I saw these beautiful tiny purple flowers among these pink roses.

Then we drove by the lake. The water was choppy due to the wind, but there were some boaters and one brave skier (the temp outside was only in the 70's). We also saw this cute family that was fishing. They had a little 2 year old girl that was so precious. She ran up and down the hill with her father in pursuit of her. If you look closely you can see the whole family by the lake fishing.

All in all it was a wonderful day. My husband and I had some quiet time just the two of us, away from everything. I got some fresh air, as well as a fresh perspective on life.
I promise I will have more stitching soon. But spring and those wonderful spring flowers just last a little while, so we have to enjoy them while we can!