Mini Happy Dance

So I completed the border on My Family Sampler this week and everything met!  I'm so excited!  This is my first project with such a large and fairly complicated border, and I have been worried since I started this project (in October!!!) that it would not meet and I'd have to figure out where I strayed.  Here is how it looks:

Now all I have left is to finish the houses, add the people and the kitties and the date (not sure why I skipped that) and find a place to put my initials and date.  This has been a fun project to stitch and it will feel odd to work on a smaller piece, but I'm itching to do something small again!

My Family Sampler

Here is my latest progress photo.  The roof is finally done!  I feel like I have been flying since completing the roof.  I'd love to get this finished this month, but time will tell.  I am saving the people for last - my husband is going to put in a few stitches, so this will truly be a family project!

Under construction

I am still working on the roof of My Family Sampler.  I am anxious to get this house completed - I know I am making progress, but it just does not feel like it!

I did get some more of the border done, and well as the left tree (minus the leaves), the words on the left of the bottom tree and the box that outlines the capital of the surname.  I am so anxious to get to the third corner!  But, I am forcing myself to finish the house before I move my hoop again. 

test

I'm posting from my phone. Testing!

What I have been up to....

Long time no post!  I have been stitching up a storm, though!  I have been working dilligently on My Family Sampler.  I have spent a great deal of time working on the house:

And here is what it loks like so far:


Well, Blogger won't let me show you what it looks like so far.  Phooey.  Suffice it to say, it is big and wrinkly!  I'll try posting the full shot in tomorrow's entry.

I also started and completed LHN's "Ladybug Ladybug", and that will be a gift for someone who may or may not read this, so I'll hold off on showing that (like I have a choice, Blogger!) until later.

I'm itching for a new start.  I shouldn't start anything new, I have PUHLENTY of things I need to finish.  But I may just do it anyway.  :)

I'm still here!

I have been stitching and stitching and stitching!  But, no photos yet.  Rest assured I am still around and will be back to more regular blogging after Thanksgiving!

Finished! (Amy, look away)

I finished this for my sister, Amy today:

Two Girls by Industrioushead

Started 10-20-10, finished 11-4-10

Stitched on 28 ct white monaco over one with the recommended DMC

This will be her Christmas ornament this year.  Now I get to go to the fabric store to find the perfect backing fabric!

Halloween Results 2010

We had 38 trick or treaters, 23 boys, 15 girls.  Most popular costume was the ninja (7), we had 5 college kids with no costume, 1 Harry Potter, 1 Neville Longbottom, 2 Dorothys, 1 PacMan and 1 Claw machine.  Scott had a great time being a vampire and handing out treats.  Mort, the neighbor's cat, was his trusty assistant!  We had way more kids last year, but the weather coupled with the fact that it was a school night, made it a bit slower than last year.  All in all, it was a great way to celebrate 1 year in our new house!

EDITED TO ADD:  I forgot to mention the two inappropriately dressed tweens!  Inappropriate because of weather (they looked FREEZING!) and because of their ages (practically NAKED!).  We think they were going for Pirate Wenches...

Happy Halloween!

In honor of Halloween, I am going to start a new project!  Here she is:

Scott is a huge fan of Edgar Allen Poe, and this will be an awesome Halloween picture that we can put in the library all year long!  I'll be stitching this in between trick-or-treaters!  Hope everyone has fun!

WIP Wednesday, except it's Thursday

Thought I'd post my progress as of yesterday.  First up is Family Sampler by LHN:

I'm enjoying this very much, with the exception of all the extra fabric I have to deal with.

Next up is Two Girls by Industrioushead.  Amy, you can stop reading right now.  Go on, I'll wait...
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Is she gone?
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Okay, I had to do that because she is my sister and I forgot she still reads this from time to time!  Here it is, as modeled by my sweet Mayhem:

 Have a great evening, everyone!

Has it been almost a week already?

I have had such a busy weekend, I don't think I have had a chance to breathe!  Here's what I have been up to:

• Friday - drove to Maine (4 hours).  No stitching.
• Saturday - shopped with Mom and made Vegetarian Chili for dinner.  Stitched a bit.
• Sunday - various chores for winterizing the house, including putting the lawn mower away, cleaning the gutters, closing up the bulkhead and tarping it, checking for woodpecker damage in the eves.  Then, drove home (4 hours).  Stitched a bit, but less than on Saturday.
• Monday - worked, then made apple crisp and Ham and Hash Brown casserole for dinner, with the leftovers prepared to bring to my MIL on Tuesday.  No stitching.
• Tuesday -  worked, then to Joanne's to pick up supplies for a baby blanket, then the supermarket to pick up ice cream to go with the apple crisp I brought to my MIL.  Then, home to re-heat the casserole and apple crisp.  Then, into Southie to have dinner with my MIL, whose health has not been to good lately.  Then, home again.  No stitching.
• Wednesday - work.  Have to go to CTS to pick up gift bags for gifts I brought for my friend, whose second child I will meet tonight.  Hooray!!!  Hopefully, will stitch tonight!

Success!

Last night we let Mischief and Mayhem sleep in our room.  We have been trying since the end of our vacation, but for the past 2 nights, they were just too rambunctious - chasing each other all over the house and scuffling.  Very cute during the day, not so cute when you are trying to sleep.

So, we decided the best thing to do would be to play with them hard so they would get tuckered, and it worked pretty well!  Yes, I did get stepped on (in the face) once or twice, but that's to be expected.

We'll try again tonight!

Mayhem has gotten too curious for his own good.  Yesterday when I got home I opened the door and they were in the hallway.  We keep them in the kitchen/library area during the day, but they had gotten out.  I didn't notice they were out until I had gotten the door opened pretty wide, and when I noticed they were loose, Mayhem had made his way onto the porch.  I threw my stuff down (including the groceries!) and grabbed him, but he had gotten to the end of the porch already.  I was terrified!!!  I'll be opening the door alot more slowly from now on. 

Honestly, I don't know how people with actual children manage to stay sane!

Have a great day

WIP Wednesday

I worked some more on LHN Family Sampler tonight.  Here is my progress so far:

I also started a new Christmas Ornament.  It 's called Two Girls by Industrioushead.  As soon as I saw it, I knew it would be the perfect ornament to give to my sister for Christmas this year.  Here is my progress so far:

It's quite small - I am stitching it on 28 ct white monaco over one.  Here is what it will look like when it is finished.  I really like her style, and this will be the first of many of her designs I will stitch.


Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

What I did while I was on vacation

We had a wonderful week!  Scott and I spent the time shopping, organizing and playing with kitties (who keep growing in adorableness and size).  We got a dining room table from IKEA as a 5th wedding anniversary present (traditional gift is wood).  We were originally going to get a sleigh bed, but it was just too expensive.  We will continue to save up for it, and in the mean time, we will have a place for our guests to eat when Christmas rolls around (IN TEN WEEKS, PEOPLE!!!).

I also stitched, of course.  May I present (less wrinky than Cat Lessons, but un-ironed, just the same):

Time for God, by Lizzie*Kate

Started 10-8-10

Finished 10-17-10

Stitched on 28 ct Mushroom Monaco, with DMC

This was a quick, fun stitch, and I think I will have to stitch it again.  So many people I know would appreciate this, and as it is was such a quick stitch, why not repeat it? 

So, now I am working on LHN Family Sampler.  I neglected to take a photo, but not much more had been done, as I abandonned my plan of stitching it on Wednesdays and Sundays just during my vacation.  I picked it up on Sunday and while I love it, I need to find an easier way to acccomodate the vast amount of extra fabric I have - I was afraid to cut it until I had completed the outline, but it's HEAVY!  Any suggestions as to what I could do to help with this would be greatly appreciated!

I hope everyone had a wonderful week, and it's back to work I go!