see more dog and puppy pictures
31 March 2009
Can it be?
A day where I get to leave work IN SUNLIGHT? And actually go home? No stops? No major malfunctions? And I get to cook real food for SO and I to eat? And I might be able to put up pictures? And go for a walk because I feel well today? I better enjoy it now. Next week will be a bear. From the 5th to the 10th, I come home on time 1 night. Every other night is a late night. I'm not complaining, not really. It is what it is.
SO is away this weekend (I think I told y'all that, didn't I? If I did, sorry.). I have big plans. In addition to actually . . . dyeing floss (gasp, y'all, gasp) and going to Michaels to see if they have any tags I can use to put the dyed floss on for a project I am working on, I am actually going to attempt to go to a restaurant and eat by myself. That is one of my phobias, and I admire women who do it. I don't know why I am so scared of doing it, I just am. But, it's spring, I have big plans, and enough cash for breakfast, and no real reason NOT to go. So I'm doing it. And I'm opening an account in the rinky-dink bank in town. No better way to show commitment to my new hometown, right? I think there are like 4 branches in the state, but I want something close, with a personal feeling to it. Maybe they'll see the brilliance of my "Dyeing floss to buy a farm" campaign, and loan me the money to buy the farm outright. Or not . . .
I'm starting the kitty afghan out of Cross Stitcher (US) Jan 09 issue tomorrow (I think I told you that too, didn't I? Batting a thousand today, LOL). It's funny. It feels like an EVENT. I went and bought big needles yesterday at lunch so that I could stitch comfortably. I noticed the other day that my size 28 needles feel small and flimsy to me for some reason. I don't know why, but I feel compelled to use a size 26, and, for an afghan, I prefer a 24. Is that wierd? Anyway, it does look like a fairly straight-forward stitch. The kitties aren't that big, and there's not that many of them.
Not much else is happening. I haven't been buying much of anything lately. I did find a length of muslin in AC Moore yesterday, though, and, since going to Joanne's isn't exactly a 2 second trip, and I want to do a Raggedy Anne primitive stitchery that I promised to pass on to Louise, I bought the package of muslin and a blue ink pen. I hope it goes a little better than the first one I did went. I might as well have had SO's 3 year old nephew draw it, based on how well I did tracing it. I just have to slow down. And I bought some Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe floss on E-bay. Vonna was using it, and it looked so pretty and is so nicely priced. I can't resist a deal.
SO is away this weekend (I think I told y'all that, didn't I? If I did, sorry.). I have big plans. In addition to actually . . . dyeing floss (gasp, y'all, gasp) and going to Michaels to see if they have any tags I can use to put the dyed floss on for a project I am working on, I am actually going to attempt to go to a restaurant and eat by myself. That is one of my phobias, and I admire women who do it. I don't know why I am so scared of doing it, I just am. But, it's spring, I have big plans, and enough cash for breakfast, and no real reason NOT to go. So I'm doing it. And I'm opening an account in the rinky-dink bank in town. No better way to show commitment to my new hometown, right? I think there are like 4 branches in the state, but I want something close, with a personal feeling to it. Maybe they'll see the brilliance of my "Dyeing floss to buy a farm" campaign, and loan me the money to buy the farm outright. Or not . . .
I'm starting the kitty afghan out of Cross Stitcher (US) Jan 09 issue tomorrow (I think I told you that too, didn't I? Batting a thousand today, LOL). It's funny. It feels like an EVENT. I went and bought big needles yesterday at lunch so that I could stitch comfortably. I noticed the other day that my size 28 needles feel small and flimsy to me for some reason. I don't know why, but I feel compelled to use a size 26, and, for an afghan, I prefer a 24. Is that wierd? Anyway, it does look like a fairly straight-forward stitch. The kitties aren't that big, and there's not that many of them.
Not much else is happening. I haven't been buying much of anything lately. I did find a length of muslin in AC Moore yesterday, though, and, since going to Joanne's isn't exactly a 2 second trip, and I want to do a Raggedy Anne primitive stitchery that I promised to pass on to Louise, I bought the package of muslin and a blue ink pen. I hope it goes a little better than the first one I did went. I might as well have had SO's 3 year old nephew draw it, based on how well I did tracing it. I just have to slow down. And I bought some Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe floss on E-bay. Vonna was using it, and it looked so pretty and is so nicely priced. I can't resist a deal.
30 March 2009
I was so lazy yesterday
I worked on Saturday, and then woke up yesterday, with a sick-sore throat, congestion and a small headache. I am starting to think that my normal condition is to have a headache, because I've had them on and off for the last two months. None to the point where I have to go home, but still, that's a long time to be achy. This wasn't too bad, so I just got some extra caffeine, squealed that my head ached and that I am tired of having a headache and being stressed, and demanded breakfast.
SO accommodated me in my demands. He's been doing that a lot lately, funny man. I told him I found us a farm. In foreclosure. For only $950K. It's 22 acres. With an old farmhouse with two fireplaces. Probably more. He agreed it was a good price. He agreed that having a herd of beef cattle would be fun and would cut down the mowing. I even think he agreed that we could have horses. But then he asked how I intended to take care of the farm. He didn't buy my argument that beef cattle were easy to take care of, you leave them alone unless you want to eat them, feed them, or see their babies being born. He told me we'd have to get better jobs. And I guess I didn't do enough of a good job convincing him that, with my $4 hotpot from Goodwill, a shoebox of dye, and floss from Michael's, that we could dye enough floss to buy that farm and pay the sales tax. However, he has not heard Paula Deen's philosophy: When you have nothing, you have nothing to lose. I would dye some floss if it would get me a big farm house and some horses, and to not have to worry about getting laid off. I would dye all day, and willingly have blue hands. They've been blue for lesser reasons.
Anyway, because I was grumpy and sick, and I know someone will by that house before I can get the money earned for it, I spent the whole day in bed. Literally. I was stitching. I finished Patty's ornament, though it got a little frayed at the end. It's not too bad. I like it a lot. Now to get the other goodies and mail it.
I also worked on my lioness and her cub. I swear, it is not easy. Not at all. I have frogged so much that I am starting to worry that I lack basic math comprehension skills. But I can see his ear and his cheek now. I put the eye in last night. Somehow I find having a WIP staring at me gives me a strong reason to stitch faster. After tomorrow, he becomes a work project, at least til I get the kitty afghan finished, which shouldn't take too long. I know that this will get easier once I get out of the small bits of shading right around his face.And that is helping me. Sometimes, you just have to step back and look at the big picture. Like life. Right now, I am in a mucky time, with little bits of shading that confuse and irritate me. It seems I'll never get to the end, but I know the big areas of clear stitching are out there and waiting. I just have to muddle through this part, might have to frog a few bits and hope the frayed edges that get stuck can't be seen to bad. But someday, it will all lie flat and clear, and I'll see how all the colors fit together to make a story.
SO accommodated me in my demands. He's been doing that a lot lately, funny man. I told him I found us a farm. In foreclosure. For only $950K. It's 22 acres. With an old farmhouse with two fireplaces. Probably more. He agreed it was a good price. He agreed that having a herd of beef cattle would be fun and would cut down the mowing. I even think he agreed that we could have horses. But then he asked how I intended to take care of the farm. He didn't buy my argument that beef cattle were easy to take care of, you leave them alone unless you want to eat them, feed them, or see their babies being born. He told me we'd have to get better jobs. And I guess I didn't do enough of a good job convincing him that, with my $4 hotpot from Goodwill, a shoebox of dye, and floss from Michael's, that we could dye enough floss to buy that farm and pay the sales tax. However, he has not heard Paula Deen's philosophy: When you have nothing, you have nothing to lose. I would dye some floss if it would get me a big farm house and some horses, and to not have to worry about getting laid off. I would dye all day, and willingly have blue hands. They've been blue for lesser reasons.
Anyway, because I was grumpy and sick, and I know someone will by that house before I can get the money earned for it, I spent the whole day in bed. Literally. I was stitching. I finished Patty's ornament, though it got a little frayed at the end. It's not too bad. I like it a lot. Now to get the other goodies and mail it.
I also worked on my lioness and her cub. I swear, it is not easy. Not at all. I have frogged so much that I am starting to worry that I lack basic math comprehension skills. But I can see his ear and his cheek now. I put the eye in last night. Somehow I find having a WIP staring at me gives me a strong reason to stitch faster. After tomorrow, he becomes a work project, at least til I get the kitty afghan finished, which shouldn't take too long. I know that this will get easier once I get out of the small bits of shading right around his face.And that is helping me. Sometimes, you just have to step back and look at the big picture. Like life. Right now, I am in a mucky time, with little bits of shading that confuse and irritate me. It seems I'll never get to the end, but I know the big areas of clear stitching are out there and waiting. I just have to muddle through this part, might have to frog a few bits and hope the frayed edges that get stuck can't be seen to bad. But someday, it will all lie flat and clear, and I'll see how all the colors fit together to make a story.
28 March 2009
Rainy and boring
That pretty much sums up my day today.
I am at work til 8. I was so bored I made Robbie a Facebook page. If you are of a mind, and don't mind having a cute little Schipperke as a Facebook friend, add him. His name is Robin Spory (Robin is his official, in trouble, name). I figured it was legal, I mean that is his "real" name and he is a real entity. He's just a dog. I am off tomorrow, and am so thankful for it. I don't have much planned. Supposed to have isolated thunderstorms. And I am fixing us dinner, using the new chopper Mom bought us, because I was whining about having to chop onions. Small things delight me.
We went to Goodwill yesterday at lunch. I was searching for the teacup I need for my exchange. I was hoping I could find a matching cup and saucer, but of course, that was not happening at Goodwill. I found a snack plate that coordinates with the cup, so I think it looks good. I'll put a package of nice ginger cookies in there, with her tea and her ornament. Total cost? $2.58. A bargain at twice the price!
I also found something to heat my water in for my dyeing. They had a bunch of coffeemakers, really nice ones. Krups, things like that. I decided it would be a waste of the coffeemaker to use something so nice to heat water, so I ended up with a hotpot. I think it will work just as well, and less to break, not having the glass coffee carafe. That was $4.
And I got two small ramekin things in blue pottery. They look like Fiestaware, but they're not. I figured we could put jellybeans or Easter candy in them til after the holiday, then put some candles in them. They would probably be fine outside over the summer and just would make it prettier out there. And they were 59 cents each. I felt cute and shabby chic.
I am at work til 8. I was so bored I made Robbie a Facebook page. If you are of a mind, and don't mind having a cute little Schipperke as a Facebook friend, add him. His name is Robin Spory (Robin is his official, in trouble, name). I figured it was legal, I mean that is his "real" name and he is a real entity. He's just a dog. I am off tomorrow, and am so thankful for it. I don't have much planned. Supposed to have isolated thunderstorms. And I am fixing us dinner, using the new chopper Mom bought us, because I was whining about having to chop onions. Small things delight me.
We went to Goodwill yesterday at lunch. I was searching for the teacup I need for my exchange. I was hoping I could find a matching cup and saucer, but of course, that was not happening at Goodwill. I found a snack plate that coordinates with the cup, so I think it looks good. I'll put a package of nice ginger cookies in there, with her tea and her ornament. Total cost? $2.58. A bargain at twice the price!
I also found something to heat my water in for my dyeing. They had a bunch of coffeemakers, really nice ones. Krups, things like that. I decided it would be a waste of the coffeemaker to use something so nice to heat water, so I ended up with a hotpot. I think it will work just as well, and less to break, not having the glass coffee carafe. That was $4.
And I got two small ramekin things in blue pottery. They look like Fiestaware, but they're not. I figured we could put jellybeans or Easter candy in them til after the holiday, then put some candles in them. They would probably be fine outside over the summer and just would make it prettier out there. And they were 59 cents each. I felt cute and shabby chic.
26 March 2009
I can breathe now
I think . . . Or at least I hope.
Mom's procedure went good this morning and was much quicker than when she went in September. I finished my ornament for Patty, but I didn't really feel like starting anything new, at least not in the waiting room, so I read Black Beauty instead. I loved that book when I was young. My parents got me some Disney read-along record with music, and I wore it out. I loved it. It's been probably 25 years since I last read it, and so it was like coming back to an old friend, and a brave one at that. What a courageous person Anna Sewall was to write that book in those times? But I can say, unlike back in my childhood, it made me think now. Beyond the question of whether I'm a good rider with a light hand. Particularly the part where they talk about the cruelty of tail docking in dogs and horses. The twins are tailless, I don't know whether it was natural or not. I assume natural, but I can't be sure. Robbie sired tailed puppies, so that muddies my notions. Anyway, I never thought of it as hurting them and, somehow, changing them forever. Now I am thinking of it.
I started my lion picture for the fair. It's going to be a doozy, but I like it so far. I am hoping it doesn't take that long to do. The back might look bad, but it's a lot of confetti stitching.
I also took advantage of the time between when I brought Mom home and had to go to work by shopping in my kit stash. I left most of my kits at Mom's, and I never really went in those boxes a lot anyway, so it was fun to go through. I pulled my All Our Yesterdays kids out and those are on their way home with me. Funny how I never thought I would be able to afford new ones, since when I bought those, the pound was $1.61 to 1GBP, and that seemed so low, particularly last summer when our money was worthless, and now it's lower, cause everyone's money is worthless. And there aren't a lot of new AOY kits that I like--my taste has changed a little and their new stuff isn't in line with what I adore now.
But, as always, I took infinite pleasure in the stash dive. It's always a joy to reacquaint myself with my stuff, and realize what I have that I forgot about. And appreciate it again. Sometimes I forget to appreciate what I have when I don't see it all the time.
Mom's procedure went good this morning and was much quicker than when she went in September. I finished my ornament for Patty, but I didn't really feel like starting anything new, at least not in the waiting room, so I read Black Beauty instead. I loved that book when I was young. My parents got me some Disney read-along record with music, and I wore it out. I loved it. It's been probably 25 years since I last read it, and so it was like coming back to an old friend, and a brave one at that. What a courageous person Anna Sewall was to write that book in those times? But I can say, unlike back in my childhood, it made me think now. Beyond the question of whether I'm a good rider with a light hand. Particularly the part where they talk about the cruelty of tail docking in dogs and horses. The twins are tailless, I don't know whether it was natural or not. I assume natural, but I can't be sure. Robbie sired tailed puppies, so that muddies my notions. Anyway, I never thought of it as hurting them and, somehow, changing them forever. Now I am thinking of it.
I started my lion picture for the fair. It's going to be a doozy, but I like it so far. I am hoping it doesn't take that long to do. The back might look bad, but it's a lot of confetti stitching.
I also took advantage of the time between when I brought Mom home and had to go to work by shopping in my kit stash. I left most of my kits at Mom's, and I never really went in those boxes a lot anyway, so it was fun to go through. I pulled my All Our Yesterdays kids out and those are on their way home with me. Funny how I never thought I would be able to afford new ones, since when I bought those, the pound was $1.61 to 1GBP, and that seemed so low, particularly last summer when our money was worthless, and now it's lower, cause everyone's money is worthless. And there aren't a lot of new AOY kits that I like--my taste has changed a little and their new stuff isn't in line with what I adore now.
But, as always, I took infinite pleasure in the stash dive. It's always a joy to reacquaint myself with my stuff, and realize what I have that I forgot about. And appreciate it again. Sometimes I forget to appreciate what I have when I don't see it all the time.
25 March 2009
Why there are no photos
I know I promised photos. Life interferes.
What I learned this week:
a)If you hit a pothole, even if you are in the boondocks, or what passes for boondocks in Montgomery County, Maryland, and your car makes a noise, pull over.
b) The boondocks of Montgomery County don't have a lot of places to pull over.
c) The brake warning light on a Pontiac Vibe will come on if you have a flat tire. Why they don't call it the "Oh, Crap" light is beyond me.
d) Just because a Pontiac Vibe tire doesn't look flat, doesn't mean it's not flat.
e) If you bend your rim because the tire doesn't look flat, and there's no place to pull over, be warned. There are no replacement factory rims for a 2009 Pontiac Vibe in the entire United States of America. Seriously. The warehouse is in Canada.
f) A rim can be overnighted from Canada much quicker than the postal service can get a certified mail envelope off the truck and back in the post office so you can pick it up.
g) If you get a feeling that you shouldn't get out of bed, listen to it.
This is what I have been dealing with for the last two days. My mechanic didn't want me rolling on the donut back and forth til he got the wheel (from Canada! Not even the dealer had one!), so I had to stay at Mom's Monday night and drive her car. Last night, I had to drive to her house, pick her up, and go get my car. And when I am super-super-stressed, as hitting a pothole and bending a rim, then having to worry that my rim wouldn't make it through customs is wont to make me, I don't eat, so it hit 6:30 last night, and I realized I was starving. So I went to get Chinese food on the way home. Being stressed and hungry tires a girl out, so I was not posting pics last night. At least my car is back, and it doesn't seem to have lasting damage. SO said it was a rough month for that car. I agree. Though I just realized, this is a strong argument for my workshop. If my commute is just through the backyard, no worry about deer or potholes, and it would be a very green commute! Hmmm . . .
Anyway, I am off tomorrow to take my mom in for a procedure. I am staying with her again tonight, because she has to be there so early. I packed plenty of stuff to work on while she's getting it done, because I'm almost done with the ornament I'm working on, and I would seriously hate to finish it and then have to sit there, staring at the wall for a couple hours.
The ornament is for an ornament exchange I am in with my friend Patty. She likes teacups. This ornie is really small, I was surprised, because usually they're much larger than normal Christmas ornies. I am doing it on 18 count something, versus 32 count, but that's not that much smaller. But I like it, it's sweet, and I am definitely stitching this for myself. Since she likes teacups, I thought it would be supercute to find a pretty older teacup from the thrift store, and then put the ornie and some fancy teas from Teavana in there, with a tea ball. It would feel more like a gift that way.
What I learned this week:
a)If you hit a pothole, even if you are in the boondocks, or what passes for boondocks in Montgomery County, Maryland, and your car makes a noise, pull over.
b) The boondocks of Montgomery County don't have a lot of places to pull over.
c) The brake warning light on a Pontiac Vibe will come on if you have a flat tire. Why they don't call it the "Oh, Crap" light is beyond me.
d) Just because a Pontiac Vibe tire doesn't look flat, doesn't mean it's not flat.
e) If you bend your rim because the tire doesn't look flat, and there's no place to pull over, be warned. There are no replacement factory rims for a 2009 Pontiac Vibe in the entire United States of America. Seriously. The warehouse is in Canada.
f) A rim can be overnighted from Canada much quicker than the postal service can get a certified mail envelope off the truck and back in the post office so you can pick it up.
g) If you get a feeling that you shouldn't get out of bed, listen to it.
This is what I have been dealing with for the last two days. My mechanic didn't want me rolling on the donut back and forth til he got the wheel (from Canada! Not even the dealer had one!), so I had to stay at Mom's Monday night and drive her car. Last night, I had to drive to her house, pick her up, and go get my car. And when I am super-super-stressed, as hitting a pothole and bending a rim, then having to worry that my rim wouldn't make it through customs is wont to make me, I don't eat, so it hit 6:30 last night, and I realized I was starving. So I went to get Chinese food on the way home. Being stressed and hungry tires a girl out, so I was not posting pics last night. At least my car is back, and it doesn't seem to have lasting damage. SO said it was a rough month for that car. I agree. Though I just realized, this is a strong argument for my workshop. If my commute is just through the backyard, no worry about deer or potholes, and it would be a very green commute! Hmmm . . .
Anyway, I am off tomorrow to take my mom in for a procedure. I am staying with her again tonight, because she has to be there so early. I packed plenty of stuff to work on while she's getting it done, because I'm almost done with the ornament I'm working on, and I would seriously hate to finish it and then have to sit there, staring at the wall for a couple hours.
The ornament is for an ornament exchange I am in with my friend Patty. She likes teacups. This ornie is really small, I was surprised, because usually they're much larger than normal Christmas ornies. I am doing it on 18 count something, versus 32 count, but that's not that much smaller. But I like it, it's sweet, and I am definitely stitching this for myself. Since she likes teacups, I thought it would be supercute to find a pretty older teacup from the thrift store, and then put the ornie and some fancy teas from Teavana in there, with a tea ball. It would feel more like a gift that way.
23 March 2009
Finally finished and some new starts
Let me apologize for not having pictures to share yet. I felt kinda rotten all weekend, and didn't take any.
I finished My Kitty on Saturday afternoon. I am so happy to have her done. She is adorable. I decided that I am going to try to frame her myself, she shouldn't be that hard to do, being a standard size. I just have to figure out what sort of frame is best for her. What frame completes the story of her? I know that I'll find something nice at one of the craft stores. Michael's has a good selection of frames, not as good as Hobby Lobby, but I have to learn to be content with my surroundings. *sigh*
I didn't do any stitching the rest of Saturday. I fixed dinner for us, chicken stuffed shells, which is one of our favorites. I wouldn't let SO help because he had worked all day, but I did have to have a consult about how to thaw frozen chicken for the recipe. We went for boiling the chicken (is there anything less appetizing-looking than boiled chicken?) and I told SO that it had to be love if I was willing stuff chicken and stuffing into a pasta shell whose temperature was just slightly cooler than the surface of the sun. But I like making this recipe, and it makes enough that we can have leftovers, still freeze a pan of them, and have something to eat with zero effort in a few days. It is the perfect meal! Then I went karaokeing with my friend, Samantha. I didn't do too well, but it's OK. I was just having fun. We haven't seen each other since January, so needed some time to catch up. Got home at 1AM, and then didn't wake up til 9 yesterday morning. SO had to let the boys out, I was that dead to the world.
It's getting on springtime here in Crazyville, so that means flowers and yardwork. I also have two spiderplants I kidnapped from work on Friday because they've been neglected and they needed bigger pots. So we headed off to breakfast at the local diner, and Lowe's for flowers, dirt and fertilizer, and to go drool over the sheds. SO wants one to store lawnstuff in, I need a workshop. Keep in mind our yard won't hold two of these, so I tried my best.
"Darling SO, look, if we get this, I can put all my dyeing stuff in here. And then I wouldn't have it in the garage. All we would have to do is run water and electric out from the house and, um, put up drywall. And I'll need a sink in there. It would be so pretty, and I would feel like a professional dyer, and we could make money. Look, it has a skylight and a workbench!" And I batted my extra-long, lavishly mascaraed eyelashes (he tells me I have pretty blue eyes). And smiled with my newly perfect teeth (he loves my teeth).
Y'all, we didn't buy me a workshop. But I did get 70 gladiola bulbs. And, really, that makes me just as happy. Coral gladiolas scream summer to me. So do red ones. Now to find where to put them in the yard.
I did actually stitch yesterday. I was digging through stash, trying to find stuff to do my lions, because, as SO said, "You better get stitching if you want to do them for the fair." Of course I did not find the fabric or floss I had bought for said lions, but I did find La-Di-Da's Girl in a Red Dress Sampler and the stuff I bought for that.
Now I don't know what came over me. I blame the scrapple I ate at breakfast, which was not good (Excuse me, who deepfries scrapple? It's scrapple, you slice it thin, you wonder how they take mystery cuts of red meat, mix them with yellow cornmeal and get a grey cube of goodness, and then you fry it. In a frying pan. And gross out your city-raised boyfriend, all the while, shrieking, yes, you know they probably do put snouts and toes in it, but it's good and to stop telling you it's gross. It's not gross. It's scrapple). I was so disappointed. Beyond disappointed. I had to take a nap, and then I made this decision while not quite fully awake.
I decided to stitch that sampler over one thread. I am flippin' nutcakes. I don't have a lot done yet. But it's not bad. And I rather enjoyed doing it while we watched travis Pastrana's Nitro Circus, which I dearly love, because he makes it look so easy. It's moving along, and I am starting to wonder why I hate over-one so much.
My other little start is an ornament for an ornament exchange I'm in. I chose Casey Bounagurio's mouse in a teacup ornament from the December 08 JCS. It's really cute and a quick stitch, and I need quick--it's supposed to go out April 1st.
My other major project is to take the floss that I have in various sandwich baggies and wind it onto bobbins, then put the bobbins in the boxes I have for my floss. I have all that empty space in the boxes, and all the floss in baggies, so it just makes sense. I went today for bobbins. I bought 9 packages of them. This should hold me for a while. If it doesn't, I need to do some serious thinking about my priorities. I figure, if I just get in the habit of winding the floss and putting it away when I am done a current project, then going into the boxes before I go shopping for new floss, that's a good thing. I did wind "I Love My Kitty" and put those flosses away. It felt good. And I looked through the floss before kitting up the mouse ornament. I only had to buy one skein--pretty cool! But then again, if I just stitched on my current WIPs, that would be a better thing, and I wouldn't need floss, fabric or charts.
Small victories! Small victories.
I finished My Kitty on Saturday afternoon. I am so happy to have her done. She is adorable. I decided that I am going to try to frame her myself, she shouldn't be that hard to do, being a standard size. I just have to figure out what sort of frame is best for her. What frame completes the story of her? I know that I'll find something nice at one of the craft stores. Michael's has a good selection of frames, not as good as Hobby Lobby, but I have to learn to be content with my surroundings. *sigh*
I didn't do any stitching the rest of Saturday. I fixed dinner for us, chicken stuffed shells, which is one of our favorites. I wouldn't let SO help because he had worked all day, but I did have to have a consult about how to thaw frozen chicken for the recipe. We went for boiling the chicken (is there anything less appetizing-looking than boiled chicken?) and I told SO that it had to be love if I was willing stuff chicken and stuffing into a pasta shell whose temperature was just slightly cooler than the surface of the sun. But I like making this recipe, and it makes enough that we can have leftovers, still freeze a pan of them, and have something to eat with zero effort in a few days. It is the perfect meal! Then I went karaokeing with my friend, Samantha. I didn't do too well, but it's OK. I was just having fun. We haven't seen each other since January, so needed some time to catch up. Got home at 1AM, and then didn't wake up til 9 yesterday morning. SO had to let the boys out, I was that dead to the world.
It's getting on springtime here in Crazyville, so that means flowers and yardwork. I also have two spiderplants I kidnapped from work on Friday because they've been neglected and they needed bigger pots. So we headed off to breakfast at the local diner, and Lowe's for flowers, dirt and fertilizer, and to go drool over the sheds. SO wants one to store lawnstuff in, I need a workshop. Keep in mind our yard won't hold two of these, so I tried my best.
"Darling SO, look, if we get this, I can put all my dyeing stuff in here. And then I wouldn't have it in the garage. All we would have to do is run water and electric out from the house and, um, put up drywall. And I'll need a sink in there. It would be so pretty, and I would feel like a professional dyer, and we could make money. Look, it has a skylight and a workbench!" And I batted my extra-long, lavishly mascaraed eyelashes (he tells me I have pretty blue eyes). And smiled with my newly perfect teeth (he loves my teeth).
Y'all, we didn't buy me a workshop. But I did get 70 gladiola bulbs. And, really, that makes me just as happy. Coral gladiolas scream summer to me. So do red ones. Now to find where to put them in the yard.
I did actually stitch yesterday. I was digging through stash, trying to find stuff to do my lions, because, as SO said, "You better get stitching if you want to do them for the fair." Of course I did not find the fabric or floss I had bought for said lions, but I did find La-Di-Da's Girl in a Red Dress Sampler and the stuff I bought for that.
Now I don't know what came over me. I blame the scrapple I ate at breakfast, which was not good (Excuse me, who deepfries scrapple? It's scrapple, you slice it thin, you wonder how they take mystery cuts of red meat, mix them with yellow cornmeal and get a grey cube of goodness, and then you fry it. In a frying pan. And gross out your city-raised boyfriend, all the while, shrieking, yes, you know they probably do put snouts and toes in it, but it's good and to stop telling you it's gross. It's not gross. It's scrapple). I was so disappointed. Beyond disappointed. I had to take a nap, and then I made this decision while not quite fully awake.
I decided to stitch that sampler over one thread. I am flippin' nutcakes. I don't have a lot done yet. But it's not bad. And I rather enjoyed doing it while we watched travis Pastrana's Nitro Circus, which I dearly love, because he makes it look so easy. It's moving along, and I am starting to wonder why I hate over-one so much.
My other little start is an ornament for an ornament exchange I'm in. I chose Casey Bounagurio's mouse in a teacup ornament from the December 08 JCS. It's really cute and a quick stitch, and I need quick--it's supposed to go out April 1st.
My other major project is to take the floss that I have in various sandwich baggies and wind it onto bobbins, then put the bobbins in the boxes I have for my floss. I have all that empty space in the boxes, and all the floss in baggies, so it just makes sense. I went today for bobbins. I bought 9 packages of them. This should hold me for a while. If it doesn't, I need to do some serious thinking about my priorities. I figure, if I just get in the habit of winding the floss and putting it away when I am done a current project, then going into the boxes before I go shopping for new floss, that's a good thing. I did wind "I Love My Kitty" and put those flosses away. It felt good. And I looked through the floss before kitting up the mouse ornament. I only had to buy one skein--pretty cool! But then again, if I just stitched on my current WIPs, that would be a better thing, and I wouldn't need floss, fabric or charts.
Small victories! Small victories.
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