Hello!

Yep, it's me, alive and well!

Not dead, and no major injuries. Puggies are well, fat and happy :-)
Thanks to those of you that have emailed asking if all is well, or to say they missed my posts! You're nice!
I have been stitching, just having several issues of frustration with my blogging experience that have not worked themselves out yet. Mainly because I don't know just how to work them out!

*First of all, Blogger is such a booger for me these days, even to post these pics now took me FORever.

**Then there's my cruddy camera and horrible pictures. Ugh.
***Not liking the looks of the blog, but too lazy or tired or just too inept to change it!

****Tennis elbow! Painful and limits computer time (typing hurts!) Just been to the doctor for it (finally!) and got a cortisone shot and list of exercises to do, so hopefully that's much better soon.
Oh geesh! Sounds like whining, which I'm not, just explaining my absence ;)
Meanwhile, back at the ranch....

Picked up my Mary Beale sampler from the framer today, so I thought I'd share that and then come back later with what I've been stitching.

So here she is, Her Sampler, which is now MY sampler :)

The frame moulding just jumped out at me, as we were mulling over many different ones, I looked over my left shoulder, and spotted this one, and it ended up being the ONE!

So very happy with my framing gals. If you live anywhere in the area, you should check them out! Framing MemorEze in Plano Texas.
They are pretty much the only ones I can trust to do my things right. In fact, I had to take them something to redo, that had been done at another place :( Later on, you will see the before and after pics (some of you have already seen the before....hideous!)

This sampler was framed under museum glass, can you tell? Usually don't put glass on my pieces, but wanted to try out that stuff, and I do like it :)

Stitched on 40 count Park City Blend by R&R
over 2 with one strand DMC thread
Design by Mary Beale, Her Sampler was included in the 1998 Pocketbook Needlework, which is still available for purchase in Mary Beale's online shop.

Well that's all for now my friends. Thanks for visiting and for your friendships, I am very blessed by each one of you! Sorry I have not been commenting on your blogs very much, will try to do better as my elbow/arm pain gets better!

PS. Who's ready for Autumn?
Just wonderin' ;-)

days late and pesky husbands

Had a couple of patriotic finishes to share with my faithful readers, way before a few days before the start of July, but life went a little haywire and messed with my blogging plans.

That's life!

Well, here's one from Little House Needleworks....



and from Heart in Hand....



Anyway, hubby had an accident at work and long story short, he dislocated his shoulder and bruised a couple of ribs, but he's OK and will go back to work in another week or so, after being HOME for three (count them...t h r e e )weeks. I loves me some hubbies, but when they come into the bathroom to watch you pee, they have to go. There's only so much one can deal with. Seriously, I'm happy it wasn't much worse...in fact the doctor told him that most men his age (like he's 90 or something, ha, he's only in his early fifties) would have needed surgery, but hubby is healing nicely and for that I'm very thankful.

and Muttley is also very thankful for some quality Dad time




All of this happened during the big birthday week, so the birthdays were a little subdued this year, as he was in a lot of pain those days. I think we'll celebrate this next week by going to see Toy Story 3 and my plans are to put so much butter on my popcorn that I will just slide right out of my seat when it's all over! Yay!

Here's a picture of the birthday girls, lo, all those years ago....(22 to be exact). She was brand new and at 24, I pretty much was too, lol!



weird look on my face, huh? Probably just tired. Babies are exhausting.




Here are some random pictures of some patriotic things I have gathered from around the house...



please excuse dust and pug hairs as I'm just not a good housekeeper, let's be honest here. There are lots of framed patriotic pieces around too...someday I'll gather those up, knock off the dust and take pictures...bet y'all can hardly wait ;-)



**edited to add some designer info, to the best of my recollection :)**
(in the picture above, from upper left to right: the large flag with acorn wreath is from the Blackbird Designs Fine Collection book, and is called July Celebration; the America Fob (only bottom half shown) is from Shepherd's Bush; the May You Be Blessed ornament is from the Blue Ribbon Designs Patriotic Wishes Volume 1 leaflet, it was a gift from a friend; the tall skinny flag with America under it was a kit from Twisted Threads; the lady holding the flag, dated 2003 in big letters is called Liberty House & is from Ewe & Eye & Friends; the little pudgie guy holding a flag is called Glory Fob from Shepherd's Bush as is the Oh Say sheep and the little mattress pincushion in front of it, from a kit called Tiny Flag ; Pray for Peace is from Birds of a Feather. Hope this helps! Any questions, just shoot me an email!)

Hope everyone had a happy 4th and are heading into summer by having fun and staying cool in this heat. It's just unbearably hot all over the country...our first electric bill for the summer was double what it was this time last year! I'm not complaining, a/c is a Godsend, whatever the cost...don't you think?



(me, circa 1966)

still alive!

And feeling *almost* brand new! After the back and teeth issues, a lovely little cold hit me and after getting no better for five days, I went to the doctor. Turns out I had a nasty sinus infection. Well duh on me, that's what was aggravating my teeth! So after a round of antibiotics, I can finally breathe and my teeth aren't hurting. Yippee!! And just for the record, Mucinex DM is my new BFF, love that stuff!!

Thanks for the bed recommendations! We tested out many, many and ended up getting a Simmons Beauty Rest "Treasured Spirit Plush", and it is an absolute dream! I really wanted the Tempurpedic one to work out since we'd heard such good things about it, but every time I tried it out, my back would scream murder! Drats. Well, anyway, we've had it for over two weeks now and it's been wonderful. The pugs almost broke their necks the first couple of days because it's higher than the old bed, and instead of using the little ottoman we keep at the foot of the bed for them to get up there on, they'd jump off the side. But they've figured it out now and all is well. Yes, we let our pups sleep with us, shame, shame ;-)


Not sure if I've shown this little finish thing on this blog before, but since I have been such a wreck and haven't finished anything new to show, here it is again:



The design is from Birds of a Feather, and is called Bloom Where You're Planted. I stitched it forever ago and then found this perfect little frame for it at Hobby Lobby for about $6 on sale. It fit perfectly and remains one of my all time favorite cheap finishes!

Speaking of framing, I have a question. Those of you that take your finished samplers to Joann's or HL or Michael's....do you know, or ask them how they attach your piece to the foam core? Like by lacing or pinning? Back in the early 90's I took some things in to Michael's and that was back when they used the sticky board, which I've heard is a big no no, so I stopped taking my things there and always had my LNS's frame things. Well, it's interesting to me that a couple of pieces that were framed that way, on the sticky board are still in perfect condition, and they've been on that sticky board for almost 20 years! So I'm just curious, since I've seen such gorgeous framing on some of the blogs and they're from Joann's or HL, etc. Maybe I should give them another try? It is cheaper there with the coupons or do they jack up the price in the first place so you're just paying about the norm when it's all said and done?

Have a great week everyone! Thanks for visiting me and I hope to return soon with some good stitching to share :-)

just nothin'

There are no stitchy photos for this post because lately I have issues and haven't stitched anything. Looking through old files on the laptop, I came across this one of the Astro Dazzle when he was just six months old. Aww!! That face! So kissable, dontchathink? :-)

So yeah, no stitching because....I'm a wreck!. And when you're a wreck, you find stitching unappealing. Trust me. I think this happens to me annually. Pretty sure. Anyway, on the Saturday before Valentine's Day (which was our 28th anniversary), my dental problems returned, and because I think my dentist is not very competent in what's going on inside my mouth, I keep putting off going back to him. The problem with this is that this dentist is on my "dental plan" and to change where I go for treatment is a huge ordeal and will take 45 days for the paperwork to get transferred, etc. Hubby wants me to just go to another dentist, outside of our "plan", pay whatever it costs to get it fixed right, but of course that would cost more than THE PLAN and let's just say I squeak when I walk, so it's pretty difficult for me to just pick up the phone and call another dentist. Yes, it's hurting, but paying more than you have to or should, well, that hurts more. Plus, we need the extra $$ for something else (see below). So there's that issue.

Another contributing factor to the "wreckedness" of me is that I threw my back out of whack on Monday and the misery over the dental problem paled in comparison to the unbearable back pain. My back is getting better, and long story short, we think a new mattress will definitely help so we're going to go this weekend and get one.We need a really good one, for people with lower back pain. Any suggestions?

Guess we'll see what shape our pocketbook is in after that... I will either go to a new dentist who will fix me up good, or back to the old one where I may or may not get fixed. And how about suggestions on how to tell a dentist that you think he's wrong about something? And have him listen? Because ticking off one's dentist before he goes digging around in their mouth with sharp instruments is probably not a smart move.

(And yeah, I probably shouldn't post when there's no stitching to show and all I do is whine, but thanks for listening anyway! Hopefully normal programming here can resume soon. If not, I'll just get some cheese and crackers and keep the whine all to myself)!

PS. Did anyone notice how much Tiger looks like his mother? And how his mother barely looked at him during his "press conference"? And does anyone really care about all of that anyway? Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I wish people would just keep things like this to themselves...we as a society shouldn't be all up in people's personal lives like we are. Let's hear it for keeping things behind closed doors and heck, even sweeping things under the rug or yes! skeletons in the closet! Keep them there, I loved those days.....

no stitching. just pie.

Oh, I have been stitching, and something patriotic to boot, but since it's the "lazy, hazy days of summer", I am trying my best to live up to the lazy part by refusing to iron it and take photos of it until it's complete!

So instead, may I present....

The Easiest and Best Key Lime Pie EVER



I thought twice about making this since it involves turning the oven on for a few minutes, but the fact that there are no eggs in the recipe made me forge ahead.
My family was glad about that ;-)

Here's the recipe (please note that I had a typo on this recipe when it was first posted, but it's correct now)

1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
2 cans sweetened condensed milk (I used Eagle Brand)
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup key lime juice
1 tablespoon grated lime zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime zest. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.

Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! (mine never did get the little pinholes and I baked it ten minutes then took it out and it was perfect!)

Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.

If you would like to be lazy like me, you can use this stuff, instead of squeezing all those tiny limes....



We happen to go through a LOT of limes in this house, so I had some zest already, but I think this pie would be fine without it. You can also use the fat free Eagle Brand milk to reduce calories but whatever!
One piece ain't gonna kill ya.


Last week was my birthday and here's one of the bestest things I received, just had to share....



Isn't it adorable?! (thank you sweet Nancy if you're reading this, I love you!)
I was truly spoiled by my family, friends and coworkers and felt completely undeserving of everything!

Life is good. Pie is good. Enjoy it.

movin' right along

Remember when we were kids, time just c r a w l e d by? Especially if looking forward to something. Now? I just wish the world would slow down a tiny bit and let me catch up! Can it really be MAY already? Summer is almost here and oy, the Texas heat? I can wait a while for that to get here.

Anyhoo, it's been a while since I blogged because let's face it, my life is sooooo boring! You have no idea people. The most exciting thing I've done recently is take an online class that was required for my job in which I was tested at the conclusion of, with TRICK QUESTIONS! Love that. Hopefully I passed. The test sheet has to be faxed in and if you get a certificate in the mail, you passed, if not, I guess you don't get to work? Maybe I'll get a forced vacation! Which wouldn't be all that bad except for the humiliation of being the only operator that failed the test at my workplace. So y'all, keep your fingers crossed for me, ok? Thank you ever so much!

Stitching wise, it's been all Shepherd's Bush, all the time. It's like I'm tuned to the SB channel and can't adjust the dial to anything else, ha!



This is My Heart's Garden...



I got twenty skeeter bites trying to get a good picture outside....



But since I am not French, I cannot take a good photo ;-)




This was just a teeny tiny finish, I actually have a big one to share with you, that I finished after this one, but need to post that later because, seriously? I am so ready to get off this computer and stitch!! (and scratch!)

Oh! PS. Almost forgot! Alice had a dare for us to post a picture of ourselves when we were 18 or a little older. Well, most of my pictures are still packed away, but this one is close to that time frame....kinda...



back in the very early 90's when I had short hair (the sides were much shorter than the top)! Listening to Bobby Brown and Paula Abdul and my kids were just little things, trying to do the "Hammer-Time" thing, lol! (Oh yes, they loved Mr. "MC Hammer", remember that crazy dance he did?) That's the Best Cat That Ever Lived, Chester, when he was a kitten, and yep, that's stitchin' stuff in front of us :-)

best time of the year...

There really is something about that first bit of crisp air we get here in Texas...where the big sky is the most perfect shade of blue than any other time of year...that sets my heart all "a flutter". Aw, Fall. It's what gets me through the summer. In my entire life, it's always been my favorite time of the year. Always. Fall knows me like no other season...

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it,

and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth
seeking the successive autumns."
- George Eliot


Good things happen in the fall, like back in October of 1984 when my son was born...
and some traumatic things have happened as well, like the worst automobile wreck of my life in November of '97 and two weeks later, in December of that year (which usually still feels like Fall instead of Winter), my husband having a heart attack and almost dying...
but even as I was leaving the hospital to go home and tend to our children, walking to the (new-ish) car (the replacement for the totalled one, see above)...somehow I knew everything would be OK. Those leaves crunching under my feet promised me hope, I can't explain it, but there it is...

anyway, now it's almost 11 years since all that happened and we've been through a lot since that time too. We're all the better for it. Some people find hope and promise in Spring, but for us, our hearts are saved by Fall....


and some Fall and "Halloweenie" stitching to share...

(again, with the craptastic pics, wish I had my old camera back!) sorry for the bad pictures...

This one is Trick or Treat by Shepherd's Bush




and this one is Pumpkin Hill...




also by Shepherd's Bush



There are some other fall finishes to share, hope to get a decent picture to post here soon.

In the meantime....enjoy the season and all it brings into our lives...we're so lucky to live in a free country, where we aren't forced to be one way or the other and we are free and ABLE to vote where our hearts lead us, and free to enjoy the people and places and things that mean the most to us...and know that they love us and enjoy us in return...

Godspeed my friends...

and I don't even watch that show!

A friend of mine posted about this site on her blog, so of course, I had to check it out.

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Descendants - Geneology

Oh dear. Weird, huh? Never watched one whole episode of Desperate Housewives, but kinda knew who she is because of all the hoopla over her marriage to Tony Parker. (Hey, I read the headlines of In Touch magazine when standing in the checkout line at the grocery store, what about it)?! ;-)
I'm not sure what to think of this one. Hmmm.
If anyone of you do this, let me know how it goes for you :-)

This Cupcake Loves to Stitch!

This Cupcake Loves to Stitch!
Originally uploaded by creative breathing

My newly discovered twin that lives in another state made this for me, isn't she somethin' else? Have you ever found a friend, quite by accident, who loves some of the very same things you do? Some of the very most important things like crafty goodness, sweetie pie treats and love for their family? That's Elizabeth!

It's a wonderful thing!

Check out her blog to see more of her wonderful creations!

Happy Halloween!!

Well, I have a really scary picture of myself from 1976 with a shag haircut that would've scared the pants right off of ya, but decided to share this one, circa 1972, instead! Wouldn't want to run off my faithful few (although this one could very well do it anyway).....





On the back of this, my mother wrote "Halloween! She's a lady from India - The "Hope" Diamond is a spare droplet from a chandelier"

First off, I love how she said "a" chandelier...did we have more than one chandelier to have said "a" and not "the"...that's just too funny...surely we must have. We were rich in chandeliers at that house. They matched that funky wallpaper that was oh so tres chic at the time.

Secondly...I didn't care that much about the droplet because HELLO I had on MAKEUP!!
At EIGHT years of age!!! LIPSTICK!! And a LOT of it!! I was HOT STUFF!!

Gosh, my face probably hasn't seen that much makeup in all of the years since then, put together! (on second thought, there was a slightly blurry time in my teenage years that may have seen a little lip gloss...it was shiny and drippy and smelled like bubble gum and I went through about a tube of it a week...but except for that, barely any at all)

Halloween is FUN! Oh Yes!

Hope you all have a day full of treats and doing something fun :)

me me'd and tagged

I have to admit that I am the world's worst at playing along when being tagged by another blogger. It just takes me forever, if ever, to get around to doing my part.
Thankfully,some nice peeps don't give up on me and brighten my day anyway.

SO...earlier in the month, Melissa, Michelle, and Carol gave me this award:



Thanks to you three, because you all make me smile and I love to read your blogs!
Now, I'm not sure how many people I'm supposed to tag with this, but since it's so late in the game, guess the rules don't matter anyway(and some of these people don't even know me, lol). So here are just some people who bring a smile to my face:

Nancy because she's always been so faithful to leave a nice comment on my posts and because she's got such a sweet spirit that comes through in everything she does.
Ree because she's just so funny and her recipes are to die for.
Suze because she's funny and she likes dragonflies!
Michelle she likes making yo-yo's, and also, because she's funny (do you see a pattern here?

Well, there are lots more, but I'm running short on time, so there it is.

Nancy tagged me for a "me me", which was to tell seven things about myself.

Golly, I hope you all can contain your excitement when you read these doozies: I tried to list things you may not already know (although I'm pretty transparent, so whatever)

1. I don't like cooked fruit but love peach cobbler and apple cobbler and will eat everything in them except the fruit. And especially if it's hot with a scoop of Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream on top.

2. I am a hand cream junkie (almost said whore, what's that all about?). I love hand creams and lotions and am always looking out for the next best one. Right now I'm stuck on L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream And also, their foot cream. Best stuff ever, trust me. Oh yes, I'm hopeless when it comes to most lotions.

3. This forty something, fluffy (ahem),white girl can totally enjoy herself some
Kayne
and some Shaggy
Yes, that's Rap and Reggae, respectively. Plus, I love Shaggy, I just do. He's just all that and more. I would marry him if it was possible to do it and not hurt my current husband's feelings, not to mention illegal. (Jeff, if you're reading this....Honey, you my #1).


4. I can curse like a sailor (some say better) and often do. (I can just hear the collective gasping that you all are doing right now). Well, it's just the truth and
I've always said, every curse word I know I learned from my mother. This doesn't mean we're not visions of lady-like loveliness, don't get me wrong. But under the right circumstances, a few choice curse words really get the job done!

5. I'm an ex-smoker. (is that more gasping I hear?)Most people I tell this to absolutely do not believe me because I don't "look like a smoker". Well, it's so true, I started smoking part time when I was thirteen (yep, thanks again Mom), full time at 16 and by the time I quit at age 23, was smoking two packs a day. I never do anything half-heartedly! But hey, it's been 20 years since I quit...the smoking and the cursing was just too much, lol!

6. I got married when I was 17 1/2 after knowing the man for a total of a month and a half prior to our wedding. And the first two weeks of that I wouldn't have anything to do with him. We celebrated 25 years of wedded bliss last February.

7. I like Pugs. A. Lot. The reason I'm telling you this, again, is because HELLO. We are cat people (without a cat)!!

Oh my gosh, I feel certain all of this is just TMI, but I'm going to hit the publish button anyway and will try and post again soon so this post will move down the page some.

Stay tuned for stitching progress pics and what was in the fryin' pan this week!

one year (and a prize!)

So now it's been one whole year since starting this version of my blog. It's really not easy sometimes to keep it going because blogging just goes against my nature, generally speaking. I'm not *that* into sharing very much of my personal stuff, I do however, have an only child syndrome of wanting to always say, "look at what I did or made"..kinda like show and tell. And then of course (since I'm this freak), I feel silly, exposed and vulnerable! I know, it's just a silly blog you say. It's true.
So! Thanks for putting up with me, is all I'm sayin'. Thanks for checking me out, looking at my pretties and saying nice things.

To celebrate being here one whole year I'm having giving someone a prize! From now through Sunday, Oct. 14, everyone that leaves a comment on this post will have their name put in a basket for a drawing for one of these:



YOU GET TO PICK!! Whichever one you want :) I will draw the name on Monday morning and post the winner then, and that person can tell me which one they would like to have.

These are from the Birds of a Feather chart pack called Halloween Icons. It was an older chart, but they re-released it not too long ago, as a kit with fabric. I stitched them up this past week and just today, sewed them into ornaments.

Now, keep in mind, I am not an "excellent" sewer. Still getting to know my sewing machine and learning the basics. So these are not "perfect" but like me, they have character, lol! Hopefully whoever ends up with one will not even notice little imperfections and just love it anyway.

Maybe this spooky kitty tickles you:



or this frightful jack-o-lantern:



or maybe you like this green faced wicked witch:



I did my best on all of these and backed them with colorful fabric and used black rick-rack for the hanging cord. The first two I did show the most "imperfections" in the finishing ahem but by the last one, I had it figured out, so it's the best looking one (the jack-o-lantern).

So if you'd like to celebrate with me, please leave a comment and I will enter you into the drawing. It doesn't matter if you've never commented before, or if you're close by in the States or far, far away, across the pond or the continent, you can participate! Let me hear from you now, don't wait until it's too late! I'm drawing on Monday :)

Thanks again everyone, and here's to another year of good friends, great designs to stitch, cupcakes to bake and Pugs to love.

that's right!

a new blog. um-hm. 'nuff said.