Lots of "P" words on a Slow Sunday...

 Hello ... well it was another very good week...the weather was pretty nice ...got some sunny days, temperature even hit 60 one afternoon... did more physical therapy and walked with a cane!  Now I'm slow... I have to remind myself heel toe, heel toe, bend your knee... but I've managed to get out of the house and into the car and get into a restaurant with only that assistance... Lots of "P" words have filled my week and this one is patience... something  I don't have a lot of but it is painfully obvious that I need to be patient with my recovery. 

Friday I even ventured into a store... I haven't been inside a retail establishment almost 2 months!!  Nick and I went to Walmart... primarily for me to pick up some goodies for a Valentine package for Elliott. And I got everything I wanted... a candy heart filled with Reese's peanut butter cups (his fav), a cute little robot stuffie, a card, a gift bag and some tissue paper... and then I stumbled into (not literally) a HUGE display of seeds. I had gotten a bunch of seeds at this same Walmart location last year, but the display this year was 3 times what they had before... and I was like a kid in a candy store with an unlimited allowance... I ended up picking out 10,  20,  no 32 packages of seeds!!!

All flower varieties... zinnias, marigolds, cosmos, cleome, and some little offbeat flowers... and when I got back to the car I remembered that I had put in a pretty good size order to Burpees seeds on line last week... oh well you can't have too many seeds... just like you can't have too much yarn, or fabric or cross stitch stuff... it's true... LOL... because it makes you happy!!  I considered it a present to me!! Another "P" word...

And speaking of "P" words and other goodies... I had plenty of packages of "presents" to me and from me this week... I'm very generous, dontcha know...LOL... first off these 3 skeins of Opal yarn arrived...

love the colors... Springy... and I'm ready for Spring, aren't you??

Later these 2 jelly rolls presented themselves... this is the new Kaffe x Morris collection...

and here's the description ... I just cut and pasted it ...

When the genius of colour meets the father of the Arts & Crafts movement, we all take a collective moment and joyously relish in the glorious brilliance. Introducing Kaffe Fassett X Morris & Co, 32 thoughtfully curated William Morris designs, marvelously re-coloured through the masterful lens of Kaffe Fassett. This collection features much-loved and iconic designs that speak to William Morris’ fascination and love for nature as well as designs that were inspired by medieval textiles, papers, and more. The timelessness and intriguing scale of these gorgeously alive designs are mood-lifting in Kaffe’s fresh spring colours. Together, this passionate combination speaks to the vision of Kaffe Fassett and William Morris, both desiring lovely, beautifully crafted spaces in everyone’s homes and lives

well someone certainly has a way with words, don't they??

and here's a screenshot to see all the fabrics...

I think I'm going to play with the Maggie Pearl pattern with these along with some Grunge... I got my jelly rolls here at Quilt in a Day and this is the best price I've seen, and the shipping was super speedy!

And I gifted myself even more fabric but it hasn't arrived yet... more goodies to show next week...stay tuned!

Now onto procrastination and perseverance........ ta dah!! I finished Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor... over a decade in the making...

I purchased this chart and the Valdani threads at the International Quilt Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio in April of 2012... I started it about a week later and worked on about a half a dozen times in 2012 according to the blog... and then I procrastinated and  it languished in a Ziploc bag till late last year... and 3 weeks ago I persevered to complete it!! I can't wait to get this framed but I'm a little anxious by how much it is going to cost... this is a big one... about 11" x 17"... and I think it needs a nice substantial frame... I'm thinking of taking it to Micheals... they have filled my email with promotions about their framing and I don't think this is a hard piece to frame as there is no hard outside border... I'll look into this next week if the weather permits ... there is a nasty rumor being spread by weather guys that we could get some more snow...yuck..

So I was feeling quite proud (another "P" word) of myself for getting this finished and I'm still in the mood to complete some of my many many many WIPs... also I wanted to work on a piece that only used ONE color of thread... there were a bajillion thread changes in Quaker Diamonds... some motifs that were only a couple of stitches used 3 different threads!  I had forgotten about this piece until my friend Holly showed me her copy of the pattern and said she wanted to stitch it... she has great taste in charts!  

This is Quaker Samplings by Ellen Chester... 

Here's where it was when I last touched it January of 2021... and yes this is an absolutely crappy pic... this linen is so hard to capture... I know it looks like a blood stained rag but IRL it is a muted winey browny pinky color... 

And here it is now... okay...  and this is the best pic I've ever taken of this piece... it shows the mottling and it is a bit more pinky IRL but this isn't a bad photo... I know... trust me bro... I wouldn't be stitching it if it wasn't pretty... 

I dyed this myself and according to something I wrote on the blog back in 2021, I used Rit dye in the color Wine... the thread is a variegated one from Gentle Arts called Vintage Lace... you can see it here. ... it is pinky and creamy... I think when I started this I was avoiding using the real PINK portions of the floss but now I want to include them... and I'm going to complete the alphabet before I stitch any more motifs due to my floss panic which I'll get into in a paragraph or two.. (gosh I'm super chatty today... didn't plan on it but it just happens...LOL) 

As I talked about last week, I did grab 4 WIPs and place them in arm's reach of my stitching chair ..3 are ones that just use one color of thread... and 2 are Quaker-y...  I'm sensing a theme... anyway this is perfect stitching for the moment... I love the Quaker motifs and the arrangement of the alphabet... and it would feel good to get another WIP completed...

Edited to add: I had a late night panic attack... as I was stitching I realized I've gone through almost a complete skein of floss ... and I don't think I'm a quarter of the way done, but I only bought 3 skeins... which is what the chart called for ... IF and the is a very big IF you were using 1 ply ... and I'm NOT... I'm using 2 ply... arghhh... so I actually need twice as much floss ... and I am concerned that whatever I get now will NOT be an exact match for what I purchased 4 years ago... so I ordered 4 more skeins on 123 Stitch and I'm going to do the entire alphabet with what I have and then see where I might have to play games if the new floss isn't a good match... take this as a reminder to read ALL the instructions ...pay attention to the count of the linen and how many ply are being used... I've made this same mistake before...and I obviously haven't learned from it... sheesh...

And another tangent ... WIPs... how many do you have?  do you really want to know how many you have? Personally I'm not sure how many I possess. Some charts I would consider to be a WIP... some I think I'll never get back to and I should just get rid of them. I have gotten rid of projects before and I have to say I don't remember exactly what they were except for one.. and I was NEVER gonna finish it. Since I'm still spending a lot of time sitting in my chair I've been watching Flosstube videos like crazy and lots and lots of people post WIP parades to start off the year...and they have lots and lots and lots and lots of WIPs... at the low end I've seen 25 to 30... at the high end I've seen over 50... and one person I watched, purposely started over 40 WIPs last year... yikes... I think if I was counting (which I'm not) I have around 30 I would like to get back to... and there are probably a dozen or so that are partially or totally kitted that I haven't gotten to yet... and embarrassment of riches!

I saw a few sneak peeks of charts being released for Nashville Market in March...  and up until  Saturday morning nothing has tempted me ... and then I saw the Teresa Kogut releases... OMG OMG OMG... she has a slew of new charts and there are several I NEED... LOL... now it wouldn't hurt me to just concentrate on the stuff I've already started and the stuff that is already in my stash... BUT it wouldn't hurt to get something... as new is always FUN... as evidenced by the many "presents"  I've given myself this week...LOL... And since I don't want you to miss out on the FUN, check out the new Nashville Market release here... this site, Lindy Stitches, is a good one... you can pre-orders as things appear and they will combine orders and consolidate the shipping charges... last year they got out their Market orders in a week which was speedy. 

Next week has me wrapping up my in home physical therapy and I'm already scheduled to start more physical therapy at the ortho clinic on February 18th... 6 weeks, twice a week... oh joy... but I know I need it . I've been doing my exercises every day and for the last several days I've walked 2500 steps... which is ONE mile... I use to do THREE miles every day, so I have a ways to go... my cleaning lady is coming by and we have dinner plans with friends... if it snows I'll stay put, I'm not going to take a chance and fall again... it has taken too much perseverance to get to this point and I'm in need of a refill of patience....

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... and later I'll catch a bit of the SuperBowl... see if there are any good commercials... and keep my eye on the upcoming week's weather... I saw that snowflake emoji on 3 different days of the forecast for the week... we are just at the point where the last batch of snow has melted  and I'm not interested in doing this again...I even saw some daffodils poking up in my yard... I think we are about 40 days out till official Spring but it can't come too early for me!

Hope your week is a good one in every way!!

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Rolling along on a Slow Sunday...

Hello - well it was another good week here...in fact I'd call it great... I progressed  from walking with a walker to walking with a Rollator...like this one... 

and I GOT OUT OF MY HOUSE!!  Practiced a couple of times going up and down the ramp with the physical therapist and the next day when out shoe shopping and lunch with a dear friend... now the shoe shopping involved these...

something supportive with a back to wear when I go to further PT. My feet look like little duck paddles...LOL... but my knees appreciate all the cushioning. I got them at Fleet Feet which has locations all over the US. First they scan your feet which give them an image of lots of aspects of your feet... arch, heel, alignment, etc and it recommends brands of shoes that would be best for you. The nice young man who waited on me explained everything and brought out 4 different brands of shoes and 2 different kinds of orthotics. I tried them all on and this one felt the best. I'm not used to wearing shoes like this... all of my shoes are of the slide/clog style... no backs... or sandals... so wearing a shoe like this was a different experience... but not uncomfortable. I'm already thinking of going back and purchasing the pair that was my second choice... I like to have indoor shoes and outdoor shoes... been in the habit all my life of not wearing the shoes you wear outside into the house and my sons and my grandson does this too.  If you are having pain issues in your knees or hips or back or feet I'd check this place out. It isn't inexpensive but walking with less pain is worth it...IMHO.

And because I got more mobile this week I SEWED!!  I think I've mentioned that I have 2 Juki sewing machines...one downstairs in my sewing studio and another upstairs in my craft room... and I sat in my craft room next to the window and sewed up these 17  Stack N Whack blocks...

This is a Phillip Jacobs print called Shaggy..  the repeat it is 25" long..

And when you cut out the 60 degree triangles you get 3 different options for each block... this is the same triangle rotated 3 times...

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

for this block I went with Option 3, it is in the middle of the top row in that picture of the blocks on the floor.  When I go to sew them, I lay them out on a little design board and take a picture of each option with my phone. Years ago you had to either remember which option you liked or keep turning the triangles over and over and over... 

Now this is all the blocks I could cut from that 25" repeat...

I just laid them out on the living room floor and this is by no means the final layout... I need my design wall which is downstairs for that... but in the meantime I can add the background triangles that will go in between each block... I'll end up with some triangles that will have to be removed but that's okay. If you click on the pic you should be able to see the design better... each is a little millefiori... 

And I cross stitched this week... didn't get as much done as I thought... turns out that last medium sized diamond on this piece has more stitches than I gauged... but progress was made... 

This is where I was last week... and the color in this pic is more true to the piece...

and here is where I'm at today...

perhaps I  can finish it this week.

And I was reading some posts on IG and  some blogs which were discussing working on multiple projects and I like the suggestions. One was that you pick 3 or 4 projects that are WIPs and commit to  putting one thread in... and if that projects doesn't float your boat at the moment move onto another one of those 3 or 4...so you get some variety of stitching and some progress on your WIPs.

Also there was the suggestion of working on a Christmas piece on the 25th of each month... and a Halloween piece on the last day of the month. I like this idea and I have a this Christmas sampler started...

The Noel Sampler from With Thy Needle & Thread... and here's where my blog is so helpful... I went back to see where I left off with this and I had talked about how I mis-counted the windows in the house...and I had counted the trees from the windows so they were off... and I counted the alphabet from the trees so they were off too... arrghh... but I can see now that I pulled out the miscounted letters and I think I can get this back on track... so all my mindless blathering serves me in good stead...LOL.

And in totally irrelevant news look what showed up on my doorstep last Sunday night....

a 6 foot tall inflatable chicken/rooster... and the card enclosed was from a group of people I've never met in person but we all frequent a blog where we talk about everything from politics, to music, to food, to kids and grandkids, and health issues and whatever is on our minds. Anyway I had posted about my fractured knee and that my inflatable Christmas chicken had been knifed  and they decided to send this replacement... and it made me cry... there is a lot of good out there... there really is...

And through this whole ordeal (and it was an ordeal) I know people try to point out that well at least you did it when it was really cold, or at least you didn't have to have surgery or at least you didn't break your wrist too...  while all of those are lovely thoughts sitting on your butt for 5 weeks when you use to go out of the house every day and walk 3 miles every day is incredibly trying on your mental health. You think you'd get a whole lot done... knitting, stitching, reading... but you don't ... you have the attention span of a gnat and no focus!!  I am  glad I had my knitting and stitching and I'm so very grateful to my friends who came and brought me lunch and kept me company to pass the time...I am blessed!! But this was not an experience I would wish on anyone, nor do I ever want to repeat it. 

So to the portion of this post where I tell you that I did something that while I wasn't expressly told I shouldn't do it... I did it anyway. After my outing to get new shoes and have lunch my friend brought me back to the house and I walked down the steps to my sewing room!!! Now I held onto the banister all the way down doing one step at a time but it was sooooooo nice to be back in my sewing studio!!! I flitted about on the rollator and found several projects that we took back upstairs so I can work on them in the next week or so. And then I walked back up the stairs in the same banister clinging fashion. I wasn't wobbly and felt good doing it. My PT said we'd talk about steps this coming week and we will... but one doesn't have to share everything one knows, right??

And to compound the situation of "it's easier to ask forgiveness than ask permission" I drove my car!! I went out on Friday with Nick, we went to the bank and dropped off some Amazon returns. At first it felt weird as I haven't driven in 6 weeks, but it all comes back pretty quick... I didn't even have any issues with the roundabout by my bank!

And on Saturday Nick and I drove to our favorite BBQ place, Mission BBQ, and saw our friends that work there!!  Judy and Shelly and Paul and Dwayne and Kyle... up till my accident we ate there twice a week... Saturday lunch and Tuesday dinner and we talked with all these great people every time ...and it was so nice to see them again!! Life is getting back to "normal"... so far one trip out a day is plenty... not overdoing it... but it is so WONDERFUL not to impose on others to get something done!!  I'm getting my life back... thank you Lord!

Soooo next week...On Monday, I have my personal trainer (I know that sounds so pretentious... she lives in the neighborhood) coming over to help me work on upper body and core strength which I need... My PT is coming Tuesday and Thursday... I'm getting 3 windows replaced on Wednesday, they measured back in December and said it would take 6-8 weeks for them to be fabricated...and on Friday Nick and I doing lunch with our dear friends Kim and Kyle... and I'm pretty sure we'll also go out to breakfast at least one day... there's a group of regulars at Bob Evans we haven't seen since my fall ...will be nice to see them again too!

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... I'm just taking it easy...gonna sit out on the porch... the weather has turned unseasonably warm... mid to upper 50s... the snow has melted ... however the long range forecast calls for another wintery blast mid February, which I don't  doubt... last year I had daffodils and crocuses blooming by the end of February... don't think that will happen this year... but that's okay... I've already ordered dahlia tubers from 2 different places ... and I saw some cool purply elephant ears I'm trying to track down ... and I think I'm going to plant some gladiolus this year... they'd be a new one for me... I looked at the Proven Winners site and saw some dynamite new petunias I want to have too... and I know I'm going back to the Blooms & Berries nursery for verbena and other goodies... always something to look forward to in a garden!!

As you can tell my outlook has brightened considerably... and  I'll share a bit of wisdom from a sweet commenter... watch where you are planting your feet!  I'm very cognizant of where my feet are these days...and I'm making this a habit!

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Steps in the right direction on a Slow Sunday...

 Hello ... first off, thank you for the kind comments and good wishes for my recovery... they brighten my day!!  And last week was the best week since I fell... now "the fall" was 6 weeks ago and if I compare myself to online accounts I'm actually a bit ahead of schedule in my recovery. The ortho doc appointment on Monday went very well. X-ray was great,  I showed some good range of motion  and he cleared me for PT and weight bearing ... not toe touch but putting my foot on the ground... and I have done that quite a bit this week. 

PT came on Tuesday and gave me some new exercises and had me up on my feet walking with the walker... I've done that every day and I'm steadier and have even  been able to walk with a "natural" gait for a few feet... picking them up and putting them down.  Now the exercises can be a bit painful... it isn't my knee that is the big problem, it is my foot and my ankle. All those muscles have definitely tightened up and I have to work on stretching them out. Right now the course of action is in home PT twice a week for 4 weeks... and at the end of that the goal is to be able to walk with a cane and get up and down the 2 steps in the kitchen by the back door and I will be able to get out of the house!!! on my own!!! and drive!! 

OH MY GOODNESS... that will be WONDERFUL!!! The PT on Friday told me the worst of this is behind me and at this point I can agree. And she cautioned me not to over do it, she can clearly see how impatient I am to be back on my feet... so I'm trying to be good... getting out of the chair every hour to stand and get my brain to realize that putting weight on my left knee and ankle and foot is the way it should be... 

As you can tell my mood is SOOOOOO much better... I've spoken with several friends on the phone and they've all remarked how much better I sound... and being in a good mood lead to some significant cross stitch progress. I pawed through my many many many many WIPs and the one that talked the loudest was Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor... and this is one of my oldest WIPs... might even be the oldest. According to my blog this first appeared in April of 2012... and it has popped in and out over the years but never gotten close to the finish line... but I think this may be the year it happens!

Here's where it was the last time I posted it which was 2 weeks ago...

and here it is now...

This has been great comfort stitching... I LOVE the Valdani threads and this 28 ct Jobelan is so nice to stitch on. Now I normally like a much stiffer fabric for stitching in hand ... and this is by no means stiff, it has a lovely drape  and this is a BIG sampler... 10.625" wide and 16.875" long... and I'm sure this is gonna be pricey to frame but it is getting framed!!  Along with at least 3 other samplers I have waiting to be framed... ackk!!

Here are a couple of close ups... 

and here is the cover... 

I have one more BIG diamond to do, a bunch of letters and little motifs and one more smallish diamond. I told a friend I'd finish by the end of the month but that is a bit ambitious, but February should certainly be doable. Which is great because a couple of other WIPs are chattering and right now I'm in a "let's finish this up" kinda mood... I know I'll be tempted by new releases in March ... Teresa Kogut, Brenda Gervais and Blackbird Design almost always have new pieces that I will want... and the stash grows ever bigger...LOL

Just a tiny bit of decor here today... this is my view from my chair...top of the TV cabinet is a cookie jar my son bought for me in a thrift store and a cute wintery sampler from Tra la la called ABC BonhommeDe Neige...

Below I have  Winter from Prairie Seasons PS No. 50  and Pinker N Punkin's A Cold Winter Day - Aunt Dot's Saltbox... now Melisa made her house pink but I stitched it in yellow... this was the first of 6 of PnP's houses that I stitched last year and every one of them was such a joy to stitch!

and on the very bottom I have Teresa Kogut's  Star Shaped Snowman  and a snowman from Prairie Schooler No. 151 Santas & Snowmen...

I am so happy that I put out the snowmen... they make me happy and have been good company these last couple of weeks. 

Along with stitching I've been watching a lot of Netflix... caught up on about 7 seasons of Call the Midwife... now I like this one a lot but it does bug me when some of the stories have quite a modern take on a situation that happened in the 60's... I was alive in the 60's and I know how these things would have played out, but I ignore that cause I love so many of the characters on the show. My favorite is Phyllis... my Mom's name was Phyllis ... and the character just appeals to me in so many ways. Also watch a 8 episodes of a dark comedy called No Good Deed with Ray Romano and Lisa Kudrow... Ray's character is definitely different from Everybody Loves Raymond but I detected a bit of Phoebe in Lisa... anyway what drew me in was the fantastic sets ... the story is set in a house from the 1920's... beautiful architecture... great details ... wood beams ... big windows... gorgeous tile bathroom and a hidden room. Not sure if there is going to be a second season of this one.  And my older son kept suggesting I watch The Crown... just finished the first season and he's right, it is good. 

So for next week, my hair stylist is coming back to my house on Monday to cut and color my hair... I sincerely hope that in 5 weeks from now I'll be going to her shop... Physical therapist is scheduled for 2 visits and I'll work out once this week with Anna the personal trainer... working on upper body  and core strength... but the biggest achievement of all this week is this...

I can wear TWO shoes!! now the left is still slightly swollen but I can get a shoe on it. I had to order a pair of shoes with backs... everything I own is a slip on clog or sandals...oh wait I forgot I have some Keens, they're a kinda water shoe... will have to see if I can get them on... Physical therapists have a thing for shoes with backs...

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts... last week she posted her father had passed away unexpectedly but she did post a link up... will check and see  if she does this week... weather is supposed to warm up... saw upper 30's and low 40's in the 10 day forecast... but also watched some long range weather videos that say February is gonna be snowy...yuck yuck yuck... I've had it with snow... the days are getting longer which is nice... still a tiny bit of light at 6 pm....

Here's hoping that your week is productive and warm!!

happy stitching-

carol fun 

A Sampler that Reflects my Predicament on a Slow Sunday...

 Hello - I keep thinking I'm not going to have anything to post as I sit firmly planted in this lift chair, but as I enter the 6th week since I fell, I've manage to scrounge up a few things. I go back to the ortho doc on Monday... I think he would have preferred I waited till 6 weeks were over... and it will really only be 5 weeks and 3 days since I fell... but by son has Monday off for MLK Day and this it more convenient for him to take me to the doctor.  My hope is I'll be cleared to start some PT... I can get a couple of sessions at home and then go to the office rehab which is only about a 7 minute drive from my house. Also wonder how soon I might be able to drive... since I injured my left knee I should be able to do it eventually. 

Last week was nice... I had a visitor almost every day and that helps to pass the time... and on Friday we celebrated my older son's 40th birthday.... not sure how he got that old ...oh wait... I do know how that happened and I'm really feeling my age at the moment. The knee isn't too bothersome but my lower back has decided that it no long wants to cooperate ... I know it is from inactivity and sitting in the chair all the time but I don't know how I can do anything about it except take some ibuprofen... and I'm concerned about how much muscle tone I've lost in my left leg ... wonder how long it will take to get it back...

ok... I'll stop whining...for a minute or two...LOL

I finished the stitching on my Blessing Sampler for 2025....this is Ninon by Jardin Prive...

now this sampler certainly reflects my predicament... lots of little annoying issues...it is riddled with mis- steps and counting errors... I knew I had a couple on the right side of the piece and I thought I got it back on track on the left side but ackkk!!! more problems arose... I ran out of the blue thread... a friend came to my rescue and picked me up a skein at Michaels. I could then stitch up all the letters and go back and squeeze in the floral motifs and the last thing I stitched was the 3 pink hearts  and well... not one of them is exactly where they should be... sigh...but it is done except for the beads I want to add to the watering can... hoping that I can go through my bead  stash and find something that will work... oh I'd LOVE to take a trip to Hobby Lobby... and while theoretically it is doable... I'd have to impose on someone to get me out of the house in the wheelchair and then drive me there... get me out of the car and back into the wheelchair and push me around... and it is not my nature to impose on others... I want to do everything for myself... and this is hard to deal with...

Did a bit of knitting... this sock is Opal Hundertwasser 4 4056-692...

I did the heel in Opal Uni-Solid Burgundy... I love how I'm getting stripes of different widths and I don't have to manipulate the yarn to achieve that... oh and that lime-y acid green makes me happy... this is good knitting for watching movies.

I finished one sock where I'm alternating 2 Opals that are in the purple/green colors... I got no clue as to what either yarn is I'm using... and I have a small start on the mate...

I'm itching to do some sewing... need to try again and see if I can do it without having the blood pool in my left foot... just gonna do something simple... squares... lots and lots of squares... particularly enamored with the Maggie Pearl pattern  by Penelope Handmade which you can find here... you can do this with a FQ or a Jelly roll or a Layer Cake... and I have all of those precuts... 

and if I can sew I can look out different window for a change... right now I'm watching a flock of black birds perched in the oak tree across the street... the other day I watched an owl sit in the tree for quite a while... it was nice.

My dear friend Laurey retrieved a quilt for me from my long armer Delinda... I'm calling it the Twirly Yellow Flower quilt but the actual pattern name is Flowers for Nana's Girl from the Kim Brackett book Scrap - Basket Sensations... it is OOP but I found a listing here for a used copy. 

I want to hang this on the living room wall this Spring... I don't remember if I made a binding before I dropped it off... I kinda doubt it... I need to have someone who knows what they're doing to look in the basket I put bindings in...otherwise  there is plenty of the backing fabric I could use... I want this done by the end of February... and I hope to be in better shape by then.

As for decor I was able to take some pictures... this is the tier table with a slew of little snowmen... 

on the top tier,  these guys were all from Hallmark and were from the Mitford series of books by Jan Karon... here's listing of all the books in the series in order... I might go back and re-read them... they were very enjoyable. Oh that was a tangent...anyway I got soooo many snowmen from Hallmark back in the day... had a great Hallmark shop that was on the way to pick up Nick from school... would leave the house early so I could pop in and browse at least once a week... it had a super train/Christmas/Dept 56 houses display in the back ... sigh... it closed and now it an "adult" bookstore... ewww...

Okay back on track, again... this is the small shelf display... 

up top one of my favorite snowmen cookie jars. Nick got me this in a little resale shop and it is so pretty... so much detail...I love the bluebird on this shoulder...and Lizzie Kate's Winter ABCs...

on the middle shelf from left to right the snowman in the round tin is from the Holiday Hoopla series by WTN&T...

in the center is Welcome Winter from The Drawn Thread ...

and on the end is Alfred Heart and Hand... I stitched him because Alfred was my Father's middle name.

My collection of snowman heads is on the bottom and in looking at this display I could squeeze in maybe one or two more snowmen heads and definitely add some small snowman pillows... need to make a note of that so I remember... 

I did download this cute snowguy yesterday...Happy Heart Snowman from Emily Call Stitching... you can find him  here.

Well the weather has been cold ...and  it is going to get colder... Monday's and Tuesday's highs are predicted to be 15 degrees and going down to minus 2 degrees... only saving grace is there isn't any snow in the 7 day forecast ... however we still have to get through February... the shortest but the cruelest month... I was looking back on the posts I did this time last year and we were in the 40s and the 50s and one day in February I was out on the porch as it was 60 degrees... I doubt we will see that kind of warmth for a while... opening my utility bill is gonna be scary... and this prolonged cold has me worried about the dahlias and the cannas I have in the ground... they've come back for several years but the last several winters have been much milder ... and while I dug up the dahlias in the raised beds I didn't get them stored away the way I should have... not sure I'm going to salvage them... I did place an order from more tubers to be delivered in Spring... but boy have dahlia tubers gotten pricey... I hope to pick up a bunch at Costco... since I'm not going to get into the store I keep checking the website ... edited to add that Costco already has dahlia tubers listed... a bag of 12 for $49.99... which is a great price... only $4 and some change per tuber... I ordered 3 different collections and they won't get shipped till the beginning of April which is fine... I probably won't get them planted till mid May... I gonna ask my friend Bill to check what they have in the store they next time he goes to Costco... I'm not picky  as I LOVE all dahlias... and this gives me stuff to look forward to. 

Well as I said before off to the ortho doc on Monday.. nothing else on the calendar at the moment... hope for some in home PT... and some more motivation to get something done other than scrolling mindlessly on the internet and IG...

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today and I hope you have a happy week ahead of you!

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Some things are up, and some things are down on a Slow Sunday...

Hello - well today makes a month since I fell and fractured my knee... sigh... and I have my fingers crossed that in 2 more weeks I may be able to start physical therapy... I'd like to say things have gotten easier... I'd really like to... but the reality is this is wearing on me... and I'm working to stay positive... but some days are up, and some days are down... and some days it is hard to focus and get something accomplished.  You'd think with all this free time you'd stitch and knit and sew... but the reality is you binge watch old movies and doom scroll... and you have nothing to show for it... I'm at that stage of life where I know the hours I have left on this earth are far fewer than the ones I've already lived ... and I shouldn't fritter away what remains... but frittering is happening a lot... 

ok - on to what has been happening this last week... the weather guys got it pretty much right, darn it... we had about a foot of snow on Sunday/Monday and pretty much everything was closed down. Even the County Courthouse closed and my son worked from home on Zoom... that has never happened before. My little town has done a fabulous job on the roads.  Sitting in my chair I hear and see the salt and snow plow every time it goes by, and man did it go by lots and lots and lots and lots... other roads in the area are still waiting to be cleared... the difference in local governments is very evident.

We also got another couple of inches on Friday... but with any luck there isn't any more forecast till next Sunday... personally I'd be more than happy if it doesn't snow another flake this year... but my preferences aren't holding any sway with the weather gods.

Biggest accomplishment this week: Got ALL the Christmas stuff taken down and returned to the basement. Got rid of an entire bin of stuff I haven't put out for ages...very satisfying.

And with enormous help from Nick we put out the snowmen!!  Now since he was doing the physical work and I was directing this operation we just put everything in the same place it was last year. Thank goodness for having the blog and the pictures to refer to. Now normally I like to mix things up year to year but just having something new to look at is good for my mental health.

Here's the wall quilt... my version of the Cluck Cluck Sew pattern Suburbs I call Mummville...every house is a different Debbie Mumm fabric ... in fact every fabric in this quilt is vintage Debbie Mumm...and I love it!!

There is a Debbie Mumm snowman cookie jar to the right... and the tier tray has Prairie Schooler No. 177 January at the top and is filled with Debbie Mumm snowman ceramics and ornaments...

and all the quilts in this display are done entirely in  Debbie Mumm fabrics... I've always been a bit OCD and once I latch on to an designer I don't let go easily. For years I made quilts using only DM fabrics as my stash is HUGE and her collections all just went together perfectly. 

Here's my laundry cart filled with more Debbie Mumm quilts... 

and I have Debbie Mumm quilts for every occasion... Christmas, Halloween, Spring, 4th of July, Fall ... and lots of different styles... Stack n Whack, Charm Quilts, Bow Ties, Stars,  etc etc etc and just overall scrappy.  To me Debbie Mumm is timeless, like Prairie Schooler... yes if you look at their designs they do harken back to the 80's and the 90's but I have lots of good memories from those times and I still enjoy what I made back then.

I did get some more stitches in my Blessing Sampler for 2025...

Ninon by Jardine Prive... by my calculations I'm about half way done and the month is about half way done..so I'm thinking on right on track  to finish this by the end of January. I'm afraid I might run out of DMC 931... may have a friend go to Michaels and pick my up another skein... and I going to do beads for the water droplets that are charted coming out of the watering can...

 I think that will be a nice personal touch. 

A friend came over this week and we looked at a bunch of my WIPs and several were talking to me... Quaker Diamonds by Rosewood Manor (started back in 2013, hangs head in shame) and this is where I left off last year...

 and Red Rhapsody another Rosewood Manor chart that I'm doing in sage-y blue-y tones. 

This one would be nice as it only uses one floss, but I still make it more complicated by selecting the "right" parts of the highly variegated Gentle Arts Something Blue floss. 

So the week ahead should be fairly quiet...I'm not going anywhere, obviously... we are having a birthday celebration for my older son on Friday... he'll be 40... how in the he-double hockey sticks did that happen??? He's picking up carryout and bringing it to my place so we can be together... just looked at the 2 weather apps on my phone... one has a high of 45 degree for the 17th... wow... almost balmy... the January when he was born was absolutely frigid... the temperature got down to -21 degrees two days after his birth. My doctor's car got frozen in the parking garage and I got to stay an extra day because it was deemed too cold to let me go home... 

So I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... and I'll stitch a little bit... I didn't try sewing last week because when I sit in the wheel chair and my left leg dangles as it does in the brace, it isn't long before the blood pools in my foot and that's uncomfortable and sends me back to the recliner to elevate it... PT nurse said once I start therapy they may allow me to let it sit on the floor ...not exactly weight bearing but enough pressure to stimulate some blood flow... something to look forward to... sigh

Hope your week ahead is a good one...I know it is going to get COLD here... some single digit nights projected but as long as it doesn't snow I'll deal with that...

happy stitching-

carol fun