Advent Blog Hop, Day 23

Welcome to Day 23 of the annual Serendipitous Stitching Advent Blog Hop. Two more sleeps! (Actually for us it's just one more, but that's a story for another day.)

I have an annual tradition--insofar as something you have been doing for four years is a "tradition"--of making my nieces a Christmas ornament. This year it's a Lizzie*Kate Sled Dudes Snow Man for Special K and a Stocking Sleds Santa for Sugar Rea. (Santa was stitched for Craft Month.)

You can follow these links to see the other ornaments I've made for the girls:
First Christmas
Second Christmas: Santa and Snowman
Third Christmas: Santa and Snowman

Jo asked us to share our favorite Christmas Songs with you, and I went all Rob Gordon:

5. "The Christmas Waltz," She and Him
4."Fairytale of New York," The Pogues
3. "Christmas Wrapping," The Waitresses
2. "Elf's Lament", Barenaked Ladies (with Michael Bublé)
1. "Silver Bells"

 Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!

Snowman Wreath

I bought all the things to make this wreath. And then it seemed like so much to do among the busy-ness of this week. For example, my sister needed me to pick my mother up at the airport and bring her to the house so that she could help with the girls. My mother told me 2:48 and then the day she flies she tells me 12:10. So I go to the airport at 12:10, which of course turns out to be the time she is taking off (to land at 2:48). This is not her first rodeo, people, so I dutifully went to the airport twice to get my mother. And then she needed to be fed. So I ended up bringing her to my sister's house in rush hour traffic. And then I got home at 7:30 and still had to feed myself and walk the dog.

And you wonder why I didn't want to make 11 pom pom snowmen. So I made the one. But it was fun and easy and I think I should make the other 10 so that I can have a fabulous new wreath.

I'd like to do this with a rainbow of scarves, like the original, but I am not buying whole skeins for two yards. So if you'd like to contribute, give me a holler!

Ta Da!

I finished something!

This is Tada Snowguy by Amy Bruecken Designs. I stitched it on a plain purple. Maybe WDW Peoria Purple? I subbed a lot of the colors for things I had.

CC Brown Sugar - DMC 830
CC Blueberry Tart - WDW Aqua
CC Blackbeard - GA Black Licorice
CC Red Ribbon - DMC 321
CC Lobster Claw -  GA Orange Marmalade
GA Porcelain - DMC white (My Porcelain was too pink.)
All the rest were the called for colors.

This is Special K's 2107 Christmas ornament.

PS: Stella looks so sad in that birthday picture because she's sick. She has an upper respiratory infection and some gut issues. She's got antibiotics and we're countering with probiotics and (her absolute favorite!) Greek yogurt. Hopefully she'll be her usual self in a short while.

Snowman, Built

Woo hoo! I finished Wisteria Snowman on this round. I really enjoy stitching these kits from Shepherd's Bush.

Wisteria joins Red, Blue, Green, and Black. That leaves Slate, Stone, Grey, Pink, and Purple. (I don't own any of those...some day, maybe.)

Sorry so short, up past my bedtime!

Stitched as kitted.

Days 9 & 10

Friday night, as planned, we went to see the Psychedelic Furs. I didn't realize how 80s that was until I told my (younger) boss about it and she had no idea who they were. Fortunately, I just had to say "Pretty in Pink." Anyway, it was one of those things that was a little fun and a little sad and a little scary. It's the first concert we've been to in a long time where we are among the younger (looking, anyway) people in the crowd. The band was all dressed up like they'd just shot out of the 80s, including the hair.

So I just got a few stitches in on Shepherd's Bush Wisteria Snowman.

On Saturday, I turned my attention to the first of the Shepherd's Bush stockings I hope to finish this year. This is Charland's Stocking. I'm not sure which niece this one will be for, but I think it will come to me before I have to put the name on!

Sunday was more Shepherd's Bush. It's was a whole Shepherd's Bush weekend!

Smalls SAL--Ornament Exchange

This year I participated in Angela's ornament exchange. Although I haven't heard from my recipient, the post office said it's been delivered, so I'm going to show it, since it was last month's small. It is the LHN ornament from the 2012 JCS ornament issue. I was pretty faithful to the finishing. I used a wool fabric that I had and went with a navy blue ricrac instead of the green which would have been difficult to match. I changed all the colors on this from Crescent/Classic Colorworks to Weeks, except for Joshua Tree which was called for. (I can look in my project bag when I get home if you are desperate to know my changes.)

In return I received this patriotic snowman ornament. As you may know, I collect snowmen, so this will be a delightful addition to my tree. I wish I could tell you more about this, but this exchange was "no extras" and my partner took that incredibly seriously and didn't even include a note with her name on it! (Do you think they will kick me out of the club since I wrapped the ornament in tissue, put it in a plastic baggie and added a Christmas card? Have I gone totally over the top?)

That's the fun of an exchange, you just never know what you'll get!

July Ornament

It's time once again to see what I have been stitching up for my tree!

Sisters and Best Friends
Believe
Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue 2000

Stitched on a piece of 28-count fabric instead of the called-for 11-count Taverna. I stitched with two threads instead of three, but I did use the called for GAST. The snowman needs a carrot nose, but he's just going to have to wait until I take a trip to the LNS. The santa's beard is done in French knots. The eyes are also French knots. It took me as long to do the four blue ones as it took me to do the million white ones.

I love this because I do believe in Santas and Snowmen.

I'm so happy I joined Stitching Lotus's ornament SAL. I love my handmade Christmas tree, and I would love to have more ornaments on it. Sometimes I just need a little push to put things at the top of the list!

Christmas in July Continues

Last week, I had Black Snowman as my focus piece. Here's where I started with him. I can't believe I haven't shown him since January! Yikes. Especially since even limited stitching on him has resulted in great strides. I did the idiot stitching per Edgar. (Unlike him, I did not save it for air travel. Oh well.)

This week, I worked on my ornament (sneak peek below*). And I pulled my Three Kings Tall Guys back out. I did the tiniest bit on it today at old lady stitching. I don't have much to report. Summer vacations have our numbers way down. There are fewer stories. Today we were talking about date nut bread in a can. (If you miss it, Vermont Country Store has it under their own label.) And other crazy foods of our youth.

My mom used to make this thing called Texas hash (which has about as much to do with Texas as her Chinese pot pie had to do with China or pot pie). The hash is just rice, tomato sauce, onions, peppers, and browned ground beef. (Maybe a can of mushrooms.) You know, I found both these things online. Today, they were making me feel like my mother was a freak! "Chinese pot pie!" they cringed. What do they know? Someone actually admitted they'd never had Chinese food until they got married! (Someone who lived just outside Philly, not the middle of nowhere.) Now I'm thinking that my mother's cooking was perhaps unsophisticated but it certainly wasn't freakish. You could tell the nemesis was dying to interject but didn't. Hm. Perhaps interesting in its own right.

*Only as much as I've already shown on Facebook.

Ornament Stitch-Along, Stitched...Along

I am writing this post so far ahead of the deadline it's not even funny. That is to make up for the Blackbird bird from last month that is still not finished. Still waiting for silk. {frowny}

This happy little snow guy is Bent Creek's Roly-Poly Snowman from JCO 2002. He is stitched on a random piece of fabric with the called-for colors. He is just such a happy little creature. I love.

Neglect

This morning I got up bright and early--okay it was early, I was less than bright and so was the sky--to work at my local public radio station during the campaign. Did you call to tell us--the volunteers from the Haverford Township Free Library--your favorite college or university between seven and 10 am? If you had a totally incompetent volunteer that was probably me. I accidentally hung up on a caller, and I kept forgetting to get credit card information. Don't tell me all the things I have to say are in blue and then not put the payment info in blue! I guess I'm quite literal when I get up at 4:45 am after a night of tossing and turning and checking my alarm clock to make sure I wasn't oversleeping. I was bright...eventually. And I took two calls from fellow (?) alumnae but by then I was an old hand. If you've ever thought about doing this, I recommend it. It was fun!

I'm supposed to have been working diligently on Black Snowman by Shepherd's Bush. As it turns out, I haven't been. I've had meetings and organizing to do, and for some doltish reason, I kept thinking that I was working on Black Snowman until Friday. You know, Friday, February 6. {smh} On Friday I will stitch with my library ladies and spend some time at the doctor's office where there is plenty of stitching time, so I kept thinking Black Snowman would get his due.

I did start my February ornament. I think I just looked up from my stitching when this photo was taken. (It's a Franknsanta.) Stay tuned!

Day 13: Fun and Games and Cross-Stitch

Cake decorated by my cousin.

And we're back! My cousin and I drove up to see Maggie for her birthday. We brought the party to her because she had just been discharged from the hospital. She had a stomach bug, didn't eat, and found herself passed out on the floor. Her frackin' Life Alert didn't work because her phone had recently been converted to Comcast. So a big F.U. to both those companies for almost killing my grandmother. She got herself to a phone and my aunt brought her to the hospital where they kept her over the weekend for observation. When they brought my grandmother food, she wasn't eating. So my aunt had a word.

Aunt: You know what happens when you don't eat?
Maggie: I'll die?
Aunt: Worse than death...
Maggie: What's worse than death?
Aunt: They put you in the nursing home.
Happily, Maggie ate everything they put in front of her.

She seemed fine when we saw her, and her spirits were good. She was shocked to see the Pennsylvania contingent. And, I like to think, happy.

The mayor of Nashua had a card hand-delivered to my grandmother on Tuesday, and she couldn't stop talking about it. She was overwhelmed by her 106 cards! Thanks so much to those of you who sent one. I pulled a couple for her to see. She read the card from the White House, which opened, "Dear Friend." She looked at the signature, "Michelle Obama," she said. "My dear friend, Michelle Obama."
"And the President," I pointed out.
"That's the President's signature?" she asked. "You couldn't tell by me."
After she read the note congratulating her on her accomplishments and contributions, she said, "Do they know I was just a bartender?"

On the drive, I stitched this. And I'm sure at least some of you are happy that I returned to my roots during this crazy month of crafting!

Poor Robin
Shepherd's Bush kit
Without the words, because I was totally lukewarm on the saying, and you know I hate back-stitched letters.

I am thrilled to welcome my new followers, and quite pleased that some of you have found yourselves here through the link at Craft Gossip.  I hope you find something you like!