Tree of Life update

Here's where I am on my favorite B.A.P. - Jan Houtmann's Tree of Life. I haven't worked on it much since November's Stitch Camp, but I made some pretty good progress on it while I was there. That is...until the camp projects arrived!

This is my overall progress, in all of its wrinkly splendor:

And these are close-ups of my most recent stitching:


That center with the tree and birds is going to be a bugger. It's divided between 4 different pages and none of them seem to line up. I've tried taping it together, but some of the graph lines disappear into nothingness. So I may have to do a fair amount of fudging.

Eh. Who's to know? Except you guys. And you won't tell anyone, right?

Who makes these laws anyway?

Here's my big pronouncement for New Years Eve 2007:

Children should learn how to drive when they are 10 years old. Whoever chose 16 as an appropriate driving age had obviously never had a teenager of their own.

When kids are 10, they still think you're smarter than they are. They listen to you. They believe you when you tell them stuff. They don't roll their eyes and get all dramatic on you. Nor do they tell you that they really DO know how to drive a car and that you're just way too critical of them. They don't act like it's your fault that they nearly pulled out in front of a speeding semi.

So. Those are my words of wisdom to carry into 2008. Teach your kids to drive when they are ten. Or else you had just better wait until they are 30. Or maybe even until they're 40 and have kids of their own.
**************************************************
And here ends my "Holidailies" experience. Well, I tried. I managed to write a blog entry for 24 out of 31 days in the month of December. It was a good experience, and it made me realize that there really IS something to write almost every day. So, thanks for listening to me blather on!

Bonne Annee!

Here's the little Bonne Annee ornie that I stitched for my sister. It's a freebie from Les grilles de Maryse. I think her little houses are so charming. I've downloaded most of them, but this is the first one that I've stitched. I liked switching from Christmas themed things, and a New Years wish was perfect!

I'm enjoying this new little camera, too.




That's 16 ct. khaki aida, and DMC 4030 and white. Easy as pie, huh?

This is calling me right now: I think I see a little hardanger in my future...

Today holds a mass for my father, then a trip to Canonsburg to drop Colleen off at a friends house, where she'll stay till New Years Day, then some shopping, then to a football party.

Like I said, this week is flying by...

400!!

YAY! YAY! YAY!

I've reached 400 posts today! I sure wish I had something insightful or witty to say, but to tell the truth, I'm drawing a blank. A big, fat blank.

My week has been flying by. I've finished stitching an adorable "Bonne Annee" piece, and I'm working on getting it finish - finished. My sister will like it. She likes anything French.

And I decoupaged a box lid. More on that later, once the glue dries and I figure out what to do about the rest of the box. The lid looks cool though.

Then I'll take a picture with my new camera! The best husband in the world got me a camera of my very own for Christmas. I have never had my own digital camera, and it's pretty doggone cool.

Wow. It's almost time to think about resolutions again. Better put on my thinking cap.

Here's a little quickie. A Yahoo group stitching friend sent me this little hanger a week or so ago, and as soon as I opened it, I wanted to stitch something on it. Found this little Santa freebie from Schoolroom Samplings (are they even around anymore?), and it was perfect. It's on 22 ct. Hardanger, over two.
I hope you all had a wunnerful Christmas (that was me being Lawrence Welk). We had a peaceful and quiet day, with LOTS to eat. I still feel full. I think it's time to switch to salads for a while.

I'm (mostly) not working this week. I'm sure I'll put in some time here and there. It's one of the downsides of having an office in my house - I tend to feel compelled to work, even on the weekends, and I have to really guard against that sometimes. But I spent yesterday self-pampering. I went on a lovely long run, did some yoga afterwards, stitched, watched judge shows and movies, and did laundry. Tons of laundry. In fact, I have an exciting week of laundry ahead of me.

We don't have any plans for New Years yet. I need a fresh idea...

Gifts - Not just for Christmas

I think I'm a lucky, lucky person. I've been given and I have been able to give many gifts throughout my life. Some of the gifts I've been given have been wonderful and priceless. Of course, there are my parents, my husband, my kids, and my extended family, just to name a few. There are my friends, near and far. And I have more material gifts than anyone could ever ask for.

And as I write this blog post, the gift that comes to mind is the gift of having someone listen to me.

You guys have listened through my triumphs and my tears. You've giggled with me and groaned with me. You've consoled me and congratulated me and commiserated with me. And all because you took the time to pop over read my blog and really listen to what I've said.

So this Christmas I just want to say THANKS! And my Christmas wish for you is that the kindnesses you've shown to me come back to you tenfold.

Merry Christmas, gang!

Last minute Christmas finish

This was quickly made into a pinkeep style ornament for a friend. It's not very Christmas-y, but she likes and collects rabbits.

I still have my sister's box to finish. Surprisingly, it's the box itself that seems to be the hold up! I want the stain and finish to look just so...So she'll get it after Christmas, but that's ok.

I'm so, so busy being a lead singer these days...I just haven't had time to write any blog posts.
OK, this is a lame-o post, but what do you expect from a Rock Star?
Gotta go. My adoring crowd awaits.

Shameless bragging about the OTHER child

You know...the one we like best.
From our local newspaper:
The Education Council of the Fayette Chamber of Commerce has honored Colleen O'Neil of Chalk Hill, a junior at Uniontown Area High School, as a student of the month for October.

The daughter of Lee and David O'Neil, she is undecided about which post secondary school she will attend, but plans to study journalism/pre law with the career goal of becoming a news writer/attorney. She is involved with the St. Joan of Arc Church Youth Group and is a member of a girls traveling soccer team. She has worked as a lifeguard at the Uniontown Country Club.

O'Neil is very involved in the extracurricular activities at Uniontown Area High School. Her activities include: girls soccer (three-year letterman), girls track, girls cross-country, marching band, forensics, Spanish Club, Academic League Team and Hometown High Q Team.

And they should have added that her parents are very, very proud of her!

Now I'll go drag the other one out of bed. Heck, it's only 1:30 in the afternoon.

Who am I kidding? I really love this kid.

It's been one of those days of spending 12 hours in the car. Ok, maybe I exaggerate a little bit, but it was positively eleven hours.

Drove to Meadville this morning to pick up John. Stopped at Elite Runners Shop and the Grove City Outlets and did some serious damage to the shopping list. And the credit card.

Got to Allegheny to pick up John. He was more or less packed, but his room needed some serious cleaning. Stripped the bed, hauled out the laundry, swept up the floors, put out the trash, emptied and wiped out the fridge, and packed the car. Sadly, no time to stop at the Fly-tying/Cross Stitch shop.

Drove back to Elite Runners because I had forgotten something. What should have been 10 seconds of shopping turned into for-almost-ever because of bumper to bumper traffic and a son that loves to gab with shopowners.

Then made a completely useless trip to Washington PA because I thought they had a Sharper Image Store there, but NOOOO. It was a hair salon. Yes. Called The Sharper Image. See, I had called John from the road to ask him to go online and look up Sharper Image stores in Pennsylvania. Instead of finding the Sharper Image site and looking for store locations, he just went to Google maps, found one, and gave me the address. Only this place didn't sell massage chairs and weather stations. (Or the coin sorter that was the one and only gift that Dave has asked for for Christmas) It was a GD hair salon. Sigh. I knew it was too easy to be true.

Had dinner on the road. Oh - and had to spend the entire drive home from Meadville listening to really bad music from the little darlin's IPOD. For God's sake, when did he start listening to Journey and Kansas, two groups that I hate with a white-hot hate??? (Goes way back to MY college days. Don't ask.)

And now I'm home and being begged to play Rock Band.

This is why some species eat their young.

Christmas things about me

Dianne tagged me for a 12 Christmas Things About Me "Hoopla", so sure... I'll play along!

1- I really love Christmas music and carols. Mostly the older stuff, but I can get sentimental over Springsteen's Santa Claus is Coming to Town, too.

2- When I smell burning hair, I think of Christmas. As kids, we always sang in the church choir and that meant a midnight candlelight service. And we processed into the church in a line and with lit candles. Now, it was the 70's, so we all had long, straight hair. Somebody's hair always caught fire.

3- I cried like the world was ending when my parents told me that there was no Santa Claus. I wasn't particularly little either. Probably 11 years old.

4- I like to cook a special meal on Christmas Eve. I enjoy that meal more than Christmas dinner, because it gives me a chance to be more creative. Especially with the dessert! Oh, and the cocktails! And the late-night snack!

5- And much to the dismay of my son, Christmas gifts are opened on Christmas morning, NOT Christmas Eve. Sorry Johnny - you'll have to get your butt out of bed.

6- I don't like tinsel.

7- I have three - yes - three advent calendar fabric panels that I have yet to make up. I just bought the third one this past Friday. I'm hopeless.

8- I love to give and get new pajamas for Christmas.

9- I miss my family in Philadelphia each Christmas, but I would miss being in my own home even more.

10- I think that snow at Christmas is overrated. Unless you've just received new skis or a new snowboard.

11- You all know this already, but I stink at sending Christmas cards.

12- And finally, there is absolutely no contest here: My husband is hands-down the best Christmas gift-giver ever.

OK, and now I need to tag a few folks: So if you're reading, maybe you guys ( Julie, Jennifer, and Annemarie) would like to play along

So you won't think I'm a Scrooge

While being sarcastic is my most "normal" mien, sometimes I need to tone it down a little. Like at Christmas.

So to follow up on my Christmas Uglies post, I thought maybe I'd show you some of my favorite decorations. So I don't come off like a total curmudgeonly sourpuss.

First the ornaments. Granted, my tree-topping skills are absolutely pitiful. But lots of ornaments on the tree (not the balls - they're pretty generic) have a special place in my heart. Of the ones below, Colleen made the felt ones, oh, maybe 5 years ago? And John made the little cross stitch one during one of those looooong snow days. I can still see the kids working on them in my mind's eye...So everytime I take them out of the box, I get a lovely memory.



And there are a few decorations around the house that I'll always love. These first two for obvious reasons:


And these two because - well, just because. Sometimes you just can't put your finger on why you love something. But I had always wanted one of these ceramic light up trees, and one year my brother-in-law made me one. It's always one of the first things I put up, and I keep it lit 24/7. It just makes me happy.
And when the kids were little, my MIL gave them this crazy blinkie snowman. If you were here, you'd see it flashing different colors like mad, and at first I hated it, but after years and years of John and Colleen saying how much they loved it, I came around to loving it, too. In fact, I thought about sending it to school with John to decorate his dorm room, but then decided that I just couldn't part with it.

I'll tell you, I have some beautiful Santas and a cool collection of snowmen, too. But if the house caught fire and I could only save a few Christmas things, these would be in my hands as I rushed out the door. Oh - and the beautiful Nativity set that my parents bought us for our first married Christmas. Well, I could throw the snowman out the window because he is made of bouncy plastic and wouldn't break. OK, problem solved.

Whoa. We're having some crazy weather. And the Steeler game is on. So I think I'll make some tea and settle in and stitch. I hope I'm wrong, but I think this may be the last day that I get to stitch until after Christmas. I really hope I'm wrong!

To the Burgh and back

I made a quick trip into Pittsburgh today to pick up some gifts at a running store. I got some good stuff for the kids and they had asked me to pick up a couple of small things for their running friends. It was what we all hope for in Christmas shopping - Easy to get in, helpful staff, everything in stock, and back on the road in about 30 minutes.

I had planned a short side trip, also, to a new needlework shop in Pittsburgh called The French Knot. Yes - I planned it. I went to their website, got the address, Googled directions from the running store to the needlework store...and somehow I completely missed the fact that it was closed on Fridays. Yeah. That was on the website, too. But did I see it at 7 o'clock this morning? Noooooo. I was pretty bummed out. From my seat in the car it looked like a nice place. It was decorated for Christmas. It had some neat stuff on spinner racks in the window. But the big CLOSED sign was certainly a Christmas downer.

This'll sound snarky, but isn't it kind of hard to have a successful retail business that closes on Fridays? Oh, and Tuesdays. On the other hand, it's open on both Saturdays and Sundays, which is kind of unusual for a small shop. Most shops are closed on Sundays and some close on Mondays, too. So maybe it's just what I'm used to, and it's tough to teach this old dog new tricks. I know I'll go back - I just had to gripe.

But folks, all was not lost, because on the way home I remembered that I would be driving past Quilter's Corner! Oh my, it was even better than I had remembered it and I brought home some lovely project ideas, especially as they relate to finishing needlework, and some scrumptious fabric, and a long sought-after needle threader.

OK, time for the Christmas decoration uglies. Why do I have uglies? I don't know. Dave and I sometimes have wildly different opinions about what's attractive and what's not, and rather than fight over it, I just put up with it. I mean, what can you say to a guy who likes to decorate with his collectibles... and they are still in their boxes? Even with the Wheaties box of the most recent Super Bowl Steelers? And the relatively new Matchbox cars - still in their blister packs and boxes. I think it looks like we're trying to sell the stuff, and I complain that my living room looks like a cheesy variety store.

So Christmas decorating can sometimes be a challenge, because he takes stuff out and then I put it away and then he takes it out and then I put it away and then....well, you get the idea.

So----here is Christmas ugly #1, and I can't really blame this at all on Dave except to say that he was there when I bought it and he didn't stop me.
What? Was I drunk when I bought this? I know it was around the time of a Christmas parade and I had gone to watch the kids march in the high school band. And I know that we had found a nice bar with comfortable seats...And it was warm in there. And then we went shopping. But anyway, at the time, I thought this was adorable and quirky and the perfect thing for my pencil tree. Now all it does is scare my children to death. And they're teenagers. Yet I put it out every year, mostly because I won't/can't admit that I was wrong and it really is butt-ugly.

And here is Christmas Ugly #2 I keep sticking this angel on top of the other tree, and then each year I take it down because I just can't deal with her condescending face. Is she supposed to be serene? She looks like she's just smelled something bad and she's getting ready to accuse me of causing it. So I every year take her down and stick a bow up there.

There's another angel that Dave and I had "words" over this Christmas. It's this big patchwork and rick-rack thing with a huge white face and floppy wings and I positively hate it. He wanted to hang it. I said I hate that thing. He said it was nice. I repeated that I hate it. And he said that we should give it away, and God knows why but I stuck it back in its box and walked away. So she isn't available for pictures today.

Don't ask me why I didn't dump it in the St. Vincent DePaul box. I can't tell you. Maybe I'd miss these Christmas decorating arguments too much? Because truly - they usually end in a good laugh.
So I guess this crap will stay around for another year

Gotta love the holidays!

One of my favorite bloggers has updated her site with another Cavalcade of Bad Nativities II. And then once you get there, I know you'll want to poke through the earlier Cavalcades and Collections. Everybody needs a good laugh at this time of year.

And what's better than laughing at yourself, because, hey, I have my own collections of weird decorations and why I keep putting this stuff out year after year baffles me.

Maybe it's time for a photo essay of Lee's Ugly Christmas Stuff?

Weary of the Wet

Good Lord, yet another day of rain and grey! I haven't seen the sun since last Thursday and it's starting to wear on all of us. I don't usually mind rain. It's a good excuse to stay in, make some tea, and find a stitching corner. But day after day of this makes me crazy.

On the extended family front, last night we finished moving the final bits and pieces of my MIL's belongings out of her old house, because the closing is today. Finally! I know it's been stressful for her, but after several falls down steps in her old home, we knew it was time for her to move. So my family and Dave's brother got together to help her buy a new single story house. She stressed over the move and the sale of the old house, and repeats over and over that it was all too much. She was too old to move. Last night I got a little snarky and said that that may be true, but she was certainly too old to fall down the steps again. Jeez, I know I sounded mean, but the last time she ended up in the hospital with a compound fracture of her wrist and a dislocated shoulder. Not good.

And now I had better spend some time on the phone with my mother. She's doing ok with all of the nuts and bolts of life, but her grief is still so very painful.

We all miss my dad and his gentle soul, especially at the holidays. He just loved the holidays.

I'm feeling better today. Silly, silly me. The thing is - it seemed like such a good idea at the time.

I thought you might like a little Show and Tell today. I've photographed some of my older projects before, but I'm pretty certain that I've not shown you my older Christmas stitching. You know, from back in the days when I didn't work (well - have a paying job), and both kids took 2 hour naps in the afternoon, and were in bed for the night by around 8PM.

I thought of this because the Holly and Ivy sampler that I just completed made me remember older Christmas samplers, and then I was reminded that there was a time that I thought I could easily complete a Christmas sampler each year. It was a good thought...

So, here are two little samplers that I still love. Sorry for the sideways style of photography, but it's yet ANOTHER gloomy Pennsylvania day, with almost no natural light, and to photograph them straight on really puts glare on the glass. I believe that the first one was from a JCS magazine, and the second was a Stoney Creek book.



This was one of the shop models that I stitched for a long-gone store called The Thread Connection. I think it was a Leisure Arts design?


Later I discovered hardanger, and fell in love with this Cross N Patch design. You may have seen it before, and if you have, you'll see that the bottom of mine is wonky. It used to come to a lovely point, but one day if fell off the wall and the dog got to it and she chewed off the bottom kloster block. (Believe it or not, she's still alive and healthy and with us.) Anyway, I couldn't bear to throw it away, so I just squeezed some FrayCheck on the threads and re-hung it.

I also used to love stitching the TIAG free yearly angels. Then there were years that I wasn't hot on the design, and there were years that I just wasn't stitching. But I still put them up each Christmas, and the second photo is my favorite angel ever.


And that's it! I have to say that I always admire you guys who have stitched Christmas stockings. They're always fantastic, and I wonder if it's too late to stitch them for my family, now that the kids are getting ready to leave the nest. They're so big, though, it's a little daunting. Hmm. Have to give that some thought.

Too much of a good thing

We went to a wonderful 50th birthday party last night, with great food, interesting people and unfortunately for me....what seemed like a never ending supply of wine. So I've spent the day nursing a hangover. You'd think I'd have learned a thing or two by now. Sigh.
See you tomorrow.

Rumballs

For Cheryl, who mentioned that her favorite cookies usually involve chocolate! I've always thought that these pack a great chocolate wallup.

One 12 oz. package chocolate chips
One 8 oz package cream cheese
One Cup vanilla wafer crumbs (about 22 cookies)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp rum extract
Chocolate or colored jimmies

Melt chocolate chips and cream cheese together over a double boiler or in a microwave. Blend well.

Stir in vanilla wafer crumbs and extracts. Let stand till cool enough to handle, then make into balls and roll in jimmies.

Chill in refrigerator until set, and store in an airtight container.

We've had a snowy week, and while it's been kind of pretty, it has kept me in and off the roads for the past 5 days. No running makes Lee a cranky girl. So I'm starting to look at treadmills. Treadmill running can be deadly boring, but so is my ancient Nordic Track in the basement, and that doesn't even come close to feeling like running.

I guess I just like to run. I like to space out and go, and snowy running has me paying constant attention to where I'm putting my feet and it's just not fun.

I didn't stitch anything today. I re-framed Drawn Thread's Spot of Winter that got wet a couple of years ago when we had a minor leak in the living room. I just now got around to washing it and remounting it. The frame was still fine, but somewhere along the line I've lost the little snowflake charm that came with it. Oh well. It's one of those things that sat on my shelf for two years and each time I'd see it I'd decide to just leave it there because I knew where it was. It figures that when I'd actually go looking for it, it would disappear!

And I organized a big box of Christmas fabric, ribbon, and felt. When I looked for fabric to finish that gingerbread man ornament, I was pretty bummed out to see what a mess I had made of that box.

I recently read a blog post about someone buying somebody else's cross stitch stash. It was through an estate sale or something? I wish I could remember where I read it and more of the details...but the long and short of it was: If someone were to come and go through your cross stitch things, what would they learn about you?

I'm afraid that you all would learn that I'm kind of a slob.

More adorableness! This gingerbreadman chart was a freebie that I came across from Cross Stitch Happy. Luckily I had the perfect piece of Christmas Green Jobelan in a scrap bag, and it was finished in almost no time. Oh - and I switched in a Crescent Colours thread (Old Oak) for the DMC 436.

And yes, I did reach my goal of mailing five Christmas cards yesterday. Sent christmas cards to:

a) Two of Dave's boyhood friends that send us photos and cards every year without fail. I really think that the guys write the letters, not the wives, and I think that's awesome. I love Dave, but he would be completely incapable of that.

b) My best friend from high school
c) My best friend from elementary school

d) The friends we visited in SC this past summer.

And today folks, I sent out two more. One to a friend that I went to college with, and another to a friend of Dave's, whose wife definately writes the letters. Look out, I'm on a roll.

Johnny called to say that he got the cookies I mailed him and that not a single one was broken. And that they were delicious. How that kid can put down three dozen cookies in one day....It's a good thing he runs a gazillion miles each day. I sent him our household favorite - chocolate chips. I threw in some of those pretzel/kiss/ peanut M&M treats for fun. And his Christmas favorite, Peanut butter Kisses.

My favorites aren't that sweet. My grandmother used to make cookies called Kiffles, and they weren't particularly sweet. Kind of like apricot horns, if you know what I mean. I could eat those like popcorn. You guys must have some favorites, too?