I'll Be Home For Christmas...

Mr. & Mrs. Claus, our elves, and 1 very old reindog. No, actually, it's my husband, children, new son-in-law, and dog. Yep. That's us. Remind me in January to lose some weight for goodness sakes!My two sons (Oldest is in the Army and only home for 2 weeks). We had a wonderful Christmas this year. I hope your families had sweet memories also. Here's a few more photos...
This is our tree before the angel was placed at the top (and before the gifts were added!)

This is a 5-Minute Fudge Wreath I made after hearing from my aunt that it was a great recipe from Rachael Ray. It's very easy! You may have seen her make it on Oprah.Please remember to pray for our troops!

Bunco Night

It was my turn to host Bunco this past Tuesday, so I gave out these ornaments from Old Time Pottery. We had a great time! I served a huge salad, rolls, chicken vegetable lasagna, and cheesecake. I had never tried Stouffer's chicken vegetable lasagna before, but it was really yummy!

I still haven't gotten all my Christmas decorations out yet. I'm still looking for my treetop angel and the stockings. My son who's in the Army, is returning home, on Sunday. He will be here for Christmas Exodus (2 weeks), before returning to Fort Benning. I'm looking forward to seeing him!

My aunt came and helped me clean and prepare for Bunco and Christmas. What a lifesaver!! She's a doll! I haven't stitched any in over a week. We had to rearrange my stitching spot, too, so the tree could stand in the corner.

I will try not to go so long between posts!

Thanks for the comments/compliments!

Thanks to all of you who commented on my DS/20! I appreciate it so much!

I actually stitched a little bit while we were out of town for
Thanksgiving. I worked on a Christmas ornament, Cross Country
Magazine's "Jesus, Author of Faith". I'll share a photo soon. The
progress I made was in white DMC thread on white Aida fabric. So it's
hard to see the stitching, for now. I've been stitching another small
area of Gathering Honey, also.

Check out Trish's blog, Just Another Stitch in Paradise, to see the companion piece to Gathering Honey, called Rose Garden: top and bottom. Her stitching is awesome!

Proud Army Mom

I am so proud of my DS/20. He's my hero. He's in the Army. Please pray for him and his safety. (Currently, he's in the Infantry.)

2 Year Blog Anniversary

Today I have been a blogger for 2 years. Thanks to all of you who have taken the time to stop by and comment and take a look at my stitching. Your encouragement has kept me motivated to finish a few UFO's. I always look forward to reading some of my favorite blogs when I can steal a moment. Obviously, according to my blogroll, I have quite a few favorites!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I wish all of you have a Happy Thanksgiving!
I have so much to be thankful for.
I'm thankful... for my husband, my daughter and son-in-law, and my 2 sons.
... for my faith.
... for my extended family.
... for our health.
... for our friends.
... for our home.
... for our country, USA.
There are so many more things I'm grateful for, too many to list.
What are you thankful for?

Progessing on "Gathering Honey"

I finally took another progress photo of "Gathering Honey". I haven't backstitched the border of flowers I stitched yet. I usually wait until I get a section completed, then I go back and backstitch the area.

I got a phone call from me son, who is in Basic Combat Training at Ft. Benning, GA. He sounded great. He actually was outside, in the tornado weather that whipped through Alabama and Georgia last week. His "company" was on a survival mission with 1 meal per day and no shelter from the tornado, rain, and wind, except for a poncho. He said it was a muddy mess. They were in the elements for 2 days and 1 night. Tough guys! I'm glad he is safe, though.

We had an outing in the woods last night with out Bible Fellowship Class. We had a great time. Every family brought a crockpot of soup. There was a big bonfire and even the movie, "Cars", was showing on a tarp tied to two trees! It was just like being at the drive-in, only way better!!!
(They used a laptop with DVD, powered by a van that had a power cord in the lighter, and a cable that connected to a Epson projector on top of the van. Is that cool or what?!!!!! All the guys were saying they were doing it again for the ball (games, etc. What have we started?

And, back to the soup. Here's the recipe for the White Rotel Chicken Chili that I made. (The original recipe was passed on to me by my DD/25, but I changed it a little.

White Rotel Chicken Chili (serves about 10-12)

2 pkgs. McCormicks White Chili seasoning Mix
2 cans Rotel (mild) drained
4 cans white beans undrained
3 cans premium white chicken breast drained
salt and pepper

Using a large stock pot, mix beans, rotel, chicken, and seasoning mixes together. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil covered, stirring occasionally. Then, turn to low and simmer. You can also make this in a crockpot. Top it with sour cream and shredded cheese. (My daughter uses fresh chicken breast, cooked in oil in a skillet, then cubed.) It's even better the next day.

Easy recipe for a crowd.

SBQ of the Week

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Jan and is:

How many different brands of “complete” embroidery floss sets do you own? How do you keep track of it? (i.e., spread sheet program, index cards, palm pilot, etc.)

I have a complete set of DMC , ordered as a complete set years ago. The set includes a yard or two of each color, not near what a individual skein contains. It has been, however, a big help to use for a reference to see the actual color of a number looks like. Also, I do use some of it, if I only need a very small amount of that color.

I also have a nearly complete set of DMC, wrapped on bobbins. I have multiples of some numbers and none of a few others.

I also have a lot of whole skeins or bobbins, pulled from the storage boxes, kitted with several charts.

If I had to give an exact number of sets of DMC, I'd have to say 2 1/2, give or take a few numbers I'm missing.

I plan to use Microsoft Excel to keep track of all my thread stash, but so far, I haven't taken time to do it.

(I have about 20 - 25 spools of metallic Kreinik threads, too.)

Stitching Blogger's Question of the Week

This week'’s SBQ was suggested by Lee and is:

How did you decide on the title of your stitching blog? Was it random, or does it have a special meaning to you or about you?

(I finally joined this yahoo group, so this is my very first question to answer.) Before I started a blog, I seached for cross stitchers and the blog world opened up to me. Through other cross stitching blogs, I learned what it meant to "frog" stitches. I had been doing it for years in sewing and needlework, but had not called it "frogging". Ironically, one of my uncles, who is only 4 years older than me, has called me "Froggie" since I was a teenager. He is the only one that has ever called me that and never calls me by my real name. I frog out stitches often, and it's my nickname, so it fit perfectly.

Ornament Index and "Gathering Honey" Hunt

Julie asked where to find the ornaments and Gathering Honey....

Jeremiah Junction's magazine, Cross Country Stitching, is where I have gotten all the Names of Jesus ornaments. On their site, they have an index for each and every design, including the Names of Jesus Ornaments. It saves SO much time when I'm looking for a design that has a particular verse. When you click on the design, it even displays the photo, colors of thread needed, etc. which is very helpful, too.

I just found this on their site, too. It's a specialty stitch diagram chart. How cool is that?! I plan to renew my subscription when I go back to work. It's one of my favorite stitching magazines.

The Gathering Honey chart and it's companion, Rose Garden, can be found online.

Take-Along Project

I actually stitched on a small, take-along project while we were away this past weekend. It will be finished as an ornament for my "Names of Jesus" tree. It's kind of difficult to see in this photo, but it is a design from Cross Country Stitching Magazine. It is Jesus - author of our faith. I'm stitching it on plain white 14 count aida, which I already have on hand in my stash. (I had more than enough for 4 ornaments, so I've already kitted 4 designs as take-alongs.) Here is the design finished , but I won't be framing it.

Little Cabin in the Woods

We are back from our weekend with our Bible Fellowship Class (aka Sunday School). The colors of autumn were spectacular! See for yourself....
We all had potluck dinner together Saturday night and again for breakfast at the lodge. The food was out of this world! We have some outstanding cooks in our class, that's for sure. Each family stayed in their own rented cabins. Each cabin had 1 bedroom with a sleeper sofa in the living area. They all had gas log fireplaces, which were converted during renovations a couple of years ago. My DS/9 kept asking where the T.V. was...there wasn't one (on purpose!). If we stay there again, in the future, I will take a radio. There is such a thing as too quiet.

Of course, there was the obligatory "Snipe Hunt" for the uninitiated children. DS/9 was in bed before that took place though. This year's snipe looked uncannily like a mop head!

Busy Month!

We are on are way to the great outdoors tomorrow. A little cabin in the woods awaits us. Our Bible Fellowship group (aka Sunday School class) will be there. Lots of eating and hiking will take place.

We've been busy this month with activities. DS/9 and DH went on a camping trip to Scout Base for Boy Scouts. They had a great time, although the wind almost blew their tent away! The goal was to earn badges for extreme sports. They did! It involved a lot of jumping. They had 26 inflatables to jump on, slide through, and climb. That's heaven for a 9 year old.

Yesterday was DH's birthday, so we ate out to celebrate. Great food, and great company.

And speaking of company, my friend from Grand Rapids, MI, stayed with me overnight (while the boys were camping). We visited with some of her family. She also gave us tickets to a one-night-only production of Memphis Messiah, which she helped coordinate for a non-profit organization called Orphanos. It's a very worthwhile organization that helps orphans. Check it out.

I've actually done some stitching, just not enough progress to share yet.

DS/20 is hanging in there with basic combat training. I've gotten more mail from him. He's homesick, but that's to be expected.

Gotta go shop and pack for trip!

Mail Call

I got another letter from my DS/20. (He's still in basic training for the Army). He has passed the gas chamber test, rappelled from a tower, and scaled a 30 foot wall, just to name a few things he's done so far. I've written him daily so he will know we're thinking about him, praying for him, and missing him.

I have only stitched a little on Gathering Honey in the last week, so the progress isn't obvious enough to share a progress pic just yet.

Yippee!

I finally received a letter from my DS/20 who is in Basic Combat Training for the Army!! He's been there since Sept. 18th. He's doing okay. I'm sure he'll be fine, but it was still a relief to hear from him.

I have stitched on Gathering Honey a bit, and have made some progress.

Also, my Bunko night was last night. We dressed in costumes. I was a tiger. The best costume winner was actually a tie between two ladies who had the same costume. They were designed and made by one of the two ladies. Instead of the Spice Girls, they were "The Dice Girls"! They had on black tops and pants with large dice appliqued on them. They had square hats that were also dice. All the costumes were great, but these were especially original and creative. Hopefully, I can share some pics soon.

DH will be performing at the National Shrimpfest in Gulf Shores, AL, this Thursday and Friday. You can get more info here....

Last, but certainly not least, today my husband and I have been married 15 years. I look forward to the rest of our lives together.

I Can't Breathe

My DS/20 has joined the ARMY and leaves for Basic Combat Training on Monday. It was a shock to us, since he hasn't mentioned doing it for several years, and now, he's in for over 4 years. I catch myself not breathing. I think it's called Stress! I am proud of him, though. He will be at Basic for 9 weeks, plus 6 1/2 weeks of AIT , so we won't see him again until right before Christmas. Then he'll go to Airborne training and Ranger training. I have been, and will be, doing a lot of praying.

Progressing on Gathering Honey

Finally, a progress pic of Gathering Honey! I've stitched the bottom inside portion of the "frame", the bottom portion of the verse, 1 bee, and the start of the leaves and strawberries. I've only backstitched the bee and the center section of the "frame". I know several of you are stitching this pattern, also, but you won't be able to get an accurate feel for the time it takes to actually stitch this by my progress. I have put it down several times, and not stitched at all for weeks. I have really enjoyed stitching it so far.

Some of the reasons my blogging and stitching has been sporadic of late....

We are having a lot of life changes in my family at the moment.
I've been visiting a loved one in the hospital regularly.
I'm looking for a job, (one with an actual paycheck)
I'm trying to find a place for my mom to live
We need to complete a few large projects around the house
Still de-cluttering and simplifying

...to name a few.

DH is on the road again with the band. He'll post some pics probably by tomorrow. Check it out.

More Info on Rose Garden pattern

Blissxstitches, asked about the pattern, Rose Garden. It appeared in the Sept/Oct. 1989 issue of Cross Stitch & Country Crafts magazine. This magazine is out of print, but you may can find it on Ebay. The pattern was also reprinted in 1991 by Better Homes & Gardens. One place I found it available is Craft Stop online.

Rose Garden in Paradise

I am very excited to know that Trish, Just Another Stitch in Paradise, is stitching the companion piece to Gathering Honey. It's called Rose Garden and it's from Cross Stitch and Country Craft Magazine. I plan to cross stitch it after I complete Gathering Honey. Her stitching is gorgeous! Take a look!

Wedding in CA

My DD/24, who married in April, was in one of her bridemaid's wedding this past weekend. It was in Los Angeles, CA, on the beach. Here's a pic of the lovely bride with my daughter.

Cousins Everywhere!

Cousins: Back row - Denise, Teresa
Front row - Donna , Me, Cyndi

We are back home from our family reunion at Pickwick Landing State Park in Tennessee. It has been 15 years since the last one. We really enjoyed visiting with our extended family. The weather was cool and breezy. Family from Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee came to the picnic. We remembered those who were no longer with us and memories of times gone by. It was great! Hopefully, we'll have one again next year. Here's the link to the few photos we took during the weekend.

It was also my 9 year old's first time to go tubing and he was ecstatic!

Got any Recipes?

We are having a family reunion this weekend and I'd like to take a dish to share. If you have a recipe you'd like to share (one that can handle a 2 hr. roadtrip), please share it. It is over 100 degrees here, so I'd rather not cook a lot of hot items. It's been 15 years since our last reunion, so it will be good to see everyone again.

No update on Gathering Honey. I have another project (a house rehab) that is a priority at the moment. I do plan to steal a few moments to stitch very soon.

Here's a photo of a quilt my daughter received from her great-grandmother. Aren't the colors yummy?!

My Little Swimmer

DS/9 had his 3 year of swim lessons last week. He did really well. It was his first time for group lessons. Now, he can swim underwater and jump off the diving board. He was taught about boat safety and water safety, too. I enjoyed seeing how the children were encouraged and motivated to learn. My "dream home" definitely would have a pool!

Go, Cardinals!

We took a mini-vacation to St. Louis and today we saw the Cardinals win at the New Busch Stadium! We arrrived this past Friday. We've visited the City Museum, The Arch, Busch Stadium, rode the Metro, and ate at Ozzie Smith's Restaurant. At Ozzie's, we met one of the few living "Munchkins" from the Wizard of Oz. Mickey Carroll was the Munckin that led the others, with a fiddle, and told Dorothy to "Follow the Yellow Brick Road." (He's the 2nd from the left)









Tomorrow we will visit the St. Louis Science Center. So far, it's been a great trip and a great Father's Day. Happy Father's Day, honey!

You can see more pics of our trip here.

Puppet No. 2

I caved and made another puppet for my DS/9. It's a knight from the same pattern as the wizard, Butterick 3230. It wasn't too hard to make, just tricky with the slippery fabrics! Here's a pic of the duo, ummm, trio.

Whirlwind Weekend

We had company from out-of-town this past weekend through today. It was a blast! More on our adventures here.

While I didn't get any cross-stitching time in, I did get to stitch. I sewed a puppet for my son in a 5 hour sewing session! He was very persistent about me making it and was a very happy camper when it was complete!

The puppet was made from Butterick #3230. The blue fabric, beads, trim, and some of the felt, was in my stash. All I bought was the white felt with metallic flecks used for his beard, hair and mustache. It cost me under a $1 to make since I already had the pattern and most of the supplies!

Now, he is wanting me to make the others, but he'll have to wait until I can set aside another 5 hour block to sew the next one. Who knows when that will be!

I'm Still Here!

I haven't had one moment to stitch this week because of VBS. It's been a great experience. You can see photos here. I will be adding more photos to this series as I take them.

Also, you can see my daughter's wedding photos here.

Hopefully, I'll be stitching again this weekend. I've really enjoyed reading everyone's stitching blogs. It keeps me inspired.

VBS Prep

My church's VBS is in June and we had a "workday" on Tuesday. The theme is Son Treasure Island. I am responsible for making the blowfish, the 5 medallions, palm trees, etc. We used an overhead projector to trace the items that had transparencies. We didn't have any foam core board, so I'll have to buy some or improvise. The blowfish are made of a painted 6 inch styrofoam ball with pipecleaners stuck in it. Then large wiggle eyes are added. You can see the brown and green blowfish in the underwater photo and the medallions are in the other. I'll share photos of the ones we make when they are done. (These are the samples).

Cutting the Cake!

Here is a photo of my daughter and her new husband cutting the wedding cake. Her initials were on the side of the bride's cake and his initials were on his groom's cake. This was the first time I had seen this done and I thought it was a neat idea. The theme of the wedding was Tiffany blue and ivory. The cake was square to mimic the Tiffany and Co. box.

Her bridesmaids wore Tiffany blue dresses with ivory sashes. She had 6 bridesmaids, but only three are pictured.
When I get more photos, I'll put them in an album and link them at the sidebar. Presently, the newlyweds are in Jamaica on their honeymoon.

I've been busy moving 2 rooms of furniture and "stuff" so that new carpet could be installed. We hope to sell our home soon, but we have some repairs to do first. I will try to squeeze in some stitching, though, just for my sanity!

I have a new son!

Yep! My daughter is now a married woman and I have a new son! We love him and I know they will make a great couple. The wedding was beautiful and she was a lovely bride. I will post photos as soon as I can. The video we did for them was well received, also. That was a relief. I'll share more later.

Wedding Preparations

Sorry for no updates lately. We all been busy with my DD/24's wedding preparations. We've met with the coordinator, so I have more direction on what I need to do. I finally got a chance to look for a mother-of-the-bride dress and rehearsal dinner outfit. I did that yesterday. Mission accomplished. We are coming along on the video that will be shown at the reception. Also, I am making the programs. The little ribbon bows for the bubbles will be finished over the weekend. I will still need to buy the food and drinks for the groom's and bride's rooms. That's some of what's kept me from blogging regularly.

On another note, I'm also trying to find my mom another apartment. In addition to that, our renter moved with no notice, so now we are scrambling to put that house up for sale (after giving it some paint, carpet, and repairs, of course.)

We'd planned earlier to move this summer, but now we don't know how likely that will be with so many changes taking place. (DH is on a 19% pay-cut and I will be going back to work soon after being a stay-at-home mom for 11 years).

I will try to get back on track with my blog and stitching as soon as the wedding is behind us, which is April 29th.

Ta-Da! Stitching Progress!

All of the center garden of Gathering Honey is completely stitched. Go me! Now, on to the honeycone border and flowers. I am still enjoying this design. If any of you are considering stitching this design at some point, don't let my lengthy stitching time lead you to think it is a difficult design. I just haven't worked on it consistently. I probably could have finished it months ago had I worked on it steadily.

Unfortunately, my DD has told me she isn't really into cross stitch. While that blew a hole into me stitching a wedding sampler, it did free up time for me to help her prepare for her wedding day. I actually found something I think I may stitch after the wedding, but I can't share it here because she reads my blog. I actually found the project on one of the cross stitch BBs. After the wedding is behind us, I'll share more on that.

My New "Toy"

It's been too long since I last blogged! My DD/24 is getting married April 29th, so I've been addressing invitations the last few days. We will be making the programs soon, and I'm looking forward to that. I'll share a photo when we get them done. DD/24 and her fiance's new home is finished, and it's beautiful. Everything is going great for them! I'm so happy for them both.

Now, for my new "Toy".....I traded my '94 Nissan Quest van for a '03 Toyota Corolla! It's quite a change, but I'm looking forward to the better gas mileage! It's a lot of fun to drive, too!

As for stitching, I cross stitched two rows of plants in the upper right hand corner of Gathering Honey. I'll share a photo soon.

Current WIP

Thanks for all your comments on my current WIP! Terri, the design is called Gathering Honey. It's from the May/June 1987 issue of Cross Stitch & Country Crafts Magazine. Bastet, I plan to frame this sampler and hang it in my kitchen. I need a constant reminder of the verse stitched on it!

When my DS/9 was 4 years old, we borrowed books from the library to learn more about bees. Interesting stuff! It brought a whole new meaning to "Queen Bee"!

I put the model photo in my sidebar for a reference. As you can see, I still have quite a bit of stitching to do.

"Planting" My Stitching Garden

A stitching update...finally! I've finished the "hedges" in the upper right corner of the garden. Then, I moved to the lower left corner and stitched 3 of the 4 rows of plants. The green x's are part of the fourth veggie row. I've completed them, but I need to take another progress photo.

We celebrated Valentine's Day over the weekend by dining at Bonefish Grill. Ymmmm! We had a delicious meal! HAPPY VALENTINE"S DAY TO ALL OF YOU!



DH is performing this Friday and Saturday night for release parties for the new Fried Glass Onions, Memphis Meets the Beatles Volume II CD. Both CD release parties are at Heartsong Church. You can get all the info here.

In Memory of Laura

I was shocked and saddened to learn that a fellow stitching blogger, Laura, A Night Owl Who Blogs, passed away suddenly on Friday. I read her blog regularly. My heart goes out to her husband, Neil, and the family. She was so excited about her new home being built. Though I never met her, I will miss her....

Finally, A Stitching Update

I finally finished cross stitching the upper left corner of Gathering Honey. Next, I backstitched that corner. I had not backstitched the stones yet, so I backstitched all the stones in the path. Lastly, I backstitched the beehive in the center. Now, it really looks like a hive, instead of a bell (which was my son's "guess" on the blob in the center LOL). Now I'm working on the upper right corner's "bushes" around the edge. I still love this design, which is a good thing, since I have a looooong way to go!

New Year's Eve was great! My DH had a televised gig on TV (Countdown on Beale) which was a lot of fun. Over 75,000 people attended the event, and a few thousand saw the performance live, while many more watched by TV. In the past, we normally aren't even up at midnight on New Year's Eve, but this was a nice change. (DH is on the left in the white shirt)