The computer crashes, only one square done.

My brand new computer "crashed" a couple of days ago and I just spent the better part of the last two days, when I didn't have customers in my antique shop, starting all over again. I am thankful that I keep all my files on an external hard drive so the only thing I really lost was all the basic programs so I have been doing a LOT of reinstalling.
But here I am again. I am WAY BEHIND on my Stitch A Long though I did manage to get the linen piece out, marked and the first square done. I am "hopeful" I can get back at it today, though I have a shop to tend and some other things to do.

I always have enjoyed doing ribbon embroidery so decided I would do some of that on this piece. The first one is a flower. And I am couching gold ribbon around the outside edge. So here is a picture of the first square


To do this I used what is called the ribbon stitch. And put a little pearl in the middle. I may add a few more beads between the petals when I find the right kind of beads. My beading supplies aren't very organized but I know I must have something. Later on today I hope to start the interior outlining of the squares but haven't decided on the color or type of floss yet. I also have selected two more patterns to put in the next two squares but obviously have to find a LOT more.

Back to stitching.

If you know me fairly well you know that I tend to jump from one hobby to the next. I go back to each every so often. As a result I am certainly never bored. I have been doing a lot of mini making and creating art projects lately so decided to go back to stitchery for awhile. I need to make an ornament for needlework group gift exchange...... it usually takes me many months to finish that one.
But in the mean time I have joined with an on line group called Stitch A Long that will encourage me to dig out my linen, floss, needles, embroidery hoop, buttons, beads and lace. Tonight I will start stitching. Each day from now until April 8th we are doing a 1 inch square, embroidered with a flower or some such thing. I am a few days behind so I hope tomorrow I will have 4 squares done to catch up. I may not always use straight embroidery. I might cross stitch or embellish with buttons and beads or lace, or what ever strikes me.
Here is where you can learn all about it..... 39 Stitches you just need to check back a few days for the first page of info.

So wish me luck..... I want to do this and I want to finish it. Some may be done as we travel and there fore may not be published every day. But I will play catch up when I get to a computer. We won't be traveling for a couple of weeks so don't worry about it now.

Bill's Update

Bill is improving from his accident but now has developed a very bad cold. I really think it is because he has been laid low with all his aches and pains from the accident and was just ripe for catching germs. So now we have to get him over his cold AND get him back moving without the limp and pain.

Happy Valentines Day to you all

Hope you all have a great day. Bill is doing better today which continues to be a relief. He is still limping though and the bruises are now quite colorful. We continue to be thankful it wasn't any worse. But he says he keeps reliving the accident in his mind.

Our plans for this Valentines Day are perhaps a bit different than normal. We are going to a Daytona 500 Race party. We go to this party every year. This is the first time it has fallen on Valentines Day though. But it is a fun day and since we follow Nascar we are happy to have the season start. I will be driving to the party even though it isn't far away. He can't walk that far easily.

Have you ever been hit by a snow plow?

My husband has!!! and it was NOT pretty.

This was not a great way to start the Valentine Weekend.

On Thursday afternoon my husband drove with me over to the next town where I had a doctor's appointment. Afterward we went to a shop across the street to buy a few things. And were then planning to go to the bakery across the side street. He said he wanted to put the bags in the van before we went to the bakery. I went on ahead. He was standing at the side of our van, getting ready to put the bags inside when suddenly a truck with a snowplow came from the opposite side of the street and hit him and threw him through the air a few feet. I did not see the actual event for which I am thankful cause I would no doubt have passed out on the spot. We are very thankful that nothing was broken. He is a mass of bruises though and he got a couple of cuts on the head. And there was a nurse from my doctors office, who had seen what happened and came over to help a bit.

The police and ambulance came interviewed the plow truck driver, checked out Bill and and off we went to the emergency room... they checked him over, popped a staple in his head where one of the cuts was and released him. He limped out of the building. We had been planning to go out to dinner but that was not going to happen so I ordered a pizza on the cell phone and we went home, arriving just as the pizza guy arrived.

It was NOT a fun afternoon though will give him great stories to tell.

We went to regular doctor the next day and he checked him over. He has a limp, a very sore arm and a LOT of bruises. It has not a big city snow plow but one on the front of a pickup truck. He was not plowing, just driving along. Needless to say he is probably in a bit of trouble now.

I have been playing nurse a bit, making sure he uses ice packs when he is supposed to and putting ointment on the cuts. He will survive but it will probably be a couple of weeks before he is fully back to himself. Good thing he is a normally tough guy. It does not make him happy that he is hurting and can't do what he wants to do but we are so VERY thankful it was not worse.

Snow, snow, snow. snow, snow. snow

Yep, we are finally getting a real snow storm. We have had little bits of snow up to now but this seems like the real thing finally. It is very quiet out as there is no traffic on our normally busy road. Schools and the college are closed and probably a lot of businesses. So I shall be staying inside, doing some projects, perhaps a bit of decluttering here and there and generally thankful I can use the snow as an excuse to stay home and enjoy. So here are a few pictures I took this morning. It is supposed to snow off and on all day so may be deeper tomorrow.

The above picture is of a couple of chairs sitting out on a small patio next to our deck. I judge how much snow we are getting by checking them out.

this next picture is of a teacup planter my daughter gave me for mother's day a few years ago. Looks like whipped cream on top of the cup.
And this next picture is of a birdfeed hanging on my no longer used clothes line. That is quite a high "roof" on the thing.

and finally here is just a general picture of the back yard. It is pretty out there.
Tomorrow, perhaps, I will have more pictures of the snow and pictures of the projects I get to work on today.

an angelic wall hanging

Started working on the next artist class project yesterday and finished it up today. The original was to be 11 by 14 but I liked it better smaller so it is now 8 1/2 by 11.

I used vintage sheet music and vintage lace pieces. Good thing I have an antique shop where such items are available.

I will be taking a couple days off from the artist class projects but will be back at it in a few days.

Snow and shoes

If you are living in the mid-atlantic area you KNOW there was quite a bit of snow this weekend. Fortunately for those of us in the NE section of PA we only got a few inches of the stuff. Here is a picture of two outdoor chairs on our patio. You can see, if you look closely, that there is about three inches of snow on the white chair. That was taken after the storm passed so that is probably what we got. I feel so bad for the Virginians, and Marylanders who really don't know what to do with all the snow. I know, when we lived in Maine, 20 inches was a lot of snow but didn't slow things down all that much.


Here is a picture of my "shoe" in the paper shoe project of the Artist Class. I shortened the heel a bit cause it didn't want to stand up that well with the spikey heel. I found these pretty flowers to dress it up. I still have one more project to complete for the weeks projects. The next one is a pretty flower. Hope to start on it later today