Crafting

 Last weekend Hubby and I traveled to California for a visit with our son and his family. We got to play with our grandson and snuggle our granddaughter. 

The latter photo was when we babysat so our son and daughter in law could enjoy a dinner date. 

I got a chance to work on Cinnamon House on the plane. 

All of my other projects are too large to travel with, so this was best to bring. 

There has been a whole lot of stitching completed on the Christmas stocking.

 I am almost done with the toe and will then work my way up the stocking backstitching as I go. 

Almost all of the Granny square centers are complete. They just need the surrounding white row. 

This has become my nightly TV watching craft. I want to finish it soon and start another yarn craft. 

I recently read The Lost Dresses of Italy. 

This was an enjoyable book. There is a little bit of intrigue/mystery set in post WWII Italy. It also is a fictional account of the life of the poet Christina Rossetti. 

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. I hope you take some time to sit back with some tea or coffeen and pop on over to their sites to see what other bloggers are stitching. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Second Stitch Along Update of August

Yes, amazingly three weeks have passed and it is time for another Stitch Along update. How is it possible that 2025 is going by so quickly? This is where I was at the last update.

Three weeks ago I was hoping that I would be done with the page that I am currently working on. Sadly, that is not the case, though I am a lot closer to that goal. I am busy filling in a whole lot of sand.

I thought I would also remind you what this project will look like when it is completed. Yes, there is still an awful lot to stitch. 

This Stitch Along is hosted every three weeks by Avis at Sewing Beside the Sea who kindly sends us the needed posting reminders. 

Grab yourself a cup of coffee or tea and take some time to visit the other bloggers below who are part of this stitch-along. There is a wide variety of stitching projects. These talented stitchers are from all over the world, so please allow for the time differences and check back for each post.  

Avis, Claire, Christina, Kathy, Margaret,

 Sunny, Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, 

Cathie, Linda, MaryMargaret, Cindy, Helen

Thanks for stopping by!

Progress

I finished my grandson’s Christmas ornament. It is a star shaped iced gingerbread cookie made from felt. 

It is personalized like the others. 

I’m so glad that all three ornaments for my grandchildren are ready to be given to them in December. 

A lot of progress has been made on my youngest granddaughter’s Christmas stocking. The little girl’s nightgown is done except for French knots and backstitching which will get done later. 

Now I’m working my way down to the toe of the stocking. The lavender is the end of the left side of the stocking.

Another block has been quilted on Having a Ball (the pale green one on top). There are now 16 of the 36 blocks quilted. 

Of course, all this progress is due to the fact that I am not able to do much else at the moment. The MRI that I had on Tuesday showed both meniscus are torn and there is a slight fracture of the tibia. I got the report from the radiology center. The ACL is fine. I’m wearing my brace and will see how the orthopedist wants to move forward on Monday. I’ve gone to PT twice and I have no pain. 

I will be joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching and Frederique at the Quilting Patch today. I hope you take some time to sit back with some tea or coffee and pop on over to their sites to see what other bloggers are stitching. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Ugh

 I did it again. I caught my toe on a door saddle and fell last Saturday. This time I badly twisted my right knee. The orthopedist thinks I tore my ACL though not bad enough to require surgery. I will have an MRI on Tuesday. This is my 3rd MRI since the beginning of July...one for my hip, one for my spine and now my knee. UGH!!!! The orthopedist drained some fluid from knee and prescribed a large brace.

I will start PT on Monday.

This past week our daughter and granddaughter came for a visit. Our granddaughter's daycare was closed for the week and our daughter needed us to watch her while she worked from our house two of the days they were here. Thankfully the brace made it possible for me to get around the house fairly easily. The nice weather meant we could play both inside and out. Our granddaughter likes to do puzzles. 

She finished three 100 piece puzzles while she was here.

Hubby, our daughter and granddaughter enjoyed some time in the pool a few days also. I wasn't sure if I should go in so I just watched. 

I didn't do any crafting while they were here as I don't like needles to be out with a two year old. I have been working on the Christmas stocking a little bit since they left on Friday morning. I am still stitching the little girl's nightgown.

 I am surprised at how long it is taking to complete.

I haven't worked on anything else this past week.

I am joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching. I hope you take some time to sit back with some tea or coffeen and pop on over to their sites to see what other bloggers are stitching. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Stitch Along Update

I was really hoping to have finished this page of Three Boats on a Tropical Beach by the end of July, but it was not to be. This is where I was for the last update, three weeks ago.

Here is where I am now. I have filled in some sand below the third boat. There is a lot more sand to stitch.

Our granddaughter will be visiting all this week and we will be traveling to CA sometime this month so I don't expect to finish this page any time soon. I am now hoping it is done by the end of the year since I am also trying to finish a full cover Christmas stocking for this year's holiday. You can see an update on that project here.

This Stitch Along is hosted every three weeks by Avis at Sewing Beside the Sea who kindly sends us the needed posting reminders. 

Grab yourself a cup of coffee or tea and take some time to visit the other bloggers below who are part of this stitch-along. There is a wide variety of stitching projects. These talented stitchers are from all over the world, so please allow for the time differences and check back for each post.  

Avis, Claire, Christina, Kathy, Margaret,

 Sunny, Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, 

Cathie, Linda, MaryMargaret, Cindy, Helen

Thanks for stopping by!

Some crafting and a trip to Saratoga

Hubby and I are just back from a short 3 day, 2 night trip to Saratoga, NY. Hubby is a big horse racing fan and we go upstate for a couple of days most years during the summer season. On the day we drove up our hotel room wasn't ready when we arrived, so we drove to a nearby quilt shop that I hadn't visited previously. It is called KC Framing & Fabrics.

This shop was filled with colorful fabrics.

 I surprised myself by not buying any fabric. There just weren't any fabrics that spoke to me. I don't currently have any plans to make a quilt with bright fabrics which is basically all they have. I looked for some neutrals, but there weren't many.  I bought a bobbin holder and some 1" EPP hexagon papers and that was all.

We went to the Saratoga Racecourse on the second day of our trip. Sadly, it was cold and rainy. 

It was fine though. We had brought jeans and jackets to wear and it wasn't very crowded at all so we could always find a place to sit inside in between races. Below we are sitting in a covered area that is open to the grounds behind it. 

It wasn't a good betting day for me, but Hubby broke even. 

That evening we went to a restaurant that was new to us. It is very high end. Hubby and I shared the Tomahawk Ribeye for two special. The restaurant brands the bone with its name.

The second day was sunny and in the 70s. 

A perfect day to be at the track. This day, I won $40 and Hubby only lost about the same amount. All in all we had a fun time.

I finished quilting the black block on Having a Ball. I am not thrilled with the way the quilting came out, but I am not doing it over. Next up is the light green block.

I added more stitches to my granddaughter's Christmas stocking. I am still working on the nightgown.

 

The white "frosting" for my grandson's ornament has almost all its embroidery and beading completed. 

Now I have to applique it to the "cookie" background. Hopefully that will get done next week. Our daughter is coming with our granddaughter for a weeklong visit, so I am not sure if any crafting will get done at all.

I will be joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching and Frederique at the Quilting Patch today. Make yourself some tea or coffee and pop on over to their sites to see what other bloggers are stitching. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

A Christmas finish

The iced gingerbread snowflake felt ornament for my older granddaughter is finished! I embroidered the personalization.

 Then I put the front and back together and stuffed it. 

Next will be the iced gingerbread star ornament for my grandson. 

These work up fast. I hope to have this done fairly soon.

I thought I would have the little girl's nightgown on the stocking finished by the end of this week, but there is a lot more stitching to do than I thought.This is where the stocking is as of Saturday.

I took some time to bake this week. I had two bananas that were going bad so I made three little Blueberry banana breads. I have the original Taste of Home June/July 2003 magazine recipe, but the link is the same recipe. 

Two of the breads will go to my MIL who always appreciates my baking.

Hubby and I enjoyed two small outings this week. One afternoon we drove 15 minutes to Wantagh Park. That is pronounced won-TAW for your information. We walked along the path and sat on a bench overlooking Wantagh Bay. There were some boats on the bay and we enjoyed watching the seagulls, terns, ducks and geese. 

It was a beautiful day with low humidity. Finally! It has felt like you are breathing in water lately when you go outside. 

On Thursday we decided to drive 1 hour east on Long Island to Terra Vite Vineyard for lunch.

 We have been there before and enjoy their paninis with a glass of wine. The paninis were as delicious as always, but the wine was disappointing. I had the  White Merlot on the left and Hubby had the Chardonnay.

 A couple near us recommended the White Merlot. Everyone has different tastes.

I will be joining Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching and Frederique at the Quilting Patch today. Make yourself some tea or coffee and pop on over to their sites to see what other bloggers are stitching. 

Thanks for stopping by!