HAPPY NEW YEAR, MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY THANKSGIVING.....

Did I forget any? I am SO bad. I'm so attached to Facebook that I forget I should stop by here more often.

This is a crazy place. This morning it was 28 degrees. When I left the nail salon at noon it was nearing 70. And it's going to be warmer for a few more days. Then we start again.....That's why everyone stays sick around here.

I have to be glad this year is over. It doesn't top the list of the finest! The worst was in July when David's mother died. She was 98 and would have been 99 in another month. It truly was one of the cases of where it was time. The only enjoyable part was seeing family that we hadn't seen in awhile. We went back to the cemetery to check on things before we came home. Guess Michael got a little tired in the heat!

My favorite LNS has closed. Last Saturday was the last day. I will miss indulging my addiction so often, but I think the worse part is not seeing Diane or any of the other girls so often anymore. Of course, there's enough stuff in my stash to last me several lifetimes. Then again, Houston and New Orleans are nearby, so I'll get a fix every now and then.

I was 65 this year. Where did it go? And I've already had the first visit to the doctor for the year.  I've had back trouble for years and during the Christmas holidays it went south! Sooner or later I will have to have it fixed and I really dread it. Sometimes back surgery makes things worse.

As far as crafty stuff, I will try to get some photos up. I've been knitting a lot and have pretty well focused on two stitchy projects: ByGone Stitches Christmas carol sampler and also Anniversaries of the Heart. My goal this year is to catch up on my LHN's ornies. I have a lot done, but need to catch up as I stitch the ones for this year.

Linzie is still the light of our lives. She is so cute and so smart and doesn't like fireworks. She has us trained beautifully! Giselle and Mia still spend a lot of time with us. And I'm glad to report that I didn't see too many of our resident serpents this year. Not that I looked for them.

Since my back has had me waylaid for a few weeks, I've been obsessing on Cranford.  Don't know how many times I've watched both series. Now if  Downton Abbey will just start..

So that's about life here. Dull, I suppose, but keeps moving along. I'm considering setting up a cooking blog. Well, baking, mainly. I'm still thinking of names and how I will organize it.

We're all anxious around here. Monday night is the BCS Championship game. LSU vs. Alabama. We all know where I stand. We lost to them in November, but I don't think we will this time. ROLL TIDE!

Until then, smooth sailing ahead for all of you.

TUSAL AND SPOOKY SAL

This is this month's collection of orts. It looks like a lot. Maybe it is!! The new jar is a little smaller than the old. I had a couple of finishes and a lot of frogging! And here's my growing collection of scissors. I found the cute vase at the Goodwill shop and thought it would be great for keeping my scissors neat.

I've finished my Spooky SAL piece. I chose this particular one because she designed it after a trip to New Orleans. Haven't decided what to do with it yet.

I had another finish, but thank goodness for cameras. It's a pillow for a new baby. I took the photo, downloaded it and found a major mistake in spelling. I'll do a little more frogging and post the snappy.

We're waiting for some bad weather to hit here. According to AccuWeather it will hit in a couple of hours. Linzie senses it, I think. She's sticking to me like brown on rice!!! I have a crockpot full of a new recipe. Hope we don't have a power failure. It's Corn Chowder and absolutely delicious. And very rich. I'll post the photo and recipe shortly.

Until then, stay safe and happy stitching!

TAP, TAP, TAP, TWIRL.......

This is my Happy Dance for the weekend. It's the Amitie Biscornu from the newest GOS.  I did it on some mottled green fabby and Waterlilies thread from my stash. I finished it last night during the Super Bowl---after an unexpected stop during the National Anthem.  How bad was that?????

I did a little framing last week. I have no idea when I stitched this but I found the little frame at Goodwill and finished this little goody. The colors are really pretty and the birds look really great. It's on 14 ct. Aida and I'm sure they are DMC threads.

This is one of my newest finishes. "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" is my favorite hymn.  When I saw this I just had to stitch it. It's on 40 ct. Lakeside Linen with the threads called for. It really is pretty good, if I say so. Not sure where I'm going to hang it. The frame is new, purchased from Hobby Lobby.

Couldn't let this post go by without some shots of my Sweet Baby. This was made this morning while I was snapping the biscornu. Linzie looked like a queen on her throne. Of course she does. She owns this castle!



This was made last Thursday during all the bad weather. The pillow is on the sofa-for my cat naps. She crawled under it during all the rain. What a cutie.

Well, that's all on the home front. I'm going Wednesday morning to have a laser procedure on my right eye. I had cataract surgery four years ago. The doc said then that this could happen but was simple to cure. It's called "after cataracts".  It's a little film that collects on the eye. He's going to use the laser to punch a hole through the film so that my vision clears. No anesthesia. No funny juice. No pain. Takes a few minutes. He's going to do the other eye in six months or so. Can't wait. I've only decimated two mailboxes and pretty well wear my glasses when I need to see at a distance.

I've worn glasses since I was eight. Completely incapacitated without them. I had lens implants when he did the surgery and it's been such freedom. I only use readers when I do my stitching. I can actually pick up a newspaper and read it without glasses. Now I do need something for distance, but that will become-permanently- a thing of the past when this is done. Whooot!