artisticneedle

to woohoo about I hardly know where to start! :)

Some of you will remember that both my stitching room television and lamp died at Christmas last year. Apparently that was the start of a tradition that I would very much like to put an end to - this year it was the hard drive on my laptop. After weeks of debating fix or replace, I finally replaced it last weekend. While I wasn't without a computer, the laptop has made my life much easier, less trips up and down the stairs I like to periodically fall down.

I finally finished my Christmas baking last week. I was feeling very bad that packages weren't sent in time for Christmas this year until a friend informed me I wasn't late but 11 months early. I like that kind of thinking!

This year's offerings:


I don't dare send a package without the Buckeyes and Peanut Blossom cookies, the rice crispy treats were an addition for my nephew. The center cookie is a Chewy Pecan recipe that didn't make the cut or, as my oh so tactful uncle likes to say - it was good but we don't need to have that again. LOL

I'm always amused by my sister's insistance that despite the fact that she is married, "ALL" the cookies are hers. Her husband used to let her get by with it but in the past couple of years has started protesting. This has provided some hilarious situations and this year was no different. She woke the day after the cookies arrived to find a message from her husband on the shower wall:


Do I really need to say that checking on "her" cookies won out over jumping in the shower?

Last fall the very same sister asked if I could make her a baby cube for an expecting friend, of course I said sure, no problem, expecting to have it done by the due date. I kept putting it off, mostly due to my indecision on design and colors choices. I was told blue and chocolate brown and couldn't make her understand just how many blue and brown flosses there are. Then I found this too cute Bella Baby fabric and went from there.


Shepherd's Bush - Baby variation

Today's mail brought a package of lovely surprises, I hope you can see the detail on the gorgeous fob, stitched over one and teeny tiny, my initial is on the back side. I am truly blessed to have friends that put up with me and still spoil me rotten.



Also in the mail, the latest addition(s) to my every growing fabric stash. These charms are the perfect size for most finishing projects and I love them.


I think I'll quit here and save other woohoos for my next post but before I go - I've had many e-mails asking the designer/design name of the biscornu I stitched for the JAT Christmas exchange. The original design is in the 2004 Just Cross Stitch Ornament issue. The designer is Periwinkle Promises - Christmas Ornament 2004. I stitched the design as charted but added a row of couched ribbon in place of the four-sided stitch they have charted.

Thanks for the comments on Rhapsody In Red part 2, I truly appreciate your kind words!

Labels: Baking, Gifts, Stash, Stitching

This will be a long post, can't believe another month has passed. Somebody please let me know how you slow time down.

Stitching

My stitching day a week fell by the wayside, all I have to show for the past month is a Halloween fob from Shepherd's Bush:



Shepherd's Bush - Happy Halloween Scissor Fob

Baking

I did find some time to do a little baking, cupcakes based on a recipe in my local paper, they were supposed to be cherry limeade but since lemon is one of my favorites in cake and pies, I decided that was the way to go.



Paybacks

There are 14 years between by youngest sister and I, this has posed all kinds of interesting situations over the years. She is only 4 years older than my oldest child, it was not unusual for people to assume I was her mother also. She found all those lovely ways to embarrass me when she was young - out in public, talking as loud as possible, you know the questions kids ask that just leave you wishing the floor would open up and swallow you?

I had thought when she went away to college her ability to mortify me would end but found out during her second summer home that was not the case. Picture an evening out at a local pub, an evening of burgers, beer, pool playing and darts, me with a date. Newly legal to drink, she'd probably had a beer too many and was very goofy. :)

As it always happens, in that moment when there isn't another sound and again, talking as loud as she could, she informed my date and everybody else in the place that she'd seen me without a bra and my boobies sagged.

I should say that I was just bouncing back from a long illness and surgery that left me about 20lbs underweight, I'm not even sure I had enough boobies to sag at that point. LOL Regardless, I was so stunned by her remark I couldn't even speak.

I never said a word to her about it until last year, when at about the same age I was when this event took place, she had her first child and yes, is less than enamored with her own boobies now. :) She chose to whine to me about it and I finally reminded her of what she'd said to me. Her very loud intake of breath told me she had no clue what she'd said that night.

Out shopping for her birthday card last month, I had several in my hands when something drew me to this card from Red Tree Studios, never dreaming until I opened it just how perfect it was for her.




Stash Enhancement

But of course I had to have the 4 newest Shepherd's Bush kits, the Happy Halloween fob is one of them. I won't have to time to complete either of the other Halloween designs but am planning to make time to stitch the Family Sampler soon. Sure I am.



Just Cute

I just had to share these little cuties, found at Michaels, precut and scored, just a matter of folding and a dab of glue.




That's it for now, next time I'm back I'll have an exchange finish to show as well as the prestitching for a Merry Cox class.

Thanks for dropping by!

Labels: Baking, Stash, Stitching

I've spent most of this year wondering and complaining about where the time has gone and now that the new year is so close, I find myself wishing it was already here.

When did time speed up? I can remember sitting in school and thinking the clock would never reach 3:30. Or sitting at work and thinking the clock would never reach 5:00. The days just seemed to drag on and on and on. Somewhere, somehow, time reversed itself and I find myself wishing that it would just slow down. A day seems like a minute and more often than not I'm asking myself where did the day, week, month and even the whole year go? Am I the only one who's noticed this?

Another nasty storm hit since my last update, we got off lucky this time, other parts of the state had 12-18" of snow on top of the sleet and ice that fell. Over 500,000 families were without power again, some for over a week.



Things got very hectic after Thanksgiving and I've neglected e-mails, phone calls and most everything trying to meet deadlines. Worked until 3am this past Saturday morning and shipped the last packages that afternoon. All that was left was my Christmas baking, I had grand plans of relaxing the rest of Saturday and baking Sunday and Monday to ship on Tuesday.

My poor brother and sister have been cookie/candy-less all year for one reason or another and there wasn't a chance I was letting them go without for Christmas. Then I find out the post office is saying the last day to ship and have it there by Christmas is Monday. Oh no! Now I have to cram 2 days into one. Kick myself back into high gear but of course, in keeping with my year, anything and everything that could go wrong did.

My brother has been asking, whining, pleading, begging for some English Toffee for oh, probably 4 years now. I was determined to make it this Christmas. I don't really have a recipe for any, so I combed the internet. Oh yeah, did I mention that during these conversations about the toffee he kept throwing in comments about how good See's toffee was? I had my sister bring some when she came last summer so I could try it, we don't have them here.

So, recipe in hand, I fix it, have it poured on the pans but am wondering why in the world it's not setting up. I know my candy thermometer is working correctly and know I cooked it to the right temp. I continue on, melt the chocolate topping, chop the almonds, am half way done sprinkling them and notice an odor. Not one I want to be smelling either, the almonds are stale. Pop one in my mouth and blech, they are staler than stale and of course, I don't have another bag. And wouldn't you know it, this is part of what makes See's toffee so wonderful, according to him anyway. The toffee may not be setting up but the chocolate is doing so rapidly so I race for a spatula to scrape it all off. Finally get every last crumb taken care of, cursing myself for being so diligent about crushing every little piece to smithereens. With no almonds in sight and no, I'm not going back to the store for more, I find some cashews and use them instead. Toffee is still not setting up. I crossed my fingers and moved on to the next batch....

Peanut Butter Balls. That's what my family has always called them but I think they are also known as Buckeyes in some parts of the country. No mess, no fuss there, I've been making these as long as I can remember. Done, I'm taking them to the freezer (yes, they freeze very well and in fact, that's where we store them year round - take a couple out and let sit for 10 minutes or so and they are good to go) when the next drama occurred. To get to the freezer, I have to go from the kitchen through the laundry room to the garage. 2 doors, one opens in, the other out. I know very well that opening the door to the garage quickly will create a draft that makes the other door slam back into it. I'm moving at light speed and that's exactly what happened, with the index finger of my left hand caught in between. About the equivalent of slamming a car door on it. Could I be lucky enough that my finger was pointing the right direction even? Heck no, I won't say anymore.

Later, with things under control again and on some lovely pills, my attention is back on the toffee. Something on the recipe catches my eye. This recipe called for heavy cream instead of water. Only 1/4 cup. I had poured the entire 1/2 pint in and now realize why it's not set. Groaning, I think I just can't make this again, I now have lost time to make up. But it's still so soft I can't even cut it. Decide to throw it in the refrigerator and worry about it later, maybe my brother is going to be doing without yet again. Go back to it later to find it's hard enough to crack into pieces but it's not permanent, the longer it's out, the softer it's getting. Have several people try it, one a die hard "I don't eat sweets" and all proclaimed it was wonderful. We'll see what my brother says but I doubt seriously I will ever make it again, he can just call See's and order some. LOL

Amazingly, the rest of the day and into Monday went without another hitch, or at least, nothing worth mentioning. Didn't get quite as much baked as I wanted but you know, those lovely pills have a way of making it seem like it's just not a big deal.



Toffee

Peanut Butter Balls

Death By Chocolate

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Lemon Coolers

I know some of you are laughing out there, this year has been one drama after another, you're probably wondering what this new year will bring. Well, I'm on strike. No more falls down the stairs (how many was it this year? I can remember 3 times, perhaps it was more), no more slammed fingers, no power outages, no hospital visits or stays, just no more. I would like, and wish for everybody else, just one drama free year, month, week, heck, at this point, I'll even take a day! :)

I'll stop here and be back with other news and stuff in a few days.

Labels: Baking, Blathering