HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY!!!!!!!!

I have gotten the greatest news!!!! my DD#1 will be coming home from Afghanistan soon. YAY!!!!!!!


We only recently discovered Skype, so we have been able to talk to oneanother and have even gotten to see one another via video, but having her home will be SOOOOOOOO much better!

Just had to let someone know!

Peace, Tina

just another day

There are no pics here because my old computer is no longer...I need to get all my pics off it and as of right now I have no way to upload any pics. You will have to use your imagination to "see".

It is another snowy day here in Upstate New York. After a few days of sunshine the gray skies have returned. I enjoy the snow for the most part, just not the having to move it. LOL

With the kids off to their father's for the weekend, snow removal is up to the SM and me. So we bundled up and headed out to shovel. It isn't to bad if we keep up on it; however, it seems to fall faster than we can shovel. It is not so bad for me and the SM; poor Jack (our teacup Yorkie...all 3lbs of him) is struggling to make his way through the snow to do his business. He is not all that fond of the snow. I have to giggle when I see him out in it looking for a place to do his business. His favorite thing to do when it snows is to find a tire track or some footprints and follow them for a bit.

Nose down and meandering through the tracks he finally decides that he will just have to do his business as best as possible in the adverse conditions. He returns to the house looking decidely dejected and much more white (the snow loves sticking to his coat). At the door his yelp signals me to open the door and admit him to the house. His little body is looking a bit plumper, from the covering of snow, but only for a moment. His whole body is a blur as he goes into a frensy of shaking to rid himself of the snow covering.

Snow scatters through the porch and he has to check out the mess that he has made. After a few sniffs he is finished and lets me know that he is ready to enter the house. As soon as the door is opened he madly dashes into the familyroom and jumps up into the SM's lap. They have a quick conversation about how mean I have been to send him out into the snow. Gotta love that the dog favors the SM over me...probably because "mommy" is the one that usually puts him out to do his business.  Gotta love it!!! LOL

I do hope that you all have a lovely day. Stay warm and cozy...that's my plan for the day...knitting a scarf and finishing some xmas ornies that I started. I think that I will be putting them away after today, finished or not. Time to start someting to brighten my gray days.

Peace,
Tina

Happy New Year

I hope that everyone has a peaceful, and joyful 2011.

Such a wonderful Christmas

It has been a lovely, wonderful day. We woke around 8:30 and got the ham and potatoes all ready to go into the oven. while we waited for Nana to get up (and warded off the kids pleas to open their presents) we enjoyed na nice fresh cup of Coffee. It is so nice having most of the kids here for Christmas.

I was happy to hear that my oldest, Angel, who is serving in Afghanastan, recieved her Package on Christmas Eve. She was able to call and briefly let us know that it had arrived and she got to wish us all a Merry Christmas. It made me miss her all the more.  Still, I was glad to hear her voice and the excitement in her voice made my heart happy.

The other three kids were all here and filled with high spirits. It has been a while since I knew that they would enjoy the presents I had chosen for them.

 DD#2 got part of her gifts last month, She needed winter tires for her car and with all of the snow that we have had it is a good thing that I we got them at the end of November. The rest of her presents were all car themed...welli n an obscure way...We got her a cute winter hat with ear flaps and ties. We told her that it was part of the car theme because it would keep her warm while she was out scrapping the snow off her car this winter. She also recieved a gift card to help buy a new car radio. overall the Auto was heavily featured in her ensamble. Nana got her a Wallyworld giftcard

DS recieved several gifts that all tied together as well. To begin he recieved a video camera. along with this he recieved 2GB of RAM for his laptop and a microphone that plugs into his computer. These went along with the program we got him. It is a video, music editing program. I hope that he will enjoy these. He aslo recieved a gift card for some movies from Nana

DD#3 got a Kindle, protective case, screen protector and a giftcard for some books. She also got two sweaters tht wse have to exchange. I am still buying for an 11 year-old...she is now 15...OMG she has "woman parts" that I forget to take into acount. From Nana she recieved the softest purple (her fav color) scarf

My Dear Man gecieved several gifts. DS and DD#3 each got him a nice thermal long sleeve shirt. DD#2 got him a gift card for I tunes....yea for music. His mother got him a Steelers sweatshirt. From me...well, we agreeded not to get each other gifts since we do so much for each other all through the year.

Nana opened many presents. From  TX she recieved a cool coco mix from Starbucks and a tin of their cocoa mix. From DD#2 she recieved her favorite thing...a bag of mixed Hershey's choclate candies. My DM and I got her a gift card for her favorite spa, and a calander that has pictures from Scotland.

I recieved some awesome gifts. DD#2 found me some lovely Lavander Smelling bath products and candles. My favorite scent! DS got me a wonderful floor lamp with an adjustable reading arm. I love it! DD#3 got me two new wall signs. They are part of the set started last year by DS. My kids are sooooo Awesome!!!!! My gift from Nana was a nice Wallyworld card. Got to look for a bargain on a new TV for the family room. The one we have now is way to small for the expanded living area; it makes my eyes hurt if I watch it from my chair.

All in all, we had a lovely day! Good food, even the critters got some Ham for Christmas. I must say however nice the day has been, I am really glad that this day is coming to an end. The preperation has been tough and my body aches. It was all worth it to see the enjoyment in the eyes of my kids. For the first time I have been able to get the kids some really great gifts that I know they will enjoy!!!!!

I hope that your Christmas was a joyful day! Enjoy the rest of 2010 with your loved ones.

Joyous Blessings to you all.

Merry Christmas!

We had a lovely Christmas Eve. Family is nice to reconnect with...especially when you are the one hosting! Not having to travel was nice. I was busy all week baking cookies and taking time to finish up a few special gifties. (I have plenty of sweets to hold us til the New Year).

I hope that everyone out in Bloglandia has a Joyous Holiday. May your gatherings be filled with happiness and your tummies with good food. Blessings of the season to you all.

Tina

Hardanger Happiness

I have been playing around with Hardanger. Mostly it is because I have a bunch of fabric laying around that I am trying to use up; It is also because I have been wanting to learn to do it for a long time. This piece is my own design using up bits and pieces of purl cotton and a piece of fabric of unknown origin.

I appologize for the fuzziness of the pictures, I am not a photographer by any stretch of the imagination.



complete piece


 

Heart Motif at ends



Detail of edging



Detail of Center Motif

 

Center Motif



I enjoyed this project for several reasons:

1. I am learning a new needleworking skill set.
2. The rythum and flow of the stitching is very calming and let my mind relax.
3. The feel of the fabric and the way it contrasts with the feel of the purl is a subtle variation.
4. It develops rather quickly (I finished this piece in less than 3 hours over two days).
5. I like the fall color scheme.

Overall, I think that I will continue to explore this new (to me) form. I have several ideas that I would like to explore. First I want to learn the other (there are only a few that I have seen) stitches. I have gotten much better at the center picots, but there are other variations that I still need to learn.

I hope that everyone enjoys their time with Family during the Thanksgiving holiday (at least it is here in the USA). Don't eat to very much, savor every bite and every moment.

Tina

A slightly late finish

I had actually finished this project about 2 weeks ago, but once again life got a bit hectic. Between Medical and Dental appointments I have been running around with the kids, All that time spent sitting in waiting rooms, now that theya re old enough to go in by themselves, gave me a lot of time to "play" with my "string".

I hope that every one enjoys looking at this little wall/door hanging as much as I enjoyed working on it.

Lenny the Lion

Manfred the Mummy

Count Carl

Gerry the ghost

Frightful Frankie

Wendy the Wistful Witch

Finished Hanging

Each of the characters was designed by me. If anyone would like the patterns for them please feel free to drop me an e-mail 

Thanks for stopping by, and have a Great Week!

Tina