I have a new home. It's http://jcayemberg.wordpress.com/. Please come visit me there. I will no longer be posting to this account
Blessings,
Julie

New home...new post

It's been too long since I've posted and my only explanation is: I've been a: busy and b: moving and c: sick.

But we are, thanks to wonderful friends and family, in our new (new to us) home and I am loving having a bit more space. Later this week I'll post some pictures of my sewing/stitching/computer room (alias: the den). It was the fourth room to get put together. First...the kitchen, second the living room (well mostly), third, the main bath and then the den. The master bedroom is still a bit of a mess, but that's because we're finishing a dresser. Our old walk in closet had built ins for clothing so we didn't need a dresser. Now we do :-)

On the health front I am FINALLY feeling a bit better. Note to self: don't get pneumonia and move in the same week again. Like I said...it was family and friends that carried us through the move. I'd pack a box, cough, rest, pack another box, cough some more, rest. But on moving day, someone just propped me against a wall and I directed traffic. :-)

Stitching...what's that??? :-( Sigh...tonight I am going to stitch. I don't care that the house isn't quite done and we do still have cardboard. I am GOING to stitch. I am still working on Neuschwanstein and I started the Papillion Creations Mystery Sampler from the Gift of Stitching Magazine. I love both the magazine and the sampler. I'll post a pic tonight or in the morning.

I hope this posting finds all my dear stitching friends well and happy.

Blessings!

A 'blob' in the woods

Good morning.
It's a beautiful day here in the north country; sunny, warm (well relatively :-)) and a weekend, so many can relax and enjoy the bright morning. I hope this entry finds my stitching friends sipping a cup of tea and contemplating their project for the day.

I am off to work shortly (in retail there are no weekends :-)) and am sipping a diet pepsi trying...very hard...to wake up. No...the shower didn't do it. The biggest challenge of midlife so far is a disruption in my sleeping patterns. Which is why I was stitching at 2 a.m. and want to go back to bed a 9 a.m. Talk about backwards! Ah well...life's an adventure and there is a beautiful quiet that goes with those early hours of the day.

Because of getting packed to move, my stitching time is very limited. However...I was not going to load boxes at 2 a.m., so I did work on my 'Babes In the Woods' shoulder bag. (Indigo Rose). This is not my favorite project. Why? It's not the pattern. I love Indigo Rose designs and think Catherine is an enormously talented designer. However, stitching inside a handbag, for me, is an exercise in frustration. I even tried the sewing rather than the stick and stab method, however...I didn't like the evenness of the stitches. So...back to stitch and stab. And back to very slow progress because on every third or four step I end up having to untangles something from my loop of thread.

Having said this...I am very driven to finish this piece because I think the result is cuter than...well...cute! Here's the way it will look along with my first project scan. Next time I will take a digital picture, but at least you can see I got my first babe done.!

I know, I know...not much more than a blob. But can't you see the potential!!

I'll add more later, but for now off to work.

Blessings!

A

Good morning.
It's a beautiful day here in the north country; sunny, warm (well relatively :-)) and a weekend, so many can relax and enjoy the bright morning. I hope this entry finds my stitching friends sipping a cup of tea and contemplating their project for the day.

I am off to work shortly (in retail there are no weekends :-)) and am sipping a diet pepsi trying...very hard...to wake up. No...the shower didn't do it. The biggest challenge of midlife so far is a disruption in my sleeping patterns. Which is why I was stitching at 2 a.m. and want to go back to bed a 9 a.m. Talk about backwards! Ah well...life's an adventure and there is a beautiful quiet that goes with those early hours of the day.

Because of getting packed to move, my stitching time is very limited. However...I was not going to load boxes at 2 a.m., so I did work on my 'Babes In the Woods' shoulder bag. (Indigo Rose). This is not my favorite project. Why? It's not the pattern. I love Indigo Rose designs and think Catherine is an enormously talented designer. However, stitching inside a handbag, for me, is an exercise in frustration. I even tried the sewing rather than the stick and stab method, however...I didn't like the evenness of the stitches. So...back to stitch and stab. And back to very slow progress because on every third or four step I end up having to untangles something from my loop of thread.

Having said this...I am very driven to finish this piece because I think the result is cuter than...well...cute! Here's the way it will look along with my first project scan. Next time I will take a digital picture, but at least you can see I got my first babe done.!

I know, I know...not much more than a blob. But can't you see the potential!!

I'll add more later, but for now off to work.

Blessings!

I'm still here

Okay...if anyone is reading, would you like to tell me what the likelihood of me living to 749.8 years might be? Why? Because I have enough stash to last at least that long. And the problem is...I still want to stitch it all.

We are moving at the middle of the month. Moving to get more space to store more stuff. When is enough stuff, enough? More specifically, when is enough stash enough? The urge to gather is strong in me (kinda like the force was strong in Luke :-)). I have three Chatelaine kits waiting for my touch, but the new Japenese Octogon Box by Martina http://europeanxs.com/online.html#japanesebox
is screaming at me! Isn't it gorgeous? Martina...if you ever read this...I am in awe of your creativity! Thank you so much!

Okay...back to reality. I haven't put a stitch in 'Neuschwanstein' since my last posting. I've done a bit of work on 'House on a Hill' and here's proof. However, with the move, I won't be able to attend the classes. I guess that was poor planning on my part. I will miss seeing Marsha from Criss Cross Row and, of course, the wonderful teaching of Merry. But I will perservere, because I do want to finish this project. As you can see I now have a chain stitched tree and a HILL :-) and even a house.

I also have added an album to my webshots site that has pictures from stitching get togethers/retreats. I love stitching with friends and it keeps me so motivated. BTW: if anyone reading this lives in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area and would like to join us, please let me know in the comments and I will see you get an invite!

Okay...new March resolution. I am GOING to get organized! I am going to stitch and finish many, many projects this year...Really, I am! :-)

Okay...back to boxes.....

Blessings!

I am very lucky woman!

Well, it's almost bedtime, but I want to go on record as saying: I have the best bunch of 'stitching sisters' a woman could ask for! Their presence in my life and in my home is such a blessing!

This is my progress on Neuschwanstein for the day:

I'm sorry for the crooked scan. :-)

For now...good night and great blessings to all of you.

A Happy Dance

No, it's not what you're thinking. No finishes...although I vicariously enjoyed Carol's (http://carolsxsblog.blogspot.com/). She is amazing! She is so organized, stitches so beautifully and is just an all around inspiration for all of us wanna-be's.

Okay...back to my happy dance. Now I want you all to close your eyes and remember Snoopy's finest happy dances...hands (or paws) waving in the air, feet a-tappin' and eyes closed in joyful contemplations. That's me today. Why? Well, because I have some stitchin' friends coming over and we're going to spend our day with needle in hand. Woo-hooooo.

So maybe, just maybe I will have some more progress to post. I will also take some pictures of our time together. We are a small group this month probably ten or so over the course of the day. (Sometimes I have close to twenty). Because it's so cold, I am making chicken chili, served with crackers and, of course, M & M's. Stitching alone is great, but stitching with friends...well, it's fabulous.

For today, my projects on tap are 'Neuschwanstein (what else???) and House on a Hill.

DH, fearing out of control estrogen levels is scooting out of here. :-) His loss. He really is a sweet heart. He helps me get ready, then disappears. He really is just about perfect. I just wish he'd let me teach him to stitch! (It might help me get through my thousands of projects. :-))

I do have one picture to post. It's my 'TV' project. Our living room isn't set up well for stitching and I don't like to haul my Dazor all over the place. One day I would like to get another lamp, but until then I keep one project for those rare occasions (like the Olympics) that I hang out in there rather than in my stitching room. My project right now is the 2002 Prairie Schooler Santa, done on 7 ct Klostern with Number 3 Pearl cotton. He, along with several of his comrades are destined to be pillows.

Here he is!

I think he's pretty cute! :-) and I can see 7 ct even in relatively poor light. Who says I'm getting old?????

I wish all my friends from the 'blog' world could join us on this cold, sunny day in the north, but I want you all to know you are part of my heart and make my life a brighter place.

Blessings!

4 (and more) things

Good morning. It's a beautiful day here in the North Country. Bright, sunny and relatively warm.

Valentine's here was a simple celebration. With the Olympics on, DH and I had dinner in (Mexican takeout from Panchero's....mmmmmm). It was nice to spend an evening together and after 23 years I can still say I'm blessed to have this man for my valentine. He came home with roses and chocolate and he even watched Figure Skating with me. What a guy! :-)

Stitching wise: I worked a little on 'Neuschwanstein', but it really isn't worth a scan. But tonight I'm having one of the stitching groups I belong to over for dinner and needlework...so tomorrow I should have some show and tell.

In the meanwhile, I was tagged by Isabelle ages ago for this:

4 Things...
Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Hotel Maid
2. Senior Compensation Manager
3. Sales Manager
4. Home Accessories Buyer

Four movies I would watch over and over again:
1. Down Periscope with Kelsey Grammer
2. Hunt for Red October---ahhhhhh, Sean.
3. Entrapment-ditto above.
4. Kelly's Heros-all for the love of Sunshine :-)

Four places I have lived:
1. Duluth, Minnesota
2. New Orleans, LA
3. Estes Park, CO
4. Pittsburgh, PA

Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. NFL Football
2. Winter Olympics
3. Summer Olympics
4. I confess...I'm not a TV watcher and I can't think of anything else.

Four places I have been on vacation:
1. London, England
2. Lake Louise, Alberta, CAN
3. Grand Canyon and the rest of the state of AZ
4. Bulgaria

Four websites I visit daily:
1. My two e-mail sites
2. My stitching blog
3. Carol's Stitching Blog
4. Kiwi Jo's Stitching Blog (and quite a few others too.)

Four of my favourite foods:
1. Steak
2. Pizza
3. Buffalo Chicken Salad from Doolittles
4. Chips, salsa and a nice Margarita :-)

Four places I'd rather be right now:
1. Bozeman, MT in a snowbound cabin overlooking the mountains, with DH
2. Aruba, soaking up rays with DH
3. 'The' cabin...about 2 hours north of here. Beautiful spot
4. Stitching just about anyplace. :-)

Okay...that was hard. Most of them I had so many more than 4 answers to...and deciding was hard!

Well...duty calls and I am off to work. ((((((((HUGS))))))))))))) to all,
Julie