Happy New Year!

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Twice in one month! Woo hoo!

Good Morning to all! (Hi Gerry! Nice to know I have a reader out there, hee hee hee!)

Well, I managed to get in and blog twice in one month, hell must be freezing over as we speak. Nah, I just had a spare moment and thought I'd write a few random thoughts.

First of all, this Christmas, remember your Newspaper carrier! As a fellow paper pusher, we enjoy a little thoughtfulness this time of the year! The weather is rough, and a little Christmas cheer goes a long way. Around here I spend anywhere from 1-2 1/2 extra hours on the road every night in the snow and ice, and to recieve a complaint when I have been out there driving in the horrid weather really angers me. I know that it does many other carriers too....just remember when you are sitting in your nice, toasty warm house waiting for that paper what we are going through out on the very cold, icy, dangerous roads to get that paper to you! So, please, give your carrier a little extra time before you go off the deep end! (Also remember in many areas, we are BETTER than the postal service, we deliver 7 days a week!)

Okay, so off one soap box and on to another.....

Why are people so crabby? I mean, really, what is so horrible that you can't smile and be friendly? I know, I know, everyone has a bad day. I do it too, I'm not pointing any fingers, but really, is it so bad that we have to treat everyone so horribly? Just an example, Hubs and I went to Verizon to update our phones (I'll get to THAT in a minute.), and this man just purchased something small, like a charger. The little gal that was taking care of him was so chipper and polite and oh so friendly! She was one of those make-you-smile kinds of people. And this man was the crappiest to her! OMG, he should be so ashamed of himself, he never smiled, said thank you or anything! I mean really, what could be so terrible to be impolite to this gal? I don't know, but I had a friend bring it to my attention a few months ago that people are just becoming more and more rude everyday, so I try to make a point of making a joke or at least smiling at anyone I deal with. And most of all, I will ALWAYS say THANK YOU! Those 2 little words go a very, very long way!

Sheesh, now on to the new phone. I have come to realize that I have been living in the dinosaur era of cell phones. Holy cow! I walked around the Verizon store and was so enthralled at everything that you can do with a "phone" now! My previous phone isn't that old either. Just a little over 2 years! They had phones that you could email on, watch TV, listen to music, chat in chat rooms, surf the internet, and I'm pretty sure they even had one that would open your garage door and turn on your microwave! So, I'm now the proud owner of a very simple camera phone. It's my first, and I'm doing the typical new camera stuff.....taking pics of anything and everything and deleting them. I'm just amazed. And it's not just a camera phone, it even has a camcorder in it. WHOA BABY! I don't even have a camcorder. Well, techinically, I guess I do now....but I didn't before. I haven't figured out how to do anything with it yet, but I did manage to transfer all of my numbers, so I guess I'm a step ahead of the game. And I didn't even crack the books to do it. Gee whiz, I can remember a time when I knew every gadget and computer trick out there. Now it seems I am so very behind and I'll never catch up. As a matter of fact, I don't know that I really want to!

Just one more thing before I go, remember your feathered and furry friends in the cold weather! They have a hard time finding food in the snow and ice, so if you have some old bread, stale cereal or even popcorn, toss it out for the critters! They'll appreciate your gesture and give you a little entertainment at the same time! If you can, get them some seed....you'll have friends for life! We all need a little TLC this time of the year!

Happy Holidays to all! Be safe, happy and warm!
Christy

Christmas Lights

Hello Friends!

It has been many a moon since I have been in to blog, I guess that's a sure sign that the holidays are upon us! I get so busy this time of the year that I'm not sure if I'm coming or going....can anyone tell me? Ha ha ha!

Anyway, Hubs and I just finished hanging the lights outside, and I must say, they look so pretty this year! We've already had a couple snowfalls and everything looks so pretty now! I don't think it will last very long though, it is supposed to warm up this weekend. Anyway, I thought I share some pics of our lights with everyone!

Here's the whole house and yard....

and a closer pic of the front of the house...

Santa's band is JAMMIN'!!!!!!
Parking for Snow's Angels only!

I haven't had time to finish my Christmas shopping this year yet either, so I suppose I'll be out there in the rush getting that done. I may be doing a lot of really, really late night shopping trips to our 24 hour stores! I plan to do a little online shopping tomorrow, so it should be here just in time for the holidays....I hope! I'm just not sure where the time went between Halloween and now, I usually am pretty good about getting things done before now.

Well, I suppose that's it for now, I'm going to try like heck to get in here more often and update my blog, though, I don't think I have any readers, so I'm not sure it really matters! HA!

Have a great weekend all!

Long Time, No See

Hello friends! I guess I need to make a special time just to blog, as I haven't checked in for quite some time now. But, to be honest, I haven't had a whole lot going on in my life other than working my tail off!

I have done a couple of kitty RR blocks, so I'll share those with you today!

First is Lynn's block, which is coming along so wonderfully! I added the kitty, green butterfly, the herringbone seam treatment, the I Love Cats and the red hearts.

Next is Lori's other block. Her blocks are so cute! I added the mouse and "Play Time" along with the lazy daisy flowers.

This is also Lori's block, I added the pink kitty face and paws, the herringbone seam treatment above and the "perfect kitty" ribbon below with white SRE roses.

This is Kate's block. I added the black and silver kitty, the flower seam treatment above it and the fishies seam beside it.

Also Kate's block. I added the pink lace and beads complete with the teal chains.

This is Rebecca's block. It was already so full, I didn't have too much room! So, I added the kitty with "cats rule, dogs drool", the pink kitty charm and the detached chains and silver beads.

I am having so much fun doing this RR, and it's hard to believe it's almost over! I believe we only have 2 more months to go, so it will be exciting for our blocks to be returning home!

Have a super day all!

More Round Robins

For those who don't know, and those who may care, I had two teeth surgically removed on June 29. Yeah...that was fun. It was real fun on the following Monday when I discovered that I had developed dry socket in the place where my lower wisdom tooth used to reside. If you have never had the pleasure (or torture) of enduring the pain of dry socket....thank your lucky stars! For those of you who have had it, I sooooooooo feel for you! I wouldn't wish this pain on my worst enemy! I absolutely could not believe that one little 1/2 inch hole could make my whole head feel like it was going to explode! OMG! So, I'm finally getting over that, and well....I can't wait to have something that isn't soup or yogurt. I'm growing tired of soft foods.....some potato chips sound REAL good right now!

Anyway, the point of that story was that I have had plenty of stitching time in the past week! YAY! I don't get very much time to sit and sew on a steady basis, but when I do, I am incredibly productive! I finished my last Your Choice Round Robin block, and two Kitty Kitty Round Robin blocks. Woo hoo!

So, I'm going to share the pics of the things that I did! First is Lori's Red Hat Society, Your Choice Round Robin. There wasn't too much room left to work with on here, but I did manage to add a few things!

Next is Lori's Kitty Kitty Round Robin block. This is from the House Cats group. I had so much fun working on this one! I added the "here kitty kitty", paws, kitty, milk and bowl on this patch.

On this patch, I added the cross stitch kitty with a pink bow, the metallic hearts and the pink paw print ribbon and stitching.

Here I gave the kitty in the middle a fishbone to hold up, and did the kissing fishes seam treatment

Next is Sue's block from the Alley Cats group. I did this entire corner! I couldn't stop once I got going on it! I added the black kitty and mouse, and did the seams around her, including the "I Love My Cat" ribbon. Then I added a silver kitty charm, a tan kitty button with a white bow and a lampwork glass kitty bead and done the seams below each of them. Again, I had a ball working on this block!

Round robins sure are a lot of fun, but they are a lot of work as well! I can't wait to see these finished up! This group of Robins is a very talented bunch and I know that they are all stitching very hard on each and every block!

Have a great day,

Christy

Happy Homecoming!

Good Morning! I am so excited! The Your Choice Round Robin has finally started to come to a close and I have already recieved my block! I am so impressed with the things that the girls in this round robin came up with for my block! I love it so very much and I will treasure this for a very long time! I had plans to make something from it originally, but after getting it back, I'm thinking now that I may just frame it and hang it on the wall! It truly is a gorgeous work of art! Thanks so very much to JK, Jenny, Lesa, Lisa R., Lori, Sue, Rebecca, Linda, Nancy, and Kate!

Here's a pic of the whole block, the theme I chose was Gay Paree.


And here's a close up of the left side of the block:


And here's a pic of the right side:

I hope that the ladies who worked so hard on my block enjoy the work that I did on theirs! This is so exciting!

Have a super day!

Christy

I Give and I Give....

And I love every second of it! I have made a couple of gifts in the past couple of months...and as far as I know, the recipients liked them, so I guess I'll share with the world now!





The first one is a cross stitch Dolly Mama complete with a CQ frame that I made for JK's birthday. I saw that she posted it on her blog, so I thought it was safe now.....she already knows about it, hee hee hee!

The second is a purse that I made for Lori for her birthday. Ofie got me into making Yo-Yo's and I just can't stop now! ACK! I thought this turned out very pretty too! I hope she likes it as well as I do, it was so hard to part with it!

I also made a set of pillows for my Mom for her birthday, and wouldn't you know it, I forgot to take pictures of them. Sheesh...."If I only had a brain....."! I'll be able to get some pics of them the next time I go to visit her....that is if I remember the camera!

Okey dokey! Have a super day all!

Christy

Round and Round I go!

Hey all! It's been a while since I've blogged! I got busy working in the yard and at the farm and just didn't have the energy to blog. Kind of silly.....

Anyway, I finally finished Ati's 12 Dancing Princesses block. It sure took me long enough! I added the cattails and the rose vine along with the "grass". I hope she likes my work!


This is Thelma's Alley Cat block from the Kitty Kitty Round Robin. I added the window, complete with curtains and a rod, and a kitty looking out! I also did the seam treatments.

Here I added a silver kitty charm and some butterflies in a rose garden. Here I also did the seam treatments, including the "Cats Rule" ribbon.

This is also Thelma's block, only this is her House Cats block. I added the Devine Feline, the kitty in the pink polka dotted hat and pink hot fix studs. I also did the swag lace with kitty faces and the seam treatment going down the side.

Here I added the plaid kitty button and the meow. I also did the seam treatments all the way around it, including the gold kitty paw.

I had so much fun working on all of these blocks, and I hope the ladies enjoy the work that I put into them!

Have a super Thursday!

Christy

A Visit From Ofie!

Howdy all! I have the most wonderful Memorial Day weekend! Ofie, my International Sister, and her friend (well mine now too!), Mair, came to visit me! We had a great time, although, their visit was much too short! After their visit, I have decided that I must go to Costa Rica to visit her now! Hubs and I discussed it, and it looks as though it may be possible! YAY!

Anyhoo, I wanted to share some pics from their visit, and yes Mair, you are on here too!

Sunday night we all went out to dinner, and Texas Roadhouse was the chosen place! Great food as always!

On Monday it was shopping time! We went to Hobby Lobby first, and we had a blast! I think between the 2 of us, we have 1 of everything in that place! HA!



Hmmmmmmm.....I think she was happy! I know I was!!!!!!!!!!

Browsing for notions.....so many choices!

I believe Mair was trying to keep out of all of the photos.....hee hee hee.....Robert got you!

Next we were on to Jo-Ann's! They were so busy!

Aren't we fabulous, Daaaaaahling???After all this shopping, it was nice to sit and relax for a few minutes. Ofie and Mair were making Yo-Yo's while Robert and I got things cooking on the grill!

A toast to friends!

Mair, Ofie, Me and Robert, right before the girls made their trek home!

What a great experience this was! I have many great memories of their visit, and they will stick with me for a very long time! I have to thank Crazy Judyth for pairing us up as International Sisters, because I truly believe that she created a match made in Heaven! Thank you Judyth!

I hope everyone is having a super Thursday!

Christy

Red Hat Wild

Good afternoon!

I have spent the better part of the past week working outside in my gardens and I must say, they are looking great! I can't wait to get this all finished so I can enjoy the rest of the summer. Today's chore is trimming bushes and pulling yet more weeds! Sheesh....I swear, I've pulled enough weeds to fill up a dump truck! This is what happens when you ignore your gardens for a complete year.....and that's exactly what I did. I spent all last summer raising baby birds and that doesn't leave much time for anything, including sleep!

I finally finished Jenny's Your Choice Round Robin block! YAY! I think this block is beautiful! And FULL! The ladies before me sure did a great job, but they didn't leave me room to work! So I did a little, and I'm passing it along to the next gal! So here's the pics!

This is the full block....


I added the shoe, purse and hat along with the seam treatment right below it......

Here I added the long vine with red beaded flowers.............

I hope Jenny likes the work that I did to her block, I know she'll love it when she get's it back! It really is looking great!

Well, I guess I should get to work outside, Memorial Day Weekend is getting closer and closer!

Have a super weekend!

Christy

I've Been Tagged

Okay! I've been tagged by JK, and well, I don't know what I can tell you, but I'll part the weeds and see if there's a bloom somewhere in this head of mine! Gee thanks JK, now I have to THINK!!!

Here goes:

1. I was a Girl Scout for 13 years. I did it all, sold cookies, (Tagalongs are STILL my favorite!), sold calendars, went to camp, did Father-Daughter overnights, learned how to ride horses through the Horsewoman program, and I have even spent weeks at Camp Munsee clearing trails, cleaning up the camp, and even helping to build the M&M bridge. A couple of summers were even spent as a co-leader!

2. I love nature. I can sit and listen to the wind blow and the birds sing and the squirrels bark all day long! I do NOT like thunderstorms. That is the one thing about nature that I can live without! I garden in the spring, summer and fall and I birdwatch (and squirrel and coon and bunny and oppossum) year round!

3. I am very musical. I love to sing! I also have played violin for somewhere around 20 years, and I have just recently started playing piano and guitar. And there are vast differences between the violin and the guitar! I will listen to any kind of music except rap. I don't like it and I probably never will! My favorites are country, classical and classic rock!

4. I love cars! Not these new fandangled things either, REAL cars! I have a '65 Mustang and my Hubs has a '50 Chevy pickup that has been slightly customized. I have gone to many a car show with my 'Stang and won a few as well! (Never first, but hey, a trophy is a trophy!) We go mostly now to visit with the good friends that we've made along the way and to see all of the amazing cars out there!

5. I don't have a lot of friends. I have never had a lot of friends. I have a couple that I hang out with once in a while, and lots of online friends, but it just doesn't seem to be the most important thing in my life. It is hard for me to make friends that understand that my home and family come first. The ones I have now seem to get it, and appreciate it!

6. I am curious. I want to learn everything! And when I do start learning, I really get into it and learn everything I can about it! I believe that is one reason why I love crafts and especially CQ so much, it's a constant learning process. My Mom taught me to have a thirst for knowledge at a very young age and it has stuck, so much so that I think I drive her crazy sometimes!

7. I love animals. All animals. I have no standards, although, I'm not real crazy about the hawks that have been feeding on my songbirds in the backyard, I still couldn't kill them. Trap them and move them, yes, but kill them no. I have taken in so many animals over the years that this place has literally been a zoo! Right now I have 15 pets....5 cockatiels, a lovebird, a robin, a mouse, a rat, 4 guinea pigs, a bunny and a cat. I'd love to have more, they are my life! I can spend a whole day just piddling around playing with my kids! Oh, and they are spoiled. VERY spoiled! Especially the cat, as she has been with me the longest!

Well, I hope I did this being tagged thing justice! I guess maybe there are some things about me that others may not know.......

Now I'm supposed to tag some other folks, so I'm gonna tag Lori K. at http://love2quilt22002.blogspot.com/index.html and Flora at http://florasbeecrazyquilter.blogspot.com/

Thanks JK, I kind of enjoyed sharing!

Christy

Spring Fling!

Howdy!

Just finished up my Spring Fling block for the swap over at CQ for Newbies and I wanted to post a quick pic of it before I head off to bed! I love this block, it turned out so pretty! And that cute little ducky.....I swear.....just adorable! LOL! Anyway, I hope whoever ends up with her keeps feeding her lots and lots of blueberries and raspberries....as that is what she enjoys most! She also requires a HUGE pond to swim in, HA!

Here goes, Enjoy!

Okay, I'm off to bed! Have a super Thursday!

Christy

Row, Row, Row Your Boat!

Hello All!

Hello rain! It is finally raining here! Woo Hoo! We needed it very badly, the ground was so dry and hard it was cracking! For that to happen during spring around here is surely not a good sign of things to come. Could we see a drought this year? I'm thinking it's very possible. And what little rain we did get was soaked up immediately. My poor seedlings are so pitiful, they sure don't like city water!

Well, I finally got around to starting my Spring Fling block for the swap, and I must say, it is cute! I love it! I don't have much done on it quite yet.....so I'll take a pic of it when I have more to brag about!

However, I've been working on Ati's, 12 Dancing Princesses round robin block! I'm not done with it quite yet either, but I wanted to post a pic of what I have done so far! In her notes to the group, Ati had mentioned a princess boat. I have never read this story, or saw the movie, so I had no idea what she was looking for. So, after a little bit of research, I gave her a princess boat. I hope she and her Granddaughter both enjoy it! I've named this little gal Selena Swan, and I think she turned out rather well!

Now that I have gotten this done, I need to work on the seam treatments, and I have a few ideas for those too! I'll post pictures when I have them finished!

Now, for an update on my recent visitors. I've not seen hide nor feather of any of them since! ACK! I'm so disappointed! However, I got a report from my neighbor yesterday.....he leaves very early morning, and he said that he saw a fox running away from my house! Oh WOW! Yeah, that's a pretty strange sight in the city, but for some reason that didn't surprise me too much. We are losing so many citizens and businesses in this city, that it is almost a ghost town these days! So, seeing a fox doesn't surprise me one bit. I just hope my bunnies stayed hidden when he was around!

Well, Friends, I'm off to the grocery store today, and for those of you who don't know, that is a fate worse than death for me! I swear, you will never encounter a ruder folk than at the grocery store that I patronize. However, we all must eat, including the piggies, birdies, bunny and kitty~so I go, faithfully, every week!

Have a great day,

Christy

Flowers and Weeds and Ants, OH MY!

Good morning!

After working in my gardens all weekend, I have sore muscles and a few stories to tell!

First of all, I had some excitement in the yard over the weekend, and of course, I didn't have my camera. I had a couple of new visitors that I am overly excited about! First, I glanced out at the feeder and saw a Indigo Bunting! Wow! Those little birds are gorgeous! And then about 10 minutes later, I looked again and I had a White Breasted Nuthatch! Now, I don't know if they are regular visitors or not, but I've never seen either of them before! I hope they come back! This morning, I arrived home to find a baby gray squirrel dancing around on the sunflower bin! Now, this isn't too big of a surprise for me, as I have been seeing Momma for a while now. And she's obviously a Momma.....if you know what I mean. I sure wish I had the camera!

I have pulled weeds, and pulled weeds, and pulled more weeds! I swear, my fingertips are so sore from grabbing on to those short little things and getting them out of my flower beds! UGH! I hope it's worth the work! I wanna see some blooms before long! Of course, no trip around the yard pulling weeds is complete unless I find a nest full of fire ants. Oh yeah, I found them and they promptly found me! I didn't realize that I had gotten into them until I felt them crawling all over me! Oh-My-God! Those little things can bite!!!!!!!!!!!!! I ended up dancing around the yard flapping my shirt doing the fire ant dance! Sheesh! I bet the neighbors thought I'd lost my mind at that point! I need a sign that says, "Beware the crazy fire ant dancer!" Oh and speaking of weeds, I have the smartest weeds in Indiana! They have all planted themselves right smack dab in the middle of a plant or right beside one. Just to make it inconvenient to dig them out. Why is that? Are they really that smart???? Ugh...they are gonna get a BIG fooling in a couple of weeks, as I am gonna dig out a lot of my flowers and revamp my flower beds! HA! Hide from me now, Weeds!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't have any blooms in the yard to speak of, but as I am getting ready to haul my houseplants outside for the summer, I happened to notice my cactus is in full bloom! Now, I've been told that this is a Christmas Cactus, and I've been told that it's an Easter Cactus. Either way.....it is a cactus! It blooms around Christmas time and Easter each year, so maybe it's just an every holiday cactus! LOL! Anyway, I love it, it always has such pretty blooms! Here's a pic:

Well, it's getting to be that time....have a great day all!

Christy

Gasoline Boycott on May 15, 2007

Hello Friends!

There has been an e-mail circulating about a gasoline boycott on May 15, 2007. I wholeheartedly agree with this action! We need to ban together and put a dent in these oil company pockets! If we ban together as a nation and even across the world and boycott gasoline for just one day, imagine the reaction that we will get! And don't run out and buy on the 14th or the 16th either, buy a few days ahead or afterwards....giving them record profits the day before a boycott isn't going to do much good. If we can space things out so that they don't see too large of a difference in the other days that week, we can really hurt them like they are hurting us each time we fill up to get to work or school.

For those of us who unfortunately have to rely on gasoline to get from point A to point B, or even for our jobs as delivery drivers and truck drivers are really paying the price for these tycoons' weekly price gouging! Where I live, it is nothing for gasoline to jump 20 cents a week, as it did this week yet again. The current price for Regular Unleaded is $3.19 per gallon and this is absolutely rediculous! Why? Because oil companies are posting record profits as we pillage to pay these prices!

So Americans and friends around the world, ban together and put your foot down. If we don't take a stand, who will look out for us?

Remember....Say NO to gasoline on May 15, 2007!

Christy

A Tail of Two Kitties

Good Morning!

As you know from previous posts, I am hosting a Kitty Kitty Round Robin over at CQ for Newbies. As these blocks landed on my doorstep the excitement began to stir. When I opened the packages the creativity started running wild! These are two of the most gorgeous blocks I've ever had the pleasure to put stitches on! Being the first to work on a block is usually a hard place for me to be, but this time I didn't have any trouble at all! As soon as I sat down to work on them they started talking up a storm to me!

The first tail belongs to Julie. This block is just so art deco! She is hoping to use this block as a tribute to one of her kitties that she lost to feline leukemia. I had so many ideas for this block, but this little black and silver kitty just jumped right on there! I then added the white silk ribbon roses and butterflies. The seam treatment just fell right into place after that!



The second tail belongs to Flora. This block is so fun and light and airy! I actually have some of the same fabrics, but I ended up not using them. After seeing this block, I wish I had! They sure made for an adorable block! I outlined the patch of the kitty climbing the heart tree, and done all of the seams bordering it. I also added the silver kitty charm underneath it. Beside that patch I added the pink paw print ribbon and the stitches along it, with the cute little suncatcher kitty charm.

I had so much fun working on these blocks, and I can't wait to get started on the next ones! (Yes, they are already here...LOL)

Have a great Friday!

Christy