whinging_pom

OK, so it's been a while since I posted... I have been reading posts at least :)

I have come to the conclusion that I have too many WIP's... Here's the list of the ones I know about (there may be more hiding somewhere!)

- Stargazer Lily RR (for Jean)
- Tatty Ted Wedding Sampler (for Julie and Troy)
- Bird of a Feather (for my dad)
- Tigger Movie - Let's Bounce (for me)
- Ouroborus (for me)
- WTP bookmark (for me)
- Tigger latch hook rug (for Caitlyn)

Looking at that list, I probably shouldn't have started Ouroborus at the recent stitchy retreat, but I couldn't help myself. That decision had been locked in for a while. On the plus side, the WTP bookmark hasn't got much left to do on it, so shouldn't take too long. The Tatty Ted only has the backstitch left, but it's been like that for a while. I must get it finished soon though as Julie and Troy are coming to visit soon and I would like to be able to give it to them then. The others are in various stages of progress, with Ouroborus having the least amount done on it (but that's probably the one I most want to work on). My aim now is to get these finished before I start too much else. I do have a couple of Lizzie Kate's that I need to do before I get through this list though... Oh well! :P

Had to go into Big W today to get some photo's printed and whilst we were there we had a bit o a look around... Somehow I ended up in the book section (no idea how that happened! :P) and I couldn't believe my eyes when I spotted an Elm Creek book! It was the Winding Ways one, which is number 12 in the series (I so far only have up to number 7) but it was too good an opportunity to pass up. I grabbed it immediately - even though there were plenty there! - and made my purchase. When I got home I checked how much Borders were selling it for (where I usually get it as I haven't seen them anywhere else) and they were charging $27.95.... How much did I get for, I hear you ask? $14.97!!!! Way to go Big W :D I'll certainly be keeping an eye out for more Elm Creek novels there from now on. :D

Last night I managed to finish the door plate for Caitlyn's Room... Guess it'll be off to the framer's soon to get this one and her birth sampler framed. Yay! I actually quite enjoyed stitching this one as it was fairly quick to do. Bothy Threads are also very generous with their kits - I could probably do the design over again with the amount of thread I have left over.




So what's next to stitch? Well, Ouroborus is on the radar to be started soon... At the stitchy retreat in a couple of weeks. :D Before that, I have been coming across some unfinished projects. I have a well overdue wedding sampler to do (might be getting some help with that!) as well as a RR piece to get back to it's owner. Then I have a WTP bookmark and WTP Tigger Movie design to finish and a pheasant design for my dad, which he knows nothing about. Good job really, the amount of time it's taken me to do it so far! What I want to do is to try and get these completed before starting any more (Ouroborus is excluded from that, as Bek and I want to stitch it together starting at the retreat). I am definitely feeling better about my stash now that I am getting it organised - hopefully that feeling will continue once it is sorted and I have to start working through what I am keeping. I'll certainly have plenty to keep me going!

A mini finish this week - a little sampler for Annabelle's Christening. Only took a couple of nights to do too. :D I love speedy projects!

Caitlyn and I went to the Lynbrook Hotel for lunch today, catching up with some old workmates of mine. It's very nice there too. Had a great time seeing some people I haven't seen since I left ABC at the end of 2006...

Stitching wise, I finished a mini sampler (that only took me a few nights) for the little girl whose Christening we are going to tomorrow. She is about 3 weeks younger than Caitlyn, so they are going to be really good playmates. :D The Christening itself is at 9.30am, which would be early enough on a Sunday in anybody's books, but this happens to be the weekend the clocks go forward... Aaarrrrrrggggghhhhhhhh!!!!!! So in reality it will be starting at 8.30am, and we have about a half hour drive to get there... I know I am used to being up early with Caitlyn, but I am not used to having to get ready to go out that early! :P Might end up having a "nanna nap" tomorrow....

There's a couple of stitchy events coming up too. One is the Retreat on the last weekend in October (YAY!) and the other is a stitch-in, run by the same people that are running the retreat. I have managed to organise getting Caitlyn looked after, so looks like I'll be able to go. :D I am looking forward to it as it will give us a taster for the retreat. I have to keep remembering when I book things up though, that I either have to bring Caitlyn with me, or I have to organise someone to look after her - I can't just make arrangements at the drop of a hat like I used to - not that I used to have a very busy social life before...

So, I've finally gotten around to posting on here again... There are going to be some surprised people around! :P

Things have been pretty full on since my last post - and Caitlyn is now 4 months old!!! She's such a beautifully behaved baby - a wonderful nature - I am very proud to be her Mummy. :D Motherhood is nothing like I'd imagined - it's been so much more challenging and so much more rewarding. Daniel and I really are very lucky to have Caitlyn in our lives.

We have booked our first family trip away together for this month... We're heading to Ballarat for a couple of nights, after Daniel has done his huge Around the Bay ride. I think he'll need the break, so I will be driving us there. We have a family room booked, so that Caitlyn can have her own room - that way we won't have to be going to be incredibly early. :P I am really looking forward to it. It will give us time together and away from the dog too. As much as we love him, Buster can be pretty full on sometimes. And, of course, it will give me an opportunity to have a look around a stitchy shop! YAY! (Surprisingly, it was Daniel's suggestion to go to Ballarat, even though he knew the shop was there... :P) I know I am going to end up packing way too much stuff, but it'll be good practice for when we go on a longer break, probably next year. I'm hoping to go to Tasmania at some point with the family. :D

Stitching wise, I have finished Caitlyn's birth sampler and am now stitching her a door sign. It's a Little Miss Fun design and just says "Caitlyn's Room". I will be taking both of them to the framers at the same time, and am thinking of trying the place at Fountain Gate. I am also trying to finish my part on Jean's RR piece. The RR kind of failed, but she had stitched on my piece, so I wanted to make sure I stitched on hers. My piece is lost somewhere in Scandinavia... It's the second RR that I have been a part of that has gone missing, which is a shame as I have had a couple of good RR experiences but these two have put me off from doing any more. Still, I have plenty of my own stitching to keep me going for probably longer than I am going to be alive! LOL

This week, I have finally decided to go through my stash. I had previously gone through my stitching books and made a pile of ones to get rid of - I will be taking these to Booktalk in Richmond soon - but now it is time to tackle the rest of the stuff. I'm pretty sure most of my kits will be staying, but I have gone through all of the charts I had kept from magazines and been pretty ruthless. There might end up being another "cull" at some point, but at the moment I have two boxes of stuff to go (this includes the free cover kits from the mags too). I am actually pretty pleased with how easily it has happened. Why I didn't do it a long time ago, I don't know. Maybe I wasn't ready, but now I definitely am. I need to be more choosy with what I decide to stitch. After all, it is taking up a lot of time to stitch one design (especially now my stitching time is limited). I still have a bit to organise with it though, so better head off and do it now, while I am in the right frame of mind! :D

WOOHOO!!!! I am now a lady what lunches... :D I had my last official day of work on Thursday (I'll still be doing some babysitting so not completely done with the family) and as sad as it was to be finishing up, I think I will be glad not to be hearing the scream of the alarm clock for a while (just the scream of a bub in a few weeks' time!) It is strange (and scary) to think that in a few weeks, our lives will change forever. Sometimes I feel like I am not prepared at all, and it is the most scary thing in the world, and at other times I just want to meet bub and see what he/she looks like!

I got the most beautiful bunch of flowers from my employers too - they only just fitted into the car! Lots of Stargazer Lilies, and a heap of other flowers I don't know the name of... It'll be nice to enjoy watching them all open during the next week or so. I just loooove Lilies :D

So, now that I have time on my hands, I am hoping to get a bit further along with my birth sampler. So far, I haven't even completed one of the bunnies. Doing that, as well as getting bub's room sorted out should keep me busy for a while. :D

Only 13 weeks to go!!!!!

This morning I finally got around to finishing the card I have been working on. I was so chuffed that I had actually got to the end (I used one colour from my stash to match the one I had run out of, and just adjusted the design so I didn't have to go and buy a skein of the other colour I ran out of) and so set about putting the design in the card THEY provided with the kit... Imagine my disbelief when the design was LONGER than the aperture!!!! I'd have ended up cutting of the top and bottom of the stitching... Not very impressed AT ALL. :( Thankfully I have some large card left over from when I was doing family day care, as well as a reliable guilotine (I can't cut straight enough with scissors to make a card to save my life!) so used that instead. I frayed the edges of the design so it didn't look quite so weird and it hasn't turned out too badly. It's just annoying that it hasn't turned out as it was supposed to. I think I will have to be very careful with the other free kits I have from Cross Stitch Magic now, and measure it to make sure it is all going to fit.

Had a stitchy meet today with Belinda and Bek, at Belinda's house. I live for these days! :D It's sooo great catching up with friends and finding out what has been happening in their lives. I never want the day to end, so stay as long as possible... :P I finally left at 7.30pm, just before So You Think You Can Dance started (Bek had to leave early as she wasn't well, which is a shame).

I got a bit more stitching done on the card I am working on, but am a bit peeved that I have run out of 2 thread colours... Fair enough, it was a free kit, but I don't waste much thread so I don't think they supplied enough in the first place. That makes me cross - if they are going to give somethign away, make sure there is sufficient in there to complete the project! Grrrrr....

A great day, great company, great conversation and great munchies! :D Bring on the next meeting! WOOHOO!!!!

Just realised it has been a month since I last posted... Deary me! :P

I haven't done too much stitching of late though. I have started the birth sampler, which is good, but ending up interrupting that to stitch a couple of cards - one for hubby for Valentines Day and another that is still secret as it hasn't been given... Now I just need to finish that last one and then I can get back to my birth sampler. It probably hasn't helped that I have been soooo tired from being back at work that I haven't really felt like stitching at all. I only have one more week left at work though so hopefully the stitching will pick up a bit then. I have already had the telling off lecture from my SIL about the fact that I need to realise I am almost 6 months pregnant and I need to slow down. sometimes easier said than done though! I now have a terrible cold, so I guess my body is trying to tell me that I WILL slow down whether I want to or not... So frustrating when I can't take any normal meds for it either, so I am having to suffer the full effects. :(

Not much planned this weekend though, so I can just put my feet up and have a relaxing time. WOOHOO!!!! Looking forward to catching up with my stitchy girls too, so long as this cold disappears *crosses fingers*

Today I finally finished off my Somebunny design into a coaster. :D I'm not sure how happy I am with the finished result though - the aida isn't quite straight and I probably could have done with a bit more around the edge, but it'll do. :)

Gee, I really feel like I have been getting somewhere the past few days. I went into Spotlight at the weekend and got the remaining threads I needed to finish off Somebunny. Today I finished the cross stitches and completed the backstitch too, so that's another one out of the way. :D I now have to find my iron-on interfacing and coasters and I can get it made up. :)

I was trying to decide what to start next when I had an email from sewandso to say my fabric has been dispatched... If i start another kit, chances are I'll still be doing it when my delivery arrives. As I want to start on the birth sampler right away, I thought I would wait and not start something else. So, instead I am sorting out all my threads. I had a nice package sent to me a while ago with over 70 skeins of DMC (thanks Dolores!)... It's only now that I am getting around to sorting them out. And I haven't doubled up on many, which is great! It'll be so nice to have all my threads wound onto bobbins and put in order. I won't know myself... :P

I've posted pics of my latest finishes in my webshots album now too. It was so hot today that the best thing to do was stay inside and organise. :D

Today I managed to get a bit of stitching done and finished "Splendiferous" - a small Tigger design. I'll be adding pics of the last two finishes to my webshots album soon. Feeling very pleased with myself though, as the stitching seems to be coming along well at the moment. I think it might be a combination of the long, light days and the fact that I am not working at the moment. I will be going back next week though, so I think it'll suffer again for a bit, until I finish at the end of February. Really enjoying being back into it too. :D

I ordered some fabric from sewandso yesterday too, so once that arrives I will be able to start stitching the birth sampler that we have chosen for bub. It is called Sleepy Bunnies and will be suitable for either a girl or boy, which is good as we are keeping that part a surprise for ourselves! I already have all the threads I need, so it looks like I might have to just pick up a small kit to do whilst I am waiting (or even pick up a book instead!)

Also today I started sorting out our back room (read "junk room" but soon to be "baby's room"). I had big ideas of getting heaps done, but in the end it was just too warm so I only ended up moving stuff around and making it a bit tidier rather than sorting through it. At least now I have an area to work in. :) I also took photo's so that we'll be able to see the difference between when all the junk was in there, when it was all gone, when it was painted and when it was finished up as bub's room. I just probably won't look at the first pictures too much! :P

It's going to be another sweltering day tomorrow, so looks like I'll be sitting inside with the air-con on, and finishing off the freebie Somebunny design that is going to be turned into a coaster. :) Oh, such happy, stitchy days! :D

In some ways today was a great day (lots of stitching and time spent with people I care about) but in another way it was a sad day (saying goodbye to a friend).

I spent time with Steph today and was so proud of myself for driving to her place by myself without getitng stressed, even when I went a couple of miles too far down the road... Thank goodness for Melways!!! I took Lily with me to see Steph as it was her last full day in Oz before heading back to the good ol' US of A... I'll be sad to see her go. She has become part of our stitchign group very quickly and it's not going to be quite the same without her. We had a good time this morning to early afternoon - plenty of stitching and eating sugar/fat rich foods that were yummy! :D We both made some good progress before Steph had to head off to attend to visa related matters. I dropped her off at the train station on our way home, and the goodbye seemed very rushed (she got out at the traffic lights) but it was probably better that way. But I know I'll see her again soon. :) AND, she's going to stitch the most beautiful Christmas stocking for bub... :D I love my stitchy friends! :D :D :D

After arriving back home, we were visited by the in-laws. It was good to catch up after such a long holiday. Went to SIL's for dinner (spag bol) and then went on a road trip to pick up a hall stand she'd purchased from eBay... Unfortunately the person who sold it to her forgot to mention that the driveway was so steep that you'd be praying for your life as you went down it! :P Fortunately we survived to tell the tale though, and it looks pretty good in it's new home. :) Stayed a SIL's for a cuppa and chat, and ended up leaving about 11pm, before I got kicked out! :P

I've been enjoying the time I have had since getting back off holiday to relax. I have managed to catch up with some good friends, and got a fair bit of stitching done too... I finished stitching Bob's Christmas Stocking this week, and have now started working on a small Tigger design. Hubby asked what I was doing it for, and I told him it was "just because"... It was actually one of only two small designs that I had already stitched around the fabric on, so it was ready to go straight away. :) I'm guessing that by the next stitchy meet, I will have finished it and started on the next design (hopefully my birth sampler if I can get the fabric).

We went to see the obstetrician yesterday, and we got told that everything was progressing well. We have an appointment for a scan on Wednesday. :D it'll be good to see bub again (and get another dvd) and see how much he/she has grown. Apparently on this scan we can find out the sex of the baby, but neithe rof us wants to know - we want to keep it as a surprise, even as frustrating as it is trying to buy gender neutral stuff...

Really enjoying these light nights too - it was getting dark at 4pm in England... Now I have so much more stitchy time!!!! :D

We made it back from the freezing temperatures on Thursday night. Gee, it was sooo good to walk out of the airport in t-shirts rather than being rugged up! It felt a bit strange when we got home - the place seemed really big, and very quiet. Worked out later that it probably seemed strange as Buster wasn't here to greet us... He had another day and a half of holiday before we collected him. Went and picked him up today, and he's so exhausted, bless him - apparently he made friends with a huge golden lab... who also went home today. Good to hear that he had a good time anyway. :)

The pregnancy is going well - officially half way now (20 weeks yesterday) but still waiting to feel it move. Many people have asked if we are finding out the sex - hopefully not. If it happens then there's not much we can do, but we want to keep it a surprise. We also have names picked out for either sex, but we're not telling! :P Mum is knitting like mad at the moment, all in either white, lemon, pale green or cream... It will be good once it's born so we can have more choice on colours! Hubby is planning on painting the spare room in the next couple of weeks, as we need to turn it into the baby's room - I have the unenviable task of clearing all the junk out of it!

I go back to work on the 28th at this stage (that's when they next need me) and it'll only be for a few weeks. The kids are starting a private kinder 5 days a week from 9.00 to 3.30, so I won't be needed... :( A good excuse to put my feet up and stitch though! :D

I did a little bit of stitching whilst I was away, but not as much as I thought I was going to - probably because I was getting very tired. It took me almost 2 weeks to get over the jet-lag! Thankfully it hasn't been too bad since we arrived here. I'm very much enjoying the longer days - it was getting dark at 4.00pm there!

I have almost finished a design called "Bob's Christmas Stocking" - it's an RSPCA design, and looks very cute. I'm looking forward to showing it off at the stitchy meet tomorrow! I have also almost completed a Somebunny design that was a free kit from one of the magazines. I decided to use 2 strands instead of 1, so have to check my stash for threads that I ran out of... It isn't much, but I think the design looks better in 2 strands. I'll be making that one into a coaster.

One of the other things I enjoyed about being back in England was that I could get the stitchy mags on the day that they came out AND I was guaranteed to get the free gift! :D

Still, it's good to be home. :)

I had such a nice surprise whilst visiting the immigration office in Dandenong today. When we have been there before we have usually been waiting for at least an hour, maybe an hour and a half to be seen... So today I went prepared. I took my book and my iPod with me, got my ticket and made myself comfortable. So, imagine my surprise when I got called after only 5 minutes! In the end I was out of there 15 minutes after I arrived (and that includes the guy having technical difficulties with the computer and calling someone to get it fixed). I was amazed!!! I just wish our other visits had been as quick as that... But, at least now I have in my passport that I am a permanent resident. Seems I only have to wait until mid next year before I can apply to become an Australian citizen... WOOHOO!!! I actually think that today was the most relaxed I have EVER been whilst sitting in front of an immigration officer. He was very nice and even asked about my holiday, wishing me a good trip. :D It's a happy day!

I started to think about my packing today for my holiday. I got the suitcase out (or rather hubby got it out as it was too awkward and too heavy for me to manouvre out of the wardrobe (it had heaps of other bags in it!) And guess what the first thing was that I packed? You've got it! My cross stitch!!!! I am taking three small designs with me to cover the 8 weeks I will be gone. I don't think there is any real chance that I will complete all of them, but I just wanted the option to choose. I am taking two RSPCA designs (Ruff and Bob's Christmas Stocking) and a Country Companions design called Christmas Pudding. Well, I couldn't really be on holiday over Christmas without any Christmas stitching, now could I? :P And thankfully they are ALL on 14ct! LOL!

I had a bit of a stitchy breakthrough today. It actually happened whilst I was sorting out a few things for packing (YAY! Only 11 days to go...) and I came across some free cover kits from the magazines. I remembered I had seen the pattern for one of the kits in my huge pile of mags that I am wading my way through, so I sorted it out. I feel like I just need a break from the 18ct and all those fractionals! So now I am working on 14ct - which is wonderful - and it has NO fractional stitches!!! WOOHOO!!! It's a small kit of Somebunny and looks so cute. It's coming along pretty quickly, so hopefully I will have it finished in time before I head home. Then it can keep my Peaches coaster company on the coffee table. :D

I am just so happy to be working on 14ct again - it's heaven!!!! :D

Daniel and I went to Knox shopping centre with the family today (MIL, FIL, SIL and niece) and had a fantastic time. We didn't rush around, but took our time and stopped for lunch and afternoon tea. I finally got to use the vouchers I got from Bek for my birthday at Lincraft. YAY! I bought a purple noticeboard for the entrance hall (very la-dee-da, we are! LOL!) which has a pin board, note paper, a white board and a place to hang keys! Also got 3 tea towels which were rather nice. Still disappointed that Lincraft's cross stitch section SUCKS!!! Not impressed with that at all, although they did have slightly more selection than the city store. I'll be so glad to go to Hobbycraft when I am back in England - at least they'll have a decent selection... So, anyway, thanks for my present Bek! You'll get to see at the stitchy meet on Sunday. :)

Also whilst we were there, I managed to sneak into Borders. :D Have a look for the Elm Creek novels, but they didn't have any - boo hoo - so I had a look for the Monica Ferris books instead and managed to pick up the first one!!!! Hubby laughed at me when I told him it was Needlework Murder Mystery... But I don't care. I'm thinking I might take it with me to read on the long flight to London.

I just heard that the lovely David Tennant has officially confirmed he is quitting Dr Who... It won't be the same without him! I really enjoyed watching it because he was in it. Not sure if I'll take to another person playing him... Might have to convince hubby to get all his series on dvd now! LOL