Four Little Mermaids Swimming in the Sea

I can't believe I had two mermaid finishes in a row... this one is by Country Cottage Needleworks. My daughters are all grown up, so I will frame this for my beautiful nieces, Emily and Morgan. They share a very pretty princess room in their new house out in the country, so I think this will fit nicely there.

Miranda Mermaid

Anyone who knows me, knows I love mermaids! To a young girl, they rank right up there with unicorns and fairy princesses... the best of imaginary friends. I worked on this while sitting with my father in the hospital last week as he recovered from colon resection surgery. The designer is one of my favorites, Tanya Anderson of The Sampler Girl, and the design is entitled Miranda Mermaid. I just used fabric and fibers that I had on hand, and made a few changes to the original chart to make it more "mine".

Lizzie Kate Spring Fab Fob

A Finish!This little design is a bright spot in a day of slushy, muddy snow and rainy drizzle. This winter has certainly boasted the messiest weather I have ever seen. Stitching colorful, flowery designs is a good way to combat the winter blahs! I did start Shepherd Bush's Blue Snowman last night...the closest thing to an actual snowman we will get in Hartselle, since our snow is (as I said above) quite slushy.

Market Motivated!

I am still on a happy high from market night at my LNS! Capitalizing on that enthusiasm, I challenged myself to finish stitching all of my market night purchases prior to next years market sale. Several of the designs are really small like this first finish from La D Da called Dragonfly Pin Keep, which I completed yesterday. I love how it turned out, but will love it even more once it is assembled! I included the market freebies in my challenge as there are so many that I truly love.

The Cross Stitch Peddler's Market Night

Market night was awesome! As is our custom, my mother and I went together. Our LNS owner was so pretty... she had just got her hair done next door , so she would look great for her big night of the year. All of the people who showed up were people that we know and love from years of shopping and stitching together. Since I haven't been to any stitch ins (maybe one) since my three year old Sam was born, it was wonderful to connect with some of the people I haven't seen in awhile.

There were some great freebies in our gift bag.
"Love Heart" by Sam Sarah
"Joy Sheep" by Shepherd's Bush
"Recycle" by Lizzie Kate
"Pink Flower" and "Quaker Baby Seal" by Workbasket
"Springtime" by Val's Stuff
"Bird's Roundelay" by Ronde d'Oiseaux (I loved this one!)
"Wicked" by Primitive Needle
and "Spooky Halloween" by Sunflower Seed

I knew I was going to see the beautiful Hawk Run Hollow's Autumn, but there were some really great surprises too like Dragonfly Pin-keep Kit by La-D-Da and Glendon Place "Outrageous Owls". I got three new Shepherd's Bush kits, the biggie, "My Land" and two smaller ones, "Lucky" and "Liberty Pin Cushion". Mom sneaked two really sweet surprises into my bag : LK Spring Fab Fob kit with the cutest little scissors, and "Old South Church" by By the Bay Needleart.

Neither of us bought the Lighthouse Island chart that calls for the cute little fish thread keeps, because our LNS owner is going to do a class with it, and we will get it later. Along those lines though, I got the Jeanette Douglas Seaside accessory chart with embellishment package. The embellishment pack is small, but so pretty, you could hang it on the wall as decoration as is, lol. There is a little ruler in there, and a little orange starfish charm, and a little gold seahorse charm... so sweet!

I also got some yummy soap and Soap on a Whim body butter in my gift bag...the scent of the butter is Red Velvet Cake, and it definitley smells edible.

Mom had a great time too. No one knocked her down this year as did happen a couple of years ago! One of her many purchases was a large oval varnished shaker box wth a beautiful rabbit on the front. It comes with a rabbit chart designed by Prairie Moon. After the sale, we went to Burger King for chocolate pie and coffee so we could look at everything before going home to the inquiring eyes of our menfolk.

Anyway, I really had a ball, but it only happens once a year :)

The Best Things in Life... Aren't Things

I stitched this Waxing Moon design for my daughter, Adonna. She lives in Huntsville, Alabama with our grandson, Mark. Being a single mother is not an easy job, but she handles it with style. I think she and little Mark go to every children's show or concert in their city, and are always signing up for one activity or another. She was one of those teens reluctant to attend church with the family, and definitley reluctant to know the Lord. But, in answer to many prayers, she stopped resisting a couple of years ago, and accepted Jesus as her Savior. She is now praying for God to send a good man her way... a husband for her, a father for Mark. She shares that the wait is discouraging for her at times, but she stays very busy with her auditing/accounting job, going to school, her church, and of course, Mark.

Live, Laugh, Love

I stitched this Lizzie Kate design for my landlord who is such a wonderful person and loves whimsical things. The verse suits Charlotte perfectly!