Winter Wonderland

I's a winter wonderland here in Minnesota! We have about 10 - 12 inches of snow on the ground right now. It's been snowing on and off for about two weeks now. This is a shot of the trees that line the side of our yard.


I'm enjoying a four-day weekend; I took a vacation today tomorrow and then Tuesday is the New Year holiday. I've been cleaning through stash and doing some organizing. Maybe I'll have some WIP or UFO lists tomorrow - or perhaps a New Year's stitching resolution!

I have done some stitching too -- this is a work-in-progress shot of Judith's neighborhood RR. She has requested that we use the houses that were posted on Maryse's blog throughout 2007. I'm stitching November.


I also finished stitching my Fair & Square block for round #4. Here's a teaser - this is just the signature block. I can't show the other block until it is received by Darla!


Hope you have a nice evening. Have a safe New Year's eve too - wherever you might be celebrating it!

Merry Christmas to All!

Heartfelt Christmas wishes to all my stitching friends! Thank you for sharing your love of needlework with me. Best wishes in 2008!

Hugs,

Cathy B

Weekend Update - Dec 23

Hello dear friends! It's been a busy couple of weeks! I'm sure we're all feeling the holiday crunch. I'm almost ready - made two batches of fudge today and wrapped nearly all of our presents. Whew!

I have some updates for you -- both gifts sent and received. I received a package from Anna on Friday. Anna was my exchange partner for the Stitching Bloggers Birthday/Christmas exchange in 2007. She sent this very pretty crocheted ornament and a pattern from "The Gathering Place" for Christmas. I must say that I am not familiar with this designer, but the design appeals to me very much and I look forward to stitching this! Thank you Anna!


Then I was surprised by a PIF package from Katrina which included a lovely fob stitched by her and two cuts of fabric (Blackbird Designs/Moda). It's beautiful and I will enjoy using this fob! Thank you Katrina!


I received word that my Specific Designer/LHN exchange finally reached Nela. She had been away for a couple of weeks so I suspect the package was waiting for her to return. I stitched this lovely design from LHN - Rose Sampling - and finished it into a needleroll. I decided to finish the ends with some Hardanger rather than hemstitching them. I didn't take a picture of any of the other goodies, but maybe Nela will post a picture on her blog.


I think that's it. It's snowing like crazy here in Minnesota - a good day to be inside baking and wrapping. Oh, by the way - my dear son, my first baby turned 18 today! We're going to celebrate tonight when he returns from hockey with dinner from Famous Dave's!

Weekend Catch Up

Here I am playing weekend catch up again! This time of the year always seems to get so crazy! Of course, winter sports are in full swing now. My daughter plays basketball and my son manages the varsity hockey team, so we are spending more time at their games supporting them. As a result, there just is less time for other things, like blogging...

I received two wonderful exchanges this week. Carolyn is my exchange partner this year for the Seasonal Exchangers group that I belong too. She sent this lovely pinkeep and a box full of other goodies (a chart from Calico Crossroads, socks, notepad, Harvest decoration, etc., etc.) Here is the pinkeep - it's stitched and finished just beautifully! Thank you Carolyn!


Also in the mail, was a lovely exchange from Hitomi in Japan. She had my name for the SBEBB Specific Designer exchange. The designer we selected for this round is Little House Needleworks. Hitomi stitced the chart Garden Pleasures and finished it as a pinkeep. She also stitched a very dainty scissors fob with my initial "C" on it. Hitomi also enclosed some other nice things; here's a picture of the pinkeep and scissors fob. Thank you Hitomi!


Two of my exchanges were received this week too. Heather was my partner for the USEBB ornament exchange and Jenn was my partner this year for the Stitching Bloggers Birthday/Christmas Exchange. I sent both of them one of my Hardanger Angels. I really enjoy stitching these and I think they look so delicate and lacy when hung on the tree. Both of them received a few other goodies too!


Well that's it for now -- have a good day!

Two Wonderful Packages

The package in the mailbox streak continues!

Yesterday, the package from my exchange partner on the Stitching Bloggers Birthday exchange blog arrived. It couldn't have been any more timely - yesterday was my birthday - woo hoo! Anna from Poland had received my name. I received a lovely gift from her - this ornament (a design from Blue Ribbon Designs), this ceramic rooster and ceramic bowl (which would be great for collecting orts!), a pattern from Notforgotten Farm (Family Tree) and lovely doily from Poland. It is so exciting to connect with stitchers all over the world and I was very excited to receive this lovely package from Anna. Thank you Anna!


Today, a package arrived from Marie. Marie had my name for the USEBB Ornament exchange! Check out this beautiful ornament design from Nutmeg Needle. If you know Marie, then you know that her finishing is superb! I am quite certain that this little tissue holder is also Marie's work. Lots of other goodies all packaged in a holiday tin. Thank you Marie!


My ornament for the USEBB Ornament exchange is on its way and should arrive at its destination early next week. I'll share a picture once it arrives. Also sent off a Christmas package to my partner on the Birthday/Christmas blog - that one too will arrive soon and I'll share a picture with you.

Aside from that, not much else going on. We received our first major snowfall today and it looks like we probably got about 6 or 7 inches of the fluffy white stuff. It wouldn't be a Minnesota winter without it!

Thanks for stopping by!