Wordless Wednesday - Missy

Wordless Wednesday - A Cat and a Book

Monday Inspiration - Just One

Laughing Gull in Flight, Joanne Thayer

Just One
Author Unknown

One song can spark a moment,
One flower can wake the dream
One tree can start a forest,
One bird can herald spring.

One smile begins a friendship,
One handclasp lifts a soul.
One star can guide a ship at sea,
One word can frame the goal

One vote can change a nation,
One sunbeam lights a room
One candle wipes out darkness,
One laugh will conquer gloom.

One step must start each journey.
One word must start each prayer.
One hope will raise our spirits,
One touch can show you care.

One voice can speak with wisdom,
One heart can know what’s true,

One life can make a difference,
You see, it’s up to you!

Wordless Wednesday - Miss Kitty

Wordless Wednesday - Dinsdale, 2005

A Week of Stitching and Cats

This was a very busy week stitching and I worked on a few different pieces. I've just loved stitching a few designs these last several months from Plum Pudding's Bits of Blue. With summer here I was in the mood for some blue and yellow, and I love the way this sampler turned out on the yellow hand-dyed linen. I used Presidential Blue by GAST for the floss.

This morning I pulled some of my blue and yellow fabrics from the shelves to see what works best. I've been making pillows for other people, and decided I wanted one for myself. I'm leaning towards the homespun fabrics in the blue and yellow, and when finished, the pillow will sit on the hearth for the rest of the summer.

The other evening I was going through a box of cross stitch items and came across last year's chart of November from Prairie Schooler. I had only stitched the first three lines when it was put away for the Christmas holidays. I'm so glad I found it because I've been thinking of autumn recently, and this is a fun project to work on. I love working with different overdye threads to give the leaves a bit of a different look, and will do the same as I work on the house.

I loved working from one of the Blackbird Designs books, so I've found myself collecting them. I've used several of the designs as gifts, and have had fun making a few changes here and there to fit the occasion or the recipient. It's hard to say which book is my favorite :)

Since my subject line mentioned cats, here are a few pictures of our family. We've found them in some cute poses recently, and thankfully the camera was nearby. Enjoy!

I left my chair for just a few minutes after having a snack, and when I came back Missy had hopped up on the table, licked a few crumbs, and fallen asleep on the plate.

We always say that Miss Kitty has a "hat face". Here she is wearing one of the American Girl straw hats. It looks good, don't you think?? :) (And yes, she's a very patient cat.)

Finally, here's Dinsdale, our little boy cat. He loves to jump up on the hope chest in the office and watch out the window when any large trucks go by. My husband came home with a new sprinkler this morning that "walks" around the yard, and it's a John Deere tractor. We put it on the floor in the sun room so Dinsey could explore, and he just loved it.

Exploring, playing, and chasing Miss Kitty around the room (their favorite game and they take turns) tires him out, so here he is, snuggled in for a nice afternoon nap.

In Honor of the 4th and Other Cross Stitch Designs

The last several months I've been working on various new designs and getting them charted and stitched. My progress ended there, at least for now, since I'm concentrating on spending time with our daughter these few months before her move to Canada for graduate school. I'll have plenty of time to get my designs finished (framed, made into pillows, banners, ornaments, etc.) and then print up the charts for sale. In the meantime, since I haven't shared any handiwork here in quite some time, I thought I'd share the designs I've been working on.


I've always had in mind that I'd love to have something in honor of the Declaration of Independence and the beginning of our country. I thought it's perfect to share as the first photo since it's date is July 4, 1776. The phrase I selected is at the end of the Declaration and reads, "...And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our fortunes, and our Sacred Honor." I found this reproduction fabric in a favorite quilt shop and plan to use it somewhere in the banner.


On the lighter side, I was looking at our cat Missy one day as she was sitting there pondering (not sure what, but she ponders a lot!). She's a grey cat so naturally looks perfect with pink. The little pot of flowers was added because one of her favorite things to do since she was a kitten (and she's now 17) is to eat flowers :) I think I'm making this one into a pillow and thought the pink floral fabric might look good. I found the salmon pink ric-rac at a quilt store and might use it for one part of the pillow. It actually matches the fabric better than it looks in this picture. Missy has "sent" greeting cards for the holidays to our daughter throughout the years, and this is the drawing I've always done inside those cards as Missy's signature. (Yes, I'm a wee bit silly.) There'll be a few companion pieces to this using our other kitties.


After our annual trip to Santa Fe in January I was in a southwest mood and drew up this little design. It's very typical of the gates and entryways you see along some of the winding side streets in Santa Fe as you head to all the art galleries. Unfortunately the picture is a little blurry. I found a perfect turquoise frame at a local quilt and needlework shop in Austin, and I'll use that to finish this. I already have a few small companion pieces to this charted so I can stitch them when I get the chance.




Finally, this simple little design is in honor of Fiesta, an annual celebration here in San Antonio each April. I stitched two, one using a multicolor overdye and the other using individual primary colors. My plans are to finish them as a small wreath ornament, representing the Fiesta wreaths you see in the area. You can see the little hoops which I'll use as the frames, and then all the colorful ribbons can be seen in the next picture. I also have small flowers to decorate the frames.

A Recent Road Trip - Part 2, Vancouver

Today's pictures were taken in the Vancouver area ~ around the university campus, the downtown area, and some from Stanley Park.





One of the streets near campus lined with beautiful pine trees, and a wonderful view of snowy mountains across the water.

















Walking along the main mall on campus...












... you see many flowers like these wisteria at a bus stop











.... and these orange azaleas














... and the white rhododendrons














... and these pretty trees













... and these, with the sunlight shining through the branches











Another campus road with a beautiful view













... same view as above, but close up so it's a bit blurry













... And yet another view from a different part of the campus











This was taken downtown. As we were sitting at a red light I noticed the pretty building's reflection in the high rise and decided to pull out the camera. It's a reflection of the Hotel Vancouver, now a Fairmont Hotel.
















We spent the afternoon at Stanley Park. I'll share the pictures of all the gardens tomorrow, but today I'm sharing the beautiful views of the city and the surrounding mountains.









I used the close-up setting for this one so I could get a picture of some of the cruise ships at the dock.












... a sea plane that had just taken off












... a view along the walkway at the park... the scenery with the water, mountains and trees is just gorgeous.










And two of my favorite things we kept seeing in the area...

the chubbiest crows we've ever seen (and I LOVE crows... they show up in a lot of my favorite stitching designs)... AND...







... Black Squirrels!!! I love squirrels and have lots of pictures of the ones here at home (and many in my favorite stitching designs, once again)... but we don't have black ones here. This guy was cute and pudgy and didn't mind posing for a quick picture. I think my next autumn stitched piece that has a squirrel will look like this little guy :)


I'll be back tomorrow ~ with pictures of the beautiful gardens at Stanley Park!!

A February Day at the Beach

I decided to spend yesterday down at the beach in the Corpus Christi area. It was an overcast day which was fine with me, the temperature was in the high 70s to low 80s, and it wasn't crowded at all (which is the best part!). The water was a bit too calm for my liking (I'm a northeast Atlantic Ocean girl who likes big crashing waves!), but it felt nice and cool on my feet as I walked along the sand. There were actually some people swimming, so you can tell that the water wasn't very cold.


I started the day at a favorite quilt shop Golden Needles & Quilts in Rockport that carries some nice sea-themed fabrics, and of course I had to buy some to add to my stash. I bought the panels and then three coordinating fabrics. I really am planning on doing a summer quilt using these fabrics (really, I am!!). Aren't the little sea gull buttons cute??












I also saw these two fat quarters that I had to buy since they were so pretty. I'm not sure what I'll use them for, but I liked the colors.















I drove along the water by Rockport and Fulton in search of birds. This is a large migratory area and I can never resist taking pictures of the various birds you find there.









I found lots of whooping cranes (perfect, since they're having a whooping crane festival down there!).














I also saw this pretty statue and thought I'd take a picture.












Next I headed for the beach, changed into shorts, and walked for awhile along their paved "boardwalk" area and then along the water's edge. After the walk I changed back into my skirt and drove along Ocean Drive to look at all the beautiful homes and their landscaping.






It was rather hazy but I took a picture as I drove along, looking back towards the city.












I made a stop by the marina where there are a few restaurants, and I spotted these gulls who were nice enough to pose for me :)












I talked to them through the window as I was taking their pictures and they were listening intently.









I also thought I'd take a picture of the replica of the Nina which is docked here. The replicas of the Pinta and Santa Maria are at the museum. The ships were built by Spain as full size replicas and sailed here in 1992 in honor of the 500th anniversary of Columbus's voyage. You can learn more about them here.










As I was parked along the road to take the pictures of the ship, I noticed on the other side there were some brown pelicans sitting on some of the posts by the sailboats.
















Naturally, I had to take pictures of them, too.















I decided to head back home around 3:30 since I had a 2-1/2 hour drive. I thought it was very appropriate when I saw this cloud up in the sky... which looked a lot like a large gull flying :) (OK, it was easier to see when I was driving than it is here in the picture, but you get the idea.)

Simple Things

'Tis a gift to be simple,
'Tis a gift to be free,
'Tis a gift to come down
Where we ought to be
And when we find ourselves
In the place that's right
'Twill be in the valley
Of love and delight.

~ Nineteenth-Century Shaker Hymn

Just stopping in to share a few simple things from home...

The leaves on the trees in front of our house are just beginning to turn red. With the sun shining through they look golden here, but the color is actually a deep red.

The trees surrounding the local elementary school are also turning red and look so pretty as you walk (or drive) past.










Outside Charley is getting his winter coat and heading for some food as he avoids some fallen leaves, twigs and other tree parts from the wind last evening. He was originally a neighbor cat or a stray, but he's been living at our house for over a year now. He spends most of his time sleeping in a chair on the deck :)













Inside, the antique cider press is once again decorated (simply) for autumn. I love antiques, and this is my favorite.
















And finally, Miss Kitty enjoys some reflective time on a favorite chair and polar fleece, while resting her head on a green fish pillow :)