My year in books according to Goodreads  

 

Oh WOW!  I would give this more than five stars if I could.  I just kept thinking is he, and if he is how? and if not then who?  I have read all of Lynette Eason's titles to date, and this one has to top them all. 

This has to be one of the best books I have read this year.  It deserved more than five stars in my opinion.   Waiting until the next one is going to be really, really hard.

 I mentioned that only a few select pieces came to the facility with us.  These are some.  O Canada, Celtic Banner, Purple Perfection,  Sailing into the Dime,  a Round Robin, stitched by my friends in Edmonton, the Ultimate Debate, Priceless.   Priceless has names stitched across the top and bottom, those with whom I stitched at home, and with whom I stitched in Vegas in 2006.  

I am currently working on another little freebie Do What You Love.  It is slow going, I have not touched it since November 9th, but I hope to soon.  Most days my shoulders hurt too much to even try.  

What it will eventually look like, and currently.  

I might post a few more of what we brought with us next time, which hopefully will not be as long.  

 And four years again.  For a while Norton kept saying this was a dangerous website; but I finally managed to get that resolved.  

There have been changes since I last wrote here.  I did manage to finish a few projects, but last winter wound up with a rotator cuff tear in the shoulder that was replaced.  So, not just bone-on-bone in the right one, now the tear in the left.  I cannot reach to stitch except for small projects held close to my body.  

I had Garden Prelude framed; my daughter has it now.  Many of my framed pieces are now in others' homes; we could not bring them all to a senior suite.  Only a few select ones came with us.  

In 2021 I finally finished the Starburst Flag, that I started in 2016.  I also did What Remains, an exclusive from Traditional Stitches, that a friend finished into a pillow for me.  

In 1922 I did an Esther Blackwood sampler as a stitch-a-long through Traditional Stitches.  

My big project in 2023 was Dreaming of Poppies, started in February and finished at the end of October.  Then I tore the rotator cuff, so have managed just one small finish this year, a freebie that I downloaded.  I had told my ortho doctor that I could no longer stitch and he encouraged me to at least try something small.  

Also last year, we sold our home and moved into a seniors' lodge, with home care support.  My husband has dementia; this is a memory care facility.  I need help with showering due to my shoulder problems and they do our laundry and dispense meds as well.  https://communities.silvera.ca/calgary/beaverdam/

I spend most of my time reading - 162 books so far this year according to Goodreads - working on genealogy, and, until last week watching Blue Jays baseball.  Now there will be CFL football, hockey and curling until baseball begins again.  And Jeopardy.  

I am also part of a new book launch for Terminal Danger by Jerusha Agen.  It is the fifth and last in the Guardians Unleashed series, a clean romantic suspense, which will be available October 24th.  

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/211072817-terminal-danger

I will try to post more often now that I have resolved the dangerous website problem, although I was informed that it was just a specific Norton checkbox so others would not have seen it.  

  

 

 Almost four years now since my last post; I keep forgetting this blog is even here.  I had a complete shoulder replacement almost 18 months ago and am still recovering from that.  

I did start and finish a large project that took 355 hours or so.  It is Garden Prelude, stitching on 32ct Belfast linen.   

And now another year is done

I cannot believe it is almost two years since I last posted.   I thought about it many times but just never had much to say.  It has been pretty much the same old, same old.  

I may have had a complete knee replacement in 2014,but the knee still hurts.  

In 2015 I had a basal cell carcinoma removed from just below my eye.  Then later that year a fatty lipoma from my left arm.  

In July I finally had the macular pucker removed from my right eye.  My close vision is very poor but I cannot do anything about it until May, when the doctor might do laser surgery to remove what he called some after-cataract - those were removed in 2010. 

This year I celebrated my 75th birthday.  

On the stitching front, I have not done much at all.   The chart I was going to begin in 2015 was abandoned.   I started and finished Cat Lessons for People by Lizzie*Kate.

I also started and finished There Goes the Neighborhood, Butterfly Garden,  His Name is Jesus and Promise Me.   I gave Promise Me to my daughter.  

I only started and finished one project in 2016.   That was a freebie that I found somewhere. 

A couple of months ago I was gifted with the chart O Canada, by Jeanette Douglas, along with the thread pack for it, so I started it and hope to get it done by Canada's 150th birthday in July.  It will be my focal piece and if I get it done will try to finish the Starburst Flag and Rejoice.   They are my only remaining WIPs, since I gave World Peace Angel to my daughter to finish.  

 Rejoice is actually complete down the left-hand side.  

 The flag is also complete down the left-hand side, as of October.  

Since I watch very little TV any more, I do not do much stitching.  Once the curling begins again I should get back to it more often, and then again in April baseball season begins, when I get a lot of it done.    Since my close vision is so poor, I need a lot of light and once again my maglight.  Hopefully after May I can get new glasses, if necessary.   Right now my right eye does not see well at all.  

January WIPocalypse

Since I just posted the other day, there is not much of interest to add, but apparently I am supposed to say something about myself.

I live in Calgary, Alberta, with my husband of 51 years.  We have only been here for 8 years so Calgary still does not feel like home.   We were in Edmonton for 40+ years before we moved here.   I would cheerfully move to a warmer climate in a heartbeat if it was possible.    And that will be my last comment about the weather.  

We have four grown children and nine grandchildren; the eldest is 24 and the youngest will be 5 next month.  

Besides stitching, I also read a lot and try to watch every Blue Jays baseball game between April and September (hopefully in October this year as well :) )    

I started Victoria Sampler's Heirloom Homecoming Sampler on the 1st. 
The picture is just the top part of the chart.  I started with the second row as I was not quite sure just where to begin with the top part.  So what you see is row 2 and then I started working my way up to the top.   I will work on the birdhouse next.  

I also have MLI's World Peace Angel in very slow progress.  She is on the floor stand but being pretty much ignored and if I should happen to decide on something big enough to stitch on the floor stand she will go back into the closet.   I am actually thinking that she will wind up with my younger daughter to finish when I am gone.  She is also a stitcher.   I have an Easter piece to finish as well; managed to get the centre part done before my knee surgery last spring and now it is in the closet too.