A few lovely surprises!🥰

I still have to post about the Nashville Market, but here are a couple nice surprises I had there!

If you already follow Mary @Mary's Thread, then you know about this already!

I was in the Jean Farish Needlework room, when someone said my name, it was Mary, what a wonderful surprise! How great to see a fellow blogger there!

We got to chat a little bit, but I wish we could have spent more time together. If we both go next year, we'll have to set aside some time to really talk!

My next surprise was when Amy said hello/goodbye to Nicola as she was heading to the elevator.

Wait, Nicola, from Cornwall?! Yes!

She had a blog years ago, Stitching by the Cornish Seashore, and now you can find her at Hands Across the Sea Samplers. So that was cool!

My third lovely surprise was Rahenna @Crafty Rahenna gifting me her pattern for the Mill Hill Autumn Key. She finished hers and I had admired loved it! Here it is, looking great.

She even gave me some perforated paper and what was left of the kit, in addition to some extra pretty floss. Look at how organized she is with her threads! It will certainly make it easier.

I decided to try stamping it green, since I had seen it done before somewhere online. Not too bad!

So thank you so much Rahenna, for sharing this chart with me. After I'm finished with it (which might not be until the summer) I'll pass it along too, with a giveaway! 

Scavenger Photo Hunt - Fall 📷 🍂

Welcome to the third word of the Scavenger Photo Hunt for September. As always, anyone can join in with whatever inspires you and I can always add it after the sign up is closed. 

This week's word is -

Fall

Fall Ball Baseball!

Although this year the shirts aren't showing Fall Baseball on it.

Can you tell Nathan's have a good time?!

My favourite time of year, fall and all those beautiful colours!

Fall colours under the fallen snow.

A fallen top of the loaf of bread I made from DH's spent grains after his brewing.

A fallen tree from our neighbour's yard after a storm this summer, luckily it missed our house.

A fallen fence caused by the tornado that hit in Annapolis in my friend's neighbourhood. Thankfully it missed her house!

Just waiting for those falling leaves!

I know this is a repeat from school, but it works.

I added the falling leaves and the leaves on the bottom of this Joyful World piece.

I didn't stitch this Mill Hill, but I want to!

See you Friday for the word, Ball. I guess I had a head start with my first two photos!

Scavenger Photo Hunt - March 📷 🌺🍁

Welcome to this week's Scavenger Photo Hunt from Katie @I live, I love, I craft, I am me... The words this week are...

 Signs of Spring...

Our beautiful daffodils, although they always seem to bloom much later than our next door neighbour. I dug them out of this flowerbed in the fall because they were coming out of the ground and we need to redo that area anyways. I put them in the garage in a bucket where there are now starting to grow, have I killed them or what?!

Spring at my parents house, with my Mom's chapel in the background.

On one of our spring walks, I love seeing all the green after the dullness of winter.

This is where I left off with Gathering Honey, still quite a ways to go! It might be more summer, but the flowers make me think of spring.

Signs of Autumn...

Love that dragon on my parents roof, especially with the gold backdrop of leaves.

A sad fall, very quiet baseball games but nice to walk around the park.

Fall back...

"Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower."

~ Albert Camus

So many things to love about the fall - the colours, the falling leaves, the coolness, ahhh. 

Be sure to see what others have posting for spring and/or fall.

See you next week.

A little Colour in the Snow 🌶❄

We finally got snow on Sunday, just a little bit to start.

Monday brought more snow and it sure was pretty! Sadly it wasn't all snow, there was some rain/sleet in the mix which made it a little crusty and slick out there. Then it snowed on top of that, so I think we got about 5 inches?

This was Tuesday and Chewie was loving it!

DH still hasn't taken down the lights on the fence, I like the way it looks in the snow.

I didn't quite clean up the "garden" so this is a true chilly pepper!

Here's some more colour. These are two of the kits DH got me for Christmas and I just finished this one. I think I'm going to add beads to hang them with and I still need to add the backing.

Although I did think about putting this one on a stake?

Mill Hill Come Stitch for a Spell

And maybe this one needs a stand instead?

Mill Hill Fall Tree

I've decided that I will only be stitching these kits while waiting to pick Nathan up at school in the afternoon. Otherwise, that's all I'm stitching even when I'm home and have plenty of other pieces I could/should be working on. 

At least picking him up has me stitching five day a week, I just include the weekends and this will be my third year of stitching every day of the year. Some days can be very productive, while others might only be five minutes, but any amount of stitching is good! I know Jo has me beat, by how many years?! Anyone else stitching every day, or maybe trying to?

Stitching with a view like this is an added plus, too bad it doesn't last long!

The People Chose 🍂🍁

Ah, my favourite time of year, Autumn! Take a look at Jo @Serendipitous Stitching to see more Autumnal Colours.


 Cottage Garden Sampling, My Garden Journal, September.

Cottage Garden Sampling, My Garden Journal, November.

The Snowflower Diaries, Joyful World.

Nora Corbett's Trick or Treat fairy.

I haven't quite decided if I'm finished with this, or if I want to add the top of the fence.

This is not my stitching, but I do have this pattern from the Fall Getaway I went to in October, I just need to stitch it.

Mill Hill, now I wonder if I should have added some colourful leaves.

I stitched this one for an exchange.

Another exchange.

My first project bag, also for an exchange, except it's tiny!

One of my favourite pictures, taken on the way to my parents house, outside of Cumberland.

Some colours at Deep Creek Lake.

Saving the best for last - Waxing Moon Designs, Autumn Things. I haven't fully finished it yet, but I'm thinking about using this type of fabric.

I'm not sure if next month has been decided, but probably a winter themed one?

Friday's Stitching Ground 🍪

After shopping with Karen today, I headed to her house to stitch, bake, and sleep over!

I'm finally stitching the harvest moon and I've changed to colours to match it... I think. I'm not sure about the colours I chose, but I'm sticking with it for now. Unlike the apple in the upper right corner, I changed that to a different shade of red because I didn't like the way the green looked.

Then it was baking time. We're stitching tomorrow with a new group of ladies I met at the PA retreat and they're only a mile from Karen's house! It's a potluck and I thought I would test out these Chocolate Espresso Chip Cookies, with a little help from Tippy Cow to keep Karen and I going!

Oh my, they are rather strong and very chocolaty. I think this might me a pick-me-up cookie during the afternoon stitching slump.  

And hopefully I'll finish the moon so I can start this guy. I'm making this for my Dad, and maybe even DH and/or the Gmen.

I also spent some time this week baking for Gman1's gf, for her sorority bake sale. Andes' Cookies - yum, Pumpkin Snickerdoodles - yum, Orange Creamsicle Cookies - eh too much white chocolate for my liking, and Chocolate Mummy Cupcakes. She said they sold everything they had so that was great to hear!

Next week my plan is to catch up with my blog reading and respond to comments, I can never seem to stay caught up!

How good are you at reading and responding?