You Can Visit, But You Can't Join!

Story #1:

Some time ago, when our group decreased to just the four of us, we all agreed that we were content to keep the group small and intimate; thus our commitment to each other over the past 18 years served to both strengthen and enhance our relationships. Our adventures are many and our meetings are just way too much fun. We look forward to them so much that someone is always ending an email, or phone conversation with the countdown as to how many sleeps left until we meet again.

We love to share our stories with other friends and family and we are often envied for the fun we share.  Once when Jody was visiting with her sister Holly and laughing about something that we did - Holly said, “I want to come to cross-stitch!”  To which Jody replied, “Well you can visit, but you can’t join!”  Sounds like something a sisters would say…don’t’ you think?

Well we all got such a chuckle out of that story when Jody told it, that we now say it quite often and at times for what may seem like no apparent reason.  It’s just become one of those sayings that give you a lot of mileage.

This past Christmas I wanted to give something ‘special’ to my ladies.  We’ve all crafted so many things for each other over the years, coming up with something unique was a bit of a challenge. Special and Unique; that’s what I wanted … and then I finally figured out what I wanted to do.

Story #2:

When I was a little girl, my mother had an old Crisco shortening tin which she used to store buttons in.  I loved it when she got this old tin out; we would sit together and sort through all the unique and different buttons.  My mother soon learned how much I loved doing this that she would make it my ‘job’ to find particular buttons.  If she needed a button for one of dad’s shirts or for a baby sweater she just knit, she would pick a button out and tell me to find 5 more just like it.  It kept me busy for a very long time and she could accomplish many a tasks while I sat contentedly sorting through all the different shapes and sizes.  I love the sound it made while I swooshed through all buttons and I would organize them all in piles of ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’.  Sometime ago I inherited this tin and used the same ploy my mother did with me to keep my children cleverly amused for lengthy periods of time.   

 

So…what could be more fitting to add to my gift to make it even more unique?  Why Buttons; of course.   So I dug out the old tin, put on the tea kettle and started sorting.  It was going to take some time; I had to find four of each kind of button and they couldn’t be just any button, they had to be unique.  As I began to sort, my girlfriend stopped by for tea asked what I was doing.  I told her and then she began to sort through the buttons with me while we drank our tea and I shared with her the button tin story.  We had a blast sorting and talking and laughing and drinking tea  and eating cookies and sorting and laughing.  Did I mention that we sorted buttons?

So…there you have it.  Below is the unique and useful gift I made my ladies for Christmas 2010. (Oh yes… and I remembered to stitch my name and the year on it too, just as Tracey taught us.)  Take note of the 'x' earring that on the button in the middle of the handle.   Jody got two sets from Avon and split them up between the four of us so we each fastened them onto a button. 

4 more sleeps.

Bonnie 

Awake at 3am !

I woke up today thinking, it must be almost 5:30 and I'm wide awake and the alarm hasn't even gone off.  Rolled over to look at the clock to find out it was only 3am.  I guess the excitement was just too much for me.  So rather than lay in bed, I fashioned my own 'Fascinator' to wear to work today.  It's really hard to get a good angle of your Fascinator  while holding the camera yourself and when you have really short arms. 

The wedding was beautiful and I loved the dress !!  Simple, yet Regal. 

Tootie-pip.  Off to work now. 

p.s.  I forgot to say I LOVE LOVE LOVED the trees as Kathryn, Duchess of Cambridge walked down the aisle.

To answer the first commentor's question today: Yes, I'm wearing my 'fascinator' at work and it's a bloomin' SMASH !!!   I'm actually being taken out for lunch today to 'Olives' and I think I'll leave the hat on.

Tah-rah!

Pansy Potting Party

Three weeks ago, my girlfriend Diane and I went to a Pansy Potting Party at a local greenhouse called Westland Greenhouses. When I mention it to people their first reaction  is, "What the heck is a Pansy Potting Party?"

Well it goes like this... The cost of the PPP included two trays of pansies and all the dirt and fertilizer you needed.  All you had to take was your containers.  Following the planting party, they served flavoured teas and cookies and hey hid chocolate eggs throughout the greenhouse.  For each egg that you found you got a coupon to spend in their store.

Well, I decided to hit the second hand shops for some unique containers to pot my pansies at the Pansy Potting Party and I came across some teacups and I knew immediately what I was going to do with them.  Since I was hosting cross stitch two nights later, I decided to give Anita, Jody and Tracey a taste of spring in this lovely little teacup.

I filled a few other containers as well, but the one below is my favourite.  I just thought it was so unique.  I guess I didn't realize just  how many pansies were in two trays and I didn't quite have enough containers, so I just brought the rest of the pansies home to plant in my gardens. There was still some snow on the ground at that time, so I just put all the pansies in and around my cast iron urns on the front steps and it is such a refreshing view when you approach the house now. 

One of the other reactions we got when we said we were going to a Pansy Planting Party was, "Two pansies going to plant pansies."  (He's now buried along side the left over pansies in Diane's garden - but don't tell anyone...)

Bonnie 

Stitchers Make the Best of Friends

 Wouldn't you agree?

 This pretty pattern Friendly Stitchers by Brittercup Designs was beautifully stitched by Anita (4X!) and generously given to each one of us as an Easter suprise back in April 2007.  I just love the cute little flower button... I think it really adds to the piece!

 I was lucky enough to have in my stash the perfect frame to finish mine...bought of course at the Thread & Eye  :^)  When we give something the same like this to everyone in our group,  it is always interesting to see how each person envisions their finished product.   

Thanks again Anita!

Tracey

Tell me Moore, Tell me Moore !!

Do you believe in ghosts?  Well I think everyone believes in Casper - why wouldn't they.  He's friendly.  Harmless.  Helpful.  Of course he's real.

(I thought this was kind of funny... and just had to share)  While searching for an image of Casper, I came across one that made me laugh because my immediate thought was, Bonnie - this is what you will look like as a ghost. 

My friend Shauna Moore and I were having a conversation about ghosts a few weeks ago, and whether or not people believe in them.  Well I had a few 'incidents' this past week and I have yet to determined the cause of each one.   While telling my friend Ruth about them the other day, she said, "You've got yourself a traveling ghost.  It's with you all the time - remember what happened at my house?"  

Determined to find answers, I sent Casper on a quest and he came back and said, "Go post it on your blog and let's see what Shauna thinks" 

Thursday 8:30 PM: I arrived home after a dinner date and Paige came right downstairs and said, "Were you here earlier?"  No, I'm just getting home. Why?  "Well I was upstairs and I had music on and I heard the door open and I thought it was you, then I didn't hear you making any noise - I called for you - and then all of a sudden the door closed.  It scared me"  I joked, "It was probably just a ghost."       Paige was like... shudddduppp !!        - next day  -

Friday 6:00 AM:  It was Good Friday, I was off and happy to be able to sleep in.  I was lying in bed and I heard a noise.  I couldn't quite make out what it was because I was still half asleep.  I thought to myself, It isn't the wind.  It isn't music.  It sounds like running water, but it's only 6am - Paige doesn't work until 9, there is NO way she's up!  I finally got up to investigate the noise - and we all know from watching scary movies that you only do that in the daylight hours - so I thought It's safe.  As I left my bedroom and walked into the hall it seemed to be coming from the bathroom.  I entered the dark  (window-less) room to discover the hot water tap on the tub running Full Blast!  Whyyyyyyyyyy?   Paige was still in bed so it wasn't her. The cat was in my room, so it wasn't her.  The tub taps are new and they are not loose.  Hmmmmmm 

When I was telling Ruth this story, she reminded me of the incident at her house.  I was spending the night at her house and she had asked me to bring my Carol Burnett shows with me so we could watch them together.  I put the dvd into the machine and we had only just got into the show about 5 minutes and all of a sudden the dvd player quit.  Ruth said, "Now why did that happen?" At first we thought that a button got bumped on the remote but it was sitting no where near either of us.  She said, "This has been working just fine - I don't get it"  Try as we may we could not get the machine to work the rest of the night. 

A few hours later Ruth said, "Why don't you go up and enjoy my new jacuzzi tub and I'll read and then we'll call it a night"  Sounded like a plan to me!  So I relaxed in the tub while Ruth read and after about half an hour I got out, dried off & dressed and I went into Ruth's room.  I was so relaxed from the tub I crawled up onto the bed and we started talking.  We talked for about 15 minutes and all of a sudden the tub jets turned on.  There was no water in the tub so of course they were very loud.  We looked at each other like WTF? We got up to investigate - even though it was dark out... - and try as she might, Ruth could not get the jets to turn off.  She literally had to open the wall panel and reset the unit.  She came back to the bed and said, "Ok, I'm not sure you can stay here again !!"

So Shauna, What do you think?  Do I have a 'traveling ghost'?    Tell me Moore, tell me Moore !!  

Happy Easter

 Happy Easter to all of our Stitching Friends!  

 We hope that you are lucky enough to be enjoying some sunshine like we are here today.

Easter Egg Cookies

It's been a tradition for us, that on Good Friday that is the day that the kids and I would sit down and decorate the hard-boiled eggs.  Since the kids are all grown now the interest in decorating eggs has gone, however, there is always an interest for cookies.  Everyone was home for the weekend so I took advantage of the extra help and started a batch of cookies and icing.  Remember one of my previous postings about "Cookie Day", well again... just as we were about to decorate, my cousin dropped in from Toronto and  happened upon the moment.  He couldn't wait to join in on the fun. 

Somehow people always know when I'm making cookies. mmmmmm cup of tea and a cookie sounds good right about now.

 Bonnie