Time To Catch Up (long and pic heavy)!!

Hey everyone! I'm back, up and about with the living... I had such good intentions, had pictures waiting on the camera to be transferred to the computer to WOW you all with my 'inspired by other blogs' endless Halloween decorations - so better late than never, I guess. Here are just a few of my autumn-Halloween decorations. Here is a bench with different items - stitched, sewn, bought. I love the ghost bear - he's a Ty bear I think my son found last year and we just had to have it for our Halloween party on the bench.

The annual pumpkin carving happened the Friday before Halloween - my mom, my sisters and their husbands, plus the seven kids (6 nieces & nephews plus my son) were together - we eat chili, candy corn and doughnuts (after we tie them to a string and have the kids get a bite without their hands - quite interesting now that most the kids are older - and of course, powdered sugar is a must), drink cider and carve pumpkins. It just wouldn't be Halloween without that party! We know that time is limited with ALL being there - the oldest of the kiddos is turning 18 this month, mine close behind just turing 17 this summer. One missing in the photo - not sure how that happened...

The pumpkin with the big hole in it is my son's from that party...he was doing a "DC" logo as that is the company where he is coveting stereo equipment...My son decided to go begging this year and the rule in our large sub (I usually get well over 400 beggars) is that you have to have a costume - age not really an issue. He and his friends (pictured in an earlier blog at homecoming - those five pal around often) decided to go out - so out went a chicken, a pumpkin, a cow girl, a bunny and my son - pictured above, as a fairy princess - hence the tiara and wings. They had a blast and I am glad he has such good friends - they are all seniors or just graduated last year (one) and are having the such a good year.

These are some of the other decorations I put around the chateau for Halloween - I have quite a bit of stitching around - and then there's the candles in houses that spin little ghosts at the top. My good friend Paulette stitched me a table topper a couple years ago for Christmas - doesn't it look fantastic with the Halloween candle centered among the bats?!

Okay - Halloween is over - time to move on...so the weekend my sciatic nerve and back issues began, I was supposed to go away to a stitching camp that my LNS sponsors. I actually contemplated dragging my sorry butt there - but I was miserable, couldn't sit more than about 15 seconds without pain. I was to spend the weekend with Mary (I've written about her before)
well she went on without me (as I really wanted her to do). There are people who go year after year; this is one of the two times a year we get together. There's always lots of laughs, food, stitching, sleeplessness and it truly is a relaxing weekend that I count the days down when it's close. Needless to say, I was seriously bummed, but slept most of the three days I was away from work and then the weekend I was to be gone. But Mary, bless her heart, brought me my goodie bag and picked up the couple items I just had to have my LNS had set aside for me. This box and fibers were part of the goodie bag - the fibers are named for the weekend and are really nice browns and coordinating colors. The box has a breast cancer pattern with it, it is pinkish in color and very cool.

The next photo is what my buddy picked up for me (and what my LNS sent later). Thanks Mary, for getting my stuff and visiting me on your way home...still seriously bummed. But there's always the spring!

Early in October the sampler guild I belong to celebrated 10 years! So for the 10 year anniversary, we had a party and gifts.

This was in a goodie bag...pictured below. The item in the top (with "samplers" on it) is really cool - in the same color as the fabric, eyelet letters spell out A-B-C, so it's kind of shadowed.

This cool sunflower bag held the box (and all the stuff inside) plus the first picture of gifties! This box is made to hold all these items - as featured in the picture of the example (with the scissors and things all tucked away) and the stitched piece (not done, to be done by each of us) is for the top of the box. I will personalize it and change a bit, I imagine; but what a cool anniversary item.

I had a couple more bags ready for two more friends birthday - Heather and Ginger received these...a bit late, but I look at it that just spreads the birthday out a little and makes it last a little longer. The color scheme on the right is perfect for me and I really had a hard time giving it up.

Well, if I want to stitch at all tonight, I should get on with it. I have probably bored you all to tears. It has been great to catch up (although it's take a bit of time) with the blogs I read regularly. Thanks for those who sent well wishes on my feeling better. And did you notice - I have over 50 followers now! How cool - could there be a giveaway in the future - me thinks so!

Next post will show some stitching progress as I've had needle to thread for just a couple short nights planted in the chair and last Monday with my friends. I also will share with you what those wonderful, fabulous friends gave me for the birthday that passed earlier this month too. I am getting closer and closer to that five-O mark and with each passing year am so glad for my health, my family and my friends. The gals I pal around with (aka - stitching friends) go way beyond our common love of stitching and are with me through good and bad, thick and thin...they are responsible for some of my favorite "down-time" laughs. Isn't it wonderful to have awesome, talented friends who love you just for you, no expectations, no issues - different from family since there is the "have to do" things with family and household...now don't get me wrong, I love my family and my house...but to spend time with the women I hang with, is truly a necessity as much as it is a blessing.

Okay, wrapping up! Have a great week - I will post more pics and progress next time (hopefully soon). School conferences this week - last one of two for me! Yippee.

Stitch smiling, sew happy and laugh!!

Sherry :0)