MERRY CHRISTMAS

Well only a couple of days to go and it will here and gone again before we know it.
I have bakes goodies and wrapped gifts all day. I am about as ready as anyone. I just want it to be nice for the kids and easy on me. No party's this year not big fuss. Just lots of family time and fun and as always way to much to eat. I wounder sometimes why we all get so worked up about Christmas why does it have to be just so. I will be glad when this year comes to and end and I hope next year is a much better year. Can't say this one has been much fun at all it's had it's up times but way to many bad moment.
This is the time i sit and think about the new year and wonder what it will be like. I never expect it to be great but I hope for the best.
I hope the weather will be nicer for us for one and we get to have a vacation this coming year as it been a couple of years since we had Chance to get away.
I have plans to re do my boys room and a lot of house painting. I would also like to do more art work and the Embroidery is still on the top of my list I have two days to finish my one I started for Christmas will it be done OH I done expect so but i will finish before the new year and put it away for next year. One it's done i will show it off. I am hope to try my hand at Sumi-e next year as well that should be fun.
Well Santa is not the only one with a list. Mine will not get done just sitting here so of I shell go to finish some baking.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL.And if i do not make it back to blog land before the new year HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL.

Wishing you all a Very Merry Christmas

Well it's about time I did this, just so much to do so little time to do it in.
This year everything has been going on, Our Winnie has been hit with seizures having many in one day has left him a life but needing care to recover. He does not know were he is have the time he sits and cry's and is so very Sad. For those of you that don't know who Winnie is he is my one year old Saint Bernard. 160 pound of him he is a wonderful dog but right now a handful he acts like a puppy all the things he has learn are gone from his mind but I hope with time he will recover and again be a wonderful Saint. Sandy our female 1 year old saint is so good at trying to take care of him she watches him none stop. We can so close to losing him it is hard to think about.

But thats over we hope and on to Christmas we have a tree which we was not going to do but our Chrissie kept asking so he got his tree.Ok it's not a full size tree it's not even a small size tree it is the top off of our large tree put in a flower pot on the table and he loves it, We all do. Now it's Christmas.

Here is some more photo's of our Christmas starting with some Ho!Ho! pets
























and none of this could have been done with out my helper.

Well I will put up more as it happens. until them I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a great and wonderful new year Some thing we can all do with.

Just about finished the Embroidery that is.

Well here it is took me a while and just want to play around with one or two things but I will call it finished for now.


I have now got to decide what to do with it I was going to turn it in to a pillow backed with leatherette and may still do that but my kids say frame it I can see that as well a large poster type frame with a large matt just may be a good idea IF and that is a big if I can find wall space for it. but for now I have just sat it on the sideboard to look at. To tell you the truth I am pretty pleased with myself after so many years of not touching an Embroidery needle not to bad a little rusty me not the needle that is. but not to bad. I have something I want to do for the holidays going to see if I can even pull it of to finish it for Christmas. I have the sketch done and think I have the colours picket out and even the fabric well a Linen Napkin.
here the sketch anyway.


So instead of sitting here talking about it I think I should get on with it.

New fur baby's

Well I should be blogging about my finished Embroidery but got held up and for a good reason we have two new members to the Zoo as we call our home now. They are to 8 week old Persian kittens both male and are brothers. They are wonderful little guys with a lot to say for themselves.
First meet Einstein he is a black Persian and full of life and a bit of a trouble maker.

Then there is Mr.Munchkin he is laid back easy going just wants to eat and sleep.


They have already worked in with the Saints and my other dogs so much Winnie is in love.


Win just had to give Einstein a kiss to say Hi.
It's a little crazy around here right now the kittens run around and the dogs want to be right behind them and Winnie tail gets him in to trouble every time the kittens have warned the Saints they are taking over the house and so fare the little guys are getting their own way.
Well this is the reason I have not yet finished the embroidery but I think it's a good one. I just love to sit and watch them play.

Embroidery part 2

Well I haven't finished the project but it moving along I have finished the sides and only have the large poppy in the center to finish now.


It's not coming along to bad. I have had my moments with it. couple of hairy moments but over all it OK. It is no meant to be a carbon copy of Trish Burr's I wanted to put my ideas in to it as well.
Here are a of close ups of each side.



Sorry the photo's are not the best but we have been a bit rushed around here today. Zman got himself a new laptop with Windows7 on it and I have been helping him set it up must say I like the new Windows 7 I could blog from the desk top so I want 7 for my PC as well.
So back to the Embroidery. I hope to get this finished this week and then I want to turn the whole thing in to a cushion for my bed with a leather back should look pretty good.

Embroidery

Well after along lay off I have picked up the needle again. It must be more then 20 years. I am so rusty so are my needles. So before I could do any really work I had to put in a lot of practice and get some new needles. Not something I like doing. I like to get on with things.

My first thing was to find some Internet sites. I needed help. I can across many sites that had great hints and tips. but I found one site that for me had everything. This blog site is run by a very talented lady by the name Mary Corbet, at Needle'n Thread.com . She has everything and more. I started of watching her video's read everything she had wrote, and then tried her List of Long & Short Stitch Lessons. Oh! it was not easy like I said it been a long time but after many hour and a lot of colorful words. I finished the whole 9 lessons.
I relearned many things I had forgotten, and learned things I never know.
This is what I ended up with No it not the best but I am pretty pleased with it.

From this I had the courage to move on and as it was my birthday, I got a lot of goodies to help me on my way. A couple of them was Embroidery books by Trish Burr. Great books, and great help.
From the first book. " Long and Short Stitch Embroidery, A collection of flowers" I did two small flowers, each time learning a little bit more.
Here the first of two.


then came my next one

Which I ended up framing as I was pretty pleased with it.

Looks like someone likes it.
Now I have the book "Crewel & Surface Embroidery" by Trish Burr. Another great book.
I had to have a go at one from the book. I picked the poppy. But right a way ran in to trouble. I could not find the crewel wool she used had to pick out something else but I think I did OK.
Then I needed to copy the pattern on to fabric. Well par for the course with me that didn't go as easy as it should first I had to find some different Linen what I was going to use just was not going to cut it. got that sorted then the Pattern in the book was not the size I wanted so I had to free hand draw the whole thing on the fabric. Well after a while I did get it done and got all the threads together. Ready to start.

OK well nearly ready to start I had to put it in the frame.
but once I did that I was off and running. Had one or two problems but not to bad, but I have been doing the easy parts first.


This is were I am right now.

It's coming along.
want to see a close up.


Well thats about it right now. I should be doing it right now not blogging about it so until next time when Yes I will have more to show.

Mothers day

Mothers day is just about here but as with many mother it is still just another day. I still have stuff to do. But it will be a quiet day as it will be just me and Chris for most of the day. We will have time on our own to play and might even take the Saints out for a walk or play in the back yard. Hubby will get up first, as he said he will help the kids get breakfast and then he is taking 2 of them to the Air show. I am not big on Air shows and Chrissie can not handle the noise and all the people. After they will do a little shopping I am hoping they come home with some goodies but not counting on it. Then we will have a BBQ in the evening in the back yard which hubby has work hard on trying to make it look nice and even though it still not any thing fancy it does look pretty good with the hanging baskets and wall baskets he got us.






plus he got me a couple of lamps to hang candles in to burn to keep the bugs away don't shore if it will work or not but will give it a try.
Well hope every one has a great Mothers day I plan to make the best of it but like my oldest said you Love your mother every day not one day a year. I sure do miss my Mum she past a way about 6 years ago and I still miss her.

late night hours

Well here it is late at night as always just me and this laptop of mine. I sit here many night just trying to find things to do, Just in the hope of not going totally crazy. I have just received a parcel full of new unfinished boxes ready for me to get stuck in and create some thing new. But first it will take a little thinking through. My bird house just about ready to hang and my coaster box about ready for use. I now have many more things to work on. Why do I do this? Well it's not being able to sleep at night that does it to me. With the kids in bed and hubby has gone of to bed as well just leaves me here on my own with the Saints snoring away at my feet. I will get to bed around 4 or 5 am as always in the hopes of getting a little sleep before the new day come to our house hold, Which always starts way to early and way to loud for my liking. It's kind of nice no one is talking, no one is asking me to do something. But I get kind of lonely as well I am glad I have to two big daft dogs under foot now. My small dogs, they go off to sleep with hubby each night but the Saints, well they stay at my side. I wonder how long this will last this time how many nights I will sit hear on my own unable to sleep. It happens every so often. Then before I know it, all I will want to do is sleep. But that can be weeks or months down the road. I know many would say take a pill but I can't do that. I have never believed in taking pills to sleep what if one of my kids needed me. No I will wait until my body tells me it time to sleep.
I am on line to look for ideas but don't seem to find what I am looking for tonight. googling is not finding what I want. I have an idea running around in my head of what I want to do but can I pull it off. Getting started on a new project is always the hard part for me. I love to work with my hands make something new out of things. I like to see how fare I can go. I will never claim to be an artist no matter what training I have had in the past but my arts and crafts are very much part of me. They are for the most who I am. Some of my work may never been seen out side of my home for I am never totally happy with the final out come. But I will always do something. I love trying out new ideas. Some work others I give up on.
My mind as well is on the out doors. Spring is here and I want to get working in the garden. This year more then ever I want to have flowers around. Every year I start of buying flowers for inside as well as out but for some reason this year I want to do more. I want that pretty garden full of colour. I will give it my best shot but Gardener I am not. I will put my hands in to the soil and work away at planting all the wonderful plants my dear hubby brings home but sorry to say many of them will not make it past the hot summer we always get down south.
Well time for me to get back to looking for that one idea that will get me going on the next project.

Crafts

This is my hybrid, part decoupage part painting. I wanted a basket weave so I painted it I wanted branch's and leave but was not happy about spending the time cutting out such small things so I painted them as well this is a coaster box.




My English country garden




some boxs I had done some time ago.

This is my south western pot just for the catus plants my kids got for me. I had painted a rattle snake but he is hiding under the rock.

Well I have take a big step in getting back in to the love of crafts It's been a long time since I have pull out my stuff but for some reason I wanted to start working with my hands and mind again that and the fact I am not sleeping at night to well right now that is.

I starting off painting pots for my flowers and seed I had to have a south western scene for the catus garden. I also did one with a English cottage scene. I already had some box's I had painted before and for some reason I love box's of all shapes and sizes so I have done some more. some of the work I have here is still being worked on and some are finished Items. I want to have a go at as many different crafts as I can just to see what I can do and if I like them. there are so many different things to do it should keep me going for some time.

I love to paint and I have found Decoupage a fun thing to do so I have come up with what I like to think of as my Hybrid craft. I love to use a combination of the two and why not. I use decoupage and paint in the same item and it not turning out to bad.

Well I am going to spend the rest of the night cutting out birds and flower I have a lot i want to do at less it keeps me out of trouble.

Saints for ever

For the love of Saints. Saint Bernard's that is. I am now the proud owner of 2 of the best.


better known as Sir Winston he is a rough (long) haired saint that already weighs in at 45 pounds at 15 weeks of age. That's already a lot of dog. he will be close to 200 pounds by the time he is full grown which takes two years for Saints as they come under the giant breed. he a big mucky sloppy adorable dog that we have come to love so very much. Then there is our lady Sandy. she's a smooth coat(short hair) and smaller in build then our Win but a true Lady she has such a way with her that you have to love as well. She knows how to keep the boys in line. She is so sweet. She is about 38 pounds at 15 weeks so she will be a big girl around the 140 mark when full grown, She will not be so big in built but tall.
They have been here for just over a month and have grown so much in such a short time.

And No we do not intend to breed them that's not why we got them. But to have them as pets. We had thought about showing Winston but I don't think that will happen he is to just be part of our Family.

So now we have 4 yes 4 wonderful dogs in our family. A 2 yr old Pom named Bruce. and a 1 year Black toy Poodle named Eddy (trouble). That with a rabbit and 3 birds we have a full house, But it is all ways fun. My yard has turned in to a mine field. they come in covered in mud every time it rains and I don't care. My 3 kids adore they pet and the pets we hope adore us.

Trying to find a good browser

OH! That should be easy I hear many say. If only that was true.
I have now 3 browsers on this laptop.
The first of course is the one we all love to hate the IE. Which as many know is like an old man. Very unreliable and temperamental at times but you just can't give him up. I hate it when I see a new update come in for it, I know that means trouble before I hit install but like most I go a head and let it install and update. Bingo! it crashes on the first try after. So then I wait for the next fix just hoping that may help. Oh! why do I kid myself it just make it worse.
So as many has done I got FireFox http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/ . Which is (was) a good browser. I started with the 2.? but as some one that just can't leave a good thing alone went and got the new update to the 3.o Bad idea. it does not allow googlies tool bar anymore and some other plug-ins I like to use. so I had to un-install and have gone back to the old FireFox. Which is fine I like the way it works but I been wondering if it is as safe as it says so in the need for the best and safest browser out there ( I have young kids surfing) I went out there to see if there is anything else and yes there is. The one I have found is Called Opera http://www.opera.com/browser/ . At first it looks (in words of my kids) Cool. I can change skins add widgets, It has some really nice features. and I played around with it for hours trying out all it had to offer. It moved my bookmarks over as well so not bad. But and to me this turned out to be a big but. I was unable to sign in to blogger???? no matter what I tried it would not let me in googlies just keep asking for me to sign in over and over. So until I can sort that out I'm back in (I hate to say this) IE.
I'm tempted to even try googlies new browser chrome http://www.google.com/chrome/intl/en/features.html, but it's new and as much as I know about PC I try to steer clear of new as much as possible until others have had a good chance to try it out. OK I'm a bit of a chicken sometimes, Like others to try it first. Like my cooking I let Hubby try it out first. But I bet by the end of today I will down load it. So I will be back to say what I think I hope I will get back any way.
well talking of cooking it's that time that I have to put down the mouse and pick up the saucepan.
so time to do spellcheck ( OK I can't spell to save my life but I can make a mean cottage pie).
Dido

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