Slight delay

It's been a busy week around here. DH is having surgery this week and getting all the pre-op work scheduled has kept us hopping! A spider bite started the whole thing rolling until it finally ended up here (for now, anyway). He has already assured me that he will draw a winning name for the chart giveaway tonight. Since his surgery is tomorrow, I will try to announce it and get it into the mail by the weekend! I am sure he will have me running around waiting on him. Some men can handle pain and being sick but I married the typical 'big baby" when it comes to that stuff. *said lovingly, of course*

I have started a new piece but I will wait until I have a little more done on it before posting a picture of it. It's another oldie but goodie from my stash.

Thanks for stopping by! I will contact the winner later this week and annouce it here. Have a great day!

Feed Those Birds

You know me and my birds so I just couldn't resist listing some Autumn bird watching tips!

1. Don't wait until the really cold weather to start feeding the birds again. There are still plenty of berries and insects but now is the time to begin because they are already shopping around for yards to frequent and stay close to for the upcoming cooler months that are close.

2. Several things that will attract them over the Autumn and keep them close during the Winter are a good buffet of various feeders. Also try putting out several trays on the ground (I use large terra cotta pot saucers) for the ground feeding birds. Use a variety of seeds, unshelled peanuts, dried fruits and dried corn to keep them all happy. Some birds prefer ground-level feeding locations; others would rather be several feet off the ground.

3. Don't have a suet feeder? Try smearing the suet or peanut butter onto the bark of a tree or simply break up the suet and put in a bowl to set out for the birds. Don't hesitate to make a birdfeeder with pinecones, peanut butter and seeds like when you were little. It works and the birds will love you for it!

4. Keep those bird baths full with clean water. Even a few old shallow pots or bowls set around with water are good. Birds don't care about how much you spend to do it. They just appreciate that you do it. Period.

5. If you have bird houses and/or roosting pockets, clean them out and get them ready for shelter on those chilly Autumn nights and even colder Winter time. No bird houses? You can still provide shelter. A pile of twigs, logs and old leaves really make for comfy cozy lodging.

6. After you have taken care of the basics, sit back and enjoy watching the birds.

Now is the time to put out the word to your feathered friends that your yard is a good place to be over the upcoming seasons!

Remember, you still have time to sign up for my giveaway on the previous post.

Finish!

I am having trouble with Blogger again. It seems that when I leave a comment on other blogs, it disappears within a matter of minutes. I noticed this on several blogs I left comments on recently then began to watch all of them more closely as I commented. Each one, same thing. Now you see my comment - poof - now you don't! A disappearing act that I wish would disappear! Is anyone else having this problem? Either way, I want my readers to know that I do read your blogs and I do comment!

I have fallen back in love with my stash. I decided to clean out a lot of older patterns that had been sitting in there for who knows how long. During the process of choosing what goes and what stays, I discovered quite a few that I knew I had but had forgotten why I liked them so much when I first bought them. Suddenly I remembered and it was like having all new stash again!

And now on to a picture showing Liberty by Hands to Work. It was a quick piece to finish and a fun one to work on. I had a blast with the color changes. I just picked colors I liked out of my threads and as for how I used them -- no special rhyme or reason. Just whatever I wanted, whenever I decided. The word "liberty" was stitched over one but since I use Aida, I chose to do it in backstitch.

I decided to have a giveaway for this chart now that I am done with it and hopefully someone else will enjoy working on it as much as I did. No rules, no gimmicks. Just leave me a comment on this post by midnight August 20, 2012 telling me you would like to be entered and I will have DH draw a name to be announced on August 22, 2012. Make sure I will be able to get in touch with you by email (either a link or your email address in the comment) in case you are the winner. Otherwise, I will draw another name.

Coin toss time. Heads, I make a new start. Tails, I work on a WIP for awhile. The coin tossed into the air and showed Tails when it landed. No complaints. I have wanted to work on Mother's Tree again. This will be such a special piece when finished! Who knows? Maybe I will do both!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Until next time, may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart.

Summer Stuff

It's August and I can't help but wonder where did most of the summer go? Fall is around the corner and I couldn't be happier! Hopefully it will bring a little relief from this horrible heat and humidity we have been having! Summer has not held a lot of exciting news around here. Grocery shopping and regular errands never take a break and hot humid day with a rain shower most evenings. A little container gardening on the deck, some birdwatching and taking care of some long over due projects on the house. If we take any type of traveling vacation, we both like to wait until right after Labor Day. The crowds are gone and the weather is still nice.

Other than taking care of the above mentioned, I have been busy stuffing my face with fresh from the market cherries my neighbor brought over to me! Yum! Of course I thought about making a pie or a cobbler and if I have enough left from my eating binge, I just might do that! lol.


While we were out over the weekend, I took advantage of a new shipment of seeds into the store for next spring! Once again - yum! I have made my list of plants and seeds I want to be sure to get. A lot of these are things I always told myself I wanted to try to grow one day. Well, I'm certainly not getting any younger so I may as well do it! lol.


After taking a stitching break I finally pulled out everything I needed for a new start. I am working on Liberty by Hands to Work. This chart has been in my stash for a very long time. It's among the first ones I bought when I was able to return to stitching (which I still count my blessings for). I am using 18ct. Fiddlers Cloth and I have made a lot of color changes.


I was thrilled to see some new followers to my blog and want to welcome you all! I always enjoy reading everyone's comments and finding new blogs to put on my reading list!