Blarney 'n Grits

I can't believe we're already into November! This year has just flown by. Thanksgiving is just 2 1/2 weeks away, then Christmas only 3 1/2 weeks after that! Anyone started their Christmas shopping yet? I know I sure haven't:) Soon tho....
Tuesday is Veteran's Day, so that means a day off school. We were also supposed to have tomorrow off, but because of Hurricane Fay, we are using tomorrow as a make up day. So, Tuesday is going to be a stitching day for me. I'm going to do the backstitching to finish that little color varieties piece and then start an advent piece that was in my latest magazine. Hope I have some fabbie here - I'm going to hunt it out tonight so I'm ready to go on Tuesday morning:)
This has been a wonderful weekend. DH and I played hooky on Friday and spent the afternoon at Dave and Buster's, which is like a Chucky Cheese for adults. We had a hoot! Playing games, winning tickets. Can't wait to go back:)
Today is an EQ day, so I'm playing as I type this up. Kicking monster butt and blogging at the same time! Technology rocks!!!! lol
Well, I'm off to finish this quest, then do a quick fabbie hunt.

Cheers
Claire

Simpson's Quote of the Day
When i grow up, I want to be a principal or a caterpillar. Ralph Wiggum

I just can't seem to keep up with this at all! I just realized that it's been a month since I last posted. Funny, it just seems like yesterday. Life has been busy down here. Work has been keeping me occupied, as always. I was finding that even though my kids were not as physically demanding as the class I had in Tennessee, I was absolutely wiped out in the afternoons. I have since discovered that I have a B12 deficiency, and I hope that by taking supplements I may have a little energy left over at the end of the day.
I have almost finished the little piece I was working on with the variations threads. Just the little backstitching stuff to do next time I sit down, which will hopefully be tomorrow afternoon.
I also got the JCS orny issue, which was very exciting:) The next day in the mail my Cross Stitcher issue arrived, and I found a couple of pieces in there I would like to do. I will soon be hunting through my fabbie stash for a natural linen type for one of the pieces.
Tonight is Everquest night. Right now I'm in the middle of a really boring quest. Normally I'd bail and find something better to do, but this quest is part of a group of 5 quests that get me something really cool, so here I sit and be bored. Perhaps I'll finish off that variations piece.

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.
Dorothy Parker (1893 - 1967)

Good afternoon! Here I am, in front of the computer after a long day of PCM training. For those of you who don't know, which is probably everyone, PCM training is Professional Crisis Management. Essentially prevention and intervention techniques for crisis situations when a child beomes aggressive towards self or others. So all day we've been going over theory and practice of techniques. The practice was much more fun than the theory:)
I haven't been doing alot of stitching recently, but on Saturday, I decided I wanted to try the color variations threads. So off I went to Michael's to get some threads, and the little pattern booklet, just for fun. As I was looking around, I realized that the price of DMC has gone up 10 cents since I last purchased it!! I'm shocked. The economy is going to kill my DMC floss shopping! lol Anyway, I got my skeins, and my little patterns and home I went to stitch one while playing EQ. Turns out the border is done in regular floss, so I'm just finishing that up - haven't even touched all the cute new ones yet. Soon tho.
Well, I've got to scoot off to choir practice now.

Cheers
Claire

Simpson's Quote of the Day
"Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It's what separates us from the animals ... except the weasel. " Homer Simpson

Howdy all! It's been a while I know, but I've been keeping myself busy. Starting my new job has been challenging in some ways. While the children seem much easier to deal with than my last class, the paperwork is out of control! Page after page of nonsense that the county deems necessary, certain things I MUST have posted in my classroom that the county deems necessary... and the list goes on and on. My kiddos are an interesting bunch this year. Much higher functioning, and very verbal! I'm not at all used to that. They all have so much to tell me, and questions to ask. They actually tattle on each other! I'm amazed:)
Last weekend my stupid boy dog, Dargo, got out of our backyard. We think someone may have opened our fence, which is very creepy. He was in the bedroom with us on Thursday night when we went to bed, and was gone when we got up at 6a.m. I looked a little before school, but wasn't too worried cuz I figured he'd be back by the afternoon, but no such luck. We hunted Friday night, all day Saturday, and all day Sunday. We walked through subdivisions and brush. I actually fell neck deep into a creek in the middle of the woods! And I can tell you it did not smell that great:( Here I am, completely soaked up to my neck, crawling out of a dirty creek into the backyard of a trailer home. I was hearing the banjos!!! We put up signs in 15 subdivisions with his picture and our phone number. By Sunday night we weren't sure what to think. I had decided to take Monday off to keep looking, so we headed to bed around 10pm. Of course I was up every couple of hours to check to see if he'd come home. At 3:30am the phone rings. Some woman on her way to work spotted him running around her neighbourhood. So we hop in the car, and finally get him back around 4am. What a relief!!! I ended up taking him to the vet though, because he was limping and had a wound on his shoulder, but he's doing fine now. So needless to say that whole episode kept me occupied and off the computer last weekend. This week I spent redoing my comp, so mow I'm up and running well again:)
Well, that's a pretty long story, so I'll finish off for now, and write more terribly interesting things later this week.

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of.
Ogden Nash (1902 - 1971)

Boy the last few days have flown by! School has started down here, at least for the teachers, so it's been a busy 3 days of introductions, cleaning, organizing materials and setting up my classroom. I am slowly getting things done, so tomorrow, I'll finish off with the things I already have at school and work on schedules before I add all my own materials from home to the mess. I have not stitched at all since the weekend, but I'm craving a little TV and stitching time now, so I think that's where I'm headed.

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
Every man serves a useful purpose: A miser, for example, makes a wonderful ancestor.
Laurence J. Peter (1919 - 1988)

Well I have FINALLY completed ornament number 4. (Yes that would be the one I started in April.) I definately subscribe to the theory of better late than never:) At some point I will post a pic, but not now. (Another better late....)
Today has been a wonderfully stitchy, lazy, computery day:) I'm about to go pick out my next ornament for my rotation, (which doesn't actually exist - I just work on whatever I feel like.) However, I do have a couple of other pieces which are screaming my name, and if you've ever heard a piece of linen scream, you know how painful it can sound! lol
So I'm off to get my next orny and continue to stitch until DH gets home.

Cheers
Claire

Simpsons Quote of the Day
(A school related quote)
"When I grow up I'm going to Bovine University. " Ralph Wiggum

What a day! It got up to 106 and there we are packing a U-haul. Talk about sweating. I think I lost 10lbs in water weight easily! (If only it would stay lost, lol) But that's my brother, SIL and darling baby nephew packed up and heading back to Canada. I totally hate the INS. However, they seemed in good spirits, and DB has a job lined up, and they have a place to live, so I suppose it could be worse. I just wish I could have spent more time with the baby. I've only been down here about 6 weeks, and off they go. Ah well. Such is life.
Since I'm totally worn out, I think I'm going to head to bed. I need my rest because tomorrow is a total stitching day:) Haven't had one of those in a while!

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
"The genius of you Americans is that you never make clear-cut stupid moves, only complicated stupid moves which make us wonder at the possibility that there may be something to them we are missing."
Gamel Abdel Nasser

Seems like time has escaped me yet again. I wonder if it's an age thing:) Anyways, thanks so much to Dani for this wonderful and greatly appreciated award. (They like me, they really like me!) We have known each other ever so long, and I so miss having you close by. Now to follow the directions, as best I can of course.

1 Put the logo on your blog
2 Add a link to the person who awarded you
3 Nominate at least 7 other blogs
4 Add links to those blogs on yours
5 Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

Now for the nominations. I think I know 7 other blogs.

Stitching and Life in the Company of Pets - A wonderful blog I get to read, even if I don't comment often.

Mindi from What's Up With Wyora? - Although she hasn't been on in a while, I've always loved her blog, and her taste in online games:)

GailR from Knitting in My Corner - You've always commented on my blog, and at least made me feel like someone was reading it. Thank you:)

Jennifer from Sweet Pea Stitches - Another blog I don't leave comments on, but one I check frequently to see some wonderful stitching. I also love the layout of your blog Jennifer, and have gotten some great ideas from it. Thanks!

Emily from The Floss Box - This is such a versatile blog. So many crafting ideas, and I love them all. Thanks Emily!

And of course my bestest friend Dani from Dani... Black Belt Stitching Wizard - You must come visit some time and enjoy sun, sand and much seafood:) Love ya girl!

There you have it, my nominations. Not sure if I have 7 or not, but I think I'm pretty close.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

The prospect of a long day at the beach makes me panic. There is no harder work I can think of than taking myself off to somewhere pleasant, where I am forced to stay for hours and 'have fun'. Phillip Lopate

Good morning world!
Good news! I finally have a job!!!! I will complete the paperwork on Monday and begin on August 11th. That's a load off my mind:) MIL is here this week, so we're off to St. Augustine today. Thank you Dani for the blog award. I will get it posted on here tonight I hope.
Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
"Always be wary of any helpful item that weighs less than its operating manual."
Terry Pratchett

Happy Friday! Even though I'm not working at the moment, I still love Fridays. I was going to try to cut the grass today - it's getting long, and since it's that bermuda grass it's also very thick. But it poured yesterday, and it doesn't look like it's going to be any drier today. So I think I'll do a few chores in the house and then do some stitching this afternoon. I'm hoping to finish my snowman mitten ornament today and get back on to my secret piece.
I'm off to clean. More later.

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
As long as people will accept crap, it will be financially profitable to dispense it.
Dick Cavett (1936 - )

Evening all!
Well most of the boxes have been unpacked, although the garage is still a mess. We'll get to that over the weekend though. Today I was finally able to sit down and stitch for a couple of hours. I also watched a movie called Mission to Mars while I stitched. Not a bad flick I guess.
We're still hoping for the house in TN to rent or sell. I keep believing that something has got to happen soon with it. It's definately a bit of a stressor. I'm also still hunting for a job down here. Duval Co. is under yet another hiring freeze, which is supposed to lift on July 21st. It's just a little nerve wracking waiting to see where all the cards fall. However, I think I'll relax and enjoy some stitching time while I wait.
I did make it out to the beach last week. A friend and I went to one of the little state parks on the beach. It was fantastic! You could drive right down onto the sand to park, and it wasn't as crowded as Jax Beach. We wandered around the point to where the tide pools were and found starfish, minnows and hermit crabs. It was very cool. Unfortunately I neglected to put suntan lotion on my feet and got a sunburn on my feet and ankles which then got swollen, so I had cankles for a few days. I would like to say I've learned my lesson, but I never seem to.
Well, I'm off to get ready for bed.
Cheers
Claire

Simpons Quote of the Day
"Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try." Homer Simpson

Hi all!

It's been a while since I've posted, but I claim unpacking horror as my excuse! I never knew I had so much stuff - It's just crazy. I'm really noticing it this time because the house in TN is a good bit bigger than this one is, and we're running out of space! Just another good reason to get rid of some of this crap though:)
Stitching has also fallen by the wayside, although yesterday I unpacked it all and got my lamp set up by my favorite corner of the couch. Perhaps by the weekend I'll get a little done on one of my ornaments.
Right now, I'm getting ready to head out to Walmart. We bought a new grill there the other day, and the handle on it is broken, so I have to lug the darn thing back up to Walmart and get it replaced. Argh! What a pain in the tail. Hopefully it won't take too long.
So, I'm off to Walmart. I'll let y'all know how it goes.

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
"The time to stop talking is when the other person nods his head affirmatively but says nothing." Henry S. Haskins

Man do I ever hate packing!! Forcing every last tiny bit of your life into a box is just depressing. Perhaps its the fact that my life can be put into boxes, or maybe it's the fact that's it taking so many damn boxes to do it! Either way, I hate packing. Tune in next week for the blog about hating unpacking:)

I've finally taken the next step in my online fun and created a facebook page. It seems quite interesting so far, but I haven't quite figured it all out yet.

I have done no stitching at all recently. Everything is packed up except the one bag of WIP's I left out. I think I may do a little stitching this evening while I watch my britcoms. Love my britcoms:)

I'm off to finish a little more packing before I scavenge some food for dinner. More later on the move.

Cheers
Claire

Simpson's Quote of the Day
"That's it! You people have stood in my way long enough. I'm going to clown college!"

Evening all! Well, I've finished up working for the evening. Packing, cleaning - not so much fun:( So now I think I'll vege in front of the telly for a few before heading to the shower.

Sadly, we still have not sold our house. We're still praying for that perfect buyer to come along and snatch this beautiful house up and love it. If you know anyone who wants a pretty 3/2.5 in Tennessee, I'm willing to negotiate. Meanwhile, we are looking into rentals down in Jacksonville. We've seen a few we like, now we just have to find one that we like and that no-one else is about to rent! Hopefully by next week we'll have a new address, and a place for us to put all of our stuff.

One a happy note, my neighbor's husband, who has been in Iraq for a year, has finally, safely, come home. I am so glad and relieved for all of them. I know they're thrilled to be back together, and reunited as a family.

Well, I'm going to drag my butt to the shower. Tomorrow I finish mowing the lawn and clean the house for the open house on Sunday. Maybe that buyer I'm praying for will come along:)

Cheers
Claire

Quote of the Day
"Gratitude is merely the secret hope of further favors." Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680)

Evening all! It has been ages since I've posted. Life has been busy, but now that school is out I'm hoping to have a little more time. I'm down in FL for the weekend to find a place for us for next month. This move is coming up so quickly now, and I still have so much to pack! lol Needless to say the stitching has fallen by the wayside. Perhaps a little this weekend, if the beach isn't calling too loudly:) Well I'm off with DH to find some dinner.

Cheers

Claire

Simpson's Quote of the Day
"If God didn't want us to eat animals, why did he make them out of meat?" Homer Simpson

Howdy all! I've sure been busy the last couple of weeks. Things are absolutely crazy, as always. I don't think I could imagine life any other way than crazy:) lol DH now has a permanent job in FL. He's coming up here for a weeks vacation starting Saturday, then he has a new job to go back to. Only about 9 more weeks until I am Florida bound for good. I am getting so excited. I look around the house and realize that I've got so much more to pack. I'm not sure how we got so much stuff!

Stitching has definately fallen off a little the last couple of weeks. I'm hoping to get back on track soon.

We finally got some nicer weather down here. Tonight is so nice, I'm gonna go hang out on the deck for a bit and have a drink.

Gail, just in case my post did not get through on your blog, email me at teldair@comcast.net

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day
It takes only one drink to get me drunk. The trouble is, I can't remember if it's the thirteenth or the fourteenth.
George Burns (1896 - 1996)

Good evening all. I'm back in TN and missing FLA already - most especially my DH. Turns out, I actually do like him and his company:) Nevertheless, I'm home for now, and back at work - bleh!!! This week has been busy. I have an open house this Sunday and next, so I'm trying to clean the house up from being away for over a week, and trying to pack a little. I stitched both Monday and Tuesday, but did not work on Celestial Wings at all last night. Now that it's on a frame, and a pretty big one (to me), I may want to get a holder thingy for it. Tonight was an EQ night, but since I was soloing and just leveling up a low level toon, I had a little time to stitch. I have an ornament going, but I just wanted to start something new tonight, so I stayed small and picked another ornament. There's just something so refreshing and clean about starting a new project. I love that feeling, and needed it tonight after the day I had:) Some wine, a pizza and a fresh piece of fabbie with a brand new pattern to examine. Happy days!! Now, I'm well fed and sleepy, so off to bed I toddle.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day
"They say such nice things about people at their funerals that it makes me sad to realize that I'm going to miss mine by just a few days." Garrison Keillor (1942-)

Howdy all! As promised here are the pics of my two (yes two!) finished ornaments:) Since I was so far behind on the February one, I made sure to pick a really, really quick one for March. So now, I'm up to date on ornament stitching. I've also included a pic of the newest addition to my stitching paradise. God Bless 50% off coupons at Michaels!

This is February's ornament: The Decorator from JCS ornament edition 2007.

This is March's ornament: Britty Christmas Kitty from JCS ornament edition 2005.

And a pic of my new travel ott lite! DH's tiny apartment in FL is sooooo dark, that I splurged and bought one of these just for here. Of course, it'll come in useful anytime I travel, and I'll also probably use it at my desk at home when I'm playing EQ on a slow nite and stitching at the same time.

Speaking of EQ, I'm off to play for a bit.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

Life is something that happens when you can't get to sleep. Fran Lebowitz

Evening folk! Here I am in sunny Florida and loving it! It's been beautiful down here. Today I went to the beach and walked and sat for a while - even got a little sunburn. That actually isn't too hard for me. All I have to do is look at the sun and I have a burn. lol On Monday I went to my LNS. I'm so thrilled with this store! Last time I was down here I was talking to one of the ladies at the store about Celestial wings, and some of the issues I was having. In case I haven't expounded on here, it's driving me to drink-even more than usual, that is. I have had this one on the go for a while now. Naturally, I did the border first with DMC rayon thread. (Side note: I hate rayon.) While working on the more interesting details of the border, I was using a q-snap, and after getting over half way through, I noticed that the original border work seems flattened:( I was sooooo mad that I put the piece away for months. So when I finally forgot the problem and pulled it out again a couple of months ago, that was what I saw - a flat DMC rayon border. So last month while at A Stitch In Time I asked about it, and what to do. The lady I spoke with recommended I bring it in next time. So, spring break, here I come with Celestial Wings. Lois took quite alot of time, and was so helpful - tips, a replacement thread for the border - she even took the time to show me how to pin my piece to rods so there would be no more q-snap issues. She is wonderful!! So I did get a DMC cotton pearl to replace the border rayon, which means, after I get a little more of the dragon done, I'll frog the border and redo. bleh. I did finally finish my February ornament, and am almost halfway through March's. I'll post some pics tomorrow. For now, I'm off to drink wine, watch Idol and stitch.

Cheers

Claire

Simpson Quote of the Day

"I'm going to the backseat of my car with the woman I love, and I won't be back for TEN MINUTES." Homer Simpson

Good Evening! Wow have I been busy! EQ, stitching and blogging have completely fallen by the wayside. I don't even have any updates at all - still working on February's ornament too. It's almost finished though. I'm heading down to Florida next week for spring break, so I'll get it done then I hope. I haven't added a whole lot of fun stuff to my blog as of yet because I'm working on another template. Unfortunately html has me stumped, and I can't quite get it how I want it. I'll keep on it tho. Eventually it'll come to me.

Found this picture this week of the hubby and me - aren't we just darn adorable! It makes me smile, so I thought I'd share:)

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

I've never been a millionaire but I just know I'd be darling at it. Dorothy Parker (1893-1967)

Good Sunday afternoon!

It has been ages since my last post, but I have been crazy busy! First a pic of the baby sampler. It was finished and framed before I had to leave for Florida, so I got to bring it with me to give to them.

I'm very happy with how it turned out, and the frame is a very close match to the furniture that my DB and SIL have for the baby's room. Now some pics of the precious child:)

Isn't he the most adorable child ever?!?! He obviously takes after me in looks:)

So, now I'm back home, mostly caught up on chores, and ready to start another week at school. I've gotten absolutely no stitching done this last week, so I'm behind on February's ornament. I think I'll work on that for a little while this afternoon.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

I don't necessarily agree with everything I say.
Marshall McLuhan (1911 - 1980)

Good Evening! Finally, a minute to sit down! Things have been busy this week. My new baby nephew was born at 10:32am on Monday, February 11th. I've been told he has a full head of hair! I can't wait to see him - I'm going down this weekend to visit both baby and hubby, and I'm so excited!! The sampler is finished and in the framers. I'll make sure and get a picture to post when I pick it up. I actually finished it at school when I got the weight of the baby and then brought it straight to the framers in the hope that I will get it by Friday at lunch, when I leave for Florida. So I'll remember to bring my camera on Friday and snap a pic for you all.

Now I have a minute to stitch. Tonight is the first night of Hollywood week on American Idol. 2 hours of Simon telling people they suck!! lol I love it. So, I'm off to work on...something.

Remember, check my website for items for sale or trade. I'll be adding a wish list next week, and I'm pretty easy to please:)

Cheers

Claire

Simpsons Quote of the Day
" What a day, eh, Milhouse? The sun is out, birds are singing, bees are trying to have sex with them -- as is my understanding ... :
Bart Simpson

Good evening all!

A short post tonight cause I'm really quite tired. I did a little stitching, but I ended up frogging everything I did, so I've put it away before I totally destroy it. Lol! So here I am blogging. Today was an interesting day. We started the morning off with strong storms and tornados. It got a little hairy a couple of times, especially when they were talking about tornados sighted close by. This all started around 4am, and was going strong by 7am. I was thinking they would delay school a couple of hours, but no deal. So off I went to school. Two of my assistants didn't get there until 9:30 - things were very bad. We also had some parents not put their kids on the bus because they thought it was too dangerous. Can't day I blame them - one of the bus drivers said her bus was shaking like crazy!! The rest of the day was pretty calm and easy, thank goodness.
Then Church tonight for Ash Wednesday. Our priest retired last year, and we finally have chosen a new one. He seems really nice, and did a great job tonight.
Finally, Idol. Tonight was the last road audition night, and next week is Hollywood week. Loads of fun!!!

Well I'm done frogging and blogging, so I'm off to bed.
Cheers
Claire

Simpson Quote of the Day
"Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try."
Homer Simpson

Evening all! Tonight is an EQ night for me, even tho DH decided to abandon me and not play. Loser! I did stitch for a few hours this afternoon on my secret piece. It seems to be going ever so slowly though. I'm hoping once I finish the section I'm working on that it'll start to move along. Today I went to Michael's to try and figure out how I'm going to frame the baby sampler. After much discussion with the lady in the store, and a phone call to my folks to find out the color of the baby furniture, we decided on a mahogany color with no mat. I'm going with a ready made frame instead of specially made because of price. With the to-be-made frame and mat she said it would cost around $200!! I about hit the floor! So I asked about the frames from the floor, she said buy the frame and the cost of framing is only about $30. That's a little more my speed. I may even be able to frame something else - one of the many finished pieces I have lying around.

As I've been packing, I've come across some patterns and books that I no longer want or need. I have posted pictures of these on my website on the page For Sale or Trade. (The link is on the right.) If you are so inclined, please take a look, and if anything strikes your fancy, let me know. Prices are listed, but I'm open to trading as well. I don't have a wish list as of yet, but I'll begin to work on that soon. I will add more items as I find them. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. What I don't know, I can make up:)

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

"The more you chase money, the harder it is to catch it."
Mike Tatum

Hello!

It's been a bit since I've blogged, but I've been busy. Today and tonight have been especially crazy. I stayed late at work to help a co-worker catch up on some paperwork, then headed to the gym. So I finally get home around 7pm, only to hear a message from the real estate showing company that they want to show my house tomorrow afternoon. So here I am, drinking a glass of wine, cleaning the house as quickly as I can, and watching Idol. Looooooove Idol:) Not so big on all the cleaning tho. So, no stitching tonight for me, just too much to do before the morning light. However, I will take a little break to watch my Idol!!

I know I owe you all some update pics, and I promise they are forthcoming. Work on the February ornament is slowly coming along. I've also been working on Celestial Wings. I ran out of the amethyst Kreinik, so it's on order through "my" LNS in Jacksonville:) Would you believe that I can't find any Kreiniks anywhere in Chattanooga? Walmart is not even carrying DMC anymore, and the Michael's here is no longer carrying Kreiniks. It's so annoying that I can't find the things I want here in Chattanooga any longer. I guess the move to Jacksonville is coming at just the right time:)

Well, I'm off to watch the end of Idol then do some vacuuming before bed:(

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day
Cleaning anything involves making something else dirty, but anything can get dirty without something else getting clean.
Laurence J. Peter (1919 - 1988)

Howdy!

Good evening everyone! Tonight is an EQ night, so here I am in Skyfire Mountains kicking wurm butt looking for pearlescent shards for my hubby. Oh the fun we have:) I'm also working on my next decoration during down time.
Tonight it's going to get really cold here - it's already down to 26, and feels like 13 with the wind chill. Brrrrrrr. I think I'll pull out the hot water bottle tonight. The kitty loves the hot water bottle. It's a constant fight between us about who gets to use it. Being bigger and stronger, I usually win:)
Only one more day of school before the weekend!!! Yeah:)

Cheers

Claire

Family Guy"ism" of the Day

Brian Griffin: Hey Bartender! Whose leg do I have to hump to get a dry martini around here?

I love days with no school! It sure does make the week seem better. Today I stitched, cleaned, played EQ, worked out and taught a class. Last Friday during my workout, I pulled my inner thigh and groin muscles:( They still hurt, so I skipped the machines that caused the pulls tonight, but I realized that almost every other exercise I did twinged those muscles. Hopefully I'll still be able to walk tomorrow!

I have finally picked the pieces I want to work on for the next little while. As I said, I have pulled out my Dragon Dreams piece - Celestial Wings - and intend to work on that. I also want to start a new one I bought in Jacksonville called Candy Cane Kisses. It's a Christmas piece, but it's pretty, so I think I'll go ahead and start it. The third piece I've picked is actually a secret - so I won't say much about it, but I will keep you all updated on the progress. Since I've already finished January's ornament, I've started on February's. It's called "The Decorator" - a cute little snowman decorating a tree. I love snowmen!!!!!

Well, I'm off to stitch on the secret piece for a while before bed.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

I believe that every human has a finite number of heart-beats. I don't intend to waste any of mine running around doing exercises.
Buzz Aldrin

I've been tagged! No fair, I didn't even get a chance to run away:)
Here goes:

4 Jobs I've Had

• Cashier in a grocery store
• Shoe salesperson
• Manager at an indoor children's playground
• Teacher

4 Movies I Watch Over and Over

• Galaxy Quest
• Any Harry Potter
• Any Star Trek
• Housesitter

4 Places I Have Been

• Bern, Switzerland
• Phoenix, Arizona
• St. Simon's Island, Georgia
• Vancouver, British Columbia

4 Places I Have Lived

• Northern Ireland
• Ottawa, Ontario
• Dillon, South Carolina
• Chattanooga, Tennessee

4 TV Shows I Watch

• Britcoms
• Reba
• Still Standing
• Game Shows

4 People Who E-mail Me Regularly

• My MIL
• My parents
• People trying to sell me things
• ummmmmmm

4 Favorite Foods

• Pizza
• Hamburger
• Fries
• Portabello & Mozarella sandwich from Panera

4 Places I Would Rather Be

• Jacksonville, Florida
• Six Flags Over Georgia
• Camping in the mountains
• A fancy hotel with a hot tub

4 Things I'm Looking Forward Too

• Birth of my new nephew
• Spring break
• End of school year
• Moving to Jacksonville (Someone buy my house!)

4 People to tag

• GailR
• Mindi
• Courtney
• Emily

That's it folks:)

Cheers

Claire

Homerism of the Day

"How is education supposed to make me feel smarter? Besides, every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain. Remember when I took that home winemaking course, and I forgot how to drive?"

Tonight is the other half of the happy dance!!

The pictures not great, but I added in the snowflakes, and I'm happy with the end result. However, as I was sewing the flakes, I realized that I hadn't left alot of room at the top. Hope I've got enough to finish it off!I'm so close to the end of Winnie! I've got a few more flowery things and some knots to do, then I've got to wait for the baby to be born to get date and weight. I pulled out a Dragon Dreams piece to work on - Celestial Wings. It's been a while since I've touched it, so should be fun. I'll post a pic soonish:)

I took these pics of the puppies playing in the snow the other night. My oldest cat, who was born in Canada, ventured out onto the deck, took two steps looked down at it and came right back in! Smart kitty:)

It's snowing!!! After living in Canada for so many years, I never thought I'd get excited about snow:) I actually think I'm more thrilled about the possibility of a snow day tomorrow.

Anyway, here's a couple of pics of my deck with the snow:)

More later,

Claire

Quote of the Day

"Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through snow. " Jeff Valdez

It's Idol Time!!!!! American Idol begins tonight at 8pm and runs for 2 hours. Can't wait to see it:) So out comes Winnie, the comfy blanket and a diet sprite.

Howdy! It's going to be kind of a late stitching start tonight. I went to the gym, worked out and taught a class tonight. That means I didn't get home until 7pm. So here I am, a little tired, but ready to go. I'm going to do some work on Winnie for a bit, then I think I'm going to pick my next UFO to work on. I have a Doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I'll have a whole day (minus chores and the appointment) to stitch!! So I think I'll get something other than Winnie to stitch on.
They're actually calling for snow here on Wednesday night! A 70% chance of the chilly white stuff beginning to fall after midnight. That means a good possibility of a snow day on Thursday!! One can only hope:)
Well, I'm off to stitch.

Cheers

Claire

Homerism of the Day

"You know that little ball you put on the aerial so you can find your car in the parking lot. That should be on every car."

Good evening! I have just spent the whole day trying to find a new template for my blog. However, there is nothing out there that really leaps out at me, grabs me by the throat, shakes me, and devours me:) I've been looking for something EQ related, but can't find a thing - lots of WoW and even a Guild Wars one, but no EQ anywhere! Mindi, any ideas?? I may actually have to apply myself, learn html, and create my own. Yeah, right! lol

Since I'm spent the afternoon playing with this, I'm going to post a quickie so I can do some stitching. I have two update pics for y'all. This first one is an almost HD.

I say almost an HD because although I finished the pattern, the fabbie I decided to use is wider than what was suggested, so I'm thinking of adding some snow flakes around the side. Any suggestions or comments? I'm also going to finish it as a bell pull, so I'll be calling on Dani any day now:)

Here is my update of the baby sampler. Most of the cross stitching is done, and I've started on the backstitching. Hopefully a few more days, and this one will be done. Time to sort through the stash and see which one is next.

Well lovely peeps, I'm off to eat and stitch.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

"People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built." Eleanor Roosevelt

Howdy everyone!

Finally, another post. I'm trying to do a little better in keeping up with this. For some reason, I can find the time to clean, stitch, nap and play Everquest, but not blog. Go figure:)
Yesterday was my first workout since before Christmas. Wow, am I ever a wimp!! I've had a bad cough for a few weeks now, and finally went to the Doctor to get an antibiotic (it's a sinus infection.) The cough is finally getting better so back to the gym I went. Wasn't too bad, although I did take it easier since I didn't think all those healthy type folks would want to see me cough up a lung on the elliptical machine. I also taught my first kids class there. That was a hoot! I had six kiddos - three regular ed and three special ed. All the little equipment they have for the children is adorable!! We did cardio on the trampolines and bouncy balls, then strength training on the machines. It was great fun:) I think I've talked my co-teacher into teaching a class as well there:)

Today I had a headache, so no stitching for me. However, Winnie is coming along great, as is my first Christmas ornie (along with two others I've been working on for ages:) I will post a pics soon of progress on Winnie and the ornaments. After the sampler is done, I'm probably going to start Candy Cane Kisses, and also pull out one of my many, many UFO's and work on it. I'll have to decide which one to work on. I'm thinking either TW's Noah's Ark, or a DD one I can't remember the name of right now. For now I'll dream about them both, and the dozen or so others I could choose:)

Well, I'm off to play EQ for a bit before bed.

Cheers

Claire

Quote of the Day

"It takes only one drink to get me drunk. The problem is, I can't remember if it's the thirteenth or the fourteenth."
George Burns

Well, I'm home again! My time in FL was great. The weather was wonderful, and I had a marvelous time visiting with my family. We spent Christmas Eve and Day at my parents house, and had a blast opening gifts and playing Bingo. (My SIL got it for Christmas.) DH was back at work for the next few days, so I had time to shop. I headed out to A Stitch In Time to check out the stock. A sad lack of funds meant no real shopping, but I got the JCS Christmas Ornament magazine I'd been looking for and some more petites. I wanted some fabbie too, but couldn't remember color and count, so I went home to find out and went back the next day to get that:) Two days at the stitching store are better than one!!
I also got to walk on the beach at St. Augustine, barefoot of course. The weather was so gorgeous - 77 degrees that day. I think I'll fit right in down there:)
I arrived home in time for our yearly snowfall. It began around 9pm and almost covered the grass! lol When I look at the pics from Dani's blog, and a couple of others from the north, and remember all the years I lived in Canada, I'm just so glad to be in the south! Sometimes I miss the snow, but I don't ever miss the cold:)