Marvelous Monday Update 1/31/11 -- Or Is It??

Depends on your perspective! Forecasters have been warning us midwesterners of a pending blizzard/thundersnow storm that is on it's way. Yeah, yeah... I know it's nothing like what the northeasterners have gotten thus far this winter, but it's a major storm for us this year. 9-20" by Wednesday with 30mph winds which will cause major drifting. I guess I'd better get groceries in case I get snowed in.


SCHOOL
I'm at the halfway point. This is Week 4. Last week's quiz was just as disappointing as the previous ones. Ya have to be somewhat intuitive to figure out *exactly* what the instructor is looking for as an answer. Case in point: Comparison of 2 pieces of equipment depreciated over 5 years MA200. Question? What's the depreciation? Well, ummm... do you want Year 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5? I listed them all as well as a total. Two questions were like that! Since it's a timed online test, it's not like you can raise your hand and say, "Hey teacher what do you mean?". *Ugh* I really need to get a move on with my written term paper... *Ugh* again.


RAK'd!
I am sure I had the oddest look on my face as I walked out of the post office on Friday. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why I received a package from Shelley at Shelley's Artsy Fartsy Life. I opened it to find the
C-U-T-E-S-T pair of froggy socks and a package of Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (Yummo!).


I wear thicker socks in the winter because my hardwood floors are cold, and regular socks don't keep my feet warm. I love the froggies! I ate the candy while studying. It didn't last long, LOL.

Thank you so much, Shelley. :)

STITCHY STUFF
Again, hardly any stitching done this week. I feel so pathetic in that the only time I get to stitch is when I'm talking on the phone. Here's what Blossom Splendor looks like:

Other WIP photos can be seen HERE.

Can This Day Get Any Better?!!

I am overwhelmed by the continual stream of birthday wishes! Add to it that ALL my siblings remembered it was my birthday and I received texts/emails from them. :) My BFF also called to wish me a Happy Birthday, and I had an early morning visitor who brought me birthday wishes also.

Then, in today's mail...

More cards and floss from the CSE BFC

And...


Thank you floss from Michelle over at Cup of Tea with Friends for helping her out with a chart she was looking for. You should see her little boy! He is soooo cute! Thank you for the floss and card, Michelle!

And...


A birthday gift from Mel at Epic Stitching. I admire her courage to have multiple BAPs going! Thank you for thinking of me, Mel. You're a great friend. :)

And...


I received this reindeer ornament from Erin at Fairy Tales and French Knots as part of the HOE Reindeer Ornament Exchange. Thanks, Robin! FYI - The chart is by Rosewood Manor and can be found HERE.

And finally...


Stuffed Clams for dinner! No, I didn't make these. I bought them and popped 'em in the oven. Yummy.

Marvelous Monday 1/24/2011

That's right! Today is my birthday... and as the sign to the right says: I'm 39.95 + shipping and handling :)

For a second year in a row, I signed up for the Birthday Floss Club in the CSE group on Yahoo. Envelopes have been arriving for a week or so from all over the U.S. and the world.


It was tempting to open them, but I was a good girl and waited until this morning. I smiled as I opened each one -- I love cards!



Last week I was a bit lazy busy and time went *POOF* by so fast that I didn't get a chance to do my usual MM update. Did anyone miss me? No? *sigh* I knew it. LOL

Here's a quick rundown of what happened:

MONDAY: I worked 12 hours so that I could get my PITA clients (Did I just say that???) their quarter and year end tax returns as well as the W2's so their employees would quit bugging them. I was soooo tired by the end of the day! Needless to say, no homework got done that night.

TUESDAY: It snowed all freakin day! By the time I got home from work, there was about 5" on the ground, which isn't so bad unless it's the heavy stuff and you're ME who has to push it with a shovel to the front and back yards before I can use a snow blower to move it to it's final resting place. Three hours... YES - THREE - HOURS later, I finally was able to go into the house. Most every muscle in my body was sore. My limbs felt like someone had tied 50lb weights to each one and I stumbled around the house like a drunken Scotsman at a pub. Again, no homework accomplished.

WEDNESDAY: Got off work on time. No snow to shovel. You know what that means, don't you? HOMEWORK. The assignment this week consisted of analyzing the four major stock indexes and the company I chose for my class project. One would think that's easy-peasy. No! The instructor wanted analysis for each one for the DAY, WEEK, MONTH, QUARTER, and YEAR. Cripes, it took me all night to get it researched and uploaded.

THURSDAY: More school work. I am in my third week of class now. I just don't get the purpose of the quizzes. I mean, seriously. We read a case study. The instructor uploads the answers to the case study. We're given two hours to take a quiz over the case study. The quiz questions are *exactly* the same as the case study questions. Really, two hours?? It takes me 20 minutes to type in the answers. Oh, and here's a rant: In each of the past two quizzes, there were flaws. One "question" wasn't even a question. It was a statement! And no, it wasn't a T/F question -- all our questions are essays. Another question could go both ways with answers as long as the student justified the answer. But, did the instructor say that? NO. I got points taken off because of it.

What's the purpose of reading the chapters?? OK, maybe I'm a bit skewed because I took Business Finance a couple of semesters ago and it's almost exactly the same as this Corporate Finance class I'm taking now. I have now concluded that if this is how the quizzes are and I'm familiar with most of the text, I'm not wasting my time reading the chapters word-for-word. I'll review them and if there's anything I don't understand, I'll read it. Otherwise, my focus will be on writing my paper for the class project which is worth 200 points. Do ya think it's a good plan?

FRIDAY: Two words... Freakin Cold! When I drove to J2, my car thermometer said:


That's actual temperature! You can imagine just how cold it was when factoring in the windchill. Can you say Big Chill???!


I saved the most important for last...

STITCHY STUFF
A couple weeks ago, I stopped at a consignment shop and found three Mill Hill mini banner kits for less than $2 each! I had to scarf those up. They're perfect for travel kits :)



I know I promised an update on JG, but I haven't worked on it yet. For me, it's one of those projects I really have to concentrate on and I can't work on it when I'm tired or trying to multi-task while talking on the phone. Yeah, I stitch while talking on the phone, LOL. Anyone else do that?

I did have a finish while talking on the phone.

Gingerbread House
Designer: Judee Wilson/Janlynn Wizzers Kit
Fabric: 14ct brown plastic canvas
Fibers: Unknown

I also worked on Blossom Splendor for a little bit (again, while talking on the phone).

Marvelous Monday Update 1/10/11

SADNESS
Yesterday, the stitching community lost one of its members. Rene (aka Rene la Frog) had been having health problems throughout last year. Right before Christmas she was diagnosed with cancer, and had been spending the last couple weeks in hospice. She touched many lives through her position as moderator of Yahoo stitching groups, her blog (HERE) and by teaching an online Hardanger class. My condolences go out to her family. She leaves behind a beloved husband, children, and grandchildren. She will be missed.


SCHOOL
School starts today. Can you read the enthusiam? lol After this, I'll only have three more classes to go. WOO HOO! Unfortunately, they are all online classes in finance. Wish me luck.


TREASURE HUNTING
I had a bit of time on my hands last Saturday morning. Since it had been a while since I'd visited the thrift stores, I decided to give it a go. The first thing that caught my eye was this spoon holder:


Even though I had broken mine a while back and needed one, I didn't put this in my cart right away. I did go back and get it after making my journey through the entire store. When I got home, I noticed the bottom:


It's a Longeberger Woven Traditions spoon rest! I don't know how much these retail for, but I saw some completed auctions on eBay for about $10. I'd say I got a great deal at 99cents!

As I meandered my way through the store, I looked down and saw this on a bottom shelf:


It's a 7-Qt Hamilton Beach Mealmaker Slow Cooker. It's HUGE! I can put an entire chicken or ham in it. It retails for $40, and I got it for a mere $7.99! There was a lady following behind me, who later in passing asked how much it was priced for and commented what a nice crock pot it was. She practically salivated all over it, lol. When I went to pay for my two "treasures", the cashier told me they had just put the crockpot out the night before. My lucky day! :) Even my Mom wanted it when I showed it to her.


STITCHY STUFF
I received two prize packages in the mail last week. :) Carolyn from Taking One Stitch At A Time hosted a Christmas giveway. She was very generous! I thought I was just getting the Santa kit, but no... Here's what she sent me:

I love the Christmas fabric!
I can see some ornies being made with it.
Everchanging Seasons by Elsa Williams White Christmas by D. Morgan

Both of the above kits are really pretty :)
Thank you very much, Carolyn!

Chris from Tot Hill Farm Stitches also hosted a giveaway that her DH pulled my name as the winner! She also was generous... just look what she sent:



Lots of stitchers participate in the TUSAL. I didn't participate because I didn't think I stitch that much compared to other stitchers. I was quite surprised at the pile of orts I pulled out of my ort bag that hangs on the arm of the sofa.

These are all the orts from 2010.

The only stitching I did this past week was a few hours last night while talking on the phone. Here's an update of Blossom Splendor:


I have put this away, and will be stitching on JG next... as school allows.

Marvelous Monday Update 1/3/2011

This was posted on one of the Yahoo Groups, and I really liked it so I'm passing on the good wishes:

Throughout the rest of this Year and all of 2011...

• May you always make the right moves.
• May your cup runneth over with love.
• May you always find shelter from any storm.
• May you remain good looking and looking good!
• May you find the perfect diet for your soul.
• May you find perfect balance in the company you keep.
• May you have as much fun as you can before someone makes you stop.
• May the worst thing that happens to you come in slobbery pink and furry tan.
• May you manage to make time for siesta.
• May all the new folks you meet be interesting and kind.
• May your accessories always harmonize with your natural beauty!
• Should your mouth be bigger than your stomach, may you have a chewing good
time!
• May you always know when to walk away and know when to run.
• And may your friends always bring you joy!

Lastly,
MAY YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR FILLED WITH LOVE, HAPPINESS, AND HOPE.


STITCHY STUFF




I had a few late straggler Christmas cards. This stitched one came all the way from Scotland. Isn't it adorable?









2011 PROJECTS
I've got three main projects that I want to work on in 2011. As mentioned in my previous post, I want to make some good progress on Japanese Garden, aka "JG". I started it in 2006. Here's what it looks like currently:


I started Elegance of the Orient in 2001-2002. It a kit by Dimensions that uses 18ct aida for the fabric. I decided to re-start it on evenweave. I went to pull out the project and only found this:

No chart!
I'm sure it's at The Homestead, somewhere, but where I don't know. Rather than look for it, I emailed Dimensions for a replacement. Several emails later, they agreed to send me one. It should be in my hands in the next 10-12 days. Talk about good customer service!

And just because it's a new year, I wanted to start a new project. I saw Blossom Splendor (also called Summer Geisha) last year and Viv RAK'd me the magazine with the chart in it.

©Joan Elliott




The design calls for Polstitches English Rose hand-dyed fabric as seen to the right...







After checking on pricing ($32.50 ouch!), I decided to hand-dye my own with a piece of Jobelan I had. Mine is a bit darker but I think it will look good.


That purple splotch in the middle is my stitching progress after 2.5 hours. By the end of New Year's Day, it looked like this: