Week Fifty: Let It Snow!

Hello everyone! Have you ever stitched a piece that you just know, every time you look at it, will forever remind you of a certain place or event? Well, for me, Country Cottage Needleworks' "Let It Snow" will always remind me of the emergency room. Yes, I spent many of the six hours in the ER on Sunday evening working on this little scene. My husband was being treated for what, at the time, we thought was the flu, but turned out to be a severe case of food poisoning. He missed three days of work, lost who knows how much weight, and is just beginning to regain his appetite and feel normal again. It was very scary and frustrating because we still aren't exactly sure where or what he ate that made him ill.

The one good thing about having that extended stitching time in the ER is that I actually had time to finish the ornament and hang it on my Christmas tree! This was my first attempt at doing a beaded edge and I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out, but, oh, did it take me a very l-o-n-g time! I think I should have practiced on a smaller ornament first. I decided to leave off the words "Let It Snow" that were originally charted (in the JCS 2008 Ornament Issue) because it was just becoming too big to use as an ornament on my tree. I used 32 ct. natural light linen and DMC threads with a touch of Kreinik silver blending filament for the tinier snowflakes. I also changed the blue of the birds, the border, and the snowman's scarf to match the color of the Mill Hill beads that I sewed around the border.


It was such fun coming home and discovering little packages waiting for me in my mailbox this week. I won one of the cute reindeer ornaments that Kim at Stitchful Thinking offered in her recent giveaway. Isn't he darling? It is backed in the cutest red and white polka-dot fabric. Thanks so much, Kim--he is feeling very much at home on our Christmas tree this year! And for anyone else who would like to stitch this handsome reindeer, you can find the free pattern right here...


I also received a non-stitchy gift from Shari at Shari's Sharings. I just "met" Shari through blogging this year and we have become fast friends...She has triplet grandsons and I have triplet great-nieces so we love trading stories about the kids and life in general. Check out her blog and you'll find some recent photos of her little cutie-pies... Shari makes her own chocolates each year and sent me a sampler of her goodies all wrapped up in a cheery snowman towel. Click on the photo and you'll see some of her delicious chocolate turtles trying to escape from their container...I've eaten most of their friends so they know the fate that awaits them! Thank you so much Shari for your treats and your friendship!


I was also lucky enough to meet up with Lee, the Lake Stitcher for a fun-filled day last week. You can read about it on her blog and also check out the Prairie Schooler Santa that I made for her. I had stitched him last year, but just finished him last week...that just shows you how slow I am at finishing some of my pieces. I'm sure he's relieved to be set free from that dark storage drawer that has been his home for the past year! Lee, knowing how much I love LHN pieces, passed on to me a sweet chart called "Winter Sampler" that I know I'll enjoy stitching in the future. Thank you so much, Lee--can't wait until our next get-together!

It is such a busy time of year for all of us, but after the events of this week, I'm trying to step back a bit from the holiday madness. I'm consciously trying to make more time to reflect upon and give thanks for the simple things in life -- for the things we often take for granted such as our health and time spent with our families...

Thank you all for taking time out of your busy holiday schedules to stop in and say hello! I really look forward to reading your comments each week...