"R" Is For Rabbit (and RAKs)

Hello my friends! Hope all of my fellow U.S. stitchers are hanging in there with this heat...What did we ever do before air conditioning? We rarely use ours here in Pennsylvania, but over the past ten days it has been running almost continuously. At least the heat gives me a good excuse to stay inside and stitch. Do you remember this little start I showed you back in May and asked if anyone knew what it was? A few of you guessed it was a Prairie Schooler (always a safe bet when it comes to me!) and you were right.


And here is my finish of "R" Is For Rabbit from the P*Q*R Prairie Schooler Book No. 111, stitched on 32 ct. flax Belfast linen. Now that is one big, brown, bunny, isn't it? And that was a ton of solid stitching; brown is one color I dread stitching with, but I'm so pleased with how he turned out. He is a darker brown than what was charted because I accidentally reversed the symbols of the two shades of golden brown. By the time I discovered my mistake, I had already stitched his entire head and was too lazy to "behead" him and begin again. I actually like him this darker shade and think my mistake ended up being a blessing in disguise.


July is just one celebration after another around our house. My youngest son turned 23 (say it's not true!!) on the 9th and my husband caught up with me and turned 56 on the 14th. Yes, I am a "cougar"--I married a younger man (even if he is only six months younger!) and he never lets me forget it! And finally, on the 23rd, we celebrated 34 years of marriage. We were such babies when we tied the knot--fresh out of college with no money in the bank, but with many hopes and dreams... I am so blessed to say most, if not all, of those dreams have come true thanks to a lot of hard work, compromise, love, and respect.




To celebrate our two July birthdays I wanted to bake something special, but didn't want a lot of leftover cake tempting me for the next week. Luckily, I stumbled across a wonderful cookbook called Small Batch Baking by Debby Maugans Nakos which has recipes to serve just two or three people with little mini-cakes. I tried her carrot-cake recipe with cream cheese frosting and just look at how charming it turned out--it is a mere 3 inches round by 3 inches high! You bake these in well-washed empty cans (I used large soup cans--careful with those sharp edges) and it made two baby cakes--one for my husband and one for my youngest son (of course, I had a few bites (okay, more than a few bites) of each). I was really leery about how a cake baked in a can would turn out, but not only was it cute as a bug, it also tasted delicious.

Now, on to the next-to-the-last stop of our family's European vacation--the lovely town of Ronda in Spain's Malaga province. This town of about 35,000 inhabitants is divided by the Guadalevin River to form the stunning El Tajo gorge. Notice the gray skies--this was the only bad weather in our entire trip. We were so lucky, weren't we? We paid Ronda just a quick visit on our drive from Granada to Seville. You can click and enlarge any of the photos to see just how incredible the area was...

Puento Nuevo ("New Bridge") spanning El Tajo
gorge was built in the 1700s.

Can you imagine the view they have from their windows?

Some of the gorgeous farmland in the Ronda countryside.

What an incredible sight--but you could not pay me
to walk down that white stairway to the cliffside patio!

A matador statue in Ronda, home of Plaza de Toros
one of Spain's oldest bullfighting rings still in operation.

The 18th century Palacio del Marques de Salvatierra
is noted for it's unusual carved entranceway.

A gorgeous mosaic "map" of the town of Ronda.

Images of Ronda, Spain: May 2011

Well, that wraps up our visit to Ronda--the next, and final, stop will be the lovely Spanish city of Seville.


Now on to the other "R" in my post title: Random Acts of Kindness. I was so surprised and touched to receive these RAKs from fellow stitchers. Kathy from "Kathy's Sit and Stitch" blog surprised me with a darling sewing pouch--just look at that fabric adorned with everything a stitcher could need. Isn't it cute? And, I opened the pouch to find a beautiful hand-made scissor fob and the cheeriest pair of polka-dot scissors. Kathy, I am so happy to have "met" you and my other Canadian stitching friends. Someday, I really might make it up to one of your get-togethers so I can thank you in person...



I also received an email from Carol R. who designs at "iStitch" informing me that I had been sent this delightful strawberry chart as a RAK from Michele at "Just Another Stitching Blog." Isn't it sweet--I mean who doesn't love strawberries? I was so touched that Michele, who lives way across the U.S., would send me, a complete stranger, such a special gift. Well, we are strangers no longer--I'm happy to call her a "friend." Thank you, Michele--your gift truly touched my heart.


And last, but certainly not least, just look at this sweet snowman ornament I received in yesterday's mail from Patty at "Hanging On By a Thread" ! I had let Patty borrow one of my charts and she kindly sent this beautifully stitched and finished ornament as a "thank you." I just love it, Patty, and I'm so glad I was able to help you out by lending you my chart. Your ornament will have a place of honor on my Christmas tree this year--thank you so, so much!

I've said it many, many times, but I still feel compelled to say it again--stitchers really are the nicest people! Thank you all for visiting, for your wonderful comments, and for being such great friends--you're the best! Hope your week is a special one. Bye for now...