Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Sunny Days and An Amazing Coincidence!

Well, hello there! Have you missed me? It's only been three weeks since my last post, but it seems like much longer! That's what happens when you are traveling (and boy, have I been traveling!). You seem to lose all track of time and current events when you are on the road (or in the air!). We flew to San Diego to visit our oldest son for five days, flew home, then three days later, we drove to Washington, DC to visit our youngest son last weekend. And then this weekend I'll be driving to New York to visit my mom for Mother's Day and her 92nd (!!!) birthday which is next Tuesday. That will make three weekends in a row that I've been away from home! To say I've had limited stitching time is an understatement, but I would gladly give that up for a chance to visit with our sons and my dear mother. 

Stitching update... I'm afraid I don't have much in the way of stitching to share with you today... I do want to show you this cute bunny who flew out to California with me and liked the climate so much that he is now making his home with my son and daughter-in-law. I mean, can you blame him? The weather out there is so much sunnier! This is "The Little Bunny" by Bent Creek and is stitched on 32 ct. flax Belfast linen with overdyed threads. The frame is part of a set of about fifteen 5" X 5" frames that I bought used on eBay years ago. (I remember the seller advertising that they had been used to display his insect collection. Hmmm...) Anyway, I painted the once-brown frame off-white and distressed it and think it showcases Mr. Bunny very nicely! The bunny is mounted on sticky-board covered with batting and then glued onto the fabric covered green and white polka-dot backing. A very simple finish that will make a nice addition to my son and daughter-in-law's Easter decorations.

The Little Bunny by Bent Creek finished for an Easter gift

Here is a close-up of his face--I think he has the cutest expression! He looks a little bit lost and just a tiny bit wistful, don't you think?

That face--who could resist it?!

Before we left for California, I framed two older finishes by Country Cottage Needleworks. "The Bakery" (finished in 2015) and "The Flower Shop" (finished in 2016) have been languishing in a dresser drawer just waiting for me to stop procrastinating and frame them. I bought the frames from Franken Frames online and think the black was a great choice! As always, I used the framing tutorial that you can find right here. It seems that I'm becoming more confident in my framing abilities--guess the more you do it, the easier it gets!

Country Cottage Needleworks "The Flower Shop" and "The Bakery" are finally framed after 3+ years!

You can read about my finish of  "The Bakery" right here...

I'd love to have a taste of everything in that pretty bakery!

My changes to "The Flower Shop" finish are detailed in this post...  I totally changed the sign at the top as I wanted it to match the one on "The Bakery." It originally was charted to look like this. I so enjoyed stitching both of these and think they will be a wonderful addition to my kitchen right next to my back door!

Country Cottage Needleworks "The Flower Shop"

Those lovely flowers in the photo above are columbine from my garden and a branch of the gorgeous (and fragrant) crab apple tree near our patio that blooms so beautifully each spring. And below are some of the gorgeous tulips that my husband planted for me last fall--such a welcome treat after a cold winter!

Amazing that such pretty flowers grow from ugly brown bulbs!

I won a giveaway on Instagram recently from a very kind stitcher in England. She sent me three sweet JBW Designs charts which I know I will enjoy stitching! Thank you so much, Linda--I really love them... The Instagram community is so supportive and encouraging. If you would like to follow me on IG, just click here. There is an amazing amount of beautiful stitching from around the world to tempt any stitcher--I love it!

Three lovely charts from Linda in England

So, what did we do in sunny San Diego? Well, I have another hiking story to tell you--but, a good one this time (unlike the "hike from hell" that we went on in Panama!!). Garnet Peak Trail is located in  Cleveland National Forest and we decided that it would be a moderately difficult hike for a hot, sunny day. The hikes in southern California are mainly in desert areas--very little greenery like we have in the East. The pictures below give  you a good idea of the topography as we hiked and I've included a photo of the four of us relaxing at the top of the peak enjoying the views...

Scenes from Garnet Peak hike

Anyway, we had reached the top of Garnet Peak and were resting there chatting when another couple appeared. I asked them if they were from the San Diego area and the man said they lived in a nearby county and asked where we were from. When I told him we lived in the Pittsburgh, PA area, he replied that he had relatives in Bradford, PA which is on the very northern border of Pennsylvania and New York. I was shocked and told him that I had grown up just over the border from Bradford and he said, "Well, actually, I spent the first twelve years of my life in a tiny town called *******." (for privacy reasons, I've choosing not to give the exact name) I almost fell off the peak right then and there when he named it--that was my home town!! I spent my entire  childhood there from age five until I left home to get married at age 22 after college! Honestly, what are the chances that I would meet someone on a mountain top in California who grew up in my teeny village on the other side of the United States?! I mean this was one tiny, tiny town--a single traffic light and a few side streets--really just a blip on the map. Blink and you miss it--that sort of town. Unbelievable, really...  We reminisced about what a lovely place it was to grow up and just marveled at the coincidence... his street was just two streets away from mine! As far as I can tell, he must have left our town right about the time my family moved there in 1960. Anyway--what a fun discovery!

We also spent an afternoon on the USS Midway--an aircraft carrier commissioned right after WWII and decommissioned in 1992 after having seen action in both the Vietnam War and the Operation Desert Storm. What was once the longest serving U.S. Navy aircraft carrier of the 20th century that housed 4100+ soldiers, is now a highly rated museum. Today, there are 30 restored jets and helicopters on the flight deck that provide visitors with an audio history of each aircraft--often narrated by one of the former pilots. We got to tour not only the flight deck and captain's bridge, but the below deck areas that included a chapel, barber shop, laundry, sick bay, and the kitchen / food galley (which served an amazing ten tons of food each day). It was really an impressive and educational experience and I highly recommend visiting if you are in the area.

This isn't my photo, but I'm including it to show the huge size of the ship (in the middle) with the city of San Diego in the background

Here are a few photos I took onboard--I can't imagine landing a jet on an aircraft carrier out in the middle of an ocean, can you? Well, let's face it--I can't imagine landing a jet anywhere!

Scenes on the USS Midway aircraft carrier

My favorite experience of our latest San Diego trip was to see The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch. Oh--such beauty everywhere! The Flower Fields are most known for the beautiful ranunculus flowers that cover much of the 50+ acre farm. I think I may just have a new favorite flower and I'm planning to plant some bulbs soon! The farm is only open for two months each year and will close for this year after Mother's Day. I'm so glad we were visiting San Diego at the right time of the year!

The entrance to The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch

A rainbow of radiant ranunculus!

Wouldn't you love to have the view that the people living in those apartments have?

There were small gardens of other spring flowers, too--these delphiniums were my favorites (of course!) with all the blues!

Sitting in this giant Adirondack chair makes everyone look like a kid again! And notice the little birdie perched at the very top, photo-bombing our picture.

Memories of The Flower Farm ~ April 2019

San Diego truly is one of the prettiest areas of the United States--cool and sunny most of the year, its climate is nearly ideal (although a bit too cool for me this visit being in the low to mid 60s!). Just walking in my son and daughter-in-law's neighborhood was a feast for the eyes with all of these beautiful flowers blooming that I've shown in my collage below. I think I would enjoy walking for miles and miles if I lived there! Everything was green and lush as they've had more than the usual amount of rain this year...

Southern California beauties

If you've never visited the area, I highly recommend it. Living there is another thing altogether with the very high cost of houses--oh, my, I was shocked at how much they cost! Anyway, we loved our visit with our oldest son and daughter-in-law--just wish they lived closer as it takes almost a full day to get there since we have no direct flights available.

More goodies! Here is yet another fattening, but delicious recipe that I made for Easter. Since it was just the four of us, I made cupcakes rather than a large dessert. These are carrot cake cupcakes and you can find the recipe right here--very, very tasty and easy to make... I only made half of the frosting recipe and it was plenty! I am slowly learning to decorate cupcakes with the Wilton Cupcake Decorating Set that I purchased on Amazon last month. I think they turned out quite well for my first try!  

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

GIVEAWAY TIME!  In honor of Mother's Day, I found a pretty chart to give away to one of my stitching friends. Since my mother's favorite bird is the hummingbird, I thought this lovely chart would be perfect to give to one of you. This is a chart removed from an old "Cross Stitch & Country Crafts" magazine from March/April 1990. If more than one person wants this, I will pick a name out of the proverbial hat... The deadline for entering will be May 24th, 2019. To enter, please: 

 a) Be a follower of Stitching Dreams
 b) Leave a comment below telling me you want to enter and make sure to include your email address (if I don't already have it)
 c) Answer one of the following questions: What is one of your fondest memories of motherhood? or What is one of your fondest memories you have of your own mother? 

I think it's only fair that I answer the question, too--don't you? For me, my fondest memories were lying in bed and reading to my three sons each and every night--I absolutely loved those times. All of my sons (now in their 30s) are avid readers now and I like to think that those early days of reading to them before bedtime had something to do with that. (Rocking them in my old creaky rocking chair and singing them to sleep when they were babies comes in a close second in my list of favorite memories!).

I'm giving away this beautiful hummingbird chart

I hope all of you who are mothers have a wonderful Mother's Day this coming weekend. This will be the first Mother's Day in 37 years that I haven't been with one of my sons... But, I'll be with my own dear mother and I so look forward to our time together. I hope to be back with my Christmas ornaments for March, April, and May by the end of the month--yes, I have never been this far behind in my monthly ornament stitching. Wish me luck! Thank you all for your wonderful comments and emails--I truly appreciate each one.  Bye for now...

45 comments:

Sandra said...

Well that was a long posting about all the things you've been doing! I love the photo of you and your husband in the giant blue chair. You saw some lovely flowers and spent time with one of your sons and his wife. How lovely to go to New York to be with your mother for Mother's Day. She will be thrilled. Well done for reaching 92 next week!
Beautiful stitching, as always, and I love the Bakery and the Flower Shop in their frames. The rabbit is cute!
Well done for your carrot cupcakes. They look delicious and are very professionally decorated!

MartinaM said...

Hi Carol,
Ohje, as much on the road, but sometimes that's so, but also nice that you can still spend time with your sons.
I love the little bunny as he looks out so cheekily. And your finish is very awesome again. Great frames for the bakery and the flower shop you chose two very pretty motifs. Thanks for the great tip with the frame, that I have to try.
Your tulips have magical flowers and you can enjoy them for a long time.
Oh what beautiful pictures, and the flower fields-great.
I am also completely in cupcake fever, at Easter I also had two variants. Gorgeous these little cakes.
I am very happy to take part in your raffle. The fondest memory of my mother is: I still see my mother baking cookies with my 3-year-old son, full of patience no matter how beautiful or skewed they got. Unfortunately, she has passed away for years, but this picture remains in my heart.
Have a nice mothersday, Hugs Martina

Anonymous said...

Hi Carol, I enjoy reading your blog when you post. It is so interesting sitting on the other side of the world seeing what you do. Autumn is here now in New South Wales. I think the happiest memory of my mum and the one I am grateful for everyday is when she taught me, patiently, to stitch and knit. We would then sit and do these things together at the end of the day. The cow had been milked, the a wood fire was going, and dinner was in the oven. Autumn when the days start to get shorter always remind me of my Mum Robyn in NSW Australia

butterfly said...

Another lovely post ,lots of beautiful stitching ,fab photos , and cooking ,
and beautiful flowers and congrats on your win.
Where do you find the time ? Looks like you had a great trip.
Happy Mothers day to you ,and Happy Birthday to your sweet mother.
Enjoy your week my friend hugs.

Manuela said...

Hello Carol,
ein wunderschöner Post.
Deine Stickereien sind alle sehr schön. Der Hase ist süß und passt sehr gut in den Rahmen. Die beiden Shops gefallen mir sehr gut und die ausgesuchte Rahmen passen sehr gut dazu.
Danke für deinen Reisebericht nach San Diego. Schöne Bilder zeigst du uns, besonders die von den Blumen finde ich richtig toll.
Gern habe ich meinen Kindern am Nachmittag vorgelesen. Sie durften sich immer im Wechsel ein Buch aussuchen. Meiner Tochter musste ich über zwei Jahre lang, jeden Abend das gleiche Buch vorlesen. Ich konnte es zum Schluss auswendig.
Ich wünsche dir einen schönen Muttertag und ganz liebe Grüße
Hugs, Manuela

maxi said...

Hello Carol,
thank you for your travelogue and the fotos! You bunny is so cute!
I especially think about baking my mom at the cookie in the advent. It was her passion.
Have a nice motheday!
Happy stitching
maxi

Ann at Beadlework. said...

A lovely post Carol. I have ranunculus in my garden at the moment, I only discovered how lovely they are last year - they last so well too. My sister in law lives part time in Carlsbad and part time over here in Scotland - I think she gets the best of both worlds.

Donna G. said...

You did a great framing job. I have a stack of finished pieces laying in a dresser drawer........waiting to be framed! Maybe some of your framing inspiration will rub off on me.

Sandy said...

The little bunny is adorable and the framed pieces are going to be wonderful in your kitchen area. They turned our really nice. That view from the apartments would be great indeed. I love flowers and surely would have loved all those places. I also love military tours like the ship. I purchased some of those tips to do the frosting with and haven't used them yet. I simply must pull them out and just try. Enjoy your mom this weekend. I look forward to your ornaments too.

Stasi said...

Thanks for sharing your adventures with us, Carol, both stitching and travel!It truly is a small world...my daughter was in Africa on a mission trip some years ago and met a gentleman who was part of their volunteer group. They started talking and, long story short, his daughter worked at the same company as my hubby and was part of his running group! It is amazing the connections that can be made!
Have a safe trip to NY and enjoy your Mom's special days! Happy Mother's Day to you too!!!

Vickie said...

Well! My mom's birthday is Monday! Happy Birthday to your dear Mother Carol! I pray for a year of EXCELLENT health for her.💗 I love the bunny you stitched for Dan and Olivia. I have stitched him too. What a wonderful coincidence on the mountain top! I love it! Thank you for sharing the USS Midway with us. And of course The Flower Fields! We were to San Diego many decades ago. We went to the Zoo and other things. I enjoyed what you have shared. :) Have a safe trip to New York my friend. Happy Mother's Day!

Robin in Virginia said...

What wonderful adventures you have had! I enjoyed viewing your photos from the San Diego trip. Carol, what a great story to share about meeting someone who lived in your childhood town. I hope you had a good time visiting the youngest one in the DC area. Mr. Bunny is definitely a cutie and you did a fabulous job framing the Bakery and Flower Shop. Have a safe journey to your Mom's and a most enjoyable weekend! Please pass along my birthday wishes to her.

Shelly said...

Mr. Bunny is pretty darn cute! I love how you finished him, using fabric on the sticky board. A good way to use up some fabric. Mr. Bunny looks speechless, like someone said something dumb to him and he doesn't know how to respond! Nice framing on the CCN pieces. Thanks for the pictures of the San Diego area. The collage of flowers in that area has me reminiscing about the upper left corner flower. I was raised in Los Angeles up to 9 years and those flowers we called bottle-brush flowers because they resembled bottle brushes! I see them in Phoenix too. As for your cupcakes, I think you're pretty good at any kind of baking.

Can't wait to see what Christmas ornaments you have stitched up. Safe travels to see your mother and wishing her a wonderful Happy Birthday! You are very lucky to still have your mother. Happy Mothers Day, Carol!

Arlene G said...

Carol you must have itchy feet like Pa in the Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder!!:) What a lot of traveling. I enjoy traveling but as I get older I long for my bed and my My Pillow!! Your stitching is lovely as usual. I will pass on the hummingbird chart as I am trying to finish some of my WIPS. Today I am working on God Save the Queen by Shakespeare's Peddler. It is my oldest WIP and I am ready to be DONE. Happy Birthday to your sweet mother...92 years! What a blessing.

Ele said...

What a cute bunny! Love the CCN charts, they are simply beautiful in their dark frames.
Fantastic photo in the giant chair!!
Happy birthday to your mum

Linda said...

Congrats on all of the beautiful finishes Carol. Loved seeing all of the photos from your trip.

Linda

Sweet Sue said...

Happy Mothers Day Carol, you and Mom!

Susan Lankford said...

Hi Carol....Love your beautifully framed pieces! And yes, San Diego is a lovely place....what a coincidence that you should meet a man from your hometown! Small world, indeed....

Have a memorable Mother's Day with your mom!

Hugs, Susan

marly said...

Enjoyed the photos and trip recap. Wish your mom a happy birthday for me, and to you both, happy mother's day.

Cathy H. said...

What a lovely trip you had to San Diego! The collage of the flowers is beautiful! Love the framing of your stitched pieces, the cute little bunny, and those pretty delicious-looking cupcakes!

Faith... said...

Sounds like you have been very busy! Your travels look pretty and it seems as though you truly enjoyed yourself. I love your bunny too.

Barb said...

I had a very similar experience to you. We were working at the Lighthouse a few weekends ago. I lady came in, signed the guest book and we asked her where she was from. Yes, you guessed it a small town in the suburbs of Chicago where I grew up. Now what is the chance of that happening. Small town Illinois and a lighthouse on the edge of Puget Sound Washington. I loved your trip photos! We went to a wedding there a few years ago, it is a lovely city. Have a happy Mother's Day with your Mom!

Claire said...

Loved hearing all about your trip, Carol. San Diego is such a fun place to visit. Your bunny is just delightful. I'm looking forward to seeing your ornaments next time. Enjoy your visit with your mom. I hope she has a lovely birthday. Wishing you and your mom a Happy Mother's Day. Safe travels!

Gabi said...

Hi Carol, enjoyed hearing from your trip to SD. Lovely stitching. The little bunny is so cute and the framing is top class.
Happy birthday to your Mom and happy Mother's Day.
Hugs

Marilyn said...

Mr. Bunny is too cute, and the 2 shops are so pretty.
Glad you got to visit the Flower farm, it's beautiful.
Someone down the street from us have that same big purple chair on their front lawn!
Mmmmm, those cupcakes look yummy, thanks for posting the link.
Wishing you & your Mom a wonderful Mother's day & weekend!
Marilyn

Barb said...

Hi Carol - oh, I really loved this post and all that you shared with us! Your trip to San Diego to visit your son and his wife truly sound delightful. And, I loved the amazing coincidence when you met the man who lived in the same town where you grew up! What a great experience!!

I hope you have a safe trip to see your Mom and that you both have a very special and Happy Mother’s Day! Happy Birthday to your mother as well.

I will share more with you in a while - love to you and your family.
Barb R.

Tricia B said...

Love your stitching and finishing, Carol! Those carrot cake cupcakes look fantastic! i want my frosting tops to look that good! I may be purchasing your recommended set. Your trip to SanDiego looks like a very wonderful family visit. That flower field is amazing! Happy Mother’s Day to you and your mom! xo Tricia

Christel said...

Que de merveilleuses visites ! Merci de les partager avec nous au travers de vos photos. C'est étonnant il est vrai de rencontrer des personnes qui ont vécu ou vivent près de nous. Comme on dit " Le monde est petit..." Je me souviens lors de vacances en Italie avoir rencontré une fille qui était en classe avec moi... J'avais 9 ou 10 ans... Nous étions loin de notre ville..
Les delphiniums avec leurs bleus si beaux font partie également de mes fleurs préférées... J'aime tellement cette couleur.. Les champs de renoncules sont splendides ainsi que toutes les fleurs dans San Diego. Vous êtes magnifiques vous et votre mari sur le fauteuil géant, même le petit oiseau vous admirait !
Bravo pour le petit lapin, il est adorable, c'est une belle décoration pour Pâques.
En France, la fête des mères sera le 26 mai. Un peu en avance je souhaite une bonne fête à toutes les mamans américaines.
Mon plus beau souvenir avec mes enfants restent les balades que nous faisions en forêt, en vélo ou en marchant. Nous en avons ramassé des tas de choses, glands, pommes de pin, fleurs au printemps... Ces balades nous permettaient de décompresser des semaines chargées. Nous étions bien au milieu de la nature. Mon plus jeune fils Valentin a gardé le goût de la nature mais Baptiste le plus grand est un adepte de la ville.
Je leur lisais aussi des histoires le soir avant le coucher mais aucun des deux n'apprécie les livres plus que ça... Par contre je suis ravie car ma petite fille Lara adore ça et est toujours heureuse lorsqu'on lui offre un livre. Elle me fait toujours rire lorsque dans ma bibliothèque elle me demande si j'ai lu tous les livres entreposés (780 environ...et le chiffre monte monte monte...). Oui Lara j'ai lu tous ces livres, tu sais que Mamie adore lire... Alors Mamie quand je serai plus grande je les lirai aussi.
Amitiés de France,
Christel
http://toilesetfils.blogspot.com

Margaret said...

I hope you are having a lovely time with your mom. Happy birthday to her! Love that little bunny that you gave to your son and DIL in San Diego. So so cute! Love the framing too! The cupcakes look delicious -- love carrot cake! Love seeing all your travel pics from San Diego too! What a coincidence with that man you met at the top of the trail! Happy Mother's Day to you!

Mini said...

Hi Carol, lovely FFOs. I specially like the double frame effect in the bunny finish. I like how you distressed the frame.
Beautiful pictures of the hike, I'm glad you enjoyed your time with family. I have heard San Diego is a happening place.
I smiled when I read about the incident of you meeting someone from home town on the hike.
Something similar happened to me ...I have lived in 4 states of India since I left home 20 years ago but never met anyone from my hometown.
Imagine my surprise when I found out that my neighbor in Kuwait was from tiny hometown.
Happy birthday to your Mom, many blessings to her.
I would love to enter the giveaway.
My fondest memories of my mom is ..well its difficult to describe as she has done so much for me and everything I know has been taught by her. I remember she always supported in my education and career, travelling with me to different locations for appearing in examinations, encouraging me to take up a job 1000 miles away from the home or be it reminding me not to give up on my hobbies on busiest of times.

Leonore Winterer said...

Great stitching and great traveling! I'm glad you were just in time to see all those beautiful flowers.

Meg said...

Aww, such a sweet bunny! I love his little face. :-)

The carrot cake cupcakes look amazing. That's my mom's favorite cake. Since we are both trying hard to eat better, I don't think I will be making any cakes this weekend, but it's nice to look at them and drool a bit.

The hike looks like it was fun (and hard!). Glad you were able to visit your sons, and I hope you are enjoying your weekend with your mom. What a funny story about running into someone from your hometown. I have for a while believed that my hometown is the center of the universe (haha) because it seems that no matter where we go, we meet someone who either lived there once or visited there. Keep in mind my hometown sounds a lot like yours - population 900, no stoplights, in the middle of nowhere!

Have a wonderful Mother's Day, Carol, and give your mom a hug from all of us!

diamondc said...

Carol: Wow the framed pieces are lovely, that bunny is just adorable.
Thank-you for sharing the photos of the Navel ship, Mike was in the Navy during VietNam, made three 30 day campaigns at sea and landed on VietNam shores twice.
Thank-you for sharing the lovely photos of the gardens, that chair is a hoot.
The cupcakes look yummy.
I would rather spend time with family then stitch.
Please do not include me in the drawing I have this Design in my stash.
I am not a Mother but remember the things my Mother gave up to raise us, my favorite memory is: She would put a table cloth on the floor on Friday evening and we ate shrimp dinners in front of the TV, she would buy the little shrimp packs and split them up between my brothers and I.
Happy Mothers Day
Catherine

Lili said...

The Easter gift is very sweet, a lovely finish!
Your framed pieces turned out very beautiful!

Happy Mother's Day!! Happy Birthday to your mother!!

Jutta said...

Dear Carol,
the little rabbit looks soooo cute, the little face especially.
Your two new shops look great in the dark frames, these are very special embroideries.
Thanks for this wonderful post, your trip to San Diego must have been wonderful,
love to you, Jutta.

Julie said...

I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Mothers Day with your lovely mom Carol. I'm sure your boys spoiled you too.
Such a sweet little bunny and his spotted background is delightful, such a pretty colour.
Lots of lovely pictures of your trips. Definitely a strange coincidence for you to meet a fellow from your hometown, chance in million of that happening.
love and blessings x

Jo who can't think of a clever nickname said...

What a wonderful break you had and lovely to meet up with all the family too.
It is a very small world sometimes, you meet someone from your hometown and you get a giveaway and postcard from just down the river to me! We live by the only one of the Norfolk Broads NOT in Norfolk. Trust us to be awkward!
The bunny is very sweet and the shops make a great pair too.

Sheryl said...

Interesting post Carol, a lot of travelling but so worth it to spend time with members of the family. I hope your mum celebrated a wonderful 92 years. Gorgeous flowers to admire and funny photo of the large chair. Your stitched needlework look very well in the bought frames and I just love that cute little bunny by Bent Creek.

Jennifer said...

What neat pictures from your San Diego trip - I was only there once as a child, but am thinking about it as a possible Spring Break destination next year...the hike and flowers look amazing! Glad you’ve had some good time with your sons and hope the visit with your mom was great too. I don’t need to have my name in the hat for the pattern, but I will share one of my most fun memories with my mom was when we spent a week touring colleges through PA, OH, WV, and NY when I was in high school. We had such a good time on that trip, driving from state to state, and I loved spending the time with her then (and still love a great road trip with her now,).

Andrea said...

Carol … your bunny is so cute. The frames go perfectly with your stitched pieces.

I love reading about your travels, along with the photos of course. That was such a coincidence with the gentleman … could it even be spooky.

Donna said...

Your little bunny finish is darling!

Katie said...

I always love reading your posts. Your little bunny finish is adorable. Perfect display. Love the two framed pieces. They look perfect and make a wonderful set indeed. Congrats on your Instagram win and I agree with you the stitching community there is a lot of fun. Lovely photos of San Diego. I've been there it is beautiful. How cool you met someone from a hometown. We have stuff happen like that all the time to us. It always makes us wonder if it happens to anyone else. It did to you. Neat! The aircraft carrier is awesome. We went on a few battleships. You're right they are amazing and HUGE. The flower fields are sure beautiful. I bet they smelled great too. Please leave me out of the giveaway this time. I can't help but share my love of being a mother though. I've had so many amazing moments but I just LOVE watching the happiness in my son's eyes when we visit our cabin. It's a place he just loves so much and he's so proud of it. First time I've seen that it's mine look and it means the world to me. I'm also very thankful to be so close to my mother. She means the world to me. Have a great rest of your May!

Tips said...

So nice cross stitching. I love your easter bunny.
Winkegrüße Lari

linda said...

Love your finishing techniques! Always a pleasure to read your blog too. By any chance could you share the designer of the cross stitch design in your header....I am trying to collect and stitch anything related to sewing/cross stitch. Thanks in advance!

Cindy's Stitching said...

Carol you had such great road trips. You did an amazing job framing your pieces. The flowers fields are so pretty. I hope this June is more relaxing for you.