The green, green grass of home

I'm home! And it feels so good to be in one place for a while. We've been awfully busy since May and I look forward to simply relaxing here at home. The green, green grass in my title? Well, while we were gone there was an unusual amount of rain here and our yard and gardens now look so lush and healthy--a bit jungle-like in all honesty! California is going through a terrible dry spell and there was so much brown everywhere from the hillsides to the dusty roads... I think I'll take Pennsylvania weather! Our trip was a mix of ups and downs which I'll get to later. But, first, as always--here's what I've been stitching (even if it is just a tiny bit!).

I finished my ornament for July--a Tralala design called "Miss et Mister Snow." Isn't the little snow couple darling? I love her little bonnet and the tiny basket she is carrying. And he looks mighty dapper in that oversized bowtie! They are stitched with a mix of DMC and overdyed threads "over one" on 25 ct. moss green Lugana.

"Miss et Mister Snow" finish

 

I knew I wanted this to be an oval shaped finish so I simply rearranged the stars and snowflakes and added a few more to achieve the shape I was looking for. I also shortened the bottom border and reversed it so the scallops face down rather than up. It is finished with the fabric shown in the background and surrounded by white handmade cording along with a simple white bow. I chose to add a long "tail" to this one as I love how this particular finish looks on my Christmas tree or hanging from a cabinet knob. I really enjoyed stitching "over one" on the 25 ct. Lugana and know I'll be adding various colors of this fabric to my stash soon!

My July 2021 ornament

The only other piece I managed to stitch this month was one I've done before. It's a freebie which can be found right here (or in my sidebar under "Favorite Freebies" Noel). This was the only piece I worked on (very sporadically) in California. When you have an already walking (running at times!) one-year old to keep track of, there isn't a whole lot of time to sit and stitch except during his naps. This was an easy piece to work on because it used just one thread: the beautiful variegated red DMC 115. Since I already made an ornament for myself using this design way back in 2010, this one will be a Christmas gift.

"Noel" freebie finish

Much of the Noel piece was stitched while relaxing by the beautiful pool of the AirBnB that we rented for five days just north of San Diego. Honestly, I could have sat there with my feet up all day just feeling the cool breezes as I stitched away in the shade under the big umbrellas. 

Ahhh... pure relaxation!

Unfortunately, our trip was not all smiles and sunshine... but, I'll get to the sadness in a bit. First of all, the happy things and the number one happiest thing is my now one-year-old grandson! Baby B had not one, not two, but three birthday parties--the lucky little boy. The first was just for us and his mom's brother's family who were visiting from El Paso, the second was a big picnic in the park for friends and family (my youngest son surprised us by popping in for that one!), and the third was just our family celebration for three birthdays held at the Airbnb we rented. 

"I'm one year old today!" July 8, 2021

 

My daughter-in-law did a wonderful job planning Baby B's dog-themed birthday parties. Look how sweet the doggie cakes and cupcakes are. Amazingly, my grandson had absolutely no interest in the cake. He can't be related to me as I love sugar a little too much!

Our three July birthday "boys" (the 8th, the 9th, and the 14th!) all celebrate together:  my youngest son, Baby B, and my husband.

I just had to share this video with you! How cute that the birthday boy got such joy from tossing the rainbow of tissue paper wrappings into the air! Hope this makes you smile, too!

 

Sadly, Baby B picked up a virus (most likely at the large picnic/birthday party on Sunday) and became quite ill with a fever, vomiting, congestion, etc. the very first night we were at the Airbnb. Poor little guy--just not his usual cheerful self that entire week. Of course, he "nicely" shared his germs with his mommy and daddy (oddly enough, neither of my sons, my middle son's girlfriend,  my husband, or I got sick). The three sick family members all tested for Covid (even though my son and his wife have both been vaccinated) just to make sure, but the tests came back negative. Anyway, that put a damper on the week, but we still managed to enjoy being together at the beautiful Airbnb.

So what did we do on this latest San Diego trip besides enjoy the famously "perfect" weather? Well, we...

Read lots of books... "Gramma, read me a book!" That sweet expression as he smiles up at me absolutely melts my heart!

Took a beautiful hike around Lake Miramar

Enjoyed the unusual foliage found in southern California

Watched the sun rise from the top of Black Mountain (well, my youngest son and husband did, anyway--the rest of us were too lazy to get out of bed that early!)

We also paid an impromptu visit to Balboa Park after dinner one evening. I wish we had gone earlier in the day as many of the gardens were just closing, but we thoroughly enjoyed our stroll around this beautiful place as we watched the sun set. I highly recommend a visit if you are in the San Diego area!

The California Bell Tower in Balboa Park

 

Looking down at the Japanese Friendship Gardens in Balboa Park

The Botanical Building and Lily Pond were built in 1915 for the California-Panama Exposition

The sun sets at Balboa Park as my middle son (in the blue shirt on the other side of the fountain) rides an electric scooter

Sadly, California visits are not always kind to us. Many of you remember that, last year, my mom died just 16 days after Baby B's birth when we were in California. Well, unbelievably, history repeated itself this year as, just five days after the baby celebrated his first birthday, my father-in-law passed away. He lived a good long, life, and at age 92, this was not totally unexpected. It's still so sad, though, especially for my husband, his three brothers, and the nine grandchildren who adored him. It is very hard going away on a trip with a parent still living and then returning home knowing that you'll never see them again...

In my mind, I will always associate my father-in-law with our family trips to The Outer Banks of North Carolina. He paid for a wonderful rental house right on the beach for us every summer since 1984. When we first began going on these beach vacations, our oldest son (who is now 39) was just two years old. The last time my in-laws were able to travel down with us was in 2017. I still remember how amazed I was that my father-in-law could navigate the stairs down to the beach and get in the water (even boogie-boarding!) at age 88. He gave us all so many wonderful memories and my three sons and their cousins, who are spread far and wide across The United States, really got to know each other on these annual trips. He will be truly missed, but never forgotten. May he rest in peace...

Four generations... remembering my father-in-law (1928-2021). This photo was taken in mid-May at my mother-in-law's 93rd birthday. So glad my son got to introduce the baby to his great-grandpa!

When we returned to Pennsylvania, we celebrated our 44th wedding anniversary by going out for a nice lunch. It was so pleasant eating on the shaded patio and reminiscing... Hard to believe that 50 years is just around the corner. I have to say how much I enjoy going out for lunch rather than dinner and I think we're going to try to do this on a more regular basis!

Still smiling after 44 years together!

I've been picking lots and lots of flowers from the garden this year--they are just beautiful with the mix of sun and rain that we've had this summer.

These pastel colored glads were picked from our garden and given to my mother-in-law when my husband visited her last week. He tries to visit her in the nursing home a couple times a week always taking some homemade cookies and fresh flowers from our garden. 

I'm loving the miniature sunflowers my husband planted this year--just the right size for cutting!

And my favorite hydrangeas...The bushes have had so many more blossoms than normal this summer.

I'm still finding it hard to believe that my grandson is one! I know those of you who have children and grandchildren share my amazement in how quickly that first year passes. So many changes, so much growth, so many things learned in the span of the first 365 days. I could, honestly, sit and watch him play all day as he discovers the world around him. I love pondering what thoughts may be going through his head! I hope he never loses his sense of wonder about life, continues to want to learn and explore new things, and is always, always kind to others in the process. I love you dearly Baby B!

I hope he never loses his sense of wonder...

I want to thank you all for visiting me today and taking the time to say "hello!" I know some of you are facing health issues or, like me, have family members who are dying or who have passed away. Life isn't easy sometimes, is it? But, without the sad times, I wonder if we would feel the joy of the happy times in the same wonderful way? Wishing you a wonderful month of August! Bye for now...

Missing the sunshine

Well,  it's back to the reality of cold, dreary weather for me! Having missed the height of fall color in Pennsylvania while we were visiting my son's family in sunny southern California, I have to admit, it's been a rude awakening of sorts to come back to the rain and gray skies that have surrounded us all week. But, we had a safe trip out and back and a wonderful visit so, for that, I'm extremely grateful. To be able to fly out to visit my baby grandson twice since his birth in July is something I don't take for granted during a pandemic. We aren't sure when we'll see them again, but we sure made some wonderful memories while we were out there for three weeks. More about our trip further on in my post--for now, let's talk stitching!

As many of you long-time readers know, I haven't really decorated for Halloween since my father died on that day six years ago. But, the thing is, I still enjoy stitching a little bit of Halloween here and there. What do I do with these Halloween finishes if I don't decorate with them you may ask? Well, I simply tuck them away in a dresser drawer with the hope that maybe, some day, I'll feel like decorating again! Or, perhaps I won't and I'll just pass all my Halloween stitching on to my sons... 

Anyway, this was such a fun little piece to stitch. It is called "Halloween Screen" and is a chart from one of my favorite designers, The Drawn Thread. I think of all the Halloween designs out there, those by The Drawn Thread and The Prairie Schooler are my two favorites. I used the suggested Dinky Dyes silks for this piece on 40 ct. Woodland Newcastle linen. Love how the colors work so well together!

"Halloween Screen" finish

To finish this Halloween scene, I made a simple pillow with the palest yellow ric rak separating the black accent fabric from the stitching. A yellow handmade cording in the same shade as the moon was added to finish it off. I had to order the tiny button that forms the spider's body from Etsy as I've been avoiding going into stores. It came very quickly in a pack of ten so I have nine more for any future "spider bodies" that I may want to stitch! The bat is done with satin stitches which is something I love about The Drawn Thread designs--the use of various, relatively easy, specialty stitches adds so much to the finished look.

I love the "button" spider!

Another Drawn Thread design that I finally framed after stitching it four years ago was this sweet "Halloween House Sampler."  I made a few changes to the original design which you can read about in this post . I just love this one with the cute little children trick-or-treating at the haunted house. I wonder if they dared knock on the door or made a mad dash for home after spying the ghosts peering out from the windows and floating up from the chimney?

"Halloween House Sampler" ready for framing

 

As I mentioned above, I've been avoiding going into stores to shop (the only stores I've been in at all since mid-March are Trader Joe's a few times and once to Joann Fabrics), but, fortunately, I've accumulated a nice stash of thrifted frames over the past few years. I found a perfect one--except it was a brassy, gold color... Black chalk paint to the rescue! I put on two coats of it and then distressed it a bit. Here's the final result...

It fit perfectly in a 5" X 5" chalk-painted frame

 

Finishing this piece up, reminded me of a third Drawn Thread piece I had stitched back in 2014 called "Full Moon." I actually stitched this one five times--yes, five! I made one for each of my stitching retreat friends... I thought those of you who are new readers might enjoy seeing it and reading about my finish in this post. Finished in a pre-made black box which you can still purchase on Amazon, it is definitely one of my favorite finishes.

"Full Moon" finish by The Drawn Thread

And here are all three Drawn Thread finishes together. They really are such cute designs, don't you think?

There's just something so special about Halloween designs by The Drawn Thread!

 

I have one other finish to share with you--one that has been a long time coming! I first began stitching the Pittsburgh skyline below back in 2016 when my oldest son moved to sunny San Diego. The chart was actually a gift from my former manager at the library who has an Etsy shop right here. I stitched this "over one" on 28 ct. gold Jobelan with DMC 3799, changed the wording and font, and added some birds to the sky. I'm very pleased with how it turned out.

A gift started four years ago is finally finished!

Although originally meant to be a Christmas 2016 gift for my son, it morphed into a 2020 anniversary gift for both my son and daughter-in-law who celebrated their third wedding anniversary earlier this month. Pittsburgh has special meaning to them because that is where they met when she was getting her PhD at Carnegie Mellon University (and, of course, we live there, too!). On the back, I added a message saying that no matter where they roamed, they would always have a place in Pittsburgh to call home. They loved it, I'm happy to say!

All framed up and now sitting in it's new home in sunny California!

On to our latest southern California venture... Once again, we flew out and quarantined in an AirBnB before moving in with my son's family. I have to admit, this quarantining during a pandemic while in another city is not fun. I mean all we could really do is go for walks--lots and lots of walks! At least we got our 10,000 (++++) steps in each and every day. Our AirBnB was located just across the street from Mission Bay so there were miles and miles of boardwalk to spend time on. I'll just share a few of the photos I took with you...

When you fly into San Diego, you fly right over the city which provides a great view of the buildings, water, and boats. It's a bit scary to be honest--you are so close to the buildings!

 

Sailboats on a foggy San Diego morning

 

You can barely spy the paddleboarders and palm trees through the mist

The sun usually burns through the fog each morning leading to a beautiful blue sky before noon.

Ah... that's more like it! Birds and boats and bright blue skies!

We did manage to take one outing with my daughter-in-law and grandson while my son worked. Wearing our masks, we went to the lovely San Diego Botanic Garden (which was named one of the country's top 10 botanic gardens in 2019 by USA Today) for an afternoon of fresh air and sunshine while being surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers. It was so nice just to get out of our rental house and do something that felt normal again! There were very few people there so we felt safe and just relaxed and enjoyed our day. I've added a few photos from the garden below... 

My husband and I were dwarfed by this large tree

 

Just a few of the exotic flowers we spotted at the San Diego Botanic Garden

A pretty señorita covered in succulents in the Mexican themed garden

Often called a "Century Plant," this Agave Americana typically lives only 10-30 years and near the end of it's life, it finally blooms!

Strolling under a shady canopy of tall bamboo

That gazebo looks like a perfect place to relax, doesn't it?

After we moved in with my sweet grandson, it seemed to be one fun celebration after another... First of all, we celebrated my husband's retirement! Yes, as of September 30, 2020, he is no longer a working man (except for all those projects I have lined up for him around the house!). Of course, we couldn't have a real retirement party with the pandemic going on around us, so we had to, once again, resort to a surprise party via Zoom. Our sons joined us this way and all of our siblings sent cards. We do hope to have a real party one of these days, though--he worked so hard for 43 years and none of us would be where we are in life without him! 

Happy Retirement to my dear husband... it's the start of our next chapter together!

My daughter-in-law celebrated a birthday with a small socially distanced party in the park and received many lovely flowers and gifts. This birthday cake made of flowers was especially pretty! And, as mentioned above, my son and daughter-in-law celebrated their third wedding anniversary just three days later. Such a fun time of year for the young family!

A no-calorie flower cake! So lovely!

 

We also took the baby on his first trip to the pumpkin patch (more for us than him, obviously!). The sun was so bright that the poor little guy had his eyes closed in every single photo that we took outside, but we were able to find a nice, shady spot inside a tent to take a few photos with his eyes open. Look how big he's grown!

The cutest little pumpkin!

We even got to eat at a restaurant! Well, outside, spread far apart from others, but again, how nice to feel normal again for even a couple hours. I hadn't eaten at a restaurant since March 13th--seven months ago! It was lovely to sit outside, relax, and chat over good food while making funny faces and noises at Baby B to get him to smile. Speaking of the baby, you can imagine that I'm feeling as though I left a piece of my heart in California. I mean--just look at that precious little face... I cried when I left him and I just hope he doesn't forget us--although at this age I know he will, even with FaceTime. He's changed so, so much since our visit in July and just rolled over for the first time on Wednesday. He'll be four months old in just ten days--unbelievable how time is flying by...

Almost four months old already!

 

We arrived home to a few autumn colors still putting on a show in our front yard and that made it (just a bit!) easier (not really!) to leave the little fellow. With the rains this week, many of the leaves are now down--we'll be raking this weekend!

A bit of fall foliage was still remaining on our trees when we returned

So, there you have it--another California trip in the books. We are still keeping our fingers crossed that my oldest son's family will move closer to us one of these years! That trip across the country is grueling and I know as we get older, we won't be able to get out that way as much as we are able at this age...

Giveaway Winner... I had only a few entries for the two charts that I offered in my last post and the winner's name drawn from the hat is...

Jennifer Davis!

Jennifer Davis... you are the winner!

Congratulations, Jennifer... Please email me with your mailing address, (my email address is in my profile on the sidebar) and I will get the charts out to you next week. Thank you to all who entered...

New giveaway! For this giveaway, I've collected small pieces left over from the cording I've made through the years and am offering them to one of you (U.S. entries only due to shipping costs). There are 20 pieces of red, gold, green, and blue cording in lengths varying from five inches to thirteen inches. They would be perfect for adding as hangers to Christmas ornaments or embellishing a finish in some way. They are not long enough to go around a stitched finish (unless it is a teeny, tiny one!). To enter: 1)Please specifically mention that you want to enter the giveaway, 2) Provide your email address if I don't already have it, and 3) Answer the "Getting to Know You"  question below in your comment. This giveaway is limited to my blog followers only. I will draw a winner and announce it on my next blog post (hopefully, in mid-November). Good luck to all...

If you would like to enter this giveaway, please follow the directions above.

Getting to know you... It was such fun reading about whether or not you liked your name in my last post! Many of you, although not crazy about your name, preferred it to the alternatives your parents were considering when they named you. So, what shall we talk about today? How about: "If money were no object and everyone was able to travel safely again with no pandemic in sight, where would you travel? Would it be someplace close-by or somewhere more exotic." 

 

My answer... I've always wanted to visit New Zealand! That was going to be our destination once my husband and I both retired, but, of course, COVID put a hold on those plans. The thought of that excruciatingly long trip worries me, but it is my dream to go there and spend a month before I get too, too old. From the photos I've seen and movies I've watched, the landscapes and natural beauty of New Zealand look absolutely stunning... so, hopefully, one day! Now, it's your turn. Where in the world would you like to travel? I'd love to get to know you better!

On to November... I know that many of us are feeling trapped inside as the cool weather moves in and the virus keeps raging around us. I'm especially thinking about my friends in Europe as new lockdowns begin. I'm sure our time is coming as well... I am so thankful to have my indoor hobbies to keep me relatively content. I can't imagine being someone who didn't have things like stitching, quilting, and reading to turn to during these trying times. 

Thank you all for stopping in to visit me today and a special thank you to those who take the time to comment. I truly appreciate (and read!) each and every one.  I owe so many of you emails and will try my best to visit with you soon. Don't forget to enter the giveaway if you are interested! Take extra good care now, my friends! Bye for now... 

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...