A rollercoaster of a month...

Good day, all! It's a gloomy, chilly Friday here in southwestern Pennsylvania so I thought I'd finally sit down and write a new post. It's been over three weeks since I last checked in--have you missed me? I haven't been in much of a blogging mood--or even a stitching mood--lately. I just can't seem to settle and focus for some reason. Is it because it's spring? Who knows... Anyway, I hope you've all had a good month and are looking forward to May's arrival on Monday.

I did manage to stitch and finish one sweet Spring piece this month. I seem to be on a bird kick lately and am finding myself more and more drawn to charts that feature our feathered friends. This charming little design is by Homestitchness on Etsy. Unfortunately, Jenny's shop seems to be on a break right now, but you can sign up to be notified when it returns by clicking here.  "Springtime Greetings" is such a perfect design for the season, don't you think?  I mean what says spring more than the arrival of robins and daffodils? I stitched it on 40 ct. platinum Newcastle linen using all of the suggested threads (except for one of the colors in the urn which I changed from DMC 3776 to DMC 976).

"Spring Greetings" by Homestitchness on Etsy

 

I found a frame in my stash (99 cents from Goodwill!) that fit perfectly. This is such an easy finish... Simply cover a piece of sticky board with fabric for the background. Gather your stitched piece into a round shape (I just use a glass or a bowl to trace a round shape onto the backing board to get the desired size) using this tutorial. Then, glue the round ornament on to the fabric-covered piece of sticky board, add cording around the perimeter (I use Aleene's Tacky Glue applied lightly with a toothpick), and top with a pretty bow to hide where the ends of the cording meet. Doesn't it look darling on the bookshelf in my family room?

A bright pop of yellow on my bookshelf!

 

My ornament for April is from the Prairie Schooler booklet called "Old World Santas" (book no. 80).  I've stitched three of the Santas from that booklet so far and am finishing them all the same way. They're stitched on 40 ct. raw natural Newcastle linen with DMC threads. I did change a few of the colors and am using what I consider the classic Prairie Schooler Santa color, DMC 221, for the robe. The green I'm using for these is DMC 501. I left off the bottom border as I wanted an oval finish and added Smyrna stitched snowflakes in the background. Love the final effect. A lot of folks think that the fabric is printed that way--nope! It's all stitched... It takes a while, but is totally worth it in the end!

April 2023 ornament finish

And here are the three Santas I've finished so far... I think my favorite is the one on the right with the walking stick and the bird. How about you? 

Three down, five to go!

I do have a problem, though--I am almost out of the ribbon I've been using to finish these ornaments and I still have five left to stitch! Does anyone have this particular ribbon on hand? I don't need much--maybe a couple of feet. I believe it was sold at Michael's (here in the United States) last year or the year before. Please let me know if you have any to spare--I'd be happy to pay you for it! Here is a close-up:

Does anyone have to have any extra ribbon like this?

 

Pouch fever! I seem to be finding myself more and more drawn to making simple zipper pouches. This month I made two of them using the tutorial from Erica Arndt on YouTube which you can find right here. Now, I am not a confident sewer (or sewist, if you prefer--there is an interesting discussion in this Threads Magazine article on whether to call yourself a "sewer" or "sewist"), but I find this to be a very straightforward tutorial. I love the added zipper tabs--not only do they look cute with the contrasting fabric, but they finish off the top so nicely. The final size of these pouches is approximately 4" high by 9" long. Next, I'd like to try sewing a larger one with boxed corners to help it stand up easily. Wish me luck!

Making these little pouches is rather addicting!

I bet you can't guess who that yellow pouch is for, can you?! Oh, my oldest son absolutely loved Curious George when he was young and his own son does, too. I was so excited to find a little vintage scrap of Curious George fabric on Ebay and thought it would make a perfect pouch for my grandson to hide his little treasures in. The interior and the zipper tabs are made from a dotted brown cotton from my stash.

I hope "Mister B" likes his new treasure pouch.

And I knew this blue and white fabric would be perfect for a new pouch in which to keep my stitching necessities. The fabric was a gift from a fellow stitcher (many years ago) and I absolutely love the scissors and strawberries that are featured on it. For the interior and the zipper tabs, I used one of my husband's old dress shirts (I have plenty of them to cut up and use now that he's retired!).

Those old dress shirts of my husband's sure come in handy for the linings and backs of projects!

So what do I consider my necessities for my stitching pouch? Well, I am a real minimalist when it comes to my stitching. I don't use hoops or frames to hold my stitching and I don't use needleminders. So... this is it: needles, a pen (thanks Vickie!), scissors (thanks, April!), a seam ripper, and a corner measuring ruler (thanks, Robin!). How about you? Do you stitch with lots of extras or are you more of a minimalist like me?

I just love my new stitching pouch!

Giveaway winner... I was pleased to see so many entries for the "John 3:16 Sampler" that I offered in my last post. I think this is one of those pieces that will be much prettier stitched up than it appears in the photo, don't you? The winner's name pulled from the hat is...

JustPam

JustPam--you are the winner of this pretty chart!

Congratulations JustPam, please send me your mailing address (my email is in the right sidebar--just click on "A Bit About Me" and you will find it). I'll get this chart out to you next week--hope you enjoy stitching it! And for those of you who didn't win... keep an eye on this space for future giveaways! 

 

So, about the title of today's post... Yes, April has been a month of ups and downs. Nothing unbearably sad, thank goodness. Just the normal twists and turns of life. Let's start with the downs:

* My husband now has tennis elbow in his "good" arm (the one that didn't have the shoulder replacement surgery). He overused it and is suffering for it. Does anyone have any experience with helping "tennis elbow" heal faster? 

* My son and his girlfriend who were both here for Easter, came down with Covid two days later. They have no idea where they got it as they hadn't even been at any gatherings. They had gone to the grocery store and a thrift store, but that's it! Both are recovering, but it was a rough go for a while. Fortunately, neither my husband nor I came down with it. I am now the last member of my immediate family not to have contracted Covid. I'm sure I will at some point, but I hope not...

* I just came back from the dentist yesterday--need a new crown. Honestly, it's always something with my poor teeth. I try and try to take good care of them, but...

* I haven't seen my little grandson in over two months now. What can I say :( We didn't dare have him around my husband after his shoulder replacement surgery as he is so active. Boy, do we miss that little fellow!

* The weather... So many ups and downs, but it's been an awfully cold and gloomy second half of April. We've had frosts on several nights, but have managed to cover our plants and vegetables up so they are safe (for now!). 

On the flip side, there were some nice moments happening in April as well...

* I've been enjoying the most beautiful cut flowers from my husband's garden. He planted tulip and daffodil bulbs last fall and these are the stunning results.

Love the peachy/rosy color of the tulips!

Blue, yellow, and white--one of my favorite color trios!

* My oldest son, daughter-in-law, and grandson have bought a house! They were thrilled to find one in the Potomac, Maryland neighborhood (where they are currently renting) and will move in September. I'm having a lot of fun looking for decorating/remodeling ideas for them.

* We have a little visitor each morning peering into my husband's den window. Such a cutie--he's not doing any harm, just seems very interested in what may be going on inside! 

"Well, hello there, Mr. Robin!"

* We have high hopes that we'll see our grandson in mid-May for Mother's Day! Hopefully, my husband's shoulder and elbow will both be feeling better by then. Right now, "Mister B" is enjoying a long weekend in Naples, Florida with his mom and dad. Looks like he's really having a wonderful time capturing who-knows-what in that net!

Mister B in Naples, Florida. I wonder what he's caught in his little net!

So, April comes to an end... I love the month of May and the warmer weather that (usually) accompanies it. I want to welcome my new followers and thank my regulars for your sweet comments and emails. I can't always respond to each of you, but I hope you know how much I appreciate you taking the time to say "hello!" Enjoy your weekend everyone and I'll see you again in the merry, merry month of May! Bye for now...

A perfect summer day and cruising down the Danube (Part 2)

Well, hello there! And how are my blogging friends on this fine August morning? The month is flying by (as they all do at my age!) and September is right around the corner. I don't know about you, but I'm not ready for summer to end. It feels like we got just a bit cheated this year with our rainy, cool June and overly hot July, doesn't it? I'm hoping that September will offer us many more warm sunny days to help make up for those two months!

And to help prolong your summer just a bit, I have a very sweet finish to share with you today. I actually have very few summer pieces to put out so I'm trying to remedy that and, as soon as I saw this design, I knew I had to stitch it... I truly loved each stitch!

What do you get when you combine...

A blue-doored beach hut with a cute seagull perched nearby,

with a darling girl in a red and white polka-dot dress skipping along the sand,

with a little pup playing with his ball while a sandcastle is being constructed with a seashell door,

and a frisbie-throwing lad with a red and white lighthouse standing guard?

Mix in a banner in French that says "The sun,

the sand, the sea" and some breezy sailing boats on a blue, blue sea and you have a perfect summer beach scene!

"Beach Landscape" finish on 40 ct. Vintage Country Mocha Newcastle linen

What do you think? I mean what could possibly say summer more than a carefree day at the beach? This design is featured in The World of Cross Stitching magazine (July 2019 issue #282) and is the product of the imagination of designer Jenny Van De Wiele. Jenny also designed the beautiful "Berries In a Basket" piece that I stitched earlier this year. She is a very talented New Zealand designer who now lives in the United States and designs under the name "Homestitchness" which is a play on words combining her love of stitching and its ability to ease her homesickness for her beautiful New Zealand. You can find more of her lovely designs by clicking here or on her Etsy shop right here.

Why do you choose to stitch a certain design? Is it the colors, the subject, the designer? Or is it because it evokes memories of a special place, time, or experience? With "Beach Landscape," it is the latter reason for me... For almost 35 years, my in-laws rented a beach house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina for all of their children and grandchildren to gather for one week each summer. When we first went in 1984, my oldest son was just two years old... And this year, 2019, is the first time in 35 years that none of the family has gone down. Through the years, the houses we rented went from simple (almost rustic) abodes on nearly deserted beaches to upscale mansions big enough to hold 25+ people. And, oh, how my sons loved the weeks spent bonding with their cousins and creating those lifelong memories. The nine cousins, now ranging in age from mid-40s to early 30s, spent hours boogie-boarding, crab hunting, climbing up the sand dunes, building sand-castles, flying kites, throwing frisbies, star gazing, and eating lots of favorite foods (including the ever popular hush puppies).

Here are some old photos of those happy Outer Banks beach days circa 1995...

My sons and their cousins "digging to China!"

Oldest son at age 13 riding his boogie-board into shore after another successful ride.

My middle son could spend hours and hours just digging in the sand each week.

My youngest son was always discovering new "treasures"--here he holds a feather from a seabird.

And here are 8 of the 9 cousins, along with my husband,  just watching for the next great wave to come in. Look at my niece in the coral colored bathing suit--doesn't she remind you of the little girl in red skipping across the sand in my stitching?

Although I am not a big beach person (the mountains are my "happy place"), the smiles on my sons' faces when they reunited with their cousins each year were priceless! I hope that, if my husband and I are ever blessed with grandchildren, we can continue this tradition of gathering the entire family together for one solid week of bonding and memory-making each year.

I was given the most generous gift this week from dear Sandy at "I Majored In Home Economics" blog. Just look!! A sweet "Dick and Jane" card along with eight beautiful Erica Michaels charts in The Caroling Berries collection. I love Christmas carol themed stitching for an obvious reason--my name and the fact that my parents named me "Carol" because I was due at Christmas time (unfortunately for my poor mother--I arrived three weeks late!). So these are very special and I look forward to stitching them. Thank you so very much for your generous gift, Sandy--I truly love them! And I will be sure to keep the kindness going by passing them along when I am done stitching them.

Beautiful Christmas Carol charts from Sandy

Well, that's it for the stitching portion of this post--on to the next installment of my Danube River cruise. I'm so happy that you enjoyed the first portion on Prague and Terezín. Today, we will visit two new cities and actually embark on the river portion of the trip!

Regensburg, Germany

Regensburg is located in the south-east corner of Germany and it's medieval city center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is so well-preserved because there were no industrial complexes or factories located in the medieval center so it wasn't the target of Allied bombings in WWII. I was excited to visit this city of nearly 150,000 inhabitants because my mom had told me how much she enjoyed it back in the late '60s when she and my dad visited. It didn't disappoint...

My first view of the medieval center of Regensburg as we crossed The Stone Bridge. Wouldn't it be lovely to sit under those shady trees and simply watch the world go by?

Old town Regensburg  and The Danube River as seen from the other side of the bridge

The Stone Bridge, built in the 12th century, connects old town Regensburg with Stadtamhof

The medieval buildings were varied and 

oh-so-interesting!

The pink building is a fine example of what is known as a "medieval patrician tower." The upper class built very tall buildings to showcase their wealth, but often only lived in the first few floors leaving the upper floors empty!

Porta Praetoria was built by Roman Emperor Marcus Auerelius in the 2nd century! It is believed to be Germany's most ancient stone building.

Of course, I had to pose in front of the Regensburg public library!

The mural on the Goliath Building, built in 1260, depicts the story of David and Goliath.

The imposing St. Peter's Cathedral is an important landmark in Regensburg.

The Gothic spires can be seen from almost anywhere in the medieval part of the city.

A few of the pretty buildings and doorways of Regensburg

Many of the windows had beautiful flowers cascading from window boxes

I thought this sculpture of a stag perched above a doorway was particularly interesting!

This is one of my favorite photos of our trip. Our guide said this is an example of an old salt barge that is now used to carry tourists on sightseeing cruises.

Cheers! Here we are in the Regensburg Sausage Kitchen which just may be the oldest continually operating restaurant in the world! It serves 6000 sausages a day and has been in operation since 1146 AD. And no, I am not a beer drinker--hence, the bottle of Coke!

After a busy and very hot day in Regensburg, we are finally bused to our ship: The Avalon Passion. Here are some of our shipmates embarking. (I will write a separate blog post on the ship and my opinions and thoughts on the river cruise in a later post).

After a quick change of clothes, we went to the ship's dining room, met up with a couple we got to know in Prague, and enjoyed our first of many scrumptious dinners which ended with this delightful Apfelstrudel for dessert!

As we were settling in for our first onboard dinner, we began cruising to a new location... Any guesses as to where we stopped next?

I smiled with delight when I opened the curtains of my cabin the following morning to find this gorgeous sight. I honestly would have been very happy to sit there all day with my stitching while admiring this pretty scene! We had arrived at our next destination--the charming baroque town of:

Passau, Germany

Passau, (also known as Dreiflüssestadt ("City of Three Rivers") is situated at the confluence of the Danube, Inn, and Ilz rivers. It is a smaller town of only 50,000 residents,  of whom 12,000 are students at the University of Passau. The original "Old City" portion was destroyed by fires several times in the 16th and 17th centuries and was rebuilt in the style that was in fashion then--Baroque. Pastels abound and it almost appears as if some of the architectural features are icing on a wedding cake. Come on--let's take a stroll through this delightful town...

Pale pastels highlight the market square in Passau

I particularly enjoyed my time in Passau because we arrived early in the morning before the crowds converged.

You need sturdy shoes to walk on these cobble-stoned streets

The spire of St. Stephen's Cathedral rises above the town

St. Stephen's Cathedral, built in the 17th century,  is a magnificent example of baroque architecture. During December a large Christmas market is held in the square right outside the church. I imagine it's quite a sight!

Shall we go inside the cathedral and explore?

Certainly, the prettiest cathedral I've ever seen!

Just look at the magnificent murals and carvings!

It truly was jaw-droppingly beautiful!

St. Stephen's has the largest organ in Europe and the second largest in the world.

I found these exterior sculptures on the outside of the cathedral to be particularly fascinating. Can anyone from Europe tell me what they represent?

I'm guessing that these may be memorial plaques of some kind?

An angel  sculpture on the outside wall of St. Stephen's commemorates the deaths of local WWI soldiers.

The Inn River

I thoroughly enjoyed my stroll along the banks of the Inn River even though the skies were grey and threatening rain.

A view of Innstadt with the Innstadt Brewery in the lower left and the Mariahilf Monastery at the top of the hill.

A final view of the Inn River under threatening skies

There were such lovely, intricately carved doors in Passau

... and  more pretty flower-filled window boxes.

The New Bishop's Palace, built in the 18th century, was stunning both inside and out.

It featured an elaborate rococo stairway

Doesn't this architectural detail resemble a perfect pink and white wedding cake?

Some gorgeous frescoes in the New Bishop's Palace

And this beauty is the library where many of Passau's religious history is on display. Do you think they're interested in hiring a retired librarian?!

After a delightful morning spent exploring the town of Passau, our ship set sail after lunch.

The sun had broken through the clouds and we enjoyed a lovely afternoon cruise to our next destination. I think my favorite moments of our trip were simply sitting in our cabin with the doors wide open watching the world go by as we cruised down the not-so-blue Danube!

Have you enjoyed the second leg of my Danube Cruise today? I loved both Regensburg and Passau, but think I preferred Passau as it was much less crowded and the colors were just so pastel and pretty! Where will I be taking you next time? Stay tuned...

Thank you all so much for visiting me today--and a special thanks to those of you who take the time to leave a comment. I appreciate each and every one as I know your lives are just as busy (or probably busier!) than mine... I want to welcome my new followers and invite any of you who don't follow me already on Instagram to join in on the fun; just click here to see my Instagram photos. I won't be back until sometime in September so I hope you enjoy the last little bit of August! Bye for now...