A New Year and A New Start

Welcome 2014 and a Happy New Year to all! The holidays are over and the decor is coming down bit by bit. We leave our tree up until Epiphany and are just in the process of taking it down now.
The weather has been downright nasty, not just here but for many of you as well. I hope everyone has weathered the storms without incident. 

You may or may not have heard but it appears that the Snowy Owls have travelled further south than usual this year in search of food. Around here it is being reported that there are more owls being seen than in the past 40 years. Several people mentioned that the owls had been spotted on neighbouring roads in our county so on Saturday I headed out with some friends in search of these beauties. It wasn't long before we spotted our first one atop a tree near the railroad tracks, just a 2 min drive outside of our village.

I couldn't believe that this one was so close to town. I had to zoom in quite a bit to see it and snap a pic so it's not as clear as I would have liked. Off we headed, down the road to see if we could find one a little closer to us.

This one was sitting atop of a TV antenna on a farm property.

Another 15 minutes drive and this beauty was spotted on the wiring on a farm's lane.

She/He seemed a bit skittish and looked ready to take off at a moment's notice. We never got too close to them and used our zooms to get the pictures. Look at those talons!

On our return home we captured this fellow on top of a telephone pole on our route. He watched us very carefully as we rolled down our windows for the picture.

This last one is a bit out of focus due to my excitement at seeing one so close range. They are beautiful birds and I'm so lucky to have seen them in the wild. Bob and I are going to head out again this week to see if we can spot more. He was working and couldn't join us the first time. I would love to get a pic of one in flight!

I didn't get much time for stitching until the start of the new year. Over the weekend I finished up this little ornie which I started mid-December. I stitched it over one otherwise it would have been too large for an ornament. Completed, it measures 2 1/4 inches square.

This design is by The Primitive Hare and is called Welcome Santa - Ho, Ho, Ho. There were 3 different patterns in this design, two of which are for ornaments so I may end up stitching the second one soon.

Having finished up my Torah stitch, I can now concentrate on some new starts. I was going to start a winter piece but I've had my fill of winter lately so instead I picked out With Thy Needle and Thread Pink Sparrow Sampler. I've had this one kitted up and ready to go ever since I bought it. I love all the pretty pastels used in the floss colours.

Clarisse sat quietly on a chair beside my stitching spot, watching me intently.

I've continued my participation in WIPocalypse this year. If you're interested in joining us just click on the link for all the details. I recently completed my list of must stitches for this year. You can find it at the top of my blog under WIPocalypse 2014.
I've also continued in the ornament SAL which has now become a SAL for smalls. You can find it here at Stitching Lotus blog. Join us in the fun! I'm just in the process of finding a stitch for this month's small.
As well I've joined in on Stitch From Stash 2014 over at Mel's Epic Stitching. I'm hoping this will encourage me to stitch from what I purchased last year rather than adding to my ever burgeoning stash. You are allowed to spend $25/ month on any supplies you may need or a pattern if you must. Prizes will be awarded at the end of the year for least amount spent, etc. as well as a draw from all the participants. With any luck this will keep me on track with my spending. I'm letting my TUSAL participation slide this year. I think most people have seen enough of my orts over the past two years. 

I received two lovely gifts for X stitch purchases this past Christmas and can use these without penalty on my SFS. I've already ordered some fabric for upcoming projects with one gift. 

That about brings things up to date. I look forward to seeing everyone's choices for stitching this year and will be visiting some blogs in the near future. Take care and keep warm!