Sunday 29 July 2012

Stitching and summer visits

Our household has been very busy this past week and filled with the sounds of laughter and children. Stitching managed to make an appearance here and there and I'll start by showing my latest progress update.




My Birds of a Feather Mystery Sampler continues to move forward, slowly but surely. I finished up the alphabet and have moved on to the lower portion of the graph. One thing I did notice was the lack of a letter I in this alphabet. Does anyone know the significance of this?


My stitching time was limited because of a family visit. Both my sister and her family arrived in town as well as my oldest son with his girlfriend and their children. The house was full! My sister's  family haven't seen Jeff since my wedding to Bob eleven years ago so there was a lot of catching up to do. My second oldest son Daniel was also able to join us during this time. My youngest son Chris now lives in the vicinity and he and his girlfriend were able to join some of us one evening in Ottawa for dinner. The weather cooperated and we had a wonderful two days together. Then my sister and family headed on to Quebec City for a vacation and Jeff and his family continued on their vacation with a visit to a water park near their home. I'm missing them all already!


Eating in Ottawa's Little Italy. Mmmm!
My granddaughters are on the left and in the centre.
The other children belong to Jeff's girlfriend, Pascale.


Daniel, Jeff and Pascale

The kids all got a kick out of this visitor to our bird feeder. 





I know that squirrels are often a nuisance at the feeders but this was a first for us. His antics kept the kids occupied for some time.
Notice our lovely brown grass in our front yard? We are still without any significant rainfall in our area and haven't mowed our lawn now for at least three weeks!


Once everyone had left, we started getting ready for our own holidays. We're planning to visit friends in Sault St. Marie, Ontario and from there head down through Michigan to visit my other sister and then on to Windsor for a family 40th anniversary celebration.
When we've returned home again we only have three days to wash clothes and get ready for our annual trek to Muskoka and the cottage. It's then that I'm likely to have a bit more stitching time.


My friend Pam called me early this week and asked if I was interested in joining her for a visit to The Morrisburg Antique Show in our area this weekend. Having never been, I jumped at the opportunity. The show takes place in a park on the shores of the St. Lawrence River. I had planned on bringing my camera but naturally, I forgot and left it at home. This is a small show but nevertheless, there was much to see. I came home with three small purchases. The first was a small iron which I'm hoping to use to display a piece of needlework on the surface.






Next I found some lovely buttons which will do nicely on some needlework finishes. Do I sense a theme here?



However my favourite purchase was this needlework stickpin.




I have no idea what count fabric this is stitched on but that stitching is really tiny. I didn't get a good look at it until after this picture was taken. I can't wait to use this on one of my finishes!

I apologize for my continued lack of comments on your blogs of late. The summer is just flying by and I don't want to spend it all indoors on my computer. I quite often read the postings in the evenings but I just don't have the time right now to comment on everything. I'm sure I'll get back into the swing of things once the cooler weather is back. After all this extreme heat I'm sure there are more than a few of us who are looking forward to fall!

17 comments:

  1. Oooo, your squirrel looks very different from the ones we get here! They are fun to watch but can create quite a mess of bird feeders...the greedy little twirps!

    I've never heard of leaving out an "I" in a sampler. Maybe someone knows! Lovely stitching by the way!

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  2. What a lovely post Lynn, sounds like some fun family times :)
    You're making great progress on the sampler, I too wondered about the missing letter.

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  3. Great progress on your WIP! And, it sounds like you have had a lot of fun times with more to come!!

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  4. Lynn, you may have been busy but it looks like you had some special times with your family!!!!

    Safe travels!!!!!

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  5. You've had one busy, busy summer so far, Lynn, but how wonderful you've had so many family visitors! And I love your gems you found at the antique show--the little iron will be a really neat way to display your needlework!

    Enjoy your trip to Sault St. Marie and Michigan...You'll be more than ready for your down time at the cottage by then!!

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  6. Sounds like a wonderful time with the family. I just love the iron and the stick pin is beautiful. Have a wonderful vacation.

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  7. BOY! What a whirlwind summer you have been having!
    I love your progress on the BOAF sampler...looking wonderful!
    And your sweet purchases at the antique fair are great!

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  8. Hello

    I've just found your blog and become a follower.

    Your stitching is lovely, especially the blue birds.
    Lovely family photos too.
    Your finds at the fair are great, the stickpin is very pretty.
    That squirrel is so cute!
    Happy holidays to you.

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  9. Love your family pics! Safe travels and enjoy your trips x

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  10. Hi Lynn,

    I'm continuing to love your BoaF Mystery
    Sampler as it grows from your needle. I
    see a little sheep peeking around the tree
    trunk. Love sheep in samplers. The
    style of the alphabet is pretty too. I
    wonder if that is an "i" between the "h"
    and the "k" and the missing letter is
    really the "j" which is the letter that is
    most likely to be left off of old style
    samplers. Odd.

    Sounds like you've been having lots of
    wonderful family time. It sure looks
    like everyone is having a good time in
    your photos. Your granddaughters
    are so sweet.

    Ah, squirrels and bird feeders. Don't
    get me started. Do you get the blacks,
    greys and brown squirrels?? And then
    of course there's the chipmunks. It's
    a wonder that the birds manage to get
    anything out of our feeders at all.

    Exploring antique shows can be a ton
    of fun. We have a place not far from
    here that I love to visit and explore.
    Poking around in corners and through
    piles of stuff you never know what
    you'll find.

    The treasures that you brought home
    with you are so cool. I can't wait to
    see what you'll do with the iron.
    Those buttons are so pretty and will
    be perfect for adding interest and
    dimension to a needlework piece.

    That stickpin is amazing. Someone
    with lots of patience, a steady hand
    and a good eye put a lot of love and
    effort into this.

    Hope you have a wonderful time on
    your travels through Ontario and
    Michigan and the cottage too.
    Sounds like it'll be a blast.

    Safe journey.

    Cheers!

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  11. Great pics!
    That is one crazy squirrel lol

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  12. The pesky little squirrels are ALWAYS into our feeders. We bought a squirrel proof cage like feeder and the sly little creatures managed to squeeze inside and still eat the food.

    I love the little pin you bought. All of your purchases at the antique show are lovely for finishing!

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  13. It looks like you are having a lovely time with your family! Love the little treasures you got from the antique show, especially that little needlework pin! Have a wonderful holiday!!

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  14. You're right, summer is slipping by way too fast. Love that little stick pin and your squirrel photo is very funny. Those little devils are certainly cheeky.

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  15. Wonderful post ~ so fun seeing and reading all that you have been up to!

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  16. Lovely update, Lynn. Your WiP really is moving along. As to the missing "I", you can read this link for more information:

    http://www.6nc.org/about6nc/alphabet.html

    Hope that helps.

    Cool buttons and needlework stitckpin. Those stitches on it certainly look tiny!

    Hugs,
    Veronica.

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  17. What a wonderful summer you are having. I also love family times when all the children are here together with their partners. We always have this during Christmas which is the time for family reunions here.

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