Big news people!!!   I've been stitching!!!

I know ... it's hard to believe but it's true.

Last Monday was the Canada Day holiday

and I plunked myself down in a chair on our

deck in the afternoon and stitched away on

my PS Summer sampler.   The square is

almost done.  Just some blue sky and border

to stitch.  I'm quite pleased with my 

choice out of the four possibilities offered

which is a relief.   I dithered and fretted over

which of the squares would suit me before

committing to the butterfly square.

A close up of the square.   It was so nice

to just sit outside with the birds chirping,

the sun shining ... and our neighbour's

air conditioner roaring in the background.

I haven't concentrated on a stitching

project for that length of time (an entire

afternoon) in ages.   I need to do it more

often.  

This week was a tough one at work.  It was

first of the month which is our busiest time

but this month's first was the busiest that we've

been in a long time.  Both Wednesday and

Thursday we worked late, although I don't

work as late as the others in my department

because it takes me too long to get home from

work.   

And it was stinkin' hot this week too which

made any time spent out of doors a real

ordeal.   Walking home from the train 

station was not pleasant in that heat and

especially so when it included a pretty

steep hill to hike up.   

So when I arrived home one night and found

a package waiting for me it gave me such an

energy boost.   Last month  I was the lucky

winner of a gift certificate to 123 Stitch

curtesy of the delightful and generous 

Mary Ann of Just Stitching to celebrate 

her birthday.   Now usually when it's your

birthday you're suppose to receive gifts

not give them out.  However, as I said,

Mary Ann is a generous soul and she

gave the readers of her blog the opportunity

to win a shopping spree at a fabulous

online store.   I still can't believe that I

won.

I decided on two charts from Silver Creek

Samplers, including Dandy Dreams which

I first saw on Maggie's blog a while ago.

Her's stitched up so beautifully and looked

so sweet when it was framed I just couldn't

get it out of my mind.   So now I can 

stitch my own pretty sampler whenever I

am ready to do so.   

I also ordered a few K&Co. scrap booking

embellishment packs since 123 Stitch also 

sells some scrap booking stuff.  So I

managed to cover my two crafting 

obsessions with one gift certificate!!  

Many thanks to Mary Ann for making

my week easier to bear!

I took a stroll around the deck and garden 

today and snapped some pictures of our

many pots to share with you.  And also

to keep as a record for reference when 

next Spring rolls around again and I'm

trying to remember what flowers worked

best in which pots or planters the previous

summer.

Martha Washington geraniums are so pretty, aren't

they???   

Chippy was hanging around last weekend when

DH and I sat out on the deck for dinner.  Guess

he was hoping for a handout or something.  Since

he's figured out how to   a) climb the pole to the

bird feeders to help himself to the seed there  plus

b) he's found a way to get into the shed where 

the seed bags are stored, even when the door is

shut and locked and he's helping himself to that

bounty as well.  Cheeky nuisance.   Good

thing he's cute!! 

More shots of the newly decorated living room.

The built in storage and display area with 

drawers for linens and cupboards for other

stuff plus nice deep shelves above for the

displaying of the nicer things.  

And of course there is now a built in bookcase

for my collection of Folio Society books and

my National Geographic books.  Storage 

below for CDs and photo albums.  I love

it so much!!   Note new hard wood floors.

No more carpet.   Which means the 

fur from our two cats has free range and 

tumbles across the floor like tumbleweeds

in the desert ...followed by an annoyed me 

 with the vacum cleaner hose!!!   

All that fur rolling across my floors.  I

keep checking the cats to see if they're 

cold because they surely must have lost all 

their fur and are lying around the house 

naked!!!

Nope,  just lying there ... growing 

more fur!!!!

Another view of the corner next to the

window.   Looky ... we have crown

molding!!!!    Nifty!!    

Hope all you folks down in the States

where the temperatures are much 

worse then they were here are keeping

cool as you can under the circumstances.

Take care!!

Thanks for visiting!!

Cheers!