A New WIP to Keep Me Busy

I truly have been in a bit of a stitching slump since finishing my sampler in early May. I decided to work first on Summer Queen, but I only put in a handful of hours on that project. I haven't even bothered with a progress photo as so little has changed since the last photo was taken. Life has just been too busy to stitch, but maybe I need a big switch to something less demanding.

So with that in mind, I'm switching it up completely and working on Oberlin's Minnesota Sampler. Here is how it looks now:




I will take a progress picture after I've worked on it for awhile. I'm still winding down from work, and I'm glad it's summer!

Thanks for reading my blog, everyone. It's great to see people checking this little place out,and it's so interesting to see how you arrive here from all over the globe. Thanks for loving and appreciating needlework the way I do. It's great to find kindred spirits, isn't it?

I'm so behind on my blog reading, and I've missed reading all of them. I will have to get caught up a bit, a little at a time.

I'll say goodbye for now with an oldie but goodie. This is a pocket I stitched on a pair of shorts. I did this when I was a teenager, so let's just say it's very, very old. I don't think I could handle all that work on denim at this point!

Take care and thanks for visiting here today.

Time to Relax...

Exactly one year ago today, it was the last day of school. So today it was again the last day of the school year. Wow, what a year it's been. I'm glad to wave goodbye to this school year. It started shrouded in sadness with the passing of my father right before it began. He was very sick all summer, in fact. Truly it was hard to start the year with such a sad event in my life happening, but that's how life is, isn't it? We can't control much, really, can we?

This group of little children has moved on, and it's always bittersweet. I'm happy to have seen my students learn so much, but it's a bit sad to say goodbye and pass them on to the next teacher.

So just below you'll find a repeat of last year's photo from the end of the year. Last year on the final day of school we went out with our kids, and we toasted the end of the year. Tonight the two of us are staying home. I'm drained, and wiped out. My classroom is moving so this year we had the added burden of packing up everything into boxes before leaving for the summer break. When we don't move classrooms, we can shove it into a cupboard or place it on a shelf. Then we cover up the shelves with paper. I think in the end there were close to fifty boxes packed in that tiny room. I am aching all over, really!

I hope for a relaxing summer, if it's meant to be. I do hope to get some stitching in from time to time, but I am taking three graduate courses so we'll see if that happens.



Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you all find some relaxation this summer.

Lemon Bars

 

Aren't there some desserts that just remind you of a certain season? It's summertime now, and I think of lemon bars. My parents' home has always had a lemon tree in the backyard, so my mom always loved to make various desserts that used this great fruit. One recipe she made often in the summer was this lemon bar recipe:

Lemon Bars

1/2 cup margerine
1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Mix the above ingredients together and place in the bottom of an 8 X 8 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. (You should lightly grease the pan with shortening)

Mix together 2 Tbsp lemon juice, including the rind, 2 beaten eggs, 1 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp baking powder. Pour on top of the warm crust, and bake again at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Frosting: Make a frosting using lemon juice and powdered sugar. Frost after the bars have cooled just a bit.

Note: You can increase this recipe to 1 1/2 in amounts and place in a 13 X 9 inch pan.

I think I'll have to make a batch sometime this week! Thanks for stopping by today.

Hydrangeas

Hello!

I've noticed that more people are 'following' this blog. Thanks so much for adding your name on the list! Truly I haven't had much to say lately, so I appreciate your patience.

I still haven't taken my finished House and Garden Sampler to the framers. This year has been busier than any I can remember in a long time, but soon I will have a summer break. During the summer I'll be attending classes so that will cut into fun time. That being said though I truly know there will be more time to stitch, relax, and come here than during the school year when I'm teaching. It's been a tough but rewarding year.

Since early May I've stitched a tiny bit on Summer Queen, but not enough to warrant an update picture. I'm just trying to finish the bottom of the dress thus I'm doing little blobs of color over time.

Today I'll share some photos my husband took of our hydrangea bush. Hydrangeas are one of my favorite flowers. Looking at them truly makes me happy. I love the full, colorful blooms. Here's a peek at our Endless Summer hydrangea. We planted it about four years ago, and it's really flourishing.

We used to add the chemical to make the blooms bluer, although it's been several years since we've done so. I like these colors just the same!













And one more angle of the shrub...



I just looked back at my photos and found one taken of the shrub almost exactly two years ago! Here is how it looked then:



I think it's progressed in two years, hasn't it? That's exciting to me. :)

Thanks for stopping by today!