UGH!

For the last couple of weeks, I've been trying to compile two new catch-up posts about WIPs and finishes since I last posted (you know, since it's been so long). One thing that's been dragging me down is that one of my WIPs had me completely frustrated.

Last year, before we went on vacation, I started "Sea to Shining Sea" from the July 2003 issue of Stitcher's World. I had the entire project kitted up, but some time this spring, I lost the project bag with all of the floss skeins in it - all 36 of them! Luckily, the pattern and fabric weren't in the bag, just the floss. At first, it wasn't a big deal, because I was just working on the red, white and blue squares on the perimeter and I didn't need the other colors. But as time went on, I became increasingly frustrated that I couldn't find this project bag. I have searched and searched for it several times. I had decided when I first started stitching it that it wasn't an on-the-go project because of all the color changes, so to add to the frustration, I knew it had to be somewhere in the house.

This week, I looked one last time, to no avail. So I finally decided I would re-purchase all of the floss.

Tonight, I went through all of the my floss to see what I might have on hand so I wouldn't have to buy all 36 on a trip to Joann's tomorrow. As I'm going through the floss, I slowly start to realize that I have all of the colors. WTF?!

The only explanation I can think of is that somewhere along the way, back in the spring, the floss got mixed back in with my stash and re-filed. I don't know if one of the kids mixed them together or if I did it without even realizing it was the floss I had already sorted for "Sea to Shining Sea." Regardless of whatever did happen, I'm relieved to have the floss and glad I won't be going on any more wild goose chases through my house.

Now, if I could only find my Tacky BOB so I can finish another WIP that just needs beads to be completed! (I obviously have an organizational problem on my hands here, but that's a post for another day.)

101 Things

I posted my incomplete list of 101 things to do in 1001 days as a separate page at the top of the screen. I don't have an official start date - maybe I'll just say February 1, 2011 - and I still need to add more things to do, but I thought it was a good start. And on Friday, Feb. 4, I donated blood for the first time this year (I tried to donate in December and January, but I was sick both times), so here we go!

2010 Reading List

As I just finished my first book of 2011 (The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian, which I liked right up until the Shutter Island-like ending), I realized I didn't post my annual reading list like I usually do. My goal was to read more than I had been and I wanted to read at least 25 books in 2010. It turns out, that's exactly how many I read. I didn't stop at 25 on purpose; again, taking a retail job during the last two months of the year pretty much put a stop to any extracurricular activities like reading and cross stitch. So here's my list for 2010:

1. Back Roads by Tawni O’Dell
2. The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy
3. Girl from the South by Joanna Trollope
4. Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs
5. 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs
6. 13 ½ by Nevada Barr
7. Life Sentences by Laura Lippman
8. Sand Sharks by Margaret Maron
9. The Dark of Day by Barbara Parker
10. Merciless by Richard Montanari
11. 212 by Alafair Burke
12. Flipping Out by Marshall Karp
13. Strange Angels by Jonis Agee
14. Coal Run by Tawni O’Dell
15. Caught by Harlan Coben
16. Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson
17. Roseflower Creek by J.L. Miles
18. Sister Mine by Tawni O’Dell
19. Badlands by Richard Montanari
20. A Garden of Vipers by Jack Kerley
21. South of Broad by Pat Conroy
22. Faithful Place by Tana French
23. The Liar’s Lullaby by Meg Gardiner
24. Burn by Nevada Barr
25. Dismantled by Jennifer McConnell

Happy New Year!

I just returned from my annual scrapbooking weekend. I got off to a slow start, but managed to complete 26 pages from 2008 and 2009. I felt like my photos were very unorganized - maybe because I hadn't printed photos since April of 2009 and I was rushing to get things done before leaving for the weekend.

Now that the holidays and the scrapbooking weekend are over with, I'm ready to get back to stitching. I took a part-time, seasonal retail job for November and December and it really cut into my stitching time. I only finished one of the three Mill Hill ornaments I had planned to stitch (and forgot to take a picture of the one I did finish before I gave it away) and only one of the two "Octopus's Garden" design for my sisters' birthdays. I gave the finished "Octopus's Garden" to my older sister unframed and then took it back to finish the framing. At least I have both frames once the second one is finished!

In 2011, I want to start (and maybe finish, dare I say) Kringle's Christmas Tree Farm. I have the fabric and about half of the threads. But I need to finish the other octopus design before I can start anything new. And now that I have my own laptop (the best Christmas present ever!), I hope to post more without having to fight the kids for computer time.