A LITTLE SUNDAY START...

Prairie Schooler

Garden Samplers

32ct Belfast in Rose Water from Colour & Cotton

DMC threads 

RUT...BE GONE!!!

Oh, how I wish you could see the color of this fabric! I joined the Colour & Cotton fabric of the month club, and this month's selection is a lovely piece of 32ct Belfast linen in a color called Rose Water. It's a soft shade of pinky brown that is going to be perfect for one of these charts.

The hockey game was a success, and I got my hot dog. The Irish beat Penn State in the last minute of the game to advance to the finals next Saturday against Ohio State.

Bring it, Buckeyes! 

Today will be a basketball filled day, and I am making my Jersey Boy a turkey dinner to celebrate it. He loves turkey, and I love all the fixin's, so in a minute or two I will channel my inner Ina and get things underway.

Hope you're swell and well and doing all of the things that make your hearts sing, Dearies!  Happy Sunday to one and all! Come tell us all about it!

SATURDAY SPINSTER...HANGOVER

Don't get too excited, Dearies...I have not yet started to re-imbibe....my hangover is of the dialysis variety.  (That's a real thing, by the way...my nurse told me it was so and I believe everything he tells me.)

Anywhoose...I have some time here this morning to gather my wit, watch a little Ina, and then maybe do a little dot painting. My second set of tools arrived fom the Happy Dotting Company, so I am itching to give them a go:

This little kit has everything you need to get started, and the tools are acrylic tubes of various diameters

And finally, here are a few of my practice pieces:

I have a looooonnnngggg way to go before I come close to my inspiration, Kerri Park of The Dotted Turtle, but I am enjoying the journey and getting some exercise for my left arm all at the same time. (*)

As for what my right arm has been up to (*)...here's a little more progress on the Ink Circles piece:

I confess that I am a little frustrated with the knotting propensity of the Weeks Dye Works, but the colors are so pretty that I am willing to exercise a little patience. It is very different, though, than pulling silk through fabric...that's for sure.

So that's it for a sunny Saturday here in Hoosierville. If I recover sufficiently, we are hoping to attend a hockey game this evening, and rumor has it there might be a hot dog in my future. (I was very good food-wise yesterday, so am entitled to a treat, no?)

Here's hoping that your corner of the world is completely swell and that you are doing everything your heart desires! Come tell us all about it!

(*) I am left-handed kind of, in that I use a fork and write with my left hand. Ever since Buzzy, though, I have had some issues with swelling and weakness in that hand and find it difficult to grasp anything for a length of time. The dot painting seems to be helping this, though, so I'm looking at it as a bit of physical AND mental therapy!  As for my right hand...that's my stitching arm and the one that is dominant. It seems to be doing just fine, but could probably use a little therapy too, since my stitchy progress lately has been rather poor at best!

I'M CLEAN, AWAKE, AND HERE...THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT TODAY

THURSDAY TOOL DAY!

My very first set of dotting tools arrived!  WooHoo!  I'm going to head out for my walk, then a 1:00 check in with Dr. Melfi, and then...painting this afternoon!

These are from a company in Canada called DIYMandalaStones, and I can't wait to learn how to use them.  I also have a set coming from Australia from the Happy Dotting Co, but methinks they won't be here for a little while yet.  But I will be able to have some fun today with these, so woooooohoooooo!

I have promised myself some stitchy time tonight while Notre Dame tries to beat Duke in the ACC tournament. Is it wrong that I felt bad that they beat Va Tech last night because I like Jessie Marie from Jessie Marie Does Stuff on the Flosstube so much?  This thing of ours makes it difficult to hope for a sound beating of the opponent, no?

Dr. Melfi and I are going to talk about how I can find my "quiet" again. I am fighting the fact that my quiet happy peaceful still life seems to have been blown to smithereens lately and I'm finding it hard to breathe. I basically went from a hermit spinster with a soft little dog and her stitching for company 24/7 to...chaos.  Some of the chaos is quite lovely (like my Jersey Boy and all of his shenanagins), but other parts have me feeling a bit claustrophic.  I think my schedule needs to retool a bit and there needs to be a minute or two each day for me to get quiet again.

(I suppose in analagous terms...I am an enormous sea turtle who has been out of her shell a bit too long and her heiney is feeling a little chapped from all of the fresh air and sunshine. Time to get back in there and de-peopleize myself for a bit!)

(Holey Schmoley...am I a complete nutball, or what?!)

(Nope...reframing...I am not a nutball.  I am just a person who feels better in her Happy Chair.)

See? Even my ponderings are all over the place. Time to re-tool.

Ha! Like how I did that! A complete circle!

Ciao for now, Dearies! Hope your very own Thursday is exactly how you like it...whether that means the raucous activity of a whole boatload of peoples, or complete quiet with needle and thread. Enjoy and come tell me all about it!

EAT...SLEEP...DIALYIZE...REPEAT

Oey...I am in a rut of eating all the things, sleeping too much, and feeling like my heiney is sewn to the dialysis chair.  The good news is that my appetite has come roaring back after a year's hiatus.  The bad news is that my appetite has come roaring back after a year's hiatus.

My sessions have been a bit problematic.  Buzzy is deep in my arm, and it seems that the techs are having a hard time getting both needles positioned just right. Today was about an eight out of ten on the pain scale no matter what we did, but I was able to gut it out and get a full session in.  

(I'd love to tell you that it was because I was brave, but Sir Elton and Miss Caroline from Off The Grid were right there to pull me through, and the promise of chicken wings at the Hooters put me over the top.)

No stitching to report, I'm afraid.  Despite my very best plans to have stitchy days on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and over the weekend, I have just not felt well enough to do so.  Tomorrow, though, is another day, so there is hope.

I'll leave you with a picture of me and my Jersey Boy at a Notre Dame hockey game a few weeks ago. He looks handsome....I look more than a little crazy.

(In my defense, our seats were about a thousand feet up in the air and separated from a plunge to certain death by nothing but a piece of clear glass. 

Here's the view from the seat...see what I mean?

Thanks for hanging in there with me, Dearies. I promise that The Chicken Sisters, counted canvas work, and interesting things will make a return to this here blog eventually. For now, please take care and come tell me all about it.

MONDAY MONDAY

SUNDAY POST-WALK PRE-BRUNCH BLISS

Yesterday was all about my Jersey Boy. We drove to the beach at New Buffalo, then a late lunch at The Stray Dog, and then to The Four Winds to play a few games (Rich...poker, me...penny slots).  It was a wonderful day followed by another Classic Movie Night here at the CS2 theatre.

I'm a book girl. (At least this is the excuse I gave JB for not seeing any of the more iconic films). He was uttely appalled, so in an effort to culturize me, we watched Casablanca on Friday night (I fell asleep and had to rewatch it again Saturday morning), and last night we watched From Here to Eternity.

At the moment I await his return from Mass.  I opted out this morning in an effort to stop feeling quite so unwell, and now that I've rallied a bit we're off to brunch.

Today will be my day to sit in the Happy Chair and stitch.  I hope to continue with the Ink Circles piece, but who knows where the day will take me?

Happy Sunday, Dearies! Hope you are equally as content and that your needles are flying!

MARCH MADNESS...

"Start something small" I said.

"Put together a basket full of simple, easy things to stitch"  I said.

Two hours of futzing, and this is what I came out with:

I've had this one in my stash for quite some time and now seems like the perfect time to jump in. I'm going to stitch this on a lovely piece of 28ct. Fog linen from Picture This Plus, and the threads are:

Julian by Weeks Dye Works. I figure the mixture of light green and lavendar are very springy indeed.

A little shopping yesterday resulted in getting my daily walk in despite the weather. I matched my steps and managed to get my shampoo and other Target items at the same time. Shopping as exercise...who knew?!

So that's it for a Friday. Heading to chair time in a few and then home to veggie pizza and my Jersey Boy!  (And maybe a new stitchy start!)

Come tell me all about your day, Dearies!  WooHoo!

Oey.  Last night was a bit of a trial, but I made it through. My chair session wasn't bad necessarily, but it started with the little table next to my chair collapsing...thus dropping my sippy cup, snacks, cell phone, iPad, and headphones onto the floor in a puddle of ice, Crystal Lite, and God knows what else down there.

After a frantic drying off session, we were able to get me hooked up, but I was without anything to eat or drink for the duration. (I know.  Poor me, right?  Like I really couldn't stand to miss a meal!)

I came home to change clothes and made the unfortunate choice of a Target clearance top that has big poofy wing sleeves. I wasn't too sure about this, but my Jersey Boy assured me that it looked much better that my normal getup of "geriatric farmer in pants that are eight sizes too big".

(The big wing sleeves were swell, but kept dipping in the ketchup at dinner.)

We got to the game, but had to park in East JaBip...so this meant a brisk walk. I don't mind brisk walks in the morning when I have my sneakers and sweatpants on, but doing it with enormous wings and a too full tummy meant that once I got into the arena I was a little sweaty and had "issues".

(Apparently, in addition to the big wing sleeves, the big top was on clearance because it's made from some type of space age fabric that has the ability to not breathe AND heat up its contents all at the same time...kind of like aluminum foil.)

I waited as long as I could, and when I finally made it to the ladies' room I decided that it was time to remove my pressure bandages on Buzzy.  (After chair time, the needles are removed and I put pressure on the two sites for about five minutes or so, and then bandages are applied. I leave them on for four hours and then remove them.)

(I've never had an issue with this protocol, thank goodness.)

(Until last night.)

Now we all know how much I love my beloved university, but can I just say one thing to the powers that be over there?

WHY DID YOU HAVE TO REMOVE ALL PAPER PRODUCTS FROM THE RESTROOM?!

I removed the bandages and started bleeding like a fire hose. So I immediately put my fingers over the site and looked for a paper towel...

BUT THERE ARE NO PAPER TOWELS IN THE RESTROOMS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME!

So my next thought was a "feminine hygiene product"...but guess what...APPARENTLY NONE OF THE WOMEN ATTENDING SPORTING EVENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME ARE SUPPOSED TO DRY THEIR HANDS OR HAVE AN URGENT NEED FOR A FEMININE HYGIENE PRODUCT!

I finally made it into an empty stall and grabbed a big huge wad of toilet tissue (THAT, they allow), and I made it out to an usher named George who proceeded to walk me eighteen and a half miles to the first aid room.

(The best line of the night was when George sat me in the First Aid chair and said "Here, Toots...let me help you get that blouse off" and then winked at me when it took me a minute to realize he was just being cheeky.)

(George, by the way, was about 106 years old, but still very spry and handsome, so I took it as a compliment instead of a #metoo moment.)

The nurses in the First Aid room were non-plussed by a sweaty spinster in a big top with arm wings bleeding all over the damn place, and they cleaned me up, took my blood pressure, gave me some cold water, and patted me gently when I started to cry.

In the meantime, they also texted Jersey Boy up in the stands to let him know that I was safe and sound and not to worry about my long absence, but that I had a small medical emergency and required attention.

(He wanted to know if I could grab him a hot dog and a dietCoke on my way back.)

(Just kidding...he never looked at his phone and probably didn't even realize I was gone.)

(OK...that's not fair. I'm sure he knew I was gone, but since he is an avid basketball fan (and a man) he probably didn't think anything of the fact that I had excused myself and hadn't come back yet.)

When I finally did make it back to my seat (looking like a sweaty spinster in a big top with arm wings) the game was almost over and then it was time to gather our things, sing the Alma Mater, and trek the thousand miles back to the car for the traffic jam home.

(Jersey Boy felt terrible that he wasn't there in my moment of need, but considering the fact that he is perhaps the most squeamish person on the planet and passes out if you say b-l-o-o-d, I think it was better that he was oblivious.)

So lots of lessons learned.  If I'm going to be a girl about town and go out on chair days, then I need to be adequately prepared for a problematic bandage removal...or better yet...I need to wait until I get home to do so.  Either that, or I need to carry a purse like a big girl and stow a few emergency supplies in it and quit trying to be 22 again and just put a lip gloss and driver's license in my pocket.

(And I need to make a donation to Notre Dame so they can afford to put paper towels back in the damn restrooms where they belong.)

So that's it.  Today I am in the Happy Chair with damn good and the paper, and then I am going to head into the cube room studio to play with my stash. Rich is at pickleball and will then come home to work, so it should be a swell Thursday.

Here's hoping yours is the same and that your evening was peaceful and stress free! Come tell me all about it!

A FUTZINGDAY PLAN...

Today is a chair day, so as soon as I pack my snack bag and pull on my crazy pants...I'm off.  I'm praying for a good session, since Jersey Boy and I have plans for a Date Night at the Notre Dame basketball game tonight.

Tomorrow, after my morning walk, I am going to try to go into the cube room studio and stay there until I come out with a Spring basket.  I promised myself that I would play with Red Velvet Cake until the end of February, and here we are already.  But I think the majority of the day will need to be spent on cleaning and re-organizing, since things are just all willy nilly in there and stacked to the ceiling.

My painting things will be put away until tools arrive.  I found some very affordable beginner options on the Etsy and ordered them with my pin money forthwith.  They are all coming from outside the US, so I am going to practice patience until they get here (she says optimistically).

So that's the plan, Dearies!  I hope your very own Futzingdays are simply wonderful! Come tell me all about them!

MY DOTTING INSPIRATION

In case you're wondering about my dot painting obsession...the artist holding the mug above is called Kerry Park.  Kerry is a Canadian artist...a 2015 kidney transplant recipient...and my new hero obsession.  Her artistic handle is The Dotted Turtle, and I simply cannot get enough of her gorgeous work.

(Plus, there's the whole kidney inspiration thing!)

Another incredible artist I've enjoyed is Travelling Kindness Rocks.  Here you can join a pattern club with proceeds going to various charities across the world.

What can I say?  I'm hooked!

CRAFT NIGHT GONE AWRY...

I gave it my very best shot, but methinks I better spend tomorrow on the YouTube viewing more tutorials.  I also think I need to wait for the proper dotting tools to get here....the wooden dowels from the Michaels just weren't right somehow.

But it is very relaxing, and I can see myself doing more of this as a nice break from needle and thread.

Nothing else to report, Dearies.  Quiet...nothing new.

Hope you're swell and will come tell me all about it!

BIG GIRL POP TARTS

I stocked up at the Costco yesterday and put these in the cart instead of the Pop Tarts.

And these:

And finally:

That should be enough to get me through tomorrow.  

The weekend is upon us!  Hope yours is swell ans that you'll come tell me all about it!

UP AT THE HEINEY CRACK OF DAWN...

...and on my way to the train station to retrieve my Jersey Boy!  I missed him terribly, but am proud that I was able to semi-function as a fully-formed semi-adult in his absence.  

(I was getting a little worried that I had lost my fiercely independent side and had become incapable of supervising myself, but I managed to get myself to and fro quite nicely thankyouverymuch.)

Lots of appointments today while Rich naps a bit, and then one more Chair Time session until the weekend!  I would love to tell you that they are getting easier and easier, but as soon as I do that I crash again...so let's just say I am hanging in there as best I can.

I have, however, found several pounds that I had lost, so it's back to the grindstone in that regard. I suspect that it is due to my appetite roaring back with a vengeance, but the truth is that Pop Tarts are probably not the best snack choice for a fifty-one year old portly spinster.  I'll make a few tweeks here and there with the help of my dietician and get my fanny around the block every now and then and all will be well.

So that's it for a Thursday in Hoosierville, Dearies!  I hope you are swell and that your needles are flying.  If they are...come tell me all about it!  If they aren't...come tell me all about that too!