Finally a Weekend to Relax

My mom's apartment is almost completely empty and we are almost ready to hand over the keys. I'm glad we are almost done. It's been a long two months, going there every Saturday and Sunday, going through all of her stuff, trying to decide what to keep, what to sell, what to donate, and what to trash. The trashing was the hardest. It was her stuff.., her life... how can it be trash? But we couldn't keep it all. But as much as I look forward to not going to the apartment every weekend, seeing it empty, and realizing that in just a few more days it will no longer be hers... She will be completely gone... Like she was never there... Someone else will move in, and never even know she was ever there. Do I need to say, I'm not sleeping well lately?

I know she lives on in the people she touched, and she touched so many people. She also lives on in the memory of so many of my friends who she made baby blankets for. I think that is what is making me so obsessed with picking projects as gifts for people, over working on projects for myself. I was hoping to finish the Flower of the Month this year, get them all framed, and start putting them up in 2017, but I've decided to put more of my stitching time into some projects that I want to use as gifts.

So this past week I've worked on the 12 Days of Christmas SAL which I want to gift to my sister and brother in law. Since I don't have that much stitching time available, and I'm still a pretty slow stitcher, I've decided that this and Faces of Joan Elliott SAL (also planning to give as a gift) will get two weeks per rotation visit, and the FOTM will only get one week.

Thanks for visiting.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I never really celebrated Valentine's Day, even when my husband and I first got together. But every year my mother sent me a card. This year my 11 year old cousin sent me a card. She told her parents that ChuCha (that's what she called my mom - Ukranian for aunt or something) probably sent me a card each year, and now she should send me one. Kids are so amazing sometimes. Made me cry and smile at the same time.

I got a bit of stitching done this week. Really set my mind to working on my stitching on my way to work. The morning is the hardest time, since I called my mom on my way into work everyday to make sure she was okay. So, I'm finding the stitching on the train, and for a few minutes once I get into the office, to be a bit settling. It's filling a bit of the void.

Finally got back to the Flower of the Month SAL. I finished June at the end of November, and put it on a little bit of a back burner until I could get the birth announcement done. With that done I decided to get back to my FOTM (started July) and the Faces of Joan Elliott SAL (almost done with the second square) and about to start the Plum Street Samplers 12 Days of Christmas. I realize I'm like the Queen of Last Year's SAL. I learn about them after my year is booked with other projects. I swear next year I will not plan anything until January so if I find a 2017 SAL I like, I will actually work on it in 2017.

Start of 2016 Stitching

I've been finding it hard to get really motivated about my stitching this month. I've kind of been finding it hard to get motivated to do anything really. We've been spending all our weekends at my mother's apartment, trying to empty it out before the end of this month. That's when her lease runs out and we have to get out. It's weird that she never renewed it. She was always so careful about thing like that. But it seems on some level she just knew she wouldn't be around.

It's been hard going through her things. It was where I was born and grew up. She was there for more than 50 years. Everywhere you look there is a memory. I've taken a lot of stuff home, but I don't really want it, just can't get rid of it yet. And then when I get home, I don't want to do anything. But we are almost done, and hopefully, once the apartment is empty, and I have some time to relax I will get back to my old patterns of stitching. I miss it because it really does relax me. Just not much relaxing me these days.

But I have gotten a little bit done this month. I am happy to report that I have finally finished the Joan Elliott Birth Announcement I was working on for my friend. She is having the Christening in New Jersey at the end of the month, and if the apartment is empty and we can spare the time, we are invited. I would love to give her the birth announcement as part of the gift. I have everything I need, I just have to wash and press and get it in the frame. I need to spend a lot of time improving my french knotting, but otherwise I am really happy with how it came out.

I'm not ready to get back into a real rotation, but I decided I would work on the July Flower of the Month for the next week, maybe two, or maybe even until it is done. I'll see how I feel at the end of the week, and make my decision then.