Burgundy Rose

   Voila,The burgundy rose...

   Once again this is a Trish Burr pattern. This time however I didn't alter it in any way.  I think there are a dozen or so colors in this rose. I finished this one in a 4" wooden hoop. Backing the piece with cream flannel. It needed a little something but since it's a gift for a man I needed it to still be masculine. Rope worked! This is the kind of rope that you might use to hold your drapes back. and a crisp green bow and loop for hanging and covering the hoop screw. 

   My Mom is putting the binding on my dear friend's baby blanket but pics of that may be coming soon. My next big project (I think) will be a monogram piece. I'm just now in the brainstorming phase though. 

  I'm thinking about using a Sajou design for the Monogram. Speaking of which I'd like to thank Ramzi for his generosity in putting so much time into getting these antique patterns to all of us and for sharing them with all of us. Once I decide on a monogram pattern there is the question of what to put it on. Pillow cases have been suggested and they are a real possibility. The only exception to that is if I decide to use metallic threads.  I was looking at my own monogram today and realized that there is an un-filled dot that I never noticed! I'll probably do another one...someday!

   That's it for tonight, now scoot over and look through Ramzi's monograms!

May God bless you

Ugly Truth About Envy

   Today's post is not earth shattering news. You already know it. Envy is bad no matter what form it takes. 

Proverbs 23:17 says:

 Let not your heart envy sinners,

but continue in the fear of the LORD all the day.

   We normally think of a sinner as one of "the Others". Those who are not Christians. We are all sinners, all of us. Saved and unsaved alike. There is a huge difference though. We as Christians should be bothered and may I say increasingly bothered by our sin. If you are a Christian and live in your sin, make excuses for it, minimize it - your relationship with the Lord is off kilter. You need to stop where you are, confess your sin, repent of it and receive sweet forgiveness. We have to do this moment by moment, not once and never again.

   So there it is in Proverbs we are not to envy other Christians even. We are to continually look to the Lord for our guidance and be grateful for all that He provides.  

   Here is an illustration from life: A friend asked me to pray for another friend of hers. This poor woman endured years of abuse from her mentally ill husband. After he was committed, her daughter was able to open up to her that her father had abused her. (please pray for this family - no need to mention names, God already knows them)

   So I was thinking on these poor lambs and God brought the thought to my mind that at sometime, someone probably looked at that family and envied them. 

   Were they to be envied. Of course not, we know that now don't we? What if the husband had never done those things? Well, he still did some kind of sin didn't he?  

   I want to stress that it's okay to model your behavior after a godly person's behavior. It's a fine line but that's not the same as envy - just don't let it cross the line into envy! 

Envy says that you are not thankful for what God has given you. That you know better than God does what you need or should have. If God wanted you to have that object, attitude, attribute...then He would give it to you. If you ask for it and He with holds it, there is a good reason.  Even if you don't understand what that reason is. 

Finally, here is today's update on a project for a friend. It's a memorial for her sweet child, River.

      The foundation fabric is a stark white. The lettering and booties are #12 perle ecru. Sweet flowers and foliage that surround the central element are done in one strand of DMC floss in barely there pastel shades. 

The other baby quilt I am working on is now packed up. All the embroidery is finished and framed in chocolate brown cotton that has teensy-tiny white polka dots on it. Just now I'm thinking both of these projects will be backed in soft creamy flannel. 

Count your blessings!

   

Home Sweet Home

   We are opening a new chapter in the book of our life. We'll soon be moving to to the northwoods! We're as busy as bees with all the things we need to accomplish before the big day. Finding boxes, making decisions about what will come with us and what can bless someone else and what needs to go to the landfill. Packing, labeling, organizing, etc.  We have several weeks to accomplish it all in a (hopefully) organized manner.
   We are labeling our boxes with a number/letter/room system that may seem tedious but it really will help. Mr. Arpino and I have lost many precious things through the years when trying to move to fast. This time we are determined to keep everything we intend to move with us! Each box is numbered and the corresponding number is listed in a notebook with a list of the box's contents. The letters on the boxes represent the priority. 'A' boxes are to be unpacked first; curtains,dishes... 'B' boxes are things that are not urgent but also not to be stored too long. Such things as books and pictures fill these boxes. Third are the 'C' boxes. 'C' boxes are things that can be stored long term or will remain in storage for quite a while. Baby clothes, Christmas decorations and even craft supplies will fall into this category. Don't worry for me I've already packed a bag of embroidery supplies to keep my fingers busy in those precious idle moments.
  Mr. Arpino has not lived so far north and our little nestling will not remember having seen snow before. I myself have not seen a real snow in four or so years. We will all adapt. God has blessed humankind that way, He gives us the grace we need to change and acclimate to new environments very quickly.

  Another project that I'm attempting to fit in is completing a baby blanket for my dearest girlfriend. She has been blessed by God and is now carrying her 3rd little darling. We wont know before we move if this child is a little Princess or a tiny Prince so I went with woodsey neutral colors. I'll show it to you when I'm finished!

May your new year be blessed.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! What more can anyone say?


In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

Homemade Popcorn

I hope to encourage you to make some homemade classic snacks. They really aren't as difficult and mysterious as they seem.
Popcorn first…
You will need popcorn (raw) it’s usually in bags or jars near the microwave popcorn at any grocery store or stuff-mart.

It’s inexpensive. Generally costing under $2 for a 1 lb bag. From one bag of popcorn you can get probably 10 or more large microwave popcorn bag servings. That’s a guesstimate  I've never actually counted. You can see how much of a money saver it is though, considering that one box of 3 microwave packages costs a dollar at the least expensive place.
You probably already have the rest of what you need. Cooking oil, a 2 quart saucepan and whatever flavoring you like such as salt, butter, Parmesan cheese, etc.


So here’s the instructions: Over Medium heat add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil and 3 kernels of popcorn into the pot. Cover the pot with a lid (a clear lid is really handy but not necessary) and wait until those 3 kernels pop. When they do you know that the oil is hot enough to add 1/3 cup of popcorn and replace the lid. Slide the pot back and forth over the burner constantly so that the corn doesn't stick and burn. When you don’t hear popping for 2-3 seconds you know it’s all popped. Have a bowl (or several) ready to pour your popcorn into the lid will have probably lifted off some from all that fresh popcorn so the bottom kernels are at risk of burning if you leave it in the pot.

Toss it with your salt, butter (melt the butter first), cheese whatever you like. There are toppings made specifically for popcorn that you can find in your popcorn aisle.

I think it has so much more flavor than microwave popcorn, and it's a lot more fun to make!

Big Change

   I've changed a lot around this place. I hope you like it! After a lot of consideration I even changed the name. This will be my place to invite you to sit a while and talk. It will never be as good as a sit down conversation but I do hope you enjoy your stay. There are many sides to me (as I'm sure there are to you too) so I will likely change the 'furnishings' again someday.
   Thanks for stopping by!

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

I'm sorry for the mess. I'm changing the look of my blog so it's a bit messy at the moment. I hope to have it looking cozy soon.