Another SAL

These are the first two parts of the mystery SAL, I'm halfway now.

Tomorrow I will start the Spring SAL, just have to dive into my bobbin boxes to search for the threads. I've got all numbers of DMC and a lot of spare ones, so I never have to run for a missing number. Once in a while I check if the bobbins are full enough and while ordering with Sewandso, I fill if needed.

I hope to have finished the SAL by the end of this week, then tackle the BD cards for February. And finally go back to stitching the Cut Thru Lighthouse.

Yummie!

My youngest grandson normally isn't a messy eater. But this time the dessert wasn't easy to eat. He looks so cute in this pic, isn't it? He was all over the vanilla&chocolate cream, we had to unclothe him unto his diaper. We put on his little wellies then and took a pic of him then, while he was mulling on his diaper, it looks like he was excersising for his carrier with the Chippendales. No pic of that here, it's for his privatealbum!
The next pic is of a BD card for the yahoolist. Just after everyone send her card to the BDgirl, she is exciled from the list, so I guess I will have one card less on my BD in November. She chose flowers, birds or butterflies as a theme, so I made her this flowers and put a butterfly sticker on it.
The third pic is of the Sal with the second cow. Two parts are already done. The lettering was with a lot of French knots, but as the previous cow wasn't having these beasty things in the lettering, I left them out. It looks OK this way too. The backstitching I will do the next time.
My diet is going well, I lost 6,6 kilos now, this is just a bit more as 1 stone. So this really is a good start.
Hubby has pains again, this time from the recovering of the surgery and his arm is swollen from the Lymph fluids. He will have to go to the physiotherapist, but first the wounds have to heal. One day is better than the other, yesterday was really bad. But this time he knows in a while he will be helped and it's not life threatening. His spirits are not high at the moment, but whose are when they are in pain?
I hope I can start stitching on the Mystery Sal I am in. I'm behind already one part. And I got the first part of the Spring Sal, so I better go now and stitch!

Kwispel

Not a very good picture of our new dog, but I guess many more will follow. The cats still refuse to come out from behind the central heating burner. I have set some food and water for them. I hope they go out at night for a wee p... . Tomorrow I will buy a grid which is used for kids and place it so that they can get out without crossing the dog's path.
I am a bit dissapointed in Wellington, he used to sit near Kwispel before (ok, hissing, but he stayed) and the first evening he stayed in the kitchen for his leftover meal. Then his dissapeared. He's not worth his name at the moment. Neither is Nessie. She always was the coward one, fleeing when someone besides the household is coming to visit, so no wondering there. Puma is off and on in the kitchen, always yelling, no news there neither.
I guess in a couple of days, it will be better.
Kwispel and I enjoy our walks. Today we were out for an hour. DD said he was a lazy dog, but even after the walk he came with his tennisball to play. As she lives only 2 streets away, the air cannot be much different here!
I'm feeling a cold coming up. I need to finish my BDcard today, so it can be posted tomorrow to arrive in time. It's stitched for 90%, so not much to go anymore with a sore head.

American card

This is the card I stitched for Heidi who is on the birthdaylist of one of the Yahoo groups I belong. I know she loves America and this year she chose this country as a theme. She is without PC at the moment, I read on the group, but the card is definitely on its place, so I can show it.
I didn't stitch this week, times were to hectic with hubby in hospital. The doctors had a nice surprise for us: he can come home tomorrow, the wounds are healing well and he is free of pain most of the time. I'm so happy for him, the poor darling has suffered so much the past half year.
And on Monday Kwispel (Flemish for tailwagger), a Jack Russell, is coming to live with us. It's DD's dog. They recentely got a second dog and they are quarreling too much. The other dog is too big to handle for my hubby (it's a Danish Dog), so the small one is coming to us. DD is very sad about it, but if she goes with the big one to an animal asylum, he will get a shot in the end. This is too sad as he only is 9 months old and very sweet. Kwispel is jalous and is making life bad for him, so the only option is to separate them. Our cats know him from his visits, so they will get used to him being with us all the time very soon. And he will be good company for hubby when I go to work. Kwispel is rather quiet for his race, DD took care that he wasn't too much agitated when he was a pup.
For those who are not used to kilos: I lost 11,44 pounds already. I'm thrilled!

Surgery

This is a non stitching message.
Hubby is in hospital for his surgery (spreading of his cancer). It happened on Tuesday. It was a long surgery, it lasted 6 hours. But it went well. 3 surgeons did it and they could remove 95% of the tumor. It is now in the lab to determine what type it is and if something can be done about the last 5%. Surgery is impossible and radiotherapy doesn't work. And as for now, the doctor thinks that chemotherapy isn't an option either.
The tumor was around a nerve bundle. It caused the pain and the immobility. The nerves could be 'cleaned' from the tumor, but there is no way to say if they will recover. The damage could be permanent. But hubby thinks the pain is already less, so high hopes on that. Of course his wound still is swollen and healing will take its time.
Finally, after almost 2 years (when the cancer was discovered), I saw a glimpse of my old buddy again. It was if I lived next to a stranger all this time. I'm sooooo happy to have him back and the immediate danger is gone. He will be in hospital probably until next week Friday (although I hope he can come home earlier).
On the diet front, I'm booking very good progress. I lost 5 kilos now. And it didn't cost too much trouble until now. Yippee!!!

First BDcard

This is the first BD card for a member of one of my Yahoogroups. The receiver got it now and I can show it. Natascha chose as a theme teapots. One of the last British magz had a teapot alphabet and I chose three of them (without the letter). I think it looks nice.

I'm stitching the second one now with America as a theme.

I started the Michael Powell kit. I am taking the Lighthouse kit to the hospital to finish.

DH will go into hospital on Monday, will have his surgery on Tuesday. It's becoming really scary now.

My diet is going well, I lost about a kilo now which is very good and stimulating to go ahead with it.

Old, new and finished WIP

This is my almost finished WIP of Cut Thru' Lighthouse. I love the cut thru series so much, I have some of the kits in stash. The next one I want to stitch is Cut Thru' Haberdashery, but first finish this one. I only have to do the right bottom and the lightbeams, they are in half cross stitch, so it should go rather fast. It was in my UFO stash, but I'm glad I took it up again.

I want to pick up another UFO this year and finish it, don't know yet which one, probably one for DH.

My fist project is finished, a birthdaycard for my CrossStitchLovers Yahoo group, we have a birthdaylist once again, this month I need to finish 3 cards,one is already on its way, the second I found a suiting design and the thirtd I will have to go through my charts. I will post them once they are received.

I chose my first small project for this year, it will be a Michael Powell one, the first Mini Greek Island. I love the designs very much, have bigger and small kits, the small ones will be tackled one by one.

The mini Hollyhocks are from Heritage Stitchcraft. I try to finish one small design of the a year. I will choose another mini flower again this year. I did all the small kits with the animals already and some of the flowers. If I could only buy time and stitch a lot more.

I didn't stitch much already this year, my middle finger is very badly infammated. Its to is almost double its size and gone to purplish. I have got antibiotics cream from the doctor and hope it will cure very soon, my fingers are aching for stitching!

Today we went to hospital for the pre-surgery examinations. It's coming near now, next monday DH will be entering the hospital, the surgery will be the next day.

Happy 2009!

I wish you all a good and healthy 2009, with much love and laughter.
I spent the last day of 2008 in bed with flu-type symptons. Took some pailkillers and could see the thirt part of Lord of the Rings on televison, which just ended before midnight. So could give hubby a big hug, wish him a year of full recovery and head back to bed again. Today is better already, I only can hope that the rest of the year will be better!
This evening the boys will come with theirNew Year's Letter to read and we will order take away, no fuss about food today!