TUSAL and Kathy on the move

It is TUSAL day. You will love my TUSAL container today - a Ziploc bag. I actually emptied my frog, threw the threads in the bag and added what few threads I have made since then. These threads have travelled all the way to Texas.

I have a few stitches to show but not many.
This is my contribution to the 2012 RR that I am participating in on Facebook. Erica has chosen Ellen Maurer -Stroh flowers and I stitched "Wild Rose". It was my choice for sentimental reasons. When I was a child my grandmother had wild rosebushes in front of the farmhouse. The farmhouse has since fallen down but those rosebushes still remain.

I am also working on a Mirabilia RR. Erin's theme is "Roses". Can you guess what I am stitching? I will tell you when I post the finished stitch.

I am going to include a few pictures of my trip to Texas. So if you only want to look at the stitching, you are done.

Beatrice and I having dinner at The Rusty Bucket in Miamisburg, Ohio

My morning waffle in Nacogdoches, Texas

Kemah Boardwalk near Houston

Galveston

Moody Mansion

Sacred Heart Catholic Church

Bishops Palace

Tree Sculptures

Many of the people who had trees destroyed by Hurricane Ike chose to have sculptures made of the remains. The tourist industry even provides a map so you can see the sculptures. Here are a couple along the way.

 We stopped at the house of the TinMan sculpture and the owner of the house was out front pulling weeds. We stood and had the nicest chat with Lynn. She was so friendly and she let us take a picture of her with her sculpture.

Thank you so much to Ginny for giving me the Versatile Blogger Award. I chose not to get involved in these awards so I will not be passing it on. There are just too many wonderful blogs and stitchers out there to want to pick only a few to list.

That's it for this post everyone. Beatrice and are now in San Antonio and will be off to Dallas tomorrow. Will post when I can.

Count Your Blessings and having too much fun.

Just a brief flyby post.

I got an email from Ariadne today with a photo of her stitch of "Count Your Blessings". She has asked me to post that it is ready for moving on and to please stop by her blog and enter to be the next traveller.

Here is the link http://ariadnefromgreece.blogspot.gr/2012/06/giveaway-win-and-travelling-pattern.html

Here is the photo of her finish.

I am currently on a road trip with my BFF Beatrice. We have arrived in Houston, Texas and are travelling to Galveston, San Antonio and Dallas/Fort Worth before returning home to Canada. We are having so much fun. Just wait till you see the stash photos ROFL.

And I have to show you this. Yesterday she and I went to the Moody Gardens Rain Forest in Galveston Texas to see Morticia - the corpse flower - in full bloom. You can read all about the corpse flower from the link.

 A wonderful lady by the name of Donnita Brannon gave us the best tour of the rainforest. How wonderful it is to have a guide who knows all about all the different plants that we were viewing and who obviously loves her job.

This is Donnita with my sister Sherry.

Sherry, Beatrice and I with Morticia.

No stitching photos - sorry. Having too much fun.

Until next time I do have something special -  Check out this frog! and Donnita says he is very endangered.

WIPocalypse post and busy needles

What a productive month this WIPocalypse has been for me.

I finished
Malcom the Moose
Night Before Christmas
Point Loma Lighthouse
Just Nan's Summer Stroll
and
Dreaming Fairy on my Mirabilia RR.
I'm quite proud of this past month's accomplishment..

I also completed two travelling patterns
Tending the Blooms and it travelled off.

Travelling Pattern #2
Count Your Blessings was recently won by Ariadne
This is my stitch of the pattern.















Ariadne  is a relatively new blogger and is hoping that people will visit her blog and that she will have a stitcher ready to stitch the design when it is done. The pattern went off in the mail to her today.
I took a photo of the pattern so you can see some of the wonderful ladies who have stitched this one and where I have signed before I sent it off. It is a very well travelled pattern started by It's Dafffycat.

I stitched on a Band Sampler RR. Catherine Stickler of Indigo Rose is the designer for this band sampler.
I struggled a great deal with this one but I am happy with the end result.

I picked up my Desert Mandala and gave it some serious love. I have now completed the cactus all the way around and have started the backstitching.

I did a little stash shopping.

Mirabilia's Summer Queen

and some 9x13 ornament cuts from Silkweaver














I was the recipient of this beautiful piece of cross stitch. My friend Adriana - who is now 95 - stitched this one and gifted it to me this past week. I am so honored to have her stitching in my home.

I was away for the weekend at a stitching retreat. The weather was lousy - pouring rain, windy and black skies. As my BFF Beatrice said "Thank goodness stitching is an indoor sport!" Even the frogs stayed indoors and perched right on my shoulder. The second RR that I spent an entire evening stitching on had to be ripped out as I was one stitch off. I have not had the heart to pick it up and start again.


Here's hoping all those frogs drowned in the pouring rain. Until next time.