Nutcracker shopping and ornament X2 and a wonderful giveaway!

I did a little shopping. I am a big fan of Stitch and Frog www.stitchandfrog.com and their wonderful service.

Here are my new goodies.

I received a PM from Kathleen Guillory letting me know she had these little treasures for sale. How could I say no?

I did an ornament exchange just before I left Canada for the winter.

 Here is the ornament I stitched from the 2013 JCS Christmas Ornament Issue.

And here is the ornament I received from Bernie!

That was just too funny! I loved the design when I stitched it and am thrilled that I do not have to stitch it for myself.


I am just wrapping up a Christmas exchange and am working steadily at my PR mermaid. I hope to have her finished in the next few weeks. This is a photo from last week. The photo is not the greatest and the color is not very good. When I am done I will work to get the best photo. I have made some progress but the frogs came to visit last night and that caused some headache.

And speaking of mermaid. I met a lady online from the Passione Ricamo mystery who is from Yuma. YEAH!

Her name is Edie and I went stitching with her and two other ladies last week. They meet the first and third Wednesday of every month. I will certainly be joining them again!

And Nancy at victorianmottosamplershoppe.blogspot.com is having a wonderful giveaway. Check it out and let her know I sent you!

Adriana Valks

It is with great sadness and a very heavy heart that I write this post.

My dearest friend and stitching teacher Adriana Valks has died at the age of 97.
Adriana was at stitching Thursday stitching away on a piece and three weeks later she is gone. My head is spinning and I am so very, very sad. I loved her so much. Here she is smiling, sitting at my dining room table with Christin and Judie during a stitching get together.

The very first piece of stitching that I ever attempted was Lavender and Lace Nantucket Rose. It was beyond my capabilities at that time. Adriana said to me "Give it to me and I will stitch it for you. But I will not stitch another. I will teach you to stitch." And she did.

Here is Nantucket Rose.

We have stitched and shared our lives for many, many years.

She and her husband Martine were part of my early life with my first husband. Martine had cancer at the same time as my husband and he was so very sad that he was going to live and my husband was not. My husband was 22 and Martine was in his 60s.They consoled me many times as I dealt with the sickness and death of my husband. We drifted apart.
Several years later I met them again and they introduced me to my BFF Beatrice (Their daughter).Beatrice and I have been best friends for 33 years and I could not imagine my life without her. What a gift her parents gave me!
Adriana and I have stayed good friends and we have shared much these past years. But, most of all, we shared our love of cross stitch. We have stitched and stitched and talked forever. She has become like a second mother to me. I will never put a stitch into a piece of fabric without thinking of her and thanking her for her precious gift.This is one of her very recent stitched pieces.

I hope the good Lord has a large stash of fabric, charts and threads because Adriana is going to burn through it all.I am sure she is in Heaven teaching the angels to stitch.

I will miss her terribly.