Bare!

Isn't it just so plain and bare when the decorations come down?   I went into work a half day yesterday and again today and came home to start taking down the decorations.  Right now I need a break because I  am not feeling the big desire to push on with this clean up so I am off to Blogland for a short diversion.  Hey!  A girl needs some downtime right?

It has been a busy time getting back to work and catching up after being off for 10 days. Couple that with the first week of the month and the monthly meetings.......I am not getting the evening stitching time in as much as I would like; however, I have been making great progress on my January 1 start (which I confess I started at 10 p.m. on New Year's Eve and since I was asleep sitting up by 11 I don't believe the 11 or 12 stitches I did get in should be held against me.)   I've started a new routine before the holidays of stitching for 45 minutes each morning before I get on the treadmill for 30 to 45 minutes and so far, it is working well.  Missed two days in two weeks on the treadmill but both were the morning I go out to breakfast and I have declared that will be my day of rest from the treadmill!  I know it is way to early to see any change and in fact the scale registers more pounds than before but THIS TIME I will not get discouraged and stop.    I walked every morning years ago and it took some time but after a year I had lost weight and was able to eat whatever I wanted.   Not going for the weight loss as a main goal just really trying to continue to change my sedentary lifestyle.   Face it ladies, we don't burn a whole lot of calories or develop much muscle tone from inserting a needle in and out of a piece of linen.  LOL!

Good thing about the treadmill is I am back reading again.    I finished War Brides a period novel set in the English countryside during World War II.   It was an enjoyable read and well as eye opening.  With my mother-in-law from London she has told us of stories are going into the subway tunnels during the air raids.   Just reading about the devastation and hardship and horrors they dealt with I realize how very spoiled I am.  Yes there have been times when money was short and I'd have to scrape to pay the bills......but my hardships are nothing compared to what they endured or what others today still endure.   I am so thankful for what I have.   Ok, enough......  

I am really loving this one and I am glad I chose it as the first one of my EGA Chapter's Challenge to work on.   It is going quickly.   See the pin?   That is the 3 inch mark and what I deemed would be my stopping point to move onto another project but this is going so fast and I am enjoying it taking shape that I am staying with it for now.

 It is call Tannebaum Time with a nordic type Santa standing on a cottage rooftop.  Isn't the bottom of his coat neat?   His sleeves are trimmed the same way.   Good thing the directions tell you not to be neat with your french knots.

Here's the pattern.   Sorry to the bad sideways pic.....sideways is my fault, the bad pic is just the fact that the pattern has a bad pic.   Had I not seen this done and on display in the store I would have never picked it up.   Judging by the dusty packaging and the 2005 date, seems a lot of people felt that way before me!  There are four of us in my group that plan to stitch this in 2013.   Pat and Carol haven't started and Diane, way far away in Tennessee.....I don't know if she has.   I will see her in April or May and we will have to compare progress then.

I signed up for Daffycat's TUSAL again this year.   I have signed up in the past and then I forget to post even though I collect my orts faithfully.   This is my pint mug with all my 2012 orts.   What's a TUSAL you ask?   Totally Useless Stitch A-Long.  We post pix of our ort collection on the new moon of each month.  I really plan to stick with it this year.  Stay tuned for what I am able to collect by January 11th.

 Well I think my time out is over and it is back to taking the rest of the decorations down.   I just have two trees left to do.   All the outside garlands are down and stowed, all the table decorations are packed, all the wreaths (save one) and greens are stored until next year.....so a quick untrimming of the trees and  a quick sweep up because I have a reward in store for me when I am done.......I am looking forward to Downton Abbey's premier!  I cannot believe how much of a following this show has developed!  I caught an episode of "Call the Midwife" last weekend which aired prior to the Downton Abbey's rerun.   If you like period dramas in England these are definitely to be added to your list.    I will have to search about to see where I can find the old episodes of Call the Midwife so I can catch up on that one and add it to my Sunday evening ritual.  Downton Abby definitely takes the place of my putting out my snowman decorations....they can wait til next weekend!

Have a good week all, my your stitches be many and your frogs be few!