It's finally finished ...

I feel like I've been stitching on this Quaker (Praiseworthy Stitches ... The Simple Gifts: Love) for a SUPER long time ... it's ready for a dye bath and pressing and blocking ... then to find a frame ... always the toughest part ... if hubby wasn't up to his eyeballs in re-glazing the 150 year old windows for my greenhouse (not something he expected to have to do when this little project first started), I could probably talk him into making one for me.

So, the greenhouse continues ... we'll re-glaze the last three windows tomorrow and will pick up all the framing materials at the lumberyard in the afternoon ... Monday we can begin painting all the lumber ... I want it all white inside and out.  Hubby will begin framing next week ... I'll begin painting windows next weekend (new glazing must dry 7 - 14 days) ... hubby predicts another month before it will be all finished.  The re-glazing and the weather has really slowed our project down.  We'll be glad in the long run that we took the time to do the re-glazing now.  The old windows really needed it in several places so he removed it all and replaced it.  That's just the kind of guy he is ... a bit of a perfectionist (oh yeah!!!) but he would never admit it.  The stained glass window that he bought for me (what a guy!!!) has been taken to the repair shop and won't be ready for another three weeks.  I can't believe I'm going to have a stained glass window!!!!  Right above my potting bench.  How fun!!!!  The floors are done ... and of course, I forgot to take pics tonight when I was out there watering the gardens earlier ... not that there's really much to see as we'll leave the sand on the bricks til the greenhouse is finished.  I'll get some pictures tomorrow for everyone who has asked to follow our progress.  The floor in mostly brick (given to us by a friend that had it left over after he finished his patio -- gotta love the free stuff, right?) and the front of the greenhouse has pea gravel in the floor so that I can water freely. 

We've been spending quite a bit of time tending to the gardens too ... the herb bed is fantastic this year ... oregano has returned in a couple of spots, which I was glad to see although I've heard it's aggressive ... the orange mint also returned and I have to think it's also aggressive as it seems to have spread ... ALOT!!!!  The hyssop, lemon balm, and lavendar have also returned ... I keep waiting for the year when our harsh winters finally does my last remaining lavendar plant in.  The chives have returned in abundance and the first batch goes into the dehydrator tomorrow morning.  Newly planted in the herb garden this year -- lemon grass (perennial), cutting celery (annual - in a pot tucked up close to the lilies and daisies as it tends to droop in the hard sunlight), dill, lemon verbena (in a pot this year so I can move it inside this winter), a Tiny Tim cherry tomato plant (freebie from the greenhouse when we bought our veggie plants ... we get one every year), fresh basil, and a Brandywine heirloom tomato plant that I grew from seed that I bought at Landis Valley Farm in Lancaster, PA.  The new raised beds in the vegetable garden are exciting.  I love not having to bend over so far ... and the maintenance (ie., weeding) is next to nothing ... gotta love that.  The peas are now about 18" tall or so ... we should see flowers soon ... the radishes have all been harvested (YUM!!!) ... the tomatoes (Roma and heirloom Brandywine) are all planted ... the gherkin cukes (dill pickles this year!!) are coming up ... the zuchinni are up ... the carrots (second planting) are sporadic ... don't know WHY I can't ever get a good start on carrots ... no matter how hard I try ... the bunching onions are looking good at about 4" tall.  The broccoli and cabbage seem to be taking their time ... probably trying to figure out our 65 to 95 degree weather ... lol!!!!!  We went from early spring to early August and the hot, humid dog days of summer in the matter of two weeks!  Next week we are supposed to settle in to more normal temps in the mid 70s.  Hubby's Walla Walla onions look fantastic ... and his pepper plant medley is looking good too.

And we have a wedding on Wednesday!!!  By Wednesday evening, I'll be a (gasp!!!) ... a .... a.... a.... MOTHER-IN-LAW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  lol

A fun gathering, a greenhouse, and a wedding ...

I can't believe it's been over a month since I've posted!!  I have been busy, busy, busy!!!

Isn't this a GREAT house?  I love it and couldn't resist snapping a quick pic while on the backroads somewhere in Pennsylvania.

I spent the last week of April in Lancaster, PA with some of my favorite gals in the whole wide world!!!  We had so much fun shopping, eating, and laughing and talking til the wee WEE WEE hours of the morning. 

 We  crafted together most evenings -- fun, fun!!  We did wool applique, needlefelting, and got a good start on a memory book of our trip.

This is one of the gals' truck ... she drove back home to North Carolina like this ... bet she got some looks on the freeway.  You should have seen some of the great junk she found!!!  We all wanted to just shop out of her truck.  ha ha

It was a wonderful trip filled with special memories ... I'm already looking forward to our next gathering in 2012!!!

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A GREENHOUSE!!!  Yep!!!!  Hubby is building a greenhouse for me!  It will be made from wood windows taken from a house built in the 1850s.  I'm so darned excited, I can't stand it.  This is the only picture I have uploaded ...

Since this picture was taken, the foundation has been poured, the grass removed and dug down about 10" and filled with gravel ... waiting for the brick to be laid ... tomorrow I begin scrubbing the windows (YUCK!!!!) and hubby will begin making any necessary repairs and re-puttying where needed.  I'm sure the chippy paint is lead based so we'll disturb it as little as possible and get it sealed up nice and tight in a fresh coat of semi-gloss white exterior paint.  I'll post more pictures as we move along ... a fun summer project for hubby and I ...

Aren't I a lucky gal to have a hubby that would build a greenhouse for me?  I feel so special and loved ...

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And the most exciting news EVER!!!  We're having a wedding!!!  Joshua and Angela are getting married!!!

 I got my wish to be Nana to Brick and Piper!!!  Hubby and I both feel very blessed to receive such a pretty, sweet, and smart daughter-in-law with two wonderful children into our family.  It will be a small afternoon wedding in early June.  They had hoped that Quinn would be home for the wedding before leaving for Okinawa but it doesn't look like that will happen. 

Quinn is doing great at tech school in Texas but still has three blocks to finish before he graduates.  He anticipates being home mid-June.  Can't WAIT to see him!!!!

Look what I found ...

... in my back yard ...

we think there are three of them ... we're having a bit of a time keeping Shelby away ... aren't they SWEET???

Spring has sprung ...

FINALLY!  It seems that spring is here ... and maybe here to stay.  We're looking forward to the weekend to work on the yard and the new raised beds for the veggie garden.  We're hoping to have the peas and radishes in by Sunday night.  Lots of work between now and then ...

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Not stitching alot lately ... I'm distracted by the weather ... by work ... by the new plans for the gardens this year ... by my upcoming trip to Lancaster, PA with gals from the Primitive & Rustic board ... by some newly dyed wool and some new wooly projects ...

I have started a new Quaker ... I'm in love with them lately ...

And a fun new project ... felted Easter eggs ... I'm loving the bright, springy colors of the wool rovings ...

Wishing you all a Happy Easter!!!

A perfect Friday evening ... a pep rally!!!!

What an angel ... my lil P is for Piper ...

Isn't this a granny heart stopper picture?????  Oh my goodness, my heart about POPPED ... my sweet lil Piper had her final cheerleading class last evening ... the girls put on a pep rally for the families ...

She's taking a dance class next ... hope my heart can take it!  lol

Updating the website tonight ...

Just a quick note to let you know that I'll be updating my website after 8:00 p.m. this evening ... finally ... seems it's one thing after another lately that keeps me away ...

Our son's graduation from BMT ...

Our youngest son has graduated from Basic Military Training at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, TX!!!  We're so danged proud we could just POP!!!! 

I could be just a bit biased, but I think he's the handsomest kid ... the most beautiful blue eyes that just dance when he smiles ... and he did ALOT of smiling while we were there with him ...

The weather was horrible while we were there ... cold, wet, rainy, windy and just downright crappy.  All of the ceremonies were held on the individual flight's training pad underneath of the dorms ... I took gobs of pictures and very few turned out ... the above picture was the coin ceremony ... and the first time we've seen our son in two months.  

I just wanted to hug him and hug him and hug him ...

My guys ... hubby on the left, Quinn, and Josh ... I was thrilled that Josh could fly down with us ... we were strolling along the Riverwalk in San Antonio ... the rain stopped for a few hours and we took advantage of the mild weather ... and Quinn enjoyed being out in the "real world" ...

Graduation Day!!!!  Again, on the pad under the dorms because it was raining and windy and just downright nasty out ...

Quinn's home sweet home for the past two months ... hmmmmmmmmmm, his room at home NEVER looked this nice ...

It amazes me how CLEAN everything is ... everything lined up, everything exactly the same ... spotless ... wish I could get my hands on a couple of those nice gray wool blankets ...

All too soon it was time to say goodbye ... it was hard ... REALLY hard ... but it was also a relief in some ways ... we've seen him, he's healthy, he's proud, and he's excited about his future ... he's currently attending Tech School at Ft. Sheppard, TX and will be finished with school and able to come home for a brief visit in May ... he will then be stationed in Okinawa for two years ... he can't WAIT!!!!