My Beatrix Potter Progress so far...

June has been an especially busy month which went by furiously. I pretty much made myself stitch whenever I could since otherwise nothing would get done, and it kept me pretty calm. Above, you see a pretty motif done in the lighter shade. Originally, I was just going to keep this lighter colour for the smaller motifs, but suddenly, it just seemed perfect for this hidden angel motif...my name for it since I noticed the upsidedown angel while I was stitching it.
The above Sunflower surrounded by a wreath seemed to take forever...very time consuming, but once it was done, I was very pleased with it, and the other motifs seemed to appear effortlessly.
I love how this sampler is coming together with my different "mauvy" shades of silk.
I can't wait to continue...but I may pick up a knit project for a little bit. I hope the month of July moves a bit slower, but something tells me that it won't! Summer will be over before we know it...

Family Tree

Just as it's nice to get together with old friends you haven't seen for awhile, it was so nice to see this family tree cross stitched piece that I had made for my late mother-in-law early on in my marriage. Being an only child, I was fascinated with the dynamics of the large family I had married into and soon learned of its complications and benefits.
My mother-in-law originally wanted a dozen children...she said she wanted this after reading the book "Cheaper by the Dozen." She was also devoutly Catholic, and ended up having 9 children of which 8 still are surviving. I also included my in-laws' parents, or my husband's grandparents near the roots of the tree. I then added my in-laws' children with the oldest one closer to the roots, and added the younger children as I went towards the top of the tree.

Thanks so much to my sister-in-law April for finding my old friend and sending the piece to me. I was surprised at how large the framed cross stitch was and that I had used Aida cloth as the fabric, so it also shows me how I've evolved in my stitching since now I use thread count linen for all my special stitching. Still, I think I did quite a good job back then...I tried to do something special for someone and I did myself proud.

Graduation 2009

June 11, 2009 was Peter's graduation day from Moorpark High School. We learned our lesson the last time with Kara's graduation two years prior and arrived at the stadium when the gates opened at 4:30 for the 6 o'clock ceremony so we could get good seats...we were successful and above you can see us chatting and looking around to pass the time. My mom and dad were so proud!!
Here Peter is entering his row...he was looking for us, but didn't see us for a long time...I was even wearing a red hat and texted Peter where we were.
Here's Peter and his sister Kara modeling the graduation cap that kept falling off of Peter's head! We're so proud of Peter and he looked so nice in his tie and the National Honor Society sash.
Frank is a proud Dad!! Worth sitting through a long ceremony, but this time, it wasn't as long and the speeches were very meaningful.
Peter's plans are to attend California State University at Fullerton in the Fall! Peter looks like he's ready to tackle the world and his next goal of a college education!! It's so hard to believe "my baby" is graduated from high school...where does the time go???

Pizza!!

Finally played around with the dough setting of my Cuisinart Bread machine!! We made some pizza dough, and it rose so much, it nearly popped the lid!! So I punched it down, and took it out, and made two large balls of dough for two pizzas.
It was fun to pull out all my Pampered Chef pizza stones and mini-roller that I haven't used for a very long time...just rolled the dough out right on the floured stones!
Frank got into the action by chopping mushrooms, onions, and green bell peppers for his veggie pizza...tons of mozzarella cheese too. And we got real pizza sauce from Smart 'n Final. It's a little bit thicker than using spaghetti sauce.
And we put tons of turkey pepperoni, mozzarella, and parmesan on Peter's pizza!
We stuck them both into a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees, and they came out great!! I wish you could see how wonderfully delicious they turned out, but we were so hungry that we forgot to take pictures!! But trust me...they were gooood!

Flowers...

Yesterday was my mother in law's Visitation and Vigil ceremony. It was done very nicely. Everyone said good-bye in their own way as she laid in her casket. Words of wisdom and faith were shared, along with memorable lessons and stories...some even got knowing giggles from mourners, while tears also flowed. Frank also spoke and told a few stories himself, although he hadn't planned on it, but it was something he had to do...and I think it helped to...but he still a long way to go.

Offerings of flowers looked so beautiful as they surrounded my mother in law. The flowers above were given by my parents who attended to offer support to us. My husband Frank wanted to keep their flowers, and on the way home, the fragrance was wonderful and relaxing...and offered comfort and touched Frank deeply. He's still processing his mother's death, but hopefully the support of others helps.

So hug your loved ones while you still have them...reconcile your differences...unload your burdens and forgive others as well as yourself. Important lessons that constantly need re-learning...I was glad to see the siblings coming together in love and support for one another.