Around the Corner...

Winter has not brought us as much snow as last year, however, the winds, bitter cold and more recently the ice, have not been pleasant.  Despite being frozen, it is still so beautiful!  Spring has to be around the corner, right!?!

So, what have we been doing?
We had a wonderful visit from my niece...

 The youngest did some climbing...

We even had some moments where the boys were actually getting along...

 My oldest is now 15 ~ his age finally matches his shoe size!

The older boys' travel teams are now part of the Phenom organization...change is a good thing!

 And while the little brother and I were freezing over President's Day weekend, the older two traveled (with Dad) to Vero Beach for a weekend of baseball...

 So, while they were away, the little brother had some friends over ~ with no big brothers to torment and tease them...I'd say it was a successful sleepover..

Now we are looking forward...school baseball tryouts, travel baseball, triathlon training, garden cleanup and warmer weather!

A very special painting came to my house...my niece, Kellen, has been painting since August of 2013.  She is 19 and has Williams Syndrome.  She has painted some of my photos, my favorite being of the sheep that graces the header of my blog.

The doorknob on the piano is from another photo of mine, taken from one of the outbuildings located on the property where I grew up.  I gifted that one to my mom for Christmas.

Kellen has worked hard at her painting.  She has sold not only some of her paintings, but prints and cards as well.  One was raffled off and the money donated to her fundraising efforts for the Polar Plunge.  Speaking of the Polar Plunge, her efforts raised well over $2,000 this year!!  Many, many thanks goes out to a very special friend and her family for their support this year ~ you know who you are!

Panzer continues to fill our lives ~ he has a birthday coming up soon...hard to believe he's almost three!

The boys find it funny that he tries to fit in this chair...

And as always, I leave the stitching stuff for the end.  I only have a little progress to show.

I do have some wonderful goodies to show from some very generous and sweet friends.
First, I won this from Elena over at BusyHandsCraft 
The chocolates were delicious and I adore this sweet needle~roll.  Thank you, Elena, I absolutely love it!

And then Terri, of the DixieSamplar hosted giveaway on her blog.  Anyone who has ever had a package from Terri, knows it's a treat!  She included some of her wonderful fabrics, some charts and of course some treats ~ had to eat those quickly before the boys found them...hehehe...

 And as if those goodies weren't enough, she had stained this tray and created the most wonderful set of stitching goodies to fill it!!  Thank you so much, Terri!!!

Both of these packages arrived at the same time and the timing couldn't have been better!  Without going into too much detail, the little boy I work with at school had been having some really rough days, therefore my days were rough...so Elena and Terri, thank you again for such beautiful treasures!

And my dear friend, Lainey, from across the pond sent me this calendar.

Hhmmm...not sure why it turned, but anyway, this has become a tradition over the last few years and one day, I hope to visit Lainey in person and get a personal tour of the sights she shares through the calendars!

Have you all been shopping the latest goodies from the Nashville Market!?!  Yikes ~ so many great new things ~ I would love to hear what you all are excited about!  The ladies at the Strawberry Sampler arrived home today and will be working furiously over the next weeks to get all the goodies out to everyone.  From all accounts, this was one of the best markets in a long time, and as a result, they have extended their Market Sale (20% off) through at least Friday...so, if you are still shopping, use the link over there on the side!

With the hopes of Spring being just around the corner, I am feeling like it might be time for me to give a little something away, something to say thank~you for your friendship....stay~tuned!

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.” 
― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Life, enjoying the crazy ride!

Life has been happening.  That is the reason I have for being away from my blog and stitching for so long.  I have been keeping up with your blogs as best I can, not always leaving comments, but please know that you are part of my day when I take some time to sit and have a break with my cup of Chai! 

My boys have kept me busy.  We are finally wrapping up the school year, thanks to all of those snow days!  It's a bittersweet ending...my oldest will be entering high school next year.  I'm excited for him and sad for myself all at once.  The last fourteen years have passed so quickly, I can only imagine how fast the next four will go!!

Baseball is still going on for my oldest.  He plays until the end of July.

And this year, my youngest put baseball to the side to train for triathlons.  Well, I am so proud to report that in his first triathlon ever, he placed 4/7 in his age group and 25/63 overall.  On the way home, he commented that he felt good about himself ~ it was a mommy moment!

He loved it so much, he competed again the following weekend and placed 3/7 in his age and 14/33 overall!  He was so excited to place third and it made my husband's Father's Day even more special!

There are two more triathlons in this series, one in July and one in September.  I think it is safe to say he has found his sport!  And he says it is better training for a future Navy SEAL!

One thing is for sure ~ triathlons make for one hungry boy!

We've also celebrated our 21st anniversary and my husband's birthday ~ again, time passing by in a flash!  Oh, and I finally finished all 43 hours of my training and have about a month left of my six month probationary period.

I wanted to share some news about my niece, Kellen.  You may remember that she has William's Syndrome.  Well, last August, she started painting, working with a local artist in Fredericksburg, VA where they live.  I sent her my favorite sheep picture and look how fantastic she did!!  I told her if she ever sells it, it's mine!!  I will share some more of her paintings in future posts. 

Kellen also competed in the Special Olympics playing tennis and taking gold for singles and doubles!

On to the stitching...

There has been very little stitching and a couple of lovely gifts.

Yep, there it is...my little bit of stitching!  Actually, I have also been trying to finish a gift for another niece who just graduated high school.  It is a piece I won from Kim at Wisdom with Needle and Thread at the beginning of the year.  I thought I had plenty of time and well, she graduated Tuesday night ~ I am almost done the stitching and then I need to assemble and will share a picture when it is done. 

I received these goodies from Julie at Julie's Knit Sew Craft Corner.  It was a complete surprise and made my day!  I love the sunflower cushion and all the extras will come in handy for finishing.  Thank you so much, Julie ~ I love sunflowers and the ladybug makes it even sweeter!

June, of Butterfly Wings, sent me a beautiful gift for my birthday.  Not only is her stitching and finishing beautiful ~ but it brought back memories of my grandmother with its smell, like roses, just like a powder that my grandmother used many years ago. 

Thank you, June.  I will treasure it always!

I will sign off now with some random pics from the last few weeks...enjoy!

Exploring at Grandma's and Pappy's...

Tractor driving lesson with Pappy...

Panzer goes from looking all grown up and serious...

back to playful and curious puppy...

I am thankful for my boys that keep me running, my husband who is my rock, and to all of my friends for being there!

“Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in our hearts.”
― A.A. Milne