THE REASON WHY . . .

Firstly, thank you to those that left me messages of sympathy for my loss of Tilly, still hurts, miss her little face first thing in the morning waiting to eat breakfast with me.

Secondly, I need to apologize for my long absence ~ I am still struggling with my health BIG time and facing some long-term conditions now.

The worst of these is having been diagnosed with diabetic peripheral neuropathy in my feet which causes me a lots of pain and a loss of sensation and so far I have not been able to tolerate any of the drugs used for the condition.

My eyesight is deteriorating due to diabetic retinopathy, I now have a hiatus hernia, I'm off to the cardiac ward shortly to find out what this silly heart of mine is up to (I'm suspecting it's broken due to Tilly leaving me!) and for the past 8 months I have had Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in both wrists which I will be having surgery on next Monday!

All of this = no stitching, knitting or sewing and the little I have done since Christmas has been poorly executed so have decided to give up for the time being.

  I'm so sorry it's depressing and miserable reading and this is the main reason I have stayed away from blogging land but when I received such supportive comments from losing Tilly, I realised I do have faithful and kind followers still out there.

Most of these followers have stuck with me right from the start of my time blogging and I truly thank you for being there xxx

I will be in stitches (literally) for 14 days after my surgery next week but as soon as I can I will take some photos of the bits and pieces I have managed to work on since last April and get back into the swing of things.

It can take up to 12 weeks before my hands will be fully functionable again so I will get lots of time to catch up with you all and see what you've all been up to!

Lastly, Oscar is doing so well and Monty is such a gentle dog and they seem to have bonded!  I leave the cage door open when he is indoors and Monty insists on laying by his cage and licking him at every opportunity and Oscar even brings a toy to him now to share . . .

Thanks for stopping by

Jane 

xxx

RAINBOW BRIDGE

My precious little Tilly, who has fought so well since her illness last February, no longer has to battle with pain and is now peaceful, happy and warm at Rainbow Bridge.

So many of you have followed my life with my dear little bunnies, Tilly and Oscar, so I thought it only right to let you know that I made the difficult decision at the weekend and she peacefully went to sleep in my arms with a whisper in her ear to go to Rainbow Bridge,  find Buttons and wait for me . . . . . 

I am heartbroken, she was such a big part of my life and the loss hurts so much.  Oscar sits and waits in the corner of his cage, thankfully he is eating and responding to us so I pray he will learn to cope with the loss, as will I.

I don't know why she had to be taken???  Such a gentle, affectionate rabbit, full of character and a joy to watch and have in my life, so unfair!

LOVE YOU TILLY ~ ALWAYS xxx

A BUSY BUNNY . . .

Just popping in quick to wish everyone a slightly belated Happy Easter ~ hope your Easter Sunday was a good one with lots of family festivities and a visit from the Easter bunny.

We had the grandparents over for the day yesterday and although an empty seat does bring some sadness it was still a nice day with lots of memories shared and everyone enjoying their meal and the company :)

I've been a busy bunny and have managed to stitch up the second part of the '12 Days of Christmas SAL' . . .

Loving this SAL and I'm pleased with this 2nd part ~ I love the white goose standing alongside Mother Night as she sprinkles snow around her

The Primitive Hare's description of this day reads:

27 December: 2nd Day of Berctha ~ The second day of Christmas is the MOTHER NIGHT.

A few words by John Matthew's book 'The Winter Solstice':

... another older figure known throughout Germany is Frau Holle but a better name for her is MOTHER OF CHRISTMAS.  Deriving from the ancient figure of the Mother Goddess, the feminine principle of deity, she was regarded as a bringer of fertility and justice ... she rode through the land during the 12 days dispensing gifts from a sleigh pulled by dogs.  The most famous story about Mother Holle is the folk tale collected by the Brothers Grimm.  Holle is also the ancient Goddess that brings snow in Winter.

Easter always means bunnies to me and deep down in 'that' pile, you know the one that you hear scream 'finish me' everytime you open the draw was a finish from March 2013 ~ Rosie the Rabbit . . .

Time for some Tilda fabric and some pink buttons to match her name and here she is . . .

Cute!

I finished the next one only yesterday before the family arrived.  It was a find on the internet and only showed the graph in black and white, I couldn't find it stitched anywhere to give a clue to colours so this is my offering . . .

a simple white border

with a brown hare leaping over spring grass

The corners on the graph were little squares but I changed them to hearts to match the fabric colour, again another Tilda one then added some pom pom trim for a decorative finish!

I'm pleased with these 2 finishes ~ nice pastel colours which will brighten up those gloomy days that sometimes just won't go away :(

and finally ~

a decision ~ tea towel or hare, tea towel or hare, tea towel or hare . . .

Tea Towel

NO NO NO

the Hare wins

double sided too so a choice of colour!

This is called Hester Hare and was a find in a local craft shop, the designer has several animals to choose from but the hare won the day, easy to sew but a real pain in the butt to stuff ~ those ears!

Finally ~ Thank you for your offering of names for my knitted bunny in my last post ~ all great names but how could I not choose Barb's choice 'Bobbins' ~ perfect, thanks Barb and thanks too for the lovely homemade Easter card you sent, cute bunnies!

Thanks for stopping by

{{{Hugs}}}

Jane

x

MY FIRST SAL AND A NEW BUNNY

Good afternoon blogging friends, Friday is here ~ Yippee! and I can't wait for the weekend.

A huge thank you for, yet again, your very supportive comments on the loss of another loved one ~ the funeral is next Friday 20th and the plans are going very well ~ I am very confident the service will be lovely with pretty Spring flowers and beautiful readings and hymns ~ this will definitely be a celebration of a lovely lady's life xxx

Can you believe I've signed up for my first ever SAL!!!

I've chosen to stitch The 12 Days of Christmas by The Primitive Hare ~ 12 ornaments based on one of the 12 magical days of Christmas, but not the days of the popular song instead the days of the ancient Solstice celebrations/traditions beginning with the 26th December.

The SAL started with the first download on the 25th January and I only joined up last week so am already playing catch-up with 2 to get stitched but here's the first one . . .

Twelve Days of Christmas: 1st day ~ Boxing Day

I thought I'd share with you The Primitive Hare's description of each day ~

26 December: 1st Day of Berctha ~ Berctha is an ancient mother of winter, an old hag, an old fairy, an old goddess ~ these 12 days include a bunch of ancient traditions and celebrations inspired by her and by old believes.

This day, Boxing Day, is also called the Day of the Wren and generally of animals.

From John Matthews' book 'The Winter Solstice' ~ "The themes of Boxing Day have to do with death and resurrection and animals."  Animals needed to be fed also during this day, that was a day of rest.

Berctha is not only a Mother of Winter, but a mother and guardian of animals.

This is the perfect day to cuddle your pets, feed wild birds ... find a connection with them.

Animals are bringers of joy and positive vibes.

Sounds silly but I'm really quite excited by it and the 25th of each month is already marked on the calender to remind me to download each new chart.  Rather than stitch them up as individual ornaments I have decided to stitch them as one big design and as each finish is 4.5" x 4.5" I am working with quite a big piece of linen! Hopefully this weekend I will get to grips with the 27th December and will be able to show you in my next blog post.

Apart from that I have nothing much else to show you in the stitching line so thought I'd share a new bunny with you instead.  He's not new new as I knitted him last Summer but as I was missing a lot last year I never got round to showing you . . .

Isn't he cute? 

 Quite a butch bunny so I insist on calling him a 'him' and like all my creations he has to be named ~ any ideas?  I'm waiting to move him to my sidebar with all the other bunnies but as he is still nameless, he'll have to wait!

I'm no expert at knitting but was pleased with his little jumper and the little heart ~ wouldn't mind a bigger version of this for myself!

His arms looked a bit idle I added a little string of cotton reels and some scissors ~ maybe this little extra will spark some ideas for a name?

I am looking forward to this weekend, it will be family time on Sunday and tomorrow an afternoon out hunting out some more bits and pieces for the new Craft Room, my rolls of sandpaper and tins of Chalk Paint are screaming to be used and now we finally have some warmth and sunshine it will be perfect weather for some upcycling!

Happy Weekend to everybody and to all English Mums I hope you are spoilt rotten on Mothering Sunday and have a lovely day of stitching.

Thanks for stopping by

{{{Hugs}}}

Jane

x

SAD TIMES AGAIN

This Friday is the 1st year Anniversary of the loss of my MIL and the memories of that time bring back much sadness.

   To add to this sadness my husband's Aunt (my MIL's sister) passed away yesterday after a 3 year battle with Dementia.  Although we had been warned last Friday that her deterioration was a concern naturally we are still shocked to have lost her and of course are feeling the heartache today :(  We were very close to her and she has a been a big part of our lives and adored our children ~ a truly lovely and kind lady.

What a cruel disease this is both for the sufferer and the carer ~ to not know a name anymore, to not recognise a face anymore and to live in a world you no longer know and when events that only took place a minute or so previous are straightaway forgotten.  I am happy for her to finally be released from the cruel symptoms she suffered and know now she is peacefully sleeping xxx

I do wish life would pick up!  I'm so fed up with feeling sad and unwell, my foot doesn't want to co-operate and get better and now I have been called for another scan to check my bone density ~ grrrr life!

I have been stitching non-stop ~ I guess it's my way of coping and by concentrating on counting stitches I can try and block both sadness and pain out, not always successful but it helps!

'A Beautiful Dream' is progressing well and a new tree has grown complete with conifers and golden stars are now scattered above the rooftops.

'Santa's Nap' is looking good too and Santa is now growing a lovely white beard, next I can start his face which I'm looking forward to.

Thank you for your comments on my last post and it was nice to hear that many others of you get a lot of comfort from your pets.

Monty was a lucky pup at Christmas and received toys galore ~ he's a real chewer and nothing stays in one piece for more than a day but one toy, a squeaky sheep, took his fancy and that went everywhere with him!

Last week the squeak gave up!!!!  So a dash visit to the Pet Centre and a hunt for a new sheep, none left so instead a new cow . . .

(looks like a fish in this photo but it has 4 legs and udders so definitely a cow!)

Success! Monty love him xxx

Thanks for stopping by, it means a lot to me

{{{Hugs}}}

Jane

x

TWO WORKING FEET AND A BEAUTIFUL DREAM . . .

Good afternoon blogging friends!

It's a lovely sunny but very chilly day here in the South and a welcome sight after a whole day of heavy rain yesterday. 

Well, finally I have 2 working feet again and am walking without crutches.  I'm now in the transition stage of air boot to orthotic and so far so good ~ 30 mins to start with and increasing by 30 mins each day until I can wear the orthotic without pain during or afterwards for 4 hours :)

I go back to the Specialists in 4 and 8 weeks time to see if all is as it should be on an X-ray and then to decide whether I need a permanent orthotic or not.

Fingers crossed!

In my last post I showed you my new WIP and a couple of bloggers have asked who the design was by, sorry I missed typing that info and sorry I haven't been able to contact those bloggers personally ~ my computer just won't let me and if I am successful the emails come pinging back to me with the message 'fatal error' ~ that's not very nice is it?  Anyway . . .  the designer is Sara Guermani, the design is called 'A Beautiful Dream' and she has her own web shop and also sells on Etsy.

It's a treat to stitch and my little Christmas Village now has some greenery as five lovely conifers have joined the scenery!

Think this is probably now my only way of seeing snow this year and that's by stitching it!

Lovey Christmas reds and greens

I'm stitching 'A Beautiful Dream' alongside another design.
With the birthday money I received last year for my 'special' birthday I wanted to buy a cross stitch that would commemorate that day to me and something all the family would appreciate in future times so after surfing the internet for some considerable time  I chose this one ...

'Santa's Nap'
A rosy faced Santa and lots of puppy dogs ~ who could resist?

I was a little shocked at the amount of thread that came with this kit, thank goodness it was already pre-sorted!

Not much to show so far and it's back to the old days with this kit as it's stitched on good old Aida, 18 count and has lots of lovely back stitching afterwards but I know, although a pain, backstitching will really bring this design alive.

Tilly and Oscar continue to do well and now only have 2 more days of medication ~ no more symptoms and her condition remains stable :)
I would miss any of my pets so much if I lost any of them, whilst I have been laid up with the fractured foot they have been such good company, sounds silly doesn't it? (must be an age thing!!!)

Thanks for stopping by
Stay warm
{{{Hugs}}}
Jane
x

GOOD NEWS ALL ROUND

Well it's good news so far for Tilly and Oscar ~ we're now 2 weeks through the 4 week course of medication and Tilly remains stable and Oscar fully fit!  Tilly still has her head tilt but we had been warned that that might stay and hopefully she'll learn to cope with it, certainly at the moment these two little bunnies are full of life and sensing Spring is on the doorstep ~ thank you all for your lovely comments, thoughts and prayers xxx

Good news for me too as I saw the Orthopaedic Surgeon on Monday night and my foot is making good progress.  I am still having some pain and swelling underneath the foot which may take some time to improve so I am now waiting to see another Specialist who can make me an orthosis so I can gradually transfer from the air cast boot to a normal shoe ~ nearly a Happy Dance!!!

And .... even more good news ~ I actually have 2 finishes to show you!

That's quite an achievement to me after my poor offering of 3 last year!

They are 2 more Mill Hill Santa's . . .

Holly & Ivy Santa

Lapland Santa

With the one I finished in December I think they will make a nice trio on the tree next Christmas, it's hard to see the beads sparkling in a photo but they are really pretty when the light catches them.

Our promise of snow here in the South of the UK has still not happened, we have the odd flurry and it settles on the roof and car tops for a little while but doesn't hang around for long

so disappointing ~ Monty's waiting so patiently  . . .

So whilst we sit and wait I've started my next stitch and at the moment it has about as much snow as we have had . . .

A Beautiful Dream

This is my 2nd attempt on this design as the first one was using the DMC colours listed on the chart and the result was really dull colours and not too my taste so whilst the air turned slightly blue as I unpicked the 2 middle houses a 2nd attempt began and as shown above it's with my choice of hand-dyed threads!

I'm trying to keep it as Christmassy as possible so lots of Christmas reds and the greens are my choice for the trees, the fabric is as suggested ~ what a brilliant fabric ~ just imagine stitching all that falling snow!

Tomorrow night the Great British Sewing Bee is starting its 3rd series, love this show, 10 contestants whittled down each week to the final 3 and along the way showing us some fantastic (some not) skills and ideas on their sewing machines ~ this will definitely be a me-time with a Do Not Disturb Sign on the door!

Thank you for stopping by

Stay warm if you have the white stuff and if you have lots of it could you send me just a little bit!

{{{Hugs)))

Jane

x

A WAITING GAME

My little bunny Tilly is sick and it's a waiting game to see if she can recover :(

Last Thursday we brought her in for the night from her outdoor hutch and her head was tilted to one side, I honestly thought she had had a stroke but she could still hop and was happy to eat and be petted that evening.  DS and I took her to the vets the next day where she was diagnosed with a condition that effects 52% of healthy pet rabbits in the UK, it's  related to their immune system and can cause head tilt, paralysis of the back legs, tremors and renal failure :(

We have started oral treatment immediately which will continue for the next 28 days but the next 7 days will determine the start of a recovery or deterioration ~ no deterioration yet, still a head tilt which does effect her balance but still eating, still drinking and still my little bundle of cuddles.

Our worries are doubled as Oscar is at risk too so he is taking the medication as well but thankfully as yet no signs!

Love my pets, love my little Tilly and can't bear the thought of losing her ~ please say a little prayer for her xxx

{{{Hugs}}}

Jane

x

HURRY UP 2015 . . .

Only 10 hours to go and then I can happily say goodbye and to be honest, good riddance, to 2014!

It's been a horrible year, full of sadness with the loss of a loved one and full of worrying illnesses which are set to continue into 2015 but hopefully with a full recovery!

Christmas was lovely this year but hard without my MIL, we miss her so much.

A  few days before the big day I was struggling with my foot in the air cast and the continual swelling so medication was prescribed along with crutches and only a maximum output of 25% body weight on that foot is allowed with a warning from the Specialist that this could take 3 months to heal :(

DH and the gang have been so good sorting everything out and they were brilliant with preparing and cooking the Christmas Dinner ~ so proud of them all x

This was my only contribution but had great fun making them with DD ~ melting snowmen on digestive biscuits . . .

I feel my blogging contributions have been poor too ~ the few posts I have contributed have been full of misery but the dark days have been aplenty and I still feel I'm struggling.  I'm so disappointed to have lost, what I considered to be, special blogging friends and sad to find that a lot of previous blogs I followed now say I haven't been invited to read any longer but I guess if I haven't been around to comment to others then this can only be expected.

I'm so grateful to those bloggers that have stuck with me ~ your comments and kind messages mean so much to me x

Now . . . . stitching . . . can I present finishes 2 and 3 of the year (I would say Happy Dance but that's not too hopeful at the moment!)

Yes, I have achieved a whole 3 finishes this year, one was a sheepie pillow for someone and these next 2 have been completed recently . . .

 LHN ~ Snowy Pines (Mill Hill ice beads arrived this morning so almost there!)

and . . .

 Mill Hill Appalachian Santa ~ it's very pretty when the lights catch the beads and sparkle

Struggled a little with his beard but found my own simpler way of doing it!

I have another 2 of these little Santas in the pipeline and have just started the Holly & Ivy Santa, I find them really easy to handle and stitch whilst immobile and having everything all together in a kit makes life a lot easier!

Well, it's not the happiest post ever is it? 

But a year ago I didn't have this little fellow in my life and he certainly has brightened up every day since!  He loved his 1st Christmas, toys and treats aplenty, some a little noisier than others and I'm quite surprised to say the Christmas Tree is still standing up straight and complete with its decorations!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE

Enjoy your celebrations!

(((Hugs)))

Jane, Monty, Tilly & Oscar x

AN EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESENT AND THE 'BIG' ONE!

Time has flown by again so quickly since my last post, my apologies again, but now's my chance to catch up!

Santa's bought me an early Christmas present . . .

Starting yesterday ~ a fun-filled 6 weeks wearing an air cast boot for a fractured foot ~ funny I don't remember that being on my wish list and I'm sure I've been good all year, not very naughty and most of the time nice!

I have no explanation for the fracture just a sudden pain 6 weeks ago which I hoped would go away but one ultrasound, one x-ray and one MRI scan later this is the result ~ a phone call from the Specialist Monday evening and this lovely present yesterday!

I do feel quite miserable about it at the moment and what a time of year to be told to just rest for 6 weeks and wear this all the time other than in bed :(

This has all  followed another string of illnesses ~ inhalation of some toxic fumes at the local Supermarket resulting in a severe allergy reaction, emergency injections and a stay in hospital with a drip to flush out all the toxins, a kidney infection, yet another chest infection, the return of the dreaded Keytones in my blood ~ more drips and finally when I thought I was safe from hospitals ~ Monty and I were attacked by an unleashed dog whilst walking at the Park!!!

Hey c'mon enough is enough?

On the brighter side do you think if I leave this boot next to the fireplace on Christmas Eve, Santa may come back and fill it with something nicer than a fractured bone?

Now to the 'BIG' one . . . my 50th birthday ~ ouch . . . OMG . . . 50?

As health issues have been so prominent this year, I had begged my family many months ago for no big parties or surprise holidays etc. and it was decided instead that we would make use of this unused part of the garden (as shown to you in my last official post) . . .

WITH A NEW CRAFT ROOM . . .

To say I'm thrilled to bits would be an understatement!  I knew this was going to be built and as my birthday was in November it was started in plenty of time to be ready for my big day.  It stands next to our other Summer House (old sewing room) and it has been built to my specification which was to maximise space for storage and take in the full view of the garden.  Over several weeks we collected second-hand furniture and odds and ends which we have gradually restored and in the last month it has all come together and finally been landscaped ~ I have lots of progress photos and before and after furniture pics and in a post or two time I will share them with you ~ just one little problem at the moment ~ our garden is tiered and I have to get down 6 steps from our balcony to reach it . . . not a problem unless you have a fractured foot!

When the big day arrived, then came the surprises and off to London was first on the list ~ DH and DD took me out to lunch at a fabulous restaurant where we were joined by DD's boyfriend and then Christmas lights, shopping and a visit to Liberty's . . .

Beautifully lit up for Christmas

My favourite window

 Love the cuddly fox and knitted mouse

We got home early evening (with one very throbbing foot and at this time no knowledge as to why, so carried on regardless!) and then with my twin boys and their girlfriends I opened their lovely presents ~ lots of lovely crafty things for the new room ~ fabrics, buttons, jelly rolls, decoupage rabbits and from my DD ~ the Harry Potter Maurauder's Map, printed on parchment and framed ~ WOW! I am so lucky, lovely presents to treasure always x

AND THEN . . . came the weekend and the next surprise, up early and a bus to catch????

I couldn't believe this!  We're probably a family of  the biggest Harry Potter fans ever and hadn't yet visited the HP Studio Tour, but to top it all this wasn't just the ordinary HP Tour this was the Hogwarts in the Snow/Christmas Harry Potter Tour!

I must have been the biggest kid of the day, I enjoyed every minute of it (not so much the very throbbing foot by now!) and 500 photos were the result so let's get started . . .

PHOTO #1 . . . . only joking!  As I think everyone else has already done the Tour I'll just show you some that will look different at this special time of year . . .

 The Yuletide Bull Christmas Tree

The Great Hall decorated with Christmas Trees, Christmas fayre, presents and real flaming Christmas puddings

  Hogwarts in the Snow

So so pretty

Thank you my lovely family for such a wonderful celebration

of 50 years

xxxxx

AND FINALLY . . .

 some sewing news and as I'm sure you'll understand there's been very little of it!

I started this Christmas Carol sampler last Christmas and was doing well with it until the sad times hit us last February

but it has seen light of day again and progress had been good . . .

 I'm going to take a little break from it at the moment as it's quite a large project and I don't think it will be easy to sew it with one foot raised and resting so I've started a little easy-to-hold design . . .

LHN ~ Snowy Pines Christmas Ornament

This design will be nothing new to a lot of you, I think it was first released back in 2010, but I found this whilst transferring all my stash down to the new Craft Room so got the gang to go down and hunt it out yesterday so that I can make some use of the long 6 weeks ahead ~ no walking of any distance and no driving makes Jane an unhappy bunny and I have to say Monty is looking very oddly at my foot too!

Well, lovely followers, and I'm so happy to see I do actually still have some, that's it for now.  I promise to be back soon with lots of pics of the new room and hopefully lots more stitching.

Again, as usual, I am so behind with all your posts but will get to you soon and catch up, I bet you're all stitching up some lovely Christmas designs and I'm looking forward to seeing them.

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit me

{{{Hugs}}}

Jane

x