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santa baby . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Hello, I'm so glad you're here! (Who am I kidding?? I'm so glad *I'M* here! Hahaha!)

Welcome, welcome to the first post of the annual Online Advent Calendar, hosted by Jo at Serendipitous Stitching! Each day she'll update the source post to reveal the day's guest poster! It's loads of fun and a wonderful way to count down to Christmas, stitchingly! Every year, Jo chooses a theme—this year it's Santas—and asks her bloggers to share a theme-related tidbit, and a Christmas stitching! And this year, I'm very honored to ...

added by Denise :) 4 months, 2 weeks ago. under advent , blog hop , christmas , cross stitch , family , fire truck , ornaments , photo , quilt , santa , tree

right on time . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

You would not think that I'd have much to share, seeing as I just posted four days ago ... but, surprise! I have another photo-laden post, with a variety of content!

Thursday evening was our guild's last meeting of the guild year ... our birthday party, so to speak. It was decorated beautifully!

There's always a shot of the outgoing board. You'll notice me at the very top, right. I won't be on the 2023-24 board; my plate is rather full right now.

The quilt behind us is our 2024 Fanfare Quilt Show opportunity (raffle) quilt. Isn ...

added by Denise :) 8 months ago. under camp , cheesecake , cross stitch , granddaughter , guild , photo , sleepover , stitchery

half gone or half full . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Rabbit, rabbit! It's hard to believe it's July 1st and we're halfway through the year already!

June was busy, but good. We got the very good news that the PET scan images were good, so Todd was cleared for surgery. That will happen on July 5th ... in four days. It's a major surgery. They'll remove the right lobe of his liver, his gallbladder, and ablate any mets they find on the left lobe. They think there might be one, but they've never been able to get a good look at it, so that's ...

added by Denise :) 9 months, 3 weeks ago. under applique , camp , cancer , grandchildren , lake , photo , slow stitching , surgery , vacation , wool

i need an introduction . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

It's been a year.

Technically, it's not even been a half year, but it still feels like a whole, full, 12-month year, and I'm ready to be through with it! Is that wrong?

My daddy passed away late in January.

He'd been in hospice care since December of 2021, so it wasn't a complete surprise, but I still wasn't ready for him to be gone. I'm glad he's no longer suffering.

He was witty and clear-minded right to the very end, making us laugh with his quick sense of humor. Such a ...

added by Denise :) 10 months, 3 weeks ago. under alabama quilt , cancer , dad , embroidery , family , friends , funeral , grandchildren , hospital sketches , memories , photo , todd , wool

just desserts . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Aaaaah!! Can you believe it? Here it is, December 13, and there are TWELVE days until Christmas! And I'm blogging (speaking of Christmas miracles)! That can only mean on thing . . . it's my day for the Advent Blog Hop, hosted by Jo at Serendipitous Stitching!

One of my biggest projects and happiest finishes this year, was a UFO that I started in 2008 (I first blogged about it here). Yes, you read that right ... 14 years ago. It was a BOM by a local quilt shop. I finished all the blocks, but the setting was a feathered star, and ...

added by Denise :) 1 year, 4 months ago. under buche de noel , christmas , christmas quilt , family , photo , ufo

sweet, sweet, sweet . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Lots of lovely little tidbits from the past week. First up, my daughter-in-love, has created a *sweet* home business called "Madelyn Mae's Bake Shop". She makes the loveliest, tastiest cookies! How do I know they're tasty, you may ask? Because she sent me some!

Tea cups, tea pots, and quilt squares! And in purples, no less! It was a fun snail mail package to receive! She's so talented!

And I know autumn is on its way, because I've started to feel the pull of all things pumpkin . . .

Picked up this sweet Benartex metallic pumpkin panel. I ...

added by Denise :) 1 year, 8 months ago. under cookies , cross stitch , family , grandchildren , photo , pumpkin , snake , sunflower , tea

in with the new . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Do you know what happens when you make up your mind to back-post before you current post again?

Nothing. LOL!

And the longer I put it off, the more daunting the task became. So, here's what happened this past weekend:

I switched out my patriotic decor that went up in time for Memorial Day (and stays up through Bastille Day—July 14) . . .

For summery, sun-shiney sunflowers!

I love changing out my accent pieces for the seasons. More and more, it's become mostly pieces I've made or been gifted. I love that!! Once I got everything out, I ...

added by Denise :) 1 year, 8 months ago. under patriotic , pattern , photo , quilt , slow stitching , stitch , summer , sunflower , wool

back in my world . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

I think I posted in February that life had been crazy and the Valentine blog hop post was just the thing I needed to get me going again. Only I didn’t, and life—got crazier. And even a little scary. And again, I’m not going to tell the tale here (though if you know me IRL or we're friends on facebook, you have some ideas), but I will go back and write posts for my lost weeks, because it's cathartic and also helps me track when what happened (and what projects I worked on) down the ...

added by Denise :) 1 year, 11 months ago. under camp , grandchildren , lake , photo , rv living , slow stitching

secret stitching sweetheart blog hop . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

I know, I know ... it's been a hot minute (or would it make more sense to say 'a cold minute'?) since I posted . . . I'll get into that in another post.

This post is all about the L O V E! Jo, from Serendipitous Stitching, hosts the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop every year, and when she asked if I wanted to participate, I knew it was the nudge I needed!

Here's how it works: all of the participants send Jo a photo of a stitched Valentine . . . and then once she's ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 2 months ago. under blog hop , handwork , photo , secret stitching sweetheart blog hop , valentine

one day in . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

I love the new year . . . the roll out of new resolutions, new challenges, a new word, and a fresh opportunity to get it right. A clean slate, so to speak! Mind you, I do not do resolutions, but I do enjoy selecting a word to focus on for the coming year. This year my word is . . .

Yup, aware. That works on a lot levels. Yesterday, it was important for me to be weather aware.

When your temps get up to eighty degrees ahead of a cold front, chances are good severe weather will follow. It was a balmy, windy ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 3 months ago. under aware , challenge , embroidery , new year , photo , pompom , slow stitching , stitchery , storm , word

advent time . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Once upon a time there was a blogger who was participating in an online Advent calendar blog hop with Jo at Serendipitous Stitching, but she got her dates mixed up and didn't realize her date was the 20th (instead of the 22nd) until she hopped over to check out today's feature.

It was me. I'm that blogger. Glad I made the realization before noon (CST)!

This year, Jo, who so graciously hosts this annual hop, has asked participants to share about their Christmas tree traditions! This is an easy one for me!

Growing up, and even well ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 4 months ago. under advent , blog hop , cat , christmas , christmas tree , ornaments , paper ornaments , photo , poppers , rv living

thanks-stitching . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Last week was a long week. My coworker has been out sick for two weeks. She's coming back on Monday, but can only work half days, doctor's orders. Luckily it's a short week—we're closed for Veteran's Day on Thursday, and I'm off to Lifeway's Women's Leadership Forum!

I'd ordered an assortment of flannel fat quarters from a vendor on Etsy. She sells under Prairie Grove Peddler, and y'all she was fantastic to work with. I sent her a question about shipping, and she went ahead and bundled the assortment ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 5 months ago. under apple pie , flannel , football , grandson , photo , slow stitching , time change , wool

Steps To Nowhere from The Snarky Quilter

Maybe it’s the season and all the plastic bones scattered about my neighbors’ lawns, but I went a bit dark for my latest work. It’s loosely based on a photo by Penny. I thought it had an unsettling, scary look. … Continue reading →

added by snarkyquilter 2 years, 5 months ago. under art quilts , in process , modern quilting , photo , spoonflower , staircase (Comments)

trick or treat . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

. . . and Happy Halloween! I am participating in the Trick or Treat blog hop, offered by Jo at Serendipitous Stitching!! If you haven't visited her blog yet, head over there and definitely check it out. She's got a list of participating blogs, and at each blog you'll find a clue to the mystery Halloween phrase! You'll find my clue at the bottom of this post!

You know how there's spooky fun and spooky scary? For the most part, I'm definitely a fan of spooky fun! When I was trying to figure out something new to ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 5 months ago. under blog hop , embroidery , halloween , jackolantern , mystery phrase , photo , pumpkin , slow stitching , spider , stitchery , wool

august showers . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Bring September BABIES!

Well, not really. Or at least, not necessarily!

Jocelyn's baby shower for Ezra was Sunday. It was so sweet! The hostesses did a lovely job decorating and making everything so special.

Joc's best friend co-hosted. ♥

A cookie cake, from The Moon Bakeshop. YUM!

It really was all so pretty! I gifted Joc with Ezra's pinwheel quilt. She was thrilled!

A very sweet afternoon, anticipating Ezra.

:)

added by Denise :) 2 years, 6 months ago. under baby quilt , baby shower , photo , pinwheel

california travels to alabama . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

I'm just going to warn you right now . . . this post is going to be super SUPER photo heavy. And not a single quilty, stitchy thing. All grands. :)

As I teased in my last post, James, Kim, Sawyer, June and Olivia made the trip from California. They came the last few days in June and stayed through the first week of July. It was so spectacular to see them all!! I've just uploaded pics. Enjoy!

My folks with six of their greats!

There always has to be the funny face photo!

Edith thought she'd sleep on the top ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 6 months ago. under cabins , camp , family , fireworks , grandchildren , independence day , photo , sleepover , video

april showers . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Bring May flowers . . .

My newest addition to my teacup collection. Rather appropriate for May, don't you think? I saw it in a spread in the current issue of TeaTime Magazine. They kill me. LOL! :)

Our rhododendrons and our water lilies are both blooming out!

I love all the color this season brings with it!

This last weekend was a weekend of tiny dancers. The girls had their spring ballet recital; it was Edith's first! They all did a marvelous job and it was a weekend well spent!

Aren't they darling? They're signed up for next year ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 11 months ago. under ballet , camp , family , grandgirls , photo , teacup

tried and true . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

Have I ever mentioned how much I enjoy binding? I really do. I love the rhythmic stitching motion. It's soothing and settling. So I often volunteer to do the binding on group quilts. (I dislike giving blocks for group quilts ... not because I don't want to give or participate, but because of comments someone once made about my blocks in a swap. It hurt my feelings and I'm just afraid to stitch up bad blocks for a quilt someone else is having to piece. So I bind.)

I volunteered to do so for a quilt we were ...

added by Denise :) 2 years, 11 months ago. under baby quilt , binding , boat , create , eq , family , grandgirls , longarm , nook , photo , picnic quilt , pinwheel , quilt

late out of the gate . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

So. Obviously my resolution for 2021 wasn't to spend more time on the blog. Ha!

In fact, I didn't make resolutions (I haven't done that for the past several years, actually). I took stock of 2020 (for what it's worth, am I right?), and instead made a couple of goals. Really, I just made a goal. I finished my complete read of the Bible on December 24, but decided it was a lot of reading (the Bible in a year) without a lot of study. So this year I decided to start over again, read just ...

added by Denise :) 3 years, 2 months ago. under 2021 , birthday , boat , granddaughter , hospital sketches , new year , photo , quilt , study , sunrise , wool

six more days . . . from Count it *all* JOY!

I found a new and totally fitting way to help celebrate the season of Advent this year, compliments of Jo, over at Serendipitous Stitching! She hosts a very sweet stitcher's Advent, and today is my day to share!

The idea is to share a hand-stitched ornament. So of course, I'm sharing two. LOL! One is one I've had for years and years ... and it's more of a decoration than an ornament. This beautiful wreath:

It's a canvas and yarn piece that was done by my Pop. He was a terrific crafter and loved to work ...

added by Denise :) 3 years, 4 months ago. under advent , book , christmas , ornament , photo

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