More Christmas Winners!

We have more winners this morning:
For the 2 quilt patterns, the winners are Carin in the Netherlands and Nancy from MO.
For the Cross stitch charts, the winners are Rosalie from ME and Annette from Australia.
Congratulations and thanks to everyone for entering. I'll be sending those packages tomorrow.

This week's drawing will be snowmen. The weather is cold and we have snow on the ground, after 4 days of snowing I might add, so it seems appropriate.

For cross stitch: Chart #50, Little Candle Mat- Snowmen and Chart #29, Snowman Sampler. Just email me at PGPeddler@aol.com with "SNOW" in the title. Include your name and mailing address.

For Quilter's: Pattern#317, My Snowman Quilt and #345, Snowman Sampler. Just email me at PGPeddler@aol.com with "BRRR" in the title. Include your name and mailing address.

Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Merry Christmas Eve to everyone! It is dreary and raining outside but all of our company came to town yesterday and the festivities began last night. Grace was in a Christmas pageant and preformed beautifully. She's quite the little ham, I might add. Nathan's big birthday party is today so we'll be celebrating that also with family and friends. I didn't do a lot of baking this year as most of my kitchen is packed but Sarah is graciously providing meals for all of the family for the next 4 days while they are all in town. She's a wonderful cook, too, I might add. Our rain is turning to snow tomorrow so we will have a white Christmas in the Midwest after all. I hope everyone has a wonderful and blessed Christmas.

Christmas Week Giveaway

This week I'll offer Cross Stitch Chart #53 Christmas Ornaments and Chart #54 Little Candle Mats- American Sheep for the weekly giveaway. There will be two winners. All you have to do is email me by midnight next Saturday with "Christmas" in the title and included your name and mailing address. Every week we have many entries that do not include their address and they are not considered. Please remember to add it in there. We don't share it nor do we store it for future spam. That's a promise. It just makes sending out the prize much easier and faster when we already have it.

For the quilters, we offer a giveaway this week of two quilt patterns- #369 Winter's Song and #383 Three Stockings. All you have to do is email me before midnight next Saturday with "Quilt" in the title and send you name and mailing address. I'll personally pick two winners next Sunday morning before I go to church.

My beagle is going crazy this morning due to the two coyotes hunting mice in the field behind us. There's snow on the ground and I can see them very clearly today. They are about twice the size of my beagle and she's smart enough to stay a good distance away while barking to make sure they know they are in HER territory! She's a tough one. Sometimes she will chase after one if it's alone until it turns on her and she runs back to the house with her tail between her legs! Very pretty out there with the snow.

Busy Time of the Year

Wow, Christmas is next week already and I have not started my shopping yet. Honestly, I have been so busy with the move and all, time just simply slipped away from me. I guess it's to late to start shopping online so I'll likely have to face the crowd and just do it. We have a great Mall here and normally it's not crowded during the day. My biggest problem is what to get everyone. I guess tonight I'll start making a list, checking it twice, and well, you know. I did put a Christmas tree up even though I actually thought about skipping it this year with the move so close and all. Just call Ebeneezer I guess.

Incidentally, Stitches, Etc. in St. Charles, MO will have my trunk show starting next week. My Little Candle Mats will be on display along with other models.

Don't forget to enter for the Tree Skirt Giveaway before Saturday at midnight. There's already a LOT of entries so competition is great with this one! I've sold almost all of the quilts listed last week. If you're interested in any of the quilts that were listed, email me at PGPeddler@aol.com and I'll see if I still have it. Thanks to everyone who helped me clear out a large stack of quilts. I'm sure I'll find more to let go of once I get everything moved.

NEW Contest for a Quilted Tree Skirt

I have a new contest this week for a finished quilted Christmas tree skirt from my Christmas in New England pattern shown on the Winter Quilts web page. It measures 36" across.

All you have to do to enter is email me by next Saturday at midnight. Put your name and entire mailing address in the email (those without will not be considered). Put the word TREE SKIRT in the subject line. This contest is open to everyone, whether living in the US or not.

The winner will be chosen next Sunday and the tree skirt will be mailed to the winner the next day. Good luck to everyone!

Christmas Winners!

Well, we have two winners for last week. They are Donna from TN and Joan from SD. Congratulations ladies! I sent you an email.

I did something special on my Newsletter last week and had a lot of comments about it. Thanks to everyone who responded in time and got a free chart.

This week I thought I'd offer THREE Cardinal charts- they are the ones pictured here. We'll also have THREE winners this week. By the way, this contest is open to everyone, whether you are in the United States or not.

To enter, email me before next Saturday at midnight. Put you entire mailing address in there (sorry, those without are not considered for winning and we have had a lot of them incomplete) and "Cardinal" in the title. Good luck!

Lots of NEWS Participants!

I sent out the cross stitch newsletter the other day and got a ton of responses- too many to count. It didn't overload my inbox but probably came close! I was curious as to how many people actually read the newsletter and I was nicely surprised! SO, I have a LOT of free charts to send out. As promised, everyone who responded with their address and the word NEWS in the subject will get a free chart in the mail next week. Thanks for reading it and Merry Christmas!

Monday Morning

I'm looking forward to a great day of shopping and getting my hair done. With Christmas coming, I'll spend a few days each week getting ready. I got my tree up Saturday and had dinner after church yesterday for all the kids and grandkids. Nathan was particularly fond of the old tricycle ornament from Hallmark that's probably 15 years old.

My favorite ornament remains to be a Lang ornament I got at the International Quilt Festival in Houston years ago. I have a lot of Lang & Hallmark ornaments.

If all goes well with the house purchase, I am moving in January so I've been doing a lot of packing and reorganizing these days in my spare time. Even though January is not a great time of the year to be outside, hopefully the weather will cooperate when it's time to actually move!

A Lot of Winners!

Wow, there were so many entries this past week! Last week we drew 2 names, and as promised, today we drew 4. Our winners are Kathy from LA, Barb from NY, Trish from Ontario, and Louise from NC. Congratulations ladies. I'll be sending you charts tomorrow.

This next week, we will draw only 2 names. In keeping with the Christmas spirit, the prize is 2 charts from the Little Candle Mat series, #48, Stockings & #49, Poinsettias. All you have to do is email before midnight next
Saturday, put "LCM" in the title, and send your name & mailing address. It's really pretty simple.

Entries without the mailing address included are not considered. We've been doing drawings for a while now and it's much easier to send the free charts right away without having to contact the winners and wait for a reply, which sometimes would take weeks. WE don't keep those addresses on file nor do we share your information with anyone, that's a promise.

Thank you to everyone who enters faithfully each week and thank you for all of the sweet notes that I get with the entries.

Two New Charts!

It's that time again, I have two new charts ready for December. They will be available from distributors and on the website later this week. Chart #53, Christmas Ornaments has three ornaments and a 4th design with date and initials for the back. It uses all DMC floss and red braided trim.


Chart #54, Little Candle Mats- American Sheep measures 8-3/4" finished. It uses Weeks Dye Works Merlot Wool and DMC pearl cotton to finish. We actually have someone who finishes them if you don't want to do them yourself. Just email me for information.

The website will be updated this week with these two new charts plus we are adding the votive cups that we show. We've had a lot of interest in them.

Christmas is coming!

Well, the weekend flew by so quickly and I didn't even get to go shopping. I normally stay away from the Black Friday crowds anyway. I did look a bit online. It's always great to Christmas shop in your jammies. The turkey leftovers are all gone and all the casserole dishes are washed and put away. I spent last night finishing a few new cross stitch designs and thought I'd share a peak. This one will be going to distributors this week and on the website sometime this week also.

A Whole New Week for a Drawing

Well, it's getting closer to Christmas so it's time to start offering some Christmas charts. This week the drawing will be for 2 charts,
#41, Stockings Were Hung and #40, The Ornament Sampler. All you have to do to enter is email me with your name, address and email address at PGPeddler@aol.com and put "Stockings" in the title. If I get a lot of entries again, I'll probable draw two or maybe even three names this week. Good luck!

Another Autumn Sunday, Another Weekly Winner

We have a winner of the Eye Glass Case this week. It's Leah from TN. Leah, watch your email. I need to know what color you prefer.


This week I'm going to offer my new chart, Three Pumpkins, along with three pumpkin stems to go with it. I think I'll even throw in a small piece of Juniper wool for the leaves to finish them.


All you have to do is email me this week at PGPeddler@aol.com, before Saturday midnight, and put "Three Pumpkins" in the title. Send your name, address and email address. I promise that I won't share it with anyone. I will choose a winner next Sunday.

Online Retail Show Continues

Tomorrow is the last day for the Online Needlework Show. There is a lot to look at and I've spent a few hours on there. This is a test show so they can decide if they want to continue with it. I personally didn't do the show but I know a few designers that did and I think they've had a good response. There was a lot of talk about needlework shops boycotting the designers that did the show so I'm guessing that's probably why so many designers didn't do the show.

If you haven't seen it yet, the show is at http://needleshowretail.com. Tonight is the last to enter the drawing this week. Tomorrow starts a new drawing. Off to finish some designing.

Is it Friday?

Well, it certainly came fast this week- Friday, that is. The online needlework show started yesterday. I got a good look at it last night and there sure is a lot there. I think it's a lot bigger than the wholesale show. I noticed a few shops had my charts so that was cool.

Tomorrow is the last day to enter my weekly drawing for the Eye Glass case. Email me by tomorrow night and the drawing is Sunday. A new weekly drawing starts Sunday also.

I got this picture of Grace today in her princess outfit. It just made my day!

Little Candle Mat Finishing Instructions

I've had some inquiries on the little candle mats and finishing them so I thought I'd try to explain it here. I trace the candle mat shape, that's included in the chart, onto clear plastic template and cut it out. Lay the template centered on the back side of the stitched design and trace around the template with a pencil. There are center lines on the template and it's easy to line up. Lay the stitched design face down on top of a second piece of matching linen. Use this traced line to sew a seam all the way around with machine or by hand. Trim the seams and corners.

Pull the top and bottom slightly apart in the center with your hands. Snip the very center of the unstitched backside, not the stitched side. Snip about 4" across the center of the unstitched backside only for turning. Turn right side out through the snipped hole. Press out the edges with your fingers or a ruler. Press all edges flat with an iron. Hand stitch the opening closed on back without overlapping the sides and press again.

Lay the candle mat face up on a 9" square of wool. Hand stitch the candle mat to the wool using thread that matches the linen so it doesn't show. I used blue thread on this one. Trim the wool to about 1/2" from the edge. Lay it on a second piece of wool and trim the edges to match. Make a decorative stitch, such as a buttonhole stitch pictured here, around the outer edge of the wool with pearl cotton to attach the two layers together. It is really very easy to do!

Another New little Candle Mat

We have another new Little Candle Mat available. It's chart #52, Colorful Cats. It will be on the website in a few days and available from Hoffman and Norden Distributors by the end of the week. It measures 9" finished and uses all DMC floss.


We had a great Sunday here, with all the kids and grandkids over for dinner after church.
The leaves were blowing in the yard and everyone enjoyed the 70 degree weather after our month of rain. Looking at this picture reminds me that they sure grow up fast.

New Weekly Drawing Details

We have a new drawing this week. It's a Pre-finished Stitchable Eye Glass Case. It can be used with cross stitch, punchneedle or embroidery. The winner will get to choose the color from eight different colors available. Email me with your name, address and email address by midnight on Saturday night. Say "Eye Glass Case" in the subject line. Good luck to everyone!

NEW Little Candle Mat

I have two new candle mats that I'm releasing this week.
The first one is chart #51 Little Candle Mats- Red Houses. It is 8-1/2" finished and uses Natural linen. I also used Weeks Dye Works wool- Kudzu and DMC pearl cotton #5 to finish it. It says "Home Sweet Home" with my initials and date. It will be on the website later this week.

There's a Retail Online Show starting this Thursday and running through Sunday of next week. I am not going to be an exhibitor but some of my charts are offered on there. The Fabric Contessa is one of those shops that have my charts so be sure to check her out.

Click here for more information on the show itself and to sign up.

http://needleshowretail.com/

I'll post another picture tomorrow of the other Little
Candle Mat released this week.
Don't forget the new weekly drawing starts tomorrow
so check back to see what's offered.  I'll post this week's
winner tomorrow also.

Where did all the color go?

Oh, it's so sad when the beautiful leaves fall off of the trees. We have had a cold front come through today and all the leaves are literally flying by. This was a beautiful gold tree for about a week. Seems like Fall has set in and Winter is just around the corner for the Midwest anyway.

Just a reminder about the Weekly Drawing on Sunday- email your entries by tomorrow night for a chance to win this week. Sunday also starts a whole new week so check back for what's in next weeks Weekly Drawing.

The Retail Online Needlework Show starts on November 5. I'll post the link to it next week when it opens. Also, two new Little Candle Mats are almost here. I'll post pictures next week also.

Coffee

I'm enjoying this coffee tonight so much. I have the best creamer in it- cinnamon vanilla. Yum. Oh, and my cup. I love my cup. It's SO special. My cup came to me personally from Carol Endres, the folk art designer. I met her in 1999 at the St. Louis Quilt Market. She came into my booth and admired my cabbage bunnies that I had a pattern for. I knew who she was because I had a few of her designs already at the time.

I gave her one of my bunnies at the show. She was so sweet and she sent me this coffee cup with a hand written thank you note. I truly was so honored. I still have the thank you note to this day. The cup has been my favorite ever since.

NEW Weekly Drawing!

Want something fun to do? Starting today, we are going to have a Weekly Drawing through this Blog. Each week will offer something different such as cross stitch charts, quilt patterns, supplies and even finished products like quilts and cross stitch. Each week I'll post on the Blog about what's being offered. All entries must be made by midnight each Saturday night. Drawings will be made each Sunday. Sound easy?

This week, I'm offering a Pre-finished Check Book Cover for use with your cross stitch,
punchneedle, stitchery & wool applique designs. Designs can
be attached permanently or temporarily to change out often.
It has two pockets inside for checkbook and register. A Cross stitch chart for the design shown is included. The best part, the winner gets to choose your own color from 8 choices.

Email me before Saturday midnight at PGPeddler@aol.com. Send your name, address and email address and put in the subject line "Check Book Cover" to be entered in the drawing. I will post the winner next Sunday. Part of the rules, the email must be sent direct to us. Sorry, emails with FW: in front are not considered. Entries without all three- name, address and email address are also not considered. As a winner, if you prefer not to have your complete name posted, just let us know. Some do, some don't.
Thanks, and good luck!

Wednesday Already?

Well, I can see this week is going to fly by. I got back from the Houston Quilt Market and Festival yesterday after 2 weeks away. Amazing how much business goes on without even being here! I have an enormous amount of orders yet to ship from market. Donna has been keeping up with most of what came in but I'll be helping today to get the rest out. It's a little before 5 a.m. and I'm ready to work! Motivation!

We are almost done with the Online Needlework Show orders. We'll send the last of them tomorrow. Winners for the drawings will be shipped the promised new charts tomorrow or Thursday. Everything should be on its way by Friday for sure. If you won one of the daily drawings, and didn't send in your mailing address, well, now would be a good time! I can't tell you what the two new charts are yet but the winners will find out in a few days. It's a secret! I'll post pictures here in a few weeks.

Winners Day 6!

The winners from Monday are Nancy, Laurie and Lisa. Shop winners are Karol, Deb and one with no name included. Everyone has been emailed. Thanks for entering!

More Winners Day 4

Had more winners today from the Online Needlwork Show. I had hundreds of emails each day and actually have not read them all but I will. Saturdays winners are Terry, Sally and Karol. Shop winners are Lynda, Ruth and one with no actual name listed. I have emailed you all so watch for them. Thanks for entering. It has been a great show so far. One more day for viewing.

International Quilt Market

International Quilt Market in Houston, TX started today and there was a huge crowd when the doors opened. It looks well attended by the quilt shops. I know there is a lot of new items on display and a lot of excitement in the air. Tomorrow is a new day.

We had dinner a Houston's Restaurant tonight and saw a lot of other quilt show people eating there also. It's a favorite restaurant for everyone attending! Last night we ate at a Chinese buffet. This is so funny, there was an ice cream machine next to some desserts. Next to that was some dark brown sauce with a ladle. I thought it was chocolate sauce and honestly it looked exactly like chocolate sauce. It wasn't. Yuck. It was fish sauce. Only in a Chinese restaurant would they put fish sauce next to ice cream! We all had such a laugh! So ended my day!

Drawings Day 3

The Online Needlework Show continues. Winners for day 3 were Michele, Gwen and Terry. Shop winners were Tamara, June and Carol. All were emailed so check those emails ladies.

New Snowmen & Poinsettia Candle Mats

What a beautiful Autumn day. It's blustery and cold outside and a great day to stay in and work! The Online Needlework Show starts on Wednesday. You can view it at http://needleworkshow.com. It is a wholesale show but can be viewed by everyone. It's fun to see all the new charts and products from all of the companies. You have to contact your favorite Needlework shop to order.

I just added two new candle mats to the website. Chart #49 Little Candle Mats-Poinsettias and Chart #50 Little Candle Mats- Snowmen.They are easy to finish and instructions are included with each chart. Professional finishing is available through our website if you don't do finishing yourself. You can email us for more information.

There will be two new candle mats next month.

Friday Morning Coffee

Well, it's 1:30 in the morning ~again and I'm still up drinking coffee. Seems I always have so much to do and I never quite catch up. Is there such a thing as catching up? I don't know.

Next week is Quilt Market & Festival in Houston and I have so much to do to get ready for it. The cross stitch show in St. Charles, MO was great but I had to leave a day early due to a funeral. Sorry if we missed you there. We had a family tragedy last week but everyone seems to be doing better these days.

I will release 2 more candle mats next week. They should be on the website by the end of next week before I leave for Houston. The Online Needlework Wholesale Show also starts next week. It's a busy time, that's for sure.

The leaves around here are starting to turn colors already. We are having cold and rainy weather, typical of Fall anyway. We'll be raking leaves before you know it!

Just a Few More

Here is another new candle mat. It's #48, Little Candle Mat-Stockings. It is the latest in the candle mat series to be released this week in St. Charles. The detail on it is really so sweet. Pictures just don't do it justice. I'll have two more candle mats in a few weeks for the Online Needlwork Show. They are fun, fast and just look so darn cute. They are all finished with wool from Weeks Dye Works.

I have a great new line of Pre-finished Stitchables. Introducing Stitcher's Wallets, Check Book Covers & Eye Glass Cases.

They are handmade in the USA. They come in 8 fun colors- red, blue, tan, brown, green, black, pink & purple.

The wallets have a zippered coin pouch and a magnetic snap. The check book covers have 2 pockets inside for your checks and register.

They each come with a cross stitch chart (shown) and finishing directions. The designs can be permanently attached or temporary so you can change them out with the seasons! I am so excited about these! They will be on the website soon.

I am finally getting everything ready for the show. I'm actually getting to bed at a decent time tonight, the first time in weeks. Good night!

Another Day, Another Chart or two

Two days and counting for the St. Charles Needlework Show. I thought I'd post a couple more pre-view pictures today. This is Little Candle Mat #46, Pumpkins. I have a lot of candle mats coming in the future. They are are so easy to finish.

This one is Little Candle Mat #47- Cardinals. It's one of my favorites. I do a lot of cardinals in quilts and cross stitch. Must be a Missouri thing. We have a lot of cardinals, especially hanging around every winter. I guess they show up so well against the snow. Watch for more pictures tomorrow.

It's 2:15 am. I'm headed to bed finally.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Wow, what a busy month but I finally have all the new charts finished, printed and ready for the St. Charles Needlework Show this weekend. It's 5:20 am and I'm still up working on changes to the website. They should be up in a few days.

I did a great little pumpkin pattern, called #44 Three Pumpkins, modeled after my best selling #163 Pumpkin Patch craft pattern from 1997 shown on my website. Three Pumpkins includes 3 different sized pumpkins. It's stitched on Weeks Dye Works Linen and really is quick and easy to finish. Finishing instructions are included in the chart.

I also did a line of little candle mats. Here is #45 Little Candle Mats- Leaves. So far I have 12 candle mat charts. Four of which will be released in St. Charles this weekend. I will post more pictures here over the new few days. I will have two more candle mats ready for the Online Needlework Show in October.

I have a new line of finished items for use with cross stitch, punchneedle, stitchery & wool embroidery. I will post pictures later this week. It's an exciting time here.

I'm headed to bed! Good night.

Almost Saturday

I just made another pot of coffee as I can see it will be a late night again in the studio. I have endured only 4 hours of sleep for the last 4 nights and it looks like tonight will probably end up the same way. I'm finally seeing the light at the end of the design tunnel though! I should get most of the new cross stitch designs back from the photographer tomorrow. I'm feeling a bit anxious these days as the St. Charles Needlework Show is fast approaching. It's two weeks from today in fact. I will post a few sneak peeks on here in the next couple of days. Hopefully they will be up on the website in another week.

We have a great new seasonal series of designs and will be releasing two more designs from the series each month after for a while. I also have a great line of finished products coming very soon. All made in the USA even! They will all debut at the St. Charles Needlework Wholesale Show.

There is a huge Online Needlework Show coming October 7-12 that we will be a part of. We'll post a link when it opens. Be sure to check it out. We will all be at the Houston Quilt Show at that same time. It will be interesting to see how well the two shows will work at the same time!

Another Busy Weekend

Well market is coming and I have been a busy girl getting things ready. I have the St. Charles Needlework market in 3 weeks. I have a lot of new charts for it and I can't wait to get them on my website. I'll try to take a picture of everything this week and post it here for a first look. Quilt Market is in October, along with the Online Needlework Show.

I did find time to put some finish on some more baskets this weekend. I have a lot more baskets to go, but I thought these turned out rather nice.

Winners from Week 4

Congratulations to these winners for Week 4 of the Scavenger Hunt

For Cross Stitch:

Tara Johnson from IN was 1st this week

Mary from NC

Monique from IL

Marilyn from WI

For Quilt:

Eileen form TX was 1st this week

Beverly from KS

JoAnn from TX

Linda from AR

If you are listed here, please watch your email for the winning notification. You'll need to send me your mailing address.

Everyone who played all 4 weeks will get 3 free charts or patterns. I've decided to let you choose your own charts or patterns that you want to get free. If you played all 4 weeks, you can email me with your choices, along with your name and mailing address. We have a running list of everyone who played in each Scavenger Hunt each week. I am sending an email to everyone who entered all 4 weeks.

We had over 300 ladies participate in all. There were just too many that played all 4 weeks to list here. I want to thank everyone for playing.

Fishing and Stuff

Sunday my kids and grandkids came for dinner and hung out for the afternoon. I introduced Grace to my old Pork & Beans doll and they seem to hit it off pretty well. She didn't seem to pay attention to the boo boo on the dolls foot. I have a feeling that once again Pork & Beans will get the love and affection that she deserves for a few years.

Nathan and Grace both got tractor rides with Papa which is always a treat for Papa and for them also. It's always a struggle to get Nathan off the tractor, in fact. He seems to have a one track tractor mind. He'll be driving it before you know it. They grow so fast.

They went over to the pond in the back and fished for a while. Grace even caught a fish on her Barbie fishing pole. It's not her first catch, as she's been fishing a lot with her dad. It was pretty exciting for the rest of us though! She even held the fish in her hands which, for a 2-1/2 yr old girl, is pretty remarkable! Nathan and Grace spent a lot of time catching minnows in the bucket and dropping them on the ground. It was a pretty fun day had by all!

Internet Issues Today!

The Scavenger Hunt #4 went out late today due to no internet all day. The phone lines are still crossed and no internet yet tonight. I had to borrow internet from a friend to send the Scavenger Hunt 4 this evening. I got a lot of emails asking if they missed #4. Sorry it was so late today. Hopefully the phone company will get things fixed tomorrow. They worked on it today, only to cross the lines and make more of a mess.

This is the last week. The last drawing will be Friday. I'll post the winners here Friday morning, assuming the internet is working by then! Good Luck this week!

I just finished another new Cross Stitch design. Watch soon for a sneak peek of the new series to be released at the St Charles Needlework market in September. I'm also working on new quilts for Quilt Market in Houston In Oct. It's a busy time here.

Winners for Week 3 Scavenger Hunt

We have winners this morning! The Scavenger Hunt Winners for Week 3 are listed below. Please watch your email for the winning notification.
Congratulations to these winners-

For Cross Stitch:
Kathleen from KY was first
Bobbi from GA
Milly from CA
Brenda from VA

For Quilt:
Kay from WI was first
Kim from OH
Sheryl from CA
Lesa from IL

The winners will get an email asking for their address. We have one more week to go. The last set of questions will go out Monday morning.

Kids and Grandkids

Sarah and Grace were playing around the other day and I got a good picture. Grace is quite the little story teller these days. She always has something to tell me about. I just love it when she comes in and yells "Nana".

I came across a picture this morning of my son Kirk, eating an ice cream cone when he was about 2 years old. His hair was so blonde and curly that I just couldn't bring myself to cut it until he was almost 4. He has a son Nathan with absolutely straight blonde hair. Not a curl on his little head. How does that happen? All my kids were curly toe heads, as my uncle Harold would call them!

Today is the last day for Week 3 of the Scavenger Hunt, drawings will happen in the morning. If you haven't already sent them, get your answers emailed to me today. Have a great day!

Winners for Week 2 Scavenger Hunt

The Scavenger Hunt Winners for Week 2 are chosen. Please watch your email for the winning notification. There is a prize for the first ones to enter each week in each category also.
Congratulations to these winners-

For Cross Stitch:
Julie from CT was first
Denise from MO
Ellen from WI
Jean from MO

For Quilt:
Linda from GA was first
Janey from CA
Debby from MD
Polly from NY

Be sure to play each of the four weeks as you can win more than once! There's a different set of charts and patterns given each week. Thanks to everyone for playing. Week 3 goes out on Monday morning.

Wee Hours of the Night

It's 1:00 a.m. and I just finished another cup of coffee. I'm still going through emails from everyone who entered the Scavenger Hunts today for Week 2. We've had a wonderful response and lots of nice comments. Thanks everyone!

I just successfully finished design #10 from my new cross stitch series. I will debut most of them at the Fall Needlework Market in St. Charles in September. I will save a couple of the designs for the Fall Online Needlework Show. It's going to be a busy month as I have Houston Quilt Market coming up in October also.

Oh, I just realized that it's passed midnight and today is my birthday. Wow, another year older, hopefully another year wiser! Seems the older I get, the later I stay up. I guess this grandma better hit the sack. Good night!

We Have WINNERS for Week 1!

The Scavenger Hunt Winners for Week 1 are chosen. Please watch your email for the winning notification. I decided to add a prize for the first ones to enter each week in each category also. I also added one extra winner for each category for the first week!
Congratulations to these winners-
For Cross Stitch:
Bonnie from NY was the first
Liz from MO
Karen from PA
Marilyn from OK
Betty from Canada
For Quilt:
Linda from PA was the first
Susan from CO
Carol from MO
Sue from MO
Eileen from TX

Be sure to play each of the four weeks. You can win more than once! There's a different set of charts and patterns given each week. Thanks to everyone for the kind notes. Week 2 goes out on Monday morning.

Pork & Beans

I was reminded this morning of my old doll that I had as a child. Her name was Pork & Beans. Obviously, I loved pork and beans so much as a child that I named my favorite doll after the food. When I was 6 years old, I had the doll sitting on the space heater in our home when my older sister turned it on.

The doll's leg melted and of course I totally fell apart, crying and carrying on so. My mom was a quick thinker though. She promptly bandaged her foot and leg with gauze and tape just like the doctor would do it and I took care of her for the rest of my childhood.

I kept that old bandage on there, as nasty as it got, for 20 years until the 80's, when my daughter started playing with her. Now, I think it's time to introduce Pork & Beans to my 2 year old grand daughter Grace! I have a feeling she will really like her.

Scavenger Hunt Under Way

The Scavenger Hunt is well under way. I have gotten so many nice emails from everyone saying how much fun it is. I'm thinking it's going to be an annual thing! Thanks to everyone who is playing. Remember to get your answers to me before Friday. I'll post the first names of the winners of Week 1 here on Friday morning.

Scavenger Hunt Today

We woke up this morning at 6:30 to a beautiful House Wren singing on the patio next to the bedroom window. It was hard to go back to sleep due to the serenade! We have nests every year in the bird house in back.

The Scavenger Hunt list for Week 1 was emailed today. I saw there were quite a few pending newsletter requests so if you don't get the newsletter today, it's because you didn't click on the link to confirm joining the newsletter. I will send it out to everyone who confirms this week. Thanks for playing, I hope you have fun.

New Day, New Chart

It's a wonderful day today. The kids came over for Sunday dinner after church. Grace got to eat ice cream with papa and take a tractor ride, something she will not go home without anymore. The cows were just moved to the pasture in back so she got to see them up close.

I just got my latest cross stitch design framed and photographed. It's called Scarecrow in the Field. It will go on the website and to Hoffman Distributors next week.

The Scavenger Hunt starts tomorrow so if you haven't already signed up on the newsletter, you better hurry. There's going to be 144 cross stitch charts and quilt patterns won in the next four weeks. We'd love to have you join us.
Sign up on www.prairiegrovepeddler.com

Busy Night, Busy Week

I can't believe it's Thursday already. The week has flown. I have been designing some new things this week and when I get busy, everything else suffers. I have a new cross stitch design ready that needs to be framed and photographed. I hope to post a sneak preview here this weekend.

I have everything ready for the Scavenger Hunt that starts Monday. It's our first and I think it will be a fun time. If you haven't already joined the mailing list, it's on the website. We will have 24 winners in 4 weeks, with each person winning 6 quilt patterns or cross stitch charts.

Monday , Monday

What a beautiful morning it is here in Missouri! This whole summer has been unusually cool and wet. We've only used the A/C 2 days so far. Tomorrows forecast- you guessed it, rain. I hope to make the most of today. I'm on my fifth cup of coffee this morning so I think I'll be moving quickly for the next few hours.

I got a lot of music downloaded on the I-pod over the weekend and I really like it. There's some great old songs on there that I haven't heard in years. Now I can easily sit for hours with plugs in my ears. Who knew? The best part, I don't pay attention to any other distractions.

We had a great response over the weekend on the free chart download on the cross stitch site. Thanks everybody for looking! We are anticipating the Scavenger Hunt starting next Monday. It's going to be a fun month.

Have a great day everyone!

Saturday morning

Well, I spent the last six hours downloading music into the new I-pod. Who knew it would take so long? I got 43 great songs to start with and I'm sure I will add a lot more later. I'm excited to go walking in style now with white plugs hanging out of my ears. I'm sure I will be entertained with every step.
I was so excited to see the 700 hits on the website since we added Taffy's free chart to the cross stitch site yesterday. That's a lot of downloads! The newsletter will go out this Monday with details of the Scavenger Hunt. Have a great day!

The New I-Pod

I just got a new I-Pod and now I have to figure out how to load it with music. Seems I'm always way behind when it comes to technology. I think it will be fun this weekend to play with.

I saw two young fawns this morning during my walk. The grass next to the corn field had just been mowed and they were hanging out there until they saw me coming.

I think I'll look through my Weeks embroidery floss stash and see what I can play with today. I have this neat little basket I use for Weeks, it keeps them all together.

Complimentary Cross Stitch Chart

I just added a Complimentary Cross Stitch chart to the website. It is a needle roll designed by Taffy Soderholm, who stitches a lot of my designs for me. She is very generous to share it with everyone. Go to www.prairiegrovepeddler.com to download it.

I am sending a newsletter tomorrow with details of the Scavenger Hunt that's coming up. If you're not already signed up, go to the website and sign up on the bottom of the Home page for the Quilt Newsletter. The Cross Stitch Newsletter is on the bottom of the Cross Stitch page. There will be six winners each week in August.

More baskets

I spent the day working on more baskets, seems it's my basket week. I have about two dozen more to finish. I'll add a picture tomorrow. They look so pretty when they are finished. The weather is so nice and cool that it inspired me to get outside and work. Had a big black snake in the garage the other day so I'm staying out of there for now!

I am working on the details for the Scavenger Hunt starting next month on the website. Newsletters will go out tomorrow with details.

Basket, baskets, baskets

It's raining today. Not the best of weather. Fortunately yesterday was a great day to be outside. Yesterday I spent the day working on baskets. They turned out so pretty. I have a large collection, between my mom's and my own, I think there's about 100 in all. I put Danish oil on some of them and they just glow.

I think my favorite basket is the market basket with 2 handles in the background. It's such a neat style basket.

My mom and dad made white oak baskets for years and taught me how in 1987. I love making baskets, it's such a relaxing hobby. My dad used to have a shaving horse and actually shaved the weavers we used. The handles were also hand carved. Those were in the days when the craft fairs were every weekend. They went to War Eagle every year and demonstrated the art of basketmaking. I have so many good memories of the craft fairs.
Today I think will be a cross stitch day. I have a lot of designs on my mind just waiting to escape.