Whoa!

 I knew it had been a while since I posted but I didn't realize I'd completely missed September.  I have great intentions - my inbox has several emails with photos to insert here but I somehow don't find the time to sit down and actually write.  That's not true, I'm making time for lots of other things but not adding to my blog or reading blogs or doing much of anything that requires me to be on the computer.  It's all going back to what I've mentioned before - spending all day on the computer for work leaves me with little desire to spend any fun time on it.  Yes, I did all of my work on my computer when I was in the office, but I had breaks from staring at a screen all day and no I'm not pushing to go back into the office anytime soon.  I have been productive in my non-computer time though.  I should probably warn you, this post is going to be long and very picture heavy:

Before the making update, a youngins update:

Grady is

eight months old today!  He is thhhhiiiissss close to crawling and is sitting up like a champ.  And oh my those eyes...

Cassie just turned three months

and is the perfect little princess.

And Jack, well Jack is looking very grown up 

It's so hard to believe that he's almost two.

So, making - lots of making happened in September...

I did a bag sewing/finishing day and fully finished:

Cassie's birth record pillow.  This picture shows the fairy colors better, but this one:

 

shows the fabric color a little better.  The two hearts have Cassie's name and birthdate on them.  I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.

Once I finished this pillow, I FFOd a piece that I finished years ago YIKES!!! my list says I finished the stitching in 2011!! 

Socks and Underwear by Lizzie*Kate
No information on fabric or fibers but I'm pretty sure it was done in DMC and the beard is Wisper

I'm looking for the bag of snowflakes so I can put another one to balance it out a bit.

When the pillows were finished, I started on the Christmas stockings:

                                            

                                                

I also did up a bunch of gift and knitting bags but forgot to take pictures.  The sewing machine has been put away to rest and recover for a little while.  After I finished the finishing I tried to settle into a cross stitch project, but mostly just flitted hither, tither and yon.  First I pulled out Goldie.  It went from here:

to here:

Goldie - Christmas Stocking charted by Heaven and Earth Designs
Stitched on 28-count Monaco with DMC 1 over 1

It looks like the last time she made an appearance was in July of 2018.  I would really like to get this finished for Christmas 2021 although it would be really nice to finish it for this year.

Next came Poinsettia Fairy.  The artwork is by Rueben McHugh and it's charted by Charting Creations.  I started this in February of this year and got this much done:

I added a bit more:

This one is also done on 28-count white Monaco (I bought a bolt of it several years ago) in DMC 1 over 1.

I then landed on Needle Nick by Lizzie*Kate.  He went from here:

to here:

and then here: 

After I hit that big block of red coat, my stitching mojo wandered off, so I picked up my yarn and hook and needles.

I finished the second sock (but haven't blocked it yet):

and because I enjoyed it so much, I cast on another one:

As I was working on this, I realized that while I thought I had plenty of time, Christmas would be here before I knew it so decided I should get busy on gifts.

This is the Kaleidoscope Shawl - it's a free pattern from Red Heart and uses Red Heart Unforgettable yarn - this is the Mermaid (I think) colorway.  I had to use one of the cat's chairs to get a decent picture so please excuse all the fur (I used the lint roller on it before I put it away).  This one is for my niece.  I also finished one for my mom's birthday (which is Monday - HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!) but neglected to take a picture of it in my rush to get it in the mail.  It was done in shades of white and grey (the colorway is Pearly) Here's what is left from three skeins of yarn: 

I think this is a prime example of "yarn chicken" and yes, I was sweating this one.

I started and finished a hat for Cassie all the youngins are getting one this Christmas

This is the Sockhead Hat in Splash of Color Yarns' Licorice colorway.  The colors are lighter than they are showing up in this picture.  I cast on one for Jack in Let's Roar from the same dyer (it's Detroit Lions blue and "silver") - Grady will get the same color and I have a turquoise-ish/grey (Smoke on the Water) for Vance and Calder.  Fortunately, once I get past the ribbing, it's just round after round of stockinette so perfect for sitting back and relaxing.

And I finished and cast on another throw, but again, neglected to take a picture.

And then finally:

And yes, Virginia is heading towards some form of winter  being that 2020 has been such a year I'm a little scared to see what winter has in store for us.  We had a front go through a bit back and the temperatures went from the upper-80s/lower-90s to 60s and 70s (that's F not C).  The leaves have started changing and there has been a shift in the birds at the feeders from  Finches (Gold, House and Purple), Sparrows and hummingbirds with a surprise Magnolia Warbler a few weeks ago to Chickadees, Titmice and Blue Jays with a surprise Red-Headed Woodpecker. 

Off to settle into some sort of making for the remainder of the weekend.  I hope you and yours are staying safe and well.