Several weeks of stitching progress

It's time to get back to normal and I've got to get caught up on my stitching posts. I left off Snow White here:

Considering the time I spent at hospice, I didn't get too far with her before it was time to switch for the week, so I left off here in a rather awkward position:

I decided to go back to Night Wish for a while. I left off here in February:

And stopped here on Friday night:

I did most of the work on her in hospice, but once everything was all said and done, I needed several non-stitching days before I picked her back up again only to find my heart wasn't in it.

I had an itching to go back to Maleficent, which I haven't touched since March:

And I stopped on her tonight here:

I'm going to continue on her for the rest of the week. I should be switching to Happy Haunts, but I'm just not feeling it. I did hit up the HAED sale and I got a couple more Once Upon A Time stitches from Tilton Crafts, including The Huntsman:

And the Mad Hatter:

I just hate that the artist never drew a Charming and that Tilton didn't chart the Regina and Snow picture, only the Regina cut out. I want Charming so bad I can almost taste it, but what can I do? If anyone knows how to get a hold of Daniel Kordek, I'd love for him to do a Charming to match the other guys (and for Tilton to chart it)!

As for the HAED newbies, I managed to clear off a chunk of my Wishlist:
Valentine Dragon by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Mending A Broken Heart by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Penitent Magdalene by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Rapunzel by Annya Kai (thanks Heather...this decision was influenced by you!):

And Rio by Aimee Stewart

I just hate that the original picture of this with Duran Duran in it was never charted:

And come to think of it, I didn't show the last batch of HAED's I bought during the last sale. I managed to get all my Aimee Stewart bookshelves in Supersized and Max Color versions as well as some others...

Alice in Monet's Waterlilies by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Beauty and the Beast by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Cinderella at Midnight by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Snow White and her Animal Friends by Jasmine Becket-Griffith:

Castle Fest Wendalin Aotenshi by Babette Vandenberg:

and Lady Avalon by John Shannon:

And I hope that gets me caught up!

She's gone

Sorry guys, been a rough few days but it's finally over with now. She passed Saturday night really late and she's "gone on to a better place" (at least according to my mother). I can't thank you guys enough for all your kind words and I promise, once things are settled, I'll get back to each and every one of you.

Life sucks but hey, I'm still alive (I think)

Some of you may have noticed that I didn't post my weekly stitching progress this week. That is because I have pretty much spent the entire week at the Hospice House watching my Grandmother pass away. They can't verify if she did actually have a stroke last Tuesday, but that is more than likely what has happened. As of this moment, she is still holding on, but honestly, I sure hope not for much longer. I know hospice is supposed to be more "humane", but watching her basically starve to death since she isn't conscious enough to eat or drink doesn't seem very humane to me.

Ironically enough, Amber and I have had to be the ones taking care of basically everything...yeah, let's put the two most emotionally damaged and mentally unstable (lots more me than her on that front) people in charge of everything! My Aunt can't deal because she has taken care of Grandmother her entire life (and she's the baby). My mother can't deal because...well, I'm not sure why she can't deal other than she's just a massive pain in the butt and everything always has to be about her. My uncle can't deal because I doubt he's ever dealt with anything on this side of the family before and doesn't have a clue how to.

I'm exhausted, pissed off, upset, and...well I'm too tired to think of any more descriptives. But I have been stitching at the hospice house since I can't sleep, although my progress hasn't been great. It's hard to concentrate when about every third or fourth breath she just stops for longer and longer amounts of time.

I do get tonight off because Bam had his dental surgery today and he needs me more than Grandmother does right now. What a time to be weening off anti-depressants...my shrink is going to get an earful next visit, that's for sure.

Top 5 Tuesdays - Stitchy Sites

I am so far behind on Top 5 Tuesdays that I'm just going to start anew instead of trying to back track. This is a really good topic this week as it can go in any direction and I'm curious to see what everyone else came up with! Don't forget to check out Kate's blog for the list (and the links to Emma, Tiff, Laura and anyone else who wants to join in).

1. Heaven and Earth Designs
I have a ton of HAED stash (more than a lifetime's worth) and they chart my favorite artist of the moment, Jasmine Becket-Griffith. Granted, I have had major issue with their designing change to all dithered patterns (especially with the JBGs...I feel it makes them look "spotty"), but I still can't quit them.

2. Etsy
Not a day goes by that I don't do a search for "Disney cross stitch patterns". I have found some great designers on Etsy (as well as some bad ones...sometimes you just don't know what you've got until it's too late). Part of me knows there are probably some copyright issues with some of the patterns, but I tend to have blinders on when it comes to all things Disney. It's also a great place to get needle minders and other cross stitch supplies.

3. 123 Stitch
I HATE HATE HATE Hobby Lobby, but when I'm in a hurry for supplies, it's all we have here. But when I'm not in a hurry and I want something specific like fabric, there is no better site than 123 Stitch! I haven't bought many patterns from there, but I think I've probably bought everything else cross stitch.

4. The Heaven and Earth Designs Forum
I'm not a big fan of forums...too many years on Disney forums will sour anyone against them, but I like the HAED forums because I like to see how and what everyone else is stitching. I'm not good at commenting, even on my own posts, but I still visit it a lot and, since I'm not on Facebook, it's the only way I have to see what is happening in the HAED world. Sorry I couldn't link it...it's a private forum that is invitation only (but it's not hard to get invited, you just have to ask).

5. All my Bloggy cross stitch friends!
You guys not only keep me motivated, but I LOVE seeing what everyone else is working on and the different styles and techniques that people use. I have learned SOOO much since blogging because of all of you and I can't imagine that will ever change. Again, I'm a horrible commenter sometimes, but I am always watching and lurking. I have also formed some really fantastic friendships through blogging, more than I could name, but hopefully you guys know who you are and, if I haven't said it, I owe you guys a world of thanks for all your support both cross stitch-wise and personal-wise. I'm definitely sure I couldn't stitch as much or as well as I do now without y'all. I haven't regretted a single moment of starting this blog and dropping out of Facebook because this is the world that I belong in with all of you! And who knows, once I get my house built, maybe the next place for me might just be FlossTube (although I'm definitely not ready for that yet!).

Oh, and just as an aside...wish hard enough and it will come true...I got my Captain Hook pattern from Tilton Crafts this morning:

If only there was a Charming to go with it, my life would be complete, but alas, Daniel Kordek hasn't done a Charming (yet). They also have Graham, August and Jefferson, but I'm not sure I want those, especially without Charming.

Weekly stitching, new stash and a bit of a ramble

I spent the week working on Sleepy Hollow Mural. I did manage a bit last Sunday and left off here:

And I stopped this Saturday night here:

I got quite a bit done including the second page and a big chunk of the third page. I'm quite proud of that, especially considering my week (but more on that later).

I decided it was time to go back to Snow White. I left off here back in February:

I couldn't help myself and started late Saturday night, but the majority of the work got done today and I left off here:

She'll be my focus for this week and next weekend, but this is going to be the work week I've been dreading for a month now, so I doubt I'll get much further...at least not until the weekend.

As far as this past week, I ended up having to go to an out of town clinic for work that just happens to be in an old haunted hospital on Tuesday. Aspers tend to have heightened senses and it's probably one of my strongest Asper traits. Places like that tend to raise my hackles and turn my insides to mud. I have enough trouble dealing with the travel associated with my job (which, thankfully is rare), but that was one of the worst work days of my career.

To add insult to injury, on Thursday when I complained to my shrink about the weight I've been gaining due to the meds, she decided to pull me off the anti-depressant without replacing it with another (dropping off one while adding another tends to balance things out, but weening off one by itself it a very physically sickening process). She kept me on the Ritalin, but I'm not ready to be AD free just yet and I'm panicked. So, on top of all the extra work hours this upcoming week and dental surgery for both Bam and I the following week, I'm going to have to do it all while DT'ing from the meds and going back to dealing with life in a way that I haven't had to do in a while. Ugh. At least Bugs had a good week!

I did take advantage of the HAED sale and added a few more JBG's to my stash (like I needed more), but I also splurged on my very first GeckoRouge kit. It was hard to decide...I was debating on the one I chose versus a design of Captain Hook/Killian Jones from Once Upon A Time. I really want to do another Once project, but it's been really hard to find one I absolutely love. I liked the Hook GeckoRouge kit, but I didn't love it.

There was another deciding factor...on a whim I emailed Tilton Crafts about Daniel Kordek's Once designs to see if they ever planned on charting them. I have his Hocus Pocus and Merida patterns already and I LOVE his Once designs (except for the fact that he doesn't have one with Charming). They told me that they already have at least one being charted up right now! Excitement!

So I went with The Dollmaker instead because I love this pattern and it felt more like me:

Seriously? Baby doll Freddy and Jason? I LOVE them! I bought the 25ct magic guide with 1x1 threads, but I think I'll probably use my 28ct Monaco instead. I ordered a matching needle minder from another Etsy seller too, so it made me even more happy with my choice.

Speaking of Once Upon A Time...I tried to binge watch it this week to break my Heartland obsession, but I ended up watching the show more than stitching so I ended up going back to Heartland. I'm obsessed with Heartland too, but not to the degree that I am with Once right now.

The musical episode of Once tonight was a mixed bag. I kept thinking how cheesy it was the entire time, but I was still singing along (yes, I bought the soundtrack the second it came out) and bawling like a baby at all the right moments. My favorite song?

Seriously, I hope the show doesn't get cancelled...it will break my heart! But Once and stitching does not go well together! Granted, I could use a huge dose of fantasy right now, but I think stitching might be better therapy...that is until the "shakes" start.

Woo Hoo!

After an insane week, there has been a glimmer of excitement today...guess who is 100% heartworm free?

Give it up for the Bug!!

I know I'm behind on Top 5 Tuesdays and I can't guarantee I will get caught up this week either. Sorry Kate!