Hello Friends,

I am sitting here catching up on posts from all the blogs I follow and decided it was time I think about updating my own blog!!  Actually I am avoiding finishing the Christmas decorating.  I love to decorate for Christmas, but this year I have had to drag things out of packed boxes from our move to Arizona in order to get started and that has been a task in itself.  So, I am taking a break.

What's new....well, I am reading the book The Needle and The Blood by Sarah Bower. 

Good Reads summary is as follows: January 1067. Charismatic bishop Odo of Bayeux commissions a wall hanging, on a scale never seen before, to celebrate the conquest of Britain by his brother, William, Duke of Normandy. What he cannot anticipate is how utterly this will change his life-even more than the invasion itself.  His life becomes entangled with the women who embroider his hanging, especially Gytha-handmaiden to the fallen Saxon queen and his sworn enemy. But against their intentions, they fall helplessly in love. Friends become enemies, enemies become lovers; nothing in life or in the hanging is what it seems. 

I am about 1/2 way through and I am enjoying it for the most part.  I have a few issues with the book as written.  I think that some of the coarse language is put there for shock value and doesn't really add much to the understanding of the times in which the plot takes place.  In addition the book is written in several tenses which muddies the reading a bit.  However, I  absolutely love reading about the stitching of the tapestry.  There are passages that make the Bayeux Tapestry come alive.  I found it thoroughly enjoyable to be taken back in time and feel myself stitching along with the women working diligently in poor light on one of the most famous pieces of needlework in history.  I felt myself pricking my finger with my needle, feeling the needle moving in and out of the fabric and watching the story come alive in silks and wools.  Each passage detailing the work on the tapestry was such fun to read.  It's worth putting up with some of the other annoying things while reading the book.  You might want to check it out.


In other news, I have joined a blog stitch-along.  Just what I needed..right?  Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  :)  The blog is Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year at www.scarletletteryear.blogspot.com .  Nicola is celebrating turning 50 all year long.  What a great idea!  During that year she is hosting a challenge to those who join her blog to begin and finish samplers from The Scarlet Letter.  I have been working on Wisdom and Innocence since 1998.  As  you can tell, working is a relative word.  There have been a few years in which no work was done on this piece.  I would really like to get it finished!!  Maybe with some encouragement from others and a challenge to boot, I can make some progress in that direction.  Check our her blog and join the fun.



Off to catch up on more blog reading and work on Christmas decorating.

May your life be filled with time to stitch,

Gloria

Trip To The Canyon and The Painted Desert

Hello Friends,

We got back from our 14 day trip about a week ago and it was a wonderful break to see beautiful scenery and take in a family reunion.  It was nice to get back home again and we are back in the swing of our daily routine.  Wish we had had a break from the heat, but while we were gone it was hotter where we were than here in Arizona.  :(  Go figure!!

I thought you might like to see what we saw.  I won't go crazy with pictures here, but just a few will show you the beauty of nature which surrounded us.  We were in awe of our creator's stunning array of colors, sights and sounds. 

Painted Desert With Double Rainbow

Canyon De Chelly

Where the Navajo Lived Canyon De Chelly

Painted Desert

Canyon De Chelly

Amazing Rock Formations & Color

Canyon De Chelly

The White House

Canyon De Chelly

We were sorry to leave such beauty behind us as we traveled on to Chicago for the family get together, but we did have fun despite the heat with my four sisters and their families.  If  you get a chance, don't miss this beautiful hidden gem.  Not a lot of people there this year and we loved it!!

Till Next Time,

Gloria

Hello Friends,

So, I am now settled into my digs in Arizona.  Still some boxes in my garage and a few other places in the house, but I need to revamp the closets in my office to have room for all my stuff.  I have finally received a quote for my office/craft room including the closets that is at least a bit more reasonable than the first quotes.

This is my dream office/craftroom, but it's a bit pricey, so I am starting with the closets and then will decide how much of the rest of office I can afford to do. 

We will be able to get started on the closets in a couple of weeks and I will post photoes of my work in progress.  :) That will empty a lot of boxes in the garage, clean out the few boxes left in our great room and clean out the guest room. I can't wait for this area of my house to be more settled.

I wrote the above in February or March and never published it.  Now an update will help me to get this the post completed.  The closets were finally finished on Thursday the 12th of July and I am in the process of filling them.  Once they are done...Then I can decide what the rest of the office will need in order for me to store and work in this area.  Here is a picture of what my office looks like now.  All of the things on the floor and in the bookshelves are supposed to either go in the new closet or in my new built in office when it is done.   

Here is what I have done so far.  :)  It's taking forever and I am finding all sorts of things I haven't see in years.  :)  I may have to have a stash sale. 

So what do you think?  Have I got a lot to do or what?  I am going crazy with my work space the way it is and I am trying to work on some things for an upcoming class.  So you can imagine how nuts this makes my life.

The next post will include highlights of our latest trip to Canyon De Chelly.

Until next time...

Gloria