What have I been working on this week?

Wow, why is it that time flies when you have so much you need to get done?

It has been a busy week. Hal has been away a lot. One trip was 3 days out. It makes for some nice pay cheques before Christmas though. And it gives me some quality alone time to work on a few projects.

Somehow I managed to end up with 3 manuscripts on the go at the same time. One will be finished today and ready to sell by the end of the week. It just needs a quick edit on a couple of things. I have 2 new sketchbooks coming out. One is more single page sketches and the other is two-page sketches. These will be ready about mid-December. Just in time for Christmas. {hint hint . . . LOL}. And I am planning a book about Alma College to commemorate 5 years since its destruction. I was on the scene before the fire trucks and took hundreds of photos until late the next day when the demolition was finished. Another book planned is on scrapbook design, what to do when your layout just isn't right. I used to teach this class a lot so I thought I would update it with newer layout ideas and techniques. And people wonder when I say I'm too busy . . . LOL.

I also have several book reviews I need to finish up and get posted. I'm going to have to start getting up earlier in the morning if I'm going to accomplish everything I want to in the coming month.

I am almost 3/4 of the way of a really large counted cross stitch project that I started last year (?). It is called Edible Flowers and it has really bold colours which you know make me very happy. I have a box full of rolled up ccs projects which I am determined to start taking one at a time to a framer. They aren't making anyone happy when no one can't see them . . . LOL . . . Some may end up as gifts. Who knows?

I am making amazing progress on hand stitching a quilt my sister Nancy made. I still don't understand why I hate sewing but love quilting. There must be something wrong with my brain I guess . . . LOL. As I spend an hour or so each day stitching on this big ol' quilt I keep thinking about the mending I should be doing . . . sigh.

Work on my family tree is going very well. I do get asked a lot how far along I am and people are surprised that I think the couple of newly authenticated people on my tree is a lot while they think I should have our family traced back to the middle ages by now. If I were to just "borrow" other peoples' work off Ancestry I suppose I could be that far along. But I choose to authenticate each person to make sure I'm not making a mistake and then learn as much about them as I can before moving on. That has meant trips to the local library, ordering in microfilms from the Ontario Archives, going to the archives at Western University and a road trip to Markham so far. What I have learned so far is that I have some very interesting relatives.

I'm kind of excited that I am going to make a little time to work on my stamp collection today. A pen pal sent me an envelope full of stamps and I've won a couple of auctions on Ebay but haven't really had the time to check out my new acquisitions.

On my Dreaded To Do List this week is to work on some new letterboxes to plant in the new year. I am hoping to host another mini meet in May. I really enjoy this hobby--solving clues, hiking, seeking treasure, making our own log books, carving our own stamps, meeting up with other boxers. Hal and I were out in the Waterloo area last weekend and found a few interesting boxes and one hitchhiker.

I have a really cute paper piecing in the process of still being cut out. It is a Thanksgiving title in fall colours of course with three pumpkins to one side. There are a lot of tiny pieces of leaf and vine and of course hand cutting each individual letter. I love it. Very relaxing.

Last year one of the "chores" I offered to swap with friends was knitting. This year I had to say no. I have a huge knitting project which is going to be Christmas gifts and only if I get it done will I be able to knit hats and slippers to swap for chores I don't like such as gift wrapping. That's all I can say about that project . . . LOL . . . just in case the recipients see this message. Hmmmm . . . maybe I can swap something for someone to do my mending . . . ????

Work on my oddball sampler afghan is going well. The squares are quite challenging which, of course, keeps me very interested. The square I just finished was a Celtic Braid which required 8 different cable stitches. I wrote each stitch out on an index card to keep them straight in my head. The square I'm working on now is called Twining Tree and also has cable stitches to make the intertwining branches of the tree but not nearly as complex as the Braid.

I was at a crop last weekend and got a lot accomplished so I've set me scrapbooking aside for a few days to accomplish some of these other projects I've mentioned. The last project I have on the go is also a secret because it is for Christmas gifts. Let's just say it is crochet and sparkly.

If anyone would like lessons on any of these crafts just let me know in the New Year.  I doubt I'll have time before then . . . LOL!!

So what have you been working on?

See ya

Pam