Holy Night Stocking #25

The heel is taking shape which is pleasing.

 

When I got home from work yesterday, there was this beautiful flower box on the doorstep - from Clarence's Vet which was a lovely gesture.

I don't know what the big green thing is in the middle. I've never seen anything like that before...

We're off the Aireys this weekend so I'm hoping a lot more stitching will get completed (and that we don't forget the veggies in the fridge crisper again!)
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Holy Night Stocking #24

Thank you for your kind words about Clarence - he will be deeply missed, always loved and fondly remembered. My husband and I have even started to say 'remember when...' without blubbering too much.

Last night I made some more good progress on the Holy Night Stocking:

 

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Holy Night Stocking #23 and Goodbye Clarence...

I didn't get as much as I could have done on the Holy Night Stocking this long weekend as we had a terrible time on Saturday - we had to put our beautiful Clarence to sleep forever. He was struggling to walk & had a number of other issues. He had lost the quality of life he had enjoyed for so long, so it was time. Knowing it was the right thing to do for him, doesn't make it any easier though.

We will miss him very much but take comfort knowing he isn't suffering any more. He brought us so much joy.

Clarence

2001 - 2017

15.5 years of age (9.5 years with us)

After that, it was a little difficult to concentrate on anything else, but eventually I got going with the stocking and am very happy with the progress I made.

Happy Stitching,

Kerrie

Holy Night Stocking #16

Thanks for all the lovely comments over the last little while for this stocking - it is a joy to stitch! Very happy with my progress so far. I hope to have this finished in March and that will give me about 2 months to do the other stocking as well before the couple I'm doing them for head over to England to live in June!

Last night when I got home, I snuck up behind Clarence while he was snoozing and got a picture of him on his new dog bed. He doesn't look very comfortable with his front leg stuck out like that, but he must have been as he was sound asleep! I even heard a faint snore!

I hope you've all got exciting things planned for the weekend. We're going to a Diabetes Expo on Saturday and a 90th birthday on Sunday.

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Bear Ornament #2 and HAPPY BIRTHDAY CLARENCE!

Last night I almost finished off the bear ornament - not enough black supplied of course, so it will get finished tonight.

 

And today is our beautiful Golden Retriever Clarence's 15th birthday - that's equivalent to about 93 in dog years so he's doing pretty well. Happy Birthday Clarence - we love you heaps!

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Candy Cane Santa Stocking #7

 Almost finished the window pane with Santa's face in it!

And here is Clarence using his new non-slip mats to get across our decking!
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Life doesn't have to be perfect #6

I got more done than I thought I would over the weekend, which is very pleasing. It was a busy weekend, and now I need a holiday - only 44 days to go!!

The family reunion and my Mum's birthday were both great and the football was very exciting but ultimately disappointing - we lost by 3 points after taking the lead several times. Plus one of our best players went down with a bad knee injury in the last 30seconds of the game. We also moved and packed a lot of stuff in preparation for the floor replacement this week.

Clarence and Russell (both Golden Retrievers) got along well on their test sleepover so we will be able to rest easy when we are away knowing Clarence will be happy and well looked after.
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Life doesn't have to be perfect #5

All but the back-stitching on the word 'life' last night.
We've got a busy weekend ahead with packing up the house for the floor replacement, then a family reunion of sorts on Saturday afternoon, then my Mum's birthday on Saturday night, then football on Sunday afternoon, and Clarence's sleep-over with Russell - another Golden Retriever. Phew, I'm exhausted just writing it all down. That means I probably won't have a heap of time for cross-stitching, but where there's a will, there's always a way...
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Life Doesn't Have to be Perfect #2

Last night I finished off the back-stitching around 'perfect' and also finished off the 'have to be' section too. I like it when progress seems to move along quickly...

I've just finished typing up some instructions for the people who will be minding our 14.5yr old Golden Retriever, Clarence, while we are away on our big trip in 48 days time! He is having a trial sleepover with them this weekend just to make sure he and their dog get along - there'd be nothing worse than 2 dogs who don't like each other for a whole month! I don't expect any problems, but just want to be careful - they are doing us a favour by minding Clarence so I don't want him to upset them too much either.
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Clarence Update

I've had a little break from stitching the last few nights as I've had other stuff on. Last night I bought some babies socks with the little rubber bits on the bottom for Clarence - our 14yr old Golden Retriever. He has weak nerves in his back legs so he drags his back feet when he walks. Now he has developed a little sore on the top of his foot from the dragging and the vet said the only way to get it to heal is to protect it from the dragging with booties or something similar. I've searched online for dog booties and there are some very cute ones available. I found a plain set of black leather ones but to have them posted to Australia will cost over $80 - that would mean Clarence would have better shoes than me, so I'm holding off on getting those for now. We thought we'd try the socks first because if they don't work, we've only wasted $4.50. 
I tried them for the first time last night and at first he kept tearing it off but once he settled down for the evening, I managed to put it on and he left it there. At one stage he was so completely asleep, that I got the gaffa tape and secured it around his ankle to see if it would stay on through the night. This morning we woke to find it had worked so it looks like we'll just keep using the little socks for now. Although they are thin and will probably wear fairly quickly, I've got 8 socks in the pack I bought, and $80 will buy 20 packs so I think that is our solution for the time being. Here is a pic of Clarence with his new bootie/sock. I might try lining the inside of the sock with some more gaffa tape to protect the top of his foot when he walks.

We're off to Aireys Inlet tonight for a long weekend away (Tuesday is Australia Day and we both have Monday off as well). Hopefully this time the ants won't be a problem and we can have a relaxing few days away.
Hope you all have a great weekend...
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Santa's Journey #26

I've started to fill in the greenery of the Christmas tree. There's no big blocks of colour so it's a bit fiddly but will look good when done.

Tuesday is my last day of holidays which is a bit depressing. And Wednesday is supposed to be 41C so I've asked my boss if I can take Clarence (our 14yr old Golden Retriever) to work [there's a shaded secure area that would be perfect for him]. Hopefully I'm given the OK and I can put ice blocks in his water throughout the day and wet him down with the watering can. At home, his only relief from the heat is the release valve on the hot water system. And if I put an ice block in his water, it would only keep it cool for a short amount of time. He sleeps most of the day anyway so I don't think it will be a problem - hopefully!

I've just about done all the jobs I had on my list to be done over the holidays. Today I cleaned my shower with a product I bought when we rebuilt our house. I've finally finished it off, and although it was expensive (over $100), it's lasted and done the job for 4.5 years and I'd recommend it, which I don't often do. It's called 'EnduroShield' and is well worth the money. I hope the hardware store still sells it. It has allowed me to clean my shower only 4 times in 4 years! I know that sounds gross, but after each shower we squiggy it to take off water drops and streaks, but it doesn't need a full clean with chemicals etc. Once a year you use the supplied cleaner and redo the shield stuff and it keeps it clean for a year! It's great. At $25 per year to have a clean shower that still looks new, it has been great value.
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Wander #7

Didn't get much stitching time last night as we had dinner at my parent's place.

It's been warming up here in Melbourne the last few days so poor Clarence is pretty worn out. I did manage to get this cute smile from him last night inbetween naps...

Don't forget to check out my Give Away here.
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Stitching ABC #48

Dog-sitting success! My sister's family ably succeeded in looking after Clarence for the weekend. They said they had fun, and Clarence was tired at the end of it so I think he enjoyed himself too! Best thing about it is that we don't have to worry about him now when we're away as we know they will look after him just like we do - so that is a big relief!

It's funny - the kids were so excited to have him, but terrified of him when he went near them! Hopefully when he goes back in a few weeks time, they will get used to him and overcome their fears. They had to be told that saying 'sit' and running away does not encourage Clarence to actually sit and wait - running means playtime! I'm sure they'll work it out when they look after him for a bit longer next time.

Over the weekend, I got a fair amount done on the Stitching ABC - it just seemed to come together quite quickly so now I only have a couple more blocks to do. 

E for Embroidery hoop and F for French knot are done, and A for Applique is almost done too! That just leaves B and C to go! Woo hoo!

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Stitching ABC #47

The K block is now finished - yay! Next is E for Embroidery hoop.

Tonight will be filled with preparing for Clarence to have a sleepover at my sister's place. They are having a trial run at looking after him as they will probably take him when we go on our big 4 week trip in a few weeks time. They havn't had a dog before so it will be a bit of a learning curve for the family. The kids are excited though so that is great. Jacob (8yrs old) has already asked his teacher at school if he can bring in Clarence for show and tell! We told him that might just be a bit too much excitement for Clarence so maybe a photo will have to do! It is nice they are excited. Hopefully the trial weekend will go smoothly and they won't be put off having him for the 4 week block...

I think he is contemplating what mischief he can get up to over the weekend...!
Happy Stitching, 
Kerrie

Stitching ABC #26

I've just got a little bit of back-stitching to do on the W block. There's quite a bit, and I was a bit too sleepy to concentrate for too long so I decided to put it away for the night. Better safe than sorry!

Something else that got me excited last night was my dog - Clarence. I've mad e a short video clip for promotional purposes in the library where I work, and I thought, why couldn't Clarence be a part of it? So, when he was suitably sleepy enough not to jump up as soon as I moved, I got a book that could stand up by itself, and my glasses and took as many photos as I could before he moved! Here is one of them...

I'm super excited about this - I'm going to change the book cover so it looks like he's reading something out of my theological library and then use the images to promote the library. Could be lots of fun...

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Stitching ABC #11 & Clarence Grooming Update

Yesterday, I forgot to post a pic of Clarence after his appointment at the groomers. He looks and smells lovely and is so soft! He comes up so white after being groomed. It's been 5 days and he still smells nice and feels soft - it's a miracle! Look how neat his front paw is...

I also forgot to take my camera home so I don't have a great picture of last night's stitching, only one from my phone.

 

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Stitching ABC #9

The cat stitching is all done except for 2 stitches which I'm assuming will be its nose. I'll get those and the back-stitching done tonight & over the weekend - hopefully!

Clarence (our almost-14yr old Golden Retriever) has an appointment at the beauty parlor (groomers) today for his biannual trim. I can't wait to pick him up looking and smelling beautiful! We need to get the hair on his back legs trimmed more than usual as his arthritis makes it difficult for him to squat to do his 'business' and that just makes a mess everywhere. Hopefully, the groomer can get him to stand for long enough to trim around that area so it doesn't get in the way. I'll post some photos on Monday. Hopefully he can stay dry and out of the rain to make it last as long as possible (although, given Melbourne's weather lately, I might by hoping for too much!)

Have a great weekend everyone...
Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Robot #9

I had Friday off so Clarence (our Golden Retriever) and I went to the beach house at Aireys Inlet. My husband stayed home to attend the F1 Grand Prix. Clarence and I had a lovely weekend. I finished off all the half-done letters on the Robot ABC finally!

I included a close up of the space ship - the detail in this design is incredible. Very intricate but worth it - the effect once it is done will be amazing!
 

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

Enchanted Ornament #37

Thank everyone for the best wishes for Clarence. The vet couldn't find anything that shouldn't be there so we'll repeat the blood test next month - hopefully it is just that Clarence's blood levels are on the low end of normal and that's just his range. If they're stable, we're good but if they've dropped next month, we're not so good... but we'll deal with that next month if we have to.

The sedative knocked him around a bit and he was way out of it all last night. Thankfully he was back to normal this morning so all is good!

Despite all the doggy-drama last night, I did manage to get some stitching done. I've filled in a little more of the last ornament...

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie

 

Elephant ABC #13

Well, we thought Clarence had forgotten how to escape, but no such luck - my husband just caught him wedged halfway in and halfway out of the side gate that he used last time to escape. He is so naughty. We won't be able to leave again without putting him inside, just in case. It rained a bit this morning and he was freaked by that and we are expecting thunder later, but there hasn't been any yet... but he is still freaked. Poor baby. He just doesn't understand that it won't hurt him. We'll be putting him inside shortly and will head off to the hardware store for some stuff to attach the gate more securely.

Besides that excitement, the ice-cream I had yesterday from the pop-up shop was caramelised fig and it was delicious. It's a bit cool for ice-cream today, but maybe tomorrow... My husband got 3 cookbooks for Christmas (he does all our cooking which is great!) and he started working his way through them last night. He made prawn gow gee (dumplings) with veggies and boy, were they yummy. Tonight, we've got chicken satay with salad.

I also read a whole book yesterday and am half way through another. Yesterday I read "Burn" by James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge; today I'm reading "Hunter Killer" by Chris Ryan. I've got a couple of others as well for my holiday reading.

Now to the stitching. Yesterday I made good progress. I finished off the G, and did the F and A.

Hope you all have a great day...

Happy Stitching,
Kerrie