Alphabet Club and How Many WIPs Winner!

Before I get to the winner of my How Many WIPs giveaway, I'd like to introduce you to 

The Alphabet Club

The Alphabet Club is an A-Z SAL created by Jo of Serendipitous Stitching and Chiara of the Grey Tail.On the first Saturday of every month, we do an alphabet letter related post; we include stitching things, of course, but also any language or custom-related items or fun facts or jokes or anything that goes with the letter of the month.

This month, being the first, is all about the letter A. 
I love to stitch ALPHABETS!
Whether it's just the letters

Summer Alphabet by Lizzie Kate

or a single chart of letters with pictures

Disney Alphabet by Clouds Factory

Christmas Carol Alphabet by FanGirl Stitches

or an individual letter chart with a picture

Alphabet Girls I is for Ice Cream by Jeremiah Junction

I love stitching alphabets :-)

 

Alphabet Jokes

Q: What did A say to B?
A: C you later!

Q: What's the longest word in the English vocabulary?
A: "Smiles" because there is a mile between the first letter and the last!

English Alphabet Fun Facts

The most commonly used letter from the English alphabet is E

The dot over the letter “i” is called title.

About 100 languages use the same alphabet like in English which makes it one of the most widely used alphabets in the world. While some languages have a few more and others a few less, they all share the 23 core letters originally found in the Roman alphabet.

How many WIPs? 

 

So, the time has come! How many WIPs/starts do I have? (I say both because some have been worked on since I started them and some haven't). There were a lot of good guesses. 

The grand total as of Monday was....

147!

Yes, I'm crazy :-)

No one guessed the exact number, but one came close.
The winner of the summer issue of Cross Stitch and Needlework Magazine is

Kaye of Kitten Stitching!

She guessed 153. Pretty close! Congratulations, Kaye! When you get a chance, please email your mailing address to bookworm187@earthlink.net.
Thanks, everyone, for your guesses.
Thanks for reading and looking.
Blessings :-)

Rotation, Cinderella's Castle, and A Video

I'm trying the five-day rotation Tama of Stitching Daze is doing, and, so far, I've been pleased. I didn't get much done on my last piece, but I did work on it. From June 25 to June 29 I worked on the Disney Alphabet Sampler from Clouds Factory.

Where I was when I started:

Where I am now:

I only added a character and a half, but at least it's something.

My next five day rotation piece is my start from yesterday, a blue and green chevron coaster from the summer issue of Cross Stitch and Needlework Magazine. I just wanted to work on something small and simple.

Part of the reason I didn't work much on the Disney Alphabet is because I was working on my Cinderella's Castle for A New Stitchy Start; I added about 600 stitches in four days.

I dream of the day when I'll work with a color other than blue. It's a long time from now.

I leave you with a video of Alex having fun giving the couch raspberries. Yup, the couch. Please pay no attention to the messy house behind her. Enjoy :-)
Edit: I accidentally had this on Private settings. Thank you, Heather, for letting me know! It should be fixed now. 

A Lot Going On This Week

We've had a very busy week with a lot going on. Tim started his night shifts; it's a mandatory rotation for all the mechanics. For the next four weeks, he'll work 10 PM-8AM Friday through Monday and be off Tuesday through Thursday. We made the choice to not try to school around this temporary schedule shift, so we're taking the time off. I'm hoping to be able to get some organizing projects done.

I've been having terrible insomnia, but, on the bright side, I've done a lot of stitching. I finished (yes, you read that right: finished!) three projects.

Phineas and Ferb by CloudsFactory

Started April 26, 2015 on 14 Count Aida in Sand

Finished June 8, 2015

I made this for Hope; it's one of her favorite shows. She wants to hang it in her room, so all I have to do is frame it. 

 Pumpkin Boo Club by Lizzie Kate

Started June 5, 2015 on 18 Count Aida in Oatmeal

Finished June 13, 2015

Because I didn't have any 1/16" buttons, I stitched Smyrna crosses over four squares for the eyes. I have plans to finish this one (and the other Boo Club charts I've started) as a little hanging ornament.

My Husband by Pixel Power (free chart)

Started June 1, 2015 on 14 Count Aida in White

Finished June 13, 2015

This one is also a future hanging ornament, but I'm thinking of making it a little more three dimensional by adding some fabric and batting.

Thanks for all the positive comments about my continuing desire to start new charts. I'm really having fun with it. I'm still doing one every other day, so here are the last three I've started:

Forgive Move On Three Little Words by Lizzie Kate

Book of Ink Circles (free charts) by Ink Circles

This one was a change from all the small ones I've started; it's been calling to me ever since I saw it last month. It's good sized (20 x 24 fabric) and I think it'll take me a year just to do the frame and another two to fill in all the boxes, but it's just so pretty.

 You've Got This Three Little Words by Lizzie Kate

I mailed the blue corner to corner blanket to my sister-in-law and none too soon; baby Luke was born today! Eight pounds, twenty inches, and his mom and dad, two brothers and one sister couldn't be happier. 

My next nephew is due is September, so I've started making his blanket.

I almost have all the squares done and have started joining them. I'm using the Squircle pattern from Dly's Hooks and Yarns (my favorite square), a J hook, and Red Heart Super Saver in Frosty Green, Cafe Latte, Aran, and Shades of Brown.

I'm still working on my rose blanket, slowly but steadily, but I don't have any new pictures.

And I started a baby blanket for one of Tim's co-worker's wives. She's also due in September, but she's having a girl so I get to play with girly colors.

I'm using the Wheel Lattice Square pattern by Dayna's Crochet, an H hook, and sport weight yarn in lavender, pink, yellow, and a pink, green, and white variegated. 

I'll leave you with a picture of my baby girl enjoying her birthday present.

 Thanks for reading and looking.

Blessings :-)

Roses, Gifted Gorgeousness and a VERY LATE Turtle Trot

It's been a very busy week around here. I'm FINALLY feeling better!! YAY!! It is soooo wonderful to be able to function normally again. I'm on some new vitamin supplements that help a lot. The pain is always a constant, but it's very mild and doesn't interfere with my daily activities right now.
That being said, I've been running around like crazy playing catch up. School, housework and planning for Alex's first birthday have consumed most of my time. I've squeezed in a tiny amount of crafty time lately and have a few things to show.

Astri of Apple Blossom Dreams is hosting a Granny Rose CAL; this is a pattern I've always wanted to make. I'm dreadfully behind because I spent forever choosing my colors. I've managed to make a few roses and would like to get a lot more made this weekend.

So far, I have 8 in Panther Pink and 1 in Pretty N Pink. I'm going to make some two-toned with pink and black and some two-toned in pink and Panther Pink.

Jo of Serendipitous Stitching is the host of Gifted Gorgeousness. We work on projects that are gifts to us or gifts for someone else. I worked on two charts this month.

Prairie Schooler Santa's 12 Days of Christmas was a gift from Linda. I finished all the red on Day 1.

Phineas and Ferb from Clouds Factory is a gift for my daughter, Hope; this is one of her favorite shows.

And I'm way late with Turtle Trot! On the 10th of every month, we (are supposed to!) post progress pics of 10 pieces we've picked to stitch in 2015. This is being hosted by Claudette of BAP Attack. I only managed to work on 7 this past month.

Lid Up
Finished the toilet

Sunflower Seeds
Filled in the blue border

Next Trick

Stitched more the cat and all of the water

God So Loved the World

Stitched more of the sky

April Roly Poly

More stitches on the raincoat

September Roly Poly

Finished the one brown section

August Roly Poly

Finished more of the blue section

Thanks for reading and looking.

Blessings :-)

H is for...

HEALTH

Thank you so much for all the well wishes. I haven't been able to respond personally to comments yet or been to many blogs, but know I appreciate all of you.

I did get my blood work results back. As far as the first round of tests go, everything looks normal. So now we dig deeper. I'm not feeling any better but I'm honestly starting to get used to aching and being exhausted all the time. I just take a lot of breaks during the day and nap when I can. Tim and Hope are a big help, too.

And H is for...

HOPE!

My sweet baby girl who made me a mom is 13 today!! We spent a quiet day at home today, but we're going to Six Flags Saturday. Can you tell she's a daddy's girl?

And H is for...

HATS

 Besides granny squares, hats are some of my favorite things to crochet. They work up quickly, don't use a lot of yarn, and make great gifts or donations to charity. These are all hats I made last year. You can find the patterns here:

First picture:
Red hats: free pattern from Dly's Hooks and Yarns
Red and white hats: free pattern from Suzie's Stuff

Second picture:
Both hat patterns are free from Linda's Crafty Corner
Top row: Pom Pom Preemie Hats
Bottom row: Lisha Baby Hats

Third picture:
All made from the same pattern free at The Dainty Daisy.

Thanks for reading and looking.
Blessings :-)

Updated April 13, 2015:
H is for...

HAPPY

and H is for...

HOT CHOCOLATE

Start #56

Started February 25, 2015

   Progress as of April 13, 2015

Stitched the dark brown of the second cup.

G is for...

Going at a snail's pace! Continued problems with my health are slowing me down to almost a crawl. In a nutshell, I'm exhausted to the point of inactivity and ache all over at all times. I have been to the doctor, but all they did was take blood and run a bunch of tests. I should get some results back tomorrow. 

 I don't have any stitchy pictures that go with G to show you today (and it's only today for another 20 minutes!), so I just have some links to some GREAT free patterns you can find online.

Flower GARLAND (hey, there's a G!) I made this last year and still have it hanging; it makes me smile. You can find the free pattern here at A Hermit's Wish.

GRANNY Squares! Still my all time favorite thing to crochet. I'm not so great at attaching them, but I love making them. These are still waiting to be joined together. You can find the free pattern here at Signed With an Owl.

GRATITUDE stones! These are fun and fast to make. I use a D hook, embroidery floss and little plastic pellets as stuffing. The free pattern is found at Crochet Dynamite.

That's all I have for now. I'm still committed to the challenge, just having to make changes according to my days.

Thanks for staying with me. Big time congrats to all my fellow A to Z Challenge stitchers and bloggers who are still going strong!

Blessings :-)

Updated April 13, 2015:

GOOFY

and G is for

GARFIELD

Start #21

Started January 21, 2015

Progress as of April 13, 2015

I finished the bottom purple stripe and started a yellow stripe.

  

Photo Credit