The shoe cables a repent reward near the visible.

Cross-stitching my family's Christmas stockings

(For some reason a few of my pictures have rotated once I inserted them into the blog and I can't seem to fix it. So please ignore my sideways photos!)

My mom unknowingly started a tradition over 30 years ago. She spent several months of patience and dedication and eventually hand stitched 5 Christmas stockings - one for every member of our family. Every December we hung those stockings and knew that they were special because they truly were made with love.

Now that I have a family of my own I wanted to continue the tradition and stitch a stocking for each of us. So I went online and ordered three Christmas stockings. I found them at www.walmart.com for between $15-25 a piece.

One thing I learned from my mothers mistake is to be sure that each stocking you get has the same measurements and that the "feet" face in the same direction. Ordering them all the same brand helps to avoid that error, but it doesn't hurt to save the dimensions for future purposes.

The package comes with everything you need to complete the project, including the backing to the stocking. One thing I will suggest though, purchase some extra needles just in case. I have already lost two and like having extra!

Honestly, when I decided to start this project I thought it would be easy. Boy was I wrong! I stared at all of my materials for several days without a clue how to begin. I looked online and didn't find much help there either. So I went through a bit of trial and error. I still am figuring out what I am doing, but hopefully these steps will help get you started too!

This is what you will start with. A very intimidating blank surface. Fold this in half "hot dog style" to find the center point. start a few rows down from the top and mark that center point. There will be some kind of arrow/triangle marking the center on your key as well and that will be your starting point.

Your key will have 10x10 grids throughout it. I found that "outlining" the stocking with just one strand of black makes the whole project easier. Counting out the lines within the 10x10 grids was the easiest way to avoid losing my spot.

Now for the fun part. If you understand the concept behind paint-by-numbers then you will get the hang of this quickly. The reference sheet has lots of little pictures representing what color, quantity, and style of stitch will go into that tiny little square.

Once you know where you would like to start, check the key and see what thread you need.

The number in the parenthesis is the quantity of strings you will use, and the column the symbol is in tells you what kind of stitch you will use. The first number in the grid is the code that you will match to find the color you need.

And now you start! Be sure that you stitch in the same direction the whole time. This will make everything more uniform and neat. The single cross stitch will end up looking like this / and the cross-stitch will end up looking like this X.

 One thing that has helped me is to highlight what I have done. This just helps to keep me on track and prevents me from losing my place.

I am not finished yet, but I will update this as I continue on. Cross-stitching is fun, relaxing and addictive. The work can become tedious but the end result is worth it!

Memories - Early Mornings

I rise before the sun in a room that is not my own, but I know it well. This is the room I call The Blue Room. Sometimes I have this room all to myself, but most of the time I share it with my older brother or younger cousin. Today, I am alone in the room as I sleepily stumble out of bed in search of my Grandma. I pass the dresser on my way out of the room and notice the clothes I had worn the day before have been washed and folded. I find it strange that the laundry fairy only seems to visit when I stay with Grandma, but I shrug it off and continue on with my search. I walk across the cold tile floor and head up the staircase that leads into my grandparents room. 

Once I enter the large bedroom I shake my Grandma awake. It is very important that I let her know I am hungry. I try to do this with such care so that I do not wake Grandpa. I love Grandpa dearly, but he terrifies me. Being only four years old, I like to be loud and rambunctious and Grandpa is not fond of that. My Grandma seems pleased to see me even though it is barely dawn. She leads me into the kitchen and offers me several healthy food options that I do not find appealing. I ask for hot dogs. Specifically, the hot dogs with the cheese filling. Those are my favorite and I know my grandma has them because she always stocks up on my favorite treats. Nearly twenty years later, I could always count on finding my favorite snacks and juices when I searched for food in that familiar kitchen.

As she warmed up my hot dogs I climbed into her chair at the kitchen table. I love sitting in her comfy chair, it makes me feel special. I contemplate scooting over and sitting in Grandpas chair since he is still sleeping, but I decide against it. He doesn't let me play in his chair the way Grandma let's me play in hers. Grandma is done making my hot dogs and sits down next to me with her cup of coffee and peanut butter toast. The smell of her coffee fills the room. We are both sitting quietly eating our breakfast and gazing out over the beautiful ocean. I see Catalina Island and a few sail boats out in the distance. I begin rambling about whatever I can think of and my grandma leans in as she attentively listens to every word I say. She is always a good listener and she makes me feel like what I have to say is important. It's not long before Grandpa wakes and joins us at the table.

Even at such a young age I knew that these early mornings with just me and Grandma were special, and I cherished every minute.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Are you sensing a theme here?

Something that I truly enjoy doing is bringing a friend or dinner host a delicious treat to show my gratitude. Everyone is always impressed by my "difficult" desserts. If only they knew I only make things that are both delicious and EASY!

A quick and easy dessert that everyone loves is chocolate covered strawberries. You can easily purchase chocolate covered strawberries, but they can get expensive and may not always be fresh. I would much rather make these than buy them!

What you will need:

1 package of dipping chocolate (this can be found a some grocery stores, target, and hobby lobby in the baking sections)

Strawberries

What to do:

1. Place dipping chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted. 

3. Wash and dry the strawberries. Note: be sure that the strawberries are completely dried before dipping. if they are not then the chocolate wont stick as well. 

4. Hold the strawberry by the leaves and dip into the chocolate.

5. Place the strawberry onto wax paper. Freeze for 20 minutes to allow chocolate to harden. Enjoy!

 

Chocolate Covered Ruffles

There was this little candy shop my mom and I used to frequent called The Candy Connection . Our choice candy was ALWAYS the Chocolate Chips. They were chocolate covered ruffles - the perfect mix of sweet and salty. The candy shop closed down last year and my mother and I have been forced to go without our favorite guilty pleasure.
For mothers day my mom asked if I could attempt to make Chocolate Chips. And to my own amazement - these are just like the originals! The combination sounds odd, but I have yet to meet someone who does not LOVE these.

What you will need:

2 cups of Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips

2 tablespoons of vegetable shortening

1 bag of Ruffles potato chips

What to do:

1. Put Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips and vegetable shortening in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted.

2. Crumple Ruffles potato chips in a separate bowl.

3. Poor handfuls of Ruffles into the melted chocolate. Stir until all chips are covered with chocolate.

4. Place a spoonful of the chocolate covered Ruffles on to wax paper. Do this until there is no mixture left.

5. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes to harden the chocolate.

6. Keep refrigerated and enjoy!