Next Station, Finishville

We drove this weekend to go see the twins so that means time to stitch in the car! I will give you a stitchy update in just a bit. First I want to tell you about a cemetery we drive past each trip. The area in PA where we go is pretty hilly. Imagine you are climbing and descending, twisting and turning for about 30 minutes once exiting the interstate. You're driving up a hill and just as you reach the top, there is a small cemetery on your right. There is a huge, iron gate opening the way to the center path and just inside the gates, several hundred grave markers. Passing this small cemetery each and every trip, I always wondered what the gravestones looked like up close. I persuaded my husband to stop the car so I could take a look around. Some of the stones were a bit older, but I was hoping for at least a hundred years or more. No such luck. Regardless, there were a lot of veterans buried here and those stones had an additional metal marker beside them. This is a view from near the front entrance.

I walked around for about 15 minutes, reading the inscriptions, wondering about the lives of those buried beneath the ground, playing out my own story in my head.

One of the things the twins like to do is go to the zoo whenever we're in town. My sister-in-law and her kids came along with us and we enjoyed a breezy, but warm day in the sunshine. Here's Daddy and his little girl playing music for some of the animals. The instrument in the picture is a huge xylophone.


All aboard! The Angel Train is heading out. Next stop, Finishville! I am getting excited because this past weekend I finished stitching all of the box border of Angel Train. There are just some motifs left inside the border to finish in the blank area at the top of the design. Don't get me wrong. There is a lot more stitching to do, but I can see the finish line! I have been working on this piece for well over a year. It is stitched on 40 count R&R 18th Century Brown with one strand of DMC. I really love how this is turning out and can't wait to see it all finished! In case you're interested, the designer is Prairie Moon. They have also designed other "trains", "Spring Trainin'", "Ghoul Train" and "Freedom Train" if you like the look but are not into Angels or Snowmen. I also spied another design, similar but not a "train" called "Holiday Farm" that looks very interesting!


A newsworthy note...at the end of the month a trunk show from The Primitive Needle will arrive at the shop. If you're local, be sure to stop by to take a look at all the awesome models!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope your needle is not only inspired but smokin', too!

Cathy