Tablerunner, Morris Embroidery, Cross Stitch Finish, Show to Watch

 Mid July and it is still all about the outdoor gardens both wild and tended, for me these days. To think that just a few short months ago this was all buried under a mountain of ice and snow! And I still hold a strong awe and wonder about the whole wee seed to beautiful blossom process. But I'm thankful too to keep my indoor plants alive and doing well.

 Like the beautiful Ardisia or Coral Berry below I received for Christmas. I took it outside just for a portrait in July sunshine. It has tolerated the eggshell/banana/coffee water I've experimented with feeding it and the way I'm good at not overwatering. So, much easier to care for than I'd been led to believe too. And now getting so big I will have to think of finding another slightly larger pot but not till the fall. In the wild they can grow up to fifty feet!

A Christmas in July Plant-also called Australian Holly or Christmas Berry

Our old deliveries box finally eroded apart so I had to press into service this blue one. I keep it at the bottom of our front walkway. It saves delivery people some steps. 

My journey with number 9 in the Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods series, the Woodpecker, is done. Ahh, not quite. Looking at this photo, I see a spot that needs about five more stitches. Can you see it?

He joins number 3, the Jackrabbit, that I stitched last year. 

And I'm thinking of ordering The Fox next. What an elegant fellow he is! What do you think?  Appropriate too because I am sighting many fox this summer.

But first I want to stich another bee which I 'm setting up now and will show you soon. 

I found a box of my stuff at older daughters and had fun going through it. In it was this hand stitched tablerunner I made years ago. A way to use large simple blocks.

And on the other side,  I recognized these hand embroidered motifs as William Morris designs...easy running stitch.

Meanwhile, I'm obsessing about something I watched on tv. We've been enjoying The Bear, a series on Disney and made it to season 2, episode 6 called Fishes.  I was completely unprepared for how wonderful/amazing/awful that episode would be so was idly stitching away when it began. Within minutes I had to put down the stitching. For there was Jamie Lee Curtis playing Carman's alcoholic mother, Bob Odenkirk as an uncle and Sarah Paulson playing a cousin in what becomes a wild and riveting display of Christmas family kitchen/dining complicated and unrelenting drama.  Americans do these scenes so well! Years ago, Home For the Holidays had a similar effect on me.

Jeremy Allen White is awesome in it too.

When I was thinking of starting a blog, I'd thought of writing one about books or movies or both. When I retired I promised myself I would watch a movie five days of the week...the work week. I love all genres of movies and have a lot of patience with the acting and plots though sometimes I wish I was in on the editing, LOL. That last bit goes for books I read too. 

It's good to keep up our interests, isn't it. Fun and therapeutic too. 

Happily linking this post with Songbird Designs, A Quiltery, My Quilt Infatuation, Floral Friday Foto, It's a Small Town Life and Alycia Quilts.