I have unpacked and things in their place, except for boxes of needlework and supplies. Itching to get to sewing and catching up on the TAST weeks that I am behind. Have been helping my friend get settled after her hospital stay, still weak and getting therapy on her hands and legs due to the Guillame Barre. We sit and visit and chat and catching up and at times we just and watch tv. I have been knitting while visiting and have finished several more scarves for her since it will get real cold again. We have been in the 50's which is a heat wave for them, but it will get cold again. We are settling into somewhat of a routine, but there will be lots of Dr. & Lab visits. Have found the grocery store and Walmart and Burger King so I am all set.

I arrived in Illinois on Sunday afternoon. Two and a half days driving 1954 miles but we arrived safe and it was so good to see my friend Nina. Then that night I got food poisoning and have been sick, sick. Today is 24 hours later and I am finally able to keep a little water down. I am now 3 weeks behind in TAST and plan to get started stitching. I received my handmade book and as soon as I take pictures I will post them, I love it it is going to be wonderful and am so glad I found it. My son-in-law unloaded my car and then he flew out yesterday for home. Can't thank him enough for dropping everything to help get me here. It looks like I may be here for 9 months but we'll see how her chemo treatments go.

I leave on Friday am and am packing all of my sewing and knitting projects so that I have alot to do, along with taking my friend for physical therapy and chemo. Very anxious to see her and see for myself how she is doing. she is to be getting out of the hospital in the next few days so she should be home when I get to the farm. My Yorkies are following my footsteps because they see me packing and they know I am going somewhere and they are worried they aren't going with me. I have not received my handmade book yet so I can start putting my sewing on it, I will be playing catch up to the TAST stitches of the last 2 weeks but will post as soon as I have pictures.

So much has happened this year and here we are only 16 days into the new year, I became ill 2 days before Xmas with Bronchitis and am still not completely well. Then my best friend Nina who I met when our boys were 7 years old and playing little leage and are now 49 years old has been hospitalized in Indiana and was discovered to have Guillame Barre and during all the testing to discover the guillame barre she was also found to have Mantle Cell Lymphoma a rare cancer and in stage 4. I spoke to her Saturday and she knows I have not been able to fly there because of my ears and then I could only go for a couple of weeks at the most because of my 3 yorkies. So she suggested that I drive to Illinois and bring my yorkies that way I could stay longer, so talking to all my children they all thought that was a good idea, so my son-in-law is going to go with me so I don't go alone because it's over 2000 miles from California to So. Illinois where she's at. I will be leaving soon to arrive in Illinois about the same time that she is released from St. Louis University Medical Center so I can be there when she gets home. I will be gone 2-4 months and maybe more. She starts chemo tomorrow and Wednesday and then will have chemo once a month for 2 days so I will be driving her to Chemo and to physical therapy for her Guillame Barre. It's amazing how priorites change in our lives and right now she is my biggest concern and there is nothing either one of us would not do for the other, we share the same birthday May 25 we are the first born child and the list goes on and on. We say the same thing about a certain subject even though she is more than 1/2 way across the United States from me. I will be continuing with TAST and doing my stitching from my friend's home, maybe I can get her interested in it.

I have been searching for a way to display my TAST stitches and have looked at many ways to do so. I wanted to make a book but it seemed I was just spinning my wheels and not coming up with a solution. I finally found the most beautiful handmade book on Etsy that I purchased and am now waiting to receive, so do not want to do any more stitching until I have the book in my hands and can actually see the pages to know how big or small my stitching has to be.

I am so much better, I even went outside to get some sun and spoke to some neighbors. In April 2011 I moved from a large home to a retirement mobile home park and I am so glad that I did. I love my neighbors they are so friendly and warm. My home is 1700 sq ft with two bedrooms and two baths large master bedroom and my bath is huge with a sunken tub and lots of storage room. There are two clubhouses with a pool at each one, billiards room, exercise room and the clubhouses hold alot of people. There are many activities that I have become involved with and I just love the no stress living here. Only bad part is I have no land to put in a flower garden, everything is in pots, but that's okay because there is no weeding or grass cutting. I took down my Xmas decorations outside, but my tree is still up I have a hard time taking down my Xmas tree. Maybe in a few days I will take it down. Our weather has come down to about 74 deg. and a little cooler at night, but the days are beautiful blue skies and sunny. Sorting through my needlework to see what to start next, still have not decided how I am going to display my TAST stitches, though I want to make like a journal have not decided what size I will make it yet. I am still so excited about doing the TAST with so many people it was exciting to see all the different ways the stitches were displayed from real simple like mine to real elaborate.

I got dressed today first time in one week. Feeling better and thinking of starting some needlework, now have to select the new project.

Sick

Today I feel better, came home from Yosemite after Christmas sick. Went to the Dr. and I have Bronchitis real bad, and an eye infection. I am a mess and have been on antibiotics for 7 days now but still dragging and needing lots of rest. I did do my first week TAST and posted the picture, and then back to bed. We are having a heat wave and it's about 85 deg here in Southern California, I want it cold and gloomy, it's winter.

Hi everyone, so excited to post my first stitch on TAST. Week one is the Fly Stitch.

Happy New Year to all Stitchers

Happy New year to everyone, may 2012 bring us nothing but great sewing kits, and new ideas to design and make. And may all our thread wishes come true and all the other necessities we need to create our lovely things.