Seven (or more!) Years in the Making...

Wow, I didn't mean to let so much time slip by since my last post!  So, without further ado, I present you with my most recent project:

Isn't it adorable?  I fell in love with this cross stitch pattern the moment I saw it--SEVEN (maybe even eight!) years ago.  I finished half of it very quickly, and then, for some odd reason, I set it aside.  Weeks, months, and even years went by.  Every now and then, I'd add a stitch here and there, but it has mainly been languishing and collecting dust.  Well, I finally picked it up again last week and forced myself to finish it.

 

I'm so glad I did!

 

This is the leaflet I picked up so many years ago at JoAnn's. Funny, when I originally started it, I kept envisioning it ending up in my kitchen. But that was before I had a sweet, little three-year-old who has claimed it for her own. She has eagerly watched me put the final stitches in this project, anxiously waiting for the time we could hang it on her wall. It will look perfect in a little girl's room, don't you think?

 

Here's a close-up:

 

And because I always need to have some sort of cross stitch project in the works, here is the next one I have already started (the sleeping baby surrounded by Kewpies):

 

 

Here is the envelope of Kewpie cross-stitch patterns which I picked up at a doll show at least ten years ago:

 

After I finish the sleeping baby print, I'd also like to make the two pictures matted in dark blue--a Kewpie reading a book to a kitty, and a Kewpie feeding a puppy.  So cute.  I think these would make really darling throw pillows for my little girl's bed.  Hopefully, it won't take me another seven years to complete these projects!

 

And in other news (because there is ALWAYS something happening besides crafting, especially in a large family!) , our sweet, little Jackson re-broke his leg, after only being out of his cast for two weeks from his first break!  So back into a new cast he went, and now, 8 weeks later, this is the picture I snapped right before his appointment yesterday to finally make him cast-free again:

 

He was pretty excited about getting it removed.  For the past two weeks, he's been in a short-leg cast, so he's had much more mobility than with the full leg casts.  But let's face it, it's still a cast.  And now, upon doctor's orders, we're supposed to keep him from running, jumping, wrestling, trampolining, bicycling, scootering, etc. for at least another 2-3 weeks.  Right.  We'll see how well that plays itself out.  I'm just keeping my fingers crossed for no more broken bones!