Tuesday, August 18, 2009

This and that and lots of photos

A busy week and a busier weekend means lots of photos and lots of news.

The biggest news, well, to me it's big, is that I finally got my hair cut. SHORT! I have worn my hair in a bob of various lengths, from chin to shoulder, for the last eighteen years. And always longish before that. For the past few weeks I have been thinking about getting my hair cut short. I am oh so tired of the morning ritual of blow dry and curling iron. For what? My hair is so straight and fine with little to no body that the minute I would step out the door it would go flat and blah! I am just so tired of it. So Friday I called the hairdresser and made the appointment. All she said was "It's about time!"

Wash and go is FABULOUS! I am so loving this new do. I have never had the courage to go quite this short but, oh man, is it freeing. I've been doing a "no more curling iron" dance all weekend. Here is another view of my shorn locks. Now to decide is I want to color it again or maybe just let it go natural. The hairdresser was trying to talk me into a dark auburn. Now that would be a change. Too drastic I think.
Last week was a fabulous week for stitchy mail.


First up was a belated Birthday gift from Vicky. She sent me some DMC, a really pretty card and, from my wishlist, Cherry Tree Inn from my favorite designer, Little House Needleworks.







Then I received the sweetest RAK (random act of kindness) from Emily. She sent me floss, including some specialty floss, all in colors of my Rory, some Praire Schooler patterns, some adorable patterns from her page a day calender and best of all an older Leisure Arts pattern book with an Irish Setter pattern! And, wonder of wonders, believe it or not, it is one I DON'T have.
Thank you so very much Emily!





The third fabulous thing that mailman brought was my exchange from the Little House Exchange blog group. Sara from Italy was my partner. And she sent this beautiful little scissor pocket to me all the way from Italy by way of Illinois. She is currently touring the US on vacation and mailed my package to me while she was here. Now that's what I call one way to save on postage.














Front and back. Isn't it pretty?

To continue with the stitching portion I will now show my current WIPs. They are coming along and, who knows, I may even have a finish this month.










Now for the Rory portion of my blog post. He continues to grow and I swear he is an inch bigger every morning! This past week though he has been misbehaving and driving me crazy. He has decided that he wants and has to have the cat's food. Now Rosie has a spot for her food bowls in the bow window in the kitchen. And this window is behind the kitchen table. Well, Rory has figured out that if he gets on the chair than the table top is next and it's a step or two to her bowls. I have yelled, hidden around the doorway and made lots of noise, scolded, tried distraction and nothing is working! He even tries it when I am standing there watching! And then on Sunday when I was vacuuming and before I could turn around he jumped up and cleaned her dry food and treat bowls. So I have been keeping the baby gate up when we are in the house. So far that is the only thing stopping him. Now the part where he managed to clean her bowls? Well, we payed the consequences all night Sunday. And we won't go into the crappy details here. Let's just say I didn't get a lot of sleep and do NOT want a repeat of that. Rory was fully recovered by late yesterday afternoon. I just hope I can keep him away from the cat food for a long, long while.
So until next time...........................
Love and stitches
Kathy
and licks from Rory too

42 comments:

Meari said...

Your new "do" looks great on you Kathy! Nice stitchy mail you received :) Bad dog, Rory... bad dog. Oh, the puppy days!

Cynimin said...

Kathy, We must be kindred spirits somehow...it's also my birthday and really thinking of cutting off all my hair,I'm so tired of the routine, I have a new puppy also that gets into everything but I adore, and I absolutly love Little House Needleworks. Great work on your stitching too!

Sew Sew Special said...

I think your hair looks darling!

Congrats on all your new goodies too, that scissors holder is beautiful!! ~karen

Jennifer Ann Fox said...

I love your new haircut! Looks great!!! Dark auburn would be a contrast but would be pretty as well. I like it both ways. When you go that much contrast, I will say that you have to frequently get to the hairdresser for root touchups. Otherwise I love auburn. Great for Fall too.
Your stitching is so uplifting. Rory is a cute dog that's for sure and smart, smart. Our Labs get into the cat's food all the time. We have tried putting the bowl up higher and they seem to still get to it. Poor Rory :(

Rene la Frog said...

Love the new do....have been thinking of doing the same thing but my cut will be more drastic since my hair is below my waist.

Great RAK and exchange and the stitching is looking so good.

Katri said...

What lovely mail you've received! And what great progress on your wips, they are all so lovely, I especially like the BBD one!

Your new haircut looks really nice!

Charlene ♥ NC said...

What's going on - short hair. I've been 'inching' my way up as well, though it hasn't been long in years. Decided to let all the color grow off, and that makes it a bit easier to snip,get rid, snip, more snip. I like yours - and won't it be so much cooler at the shows! Nice presents and lovely WIPs! ah, Rory - This Too Shall Pass :-)

Vicky L said...

Your hair is so lovely. It looks great on you. Your stitching is coming along so beautiful. The exchange is very colorful and bright. Poor Rory, getting into trouble.

Pam said...

I like the new do! It's very becoming! Will I see you at sit and stitch on Thursday?

Pam

Ashrei said...

Kathy, I am glad have a face to put to your name! Cute hair and gifts, etc. And I love your beautiful Rory!

Ranae said...

Your haircut looks really good on you. Nice mailday I would say, the scissors keeper is a fantastic finish.
And just think the terrible two's will be coming and he's only a puppy, lol.
Your stitching is coming along great.
Another fabulous post.

Angela said...

All your WIP look great! Love all the new charts you rec'd. Rory is sure getting big but he's just adorable :)

Amy said...

The cut makes you look very sure of yourself and confident! A 2009 woman, for sure!

Deb said...

I think that the new hair cut looks great on you. Good luck with the decision about the color. Sometimes that's a tough call - colors required maintenance and I think your hair looks great right now.

What wonderful presents you received! All are beautiful. Happy Belated Birthday!!! And both your WIPs look fantastic - I love the colors in both of them.

blueladie said...

I love your blog. You are so lucky to receive all your gifts. The scissor pocket is absolutely beautiful. Thanks so much for taking the time to share everything. it's wonderful.
:D
Cathryn
LHN/CCN group

Alice said...

Kathy, your new hairstyle looks fabulous!!! I like you blond. Dark colours can harden our faces as we get older. Lovely goodies you received and great progress on your stitching. Rory sure is a livewire and he figures things out. You will have a hard time keeping him out of the cat food now that he took a liking to it.
I get the picture with the crappy detail lol.
Hugs
Alice

Carolyn NC said...

You look mahvelous, dahling!! as Billy Crystal would say. Love the new haircut! Though I must say I love your blond hair. Love the "crappy" details idea - yuck! At least he's not into the at poop yet! LOL Stitching looks great and I love your exchange!

htimcj said...

Great haircut!
Heidi-ILCS

Gabi said...

Your new hair looks fantastic. And why not try a new color. If you don't like it, couple of weeks later you can go back...lol.
Your stitching is looking great, same to the gifts you received.
Good luck with Rory's puppy days...lol.

Jan said...

Your new 'do' so pretty and look at the time you will save in the mornings! Yay! Not that I think auburn wouldn't be a good color for you, just keep in mind, once red is added to the hair, it is crazy hard to get out again! I know, my daughter did that to my locks, and after a couple months, I wanted to go back to the way I was. Needless to say, it took at least 6 months of stripping, etc, to remove all of that red. So be wary and sure!!

Your wips are looking ever so great!

And what is it about catfood, never had a dog that didn't wolf it down! Hope you find a workable solution for Rory!

Oh and you mentioned on my blog you would like to have my new pattern 'Rare Treasures'? All you need do is email at sales@onlyoneweneedlework.com or keeper50@ymail.com. I am a shop owner too, and will be distributing my own patterns, until I can get shopowners and distributors to order them from me! Thanks! (^-^)

Kristin said...

Your hair looks amazing. It really compliments you.

And, I think the Irish setter we owned years ago was Rory's kindred spirit.

Anonymous said...

You look great and give the dark auburn a try. Love all the stitchy stuff you got and your WIPs are looking great.

Marl

Katrien said...

great RAK en exchange! Your WIP's are looking good
Katrien - ILCS

Dawn said...

Your hair looks gorgeous, crops are so elegant. Don't do the Auburn, I did and it took ages to grow out. If you've been a blond all your life you will regret going darker. There's always a voice inside your head saying "I'm a blond, I wish I hadn't done it".

Just love your prezzies...lucky girl.

Kathy A. said...

Dear Kathy - thank you so much for stopping by my blog and leaving such a nice comment when I finished Noddy. I checked out your blog this morning and have added you to my google reader. Will be by again.
Love your stitching projects!

Kathy A. said...

P.S. Love the new do!!!!

Trecie said...

Rory looks so well behave in the cute picture with the flower in the background. Sounds like he sure has a mind of his own. I love your hair that way. I cut mine about sholder length in the spring every year.

Virpi said...

Your haircut looks lovely and so does your stitching.

Sheila said...

Kathy,
I like the hair, Rory is cute also. Enjoy your treats.

Siobhán said...

Love the new hair cut!! Very stylish. :) Wonderful new gifties in the mail, and your WIPs look fabulous! LOL at the Rory stories. He is one determined pup!

Wanda said...

Love the new 'do', Kathy! It is very much like my own cut and I find it just so easy to look after. Looks great whether you dress up or wear casual clothes, too.

Daffycat said...

Wow ~ what a great haircut! You look smashing, Kathy!

Poor Rory...that tasty catfood is just to tempting! I'm so lucky to have a basement to keep the cat bowls and litterbox in...those stairs are too steep for the dog!

Nancy M said...

Great haircut and I think a new color would be a great change too! Heck it always grows out! Your WIP look great, you must be finding time to stitch. Your exchange is adorable and the RAK was perfect! Love seeing pictures of you along with Rory!!!! He's not the only one we want to see. I had to put my cat food up in a spot the dog couldn't get to. And eventually the cat box had to go somewhere she couldn't get to too! yuck

Donna said...

I love the haircut. And I think auburn would be great. Maybe with some highlights.
The wonderful thing about short hair is that if you don't like the color, you can let it grow, cut it, let it grow, cut it and bam! you are back to the original color.

Anonymous said...

Wow, you look GREAT with the new do! I thought your bob was nice also but didn't realize you had to fuss so much. I think the time saving alone is well worth it. And you timing was great, given the hot hot hot weather lately. Love the your smoking needle and photos. Try keeping a water bottle in the kitchen, when Rory gets in the danger zone spritz him.

I'd stick close to your color because it looks natural on you and compliments those great eyes of yours.

Hugs, from your brown eyed girlfriend....

Joy said...

How wonderful to have a new hair style that is fuss free!! Mr. Rory is just growing...maybe it is the cat food! LOL You really did get some nice goodies!!

Debra said...

Love your hair cut. Big improvement. Yes, I think dark would be to drastic. You should go a lighter color, like a sandy blonde-brown color. Great gifts and your wips are looking good.

Nina said...

Dear Kathy,

Thanks for visiting my blog and your kind words for me!
Well... Your blog is also a new for me but I'll come back I'm sure, your works are so beautiful and your dog is a pretty cute one :)) I love dogs!

Kind regards,
Nina

Mylene said...

The new haircut looks great on you, Kathy.
And wow! wonderful gifts received and all your WIP's are all looking great.

Carissa said...

Love the haircut Kathy! What wonderful gifts, Rory looks great and your WIP's look fantastic!

Shelley - ILCS said...

Love the new 'do'!! Your wips are looking great. Oh, and Rory is as adorable as ever, lol!!

too_busy_to_stitch said...

Your hair cut looks great - suits you. LOL, it's funny , but I've just been growing my hair longer, for the first time since Tom was small (he's sixteen now!). It used to be really long, but he kept on pulling it, HARD! All of your progress pics are lovely. My favourite project is....Rory!