November was gone in a flash

This is a very busy season for me professionally: I counted the number of major events I had to stage between the dates of Nov. 19 and Dec. 18 and the total came to 15. Since I also have to complete my annual report and conclude the biggest fundraiser of the year during the same time frame, I have been left with little time for stitching or blogging. And, of course, it was also during this time frame that the painters finally came ... the same painters who were supposed to have painted my entire downstairs as well as the upstairs hall and all of our bookcases in October. Then, of course, there are the little details of shopping for my grandson, Liam's first Christmas ... and, incidentally, shopping for the usual crew.

In any case, I did manage to complete another band of my Thea Dueck Mystic Stitcher's Pocket from the Mystic Stitcher's Hideaway as well as the Prairie Schooler 2007 Limited Edition Santa, Let It Snow and the Workbasket Quaker Frog. And I am more than halfway through stitching Workbasket's Quaker Swan. I have also noted that Workbasket has come out with two more Quaker animals: a cow and a sheep. I will have to get those sometime in the new year.

As this year draws to a close, I am inclined to plan for the next ... and, as usual, set unreasonably optimistic goals.
Goal #1: Limit the purchase of new charts until I have caught up with the 50+ I currently have in my stash. I realize I will succumb to a few "must-haves" like the Workbasket leaflet mentioned above but I will try to limit the total new purchases of charts to 10 for 2008. Fiber and fabric will be purchased on a "as needed" basis ... as needed, i.e., to complete charts already in my stash.
Goal # 2: Participation in two SALs. The first is a 123 stitch SAL for Crabby All Year Round piece from Raise the Roof. I have all the charts but will be checking this week on fabric and fiber needs. The second is a committment to stitch all my Halloween charts along also with a group from 123 stitch that will be doing the same with their own Halloween charts. At last count, I had 16 Halloween charts to stitch.
Goal # 3: Then, of course, there are my own WIPs, UFOs and sewing finishes. The WIPs: the Teresa Wentzler Autumn Faerie [to be followed by the Christmas and Summer Faeries] and the remaining projects from the Stitcher's Hideaway in Mystic: finishing the pocket, stitching the tuffet, scissor case, scissor fob and needlebooks. The UFO's: Midnight Moogies and the Celtic Tarot. Last count the sewing finishes were hovering at about 20 in the sewing basket.
Goal # 4: Learn to use the digital camera doo-hickey to download photos, to mangae a Photobucket account and to post photos to the blog and groups.
Goal #5: Keep up with sewing finishes ... this means no more than 5 completed cross stitch pieces in the sewing basket.