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A little blog about my big loves; family, friends, stitching and yep, chocolate!

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Sunday, March 22, 2009

Me, spoiled????

I've hit a wall or a floor.... I am in a serious stitching slump and have done almost nothing for two weeks. Work is too busy; I just don't have time to stitch at lunch. Home is busy - nothing more than normal, just busy and I'm walking around feeling a bit lost. Here's the problem.... I have a favorite spot in my house. It's referred to as my craft room, the cave, or the sanctuary and I LOVE it. When Rob and I had the basement finished a few years ago, I got a spot all my own. it has a small t.v., a tiny but functional closet, lots of cabinets and two work surfaces with desks. It is where I go and do "my thing", where I chill out, where I reflect and where I do all my stitching. I'm spoiled. My sweet Rob always knocks before coming in and I always respond with entrer, s'il vous plaît (no, I don't speak french, so wish I did though) but that is always our little ritual. If I don't respond, he'll always ask again.
This is what my sanctuary looked like a week and a half ago:
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It was a warm, cozy place. Well, it doesn't look like that anymore. We have had so much rain, melting snow and wet weather that the carpet got wet. It's gotten wet a couple of times and I've always successfully dried it out but this last time, there were minerals on the carpet that I had a hard time cleaning up. Because this room is in the basement, I was worried it would start to smell stinky. I don't know about you but I prefer to not have my sanctuary be stinky! Being the brilliant person that I am, I thought it would be best to pull up the carpet and simply paint the floor. Oh brother! First I had to cut the carpet and pull out all the tack strips that went all around the room. Oh, I didn't think about that - pulling those out left big holes in the concrete which wouldn't look very pretty when painted. Off to the home improvement store to buy patch, caulk and all the tools to go along with that. That was easy enough until it dried and each little hole I'd tried to fill looked like a raised molehill. Now I have to sand about 25 of these dumb things to get the floor smooth enough to paint. Did I mention that I'm brilliant??? My plan is to paint a red and white (more off-white than white) checkerboard pattern on the floor and then just put an area rug down to cozy the place up a bit. This is what it looks like now, pay particular attention to the cold, concrete floors - not exactly inviting!



Not the cozy spot it once was, for sure. It will be really cute, (I hope) when I finally get all the work done. The reason I'm spoiled is because I just don't like to stitch anywhere else in the house. I get too distracted, I make mistakes (more than normal) and it's just too "busy" for me. Kids are running in and out, doggies want to sit on my lap, everything has to be lugged upstairs, it's just not fun. Yeah, I know, I sound like a whiner but I can't help it. I love my quiet, little spot and have gotten so used to it that without it, I've lost my mojo. It'll come back when the room is done but I don't think it'll be this week. We have a wrestling banquet to go to one night and a scout meeting another, we'll be delivering my son Matt's Eagle Scout project during the week and there are a few other things going on as well.

Matt is on the way to finishing up all his requirements to earn his Eagle Scout award. It has been a long, really long, journey and not one I'm sure we'd have finished had it not been for my father, his Poppa Jim. Matt wanted to quit scouts more times than I can tell you and would have, had it not been for my dad. When we lived in Korea, my father, in addition to all his other duties, was the Director for Scouting for the Far East Council. I can't recall his exact title but he became very involved and really loved what it taught and the lessons boys got from it. He really encouraged my boys to participate in scouting and long after all their friends had dropped out - they kept at it because they wanted to make Poppa Jim proud. Believe me, Matt hasn't done this for me or Rob, or even himself really. Nope, he's done it for Poppa. I know that one day, Matt will be very proud of this achievement and will look back on all he did with great fondness. For now, we just gotta make that last push to the finish line. His project was to build a recycling center for the church. He and Tyler and two of their best pals Eric and Alex, along with a master wood worker, put it together this weekend. Here are a couple of pics of their day. Here's Alex (one of Ty's best friends):


This is his brother, Eric (one of Matt's best friends):

Here's my Tyler (Matt's brother and future Eagle Scout, I hope):

Here's Matt and the gang, including Mr. B

Matt giving some pointers:

I don't think texting was supposed to be the rule of the day but can a kid go a day without texting????


That's it, my friends. No stitching for a while but I hope to be back at it soon. In the meantime, I'm going to get ABC Hornbook on scroll rods so I can finally start that next week. I'll be stitching it as an incentive stitch with the gals on a YUKU board. Hopefully by the time the Incentive starts, my room will be done and ready for stitching. I know I'll be ready!!! Have a great week and thank you so much for all the comments on my last post. I so appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment.

Peace,
Terri

23 comments:

Margaret said...

Terri, I'm so sorry your little space is all messed up and your stitching mojo is gone. Hope it comes back soon! Congrats to your future eagle scout -- good for him!

Diane (di) said...

Oh Terri, so sorry your mojo is (nope, not gone) just on a little hiatus! Your 'sanctuary' still looks wonderful in those photos, even with what you have to do and I'm betting you'll be done in no time. That's when your mojo will come back and you can resume stitching like crazy. :) Hang in there!

Anonymous said...

I remember when we created my stitching room - we actually decided to decorate 2 rooms at once. Big mistake! The house was a mess for a while and I just didn't want to stitch, so I feel your pain. I hope your room is back to normal soon so that you can enjoy your stitching again!

From the Attic said...

That is a great sanctuary you have Terri and I am sure it will look and feel right again soon. Looking forward to seeing some more of your creations when you get your mojo back.

Chrissie

Deb said...

Terri - You'll get your mojo back soon. Your space will be so cute when finished, but I understand not really being in your element when the room is torn up. It's like you feel lost!!! I like your idea with the floor though and may have to do that to mine considering the flood of 2008 that ruined Christmas. Hang in there friend. And big congrats to Matt and becoming an Eagle Scout!!!

Loraine said...

What a great sewing room! It will look fabulous when your done.
I was laughing the whole time I was reading your post, because I have a favorite sewing room as well. I whine when I cannot stitch or sew there. It isssss the biggest pain to take everything to another room in the house to be with the family, although this is usually what I end up doing because I feel guilty!
Remember they are only home for a short time in your life, so you might as well spend as much time as possible with them. (At least this is what everyone else's advice to me is!
Tell your son Congrats on his eagle. I am a den mother for the cub scouts. It's nice to see boys complete that goal!

Hope your mojo returns soon!

Cari said...

Wow Terri - you've got a lot going on!! I know once your space is finished you'll be stitching like crazy...or you'll be crazy...!! I know you're proud of your Eagle Scout.. wonderful. That is so much work. I love the pics of your family as well. Hang in there girl..your mojo will be kickin' in in no time!! Have a great week.

Melissa said...

Terri, I can understand completely about your space and being busy at work and all that just throws you off. I hope your space will be even spiffier than before when it's done.

Sometimes a break is good too and when you get back into it, your needle will be smokin!

Sheila said...

What a wonderful stitching room, even with the undone floor. Hope you get it sorted soon and your stitching mojo comes bouncing back.

Nicole said...

Your little space is beautiful! I hope you get it just the way you want it soon! A red and white floor sounds beautiful and cozy! Can't wait to see your ABC Hornbook start! :)

The Scarlett House said...

Oh my, Terri. I just love your space. The red and white floor idea would be perfect down there. I know just how you feel about having an area to call your very own. I always get that aaahhhh feeling when I walk into my craft room.

Annie Beez said...

Terri you should be SO proud of your son! Eagle scouts are so special and this is something he will take with him his whole life! We need good leaders like that in the world! So awesome!
Hang in there, you will get your cute little space back soon! I'm jealous-it looks SO cozy!!!

doris said...

Y'know, sometimes you just have to drop the stitching, painful as it is, and dive into something else. Your sanctuary is a fabulous place, so all the work will be worth it. Good luck!

Congrats to your almost-Eagle scout. That's an enormous accomplishment.

Brigitte said...

Sorry to hear about your stitching slump. But it will disappear the moment you get your stitching room back. It's such a lovely room and hopefully you will get it the way you want it real soon.

Jan said...

Oh Terri, sorry for the hiatus from stitching, but know you will be back at it and going gangbusters before you know it! I love your special retreat room, and it will be so lovely when done!!

Had to laugh when I saw all of the pics, and noticed your title of the post, I thought sure all of those boys were working on your special room! Great pics!!

lynda said...

What a great stitching spot you have...
Come visit my blog...I have something there for you.

Patricia Lessell said...

Terri I am so sorry your sanctuary is so messed up. It will be back soon to just the way you love it and this time even more better (well you can't say betterer) + I love what you are going to stitch next week - or as soon as you get your mojo back. I lost mine for ages but it's back again even worse than ever. In other words I am wanting again big time. Lots of Love Patti xxxx

Deb said...

Hey Terri - There is an award for you on my blog.

Jan said...

One more thing, I have something for you, be sure and pay my blog a visit, when you get the chance!;)

Siobhán said...

Oy, sorry to hear about the mojo heading on vacation! I hope you get your sanctuary settled again and that the mojo returns! Congrats to your son on his achievements and for honoring his grandfather. :) That is so neat!

Mary's Stitchin Time said...

Terri, I hope your sanctuary is back in shape soon! I love the idea of the red/white checked floor. And kudos to your son, Matt, on his Eagle Scout project. I know they work hard for this honor as I have 2 nephews who have reached that level. Sending you good wishes for your mojo to return in full force soon! {{hugs}}

Bine said...

Too bad what happened to your cozy space. I hope it will be refinished very soon....you have to get your stitching mojo back :)
Don't miss to post pics of your red and white floor. That sounds so cozy!

Karoline said...

Your sanctuary looks lovely Terri even with the floor to do. Hope you get it finished soon. Congratulations to your future Eagle Scout