LIFE: The Small Things

While I've been thinking about restarting my small things posts for a long while. I never really get around to sitting and typing them out. Then things change and they get forgotten. But I've been having a rough couple of months with my health which is boosting my health anxiety/stress to new levels to I thought it was high time to use and type this out as a relaxing way of remembering happy things and distracting that over thinking mind of mine.

Old printed cross stitch designs

After my mam taught me how to cross stitch back when I was about 5/6, everyone use to buy me those old printed samplers on linen. They'd have some simple design, often a quote and you got to pick the colours. I found such an old Paragon design at an estate sale the other week and it brought back so many memories. I don't think I ever actually finished such a design in the past, I normally loose my patience with them because it was always so hard to get your stitches neat but i'm up for a new challenge. This one was half started, somewhat messy and half the stitches pointing in the wrong direction. After spending a couple of nights pulling it all out I'm off to dig out some folksy PA Dutch shades of thread and get started! 

Plus while i'm not a fan of quotes, it speaks a lot to me at the moment. Give to the world the best you have and the best will come back to you. 

In other cross stitch news - too many ideas, not enough time to stitch them all.

Soft Parade

Nothing better then a Michigan made beer, but a Michigan made beer fermented with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries is even better. Short's Soft Parade is delicious for this time of year.

Fresh from the garden

There's nothing more exciting at the moment then heading out into my vegetable patch every morning and coming back with a full bowl of raspberries, perhaps a cucumber or a zucchini and all the fresh herbs.

Home-made pie

Not only did I bake my first ever zucchini loaf, developed a love for eating carrot tops, but I've been busy baking all those raspberries into pies. With Michigan blueberries on offer the other week in Kroger, I throw some of those in too. The lattice topping needs work, but you don't need to look at that too long with how yummy it tastes.

Toaster Ovens ...

Not sure how I went about without one of these - it toasts, it bakes, it broils. It's magic. #EasilyPleased

My wild patch

From one free pack of wild flower seeds, the little wild patch along the edge of my veg patch has become one of my favorite places to go for a wander. There's so much colour. It's getting to that time of year to start thinking about plants for next year, there's certainly going to be more poppies around my garden.

Netflix

With most of our shows on summer break, Hulu (and not having cable) has taken a back seat against Netflix. Murder She Wrote (seriously you don't want to know Jessica Fletcher she attracts death), NCIS, Property Brothers, CSI: Miami and Hotel Inspector alongside Parks & Rec and Rules of Engagement - yeap all over those.

As you can see, i'm old before my time and that's the way I like it. What little things have been rocking your world lately?