Friday Four....

My husband's second eye surgery went well on Tuesday - we got in early - that was an added bonus!

Because of being off with him, I had two days away from work - that, as Martha would say - is a good thing....

I visited two cross-stitch places in this last week and came home with some nice "stash". I've busily been stitching as much as I can....

I'm feeling better - still a bit of a cough - but overall, much more like normal!

Book Spotlight

I'm on Page 67 of this book and am settling into the story - weighing all the ins and outs of what is going on. This book is based on the author's true story.

First line: It is possible, after all, for someone to vanish off the face of the earth.

"With her unrelenting tale of a husband who vanishes in what may be an accident, a suicide, or a scheme to flee his wife and his life, Emily Listfield leads us by the hand into the dark waters of an unresolved marriage. Waiting to Surface forces us to grapple with doubts that swirl beneath the assumptions that comprise our lives: If we do not know the one we love, do we truly know ourselves? The answer will leave you breathless".

Show and Tell!

This is what $97.00 looks like! I added to my "stash" pile on Saturday. (click on the picture to make it bigger and you can see more details of the "stash") I drove over to a needlework shop that is about 45 minutes each way. I never feel like I spend enough time there after that long drive. But since I managed to do enough damage to my wallet in less than 10 minutes, it is good that I didn't spend more time there! I wanted to get a couple of things that would be a bit more challenging or interesting to work on - so I got a sampler called The Village of Hawk Run Hollow. It is supposed to be an entire village - with churches and houses and shops and cemeteries. I love it and can't wait to get the fabric to start on it. I also got one that many other people are working on - it is called A Quaker Christmas by Bygone Stitches. I kept falling in like with this one and then in love with it and knew I had to do it! I also got a multiplication sampler that is a bit different from others I've seen. I love doing these samplers! And I got 3 other smaller charts to work on - well, sometime. I figure by the time I get Hawk Run Hollow done, I'll be a 100! LOL!

I've Been Tagged!

I was tagged by my friend Cindy a couple of weeks ago for this "Meme" . I have been sick with the flu, so am just now getting around to giving my answers!

Which book do you irrationally cringe away from reading, despite seeing only positive reviews? The Kite Runner!

If you could bring three characters to life for a social event (afternoon tea, a night of clubbing,perhaps a world cruise), who would they be and what would the event be?

I would bring together Ranger, Stephanie Plum, and Joe Morelli from the Evanovich books. The occasion - for me to send Stephanie off with Morelli so I could be with Ranger - LOL! I have always wanted Steph to be with Ranger over Morelli, but I'm really sorry - he is mine - mine I tell ya! So Steph - get lost!

(Borrowing shamelessly from the Thursday Next seriesby Jasper Fforde): you are told you can’t die until you read the most boring novel on the planet. While this immortality is great for awhile, eventually you realise it’s past time to die. Which book would youexpect to get you a nice grave?

War and Peace!

Come on, we’ve all been there. Which book have you pretended, or at least hinted, that you’ve read, when in fact you’ve been nowhere near it?

I have never done this.

As an addition to the last question, has there been abook that you really thought you had read, only to realise when you read a review about it/go to ‘reread’it that you haven’t? Which book?

Again, this has never happened to me. At least I don't remember it happening - no, it hasn't.... I think....

You’re interviewing for the post of Official Book Advisor to some VIP (who’s not a big reader). What’s the first book you’d recommend and why?

Wow, this is hard. It would depend, for one, on whether the VIP was a man or a woman. And it would depend on their likes and dislikes and, what makes them laugh or cry or think - well, I just would be too anal and they would get tired and go away before I found a book to suggest!

A good fairy comes and grants you one wish: you will have perfect reading comprehension in the foreign language of your choice. Which language do you go with?

Definitely French! In fact, I'm planning on taking out some audios from the library to try and learn this language!

A mischievous fairy comes and says that you must choose one book that you will reread once a year for the rest of your life (you can read other books as well). Which book would you pick?

Be Buried In the Rain by Barbara Michaels. I've reread it every year already, so this wasn't a hard choice. It has a ghost, a big scary old house, romance, and a dog named Elvis. What more could you want!

That good fairy is back for one final visit. Now,she’s granting you your dream library! Describe it.

It would be at the top of a Victorian house. It would have a big bay window with a very comfy chair to relax in while reading. There would be built in bookcases all around the room with all my old favorites on the shelves and tons of juicy new to me books also. A fireplace - a window seat - a small refrigerator stocked with my favorite munchies - a coffee making area. And tons of time to sit and enjoy the whole thing!

Friday Four....

Happy we didn't get the really bad snow and ice storm we were supposed to get last night. It is raining, but that is all!

Glad I made it through the work week. I'm still dragging butt from my illness.... Soooo glad it is Friday and the weekend is here!

Looking forward to possibly going to the needlework shop tomorrow....

Looking forward to settling in on the couch on Sunday and watching the NASCAR race....

Thirty-Four Years....

It has been 34 years today since my husband and I got married - February 19, 1974. We went out for an early dinner at the chinese restaurant that I enjoy going to. After eating (stuffing my face), we just drove back home. We are so exciting - ha!

Friday Four

1. I've had the flu for a week - am finally beginning to see some improvement in how I feel!

2. So happy that the NASCAR season has started again!

3. The latest book by one of my favorite authors came out and I have it in my hands now! Hope to start reading it this weekend...

4. We had pizza for Valentine's Day dinner last night - yum!

Happy Valentine's Day....

Friday Four....

1. I was off two days from work this week....

2. I got to have lunch with my husband (after his eye surgery) on Tuesday and breakfast with him on Wednesday (after his doctor appointment)...

3. I got out for two walks with my husband on those same two days - both days it was in the mid-sixties!

4. I got to talk to my Dad yesterday and laugh with him over two jokes he told me (which were actually clean for a change - ha!)

I fell in love with this sampler when I saw it at my LNS a month or so ago. But I didn't get it. When I went back today and it almost jumped off the rack and into my hands, I decided, it must be mine! I picked out some Country French linen to do it on in a shade called "Latte". The chart is called "Lady Prim and Lady Proper". It is "rules of etiquette" - such as " A lady never wears diamonds in the morning". Heck, I'll wear diamonds any time someone wants to give them to me - LOL! I think/hope that if you click on the picture to make it bigger, you will be able to read the rest of the "rules".

Are You Gonna Eat All of That!

Every time I fix this meal, my husband always asks when the rest of the people are coming for dinner! But secretly he enjoys having the leftovers to take into work for lunch over the next week. Here is the recipe:

1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cans (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup Sour Cream (or more if you like, which I do)
1 bag (16 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, THAWED & DRAINED (I use the carrots, corn, peas, and green bean mixture)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare stuffing mix as directed on package; set aside.
Mix chicken, soup, sour cream and vegetables in 13x9-inch baking dish; top with the stuffing.
Bake 40 min or until chicken is cooked through. It calls for 30 minutes, but I do 40 minutes and still make sure the chicken is cooked before I call it "ready to chow down on"! Enjoy!!