Relaxing with slow stitching

Today has been a little manic. First I spent quite a while in the kitchen. I made a batch of rice crispy cakes to  satisfy the needs of Richard and Lucy and also to finish up the box of rice crispies. Next I made a loaf using 50:50 white bread flour and wholemeal. This gives a denser loaf than all white flour and we all enjoy it. Whilst it had its first rise I cut the Christmas cake, first in half and then one of the halves again. By the time the bread was read for it second knead I'd covered the three pieces in marzipan. I set the cakes aside and will add the icing tomorrow. I'm going to use fondant icing which will be fairly quick to do. I need to decide how I'm going to decorate them.

Having finished in the kitchen for a while I headed upstairs. I wanted to go through my yarn stash. I've used up yarn by crocheting granny squares which I'm now joining together but I've still got a lot left. Much of the yarn came from my mother in law when she died. Her daughter doesn't really knit so I was the obvious recipient. There was a lot of yarn even after I'd given some away and used some more to teach the guides to knit. I sorted it back into double knitting, aran and 4 ply with each going into a separate container. I kept the yarn I wanted to work with and that's now in my knitting bag. The containers will be put back up into the loft until I need some more yarn. Since my mother in law died the only yarn I've had to buy has been for the couple of baby blankets I knitted for colleagues. There isn't enough of any yarn to make a big item but more than enough for baby or children's wear or doll's clothes

I still have the tree to sort out so not sure how long I'll have for slow stitching but I will definitely make time for some. I'm working on the bottom border of the millennium sampler and this is my December one monthly goal. I want to finish the last border, the final cornerstone and the spitfire. That's my goal for the month.

I'd also dearly love to finish the outlining on the scroll work but I'm not sure that's doable. There are also one or two single stitches to be added. It would be fabulous to have this all finished since it is 20 years in January since I started it and it's my oldest UFO.

I'm linking this post with Kathy from Kathy's Quilts for her Slow Sunday Stitching and with Patty from Elm Street Quilts for her December one monthly goal  I've still got a few blogs to visit from the Virtual Cookie blog hop so I will intersperse my cross stitch with blog reading.

Take care

Lyndsey