Goodness where did the time go?

 Goodness has it really been over a month since I last posted?  I think two post I typed up in February went the way of the interweb black hole.  

Anyway it's International Women's Day 

My son was married on February 27th, the ceremony was held at the Margaritaville Resort Hotel in Kissimmee Florida.  A lovely full moon hung above during the wedding reception , the weather perfect and clear the entire day.

I had the angiogram on February 11th, unfortunately one of the arteries in the abdomen was fully calcified and the other one was too narrow to put in a stent, the 3rd wasn't as clogged as it was first thought so that was left alone,  Next option is to treat with blood thinners to see if it helps, and it not possible bypass surgery.  First before any surgery I need to know if it's the cause of this illness that has had its grip on me since last March.  I am at the point where I don't even want to see another doctor because all I get is I have heathy organs which is great and no answer to what is causing the pain.

On the stitching front I finished the February Goddess for my personal goddess of the month embroidery project.

I chose to do The Cailleach, a fitting choice because she is as unpredictable as the winter weather, this is how she progressed through the month:

 I used DMC Etoile floss in C798, using the etoile floss to give the appearance of ice on her clothing, I added a quartz crystal to the staff and a twisted jump ring as a buckle on her belt.  She is stitched on 100% cotton with tone on tone  white spiral, The last photo is before the wrinkles were ironed out.

I haven't started the March goddess yet, not even sure which one I will do next, I am leaning toward Hecate, Airmid or Kali.  Linking here at Kathy's Quilts for Slow Sunday Stitching check out what other talented bloggers are slow stitching https://kathysquilts.blogspot.com/2021/03/slow-sunday-stitching.html

I finished reading the latest Janet Evanovich book, as always lots of laughter throughout the pages, it 

will be entered as a book for  both the Crusin thru the Cozies Reading Challenge 2021

and the TBR 21 in '21 challenge.

I just finished A Thousand Days in Tuscany for the European Reading Challenge 2021

I haven't chosen the next book for the European Reading  Challenge yet so I'm not sure where I will arm chair travel next, but I did enjoy A Thousand Days in Tuscany  it's non fiction and I felt I myself was in Italy enjoying the taste of foods and wine that filled almost every page.  She has written a few other books which I plan to read as well.

A new Goddess for this weeks challenge

Once again I have decided to stray from the path of the suggested theme for this weeks goddess and I chose to do the Cailleach her themes are balance, cycles, rebirth, overcoming and winter. Her symbols are snow and blue items. In Scottish traditions, this is a blue faced crone Goddess who blusters with power throughout the winter months. She brings the snow and cold until the wheel of time turns toward spring on Beltane (May Day)

hand embroidery done

The Cailleach Bheur was a blue hag, said to frequent parts of the Scottish Highlands. Associated with winter, she was reborn on every All Hallows Eve and returned to bring the winter and the winter snows. She carried a magical staff, which froze the ground with every tap. She was also guardian to animals throughout the winter, and returned to the earth by turning to stone on Beltane Eve. In other traditions she changes into a young maiden, suggesting the changing phases of an earth goddess. Her sacred trees were the holly and the gorse bush, under which she traditionally threw her staff before turning to stone.

Once again I chose a Celtic goddess deciding once again to hand embroider my goddess using a subtle blue for her skin, she is crayon tinted on 100% cotton fabric with embroidery done in 2 strands of cotton floss. Here she is crayon tinted before the hand embroidery was started.

crayon tinted

and here is the Cailleach right after she was removed from the light box waiting for the next step.

off the lightbox

You will notice I added the two spirals to the piece to represent the ever moving circle of season and the swirling snows of winter.

I will be posting this over at https://timelessrituals.blogspot.com/2016/06/13-goddesses-challenge-week-5-native.html  as part of the 13 Goddess in 13 Weeks challenge.

I am a day late but I am also linnking up over at http://www.supermomnocape.com/2016/06/27/vintage-embroidery-monday-stitchery-link-party-64/

Now I am off to the gym and hopefully as I was promised yesterday the new replacement mailbox will be put in this morning, but in all honesty I don't think it will happen let me be wrong.