Long time no see!!!

I haven't totally disappeared off the face of the earth... so where have I been?

Over the back end of March I was frantically trying to get things done at work before I went on holiday on the 1st April. It left me with little time for stitching and no time for blogging, beyond reading the occasional post...

On 1st April we flew to Las Vegas for an amazing 12 day holiday, followed by a week-long conference in Albuquerque fr me. Cue volcanic eruption... we got delayed by another week, and finally got back to the UK on the 26th April. Of course at that point I'd not been in work for almost a month, plus I had a meeting in Dundee to get to, and an interview in London last week... not to mention a weekend away in the middle! Shall we just say I've been a little busy since I got back? My personal highlight was working so late one night I got locked into the building by security, and set off the burglar alarms when I tried to leave....

So what have I been up to? I think I'll start at the beginning :)

So on 1st April we got up at 3am to get to the airport. The cheap tickets flying from our local airport (Leeds/Bradford) via Amsterdam seemed like not such a good idea when we flew over Bradford again 5 hours after we'd left... Hmmm. We got to Vegas and to our hotel in time for a quick meal out, then crashed out around 10.30... The next morning I had a lovely swim in the outdoor pool while Eddy slept in. We checked out of the Holiday Inn, picked up the hire car - and upgraded to a Dodge Charger (definitely a good idea) - then did my number one Vegas priority... stash shopping, at Stitcher's Paradise. Eddy was definitely acting as an enabler...

I bought:
7 Blackbird Designs charts (Bird in Hand, Rites of Spring, Merry Christmas Ella Vaughn, Peacock Pinkeep, Summer Basket, Sunflower charms, and Red Reindeer)
La-D-Da's spring needlekeep and fob kit, plus a little kit for Dragonfly Pin Keep
M Design's Las Vegas tree ornament
10 skeins of Weeks
4 crescent colours
13 skeins GAST
5 skeins GAST wool
2 skeins Belle Soie silk
Mill Hill beads and treasures
some Estaz glissen gloss
some Sweetheart tree charms
Some just another button company buttons
Some just another button company pins

:)

(I did a little more stash shopping later on in the trip - this was just for STARTERS!!!)

After lunch we went to the Bellagio and checked in:

Bellagio Lobby - behind the reception desk

We'd paid extra for a view of the fountains. It was pretty stunning without the fountains on:

View from hotel room, Bellagio

It was STUNNING when the fountains were on:

View from hotel room, Bellagio, at night

Overall I have to say Vegas wasn't really my kind of place, but I did love the luxury of the Bellagio. I don't really gamble I did lose $1 in the slot machines, but as I don't get them and found it boring I stopped there!). The following morning I had a wonderful swim in the Bellagio pool, followed by pancakes in the poolside cafe for breakfast:

Bellagio pool


Sculpture, by Bellagio pool

Afterwards we checked out and headed off to the Hoover Dam... at which point I'll sign off!

Still here!!!

I am still here, just rushed off my feet! I've been meaning to post for over a week, and even took photos ready to share, but just didn't find the time. Work has been busy (it always is!), but this semester I'm also busy advising an archaeological excavation - which means a long day once a week driving to site (2.5-3 hours), advising, excavating (if I get chance) and having meetings before driving home - 13-15 hour days, which do leave me a little tired for a few days afterwards. Not that I'm complaining - it's years since I've worked on an excavation, and I am loving it!!

The other thing that's kept me busy is planning our trip to the US in April. Yesterday I finally got our flights booked (and from our local airport at a not too bad price, which is unusual - usually I have to drive to Manchester). The bad news is a 6am departure, which means we should be at the airport by about 3am... thank goodness it's only 15 mins away! My conference is in Albuquerque, and this seemed a good opportunity for a road trip to see some of the SW. So we are flying to Vegas, visiting the Grand Canyon, Mountain Valley and the Mesa Verde, then Santa Fe and Albuquerque. Ed's coming along for a 2 1/5 week holiday... hopefully he'll find things to do in Albuquerque while I'm working. Any tips on places to visit (and needlework shops especially) gratefully received!!!

I also joined weight watchers. 2 weeks in (I weigh in on Mondays). I lost 3.5 lbs last week, and now my (admittedly always baggy jeans) are so loose I can take them off without undoing them. I don't think they are decent enough for anywhere other than in the house now!! Hopefully my smaller jeans will start to fit soon - most now do up, but are a little snug!

Anyway, with all that going on I've not done a huge amount of stitching, but I have done more than these photos, which I think I took last Saturday:


Fantasy Triptych - I've been working on the background today, and will go back to it as soon as I have posted this


Postman Pat - worked on this during the week (a little) - he has a face now!

In my last post I said I'd share my latest 2 framed projects:

Elliot and Buttons Wedding Day - for Jane and Keith. I really love the way the 'aged' silver frame sets this off


You were hatched birth sampler for Jamie and Matt - again I'm delighted with the framing job

I'll take new photos of FT and PP when it's light - I forgot today. But they are coming along brilliantly. Neither will be as far along as I hoped at the end of the month (ie bedtime!), but both are much further along than at the start.