Slow but steady progress

Happy Monday!  I have been doing some stitching but it seems I can work a few hours but I am not making great progress in any one sitting.  Windy City Santa is ready for our second class with Libby Sturdy next Saturday.  All my homework is done plus I finished the water, added the boats, added the grass, and finished a few more buildings.  I am happy with what I have done.  This piece was chosen as my 2012 challenge piece to finish by next January.  

I have also been spending some time with the wave piece.  I am almost done with row 21 of 26 row in the total project.  Then I will need to add eyelets and the starfish near the white thread (where the water meets the sand.)  I am working on this piece because it has one set of my 12 inch stretcher bars.  I need a frame that is 12x12 for a class I am taking on February 18th and 19th and I really do not want to buy bars if I can help it.  I will have to take Frog Stew off for the other set of bars but this is the economical thing to do.  If DH gets a job this week, then I may be over this economizing thing and buying one more 12 inch set. 

I have also been busy reading library books.  I finished 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami.  This book was around 950 pages so it was like reading 3 books and it took a while.  It was pretty good but  not sure I would say you have to go out and get this book unless you are a fan of the author.  This is the first book of his that I have read.   Now I am reading The Tigers Wife by Tea Obreht.  I am about half way through this book.  Again this one is OK but I am not telling anyone to rush out and buy this either. 

On a less refined note and probably where my mind needs to be right now.  Loved catching up on the Bachelor and 24 Hour Catwalk yesterday.  Recently, I watched half of the this seasons Dexter and this is another great season.  Finally, I finished season one of Boardwalk Empire.  Loved it!! 

We did have a big weekend and the Happy Monday comment is more to psyche myself into believing it.  On Friday, about 15 of us went out for Tapas.  It was a good time but we got home late.  On Saturday night we had friends over that we met on our trip to the Turks in December.  They came in with a ton of wine and we killed it all.  DH made a wonderful meal of shrimp and scallops with a chipotle butter sauce for starters, the main meal was a cassoulet and an asparagus dish with poached egg and pancetta.  For desert, he made a tort.  This turned into another late night so by last night I could not get relaxed even though I should have been exhausted.  Oh well, the work week is to straighten out the bad habits from the weekend:)

Hope everyone has a great week with lots of stitching time.  Cheers!