Well, it is inevitable. Something had to give, and I’m afraid it’s this week on Needle ‘n Thread.

I mentioned last week that my mom was in the hospital. She was discharged a week ago Saturday and ended up back in this past Wednesday. I’m the designated visitor. Only one visitor is allowed, and it has to be the same visitor for the duration of the patient’s stay, due to recent health regulations. You can imagine what this does to the rest of the family, how exhausting it is for the designated visitor, and what it does especially to my 90-year old dad, with his wife of 65 years wondering where he is and not understanding why he can’t be there with her.

It’s not exactly a fun situation, and it’s a little stressful. But I figure where there’s stress, there should be handwork. It can at least help alleviate some of the stress.

So I’ve been taking my hexies with me as my companions in distress. And they’re holding up well…

This was my view for a couple days – that’s the Topeka capital building in the background. It was a beautiful day that day, and the lighting was great for stitching.

There’s not always a lot of stitching time when you’re sitting in a hospital room, but when your patient finally falls into a decent sleep, that’s a good time to make progress on your project and take your mind off your surroundings.

I got some outdoor courtyard time in one day, while mom was toted off to for scans and whatnot.

Strangely, it’s been lovely, sunny weather here in Kansas – it’s below 80 degrees at the beginning of August. Truly a marvel! So I was happy to be able to take advantage of that one afternoon.

When last we talked about my hexies and their organization, I received an email from a reader who mentioned that I must carry a gargantuan purse, if I tote around in it my pencil-turned-sewing-case and one of the boxes I keep the basted hexies. (Those are both explained in the previous article.)

It’s not a gargantuan purse, but it’s a great purse for these kinds of situations. It’s the Baggallini “Everywhere” bag, and it is roomy, while being just enough compartmentalized to keep things organized. I added it to my Amazon recommendations under “Tools & Accessories” because I definitely count it as one of my favorite “stitching accessories” – I always have something tucked in it that I can work on when stuck somewhere. And yes, mine is red – but they have plenty of other colors, too.

I just figured I’d share that with you, in case there are others out there wondering just how huge my handbag must be! It’s not huge, but it’s not small. It’s light, roomy, and great for travel.

And so now I will bid you farewell for this week. I’m going to take the week off from the blog – unless I magically end up with more time than I think I will have – or unless a miracle happens and mom is home sooner than I think she will be.

I won’t be able to answer email until things settle down, unless it has to do with orders or download help. If you have general embroidery questions, please use the search feature on the website. Thanks.

I still have the Goldwork Masterclass books coming in, for those who have inquired. Hopefully, I’ll have them available for you within the next week or so.