I cannot count my day complete
'Til needle, thread and fabric meet.
~Author Unknown

Sharing a common thread with those who love the art of hand embroidery

Thursday, May 16, 2013

She is 24 years old now..................

Where does time fly away to??..........can anyone tell me?
Hannah age 2
 
When she was a little over 4 years old, we took her and her two brothers on a trip to San Antonio's Sea World. We had two days of fun in the water and shows. It was there that she decided that she was going to grow up to be a whale trainer and to work for Sea World. Throughout the summer, I nervously watched her go under water in our swimming pool, to see how long she could stay under and then come up and be able to talk long sentences. Something that one of the Sea World trainers told her that she would have to learn to do.  Throughout her childhood, any thing that replicated the "under sea life" from bed linens to toys, would be given to her.
 

Which prompted me to start cross stitching this under the sea design for her..................
20 years ago...........
You can see, that somewhere along the way, other things occupied my hands and needle.
 

As for her, she grew up to be a beautiful young woman. Sea World plans got placed aside and she is now serving her country in the Navy.
She is stationed in Hawaii, where on her free days, she surfs, and goes on dives to visit this under sea place that she has always loved. She has spoken of seeing the dolphins, being bumped into by a large sea turtle, and of how really beautiful and colorful this world is underneath the sea.
After talking with her about her adventures the other day, I once again, pulled this unfinished cross stitch piece out. I have decided that I want to get it completed and framed to give to her by Christmas.
How about you?
Have you started some kind of project..............
and has it sat waiting for 20 years or more?
Do you hope to get it completed one day?
I would love to hear!

14 comments:

Hill Top Post said...

Oh, yes, "Where go the years, down that tunnel of time..." There are many unfinished projects around here. I need to make a list. The cross stitched piece will be a wonderful gift for your special daughter. You do such beautiful work.

Bev said...

Oh...what a lovely post.... and I'm sure those young dreams...took her to the Navy!

janice15 said...

Very nice I think she will just love it...I have started another vintage doily dress and still are working on my tea pot tea towel..Late Happy Mother's Day with love Janice

lil red hen said...

That is such a precious picture! Unfinished projects? I keep adding to them :)

Hindustanka said...

Lovely story about your daughter and her passion! It is good that she managed to be close to the sea as she wished for. I think it would be a great idea to accomplish the cross stitch by Christmas and gift it to her! It would revive so many good memories for you and for your daughter :)

Gina E. said...

What a lovely story! Your daughter is so lucky to have lived her dream doing a much more important job than she originally planned!
As for very old UFOs, I think I've told you the story of my American Indian chief cross stitch that got started with great enthusiasm, but ground to a halt because it was just too darn hard for me? Twenty years later, my aging MIL begged me to finish it before she died. I did, and she was happy :-)

Preeti said...

Nice to know about your daughter and that she got what she aspired for :) your under sea stitching looks wonderful!! I am sure your daughter will be very happy to have it:) does she also like needlework like you?

Celestina Marie said...

The years do just fly by. What a darling little girl and now a grown up with many accomplishments. Please give her my thanks for what she does to keep our country safe. She is to be honored. I know you are so proud. She is going to love the cross stitch when complete.

I was working on a crewel work piece from Thomas Kincaid while my mother was in her last days. It was a cottage by the ocean with a lighthouse and such. I worked by her side as I kept her company. One day she opened her eyes and said, that is going to be beautiful. After she died, I set it aside and did not pick it back up for several years. Then one day I realized I had to get it done in honor of her and what she said. I knew she would like me to finish. I did complete the work and that piece hangs in my home in memory of my mother.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful post. Best wishes on getting the coastal piece finished. It is gorgeous already.

Thank you for stopping by and your kind comment.
Have a great weekend,
Blessings, Celestina Marie

The Woodbury's said...

I would love to see this project when you finish it...it will be a great gift for your daughter. (And, yes, I have unfinished stuff all over that place.) You certainly should be proud of that girl!

ALICE MARGAUX said...

Wow looks great!!
I found you through Bab's blog.
Your stichting looks great.
Happy weekend. Sunny kisses from Rio.

Anonymous said...

What a sweet story, Kathleen, and such a sweet little girl!

Oh, let me count the things that were left unfinished..sigh...But one project I did for my son was completed. It was a cross stitched design I saw in a magazine of colorful fish and added colorful buttons - like in a fish bowl. It turned out that the sweater was way too big and the buttons made it way too heavy. By the time he grew into it he was too 'old' to wear fish and buttons. Oh, well. There were other things I made him that worked out just fine, and he loved them.

But what a delightful ending to your story to see that her dreams of the sea never really left her, only altered, and that she is still divinely inspired by it all.

The cross stitch piece looks lovely, and oh, she'll be so happy to have it, and to know that it was begun 20 years ago when she was just a child. I agree...where does the time go?

Blessings for finished projects,

Marianne xo

Paula said...

Awwww.... that is such a precious story, Kathleen. And I love the picture.. :)

A Colorful World said...

Yes, I have many things like this! :-) I loved reading about your daughter and her love for the sea, though. She's in the perfect place to enjoy it right now, and even being in the Navy reflects those earlier dreams!

GardenOfDaisies said...

I have so many ufos. It is really terrible. You must be so proud of your little girl and the work she does with the Navy. My daughter is 24, too. The years really did go by way too fast.