Happiness

- Happiness is being able to sleep every night like a baby, after months and months of critical insomnia and not being able to have one single proper night (except with sleeping-pills).

- Happiness is sometimes best expressed through a few photos:

This is our new flatmate, Violette! Don't her eyes make you melt?

... And she's using her blankie! I made this in our previous flat, just before we moved in. There's one side for the summer:

And one side for winter:

I'm pretty proud of this as I designed it totally from scratch! I took scraps of fabrics (the fleece is a leftover from my sister's poncho - and Seb's scarf) and drew the cat to make an appliqué. This was my first go at appliqué too, and I'm happy I didn't mess it up!

- Happiness can be seen in a cat's eyes...

Mmmm cuddles are nice!

- ... And in her new friend's smile:

- Of course, happiness wouldn't be complete without a Happy Dance!

I hope you like him, San ! Actually, I can't help thinking of this cat as a she now - she's got exactly Violette's colours: light grey, cream and white... Isn't it a funny coincidence?

Happy Easter everyone!!

Feeling better

Hello everyone! It's been a while since I last posted... Well, I simply wasn't in the right mood or state...

We finally couldn't adopt Mimi last Saturday. At the last moment, her owner realized she simply couldn't spare her cat. I completely understand her position - I mean, how could you bear to part with such a gorgeous, adorable cat? But I think she should have realized that earlier, and that was a hard blow because I had really got attached to the cat and everything was ready for her! As you know, I kept thinking of her and that was my way of cheering myself up from the exhaustion and the stress of the move - and from my sickness.
So that's why I didn't write about it - I simply didn't have the heart to...

Now I've got myself used to the idea, and well, it's not as if the cat had died or something. Simply that her owner loves her too much!

But we had been talking on the Internet for 3 weeks, and if she had changed her mind earlier, I would have looked for another cat elsewhere and she'd already be at home.

Anyway... I browsed the online ads and the shelters' websites again, and of course, there are plenty of cats waiting to be adopted. We actually have an appointment to see a kitty this evening! But I'm forcing myself not to get too excited this time, because there may be other people already interested in adopting this cat.

The other thing is, I've been feeling better only since yesterday. That flu was very harsh! I thought I was starting to feel better last Wednesday, but that was only temporary and I felt very, very low all last week.

But it's really over now! I even managed to spare some extra time to stitch on San's fabric for our Margaret Sherry round robin. Here's my progress on Santa Claws:

"Santa Claws" progress on San's round robin fabric.

Nearly all the cross-stitch is done, apart from the tassel at the end of the hat. Then there'll still be the backstitching - but I find it fun!

I'm really not sure whether to stitch a background or not. I'm afraid it'll look weird, because the two other stitched squares on San's fabric don't have a background.

Oh, and you can also see how my fabric is going on Namuelle's blog. She stitched the next square, and she did a fantastic job! It's the perfect design for Spring too! My friend Namuelle lives in Provence, and she does wonderful stitching.

That's all for now... I also wanted t show you the cat blanket I made just before the move, since I found back my camera! But this post is long already, so it'll be for next time... Oh I do hope this blankie shall soon serve it's purpose!

Spring... has sprung!

It's Spring in Paris!

We can't believe the weather. Only two days ago it was below freezing, and today it was 20 ° Celsius (68 Fahrenheit). Just look at the little weather girl in the right-hand column! Everyone was looking so cheerful in the streets today. It feels so good to see the cafés' terraces filled with people again. You couldn't not have a smile on your lips today! Even when functioning with paracetamol like I were...

Hopefully this will last!

A few responses to your latest comments:
- Karen, I'm very lucky - actually I won't need to buy Mimi (the cat), although she's spayed and vaccinated and of course gorgeous. Her owner simply wants to give her to me (along with all her cat's things BTW!), provided I take good care of her. She's away from home from 7 am to 8 pm, and her cat was getting more and more depressed... Her vet advised her either to take a new cat to give Mimi company, or to find a home where the humans would be more present. You can tell this lady truly loves her cat can't you, since she's ready to part with her cat for the cat's happiness! She said that should anything go wrong with Mimi, she's ready to take her back.
- Then I received a very kind comment from a French-speaking reader... but you didn't sign it! Who are you? I'm thinking of several friends... so I'm a bit lost here and I'd like to know whom to thank!
- Gosia, I'm sure you're right - cats teach serenity for one thing!
- Don't worry, Kim, I'll make sure I take my camera to London!
- Carol, yes it's great news isn't it? Pity Beau and Mimi can't meet in person
- Ann, it's so good to read you again too

Thank you all so much for your kindness and good wishes. You inspire me to post more often... even though this entry is still not stitching/sewing related!

Internet is back... But I'm sick again

Good news: my Internet came back and I had a blast browsing through everyone's blogs! I had a lot to read (but not so much time), so I couldn't leave comments as I would have liked to. But I really enjoyed reading and looking at what you've all been up to!

Bad news: I'm feeling very poorly again. This is no wonder, considering the exhaustion and also the fact that we didn't get to eat properly lately and I guess I'm missing plenty of vitamins. I just hope this isn't a relapse from the flu I got rid of ten days ago. I have so much work, I simply don't know how I shall cope if I don't get my full energy back really soon.

Good news: we met our future cat last Saturday. She is such a beauty! We could even pet her a little and she seemed to appreciate our interest.
I found a picture online of a cat who looks a lot like her: cream, with a hint of red, and copper eyes. But this is not her!

Sébastien was conquered, too! We had a good talk with her present "owner" and agreed to take her home next Saturday. I'm constantly thinking of her. And this is a good incentive to get the flat all ready before she's there! Our new couch comes tomorrow and Seb made a trip to Ikea yesterday to buy some other stuff we'd chosen together over the Internet. Ikea is outside Paris, and it's a huge and tiresome trip without a car, so we agreed that we'll order the rest (i.e. bed stead, we previously used to sleep with our mattress on the floor) online. The delivery fee is 38 euros, but they're still the cheapest beds by far! And they're nice. I promise, I'll take pics of the flat once everything's ready.


Craft wise...
And here's a bit of stitching news at last... Still no stitching done, but I saw that Kitty from Kitty's Scritchings had some nice charts for sale - the kind you just can't find in France. So I really appreciate her shipping to France! I asked her two leaflets with designs that should whip up pretty quickly: "short and sassy" by Leisure Crafts, and "Harvest Mice" by Framecraft.

I'm also thinking more and more seriously of trying crazy quilting... I've always had that in the back of my mind, and then, just before the move I discovered some blogs showing amazing creations. I particularly enjoy visiting Chloe's place - her work is fascinating.
I guess I'm being ambitious but I'd really like to give crazy quilting a try once life gets back to normal.

However, right now it has to be work work work... and coping with the headache and sore limbs.
Ah well, at least there are some exciting things to look forward to.

Still no Internet...

Hello everyone!

I hope you're all well! :o)

I'm really missing writing here and even more reading everyone's blogs... But our Internet provider still hasn't connected our new home. After 8 days! So we need to connect with the phone line to retrieve our emails, and pay by the minute, which means I can't browse the Internet... :o( I miss you all so much!

But I just remembered that Blogger had an email-blogging feature, so I'm trying this right now. I hope it'll work!

Apart from that, our move is finally over and done with... We still have a few boxes unopened but that's because we need to buy a little furniture, as some of our old stuff wouldn't fit in here and I gave it back to my parents. Of course there has been no time to buy any furniture this week, what with work and trying to catch up with the exhaustion and all... We feel that this week is even rougher than the previous one! It has certainly been less stressful, but now we're really feeling the exertion of the past two weeks.

As you can guess, I haven't put a single stitch in any kind of fabric for more than 10 days. :'-(

But we really think we made the right decision in moving. This flat is so perfectly quiet and has so much character. And we love the streets around us. Plenty of little shops and restaurants. It feels kind of crazy to live in such an animated spot of Paris, and yet not to hear a single sound from our own flat, except for the birds and the seagulls (yes, seagulls... We're not far from the canal Saint-Martin, and seagulls like it there!).

We'll be meeting our - maybe - future cat tomorrow. I really hope this'll turn out to be the right combination, both for her and for us! I've been dreaming of that cat every night lately - along with dreaming I was filling shelves with books, and wardrobes with clothes, and cupboards with plates and groceries...

Am I getting crazy? ;o)

Have a great, great week-end everyone. I'm so much looking forward to being able to go online and read what everyone has been up to since last week! :o)

Last post from the 12th arrondissement

Hello everyone!

Well I guess this will be my last post from the 12th arrondissement of Paris. Next time, we'll be in our new flat in the 11th!

Next week I'll be also meeting a cat who may do me the favour to live in our flat! A lady in Paris is looking for someone to adopt her Persian cat. She works out of home from 7.30 am to 8 pm, so her cat is getting depressed, and she thinks her cat deserves a better home... I really hope this will work out. Only trouble is, Seb doesn't want a cat that would be too flat-nosed... (I don't care, I love 'em all!). So, fingers crossed that he'll fall in love with the kitty! And above all that she'll feel comfortable with us. We'll be visiting the lady and her cat on March 8. Can't wait.

OK, I'd better go pack a little bit more and then go to bed...
Thank you so much for your words of support! I so much look forward to being settled down - and being able to blog again!