And it just keeps getting bigger.........

A bit more piecing and a bit more stitchery done this weekend although precious little of it this afternoon

I've added another round to my plaid quilt - this time random QSTs with some cream inserts for more stitchery. The cream sort of jumps out and hits you in the top photo but I think once I've worked the stitchery on it then it won't be quite so glaring.

I also decided that the centre alphabet looked as though it was floating in mid air a bit too much so added some variegated green vines and russet hearts around it. The green thread has a wider range of tones than the russet and I'm not keen on the very light bits - but I'm not pulling it out now - the stitching is too small and I'd no doubt end up with holes. I might get a fabric pen and touch it up a little to darken it if it continues to bother me so much - we'll see, I think I shall have to sleep on this one.

I still can't make up my mind what to stitch in the other cream areas - I had thought nursery rhymes, an ABC rhyme or other child-like things but now I'm thinking more along the line of proverbs or old fashioned sampler like sayings - no doubt just the right thing will come to me in a flash of inspiration.

I've also worked some little turquoise/aqua hearts in the corners of the HST round and intend to use other variegated floss colours to make the stitchery across the whole quilt more random too.

As for no stitching getting done today that's because I spent the afternoon with Sarah at Cullompton in the neighbouring county of Devon at the Regional Rugby Trials for the South West South squad.

She had a pretty good session despite being in severe pain at one point with the IBS and much to her absolute whooping delight (and ours of course, after we'd ascertained that all the screeching racket was down to delight and not severe pain somewhere) she had the phone call this evening to tell her she's in the squad!!! The IBS left her so run down and ill this time last year that she didn't get past the trials so this evening's news was doubly sweet.

She's also in the thick of Science GCSE Modular exams at the moment and was in a terrible state (again with the IBS) on Friday for the Chemistry module - fortunately with a cocktail of medication and enforced duvet rest beforehand along with some aromatherapy massage and a few arrow prayers from me we managed to bring it down to a copeable level during the morning and the exam went okay in the afternoon. Biology was last Tuesday which wasn't so bad and the final one Physics is tomorrow. Hopefully knowing that she's got the Rugby Trials over and done with and having secured a much longed for place will help take some of the stress off and mean she's okay for school tomorrow. She is her own hardest taskmaster which also exascerbates the problem

She had managed a really long spell with little ill effects from May through to just before Christmas but then, we think as a result of antibiotics for an ear infection, the whole thing reared its ugly painful head again - of course stress is a big contributory factor which is kind of unavoidable at this stage in her education.

She will have loads more exams in late Spring/early Summer so we really do need to get some relaxation techniques in place and sort out the medication regime to cope with it all.

I wouldn't want to go back to being 15/16 years old for all the tea in China.

From a parent's perspective nobody tells you about these things at ante-natal classes all those years ago - do they? :o)