Happy New Year: I’m all in for 2024

I said I’d never do this again.

Then I changed my mind!

While finishing my second embroidery journal I thought of the free time I would have once I was done. I dreamed of all of the other things to do: some slow stitch Christmas ornaments, family tree research, reading some books, relaxing.

My 2023 embroidery journal.

Then I saw all of the blank canvasses posted on my Facebook embroidery groups - including Stitching A Round. That’s when I felt like I was missing out and I started planning a 2024 journal. It also dawned on me that I will turn 60 in November and it feels like that’s worth commemorating.

My sister Morgan shared the Stitching A Round group with me in October of 2021 and I knew immediately, without hesitation, that I wanted to give it a try. I rushed out to buy supplies and started the next day. I had embroidered a bit in the past and done some cross-stitching, but I literally had no idea what I was doing. (I used a permanent pen at the beginning and made a mistake, so I covered that mess with a big bush!)

I started this journey just one month after my father passed away and it has been a therapeutic way to reflect on life and work through my grief. I gave the 2021-22 journal to my daughter Abby. She loves it and has it displayed in her living room.

My 2021-22 journal.

The 2023 journal was a collaborative effort with my daughter Kate and every stitch is about her life: what she ate, what she did with her friends, the weddings she photographed, and of course, the antics of her dog Buddy. (He’s on there at least eight times.) Every few days I would text her something like this: “what about Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday?” She was tough and gave me some challenging things to stitch. For example, on February 27 she was in New York City visiting an ice cream museum with her friends so she sent me this text: “do six stick figures all holding ice cream cones with a disco ball above us 😂” I will sure miss bugging Kate.

Disco & Ice Cream

On Saturday, when I realized that I want to do another one, I decided to change it up and I went to the store and bought green fabric! I swear, I’m living on the edge!!

Ready for 2024!

By Randi Ross Marodi @ randileeross@gmail.com

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