Hello Lorraine,
The only thing that you need to check right now is the needle to be sure you have it in the correct way round, very easy to put the needle in the wrong way, it seems that you have checked everything, if you are using a fabric that builds up static make sure you use an anti static needle, if you are quite happy that you have checked everything and the machine is still missing stitches then it is possible the timing needs reseting, this can be done by yourself or someone else who is a bit handy or you can take it to a dealer for repair, anything you need to know just e-mail me, I can't visualize the front of your machine at the moment because there are so many models.
Ken
drivewithken@blueyonder.co.uk, August 2007