Happy New Year!

Wasn't it all grand?

I can only hope that your Christmas week was as wonderful as ours.

Pure joy filled our time with lots of family, fun, food & presents!

There was time for rest and for play.

What could be better?

Just a few of the gifts I received!

The Knitter's Book of Yarn

Folk Style

The New Year's Quilt

At Knit's End

If you get some time take peek.

Happy Hobbies!

Celebrate!

Blessings to you and yours!

Merry Christmas!!

Christmas is coming!

At least that's the song that keeps playing in my head. It's the John Denver and the Muppets version from 1979 to be exact! Who doesn't love to hear Miss Piggy sing? We've been listening to the whole CD for the last week.

The little people are getting into the Christmas spirit despite the cold Little Mr. I'm 5 has and the nasty little stomach bug that took a hold on Little Miss Finally 4! We started the trees on Saturday. We put the little 3 foot trees in their rooms. They unloaded their ornament boxes and full of joy they decorated away! HobbyHubby and I did plenty of oohing and awing! So fun.

We put the Living Room tree up on Sunday. The little people were sooooooooooooo excited!! They did a fine job placing most of the unbreakables and I put all of the fragile ornaments on the top. HobbyHubby supervised and put the hooks on ornaments! It brings such joy to me to look at each ornament and remember where they all came from. We always had our own boxes at my parents' house which we then brought into our own homes.

I have my very first ornament from 1972. Isn't Humpty Dumpty so cute?

Okay... the picture is a tad blurry!My grandmother gave me many of her old ornaments.

Most are very brittle but I love them so much!

Here is her older brother Albert's horn from 1906.

(again, not the best photo)

Isn't that amazing?

I love having that 101 year-old ornament on my tree.

Check out the pink glass boot.

Another of her oldies!

Auntie B. quilted the tree skirt and gave it to me in 1993 as a bridal shower gift!

I have love on the tree and under it too!

On to some gifts...

Here are some happy little aprons I embellished for my best gal pal E.'s twins.

So fun! Remember Lucy Grey? Well, she was supposed to be for me, but someone I know really liked her after the felting. You know I had to embellish her with a bit of needle felting. I lined her and soon she'll be wrapped up. Any guesses as to the recipient?

This elf has just a few things more for the little people.

I must sew. Sew I must!

Happy Hobbies!

The stockings were hung...

by the chimney with care in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there...

I think I made these stockings in 2003 with a bit of assistance from Auntie B. and they bring such joy and anticipation when we hang them each year. The little people have been loading them up and then pretending it's Christmas morning. It is quite a production!

The decorating is happening at a slow pace. Just a bit here and there this week and last.

HobbyHubby and I plan to get the small trees out for the little people and ready for decorating Saturday morning.

They love having the little trees in their own room.

I guess we'll put the big tree up this weekend too!

Happy Hobbies!

Swap update!

My giftie made it to Leanne in Australia!

Craftygirl

She opened it, so now I can share it with you.

It was a pleasure to make!

A fun little pattern using a charm pack!

Happy Hobbies!

The Presents Are Here!!

Very exciting for me!!

My swap package arrived yesterday!

It came from England!

I opened the package and found 4 happy looking presents!

Even one for Little Mr. I'm 5 and Little Miss Finally 4.

How kind.

The little people tried to talk me into opening them.

I must be honest I'm typically one to open gifts as they come in the door, but I'm trying to stick with Chookyblue on this and wait until Christmas morning!

I guess that will be a post for December 26th!

Happy Hobbies!

Christmas is coming...

but I didn't work on presents!

I was too busy working on stuff for me! SELFISH!

Sometimes a girl has to do what she has to do!

Finally caught up with Crazy Mom Quilts and her Quilt-A-long.

I'll be ready for week 4 instructions tomorrow!

Finished the first of my Maine Morning Mitts.

So much room for improvement!

My first attempt at any thing glove-like, OBVIOUSLY!

I started this project off on Friday night and worked up until the point where you begin the thumb gusset. Much to my own grief, I couldn't figure out what to do next or how to do it.

At some point during the umpteenth time of rereading the pattern I actually heard that cartoon sound in my empty head (YOU KNOW THE ONE...where the sound is hollow and brainless and the character's eyes just go in circles over and over again!).

Off to bed I went!

Saturday morning, I sat down, looked at the directions and the world was right again.

I COULD think. It was quite SIMPLE!

Gusset... schmusset! It is not a perfect mitt by any means, but I'm happy with my first fingerless mitt attempt!

Back to the needles for me!

Happy Hobbies!