Christmas is Well and Truly over

You can tell by the photos that Christmas is over.  Hubby, mom and Shadow are relaxing.  Christmas was wonderful. I love spending time with the two most favorite people in my life, and my darling dog.

The week between Christmas and New Years has always been my favorite. A time to relax, take stock, make lists, plan for the future, both personal improvements and Quilting. A time to sit in my nightie and drink coffee, play on the computer, watch TV and THINK.    

Plans for this year:
- continue with (restart after holiday) low GI Diet plan
- begin with my Personal Trainer Natalie, starting Jan 6th
- begin working with a Dietitian in February
- work on organizing and cleaning up the basement shelves and crawl space
- this year I will begin the job of Web Master for our Quilt Guild
- I have signed up for Sharon Boggon's TAST
- finally, act on my list of unfinished quilts, either complete them, plan a completion date or donate    the unfinished blocks 

                                            

                                                                 UFOs

Ø  Femme Fatale wall hanging

Ø  Hearts and Flowers

Ø  Orchid Sashiko

Ø  Victorian Bouquet

Ø  Scrappy Lattice

Ø  Newfoundland  trip wall hanging

Ø  Sunbonnet Sue

Ø  Mauve blocks that I won

Ø  Red flower Tinners

Ø  Garden Embroidery Quilt

Ø  Red work Sue Quilt

Ø  Shadows Wall hanging

Ø  New York Beauty

Ø  Scrap Half Square Triangles

Ø  Needle case, felt

Ø  Baltimore Album

Ø  Yellow Brick road

Ø  Brick and Blocks

Ø  Pink and Blue Baby Quilt

Eatons Embroidered blocks

So that is my plan for the new year. I am trying to keep it simple and not to overwhelming. The list of UFO'a might grow as I remember more unfinished projects.

Merry Christmas to All and to all a Good Night

Hubby took me out to a quilt shop in Millbrook earlier this week and bought me a special present. This quilt shop also sells giftware and specializes in Jim Shore, Hubby know that I love fairies so he bought me this.

Tonight we will begin with our traditional Christmas eve supper, Tourtiere and salad  and when we come home we will have Tea and Christmas cake and shortbread. 

Later tonight we will attend church where this is a live nativity, well really it is the children and some live sheep. I am looking forward to it. The church will be decorated so beautifully and we begin in darkness and all have a lit candle until the first hymn is sung.                    

Christmas morning we will have the "Christmas Morning Wife Saver" with fruit and coffee. No lunch will be served this day,  however will have our Christmas dinner around 5pm.

Turkey, Stuffing, Gravy, Turnip Puff, Mashed Potatoes and Coleslaw, later on in the evening we will have our dessert |Lemon Mousse.

Boxing Day I am having my Sister-in-law and her family for supper. We are having Baked Ham, Rice Pilaf, Green Beans, Carrots and for dessert Trifle and Tea. My nephew is a Chef and he is also going to bring Creme Brulee, how decadent. 

Gospel - Luke 2:15-20When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." And they went with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they saw it they made known the saying which had been told them concerning this Child; and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Merry Christmas to all!

Take a Stitch Tuesday 2012

I have joined  TAST 2012 so help improve my embroidery stitches and learn some new ones. I have done a couple of small Crazy Quilt pillow projects but my skills are rusty.

So for those of you looking for a challenge consider joining.

Facial

I had a fabulous afternoon, courtesy of my DH , First I received a dozen red roses as a "happy Christmas to my darling wife" and then I went for a facial (also courtesy of hubby) at Girlie Girls. A full hour on my back wrapped in a warm pink blanket.  I had my facial listening to lovely Bluesy Christmas music. It was a dream.

 I hope you all have the chance of some relaxation over this busy holiday season.

Noah's Ark

As I think I have mentioned I belong to a quilting group at my church. We spend one day a week hand quilting.

A few months ago I picked up a panel at the local "Fabricland", my intention being to use it to practice  machine quilting. Well instead of machine quilting, I took it into church  and it was hand quilted by some of the ladies. We always have one large quilt and one baby quilt on the frames at any one time. The baby quilts are always a panel. We sell them for $50-60.  I personally think it is a lot of work quilting for a panel but they are cheap to buy, quilt up nicely and seem to sell almost as fast as we can get them finished.

Right now our large quilt is a bit of a rescue mission.  It is a beautiful queen size cross stitched top which the quilting had been started on when the owner suddenly took ill. She had been quilting on a lap frame. After she took ill the quilt was put in a green garbage bag and sat there for some years. When it was brought to us it had a large coffee stain on on it (in several places). We have removed all of the previous quilting and mounted the quilt on a frame with new batting.  We have begun the quilting without cleaning first because quilting lines are preprinted on the fabric and if we pre-wash we will lose all the lines.    

Noah's Ark

 

Working On

It is that time of year again when everyone is so busy with preparation for the holidays. I have the tree decorated and am working on some projects .The main thing that I am working on I can't show because it is a gift for a wedding that I will be attending in January. However I can show you a couple of things.

First is a blanket that I crocheted for a cousin's baby. Baby boy was born a month ago and his name is Malachi.

The second item I have just finished is a prayer shawl. There is a knitting group at church. The ladies get together once a week and knit prayer shawls for those who are sick or in need in some way or other. I belong to the quilting group (who meet on the same day) so I don't attend the knitting group but I knit/crochet at home. The wool is all donated and I picked up a bag of greys/black and added some white and some colours. I saw an afghan made over at , hooked on needles and I loved it. I thought that it would be just the thing to use up little bits of yarn. I think that I will make an afghan out of scraps of the yarn that I have.  Finally I have to leave you two pictures of the most beautiful little girl in the world my baby Shadow.

Next time I will have some pictures of a baby quilt that I am finishing for my
church quilt group.