Happy, Happy, Happy to You!!

Since my last post, I've enjoyed some fun sewing and crafting (and I have photos of those projects which I hope to show you very soon), but this is a glimpse of what's mostly been going on the past month...

...and more to come. Family and friends, that's what it's all about this time of year:) I hope you're enjoying your days and doing all of your favorite things too! Best wishes to you and yours this holiday season!!

Marilyn

Blizzards and robins.....it doesn't seem right!

I love the relaxed feel of a snow day...no place to go, nothing pressing to do.


Strolling by the front door this morning, instead of rushing out of it, I noticed this robin helping herself--I know nature requires male robins as well, but I always seem to refer to them as 'she'--to some berries on our crabapple tree. I was happy she did--we're experiencing a blizzard here in the midwest and I can't imagine how that must feel to our outdoor creature friends.


I was tickled that she seemed to pose for me....."would you like me to turn left? right? or straight on?" Just stay warm little robin, that's what I'd like.

I hope those of you living with snow these days, which seems to be the major part of the country, are staying warm and safe too!!

Marilyn

A Little More Christmas...

Karla hosted a lovely holiday craft day about a week or so before Christmas. We crafted and ate a delicious lunch and crafted some more! There was also an ornament exchange. Lucky me got to bring home this beauty that Beth made...I love it!!


I made this one with little girls in mind...

(front)

(back)

...so was pleased when Shawn and her daughter, Bethany received mine;)

A few more ornaments I put together for the girls in our family...


And a glimpse at our tree that I didn't get up and decorated this year until December 20th! But here it is on Christmas Eve all ready for a visit from Santa, which is what really counts, right?


It was a very merry Christmas day at our house---I hope yours was too!

Marilyn

More Guilty Pleasures

Ten days post-op and feeling amazing. Minimal pain and, of course, less energy but I'm not complaining. It's a good time for things like coloring...


I love to color! I especially like coloring books that I can get from Dover and Bellerophon; and also mandala coloring pages that can be downloaded from different sites online.

But I really love my prismacolor pencils!


If you use colored pencils, you know what I mean...laying down color with these is practically effortless and even meditative:)

And puzzles...the dining room table is currently covered with 1000 puzzle pieces. Seeing the table reminds me of my grandparents who frequently worked jigsaw puzzles, although I think they used a card table. Guess they used the dining table for crazy things like big meals or something!


So far, the outside border and the cornflakes box are put together. No rush, it's a process, lol! The part of the process I really like is when I walk by the table, pick up a puzzle piece and magically drop it into its proper place! The part I don't like is having 100 or so pieces that seem to all be the same color--green, in the case of this puzzle!

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The fabric I ordered for my Doll Quilt Swap 7 quilt came in the mail on Tuesday. I'm excited to get started!

Marilyn

Home and Doing Great!

Thank you, everyone, for your good thoughts and well wishes--I took them all to heart! Everything went very well, I came home Tuesday afternoon and feel considerably improved with each day!


Family and friends have spoiled me with flowers, cards, gifts and meals.


(I even got my own box of Skittles Crazy Cores, like the ones I sent to my mini quilt swap partner.) And how do you like this pretty bicycle horn?! The card reads "Beep for service"! Hehee!


I've had one moment of inspiration this week...while reading a new quilt magazine, I got an idea for Doll Quilt Swap 7. It's all sketched out and I've ordered the fabric from Hancock's. Can't wait to get started :)

Now.....this is where I must tell you about Rick suggesting that he take a picture of my stitches for the blog to show you my 'stitching' for the week:) LOL, what a goof! (Get your own blog, darlin'!)

Actually, the rest of my week was mostly spent with what I would usually call guilty pleasures--things that just fill up time, nothing more--crossword puzzles, magazines, movies, NAPS. I did manage a little crocheting and stitching, and snipping ephemera, and then more NAPS! But no guilt here, not this week:)

Speaking of ephemera...Lucky Me!!...last weekend, I heard from Mary that the random number generator picked me for her July Give Away! I'm very excited--Mary can come across some really incredible ephemera!!

One last thought...isn't it interesting how different one year can be from the previous year? A year ago Monday we left Kansas City headed for a week in Eagle Nest, NM. Rick and I have had the best time this week remembering that trip. The photo album has been out on the coffee table for us to refer to and things have come to mind that we hadn't thought about since returning home. It really can be a lot of fun!


For example, a year ago today we spent the day in Taos, NM...a perfectly gorgeous day! We ate the most delicious lunch and the sights, the sounds, the smells were the kind that fill my soul! And now, recalling it all, I'm filled again:)

Hope you're having a good weekend...

Marilyn

A Pretty Little Christmas...Blog Party

Heather (Pretty Petals) is hosting "A Pretty Little Christmas" Blog Party today. She has invited everyone, that wants to participate, to blog about your own Pretty Little Christmas...anything you like...whatever makes your heart sing. Sounds like fun!

So, here goes...WELCOME!

First, I want to show you the Holiday Book that I started making on craft day last week, and have now completed. It was a fun project!


Now, let me show you what makes my heart sing...the Christmas decorations and ornaments that hold extra special meaning...


From my very first Christmas, this angel bell--a gift from Santa Claus. I love her heart shaped lips and chubby little cheeks:)


When Rick was two years old, his father was away at Christmas, in Korea, serving in the army. In the gifts that his father sent back to the family that year, was this Santa and reindeer for Rick. It's great fun...each Christmas, at least once, we sit on the kitchen floor, wind it up and watch Santa travel in a big circle. There is a bell on the back that rings and sounds like an old bicycle bell:)


Giving Santa a little help, perhaps, are these elves...



My mother loved Christmas and always decorated BIG for the holidays! I think it was about 25 years ago that she was running out of room for all of her decorations and asked me to go through some of the older things and keep what I wanted. The elves came home with me and I love them as much today as I did years ago. They kind of remind me of Snow White's seven dwarfs, if only there was one more--maybe it's Dopey that's missing. (hmmm, it suddenly occurred to me how politically incorrect the Snow White story is.)

This angel also came from my mother--she gave it to me because she knew how much I loved it. I photographed her surrounded by the glass ball ornaments because Mom used those a lot in her decorating. She had glass ornaments tucked here...there...everywhere! It was beautiful.


The box that the angel came in is great too. Adler's was one of the big department stores in downtown Kansas City, and downtown was a hopping place when I was growing up. Department store windows were filled with magic--decorated trees, motorized dolls and woodland animals...there were holiday lights everywhere...and huge crowns hung across the streets.


Rick and I have inherited several ornaments, some from his parents and some from mine. I really love them all...


but this little church that came from Rick's family is one of my favorites.


The ballerina ornament was my mother's. I thinks she looks like she could be a dancer in the Nutcracker ballet.


I love the winter ivory clothing this young couple is wearing. Mom loved dolls so it was natural for her to be attracted to, and buy, porcelain doll ornaments.


A tiny bear that was Mom's when she was a little girl. So sweet.


And I just had to share these vintage greeting cards with you!




Lastly, a peace dove that I made two Christmases ago...


May your holidays be filled with peace and joy.

Thank you for taking the time during this busy season to come for a visit!

For more pretty little blog parties, click the button below...Heather has a wonderful list of participants for you to visit.




Marilyn

Holiday Weekend

Yahoo! I got a chance to play with paper and glue today!

Due to the "I think I'll paint the craft room" project and a few other events (Thanksgiving), crafting just hasn't been happening around here. I was beginning to feel some withdrawal setting in, but fortunately, I had taken on leading a couple of ornament making sessions for the Christmas tree at church.

This morning, a dozen or so adults and I folded these stars using pages from art magazines...

and made some peace doves...

I would agree that they are somewhat elementary...I wasn't sure what the skill levels were going to be and it turned out even these were a bit tricky for a couple of the folks:) I was just glad to be cutting and using glue, at any level.

I did finish painting the craft room--purple on one wall, tan on the other three...

and moved all of my stuff back into the room, but this shelf is all that got organized...

so on Wednesday night, I closed the door and looked forward to a nice long weekend.

We had a very nice Thanksgiving Day...I hope that you and your family/friends did too.


And yesterday, all of our kids were here for KU/MU Border War football. Not everyone was supporting the same team but it stayed friendly and fun. I didn't really care who won (football doesn't interest me much) so I picked KU because my KU t-shirt looks nicer than my raggedy MU t-shirt, hehee. Everyone brought a snack and I think we ate as much as we did on Thanksgiving--after just two days of turkey, it was nice to have something different.

It was exactly the nice long weekend I looked forward to!

Any guesses what I'll be getting back to tomorrow?

Marilyn

Suddenly, There's Stuff Everywhere!

Sometimes, without warning, life takes on that crazy whirlwind effect, doesn't it? I do understand, for some of you, life is a constant whirlwind, not just for several days or a few weeks. I remember balancing forty hour work weeks and family, a wonderful family mind you, but a house with four kids and five pets IS a whirlwind. Thank goodness for my incredible husband--we made a good team. Still do, but things have slowed down some with just the two of us in the house.

So, the whirlwind...that's my dad, literally, for as long as I can remember and he hasn't stopped yet. A widower for five years, he went to his 60th high school class reunion in June where he met up with a woman, a former classmate, also widowed, for 11 years. In spite of her living 900 miles away, they were immediately inseparable and married on September 4th. My growing-up-house went on the market, sold in a week and they're packing up to move to Corpus Christi, TX. Whew!

After my mom died, my sister and I, over time, helped my dad look through some of her personal items. We kept special pieces and packed up the rest to move along. Because of Dad's big move, the past two or three days have been a re-living of that process. He isn't interested in taking a whole lot with him and I understand that, and my two brothers aren't interested in much either. So in we went again, my sister and I, with an eye out for the special things...photographs, books, dishes, knick-knacks, sewing supplies and some pretty linens made by who knows who. My mother did not crochet or embroider, but my grandmother did so perhaps they're her handiwork.

Mom did love dolls, though, and we knew we would find some of her old favorites in a cedar chest in the basement. I just love these three and chose them to bring home with me. They need a little TLC but I enjoy doing that. And take a look at that great old doll quilt!


We also found a box of doll clothes and accessories. So adorable! Do you see the "Monday" undies, on the right hand side underneath the "Dolsox"? Heehee, kinda makes you wonder what happened to Tuesday through Sunday.


Do any of you know anything about the doll on the right? I never saw this particular one prior to Monday and haven't taken the time yet to do any research. It's very unusual--the arms and legs seem to be a bendable metal coil and her hands and feet remind me of Mickey Mouse's. I'm quickly becoming attached and would love to know something about her:) (Thurs., Sept. 18 - UPDATE - Last night, I was able to find this information online: "1938 Fanny Brice as Baby Snooks, 12" tall, flexy doll with wire mesh torso and a metal cable thru arms & legs. IDEAL DOLL." Interesting.)



As I go along, I'll try to share some more of my fun finds with you. Thanks for coming along with me on my little trip down memory lane.

Marilyn

Camera in Hand

I just had to photograph these veggies that Rick bought at farmer's market! He had them arranged in this basket and I couldn't resist their beauty--the imperfection of the heirloom tomatoes and the colors called for an informal photo shoot. And so easy...they were already posed!

This fella showed up pretty quickly and posed too, although it looks to me like he is readying himself for take off.

I guess not, cool!

Feeling lucky, I took a stroll by the Butterfly Bush. Not exactly posing but cooperative.

Butterfly lantern, easy peasy.

There's a bee in the Rose of Sharon, but this is as close as I cared to get!

No insects here..just Pampas Grass, blowing in the breeze against the blue sky. Pretty.


Wishing you a lovely weekend.

Marilyn