a blessed Christmas!

busy with few last minute cooking tasks...when done, it'll be time to enjoy the day.   hoping you have loved ones close because that's all that really counts....all the rest is window dressing....we celebrate the birthday of a King, not the jolly fat man or most everything else that comes with him...may the warm memories of this and past Christmases remain with you in the years ahead...

one week to go....

are you almost ready?  speaking to my quilty peeps here, many busily finishing handmade gifts and cramming in decorating, baking along with usual....calm and bright in my neighborhood.  some early gifts came my way this week....

way to go Santa!  totally surprised with this bundle of neutral threads that both my vintage machines will love...

and just yesterday this arrived....

a box chock full of quilty and hand made goodies...oh and some chocolate too!  pretty sure mrs. claus is a quilter aren't you? 

the next gift received was from my drug plan....they have now included eliquis, the blood thinner, in my coverage.  wahoooo!  i've been off anticoagulants since july (a bit of russian roulette), but another bleeding related surgery had to be avoided.  thanks be to God for this potentially life-saving benefit.  i feel so very blessed....

in addition to little jaunts with the scooter (when weather permits), been quilting on the DWR and applique on this project, just about ready for basting and added to the quilty pile...

all the kaffe scraps have now been cut into tumblers too...

end of the year always finds me excited with anticipation....a new start, a clean slate, the decks cleared and raring to go...i wish i could inject that feeling into all whose lives are less than pleasant, as there are so very many, even within my small sphere, with various burdens.  i've learned to live with my grief while others are just starting that journey.  i've been blessed with excellent healthcare, caregivers whose care and advice have enhanced the quality of my life.  even tho i am what many consider poor, my life overflows with blessings every day....praying you find blessings in your life as well...

four finishes

a cold and snowy weekend just the ticket for finishing up some things that were lying around annoying me....

a pin cushion and ornament meant for a swap that i had to drop...

next came the 2 remaining microwave bowls just needing a sew up from where they were turned...

a lobster print and a crab print.....equal opportunity!  next a stitchery done last year but never finished....

it was photographed lying on a table and not wonky at all...just a sleeve and ribbon to hang.  the stitchery was a freebie by anni downs of 'hatched and patched', a shop in australia...these are free every christmas...you can hop on over and get this year's...

now the table can be tidied to move on to other stuff, like the kaffe tumblers and continue quilting on the scrappy DWR....plenty cold here and we did get about an inch of white stuff sunday...homemade chicken soup ready and more cookie baking.  also this week a bit of garment sewing on the list to use up some free fabric.  i'm already in the new year mindset and getting my UFO ducks in a row.   it's been a low key, pared down holiday season and quite enjoyable, able to relax and take in many excellent holiday specials online.  have a blessed and peaceful week!  

weekend update

temps moderate today so will harness the sleigh and head to local grocery for a few things and get a good dose of fresh air before another cold snap...on the quilty front it was a hit and a miss this week...

the last border on the pumpkin sent this to wonky world...i did measure twice...can only think the HSTs and their bias edges were the culprit...so off with the binding and tweak the border, then rebind...it looked ok before the border was added so might just leave it off...stay tuned....

the quilting hoop was promptly filled with this...

the scrappy DWR.....it's the next-to-last bed size quilt in process....so darn cozy having a big quilt on your lap in winter....the apartment is warm but the quilt is snuggly...

my favorite christmas decoration?

dear woodstock in his nest waiting for santa....it was a school art project by my daughter made from fragile construction paper...i just had to recreate in fabric and keep for always...

most of my christmas decorating and prep is done so i can relax in the evening with my hoop and watch specials on TV.....

my little tree lights are on when i'm home to enjoy every day.....my family has to make extra effort to be joyful...we've no little kids that exude that frenzied excitement and losses seem to multiply that want to overshadow...but we focus on each other and the real reason for the season, hanging on to a few traditions to remind us of our shared love....

december rolls on

even though most of the world is in a holiday frenzy, things are quiet and serene here in middle earth maryland...my shopping is done, most cards mailed, christmas dinner contributions planned, apartment decorated.  one thing was missing tho....

christmas pillowcases!  i had changed bed linens and put the quilt on but oh no!!  no christmas pillowcases!  as providence would have it, a member of our friday group donated a couple bags of stash detritus and therewas this christmas print....geese with neck wreaths...pulled out a green toile for the cuffs and here they are....made a skosh larger than pattern as my pillows are quite fluffy.  

quilting the pumpkin panel and cutting out more kaffe tumblers rounded out sewing for the week.

another gift arrived last week....a sortof santa dropped by with my very own sleigh!!

i joke and tell people my apartment is furnished by Uncle Sam aka Medicare....only half right!  the PT admonished me sternly to NOT depend on it too much....so i still exercise and walk as much as possible, but no longer confined to quarters.  there is a plaza close by and various other places PLUS the ever-enticing library....only dependent on weather...going to store by myself is a definite high.  

a scale (from Medicare) helps monitor for fluid retention but this time of year it can be a grinch, so taking this advice....

wishing you a blessed and calm week....remember the reason for the season!

a momentous day!!

much anticipated day when i finally have finished my quilt....it was a long and sometimes uncertain hiatus...thanks be to God and all his caregiver servants...i dedicate this quilt to them!

say hello to 'wildest dreams'.....72" square, blocks are hand pieced and top is machine pieced, then densely hand quilted by me...definitely a humble quilt as it took a bit to get back in my quilting groove but i love it just the same....a very satisfying feeling of accomplishment.  with my very last PT visit yesterday, putting my patient persona on the back burner for a very long time...i hope!  next???

since snow is in the forecast....not us but getting closer...time to get this autumn panel done and put away until next year....just some outline quilting and bind for a speedy finish...then either Baskets I or II  will take its place....another finish this year???  hope springs eternal!

my tree is up and this little sentiment is just perfect for me....love love love multicolor christmas lights...especially on pine trees with snowy boughs....

decorations are nice but i never forget the real reason for the season...especially with the blessings i've received this year....

onward to christmas!

 as a true mainer, this is the kind of tree i love....

with a lot of free time over the holiday, cruising the 'net i found ancestors on both sides who were in maine in the 1600s...so there you have it....what else did i do to keep busy?

finished this little snowmen wall quilt for dear daughter who visited and now resides in her home...a quick wash and it might be on her door already!  she spied the red/green economy block scrappy and requested that as well...

turkey day awoke late and spent most of day quilting, now on last side of 'wildest dreams'...cruising instagram and reading blogs...baked cookies...pulled out christmas tote....texting family in maine....today absolutely must clean fridge and more quilting of course!

word to the wise sewist...

have a blessed day!

gloomy day diversions

pre-winter here in MD means start of the gloomy season....gray skies, often rain, sometimes ice...in a word...BLAH!  thankfully i have kaffe fabrics to cheer me up....the scraps morphed into their second version....

oh yeah i am liking this one a  lot....have a baggie of them all prepped...size undetermined and, no surprise, another project using up more scraps has taken root in the gray matter....only 16 of 8-inch blocks and more playtime for me.....what else brewing?

quilty detour to get this finished so DD can pick it up over holiday....

like me she'll be putting up christmas soon after turkey day....and needed something new for her front door...

believe it or not, had never ever made microwave bowls before this week....lickety split had 3 prepped and one done...

this morning watched thanksgiving parade from america's hometown and mine too, really....plymouth, massachusetts!  boston dialect so familiar and fun to hear again....

lots of nice floats and bands....it was raining there and it did last year as well...did you know that 10% of the US population are mayflower descendants?  imagine that percentage will dwindle in years to come...the parade is chronological so starts out before pilgrims' arrival with this float...

fun to watch while waiting for bird to thaw....someone generously gave me a turkey and some vegs which i'll share of course....it's 15# and tho i like turkey, it does get way too repetitious when cooking for one.  some church is here today with a big dinner but i seldom go because of my salt restriction...plus this yankee doesn't care for southern dishes....collards, sweet potato pie and the like.  none of it suitable for  me personally or anyone really who watches their health.   

made my list that should keep me occupied until thanksgiving when i hope to take the weekend getting christmas on display....my blood counts have been low since surgery in july and ramping them up with meds and diet is restoring my energy level, feeling more like myself again....now to find a magician for my knees....LOL!   

redo report

dropped out of reproquiltlover's economy blocks sew along, but did manage to sew up a fair number of them...first attempt at using them up failed but after a blogger's suggestion, tweaked a bit and settled on this...a red binding should finish it nicely

now a flimsy, had to sew up a few more to get it square....looks like the right side border needs a redo....plan B did the trick!

plan B also worked for the kaffe scraps....overflowing shoebox has been tamed!

pulled out all the very small scraps and the nickels went into the nickel shoebox...this is what's left...and a project has been chosen...

yeah they are small but have this stack to cut up and use....no time limit on it at all...but a nice change of pace project for machine time....

winter is ahead and basically confined to quarters, so the bright prints should offset the gloom, both external and internal....

and finished this placemat to use after the holidays...

put flannel in the middle and finished it off envelope style....next is finish up a few other things PLUS wildest dreams.  new year approaches and must get lists ready and game on for 2026!

saw this which suits me perfectly....my mom often remarked how she never dreamed that first 4-H sewing class would be a lifelong passion for me....

i got uninvited for thanksgiving so have formulated plan B, which is to turn the apartment into christmas...plan to cook a few traditional yankee must haves, watch the parade (love those rockettes!) and play christmas music....now full speed ahead to the week!!

brrr tuesday

verry chilly this morning.....31 degrees, which is akin to the arctic for marylanders....any day perfect to remember and honor all our veterans...

always deeply honored for anything i can do for them!

good to sew in any weather as well....up early this morning for some scrap playtime...cut some kaffe squares first...

meh....doesn't do much for me....will make a few more and use as placemat....no biggie if it gets stained...back to the drawing board for the kaffe scraps

next pulled out the red/green scrappy economy blocks made earlier this year....

had pulled some background pieces and sewed some twosies...uninspiring but will sew more and play around with them.....

and got the "semi" sewing bug?  that's semiquincentennial....pulled out this pattern thinking i might make one eagle....fabric on hand....still mulling it over....

and a dive into the senior center's scrap tote revealed these....some autumn fabrics for a future project and some neutrals.....

always dreaming of this.....

gremlins busy overnite with computer and blogger is always temperamental....so annoying....have a blessed day and  keep warm!