Holidays

While 'cleaning' out my camera I found a few more holiday photos.

St. Nikolaus Day

Christmas Breakfast

Sunny Frankie

Presents

I totally forgot to show you the lovely Christmas gifts I received from my friend Coleen. The little bag is perfect for my new sock knitting project and I love the basket, so handy to keep all the little things I use for sewing and knitting close to me. Not in the picture are several bags of kitty treats that turned my little darlings into addicted monsters. ;-) Boy, they sure love those treats!

And from Santa Del I got new sock yarn. When I told him what color I wanted (pea green with orange and purple) his reaction was: 'Well, they are your socks.' Guess that means I don't have to knit any for him. :-)

Yuck!

This is not how I had planned to spend the end of the year. I caught a stomach bug and was out cold for 24 hours. I am feeling better but I am still sore all over and stiff from laying in bed for a whole day and two nights.
I hope this thing is going to leave me soon and pray that it will not take up residence in Del.
Legend has it that how you spend the time between the years will influence the way the new year will be going, I just hope it does not mean I will be sick on an off. I have not been sick for so long it really hit me hard.
I do plan to spend at least the last day of the old and the first day of the new year doing things I enjoy, hoping this will cancel out the bad things.

Feline Friday

Treats anyone?

Merry Christmas!

To all my dear readers, near and far:

Winter Solstice

Our celebration included:

Evergreens from the garden.

A 'sunny' lunch.

Followed by a 'sunny' dessert.

And plenty of Wassail.

We even managed to light candles after dark (not easy in a house full of cats).

Some 'people' in this house show no respect for my decorating efforts.

Old Faithful

I bought this Christmas cactus in November 2006 and it faithfully blooms every year.

Feline Friday

New Socks

I love knitting socks, almost instant gratification.

Vintage?

I am folding laundry and re-organizing the linen closet this morning and I came across this stack of hand towels that my grandmother(s) gave to me when I was in my teens, which makes them at least 35 years old. Does that qualify them as vintage? Then what does that make me, an antique?
Despite their age they are all in great shape, whereas I have some I bought not that long ago that are becoming rather threadbare and frayed now. I also have tea towels of the same age.
I am not even showing you all the "help" I am getting this morning, just let me tell you, I would be finished a lot faster without it. ;-) Just now another stack of towels hit the floor, thank you Leo!

The sun is shining today and the week ahead is supposed to be warmer, I hope the forecast is right, I am getting a bit blue from all the dark and dreary weather (hence the organizing bout).

Have a great week everyone!

Feline Friday

Another Finish

I finally got the wall hanging made from the "Leafing through the Year BOM" blocks finished. I am not completely happy with it because the stabilizer I used behind the stitchery is causing some wrinkles. Maybe I can try to iron them out.

Yarn Therapy

I finished a pair of fingerless gloves for myself. I am still feeling sad but as always, life goes on and I find comfort in doing what I love.

Miss Brownie

Our beautiful Miss Brownie passed away last night, suddenly and unexpected. We are shocked and heartbroken.

And so it begins

The waiting and watching, the quietest time of the year. At least that's what it should be, in our crazy world it sometimes becomes the complete opposite of that. I try every year to have at least calm and quiet Advent Sundays. We start with lighting the candle(s) at breakfast and some nice quiet Christmas music, my favorite CD is called "Celtic Harp: The Christmas Rose", and we played it this morning. And we usually have some nice treat in the late afternoon, today it will be mulled cider and cranberry orange bread.

Yesterday we brought the Christmas decorations down from the attic and I noticed that some of them are beginning to show their age. We gave most of our stuff away last year, including the big tree. With 8 cats in the house it would be way too stressful and dangerous to have it out (a few of them are obsessed with anything stringy). This year I hung all my Christmas wall hangings, our advent calendar, filled with chocolates, and I decorated the smallest of our remaining two trees with shatterproof ornaments. I also did a little decorating in the kitchen.

I wish you all a lovely first advent week.

And another one

This concludes the making of gifts for far away people. Now I can take it easy with those that don't need to be mailed.

Feline Friday

MamaCat and Jackie, always helpful.

More finished things

Fingerless mitts for Del and another pair of sketching gloves for myself because they are so much fun to make.

The (not so) Itsy Bitsy Spider

Finished Things

Here are some of the projects I finished over the past few weeks.

 

Feline Friday

Soon I will have other things to show you as well, but for now, more pictures of my adorable cats. ;-)