LaVieEnRosie

Gobble gobble... and prizes

It's that time of year again, the time when we give Thanks for our many blessings...

 
Thank you to everyone who participated and left comments during the Cross Country Christmas Quilt Designer Blog Hop!

This has been so much fun!  I have enjoyed reading all the comments ~ and I really have read them all!  You've made me laugh... smile... chuckle... say "awwwww"... and think "how cool is she?"  Thank you!

Thank you to Gudrun for having a terrific idea and getting the Blog Hop organized!  If you get the chance, please leave a comment for her to thank her for all of her hard work! 

And thank you to Sandy, Terry, Pat, Heather, Pam, Kari, Terri, Sherri, Roseann and Linda for letting me play along with them!  Like you, I've enjoyed getting to know them a little bit better in the past couple of weeks.  I've been lucky enough to have met most of these wonderful ladies ~ I've just admired the others from a distance.  (I think the restraining orders require at least 500 yards.)

It's also the time to announce a few winners! 

Gudrun has made her list and checked it twice ~ and no, she's not checking to see who's naughty and who's nice...

:::: drum roll ::::

Everybody who commented is nice! 

Of course... you might not all be so nice when you see all the goodies that Gudrun has collected for the winners...

 
1st Prize goes to Thea M -- www.theamccurry.com

2nd Prize goes to Arlette from Costa Rica -- http://arlette0521.blogspot.com

3rd Prize goes to What Comes Next -- http://round22.blogspot.com

If you'll contact Gudrun ~ gudrun@gequiltdesigns.com ~ with your mailing address, she'll get your goodies on the way to you! 

And that's not all... there is still another chance to win! 

Yes, you read that right ~ another chance to win! 

Twelve projects... and you just need to finish one of them to enter.  One entry for every project you finish and post to the Flickr group created for the Blog Hop.  The details are:

Winner ~ one.

Deadline ~ post a picture to the Flickr group before Tuesday, December 1st.

That gives you a week to finish a project or twelve, take a picture and upload it to Flickr!  Instructions on how to upload a photo are on the Flickr page.   

Whew!  By the way, if you haven't already visited the Flickr page, you really should.  A couple of ladies have been very busy! 

Now about that turkey... 

 
I love Thanksgiving.

It's gotten a bit crazier since I started working at Williams-Sonoma as I'm usually working a lot of hours this week.  Wish me luck.  I'm looking forward to a very nice, quiet Thanksgiving Day with turkey, stuffing, potatoes, fresh cranberry relish ~ though I have to say it, I really do love that jellied stuff from the can ~ and some kind of dessert.  I think we've decided on a fruit cobbler or crisp.  With ice cream or creme fraiche... that means ice cream for my Mom and creme fraiche for me.  I suppose we'll have vegetables of some kind, but really... is that ever the focus?  Has anybody ever awakened on Thanksgiving Day and thought "... finally!  I've been waiting for steamed broccoli all year!" 

I hope that each of you has a very Happy Thanksgiving and that you and your families have many blessings to be thankful for. 

 

And I'll tell you about my trip to Wisconsin this weekend. 

  

Day 12

La la la la.... :::cough::: :::errrreeerrrr::: 

La la la la... mi mi mi meeeee...

On the twelfth day of Cross Country Christmas Quilt Designer blog hopping,

Gudrun sent to you...

Twelve quilt designers a-blogging,

Eleven readers still a-reading,

Ten fingers a-flying (across the keyboards)... at least twelve sets of them,

Nine ladies a-dancing...wait!  There are twelve of us!  Which of us isn't a... uhmm, never mind.  Don't want to know.

Eight bazillion comments a-posting,

Seven gazillion Christmas stories a-remembering,

Six Minnesota girls a-quilting,

Five Golden puppies... Santa?  Are you listening?  Hello?  Anybody there?

Four weeks until Christmas... so get busy with those projects!

Three winners to a-nnounce,

Two Terry's and two Kari's... different spellings and different states, but I'm getting to the end and it was all I could think of.

And a Rosie on a couch sleeping!

It's Day 12 and I've got mixed feelings. 

I'm happy that I don't have to think about Christmas for another month but I'm sad because I'm going to miss reading everybody else's stories.  I'm happy that I don't have to steal borrow any more Christmas pictures but I've been enjoying the catalogs, magazines and books I've scoured for those pilfered pictures.  Mostly, I'm going to miss reading all the funny, sweet, clever and really, really nice comments that you've left all over blogland. 

::: sniff sniff :::  ::: big hug :::

The best part of today being Day 12 is that it's finally Linda's day! 

I know... I've been waiting too.   Linda Lum DeBono - who I've actually met! - has written a jillion books filled with lots of wonderful, whimsical things to make.  We met in Des Moines at an American Patchwork thing a few years ago.  She's as funny, creative, energetic and nice as she is prolific... which makes her rather annoying now that I think of it.  Just kidding - she's really quite terrific.  And I'm sure her project is extremely terrific so make sure you take a look-see -- and don't forget to leave a comment!  You could win a prize!

Speaking of prizes... I have one of those.  I think I might have more than one.  But more on that in a moment.

The topic du jour is a craft or something you still make every year, or something you made as a child. 

I love making things at Christmas time.  From crafty decorations to Christmas gifts, I am always finding things in Christmas magazines in books that I absolutely, positively have to make.  This year!  Right away!  Okay, next year.  I've saved stacks and stacks of pages from magazines with pictures and instructions.  I'm still going to make all of them... just as I am going to make the 7,358 cookie recipes I've saved over the years for Christmas cookie exchanges. 

The thing for me is that I make something different every year.  Even when I'm making the same thing - like a tree or wreath - they're always different.  The only thing they all have in common is that it would have been less expensive to buy one ready-made than buy all the supplies I needed to make one.  Over the years, I've made several of these ~ following Martha's instructions, of course.  (This is her picture from the book I used to make mine.)

And I also made a few of these though mine had red bows.

(Also from Martha's book.)

About ten years ago, I made some little log-cabin houses using pretzels, oyster crackers and mini shredded wheat cereal.  The houses ~ I made eight of them ~ were about 4" high, and the base was about 3" x 4".  I would show you a picture of them but with everything from my sewing room stored in the garage, I have no chance of getting to them.  When I find them, I promise to take a picture for you.  They were from one of those Oxmoor House/Leisure Arts Christmas books of years past.  By the time I was finished, I think each house cost $47.32 to make.  

This year's project is going to be candy trees...

This was in a Christmas issue of Mary Englebreit's Home Companion magazine from a few years ago and when I ran across the pages I'd saved a few months ago while cleaning out my desk, I put them aside as this year's project.  It is entirely coincidental that there is a terrific new retro candy shop in downtown Phoenix.  I've already gotten the styrofoam cones and I've got my hot glue gun ready.  Now I just need to go candy shopping... like that won't be dangerous.  And fun.  But still dangerous.  I'll let you know if I need reinforcements.  Or rescuing. 

And yes, I'll let you know how the trees turn out.

I wonder if Terry, Terri, Gudrun, Kari, Pam, Pat, Sandy, Sherri, Roseanne or Heather have made anything like this?  I'll have to go see if they have, I might be able to pick up a few tips!

Now... about that prize. 

Or should I say prizes... as in more than one.  A-three of them, to be exact. 

It's Christmas and I like presents!  I hope this will be an early Christmas for these three randomly chosen ladies!  (Chosen with that random generator thing... a little impersonal but it works.)  If you'll leave a comment here, I'll e-mail you to get your mailing address.

Kathleen B -- posted on Wednesday at 5:24 am

Jeanette in Placerville -- posted on Wednesday at 8:29 am

Karen M -- posted on Wednesday at 5:22 pm

That takes care of my prize.

There's still the Grand Prize and the Runner-Up prizes.  You still have time to post a comment on all twelve of the blogs if you haven't already done so.  As long as you have left one comment on each blog sometime during the twelve days, you're good to go.  If you think you might have forgotten someone, don't worry!  As long as you leave a comment by Midnight on Sunday, November 22nd, you're entered to win!  On Monday, Gudrun will select the winners ~ randomly, of course ~ and the rest of us will verify that they've posted on our blogs.  The winners will be announced on Tuesday. 

Which blogs?  All of them. 

Where can I find the links?  Here.

Gundrun Erla ~ Gudrun's World

Sandy Gervais ~ Pieces of My Heart

Terry Atkinson ~ Terry Atkinson Designs

Pat Sloan ~ Pat Sloan's World

Heather Mulder Peterson ~ Anka's Treasures

Pam Viera McGinnis ~ PamKittyMorning's World

Kari Carr ~ New Leaf Stitches

Terri Dagenkolb ~ Whimsicals

Sherri Falls ~ This & That Patterns

Moi... uhmmm... you're already here

Roseann Kermes ~ Rosebuds Cottage

Linda Lum DeBono ~ Linda Lum DeBono's World

I think that's it for today.  Thank you again for hopping along with us... with me! 

I'm so glad we had this time together,
Just to have a laugh, or sing a song.
Seems we just get started and before you Know it
Comes the time we have to say, "So long".

What's with all the singing?  You know... I think the 12 days are ending just in time.

 

 

 

 

Day 11 ~ Got quilts?

You'll have to wait one more day to find out who the Day 10 winner is.  Are?

I'm writing this before midnight 'cuz this girl needs some sleep and this thing is going to be posted at 4:00 am, my time!  I'm dedicated but not quite that dedicated.  Besides, if I wrote this at 4:00 am, this would read a little bit like this... 20ma/;.lks .,maslkd gibberish... gibberish... and more gibberish...

Or maybe just more gibberish than usual. 

Is it Christmas yet?

 
Isn't that a pretty tree?  It isn't mine.  Mine is still in a box in the garage.  (Behind 6,728 boxes of fabric and quilt-y stuff.)

Thank you for all the funny, silly, kind, wonderful and terrific comments!  Lo mismo vale para los comentarios en espanol.  Soy capaz de leer a pesar de que no escribe bien en espanol mas porque mi practica no es suficiente.

I'm glad you like the candy canes.  I admit it - I was hoping you would since I think they're pretty fab.

Alert!  Ginger told me that I'm supposed to remember to tell you that you can dilute the Stiffy Fabric Stiffener.  She usually does it in a 1 part Stiffy to 1 part water.  I don't.  She does.  She then told me to make sure I remember to tell you that she's made more of them than I have... you decide. 

Have I ever told you that Ginger does that to me every year before Market?  She starts calling me about one month before Market saying Alert! Alert! Thirty-days until Market!  The countdown continues all the way up to the day before I leave for Market.  While it gets a little annoying, it's also a terrific reminder and it's really pretty funny.  Though it must be said that I have hung up on her once or twice.

But I digress.

Shamlessly borrowed from "somewhere".  My "tablescape" would never look that good.  All those glass vases would have fingerprints on them... and Rosie would have tried to eat the faux snow.

:::sigh:::

To the important stuff!

Today's Cross Country Christmas Quilt Designer Blog Hop Queen for a Day is... wait, I need to catch my breath after that... Roseann of Rosebuds Cottage!  I have to tell you that I love Roseann even though we've never actually met.  Por quoi?  Right after they came out, Olfa did some kind of a promotional thing whereby they sent me one of their brand-spanking-new 45mm Quick-Change rotary cutters and 6" x 12" Frosted Rulers.  I loved them!  They've been my favorites ever since, and Roseann is the person who e-mailed me to ask if I'd gotten them, how I liked them, etc.  She must have had something to do with it, right?  I love the rotary cutter/ruler... I love Roseann!  That makes sense, doesn't it?

I'm sure Roseann will have a wonderful project for you today so go see what it is!  And don't forget to leave a comment so you can be entered in her drawing for a terrific prize!  I'll keep my fingers crossed that it includes one of these.  If it is, you'll love it!

Did you see Roseann's tree?  (Actually, I don't know if the tree is hers... she just had the picture on her blog.)  Just thinking about it makes me smile.

 
Beer cans.  

Then hop on over to see what Kari, Pam, Heather, Pat, Terry, Terri, Sherri, Linda, Gudrun and Sandy do with about quilts at Christmas.

By the way, how cool is it that Kari also has a brother named Mark!  I bet her Mark is as wonderful as my Mark... well, almost.  My Mark is the wonderfulest. 

Today's topic is favorite Christmas quilt or using quilts to decorate for Christmas.

I have one and I do that!

My favorite Christmas quilt is always the most recent one.  Isn't it always?

This is it ~ it's back from Australia and it is destined to be on the couch after Thanksgiving.  Or on a quilt rack in the family room.  Maybe I should display it like this...

 
As for using quilts at Christmas and decorating with them, I do that too. 

If it's got red, green, tan, cream or brown in it ~ and preferrably a combination of all of the above ~ then it gets to make an appearance at the holidays.  There is usually a quilt or two on the couch, one or two on a quilt rack ~ red, of course ~ and one or two over a chair or ottoman.  I have put one on the table ~ though nobody is allowed to eat on it! ~ but now I have a red quilted boutis tablecloth from Williams-Sonoma.  If you want a good reason why quilts are a bad idea on a table where food is served, you might want to take a close look at my red boutis.  My brother spilled wine on it the first year I had it.  Maybe he should consider getting me that Porsche after all...

I couldn't find any pictures of my house at Christmas with the quilts, and I figured that most of you would recognize the pictures from one of the Thimbleberries Christmas books so I couldn't really "borrow" any pictures. 

So these are the quilts that I've pulled out to use this Christmas.  They are being washed and aired out so they will be all soft and wonderful for snuggling on the couch to watch all those old Christmas movies and specials. 

 
Zuzu's Petals ~ Christmas Folk Art Wedding II.

This quilt will be going on the wall above the sofa in the family room.

SFNK ~ A couple of red prints and a cream print.  This will go on the quilt rack or over a chair. 

On a side note, I made this quilt from fabric I had in my "stash" and that includes the backing.  After dropping it off at the quilter, I stopped at the quilt shop and bought enough fabric for two quilts.  One step forward... two steps back. 

Brand New Day ~ An old Jinny Beyer print was the starting point for this quilt.  Even though it isn't Christmas fabric, this quilt always looks like it belongs at Christmas.  This will go on the quilt rack.

Lucille ~ Christmas Folk Art Wedding III.

My Mom loves this one ~ and another one I made from the same collection.  I'll show you a picture of that one when I get the binding on it.  Can you believe that I forgot all about the quilt and then misplaced the binding?  I have both set aside and when I can get to my sewing machine, I'll finish the binding!  By Christmas - of this year!  I promised my Mom I would and since she wants to use it on her bed, I think that makes it a priority.

That's it for today.  I'm off to work on my sewing room.  But I'll be back tomorrow for Day 12... the last day.  Boo hoo.

Will you miss me? 

Twelve days of me?  Not a chance!  You'll be happy to have a little peace and quiet!

Say Hi to Roseann for me!

Day 10 ~ Queen for a Day!

Don't look at me!

You're the one who said "yes"! 

Think of a Christmas project within about three weeks... sure!  No problemo!

Rosie's laughing at me.  She knew I would go into a panic trying to think of something to make for my Christmas project.  She knows that I don't do anything until the last minute.  And she knows that I obsess about this kind of thing.  I worry about whether my idea will be big enough... elaborate enough... fancy enough! 

And then there's trying to follow in the extraordinarily creative footsteps of Gudrun, Sandy, Pat, Terry, Pam, Terri, Sherri, Kari, Heather, Linda and Roseann. 

My head hurts. 

But I love making what we're going to make today and I hope you do too... but more on that in a moment.

Let me get today's topic done first and then we'll get back to the project.  Today's the day that Gudrun asked us to share a favorite gift from a child. 

Never got one.

Okay... that's done. 

Alright.  That isn't exactly true.  Like all of you, I've received quite a few gifts from children and they're all wonderful.  My favorite was last year.  My friend, Marsha, has a terrific grandson, Brennan.  Actually, Marsha is an over-achiever when it comes to grandchildren, she's got nine of them!  Brennan is her son Jacob's, son.  At eight, he's already well on his way to being a sweetheart and heartbreaker. 

Last year, while out shopping with his grandmother, he announced to her that he wanted to get me a rose.  Awwww... I know, that was what I thought when I heard it.  When his Gran commented that it was just a few more dollars for a whole bouquet, that's what he got me.  A dozen roses!  Just because it was Christmas!  No prompting from Grandma!  How cool is that?  When that boy's "legal", I'm going to marry him!  He'll be perfect too ~ he's going to be quite tall!  (His Dad is 6' 6"!) 

Now for "The Project"...

Now about that contest... Leave a comment here by 12:00 am, Midnight, November 18th, Mountain Time and you will be entered in a drawing to win... ?

Here's what you're going to win:

• Enough stripe fabric to make at least 12 candy canes.
• Stuffing, Stiffy Fabric Stiffener, and a package of greenery.
• A Madeline quilt kit including 2 charm packs, border yardage, and a pattern.
• Assorted Christmas-related goodies that shall remain a secret and a surprise!

I'm off... the construction/renovation work on my sewing room started yesterday.  The sliding door is gone and a new window is in its place.  The painting starts on Friday so I'm going to get to spend the next two days scraping popcorn off the ceiling.  Ugh... the ladder.  I knew I wasn't done with it just yet. 

Wish me luck.

Day 9

Is it just me or is counting the days in the title starting to sound like we're in some kind of siege?

You can say it - it's just me. 

 
So whasssup? 

Today's the day for Sherri of This & That to inspire us to make something amazing in time for the holidays.

You know the drill - make sure you comment on her blog today to be entered in a drawing to win a prize!  And commenting on every one of the blogs will get you entered into the Grand Prize drawing to be held sometime after the 20th!  You definitely don't want to miss that!

Have you already seen what stories Roseann, Kari, Linda, Sandy, Pam, Pat, Terry, Terri, Gudrun and Heather are sharing today?  I hope Heather has pictures of some of the gorgeous children in her family! 

 
Today's story/topic is kid story - either about your kids if you have any or other kids, even yourself.

As some of you already know, I don't have any two-legged children.  While I have godchildren, young cousins, and lots of friends with children and "little people", the only "little folks" hanging around the place are the four-legged kind.  This kind... and just one at a time.

  
Don't you just know that chair was new before the puppies got there?

(No, this isn't Rosie but I really do love this picture.  It comes from a card I've saved for several years.)

I thought about my own childhood and the childhoods of my godchildren or friends' children.  All of the stories had to do with gifts, trips, big family meals and the many blessings that all of us have had.  And when I think of that, I am always reminded that I've been very fortunate in my life.  I've rarely had to "go without", especially at the holidays.  

So today, instead of a story, I'm going to ask you to give some thought to adding one of my favorite recipients to your Christmas list this year - the U. S. Marine Corps' Toys for Tots.   

Whatever you might have spent for the Porsche you were thinking of giving me, give it to the Marines instead.  They'll put the money to much better use and for more deserving recipients.  The truth is that I don't really need a car... especially one that fast. 

Have fun with Heather, Linda, Pam, Pat, Sandy, Gudrun, Kari, Sherri, Terry, Roseann and Terri! 

And I'll see you tomorrow!

No, these aren't my project for tomorrow though they are rather nice.  This picture - and a few others shown here today - were "borrowed" from a catalog because they were pretty and better than what I had.

 

Day 8

It's the Cross Country Christmas Quilt Designer Blop Hop and this quilt designer has actually just come back from a cross-country shop hop where I did some Christmas shopping at quilt shops.  Does that count as extra credit participation?  One of the shops is already decorated for Christmas ~ it's gorgeous!

But I'll tell you all about my trip next week.  For now, let me just tell you that I had a wonderful time.  I met many wonderful ladies and made what I hope are lots of new friends.  I learned how to wear a scarf ~ you don't know this about me but I'm quite "scarf-challenged". 

So that I would have a picture for my post, this one was shamelessly swiped from the Country Sampler's website.  I'm hoping Jeanne won't mind that I "borrowed" it.  The shop is decorated for Christmas, they had their wonderful, annual Christmas Open House the first weekend in November and the shop looks beautiful.   

I'll show you a few more next week. 

Today is Day 8 of the Cross Country Christmas blog hop ~ and today's wonderful project comes from Terri Dagenkolb ~ Whimsicals!

Did you leave a comment with Terri today?  Prize Alert!  Prize Alert!  Leave a comment and you could win one!  How simple is that?

Have you already finished the projects by Gudrun, Sandy, Terry, Pat, Heather, Pam and Kari? 

You've at least started, right?

Uh... you've gotten all the materials together?

Did you look at the calender and realize that you've still got at least 39 days to get it done?  Or ~ worst case scenario ~ you've got at least 404 days until next Christmas? 

I've got two days to finish up the project that I'm going to share with you on Wednesday... I've got time.  I think...  I'm thinking that maybe I should get to the topic for today ~ our first Christmas on our own ~ so that I can get to work!

My story isn't so much about spending Christmas on my own as... well, you'll see. 

The first Christmas after I had "moved out", I was nineteen and living in Los Angeles, in Studio City to be precise.  (Yes, that's why I sometimes sound like a Valley girl.  And John Schneider ~ Bo Duke from the Dukes of Hazard ~ lived a few doors down in the same condominium complex!)

It was Christmas break from school and before heading home to the San Francisco Bay Area, one of my best friends from high school came down for a couple of days so we could see what sort of trouble we could get into do some Christmas shopping.  After spending a few days seeing the sights in Hollywood and Beverly Hills ~ and trying to spot movie stars on Rodeo Drive ~ we were going to drive home on December 23rd. 

Nineteen and twenty year old girls being what they are, we got a later start than we had planned so we were going to be driving home at night.  My parents weren't too worried as I had made the trip from Los Angeles to Alamo/Danville on Interstate 5 a few times.  They were also very naive trusting.

For those of you who aren't familiar with this particular highway, it hasn't changed much in the past 30 years.  You leave Los Angeles and go over the mountains, then before you get to Bakersfield, you "turn left" to go North on Interstate 5.  It is a well-traveled highway because there isn't anything to distract you or slow you down... as in, there isn't much there except gas stations, rest stops, truck stops and so on. 

After "turning left", Jacquie and I made a "pit stop" at the first "wide spot in the road" to fill up the gas tank, use the restrooms and get something to eat.  While we were at a McDonald's restaurant, a truck driver waiting in line asked us what we were doing out in the middle of nowhere at around 10:00 pm the night before Christmas.  We chatted for a few minutes more and after paying for our hamburgers and making sure we were ready to go, we headed out the door.  The man had been glancing over at us while we were finishing up and he followed us out the door as we left.  He wished us a good night and a safe trip, and told us to be careful, then he watched us walk to my car. 

We were aware of this but being the clueless twits that we were ~ and may still be ~ we really didn't give any of it much thought.  He thought we were cute... okay, he thought Jacquie was cute.  Actually, she was more than "cute" and men were always looking at her.  But we weren't worried.  We were in a Camaro Z-28 (black) and I was driving... no way was he going to catch us if it came to having to make an escape of some sort!

We got back on the highway and headed North.  Within 10 minutes or so, I passed a large 18-wheeler truck and the driver flashed his lights as we got past him.  I remember thinking that he must have been flashing me to let me know that it was safe to move over to the right lane, which I did.  When it came time to pass the next truck, it happened again.  And it kept happening.  A few drivers even waved at us as we passed.  A few more trucks and we began noticing that most of the drivers could be seen watching out of their side mirrors as we approached as though they were making sure it was us. 

All the way up Interstate 5 ~ for more than 250 miles ~ we were being "watched over".  We started waving back. 

The adventure become something special and put us in such a good mood that we sang Christmas carols all the way up the highway.  By the time we got home, we knew all the songs on the couple of cassettes we had with us by heart.  The Carpenters Christmas album is still one of my favorites and I think of the Ray Coniff Singers as "family".

When I made the turn from Interstate 5 onto the highway that would take us west toward the Bay Area, the truck behind us flashed his lights several times and tooted his horn.  A short while later, we were "picked up" by the trucks going West on I-580.  The same thing happened when I turned North onto I-680 for the last stretch home, and it continued until I took the turnoff for Jacquie's house.

When we told our parents what had happened, both of our Mom's got teary and both of our Dad's wanted to know why we were talking to truck drivers at truck stops.  <g> 

Anytime I think of "Christmases past", I think of that trip and that truck driver.  It's one of the memories that always makes me smile and it is what I will always remember first when I think about my first Christmas on my own. 

I'm off to see what Sherri, Kari, Heather, Roseann, Linda, Terry, Pam, Pat, Sandy and Gudrun remember of their first Christmas on their own. 

One last thing ~ don't forget!  If you haven't posted at least once on everybody's blog, make sure you do so before Friday if you want to be in the running for the Grand Prize!  It's going to be grand!

Until tomorrow...

Day 7

Happy Sunday!

Depending on when you're reading this, I'm either in Madison, Wisconsin, on my way to Chicago, Illinois, in Chicago at O'Hare Airport, flying home to Phoenix or maybe even already home. 

I will tell you all about my trip next week but I've been having a little bit of fun this past week at The Country Sampler in Spring Green.  I've taken lots of pictures that I'll share... but that's all for later.

Have you been having fun with the projects?  Enjoying the recipes and stories?  I hope you're enjoying everything as much as I am!  Thank you to everyone who has left comments with their stories and memories.

I wish I knew what Kari was up to today - all I know is that it's going to be wonderful.  How could it not be?  Have you left a comment?  If you do, you could win a prize.  That might not be your thing... though really, who doesn't like winning a prize... I'm just saying... this could be your lucky day... so take a chance... leave a comment... go on... it won't cost you anything... just do it! 

Today's trip down memory lane involves a decoration or ornament, or something you loved or were given...

Poinsettias!  I love poinsettias!  Big ones and small ones, fake ones and real ones, and in almost every color... almost.

Poinsettias should be red.  White is very nice and acceptable in the right setting \ but pink, striped, spotted or candy-cane-looking are just wrong.  This isn't my opinion, this is just the way it is. 

All the weird stuff happening everywhere started with pink and yellow poinsettias.  I think they came along right after we brought back the moon rocks.  If we put those back and do away with all the weird-looking poinsettias, all will be right with the world and we will have peace and harmony for all eternity.

I know I'm right on this so don't argue. 

My allegiance to the red poinsettia began with the poinsettia tree/bush we had in our backyard in Maracaibo, Venezuela.  It was very large and very red - most of the year!  I always think it's rather odd that a plant/flower we associate with a winter holiday grows naturally in the tropics!

 

It just isn't Christmas without one or two or twelve poinsettia plants decorating the house.  (And no, sadly, despite many attempts, I have never been able to get one of my poinsettias to survive more than a couple of weeks past Christmas.  If it's still living, it's a little sparse in the leaf department.)

And that's it for my favorite decoration... I hope you'll head over to see what kinds of wonderful things Gudrun, Sandy, Pam, Pat, Terry, Terri, Sherri, Roseanne, Linda and Heather remember.  (And don't forget to leave a comment on their blogs if you haven't already done so.)

I'll see you Monday -- from warm, sunny Phoenix. 

Day 6

Greetings from Wisconsin!

I've seen quite a few of these... not postcards!  The pinecones!

Have you made all the projects yet?  Are you finished yet? 

Today ~ this morning! ~ is a PamKittyMorning!

I don't know what she's making but I'm sure it's going to be awesome... if she made it, it's going to be amazing!  Don't forget to leave a comment so that you can be entered in her drawing to win a prize!  I know, I'm sounding a little bit like a broken record with the reminders... but it's my age-related forgetfulness.  It makes me feel better to think that everybody else suffers similarly.

Family tradition!  Why do I suddenly what to start dancing around the room like Tevya?  Tradition!

Presents opened on Christmas Eve.  Not on Christmas Day.  There might be one or two things from "Santa" but that would be all.  My brother and I would occasionally try to persuade my parents to change things but we never lasted long. 

Christmas Eve church service.  There was always something special about going on Christmas Eve, I think it was the lights and the candles.  The church just seemed so much more reverential and celebratory, yes, both at the same time. 

Prime Rib on Christmas Day.  Not turkey.  We'd done that at Thanksgiving, and we might do it again on New Year's Day, but my Dad preferred prime rib so prime rib it was!  Unless he wanted a ham that year. 

New socks and skivvies for Christmas.  It just wasn't Christmas unless my Mom bought every member of the family at least a couple pairs of new socks and a couple pairs of new underwear.  It just wouldn't have seemed like Christmas.

And by Christmas Day afternoon... everybody was taking a nap. 

Have fun!  I'm off to see what kinds of traditions the others have.

See you tomorrow!

 

Day 5

 
Father Christmas.  Pere Noel.  Kris Kringle.  Santa Claus.

One of my favorite Christmas cartoons was "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" with Fred Astaire.  It told the real story of Santa Claus.  How he got his name, why he wore his red suit, why he lived at the North Pole... all the important, need-to-know facts of the story! 

It is Day 5 of the Cross Country Christmas Quilt Designer Blog Hop and that means we're heading north to the frozen lakeside home of Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka's Treasures!

Have you been there yet?  Did you leave a comment on the project post?  If you haven't been there or left a comment, I'll wait while you do that.  No comment means no chance to win today's prize. 

And while you're there, make sure you tell Heather that you'd like to see more pictures of Joel and Daisy!

My story for today involves this guy.

I found him at a department store when I was living in Texas almost 18 years ago.  It was just a few days before Christmas and the store was having a sale on all their Christmas decorations.  Santa was way up high on a display shelf, tucked behind several signs, boxes and a tree or two.  So I had to climb up on a cabinet to reach him... if someone else had thought of it first, they'd have done it!  Boldness has it's rewards... or is it chutzpah? 

I didn't know what I was going to do with him but he sure was cute.   

His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

I also thought he would be fun to have around since my apartment was a little bare in the "Christmas decor" department.   

The best part of bringing this guy home with me was "bringing this guy home with me".  As in, home to Phoenix from San Antonio.  In my car.  And it 'twas the day before Christmas!  I couldn't stuff him in the trunk.  That would definitely earn a lump of coal in my stocking!  The backseat just didn't seem right either.  How was Santa going to see where we were going?  Since I knew I would enjoy the company, Santa rode shotgun - belted into the front passenger seat. 

In that red suit and hat, he was clearly visible from outside the car so he drew a lot of attention from other cars.  People would laugh, smile and point him out to their fellow passengers.  After all...

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And [we] laughed when [we] saw him, in spite of [ourselves];

When I stopped at gas stations and rest stops along the way, everyone would ask about him.  What was Santa doing out so early?  Was he taking a little break before the "big night"?  Was Santa trading in his sleigh for a Grand Am?  And wasn't I a little tall for an elf?  (I was wearing a Santa hat.)

[And yes, I was asked many times about where I had found him.]

On a long endless highway in west Texas, a big stuffed Santa can sure make a lot of people smile.

[And] I heard him exclaim, [as we] drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a [safe trip]."

 

Have fun at Heather's and then stop by and read the Santa stories of Roseann, Sherri, Linda, Terri, Kari, Pam, Sandy, Terry, Pat, and Gudrun. 

Have you left a comment on everybody's blog yet?  If you haven't, don't forget to do so!  You need twelve comments, one on each blog sometime during the twelve days to be eligible for the Grand Prize!

See you tomorrow!

Day 4

O Christmas Tree!

O Christmas Tree!

That song always reminds me of the Charlie Brown Christmas Special.

Day 4 of the Cross Country Christmas blog-adventure is about Christmas trees!  And Pat Sloan!  I'm sure she's made something wonderful - don't forget to hop over and leave a comment!  You could win a prize!

My favorite Christmas Tree story involves our first real tree.

Living overseas, the Christmas trees of my childhood were "faux" and usually less than 5 feet tall.  After we moved to California when I was nine, we finally got a "closer-to-real" tree.  A very nice green but still faux tree that stood about 6 feet tall.  It was quite lovely.  My mother decided that since my brother and I had never had a real "white Christmas", she would simulate that by flocking the Christmas tree.

flock-ing   [flok-ing] - noun.  1.  a velvetlike pattern produced on wallpaper or cloth decorated with flock 

flock  n.  A small, loosely held mass or aggregate of fine particles, resembling a tuft of wool and suspended in or precipitated from a solution.

Let it suffice to say that in the middle of winter, the pine trees in the Yukon in Canada haven't seen as much "snow" as my Mom's tree.  It took three days to dry.

We had that tree for about four years before it was decided that we needed a real tree.  A real, actual, living-until-you-cut-it-down tree.  So off we went, my Dad, my brother and me to a tree farm to find out tree!  An already-cut tree just wouldn't do - we needed to go out into the forest and find our tree!  Like my Dad's people used to do, back in the old country of Minnesota and Sweden!  So off to the tree farm we went!

 [On a side note, I do have a Minnesota connection!  My Dad was born and raised in Minnesota, in Granite Falls.  He went to the University of Minnesota on a football scholarship though he would graduate elsewhere.]

Back to the tree... in 1973, tree farms in California weren't that commonplace, and most of the trees weren't the short-needle, tightly packed kind that you can find in colder climates.  After much searching around for the perfect tree, the Nelson clan headed home with a beautiful, lush, bushy pine tree that stood a little over 7 feet tall.  After carefully supervising and directing the moving of the tree from the car to the house, my father headed off to do something else -- anything else.  After spending the day "in the woods" with my brother and me, he almost certainly needed a tiny break from the festivities.

We were instructed to get the tree into the tree stand and start doing the lights.  Dad would inspect the results when he returned.  The thing is, the tree didn't exactly fit in the tree stand.  It was too big.  So we decided to trim the tree a little bit, sawing off the lower branches and tapering the trunk a bit.  The tapering went really well.  The lower branches were thin and small so those went easily.  We got to a point where there was just one more branch in the way of a perfect fit... and it wasn't a very big branch either.

The thing is... that branch was basically one full quarter of the entire tree.

Oops.

Panic!

Total panic!

There is no way my Dad is going back out to get another tree.  And there is no way we can tell him what we've just done... what my brother has just done!  After all, he was the one with the saw.  Fortunately for both of us, I have very good "big sister" skills.  I came up with a plan...

Stick the branch into the stand with the rest of the tree.  Jam it in there!  There's space there, between the screws holding the tree trunk in place.  It doesn't matter how tight it is... in fact, the tighter it is, the better!  Now move that side around to the back so that the wall will help keep it in place.  And the lights?  We'll use those to kind of wire the branch to the tree!  We'll wrap the cord around the branch and secure it to the branch next to it!  Yes!  This will work! 

And it did.  My Dad never found out what we had done to his tree. 

There's a lot he never found out about... but that's a story for another time.

So if you haven't already done so, make sure you see what Pat's been busy making these past few days.

Then head over and see what kind of Christmas tree stories Linda, Roseann, Sherri, Terri, Kari, Pam, Heather, Terry, Sandy and Gudrun have to share!