Christmas has come to town...

and we have been showered with gifts, family, friends and lots and lots of food! Did I mention gifts!!
I think everyone is really happy today with all their toys. Old and young!!

I won't mention here that our outdoor wood furnace quit working this morning as we were in the middle of a huge ice storm. Well since I mentioned it.......Danny called the man who sold the furnace to us and installed it, just to speak to him about what might be the problem. Christmas Day in an ice storm is not the time that a service call should be made, right? Well this guy is the most wonderful person to do business with ever!!!!!! Told Danny that it was the water pump and asked Danny if he wanted him to come to our house or for Danny to just pick it up at his place. Danny said not to worry about it until tomorrow or Monday. After all we have a heat pump too, so we wouldn't be cold.

After a couple hours the man called back and said I am coming out anyway. He left his family on Christmas Day to drive across the county, replaced the pump and wouldn't take any pay for it!!!! Can you believe that there really are good people out there like that?? Told Danny that our "word of mouth advertisement" would pay for his pump!!!!!

I hope you and yours are just as happy and blessed as we all have been today as we celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ!

We are now in chill out mode with our full hearts and tummy's!!

Love to all!

Becky

Things that are filling my heart this Christmas!

Gods love

flavored coffee creamers

twinkling clear Christmas lights

Christmas cards, I love going to the mailbox right now

our outdoor wood furnace that keeps my home toasty warm

Danny for keeping the wood stove full of wood for me to stay toasty warm

our wood pile

Christmas baking

Christmas music

rechargeable batteries for my camera ;-)

my blogger friends

the wonderfully friendly clerk that now works at Barnes and Noble

friends

grandchildren

the feeling in my heart that I donated some new books for the Montgomery Co Christmas House, a very small sacrifice but it sure does feel good inside, maybe some less fortunate children will be happy on Christmas morning

really good fencing to keep my goats in their fields so there is no chasing goats when it's cold outside, unless someone leaves the barn door open...... Danny

my nativity set

my newest grandchild due in June

the Outback Steakhouse gift card that came in our Christmas card from our local building supply/feed store that we frequent, don't see those gifts from the big box stores

Christmas decorations

apple cider with mulling spices

indoor games with my family

my shopping is almost finished and is wrapped and under the tree

my extended family

oreo balls and chocolate chip cookies

candy canes

my beautiful daughters

my husbands job

Hallmark Christmas movies, esp Christmas in Canaan! Great movie, great Christmas message

warm coats and gloves

eggnog

my son-in-laws who provide so well for their families

my daughters hearts being so full of Christmas giving

what makes you happy right now?

This is why I married him!!

Here is the RED tree! I am sorry to say that I wanted to cry everytime I looked at it. Look how bad it looked from outside the window.
See how bad it was having the RED tree and the normal lights in the rest of the house. Poor contrast I'm a telling ya!! Made my white dining room suite look yellow. This wasn't the camera playing tricks either.



You can click to enlarge any of the pictures but when you enlarge this one you can really see what it looked like from the road. Ugh!!

just had to throw this one in ;-)

I gathered all of this from the farm on Friday and hung it only to have it covered with almost 6" of snow yesterday. I like the effect!! It is made with hemlock branches, apple tree branches and running cedar!!

I had planned to dismantle my tree and put clear lights on it but I have been procrastinating doing it all weekend. Talked myself completely into forgeting about it and then while we were out tonight I saw so many beautifully decorated homes and some not so beautifully decorated homes and I decided that I did not want to be in the later category. I told my dearest honey that I had no choice but to redo it. He looked over at me and said "All you have to do is string the clear lights around the tree over the top of the ornaments and leave the red ones on there.".............OMG He is brilliant!!! Why hadn't I already thought of that? I guess it was my obsession with my tree making sure that every ornament is just so and every light is just so and every bow is just so and the color scheme is just so.....just so!!

SO...... we did just that tonight!! We laughed and said that we could have both the red and clear lights both burning together and it would go with my red and white candy cane theme of the tree....hahaha............so after putting the clear lights on I did plug up both sets and let me tell you I almost peed in my pants!!!!!!!!!!!! It is beautiful and it does look just like a candy cane. It is so subtle yet breathtaking!! I have to brag on it because as you know you can never capture the true beauty of the lights on film. I didn't get any outdoor pictures tonight....almost got frostbite out there last night.....but you can get an idea of how happy I am with the tree anyway!! Can't ya??

I am not saying that I don't like the red lights. I love them on other peoples trees and I wanted them so badly because it is my favorite color but it just wasn't working out here for me.

I have all sorts of ornaments that seem to look OK together. I always tuck poinsettas in the tree and I have red n white striped ribbon for the bows.

I also have a lot of various birds on my tree. Love the look!!

So anyway, I now know the real reason that I married him 33 years ago.....it's his brains!!! Oh yeah and the fact that he spoils me......he bought me the entire set of Townecraft Cookware Friday night!!!! Danny is now Peter's bestest friend forever!! The set could be here as early as Wednesday!! You better call my UPS guy and warn him......cause you know that sometimes I feel like hugging him when he brings me something really cool!!!!!

Any Griswald's Christmas Tree stories????

Christmas 2009!! (before revision)

The new Christmas Tree skirt that I made.


I love this trio of Fitz and Floyd tumbling Santa's! I kinda like the picture taken with my new camera too. This is like the only picture that I like so far. I must have lucked up and had the settings just right! I need a lot of practice!!





So...........I put up my tree yesterday and I am not at all happy with it. I have used clear lights as far back as I can even remember but have always drooled at the sight of some houses where they used all red lights. Red is my favorite color and I always planned to buy red lights and decorate with all red. Last year after Christmas I did in fact purchase a slew of red lights on clearance. I couldn't wait to get my tree up and see it in red!!



I take great pains with my Christmas tree and I have some really beautiful ornaments that I am so proud of. I always get a lot of compliments on my Christmas tree from visitors and family. Well I won't be getting any compliments this year. I HATE MY TREE IN RED!!!!!!!!! So much in fact I will probably dismantle it tomorrow and redecorate it in clear lights. I won't do it today because Peter is coming to make us a fried chicken dinner tonight and I want things to be nice for him, since he is Danny's new bestest friend ya know!!




Now on to the Griswald's trees........


Every year as Christmas approaches I am reminded of my crazy Christmas Trees Past and of other stories from friends and my family. Robin has a good one here of her Christmas 2005 tree!! V & Co has a great story of her tree for this year. It is hilarious!! Children always add such great humor to the Christmas decor!! Such as the time Morgan went sailing off the end of the couch right up in the middle of Robin's real tree. She was a year old and the tree was some sorta really prickly fir tree!!!!! She was stuck up side down while Robin and I unstuck her. She didn't move a muscle and didn't run into that tree anymore!!!




Each year the girls and I exchange Christmas ornaments. We will buy each other a really special ornament. One year Robin bought me a really beautiful glass Santa. When Colton had just turned 2 he was here with me. He had not touched his tree at home, he would only stare at it with his eyes a sparkling. He did the same here. Until I was washing dishes and he came walking up beside me saying "Here Granny!" I turned to see him with this Santa in his hands handing it to me.......my hands were soapy and I was still able to catch it in mid air as he just tossed it to me!!!!! Whew close one!!!!



My best friend in the whole world and I had met at work 25 years ago. I had never been to her house and she invited me over one evening after work. She had a new home and had been decorating for a month for Christmas. Her cousin owned a florist shop and she bought this fabulous dreamy Christmas tree from her and I heard all about it for a month and she couldn't wait for me to see it. Her and her daughter met me and my girls in town for ice cream that evening. The whole time we were there she kept saying how she just couldn't wait for me to see her Christmas tree. Over and over and over.......so we finally made our way to her house, it was dark out so she got to the door and we made our way inside with the lights off and she said as she turned on the lights in her living room. and she was watching my face ....."Tah Dah! Look at my Christmas tree!!!!"



Well......honey...... um....where is it?



It was laying flat in the floor!!!!!!!!!!! OMG we laughed so hard!!! I told her that I did love it as much as she did!!! We spent the next hour tieing it to the curtain rod so it wouldn't happen again. She was so embarressd!! The other girls at work asked me how I liked her tree. I told them it was like none I have ever seen before!!!!!


When Leslie and Travis were dating Travis worked on a tree farm and we told him to be sure and get us a nice Christmas tree. Boy did he get us a nice tree. He said he wanted to impress us so he picked out a fabulous blue spruce that sold at the time for around $100. When he bought it to us it was tied up. We placed it in the tree stand and got it in the house. It was too tall for the room so it bent at the top and had to be cut off so the topper could fit and when he cut the string it was almost as bad as Clark Griswald cutting the string on his tree. It filled up our tiny living room!!! Danny couldn't see the TV for a month!!!!!!!!!




So if you have a good Christmas Tree story please share! I need a really good laugh. I am sure I will need a good laugh tomorrow while I am dismantling mine and redoing it. I mean how many times should one decorate in a 12 month period???

Twas the month before Christmas

Twas the month before Christmas

When all through our land,

Not a Christian was praying

Nor taking a stand.

See the PC Police had taken away

The reason for Christmas - no one could say.

The children were told by their schools not to sing

About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say

December 25th is just a ' Holiday '.

Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit

Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!

CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-Pod

Something was changing, something quite odd!

Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa

In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.

As Targets were hanging their trees upside down

At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.

At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears

You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty

Are words that were used to intimidate me.

Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen

On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton!

At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter

To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.

And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith

Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace

The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded

The reason for the season, stopped before it started.

So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'

Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.

Choose your words carefully, choose what you say

Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS ,

not Happy Holiday!

Please, all Christians join together and

wish everyone you meet

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Christ is The Reason' for the Christ-mas Season!


(I recieved this email this morning and had to share with all of you)

I need a Christmas Tree....

to wrap this baby around.

Another Moda charm quilt that I made last year but just got the binding finished a couple weeks ago.

Care for a candy cane?

The new 'quilting room' really was a good idea. I stippled the skirt last evening around laundry and preparing supper a few minutes at a time and suddenly the project was finished.
Took almost all day today to handsew the binding ;-)

Quilted Christmas Tree Skirt

I got this started today. It's is going to be a Christmas Tree Skirt made out of a pack of Moda turnovers. The pattern is Figgy Pudding. I love the colors and patterns of this fabric.

This is a great tool for quilting. The Shape-n-cut. I am not really good with rotory cutting because I always seem to not have it lined up perfectly or something. This tool makes it so easy to cut an exact piece.



Love the red with trees!

and the peppermints

This is my favorite tool in my sewing room!!
I have a Bernina as shown in my header but it is no where as good a machine as this $76 Kenmore! I bought it last winter new in the box on ebay. It cost right much more than that in the stores but not $1200 like my Bernina. My Bernina is getting ready to go to the sewing machine Dr because this nurse can't seem to diagnose the problem. I have a battle everytime I sew on it. Either it bunches up threads underneath when I start a seam or when I am stippling a quilt the threads are out of adjustment. I have tried everything I could ever imagine to fix it myself but I give up now. This Kenmore and my other Kenmore which is a cheaper version also new from ebay, without all the bells and whistles, work perfectly everytime I sew on them. This one is lacking one feature that I can live without but I would love to have is the needle down option.

I am using the pinwheel pattern for the skirt. Easy since the turnover pieces are precut triangles and all I have to do is cut the biege fabric in the same size triangles. I have planned for years to make a tree skirt but couldn't decide how I wanted it. I think I have figured it out now!! I have enough pieces left over for a table runner for my dining room table and I am going to purchase one of the coordinating fabrics and make valances for the dining room windows. Either the red trees or one with peppermints, either one will work.