I can hardly believe that Christmas is only three days away.  Gifts are dealt with and the decor is finished.  I did the last grocery shopping before Christmas this morning. At least, I hope it's the last one.  The only downer is that Dinah chewed on one of my hand-painted ornaments.  


This dog is way too cute for my own good.  And it's not all bad: I can get Sweet Husband to cut a new small oval shape and I can find the original directions and paint a new one. Dinah is generally the instigator of most of the bad behavior.  Billy is more laid back but lets her wind him up to "Wild Bill" moments.


He thinks he's hilarious and he really is.


In my last blog I thought I'd finish Santa Stars within a couple of days.  What was I thinking?  Having a chunk of time this close to Christmas? SERIOUSLY?  It's finished now and I like the idea of getting an old UFO out of the pile.  


And there it is!  I love this pattern for a couple of reasons.  The most obvious is that the red diamonds look curved but all the seams are straight.  I actually don't mind sewing curved seams but on a deadline, straight seams are quicker.  Also, this pattern gives me the chance to highlight the cuteness of the Santas at the center of the white stars. Like this one:


Here's a glance at my newest project.  It's a block-of -the-month from Dawn Heese and Bonnie Sullivan.  The last block instructions will come January 1st.  Amazingly, I've kept up.   I'd love to do the new one, too, but I think finishing my UFO's will be a pretty big project.


Turns out I really love doing hand appliqué with wool.  I really need about two more lifetimes to do all the things that I want to.  


I might have mentioned before that this has been a really warm fall.  And while the geranium blossoms are small, the alyssum just keeps on keeping on. The poor things don't know what they're supposed to do.  And the nasturtiums look great. so much better than plain dirt. They're even blooming a bit, but kind of hiding the flowers.



Okay, kind of squirrely, but usually long gone by now.


These guys have totally amazed me.

We've had a ton of rain which has been too much for several creeks and rivers in the area. It looks to get dryer this coming weekend, but this is hard for lots of people.  It's also been unusually windy.  It's true that the leaves are mostly down, but Douglas firs never run out of needles and small to medium branches to drop in the yard.  

So onward into the heart of the holidays.  Here's wishing you lots of fun and a healthy and happy New Year.


Candy - aka Mother on a Broomstick

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