New Year's Eve

We'll be going out to eat for our mini New Year's Eve celebration. Last year we were at the Homestead in VA. A wonderful old 1744 hotel and lodge where Thomas Jefferson spent many long days soaking in the hot springs. We love the antiquity of the Homestead and the service and food are five star. We opted for a simpler fare this year. Dinner and a movie. We leave tomorrow for South Caroline.
I ordered a few dog designs from Embroidery Library today. They were having a sale. My 17 month old grandson loves dogs. While here for the holidays he would say woof, woof, woof,.....every time he passed by my dogs. I thought this little basset would be cute on a pajama shirt.

I also ordered the lab for another project, but I'm not sure for what yet.

Happy New Year!

Don't Bug Me...

All good made plans change, at least at our house, but sometimes for the better. I decided after I got home from work that the Mexican Meat was too much work. I wanted to use my pressure cooker......I cooked a frozen beef tenderloin with Lipton Onion soup, 1 cup of water, and a slice red onion, for 40 minutes, cooled the cooker normally, removed the lid, added two cans of cream of mushroom soup and a little sour cream. Set the cooker on keep warm until Don got home from work...about 2 hours later. The roast was delicious. And we have leftovers for tomorrow night.

The meal went so quickly I had time to wash three loads of clothes and finish my "don't bug me" pajamas that I've be blogging about for a month.

Tomorrow evening after work I'm going to try and find time to make a few more can koozies. If I'm not in the koozie making mood then I'll start on my other pajama bottoms. I have this coffee cup flannel and black bear flannel for pajama bottoms. I have several coffee embroidery designs from Embroidery Library that will go with the coffee flannel. I'll embroidery them on a t-shirt, probably hot pink to match the coffee cups. I'll embroider a saying "don't mess with me until I'm on my second cup." I'll embroider a black bear on a tan t-shirt to go with the red flannel and embroider "Be nice, I growl after a long winter nap". Do you get the idea....I'm not much of a morning person but I'll pick you up in the evening and late at night.

I have these two pieces for flannel pajamas bottoms for Don. I'll get around to making these before we start camping in March. He needs new flannel for the camper and the cool nights.

We're going to SC to visit Don's brother this weekend. We are never home on weekends unless we have guest visiting. All this running around is cutting into my creative sewing time and the stash keeps growing. I'm going to have to buy a storage building or add a room onto my house just to store my fabric. But I'm not complaining too loud, I've been wanting to go to SC for quite some time now. We pass through Gastonia and I love to stop (and shop of course) at Mary Jo's Fabric Shop.

Cuisinart Pressure Cooker

I've been searching for Pressure Cooker recipes during my lunch break today. My mom and dad bought me the Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker for Christmas. While I really enjoy my crockpot and the recipes from The Crockpot Lady, my life style leans toward the pressure cooker. I have a left over ham bone for beans but I'd really like to try something more adventurous.

I found this Mexican Meat Mix recipe. It can be used for Flautes, Taco Pizza, and Stuffed Baked Potatoes. I have all the ingredients on hand. I'll make the Taco Pizza with the Artisan Bread Crust and then freeze the left overs for Flautes or Stuffed Potatoes another night after. This can also be used on buns for Mexican Sandwiches. I love any one dish meal. Maybe I'll play with my new ( Vintage) Singer 66 this evening since dinner will be quick and easy.

Busy

My family left today and the house feels so empty with just Don and I. I cleaned up the left over remnants from Christmas, washed the towels, sheets, and clothes, and cleaned out the refrigerator. Then I took a short nap while Don went to Mt Nebo to check on our house.
I've been so busy with Christmas preparations that I've neglected my blogging for the past few weeks. Most things happening around here were family events except a couple of weeks ago Don went to an auction in Beckley and came home with a couple of vintage items.
This 16/66 Singer with a cabinet is in excellent condition. Don paid $40.00 at the auction. I've not had time to play with the machine yet. Now, that the holidays are over maybe I'll have time. The machine came with the ruffler, buttonhole attachment, seam guide, straight stitch foot, binding attachment, zipper foot, overlock foot, hem stitch foot, gathering foot, edge stitching foot, the darning or embroidery foot, and bobbin winder.
He also managed to win a bid on a 1999 Cadillac, like we really need another car. Don is so proud of his Cadillac. When I get a chance I'll take and post a few pictures of his treasure. Right now the car is stored in his shop about 3 miles from the house. The next time he brings it to the house I'll snap a few shots.

Christmas

Christmas, my favorite time of the year......but thankfully it only comes around once a year. It takes me a year to recuperate. The best thing about Christmas is my family being together.

No More Dishes Please

Fiesta came out with another color, chocolate brown. I do not need anymore Fiesta but I've been collecting all the colors for years now. I love this chocolate brown and it will go with my new kitchen. Maybe Santa will bring it. But I still don't need any more dishes. I really wish Fiesta would stop making new colors. This is a limited addition color.....oh please stop me. I'm wondering if anymore dishes will fit in this cabinet.
I caught the stomach virus that was going around. I felt terrible yesterday and stayed home from work. I really had too much to do at work with three office Christmas parties over the next week but I couldn't go and contaminate everyone in the office. Then they would be sick Christmas.

Don bought us a new Christmas tree tonight at Home Depot. Our tree was about 8 years old and really showing it's age. We put the new tree together in three pieces. It took about 5 minutes. Our old tree had about 100 pieces. Each branch was inserted separately. It was a pre-lit tree and the wires connected each branch. It took two people over an hour to put it together. I'm taking the old tree to Goodwill in the morning....I'm glad to be rid of it. We did not have time to decorate the tree, I'll do that tomorrow night.

Thursday night we are going to see the Nutcracker in Charleston. My time is running out getting ready for Christmas. I really should stay home and decorate, Internet shop, and bake goodies, but I love the Nutcracker Ballet. Don doesn't ask me to go to the Ballet very often, usually he wants to go to Mountaineer football and basketball games. I thought I should say "yes honey I'd love to go," or he my never ask again. He must have read my mind a few weeks ago when I was mentally complaining about tickets to a basketball game on Tuesday night before Thanksgiving. Who goes to a basketball game, two days before Thanksgiving with all the cooking that needs to be done. I was fussing to myself (silently) that we never go to a play, the symphony, or the ballet anymore. My husband is a good mind reader. I guess he's had plenty of practice over the past 32 years.

The Wedding

I just returned from Columbus OH, attending my second cousin's wedding. My oldest son and youngest son along with my brother, his wife and my parents went also. It snowed about 6 inches the day of the wedding. It was beautiful outside, but I hate cold weather. I froze to death. I'm still flicking icecles off my eye lids.

The ushers handed out sparklers (the 4th of July kinda of sparklers) to the guests as they left the church. All the guests gathered outside around the limo with the twinkling sparklers as the bride and groom exited the church. Snow was poring down, sparklers were twinkling everywhere, it was simply beautiful....and my camera is in the hotel room.

We stopped by the hotel on the way to the reception and retrieve the camera. The wedding cake.......Yes that is donuts! All I can say is:

Reception…………………………………..…………..……$12,000.00
Bar Bill at Reception…………………………………….$2,000.00
Krispy Cream Donut Cake……………………….…...$20.00
Watching the expression on your guest faces when they see your cake…..…PRICELESS

Can Koozies

I purchased 150 can koozies from the Can Koozie Lady back in the summer. I embroidered WV on 25 koozies for our friends at the campground. I used the glow in dark thread on the kids koozies. Look how many I have left. I really had intentions of embroidering on all of these before Christmas for presents.......I may get a few completed but not all of these.

I made two koozies with fly fishermen embroidery designs and gave to my eldest son when he was here Thanksgiving, darn, I didn't get a picture. I always get in a hurry and forget the photo. Here is a picture of two I made with a "bug in a jar". I found the embroidery designs at Smart Needle Designs . I'm going to try and embroider more of these blank koozies next week. I have lots of Christmas Designs and they will look great on the red koozies.

I may try and keep the Christmas Koozies here. (not give them away, if that's possible) When the boys are home for Christmas or when a football or basketball game is on, the men drink beer. They can each have a different koozie and they won't get their cans mixed up. Like the charms that go on the wine glasses, so you know which glass of wine is yours when you set it down and forget which glass belongs to you (after you've had several). The charms are cute, I have several sets of them, I'll have "can koozies" for the beer and "wine charms" for the wine glasses. Maybe I should coordinate?

More Fabric

I love Flannel World....ordered more flannel last Sunday evening and it's scheduled for arrival on Monday. Happy Birthday Don. No, I better find him a better gift than flannel, he'd be very disappointed, although I plan on stitching up 2 pair of flannel PJ bottoms for him. With his 36 inch inseam, it's hard to find flannel bottoms to fit.

I need to make a new Christmas table topper, this one from last year really doesn't match my new kitchen. I was on a table topper roll a few years ago and made a different round topper for every holiday and season. The Christmas topper is reversible but I only used the checked side. My piecing skills improved over the years, so I should probably try again....if I find time before Christmas.

As I scanned through my pictures for the Christmas table topper I found a picture of this little night gown I made a few years ago for the daughter of one of my employees at work. She wanted a little white simple gown for her 1 year old's Christmas picture. She was barefoot and holding a teddy bear in the picture. It was years ago that I actually sewed small clothes....this was my first small outfit in over 20 years, my boys are grown. Since sewing this night gown my grandson was born and I am getting lots of practice now. Unfortunately, I've not taken many pictures of the little outfits I've made over the last year and a half. Little girl outfits are so much more fun to create. Someday I shall have a granddaughter, surely the Lord will grant me this one wish. I've not ask for much from him. He gave me three wonderful boys, who became wonderful men and made me very proud. I really don't know much about girls anyway, but just one would be great.

Decorating

I'm worn out from the long Thanksgiving weekend, working late every evening this week, and trying to get my home ready for the holidays. I started with the kitchen. It takes me about 8 hours to completely change my cabinets over to my Pfaltzgraff holiday dishes. I store my Christmas dishes in a large closet in my family room. I carry the Christmas dishes upstairs and my Fiesta dishes downstairs to the closet. This year I did not start until Monday. I spent 4 hours Monday and 4 hours Tuesday evening after work running up and down stairs carrying dishes. Tonight I rearranged things again. I think I am finally satisfied with the end results and the placement of every dish.

This is the birdhouse and cardinal salt and pepper shakers on the small kitchen table.

I love my Pfaltzgraff Winterberry collection. I started this collection around 10 years ago and it continues to grow yearly. This is the cabinet over the microwave with all the little accessories.

Some of the utilitarian accessories decorating the counter tops

My teapot collection over the kitchen window.

Last night around midnight I decided I needed a few more Pfaltzgraff Winterberry dishes. I was bad and ordered a box full. I really needed (oh, I'll be truthful) wanted these new pieces. And I hope Don gets my secret undercover message and gets the wine chiller.

Here are a few things I ordered. They are all on sale 50% off.

I love Pfaltzgraff, you can check out the items on sale at http://www.pfaltzgraff.com/

I'm going to Ohio to my cousins wedding this weekend. The decorating will be on hold until I return Sunday evening. I'll take pictures of the tree and other decorations when I finish up. This weekend trip to Ohio is going to set me back about 2 days with Christmas decorating. Maybe if I'm lucky Don and I will shop on Saturday before the wedding and buy a few gifts.

I have the Christmas spirit this year, especially with a grandson to play with on Christmas morning. That is all I want for Christmas, my family here, everyone at one time, playing, singing, dancing, eating, sharing life's stories and memories. A free gift with family means more to me than any material item you could purchase.