Happy New Year's Eve !!!

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!  

 

Out with 2013 and in with 2014 !!   Hope it's a healthy and peaceful year for all !!   

 

Be back next year !!!

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

I'm POOPED !!!!

Well, another Christmas has come and gone  (all too fast in my opinion !!!  ) ..... and I'm POOPED !!! 

As usual,  most of the handmade gifts I intended to sew/quilt did not get finished ..... there was the "Holiday Houses" quilt,  a couple of table runners,  some hand/wrist warmers out of softy cozy fleece,   and a few different projects using chalkboard fabric.  Oh well ...... I'm going to still work on these Christmas projects because Christmas isn't over at my house until I say it is !!!!  (I don't care that I already saw Valentine stuff out at some stores  ...... I don't care that the radio stations stopped playing Christmas music on Christmas Day at midnight  ......jeeze !!! What ever happened to the 12 Days of Christmas !!! ...and our Christmas tree will stay up for quite a while yet ..... I just got the darn thing up and decorated 5 days ago .....so I'm gonna sit and look at it for a month !  ..... or until the poor thing falls over).  Anyway,  Santa's helper (aka Me) hit some good pre Christmas sales and got.......

....a boat load of fun fabric pre cuts !!!  (these are all already spoken for ...... at least 3 graduation quilts on the horizon ..... I have big (unrealistic) plans to get them finished in time .....)

.....and Santa actually brought these !!! (well, my sister .... so another of Santa's helpers !) .  

So, I think I'll put on some Christmas music,  plug in the Christmas lights on the tree, light a fire in the fireplace, look through these fun magazines and sit and enjoy the Christmas season  ...... cause it ain't over til I say it's over !!!!!

 

Be back soon!

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

Merry Christmas Eve !!!!

He'll be here soon !!!! Did you put out the cookies and milk ?????  

MERRY CHRISTMAS to all  ..... and to all a GOOD NIGHT !!!!

Be back soon !
Toodles,
Mary Anne (aka Mare)

11th Hour Christmas Sewing

As per usual, all of my brilliant Christmas sewing ideas are not finished .......some barely started ..... and most are just a scribble on a piece of paper .  So, here I am again, sewing like a lunatic at the 11th hour (well, it's not quite the 11the hour ..... but check back on Christmas Eve at 11 PM and I'll have a crazed look on my face sewing on a mission just like the Grinch). 

Oh well ...... back to work !  (still have to decorate the Christmas tree and wrap everything too ........ oh, and maybe bake a cookie or two ...... slice and bake here I come !!!)

Be back soon!

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

Christmas Houses

I love houses decorated for Christmas .... especially when there's snow.   But, as you can see in this picture I took of our house a couple of days ago with just a wreath on the front door , I haven't yet mastered the art of "exterior illumination" like .....

   Clark Griswold !!!

 Ta Daaaaaaa......

 Anyway, instead of working on our real Christmas house,  I 've been playing around with this "Ready Set Snow" layer cake by "Me and My Sister Designs" from a year or two ago. 

  Decided to make some fabric Christmas houses .   Silly me thought I came up with an original idea, but looking through pinterest and a few blogs,  I realize this idea has been around the block a few times .   What might put an original spin on it, though is I plan to do this as a Quilt As You Go  quilt ..... since my right shoulder is now shot due to work ( physical therapy is a joint killer after 33 years !!! ) and also due to repetitive motion injury of the same shoulder  caused by machine quilting 3  big quilts and 1 baby quilt within 2 months.  So, I now have to break quilts down into small, manageable chunks to machine quilt ......  it's my new mission in my quilting life !!!  Will keep you posted !

OK back to working on houses ..... fabric and real (might go outside and wrap a string of lights around the porch railing !  Clark has inspired me !!! plus we look like the Grinch house of the neighborhood ! )

 

Be back soon!

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

Olde Time Christmas, Jim Thorpe, Pa

 Today, instead of putting away pumpkins and all things Thanksgiving, I wandered around our quaint little town of Jim Thorpe, Pa.  This weekend and next weekend are Olde Time Christmas here.  It was snowing ...... making the scenery look like I was in Bedford Falls ...... I was waiting for George Bailey to come running down the street looking for ZuZu's petals !!!

 There were very few people as the afternoon wore on due to the weather .......

....... a few were waiting for the last Santa train to come back to the station .....

.......and these hearty souls played wonderful Christmas music  for crazy people like me who stood out in the snow to listen.

  Ho Ho Ho !!!  There he is !!! Santa is back at the station !!!

  After I sat on Santa's lap (and don't think I didn't !! ) , I took a walk around town to look at the beautiful shops all dressed up for Christmas.

  Isn't that pretty !!!

.....and this is Race Street ...... looks like Europe I've been told (I've never been to Europe so I wouldn't know)

 .... Well, NOW I'm starting to feel like it's Christmas time !!!!   Getting a little more motivated to at least put the pumpkins away and put up the Christmas tree and a wreath or two !

 

Be back soon!

Toodles,

Mary Anne (aka Mare)

Craftsy and Wish of a Lifetime

  What a GREAT idea !!! In my 30 plus years as a home care physical therapist working with mostly senior citizens, I have had the honor of treating many WW II vets (many left the local high schools when they were 16 or 17 to join the military); I have heard their first hand accounts of what it was like to be the "wild teenagers" of the town back in the day (jumping off the bridge to land in the coal cars of the passing trains ...... CRAZY !!!); heard about how their families had 10 or 12 kids, their dad worked in the mines and was injured or killed, and the oldest had to quit school to support the family ...... working in the mines . I have heard many stories from hard working retired nurses , teachers and doctors (my 84 year old dad being the #1 retired doctor in my life ...... he has done it all ..... delivered babies, been the family doctor for a lifetime of families,  made house calls in all kinds of weather and at all times of the day or night,  been the first one on an accident scene, worked the ER ).  And I have heard stories of being young and in love and dancing to Benny Goodman and The Dorsey Brothers;  stories of being the first daughter of immigrants who was determined to go to college and then  move to Philadelphia to an apartment with other young women and work in a big city hospital far away from home (my 83 year old mother's story).  I love hearing their stories about their younger days and have learned a great deal from their life experiences ...... they deserve our respect and most of all friendship and time.
       And, to their credit, Craftsy is partnering with Wish of a Lifetime to help send some deserving seniors home ........ home to their hometowns where they were young,  home to a granddaughter's wedding,  home to visit family and friends.   Because , as we know , there's just no place like home !!!!   Craftsy will donate $5 for every class purchased to Wish of a Lifetime through December 11th.  So, zip on over there to Craftsy and sign up for one of their great classes (which you will LOVE !! )  ..... and in the process you will be helping to keep a deserving  senior citizen from being lonely this holiday season.

Be back soon!
Toodles,
Mary Anne (aka Mare)