Pretty Photos and Waiting for a Really Big Snowstorm

 The news this week has been horrendous. I'm praying for the people of Minnesota and for the rest of us and for our country. This is not going to be political post as we need a slight break from it all. Instead, I'm going to share some photos.

I received this beautiful bouquet last Sunday when friends and two of my cousins came for a visit. 

That night we had about five inches of snow which coated the trees and bushes; it was a winter wonderland.

On Tuesday, I took a ride and captured these images in Scituate Harbor.

Wednesday night was a game night with friends in Hull. On Thursday, friends came for dinner and brought these gorgeous roses. Kathy and Larry are my neighbors, and they were totally responsible for me finding and purchasing my dream home. :-)

The blue, vintage transferware platter spend years and years wrapped up on a shelf in my aunts' basement. I love it, and I'm thrilled to have a place to display it. 

On Friday, a bone chilling Arctic blast swept down.

I started this post talking about a snowstorm last week, and I'm ending it the same way. A major snowstorm is cutting a wide swarth across our country. One weatherman said it is a 1,500 mile storm., another said a 2,000 mile swarth. At least, we in New England are prepared to deal with it. The snow is beginning to fall gently, and estimates are that we in Massachusetts can expect to receive between 12 -24+ inches. Yikes! Make that double yikes!!! It has been three years since Logan Airport in Boston has recorded six inches of snow. 

The rallying cry of "Get the milk!" "Get the Bread!" "Get the snacks!" was heard and the shelves of supermarkets and hardware stores have been emptied.  We hardy New Englanders know how to prepare. I worry about folks in the lower states who seldom if ever have experienced a storm like this. There are huge power outages in  many states and many states do not have the equipment to deal with a monster storm such as this.

Stay warm and bundle up!!! It's time to hunker down and watch the Patriots hopefully defeat the Denver Broncos in today's championship game.

Now, where did I put those sour cream & onion chips???

Thrifting Fun!

 

 

I stopped to take this photo at the Gazebo at Whitmans Pond in Weymouth on Sunday morning. On the way to church it had been snowing, but by the time I was heading home the sun was beginning to peek out of the clouds.

In this post, I will show you some fun items that I purchased last Thursday while out doing errands. First up, a quick stop at Michael’s to pick up some items for an upcoming project.  That’s where I picked up this gingerbread display piece. It was 60% off and I had an additional 15.00 credit. How could I resist? What will I do with it? That I am not sure of, but I’m thinking it might be cute with a cross stitch piece in each section.

Next there was a stop at the Salvation Army Store in Hanover. I always pop into this store when I’m in the area as I always find interesting things on the shelves. Here’s what I took home.

A resin Santa’s workshop piece still in its original box. $3.99

Won’t this resin colonial house look cute on one of my bookshelves surrounded by patriotic cross stitch pieces? $3.99 

I’ve been searching for a solid table on which to place my new printer, and I found this one. 

It was in good shape, but when I applied my favorite “Howards Feed and Wax,” it looked amazing. $20.00.

There was one other item; this happy, friendly, irresistible guy came home with me as well!!! 2.99  :-)

My plan for today is to take down the holiday items in my kitchen and sunporch. There is no rush. I also have plans to prepare a small quilt for quilting and to fully finish a couple of cross stitch pieces. Wish me luck! ;-)

Have a happy, creative day!

Goodbye 2025

 Yesterday I had two friends come for lunch. I have known Cathy since I was three or four, and Marilyn since I was probably eight. How very lucky we are to have been friends for such a long time. 

Today, I went to lunch with quilting friends to our friend Maribeth’s home to see her decorations before they come down. Maribeth showed us a quilt for her friend’s first grandson. The baby is named Leon, so Maribeth created a lion quilt for him. The center is a paper piece lion pattern that she found online. It is surrounded by lion fabric and coordinating pieces.

Could that be any cuter!!! Maribeth also has a collection of beautiful ornaments including some Wizard of Oz ornaments.

Simply beautiful!

Finally, let’s end the year with a smile. Last week, I drove by a home with quite a number of ‘uninflated’ pieces covering their front yard. Curiosity got the best of me, and I had to go back at night to see what they were.

Note: In rereading yesterday’s post, I noticed that I had neglected to add a few photos. I have since added them in case you would like to go back and take a look at that post.

Let us hope that we all have a Healthy, Happy, Creative New Year!!!

My Halls Are Decked - Part 2

 

In today’s post, I’ll show some more scenes from my holiday decorating. Long ago, my friend Diane taught me how to do stained glass. This little grouping has not been displayed for many years, but the window ledge in my dining area in my new home is perfect for doing so. 

I would occasionally accompany her to a local glass shop, Whittemore-Durgin in Rockland. I would pull out a pieces of glass and suggest that she really needed to buy it. She said if I liked it so much, I should buy it and she would teach me and she did. One unusual piece had a black swirl through it. You can see it below where I used it to create the cloak of one of the Wise Men. I no longer work with stained glass, but I am happy to display these pieces.

Here are some other scenes. 

I love collecting Christmas tree pins.

And finally, here’s my favorite quilt, not just Christmas quilt but favorite of all time. I think it was called “Old World Santas.” 

Thank you for the positive energy sent Emma’s way as she is doing better. The vet said Vestibular Disease can reoccur, but for now, she is steadily improving.

2025 has been quite a year for me! As I have said, everyone should buy a new home at least once every seventy years or so. :-) I wonder what 2026 will bring?  Wishing you all, a healthy, happy year ahead and thank you for reading my blog

My Halls Are Decked for This Wonderful Season

 I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas. I spent the day at my cousin Kristin’s home with her family and my cousin Linda’s family as well. It was wonderful.

As I have mentioned often, I watch quite a bit of Youtube,  usually flosstubers but at this time of year I also enjoy house tours. It’s fun to see how others have decorated for the holidays. With that in mind, I thought I would show you how I have decked my halls for my first Christmas in my new home.

Because my living room ceiling is so high, I purchased this 7.5’ tree. (My friend Kathy L. helped me lug it in and put it up. She liked it so much that she was in line at 6:00 am at Lowe’s on the day after Thanksgiving to buy the exact same tree! :-)

This pencil tree displays my cross stitch ornaments.

This little tree adds sparkle to my four-season room. The lavender plant on my coffee table was a gift from a friend who recently visited. 

This baker Santa graces my kitchen counter along with two thrifted Santa mugs. They were each $1.99 and look adorable on my Jingle Bell Cafe cross stitch display. :-)

Of course there is more so I will continue the tour in my next post.

Special thanks to Terry K. who helped me solve the html issue with posting. Be sure to check out her blog, OnGoingProjects. She is a talented, prolific quilter.

One more thing, please send some positive energy and perhaps a prayer or two along for my sweet Emma who turns fourteen this week. On Saturday, we took a long walk, and she was absolutely fine pulling me right along. On Sunday morning when she woke up, she was very unstable and clearly disoriented. The emergency room vet diagnosed vestibular disease which older dogs can get. Other than a pill to help her dizziness and lack of balance, there is nothing that can be done. The hope is that she will gradually return to normal. She isn’t in any pain and has a good appetite, but for now I must carry her from place to place. She seems quite content curled up beside me on the couch, so hopefully, my girl will improve.

Through My Garden Gate

Wouldn't this make a lovely Christmas card ? A few days ago, I picked up a wreath for each gate on the sides of my house. Though there was snow on the ground when I took this photo, it's gone now as yesterday was a wild and windy, rainy Friday.

This colorful display caught my eye ouside a doctor's office last week, and when I went to Michael's, I picked up similar colored ornaments to display in this gorgeous punch bowl. It's Heisey cut glass and was a present to my dad's parents on the occasion of their twenty-fifth anniversary in 1927. In the background is the current wool applique project on which I am working. (The photo doesn't capture how truly bright and sparkly the ornaments are.

That's it for now. Enjoy the weekend. One more thing . . . blogger.com is making blogging more challenging as they are changing how we create and publish our posts. Suddenly HTML shows up as I am composing. Bear with me as I figure it out; hopefully, you won't notice any difference. :-)

A Gentle Snowy Sunday

This is the scene that greeted me this morning. The soft, confectionery sugar snow has coated the trees and bushes and the sidewalks, but the roads are basically clear. No one minds this type of snow which has continued all day.

Yesterday I had a very special visitor. My friend Kathy’s mom had been driven down by a caregiver to see Kathy’s holiday decorations. Her mom had been hearing all about my new home, and when Kathy asked if she would like to visit my house, her mom replied, “Sure, I would love to!” 

Dear readers, this is what 103 looks like!!!!!!!! She is beyond amazing.  She delighted in seeing my quilts, all of my vintage holiday treasures, and each room in my new home. The visit wasn’t long, but it was indeed very special. 

In both 2004 and 2005, I resolved to cross stitch at least one Christmas piece each month. How did I do? Not well . . . I added only two new ornaments this year. 

Once again, I’m making that same resolution; let’s hope I do better in 2006. :-)