Making Christmas Memories -Old and New

This is my one and only Raggedy Ann, Clairabell Jingles.

Even though she is in a Christmas outfit she stays out all year. Don't you like to leave one or two Christmas things out?

Last week I showed the photo of this tree getting put up in the main intersection of our town.

The kids from all the elementary schools in the area came and decorated the little trees surrounding it. Last Saturday was the annual tree lighting. It's a big event and lots of fun seeing people, singing, hot chocolate, etc.

I was bringing out this quilt for the guest bedroom for part of my seasonal decorating

so I thought I would show it to you. It's a

holiday quilt that I did as a "brown bag" project.

My sewing group, the Material Girls, passed a project around and everybody did a block for each persons bag.

This one was my choice of pattern. I added the background, black and white fabrics in the bag and each of my friends did a block using my fabric selection and some of their scraps for the block. It makes a nice memory quilt of my group! Then (as I don't plan in advance) I had this border fabric, from years ago, that I thought would look good on the quilt... but I was about a foot and a half short! Don't ya hate that!?!

Fortunately my friend Donna had the same fabric in her stash and bailed me out!
How lucky was that!

On Thursday evening a couple of my friends came over. We have been working on Winter Wonderland

by Crabapple Hill for several months...

no that's not the wrong picture... I put the binding on this quilt instead. It's also an older quilt that needed to get finished. But I am truly in a love hate relationship with that redwork in Winter Wonderland. I can't wait to get to sewing the blocks! Anyway, this one got finished.

It's flannel and made from a fold art panel that came out a few years ago.

I have a whole houseful of people coming today at noon for a mini Christmas gathering of my siblings. Mini meaning about 14, including 2 little ones ages 3 & 5!

Woohoo! Little kids for Christmas!

We got to go shopping for them last night. Boy, was I lost in the toy section of Target! I am a tad (okay a lot) claustrophobic and those tall isles with lots of people in them just about sent me over the edge! But I did it... and I'm happy with our gifts for them.

But seriously, there was a lot of learning in a short amount of time there. I should have asked for advise on what is "in" before we went!

So, I have a whole lot of cooking and cleaning to get started on!
Have a wonderful weekend!