I think about putting up the Christmas tree, and then decide to put it off to another day. Hanging the socks on the mantel--Meh! Hasn't happened yet. Cookies are yet to be baked even, much less mailed to the kids. I got Christmas cards yesterday, but have no desire to mail them out. Even working on holiday quilts to put in the Etsy shop isn't getting me going. Tell me I'm not the only one. Tell me this will pass and I'll have a joyous winter season as in past years. Please, tell me these things, because I don't like feeling this way.
I just saw this horse poster online and I think this kind of holiday spirit I can embrace. It doesn't matter if the tree gets trimmed or cookies baked or cards mailed. What's important is the message above, and that I can do. So, I guess I really do have the holiday spirit but needed this to remind me. And this year, we all need this kind of holiday spirit more than ever.
Yesterday Don and I met our good friends for lunch--which was so much fun! Afterwards, we did a little shopping. I looked at 18" dolls at Target yesterday, thinking I would buy one and give it and the extra doll clothes to a toy collection site, but I didn't get one. To me, there was something about the dolls' faces that was unsettling and I couldn't bring myself to buy one. Also, I've yet to find a donation site in my town, so I think this idea will be put away, along with the extra doll clothes.
When we got home, the afternoon was half gone and I sat down to do some reading in the Jane Smiley book that I started the other day. Her writing is sooo good! This one is called Some Luck and it's about a farm family in Iowa. I'm about halfway through it, and I know it's one of those books I just won't want to end.
After that I went to the sewing room and got a little more quilting done on Snow Happens but when I ran out of bobbin thread, I realized that it was time to clean out the machine and wind more bobbins. Instead of doing that, I turned everything off and went upstairs to get ready for supper! A couple of months ago I discovered a tip that I follow. I read that you should clean the bobbin case after every 5 bobbins, so I wind five bobbins and when they're all empty, I know I have to do a little cleaning and wind 5 more. And yesterday, I just didn't want to do it right then and there. But I will today.
Before I quit for the day, I managed to quilt in the spirals in the background of the snowmen and I outlined all the embroidered figures.
I started on the loops in the cream colored border and I was 3/4 done with that when I ran out of bobbin thread. So I'll finish that today and I think I'm going back to the snowmen and do some stitching inside them, so they don't look so puffy and "loose."
I saw on her blog, http://karensquiltscrowscardinals.blogspot.com/, how Karen quilted inside her appliqued snowmen above, and while lying in bed this morning, I figured out some designs that I want to use on my embroidered snowmen. So I'll experiment with that later today.
And then I have the curves to stitch in the outer border diamonds. So far, I'm really liking the look of this piece--love the dark blue and cream. Maybe I'll have it ready for binding tonight--I actually cut and sewed the binding strips before I began the quilting, so it's all ready to stitch in place when the quilting's finished.
Just writing about the quilting I want to do today has put me in a better mood. I'm ready to take on the challenge of decorating the house even though I don't have the superficial holiday "spirit," but I know that I always try to live with the more meaningful holiday spirit as stated in the horse poster, and that means that I have the energy and ambition to go ahead and do what I want to get done. I hope you're feeling the spirit too and are enjoying these days of winter celebration.
Now, where in the world did I put that Christmas tree?
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