A Christmas Decoration Story

Background Story  

Several years ago when I first bought my sewing machine (and I had never sewn anything in my life) I decided to make Christmas stockings.  (see original stockings here)

They were super cute stockings but not very functional due to the fact that I was VERY inexperienced sewing.  Although the pattern was probably plenty big the stockings kept "shrinking" because I wasn't getting all the layers in my seams and kept having to re sew and re sew seams.  Please keep in mind that I was self / blog / online tutorial taught to sew.  I had a little instruction at the store where I bought my machine but it was more of a "how to turn your machine on and make it go" than a class of how to make items.  I have a great friend Kathy that I email with questions and send pictures of all my sewing projects because she KNOWS how far I have really come in my sewing skills.      

The Christmas Tree Skirt and Stocking Story

Once upon a time on a day very close to Christmas 2013, the hubby and I visited the local craft / fabric store to look for fabric for stockings and a tree skirt because it was on sale (one of my favorite words).  Our fake tree had bit the dust this year and I wasn't motivated to start or finish this project because the tree that we had up was about a foot and a half tall and had a total of 10 ornaments on it. I was waiting for the after Christmas sale (there's that word again - I got my $359.00 tree for $97.00!) to get the tree that I really wanted.  So making a tree skirt for a tiny tree was NOT high on my priority list.  We got the fabric that we liked(on sale!!!) and when I got home it was just laid to the side.  

Too many other fun Christmas things to be doing...like opening gifts with these three cutie pies.

   

The story continues on cold night in Tennessee weeks later.  I was putting away stuff (you know - the stuff that you just lay down when you come in a room) and picked up my Christmas fabric to take it to my sewing area.  I picked up the retiring tree skirt because for some reason it didn't make it into the Christmas boxes that had been put away.  I knew that I was eventually going to make the tree skirt and I wanted to get the diameter from my old tree skirt before putting it away.  I went ahead and started measuring then just decided to make a tree skirt. 

I've never made a tree skirt. I don't have a pattern for a tree skirt.  I did know what I wanted so I jumped in feet first.   

     Things I wanted in a tree skirt:  double sided, a ruffle, & ribbon closures.

I used my old tree skirt for the size estimates.  Cut my circles. Made my ruffle. Made my quilt sandwich with a layer batting, ruffle, and ties included.  Then I started sewing.  I think the end product turned out quite nicely.     

The next day it was time for new stockings because if I don't finish them now they may never get done. 

I went back and used the same tutorial that I had on my original stockings.  I only made two changes.  1. I put the stocking pattern onto a piece of card board and made my pattern an inch wider ALL the way around.  This allowed for bigger stockings which we find more user friendly. 

2. Then I matched a cute little green ruffle from my tree skirt onto my stocking.

Here's the result. 

    And they all loved happily ever after.

The End

So Much To Share....

So much has passed since my last real blog that it is hard to imagine.  

I plan on trying to stay up to date and getting more tutorials in 2013 but for now here's what the last several months of 2012 held for us. 

In October, after many appointments and me complaining of pain for months, my dr sent me for an ultra sound and echogram.  The point - to see if my new IUD was placed correctly or if it may be the root of my problems.  As I watched the big screen in front of me, the technician was marking spots on the video and making measurements for Dr Woods to see.  I asked if she could show me my IUD on the video and she did.  I didn't ask anymore questions because I had NO clue what I was looking at.  

I received a call from my dr first thing the next morning....um - not a good feeling when I saw her name on my caller ID that early.  She had good news and bad news.  

The good news - we now know what my problem is.  

The bad news - I have a cyst surrounding my ovary that is the size of a large orange.

We talked game plan then - no waiting for an appointment and having a nervous breakdown in the interim.  

A plan was made - wait 3 weeks, have another ultra sound, see if the cyst has changed any - preferably gotten smaller.  The day for the 2nd ultra sound came and I asked questions as I was looking at that big screen.  I knew a cyst was what the other tech had been measuring so I asked her to show me where it was.  It had gotten large enough that had pushed my left ovary to the side and was taking up a much larger spot than it was allotted.  I went on to see my dr after the ultrasound and the decision was made for surgery.  

On November 14th I went for surgery to remove the cyst and consequentially my  right ovary with it.  Russel, mom and dad came to the hospital and waited through the surgery and with me both before and after the surgery.  I asked that everyone else stay at home and wait for word because there was no use in the entire Kelley/ Stoddard clan taking over Baptist hospital.  I remember waiting for surgery. I remember clawing at my face after surgery and the nurse getting mad.  And with Russel's help I remember acting a little funny while I was in recovery after they were allowed to come back and see me.  4 incisions and 3 weeks of nausea later and all that pain is gone.  If you had asked me about a week after the surgery when the smell of food made me nauseous and I was sleeping 20 hours a day if it was worth it....I probably would have given you the evil eye.  Today, I can tell you it was worth it.  I have one more good ovary that is taking up production for the one I lost.  I am not hurting, having hot flashes, crying for no good reason, or nauseous.  Life is good.  

So during that time Thanksgiving came and went.  I have no pictures and didn't even have the Kelley Thanksgiving at our house this year.  Nanny did that.   

I love to black Friday shop.  That was a no go too but I did look at the ads and wish I could be out in the hooplah.  The only black Friday shopping that I did was to Walmart late in the afternoon for ensure (because I still wasn't able to eat much) and one or two toys that had been on sale and still were.
However Nanny and Papa did celebrate their 70th anniversary in November - so at our Thanksgiving lunch they got spiffed up to get their picture made.  

About mid December everything returned to normal and we found ourselves in the hustle of the holiday season.  Christmas was very nice this year.  We rejoiced in the birth of Christ, celebrated with the families and friends, over ate and enjoyed the time spent together.  Here's a few pictures of our holiday fun.  

Top Left - Donna & me acting silly, Top Right - Kenny, Cari, Stephen, Cacy(Wrex), Me, Russel, Donna and Phil, Bottom Left - All the guys, Bottom Right - all the gals.  
 The Ugly Christmas Sweater Party at Cari and Kenny's house.
Oh what fun...there were some great home made sweaters that had me so tickled.  I made both mine and Russel's sweaters.   

Russel and I had a live tree that we planted after the first of the year.  We also did our new annual tradition of making a ginger bread house.  I have a ginger bread home depot already bought for next year.  

We had a great Christmas with the Kelley families - too many gifts and too much food but as always never enough time together. Why am I licking my sister do you ask???  Because it's Christmas and I can, so why not???

Zach & Sarah - Jessica - Mark & Tina - Deb & Skooter
We gathered Christmas night with the Stoddard/ Smith clans at Mark and Tina's house and ate more food.  I think I gained 10 pounds in food on Christmas - I was making up for Thanksgiving.  

 Unfortunately after Christmas we lost the oldest member of our pet family.  Tookie our little black cat was 14.  She's been epileptic for years and taken medicine for it since we first found out.  Russel took these pictures of her walking all over Hunter at lunch one day before he left to go out of town. By the time I got home from work she had lost the ability to walk.  I knew the time had been coming but it was a very hard decision to take her to the vet the next morning.  She was my sweet, annoying, crazy little cat and I loved her dearly.  I miss her every day. 
So that is the last two months of our year in a wrap up.  Again - I am going to try to do better posting and letting you see into our crazy little lives together.  My resolution for the year is to do at least one tutorial per month.  I know that is not much at all but it is a place to start and a goal to keep.
Happy 2013 to you all!

        

Deck the Halls

Every year when Thanksgiving is over and the pumpkins and bales of straw are put away I groan.  Not because I don't love Christmas and the things that surround the holiday but because I despise putting up the tree.  It is pre lit and only in four pieces but the scratchy on my arms when I am "fluffing" the tree is always aggravating......until it comes time to put on the ornaments and then my mood changes.  I love putting the ornaments on the tree.  We have an assortment of all different ornaments.  We have no theme & no color preference.  I have ornaments that invoke memories and smiles.  I can look at nearly every ornament on my tree and tell you where and who it came from. 

The first year that I lived on my own I had a slight pre Christmas breakdown.  I knew it was time to put up a tree and when I started to do so I realized that I had NO ornaments of my own.  I know that it shouldn't have seemed like such a shock to me but it was.  I called mom....tears in my eyes...."mom - I have no ornaments that are mine".  So being the WONDERFUL mom that my mother is, she came to get me and we went to Fred's.  We bought the round plastic ornaments in clear, red and green.  I was afraid it just looked cheesy but she told me that over the years I would build my "OWN" collection of special ornaments.  She was right - as always.  This is the 10th year of living in my house - as a grown up - with our own tree.  If you look closely at my tree there is not a single one of those Fred's ornaments left.  We have been building our own Christmas memories one year at a time and our tree is filling up nicely.          

For the first couple years after the initial discovery that I didn't have ornaments of my own mom did the best thing that she could for me.....she gave me ornaments for every gift holiday year round.  She picked up ornaments that would be special to me from here and there and every mothers day, birthday and Christmas I would get a special new ornament to add to my collection.

Here is one of the first ornaments mom and dad gave me.  I love to fish at the pond - even if I am not catching anything.  

Then Russel and I got married and we bought and received some couple ornaments.

 This one above from Annie and Lance Farrar as part of our wedding gift.

And this one that I had made with our last name and wedding year.

Then there are the ornaments that Russel and I get on every trip we take.  Oddly enough it is never hard any time of year to find a Christmas ornament.  From Jamaica to Hawaii to Gatlinburg and back we pick up an ornament everywhere that we travel. 

Our first trip to Gatlinburg - a Noah's ark ornament

Santa flying over NYC from our trip to Niagara and NYC. 

And last but definitely not least are ornaments that have been given to us by friends. 

A Santa Ball from the Lowe's

My only Christmas Pickle from Janet Duke.  

So I begrudgingly put up the tree so that I can laugh, smile and sometimes shed tears at all the memories that we are making through our lifetime together.  It's a wonderful reminder every year that God gives us a precious life to live and that we should enjoy every moment afforded to us.

Our nativity scene is out and the tree is up, but the rest of the house looks like the attic exploded Christmas and Thanksgiving decorations.  Stay tuned for pictures of the rest of the decorating.  I have to take pictures to show because otherwise only I get to enjoy it.....and I love to share. 

Happy Holidays.