at higher elevations, there were still remnants of snow...

Tim made potato pancakes & ham for Christmas breakfast

This has become our new nativity tradition - these figurines were one of the sets my family used during my childhood. My mother painted the 3 figures of the Holy Family in a ceramics class. I made the "soft trees" a few years ago. The background laciness is achieved with my vinyl doily collection. It all gets displayed in our de-facto shadow box: a single cabinet Tim built years ago as a test sample, with a glass door and box joints -- I thought it was too pretty to relegate to paint can storage or some such other use -- so it now hangs in a prominent location in our house. I'll show better pictures of the cabinet itself in the future.

(Christmas Eve at Tim's mom's house)

Cookie Carnival

(It's from another era and depicts some objectionable stereotypes, but enjoy just watching dancing cookies :)

detail of the border on the latest quilt being completed by Tim's mom (a gift for another coworker)

sights I like to see in the morning

This was a doll I made for myself when I was little, and somehow it has become Tim's favorite Christmas ornament - he calls it "Rock & Roll Sheep" - his polyester outfit is a fabric remnant from a disco shirt my dad wore that portrayed architectural sites from Italy! (fascinating as a kid :)

My sister made this little mouse when we were kids using one of those childhood "knitting machines":

I made the angel ornaments many years ago for my grandmother (this was originally her Christmas tree), and the M&M couple were a wedding gift decoration (for us) made by one of my cousins

I think our neighbor may appreciate the aesthetic qualities of hanging laundry as much as I do -- they frequently have colorful sheets "drying" on their line in all kinds of weather - and this week, check out the colors!

'tis the season

..for irresistible treats around every corner


...for vacuum-packing cookies to send to people far away


(making Christmas cookies at my mom's house)

...for finding a Christmas tree with my mom



(tree farm in Waterloo, N.Y.)

Yippeee! They're back!

No, it's not too early. I'm one of those people who thinks the Christmas season is way too short, so I'm happy to herald the arrival of this tradition as my official start to the season! These will be my diet staple for the next 2 months (or until our local grocery mart runs out of them, since our larger supermarkets don't seem to carry these!)

go tell it on the mountain

driving by a park full of Christmas trees in Seneca Falls

the lighting at dusk made me think of the Marvin Gaye song "Purple Snowflakes"


little tree at the end of our driveway (Tim's shed in the background)

haven't tired of this trick yet! :)





our little Christmas tree - I made the tree skirt in Florida with leftover fabric scraps from the curtains I'd also sewed there