Whew! That was my exclamation late yesterday afternoon, (Christmas Day), when I finally sat down on my sofa without any knitting or sewing in my hands. Unlike last year when I finished well before Christmas Eve, this year I was rushing to finally finish two hours past my deadline on Christmas Eve Day. And yet, everything worked out wonderfully in the end.
This year's handmade gifts were four rag dolls made for the youngest granddaughters, and sixteen knitted hats. I always find it a little bit magical that sometimes I can start out with a stack of fabrics and an idea and after a considerable amount of stitching produce something I love. And oh how I loved these dolls!
The hats were knitted in coordinating yarns linking our four children's families. So many of the children's hats were the same size or too close to tell "who's is who's", that I embroidered name tags to sew inside each one.
During the holidays, besides the handmade gifts I'm working on, from Black Friday through New Years Day I have a mental list running of things I want to make sure I make, do, and savor. Barring any later realizations, I think I've accomplished it, although there were some close calls. Late on Saturday during a conversation going over the menu for Christmas Eve with one of my daughters I realized I forgot about a family favorite casserole I make every year, Fida Kahlo's Macaroni with Spinach Sauce. So, add one more late trip to the store. (And still there was yet another trip to the store at midnight on Saturday.)
And during all of that hand stitching I work my way through all of my Christmas DVDs. At one point while watching my second favorite, The Family Stone, my husband asked "which one is this?" And when I told him he answers, "But that one always makes you cry." Yes it does! And that's why finally on Christmas day, when all the work is behind me I watch my favorite, It's A wonderful Life, and cry again.
Here's to all of us closing out the holiday season of 2017 with much joy and even more love and peace.
