Snowman apron from two tea towels

I got this pattern last winter so thought I would make it during vacation! So easy and you only need two tea towels and a little fabric for the appliqué. I got everything from a great site called The Wooden Bear. They have cool stuff with easy to follow directions, which makes me happy! Hope you all have a great New Year's Eve! Happy birthday to my mom (aka Joe Momma!)

An evening gown made from garbage bags! Puppy's first snow.

My kids like to have each other over for parties and dinners, so there is always something fun to look forward to in their lives.  For Christmas, Evy and Jon had everyone to their house for dinner and secret Santa sharing.  Evy thought it would be fun to dress as Santa that night.  She made her guests sit on her lap and tell them what they wanted for Christmas (she is about 100 pounds lighter than her brother, boyfriend and other friends who attended!), and then they all got a little gift from Santa.  Sounds like fun.

Thought I would show you how big Emma has gotten!  She is as big as Penny now!  This is Emma's first snowfall and she was having a grand time!  Penny is the one looking dejected closer to the truck.  They did not like posing for this picture.

Emma with a nose full of snow.  She was running around like a maniac when she first got into the snow.  Both dogs were having a fun time.

For New Years Eve, all of the kids will be going to Rob's house for a dinner party.  The theme this year is fancy dresses for the girls.  Not sure about the guys...wonder if they have to be formal too?  Anyway, Evelyn wanted to make a gown from garbage bags (I have no idea why!LOL) and here it is!  I think she looks really cool!  It's interesting to see the creative side of kids, isn't it? 

MERRY CHRISTMAS from me and my Rice Krispy snowmen

We celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, so yesterday I did a lot of cooking and preparing for dinner, which was actually very relaxing and fun (I love to be home).  Most of the recipes I used came from the December and January 2012 issue of TASTE OF HOME.  Everything was delicious and fairly easy.  It's a great magazine if you love to cook but don't want anything too complicated.  Never have I had a bad meal from there.

The centerpiece was a $5 bargain from Stop and Shop on December 23.  The place settings all have a towel from my embroidery machine. 

Kenny and I made Rice Krispy treat snowmen to put at everyone's setting.  This is Kenny's place at the table.  Notice the deer poop in his snow!  Wanted to remind him of his deer hunting days.

Even though I loved the snowman idea, we made them the night before and they kept falling over all night on the tray.  They slowly started to sink into themselves and lose their hats!  It was like a zombie snowman scene when I saw them in the morning.  So of course, I had to rebuild them all day and just hope they would last til dinner!  They did.  Rob said they were still cute and "had character" to them! Ha!

The snowmen in their pre-finished state!!  They did bring a lot of smiles to everyone and even though I would not let anyone eat them (we had handled them too much by that point) they did look precious at the table.  Today I do nothing but relax and maybe go for a ride.  I made enough food to last for a few days, so it will be sewing and reading time for many days to come!!  Merry Christmas to all of my friends and family!! 

Embroidered Christmas towels

These towels have been my evening project for about a week or so! Each one takes about 3 or 4 hours to stitching out! Tonight they will be going home with my dinner guests. Then I can make more! Merry Christmas!

This towel with the Truffles on it was almost done (about 4 1/2 hours at that point) and my machine started acting wonky!  So, now it hangs on my fridge as a work towel.  I will use it up and toss it eventually.  It's still a nice towel even with its problems! :)

This towel will probably get some ribbons or ruffles on it next week.  It's a little plain compared to the others.

Last of the Christmas sewing done! Jelly roll bags!

A few weeks ago I learned how to make these fun bags using a jelly roll!  You can make two or three bags with just one jelly roll, too.  I made this one for my son's lovely girlfriend.  I think she will like it.

I also made a few more mug rugs.  These two are for my kids to have their tea/coffee on!  I need to make a few for myself one of these days.

I made this bag for Evelyn.  This is from the same jelly roll I used for the black and white one!  So different, right?  It was really easy to make these, and you can probably do one in about 4 hours or so.  I think the girls will like them!

I made a lot of towels for Christmas too.  If you come to my house, I always make something for you to take home, so this year all the ladies will get a really cute embroidered towel.  They took a long time to stitch out on the machine, but you will agree that they are worth it.  I will post them tomorrow after I have them at the table.

Twisted Christmas Stockings

I made these cute stockings with a special tool called "The Little Twister." It looks like a lot of piecing but it's not! The big one is for Penny since she is always a good dog! The little one is for Emma. She is a funny, sometimes naughty girl!

I also almost finished my December wool piece. All it needs is Rick rack which I will add before putting it away til next year.

Wooden quilt box

Well, my dad has been busy in his wood shop these days! Here is the gorgeous box he recently made me! I am using it for thread when I do embroidery designs. I can line up the ones I need for a project in the box to keep the clutter down while I am working!  There is always a note inside the project, which I keep right there for the future so I can read it again.

My embroidery machine is working full time from the minute I get home!  I am making Christmas towels for my dinner guests on Christmas Eve, so the machine is going all the time!!  We were not getting along for a while (the machine's fault!!) but she seems to be working like a charm lately.  Maybe she knew that I was on ebay looking for her replacement! :)

Tomorrow is my last day of school and then I am off for 11 days.  Looking forward to that time in my house with Ken and the friends and family I will see often.  When times are a little crazy like they are now, I am always looking forward to being home more.  Makes me feel secure and cozy.  Actually, my classroom is very comfy too.  The kids put up lights and decorations a few weeks ago and everyone who stops by just wants to sit and relax for a few minutes!  I have a room scenter thingie in there too which smells like fresh cookies!  We just finished reading A CHRISTMAS CAROL in seventh grade and "The Raven" in eighth.  Great stuff that the kids really enjoy!

Happy snowman quilt

After I posted last night, I finished the little details on this snowman.  I like his eyes!

I had these cute Christmas light buttons and thought they would look nice on the tree branches.

I put these down the front of his jacket.  The one in the center is an angel.  That reminded me of her son Ryan who is in heaven now.  Michelle noticed that button first and smiled.  Her son always loved Christmas so much and so does she.

I added a few snowflake buttons to the side.  All quilters know that we add buttons when we have a "little problem" somewhere on the quilt.  :)  Let's say that my new binding tool and I are NOT friends right now!  The one on the shoulder covers a little pucker on the shoulder.  No one but me would have noticed it, but I like the snowflake there.

Michelle and I do not give birthday presents to one another really, but she was so happy to get this on a rainy Monday morning!  We hung it in her classroom so she can see him all day.  I like seeing him there too.

Some Christmas Sewing Treats

I have been sewing a lot and actually making a few things for Christmas BEFORE Christmas even gets here!  That is not my normal Christmas sewing routine.  I hand embroidered a few towels while watching tv at night.  This was the first one I did.  It's just so relaxing to stitch away the hours before bedtime.

My husband is a holiday junkie and loves every cartoon and Christmas show.  We own every holiday cartoon ever made.  I am not kidding about that!  Anyway, he is especially crazy about Peanuts and Charlie Brown, so when this fabric line came out, I bought most of it and made him a quilt for our anniversary, which is tomorrow.  All quilted, binding on and done!

I also made a few mug rugs with my embroidery machine.  I actually made the embroideries last year and made the mug rugs this year.  Aren't they cute for morning tea or coffee during the holidays?

Kenny's quilt in full.  Not sure why my blog reorganizes the pictures after I upload them! I had all the pictures in order, but this is like a game!  Which picture goes with which one?  :)

Another embroidered towel.  I have these hanging on my oven door.  This one was made while I was on the bus ride to Frost Valley with my 7th graders.  That was a GREAT field trip.  Being outside all day and evening was so incredible since we are always inside sitting at a desk.  I will do that trip forever if I am able.

My friend Michelle is a snowman collector so I made her this snowman for her birthday, which was last week.  I have to add his eyes and a few other buttons tonight so I can bring it in to school tomorrow.  She will love him!

The last time I posted was right before Hurricane Sandy!  Our home was not damaged but there was great destruction all over Long Island.  We had trees down all over our neighborhood, and we lost power for 9 days, but that was really all.  We have a generator and a woodstove, so we were not cold or anything.  Our quilt shop was destroyed totally, but the owner has already relocated and is open for business!!  Get to Pieceful Quilting now!!  You will love it!