Simple Sundays

Simple Sunday-Merry Christmas

“…freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin – inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night…”
― John Geddes, A Familiar Rain

“Christmas ribbons decked every crystal ball knocker on every sparkling door as far as the eye could see. Through the snowy streets of the Veiled Village, Echoes and Sounds rushed to and fro, their shimmering clothes looking like pouring rain or ice or waves. Before them multi-colored parcels fluttered like strange birds carried on small see-through wings, and every once in a while two parcels would collide and rain down gifts.”
― Dew Pellucid

“Instead of protesting and cursing others because they write “X-Mas” instead of “Christmas”; try being Christmas. Live Christmas. Breathe Christmas. Act Christmas. Speak Christmas. Reflect Christmas. Listen and feel Christmas
Christ doesn’t care how you write Christmas; he cares how you live Christmas all year long.”
― Sandra Chami Kassis

“Calvin: Dear Santa, before I submit life to your scrutiny, I demand to know who made YOU the matter of my fate?! Who are YOU to question my behavior, HUH??? What gives you the right?!
Hobbes: Santa makes the toys, so he gets to decide who to give them to.
Calvin: Oh.”
― Bill Watterson, It’s a Magical World

“I don’t want Christmas season to end, because it’s the only time I can legitimately indulge in on particular addiction: glitter.”
― Eloisa James, Paris in Love

Simple Sundays

Simple Sunday- Holidays

“There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say,’ returned the nephew. ‘Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round—apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that—as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and willdo me good; and I say, God bless it!”
― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

“I was just thinking about how Christmas is right around the corner, but no matter how you choose to celebrate the holidays, books in general make great gifts!”
― Lauren Graham, Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.”-Norman Vincent Peale

“Pets, like their owners, tend to expand a little over the Christmas period.”-Frances Wright

“The nutcracker sits under the holiday tree, a guardian of childhood stories. Feed him walnuts and he will crack open a tale…”
― Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

Crafty · Life Posts · Sewing

Weekend Sewing and Being a Midwestern Housewife

My family didn’t decorate full out for most holidays. We decorated the sideboard mostly with seasonal things, or lovely picture arrangements. Christmas was our all out holiday and we did it up good! It never really struck me as a problem, or something weird. In fact, I never had a desire really to have all holidays celebrated or to decorate for them.

Now that I am a nice Midwestern housewife though, I’m having all these decorating urges. Not for all the holidays, I won’t go all green for St. Patrick’s day. I’m more likely to put out something purple for St. Urho’s day the day before (he drove all the grasshoppers out of Norway, I believe.) We don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day, except to buy half price candy the next day.. Gosh, I make us sound so pragmatic and unromantic…

I just want our house to look pretty and maybe have a few nice touches. We’re simple people. This has totally come on just this year. I must finally be adjusted to actually owning a house. 🙂

The Lego bridge that was on the mantle since we moved in is downstairs for a bit, which gives me that surface and the top of the encyclopedia desk to play with. We’re celebrating Chinese New Year with friends again this year, so I’m doing a little bit of decorating for that. Those are artificial cherry blossoms on the mantle. I have some red and gold things too, but they aren’t set yet.

We also have the leaning shelf, which was partially cleared for the angel host at Christmas. I’m probably going to switch out the pictures and decorations on there as well, because, why not? We have a bunch of decorations that we didn’t have room for, so it would be nice to see them again. Change can be good. 🙂

And before you ask, Mom or Dad, I’m not going to start serving pickle tray with every meal or drinking coffee. I’m not that Midwestern yet. 🙂 Just a little light decorating… (Isn’t that how it always starts though?)

In a very grown up and not at all Midwestern move, the Husband and I perused a model train show this Sunday. My phone died about 2 minutes in, so I only have a couple of pictures. The Husband kindly took some for me, which I will see if I can get for a future Wordless Wednesday post.

It was fun as usual, but also kind of sad. We don’t have a train space yet. We didn’t stay for too long. My back caused issues on Saturday, so I couldn’t walk that much on Sunday. I was able to sew some and have been working on a new scrap quilt.

Honestly, I know I have all these projects to make, but I was jonesing for a rainbow scrap quilt. This one has a home, but it is super secret still.

Now, on to the real question, how to put these quilt squares together? I made 8 of each color, pink, green, yellow, and purple,  and they are wonky log cabin squares.

4 patch, alternating colors?

4 patch same colors?

3 squares, one white corner square?

Or, the Husband’s choice, alternating colors arranged in a diagonal?

It’s going to be a small quilt, with a white, or black border.

Thoughts? I’m leaning towards one of the last two.

This is what I’ve been working on this week. I kept having to dig through my scrap box and am thinking about trying to sort them by color for easier use. Since these types of quilts are my favorites right now, it would probably make more sense. It would be a huge undertaking though. These squares were made mostly from my smaller scrap box. I didn’t pull any fabrics from my stash other than those. Sadly, it doesn’t even look like I made a dent…

My next sewing project should be something from the UFO box, if I can drag myself away from rainbow quilts. 🙂

Fancy is telling me that I should be sleeping, or providing her with belly rubs, if I insist on being awake.

I’ll go ponder the quilt in my dreams. Stay tuned tomorrow for more train show pictures!