- - Tuesday

I have pretty much NOTHING for TTT this week!

I've been so busy taking the magic carpet tour of blogs that I haven't done much handwork at all. One night I stitched a bit on the needle roll and another night I did start crocheting a tea cozy, a pattern I found through the tour of blogs. I'm only on #400 and there are currently 924! Do you think I'll make it through all of them before the 14th? I suspect not. I open up 5 at a time but I've noticed the browser is slow once I click on a few links and once I'm seriously looking at them, the browser gets even slower. I think it's because it's caching all these sites. Happens at home and work both. There are so many I want to explore further but when the browser is slow, I just look at the post for the OWOH and go on to the next. I've favorited a few but I'm not real good about going through my favorites.

At any rate, I'm raising awareness about tatting - except I'm NOT tatting! LOL! And the two things I want to get tatted are for T.A.T. and I can't post them. Well, it's only Monday so hopefully I'll catch up with myself by the end of the week!

I'm also making a strong effort to get to the gym more consistently. I got some of the boxes in the hallway into the closet yesterday but I'm not sure where I want which box. I'm trying to make it convenient to get to what I will use the soonest and that's like playing Wheel of Fortune. LOL!

I'm sure I'll tat something soon but for now....nada.

Oh...but look! It's a faerie tea party tea cup by Christen Brown!


And I don't have permission to post this so look quick - I'll probably have to remove it even though I've linked back.

See what I do in a pinch???? I'm hoping to inspire you though....where would YOU add tatting?

First of all, it's been a very different Christmas this year. We're not actually getting together as a family until Friday, a first for us. We've always gotten together on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day but the bigger we get, the more complicated it gets. It's also been such a profoundly busy year for all of us that we did not have as much time to prepare as we have in the past. I didn't get a tree up this year, the first time ever in my life. I found the little dog with the Santa hat in my box of wrapping paper and ribbon. That's pretty much it this year. It's not a bad Christmas - but it is a very different one. I went to my oldest son's house for a late lunch today and to exchange gifts. Then I went to my daughter's house for the same in the evening. I'll see my other two sons tomorrow when we ALL get together. This year we'll have a new family member, my new daughter-in-law, and my oldest grandson (now 21) will be with us for the first Christmas since he was 14. Long story there that I'm not going into but it truly will be a wonderful day that we are all together.


Guess who met up in my house? Cormac and Chris Sockmonkey found each other! They're hanging out in a box of green peanuts. Cormac let me know he needed a candy cane too so I found him one to go with the rainbow bright thread he arrived with. The monkey was a gift from Gail Owens a few years ago. I suspect these two might find a few other critters who have traveled far to come live with me. I hope they all get along. Nothing's worse than a bunch of squabbling fiber-filled blokes!


I was so busy this morning doing last minute gift wrapping for tomorrow that I completely forgot about my Secret Santa package! I happened to see someone's email referring to what they got and dashed right back into the living room to open mine! Melissa Jurisch is my Secret Santa and she was so good to me! Some of my photos didn't turn out clearly but I've got plenty to show here anyway. This is the bottom of the tatted glass ball cover. The other views were blurry but I might get a better pic later. This was adapted from one of JoAnn Stearns patterns. Even though this is a clear photo, you can't really see the multicolored metallic thread added to the white that she tatted with. You can see the color change but not that it sparkles!


I was delighted with this teacup! It has the strainer in it for brewing with tealeaves. I love the various oriental dragons on this design. I have two other cups that have the inner strainer like this - one had a decidedly oriental design but is missing the lid (which I just realized) and the other is a solid red one that I bought when I was in Montana a few years ago. Obviously Melissa knows I like my tea!


I noticed there was a lot of purple in this package - she really did her homework. LOL! This bell is an adaptation of a 3D bell pattern by Roger Freedman. It has beautiful sparkly crystals along the bottom and a bead clapper inside. The stem of the clapper is done in the node stitch and is held inside the bell with yet another tiny golden bell. Very well done.


She also tatted this snowflake, a pattern by Kim Millar. This had a flat crocheted braid in it, like the one Lenore used for her RPL snowflake. I've long wanted to tat this snowflake but hadn't gotten around to it yet, so I'm delighted to have it! I believe this one is Frosty Delight.

Melissa also sent me chocolate - 2 small boxes of assorted Guylian chocolate and 2 bars of Moonstruck chocolate bars, made there in Portland, Oregon! There is also a blue glass suncatcher with a lighthouse shape in the glass which is also made there - I love it - but the photo was blurry so might show that one later too. I also got blue square beads that look lavendar inside, some Flora size 50 variegated thread, and some Egyptian Signature variegated purple thread. I'm getting antsy to try it all out!


And look what my snoopy pals are into now!