42 Books read in 2021...

 The last one of this year (Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson) was just finished at 11:15 p.m. tonight.  :)  

Merry Christmas to all...

I hope that everyone is enjoying a wonderful Christmas.  As per my usual, I was up in the wee hours wrapping gifts.  We went to Kasey's this morning for gifts and brunch, and now I am ready to nestle all snug in my bed and let visions of sugar plums dance in my head for a couple of hours.  But first I wanted to do a short post here. 

 I've been meaning to show this for a couple of days, but am finally getting around to it.

A year or so ago, I came across this Lego Gingerbread House Kit and couldn't resist ordeing it.  This year I told Jared that all I wanted for Christmas was to have it assembled.

I had forgotten all about giving Jared this challenge, but a few days ago I came in and found it in the living room completed.  It really surprised me, because he works for UPS shipping, and the Christmas season is brutal.

The gingerbread mama pushes the baby in the baby buggy.

The gingerbread man keeps the yard tidy with a snow blower.

Even the inside is pretty detailed with all the furnishings.  (The toilet and bathtub in the upper left crack me up.)  It even has stockings hung by the chimney with care!

It is adorable, and will be carefully stored away just as you see it here until next year.

And speaking of next year...

I have just ordered this set (not Lego, but similar) to add to the gingerbread house next year.  :)  I think Jared will get a kick out of it.

What I did on my autumn vacation...

Hope everyone is well and has yet to give up on my sporadic blogging.  Thanks for the reminder to get back to it, Barbara!  :) 

I've been on vacation this week, and spent 4 days at quilt retreat with my library quilting group.  I worked on this much-delayed work in progress.  The bow tie quilt top was pieced by the grandmother of my longest-term friend...not to be confused with my oldest friend.  ;)  She handed it to me 21 years ago and asked me to finish it.  Twenty-one years!  I am so ashamed that I didn't finish it and return it to my friend decades ago!

I've always loved bow-tie quilts, and wanted to quilt this one by hand rather than have it machine quilted which was part of what led to the delay.  I tried to give it back to her at one point, but she wouldn't take it.  We've been friends since the 5th grade, so since I've always been a procrastinator she had reason to know this was a possibility.  

I started the hand quilting of it on the first day of the retreat in a wooden hoop, but that was pretty horrible.  On the second day I phoned Carey and asked him very nicely if he would meet me half way and  bring my PVC standing quilt frame.  The retreat was over 2 hours from our home, so the rest of the group was mightily impressed when he said he would.  Such a sweetie!  When assembled this frame is about the size of a card table, so gave me much more work area and much less frustration.

I made good progress on it, but still have a long ways to go.  I'll keep you updated.

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

I came home Tuesday and started (and finished) a book that a friend recommended at retreat: The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes.  Hard to put down.  About the Pack Horse Library Project which was a WPA project started in the 1930s.  The ebook was available through my library.

This morning I remembered to log on to work system and complete our insurance selections before the open enrollment period ends tomorrow.  Carey will be retiring at the end of the year (though he only has to work for another week and a half in actual days on the job), so have to make sure we both have coverage starting January 1.

Tomorrow I have a doctor appointment, and then hope to go get my Covid booster on the way home.

Not sure yet what the weekend will bring other than the normal work-week laundry.  Hopefully it will also bring some more hand quilting...don't want that to get pushed aside as I would really like to complete it before the end of the year.