Holidays Archives - Page 2 of 62

Mini HOME Christmas Blocks – with Christmas lights!

November 12, 2024 jennifer Christmas, Quilting and Sewing

After playing so much last month with my moody little HOME blocks (which became this and this), and then making my HOME beach hut pillow cover, I wanted to sew more blocks. I chose a Christmas theme, using the 4″ HOME quilt block size and alternating red and green colors. Now I’ve got a small collection of mini HOME Christmas blocks. And let me tell you, they are CUTE!

Happy sigh. Placed next to each other, I really like the secondary patterns in the corners. This would also be a fun theme to explore in a larger project.

Since these are Christmas houses, I thought they might like to have some little Christmas lights. Why not? The question was, white or colored, and how to do it. I decided to try colors, hoping to play up the candy shop color scheme in these blocks. First I selected six bright colors, and next I got out a ruler to measure the length of the roofline.

I decided that a 1/4″ spacing looked nice, and it allows me to rotate twice through all the colors with the first color on both edges and center top. I marked my lights with Sharpie, making tiny dots that aren’t difficult to cover with a French knot. Let the embroidery stitching begin!

And they are so much fun! I love these blocks with their little lights. Of course I had to keep going until all of them were fully decorated for the holiday.

Once I finished these mini HOME Christmas blocks, I looked at a 6″ Christmas themed block I’d sewn, and figured, why not? Using the same six colors, and the same 1/4″ spacing, I marked more lights and started adding French knots. Naturally we needed another line of them on the second roofline as well. I mean, who doesn’t love Christmas lights?

I’ve discovered my new favorite embellishment for these little blocks. Obviously I need to do something cute with them. I’m thinking more than one something cute. Stay tuned for more!

I’m headed back to my sewing machine. Have a great day!

-Jennifer

Leaning into Gratitude

November 5, 2024 jennifer Musings on Life and Beauty, Thanksgiving, Uncategorized

It feels like anxiety and stress levels are running a little high for many of us, and for a myriad of reasons. Autumn blew in and suddenly today feels like winter, complete with tiny snowflakes swirling in the biting wind. Darkness settles over the day early, making me want to curl up with a book. Yet there is much to do; my calendar is full, so many people around me are struggling, and all of us watch the news in concern. What to do? I’m leaning into gratitude as a powerful tool for staying positive in tricky times.

I found a lovely printable gratitude tree recently which I intended to use at Thanksgiving. Today I changed my mind and printed a couple dozen copies. I think it’s time to use them now, so I’ll be sharing them with family and friends this week. The tree has 16 banners for writing down the blessings we’re grateful for. It also says “Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.” I agree. For many years I have loved the quote from G.K. Chesterton, “I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”

So today, instead of worrying, here are just a few things filling me with wonder.

The last of my summer dahlias, cut and on the kitchen table.

One lone bells of Ireland plant in my flowerbed. I’ve tried to grow these for years with no success. Imagine my surprise and delight when a single seed grew this time! I can’t tell you how happy this makes me.

The sound of geese honking overhead, causing me to look up as they fly in formation across the pink-tinged sky at sunset. Against the backdrop of nearby mountains, it’s magical.

Watching one of my children light up with a new-to-them insight, and savoring the smile that comes with it. Small miracles like these remind me it’s amazing that we can keep learning.

Hot pink streaks on the back of fading flower petals. It’s the little things!

Cooking dinner for my family with food we grew in the garden, while savoring the colors, smells, and textures of fresh vegetables.

Slow stitching in the evenings, making steady progress on my applique project.

Studying the shapes and forms around me, because they are an endless source of inspiration and beauty.

What does leaning into gratitude look like for you? Savoring simple joys is, undoubtedly, a healthy practice. So lean a little more. Look for the good. Live in the gain. Do it emphatically, no matter what’s wrong out in the world. We’re going to make it!

4th of July Trivia

July 1, 2024 jennifer 4th of July

Today is July 1st, and my favorite holiday is days away. I always host a 4th of July breakfast for my family and some guests. My favorite activity at these breakfasts is a short round of trivia, centered in American revolutionary history and our founding documents. Every year I create a new one, print it out, and let everyone guess at the answers. While the holiday is mostly full of family, food, and fireworks, I also love inviting my family to pause, remember, and really think about the holiday. I decided to share my 4th of July trivia with you this year, just for fun. You’ll find a link at the end of this post.

I hang buntings and flags in June for Flag Day and they mostly stay up until the end of July. I suppose flags and red, white and blue will always remind my kids of summer. Yesterday we hosted a large gathering and it was nice to have the porch looking festive and welcoming.

I got new planters this year because my last set were broken. I’m still heartbroken about that; I don’t think I’ll ever find planters I love as much. Still, the gray is pretty and I always love flowers on the porch.

This antique star has been a fixture at my house for many years. I decided to prop it among the flowers, and I love how it stands out among the planters.

My fresh boxwood wreath from Christmas still graces the front door. I have a long blue bunting with stars on it, and tied an enormous bow around the wreath. It’s dry now, but still pretty, and I’m enjoying it. We actually had some birds try to build a nest in it, against the window a month or two ago.

A terrible idea, which they quickly abandoned. It was fun to hear the birdsong RIGHT outside the door, and to watch them.

I set up the table for early morning visits and added pillows to the bench, so my husband can work outside.

We stood to sing all verses of the national anthem on Sunday in church, and I loved being in a congregation that sang with feeling and conviction. It was a perfect beginning to a patriotic week.

So my porch is ready, the flags are flying, and the 2024 4th of July trivia is prepped. There are 2 PDFs for you. One with questions only, so you can print as many copies as you wish and pass them out, or print one and do the trivia vocally as a group. The second one is questions with answers. Click here to get your copy!

I wish you a joyful, thoughtful, and safe Independence day!

-Jennifer