Actually, it snowed yesterday. I am finally catching up with posts and sharing my snow pictures. I love taking snow photos! The little flakes remind me of swiss dot fabric, simple and dainty. I believe there is nothing quite like hanging in the house while the snow gently falls. This latest snow was that very gentle kind and accumulations didn't amount to much!
The snow actually started falling before school let out, around 2:45pm. It was totally finished around 7:30pm. Not enough to ruin anyone's plans for the evening, but pretty enough to comment on.
Experimenting with the flash and outside lights trying to capture the "picture" I saw in my mind. It just wasn't happening. That's okay, I was getting cold and the light was fading from the sky. I am still hoping for a large snowfall, but I guess I will have to wait. The forecast for this weekend has been changed to only 2-4". Not nearly enough to keep me happy!
Tuesday evening we took the train into Philly for a special date night with Jason. His favorite restaurant, Rex 1516, was offering a special dinner deal featuring a burger designed by Jason. How could we resist?
Jason's burger was loaded with red onion, gruyere cheese, dill pickles, lettuce, two slices of extra crispy bacon and a little bit of mayo. The burgers are a part of Rex's customer appreciation program. You get the burger, a side, a beer and a shot for the lovely price of $15. Cool deal for an awesome burger!
There was a whole crew of us, Jason's fans, gathered at the bar. And even as we were enjoying our meal, more and more friends stopped by. It was like old home week. I haven't seen many of Jason's friends for almost a year and I really enjoyed catching up with everyone. It is a rare occasion that I head out for a date on a week night, but who could resist a chance to hang out with Jason and his friends. Mark and I had a grand time!
One of my favorite rooms in my house, my bedroom. I love that it is a place of rest. I love my bed, bought before my divorce back in 1988. I love my white bed linens. I love the sheet sets that I am currently using. Those sheets were purchased in 2001, the spring that I bought our house. Two sets of king-sized sheets, that was all I could afford at the time. Each set is edged with a different flat lace and I love that about these sheet sets.
Just this past week, the unthinkable happened. One of the fitted sheets wore through. Yup, I could see straight through to the mattress pad. Time to get a new set of sheets, but where, and do I have enough money? King sized sheets have gotten entirely way too expensive!
The the hubby and I were in Target and he asked the unthinkable. Could we get sheets that weren't white? Really? I like white because as a quilter I have quilts of all different shapes and colors. I want the flexibility to use whatever quilt I want, at any given moment. Without having to worry about whether or not it clashes with the sheets!
But, then I thought, he really is flexible with me, maybe, just maybe...
Then I found this set...
I'm sure you can see that it is not all white. In fact, there is quite a bit of grey in that pattern. Fortunately for me, it looks white on the bed. And for Mark, up close it looks like it has a bit of color. See, I was flexible. I hope Mark appreciates it!
Today, as I packed away the balance of our Christmas decorations, I stopped a minute to reminisce about our tree skirt. It really isn't much to look at, but I love it.
The year was 1979. I was living in Boston, not quite a block away from Northeastern University. My first home of my own, I loved that apartment! As Christmas approached I tried to think of the best way to decorate, knowing that I would be in New Jersey for quite a bit of time around the holiday. In my mother's home we decorated with fresh greens in every nook and cranny of the first floor. Fresh greens seemed a bit impractical knowing that I would be away. My sister Suzy, who was also living in Boston at the time, graciously agreed to drive me to the burbs so that I could purchase myself an artificial tree.
I perused Faneuil Hall marketplace for ornaments. I took the T to Cambridge, Harvard Square to search for decorations. I found a quilt shop. What a treasure! I had never been in a shop devoted to quilting and I was inspired.
The red and green fabrics with the white dots spoke to my love of everything Swiss Dot. So, with a little bit of figuring, I purchased my fabric and went home to create a tree skirt. No pattern, no clue about what I was doing, just the idea that I could make my own tree skirt.
Don't get me wrong, I was a proficient sewer at the time. But I was in a rush and I wasn't sure about creating a circle. This was before cutting mats and rotary cutters. So I fold the fabric into a diamond. I cut a semi circle out of the top corner and circled what would become the bottom edge. Next it was time for the ruffle. I really wanted a ruffle. As you can see, I didn't create the ruffle. I was in too much of a rush. After creating a little bit of a hem, I only basted one line of stitching along the unsewn edge of fabric. I tried my darnedest to gather the ruffle. It would not work!
I was so frustrated that I tore the basting out and quickly created the pleats you see along the bottom edge.
There was no measuring involved, who had time for that. Perhaps I felt that I would "fix" the tree skirt after the holidays and make it the way I envisioned, but who can tell. Now, 35 plus years later, it is still the same as it was that very first Christmas. I love it. It brings back such warm memories of the holidays that I have celebrated in homes that I have called my own. Homes where I lived alone, with my husband, with my husband and children and then finally with my children, alone.
When Mark and I married I was glad to know that he was not bringing along a tree skirt. How could I not use mine, it has seen so much of my life? There are those moments, once in a while, when I consider creating a new tree skirt. Last year, in March, I actually bought a pattern. But, I am a stickler for tradition.
Eventually I will make a tree skirt for any of my other seven trees, but my main tree, whatever tree it happens to be, will always be skirted by my first attempt at creating a tree skirt. That makes me happy.
This is not a throw back Thursday post, this is the current price of gas here in my neck of the woods. It has been forever since I could fill up my tank for under $20. Right now, this is a good thing!
with a dinner that ended with a delicious Creme Brulee which was "forced" upon me. Although they didn't have to push too hard!
Tonight I ventured into Philadelphia to exchange a gift that Jason had picked up for Mark. I touched base with Jason on my way in and he volunteered to meet up with me. What a nice surprise. I took the train over the bridge and meandered over to South Street. P's and Q's is Jason's favorite shop and after my visit today, I can understand why. Let me just say, Pendleton socks. To die for!
In any case I ran into a young woman, in P's and Q's, who just happened to arrive in Philly from NY. She was making her way to New Orleans, by bus, during her winter break from school. She was excited to explore a bit of the US and we had a grand time chatting and making lists of stops she could make and places she could see.
Next stop, Juniper Commons, right on the corner of Broad Street and South. It is the newest of the Sbraga restaurants in the city and it has a cool 80's vibe. Yes, I am talking Boy George and The Police. It is wide open and airy. We were there early for dinner but the restaurant filled up quickly. For those of you into gin, they have an extensive collection that is sure to please. We were treated well and the food was delicious. I had soup and the salad bar, not your typical salad bar.
Jason had the Prime Rib with roasted brussel sprouts with a lemon aioli. Yum!
As we were on our way out, we were tempted with the Creme Brulee. I am so glad we stayed and tried it.
Next stop, Rex 1516, Jason's favorite restaurant and I think his home away from home. I love catching up with Heather, the manager and seeing Jason's friends who invariably stop by. Next Tuesday they introduce the their specialty burger designed by Jason. Maybe you should plan a visit and try it out!
Jackie and I made a plan to swim this evening. We made the same plan last week but the stomach flu took Jackie out of commission. So this week, we were determined. So much so that I broke out my new "pool" shoes. I figure if Pete the Cat can rock out in his school shoes, I can do the same!
I had the look, but the pool was closed. Needing to do something, we decided to get on the bikes for 20 minutes, pool shoes and all. Well, it wasn't the best of situations, but it also wasn't the worst. Thursday is another day!
Look at this, my "brave" necklace arrived in the mail today, all the way from Oregon! I am so excited. Every year I tend to buy something small that will remind me of my word, throughout my day. This year I spotted this little gem on Etsy and I just had to have it. There is a little bit of a sparkle inside on the dictionary page and that makes it all the more sweet! I cannot wait to start wearing my new present!
There is still quite a bit to put away even after working for two straight days on the project. The big trees, two of them, still need to be stored. There are still a few ornaments on the biggest tree that need to be wrapped and put in boxes.
Progress has been made. Once the living room is clear I will be a happy camper!
This is the last of the double size boxes, almost ready to store! I still have one of the smaller boxes to fill, but that will be filled in no time considering the amount of ornaments I still have left to store!
Saturday began the process. It is a long process! Eight trees and a plethora of decorations that all need to be put away, safely, takes time. This was what the living room looked like at midnight. Ihad made progress but there is still no much to do!
Before I start today, there are already 7 trees that are ready to go into storage and at least seven storage containers that are ready to be moved to the garage.
The boxes of ornaments need to be put in the garage last as they are the most fragile. They will sit in the hall until I can get the biggest box squared away. That box is perhaps the hardest to deal with because in addtion to my larger decorations, it also holds a few of the little trees. As I get older, managing the boxes gets a little bit harder.
Putting away the ornaments always takes the most time. There are just so many! This year I realized that I have four 56qt boxes that hold ornaments. Really!
I don't mind the process of taking down the decorations. Although, at times I am a bit melancholy during the process, I do find it calming in a sense. Pulling out my familiar surroundings, quilts, pictures and chachkies is a nesting process that I love. It is a time of deep cleaning and organizing.
Sitting in the dining room as I type, I can see the mess of the stuff that needs to be put away. I can also see some of our "normal" surroundings back in place and that makes me happy. Well, if I am to finish today, I had better get started!
