Frozen!

Where we live snow is a novelty.  And to get a foot or more of snow in a weekend is not only novel but so unheard of that it shuts everything down.  We Oregonians don't know how to drive or function in snow.  Rain, yes, but not snow.  It does happen every 5 or 6 years but it comes and goes swiftly.  Imagine our delight when this was the year and it happened over a long weekend so we could shut down and enjoy it.  We kept our feeders full and enjoyed our feathered friends, we took walks to hear the crunch of snow, we watched the Olympics, we had hot soup and cinnamon rolls and enjoyed the whole experience.

 It was also a good push to get started on t he Elsa dresses my granddaughters had requested.  I mentioned them in my last post so I won't reiterate but instead will give modeled shots of 3 happy little girls!  The third dress had not even been thought of in the last post but once the littlest saw her older cousin's dresses she wanted one too.  We went shopping for the fabric and I had just enough snowflake fabric left to make a cape that trailed on the ground as she insisted it must do, and the dress began.  If sewing was an Olympic event I think I would be in medal contention.  I bought the fabric Friday morning, cut it out at lunch time, and by 11pm the dress was complete except for the hem.  There would have to be points deducted for having to sew the sleeves twice but I could make up those points for using French seams in the sleeves, having perfect serger tension (which should be an Olympic event in itself), and artistic creativity since I had to design the pattern myself.  I guess in a way I did get an medal since the girls loved their dresses.

Global warming? Really?

Ahhhh, the excitement of it when you wake up from your nap to view this! Something not seen in our area very often. Well, until last year. We usually have snow, a dusting, once a year, but last year was 10 days of it and we weren't supposed to get any this year...so they said! But we're excited to get it! 1:00pm and outside my sewing room window I spy the first snowflakes. Hmmm, I thought, won't last and I'll enjoy the little flutterings I see. But an hour later? This was the view!

So pretty, so quiet, so calming. Something I think God gifted me with special, today. I was in the doldrums, missing what I did not have and I couldn't even be thankful for what I did have. I'm still missing what I don't have but the snow was a nice diversion.

And 3 hours later...

And on the sewing front, my grandmunchkins like bring stuffed animals, books, toys, etc to Nonny's house for the day. They were transporting in grocery bags. No longer! They now have bags for Nonny's house. Complete with monkey pockets. They currently love the story of the 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed and one fell off and bumped his head. I happened to have book panels of the story that I used to make pockets for the bags. Used up stash fabric, batting, and ribbon.

They were a hit with the kiddos. And came full the next morning with musical instruments!

Let it sew! Let it sew! Let is Sew!

The weather outside has been frightful....brrrrrr. Cars stuck, the city all but shut down. Even my old employer, Nike, is shut down for the week! Unheard of in years past with snow fall. But we've not had snow like this since 1968. We are, after all, the NorthWET, not northWhite! But ahhh! The view is sew delightful! As told by this picture outside my sewing room window. I've had the pleasure of viewing this for the past week.... ...As I finished up these! Think Snoopy doing his happy dance in the Charlie Brown cartoons (if you're old enough) and you know what I'm doing inside!
Granddaughter #3's jammies:

Granddaughter #1's jammies:

Granddaughter #2's PJ's:

And not to forget those sweet grandsons!

We have PJ's for grandson #4:

And for grandson #3, who is only older than grandson #4 by 1 minute:

(a note on that one measley minute...it will become Very important in later years! I know! I have twins that are a half an hour apart and the older loves to rub it in to the younger that he is the oldest son and therefore should get all the inheritance! To which I reply: What inheritance?)

And the 6 year old grandson's PJ's:

He loves Curious George...hence the monkey PJs.

And last, but not least, for the oldest. These are the ones I am most concerned about. After all, he is 13 and clothes are, well, clothes. But when I was sewing these last night I was remembering that each Christmas my grandmother made us pajamas. And she didn't have the convenience of a serger so she finished all of her seams with those French seams. I didn't appreciate them at the time. I'd sure appreciate them now. So perhaps in later years my grandchildren will appreciate the love and time that went into them. Maybe not, if they don't sew, which was my wake up call. But maybe they'll know I made them because I loved them?

And a little winter humor that came through my email box:

The weather outside???

The weather outside is frightful! But so delightful! We, in the Northwet, do not have snow very often. It is, after all, the northWET. But we were blessed today....snow! It started about 9am and is continuing to sporadically fall!
Come to think of it, we've had snow the past few years. Even snow this spring in April! Sorry, Mr. Gore, I do not see the whole global warming thing here in our part of the world. After all, we're supposed to get hit with Artic blasts for the next 7 days. High temps in the teens and twentys. That there is mighty cold for the northWET.

The weather may be frightful but....
ahhh, the fire is so delightful!

And it motivated me to start the Christmas decorating. I've never liked Christmas decorations...they take up residence for too short a time, so we winter decorate, except for the Christmas tree. I can leave the snowmen and winter decor up until the first of March...and I do.

The grandmunchkins share the sentiment with the song....Let IT SNOW!!! After all, snow is a tasty treat and great for making snow angels in.
Our eldest granddaughter making a snow angel. We had to chuckle at this one. This little girl and angel....a definite oxymoron!
Ever ready with a grin that just "melts" your heart and makes you grin right along with him. They make snow look less frightful and a whole lot of fun.
So what does a knitter, crocheter do when the weather outside is frightful? Grab some tea (or hot chocolate) and knit away and watch the snow. Miss S is crocheting washcloths for her grandmother to give as gifts to her sisters. Great project for both. Grandma gets gifts to give and the math skills, learning patterns, and keeping her hands busy, are great skills for Miss S to constantly be working on. I'm working on our Christmas letter and a sweater I hope to post soon. And staying warm by, ahhhhh, fire....

Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it Snow!!!