2020 Almost Gone

 Well 2020 is almost gone and it is almost time to take down the Christmas tree and put away all of the Christmas quilts and various Christmas items.

in November, I started a post  when I got out all the Quilts and  table toppers, Christmas linens, dishes and all the things that I have from years past. But life got in the way and I never finished it.

 I usually get a few new Christmas items each year but I tend to keep everything and get it all out and use it.  Jack and I both like to look at the tree and remember who gave us each ornament and where or why we bought things.  Of course there are homemade items from our children, grandchildren great grandchildren and friends. This year we got a new artificial tree, much smaller than our last one but much fuller and with more lights. I won't show all my Christmas quilts and table toppers etc but this is the tree with many of the things that bring back good memories.

We have enjoyed looking at it but we will enjoy the unobstructed view of the birds that come to the feeder outside our window and the squirrels who come for peanuts on the window sill.

We will still have this  amaryllis to look at for a short time. This is the first time I have ever had an amaryllis so I  don't know how long the blossoms last but it has been fun watching it grow each day. I plan on taking care of it according to the instructions and having it next year. We'll see!

My little Christmas cactus did not fare so well. It had a lot of blossoms and buds ready to open and one by one they fell off. Each leaf had little red/pink pinheads that I assume were buds but they never materialized.

This is the second time I have had a nice Christmas cactus that didn't do well for me.

This one still looks health and I will try to keep it. We'll see about that too!

On the quilting front. I have made progress on the alphabet quilt. I finished the back and layered the quilt and have started quilting it.

I quilted in the ditch around the outside of the inner border and between the blocks all around the border. On the bottom border I quilted the pinwheels. This is as far as I got. 

I started with the borders because I didn't know what I wanted to do for the alphabet panel.

I asked a friend how she quilted her panel and I think I will do what she did. She replied  that she did "a very erratic loose stipple and went  around each letter and outlined each animal figure. It seemed to make the letters and the animals pop out! "  That sounds good to me. I will do it with my walking foot as it is hard for me to do much free motion quilting. My old hands have a hard time moving the quilt for free motion.  It won't be fast but I will get it done.

I am ready to say goodbye to 2020 it has certainly been a challenge. I am feeling cautiously optimistic and praying for healing for our country and for our planet. I am trusting that God is in control.

Happy New Year