All the Shiny Things

I'm resting my tired 'dogs' after  four days of having my Dad and brother visit with us for Christmas! I enjoyed having them here and we would chat by the hour, eat, watch movies, eat, chat some more, eat....and for a change, eat some more!  Then suddenly, it was all over and they are gone....the house sure feels quiet now!

I hope that you all had a wonderful time with family and friends in the past few days and more to come in the week ahead till we welcome the New Year!

I thought I would share some of our special ornaments on our tree...

I kept the ornaments on the light side near the bottom of the tree where they were in range of a curious Airedale!

Yeah, this one... who needed encouragement to open the first gift and then took to her new job with a vengeance! The pooch who loved her new ball and had the 'squeaky' chewed out of it in under two minutes. The industrial strength nylabone will take her a lot longer (hopefully... she is still quite the chewer, even at 18 months old! My Dad discovered she had chewed a whole in one of his tee shirts. Too much upheaval going on in the house I guess.)

There was this lovely new addition to the tree this year from Dorothy in Scotland! Thank you Dorothy.... its a real sweet ornament and much admired by all house guests.

There is this angel made by a friend Marcia and she features a handwoven dress and beads (Calli really wanted to get this one!)

The tiniest pair of mittens....

A crystal train to represent my husband's many years working for the railroad

A boat to represent the five years we lived aboard a boat (1988 to 1993). That's a whole blog post all by itself!

The above grouping are little woven bands, with the beaded hanging cord inserted as a weft. They were woven by my friend Gudrun Weisinger. She has a lot of talent.... check these little gems out!

A tiny paper folded star which I understand is a tradition in Germany

Isn't she cute? a tiny pine cone, pipe cleaner, beads and an acorn hat sitting on a round wooden ball.

Inkle band folded

Then there is the beaded sheep I found  one year...

Then there is this group that I cross stitched:

There is also this one which is a tribute to all our previous dogs we have shared Christmas with. Their names are recorded on the back:

I just realized there is one more with a jolly Santa but it must be on the back side of the tree and I missed it with the camera!

I received only one hand woven card this year.... thanks Joan!

Here's a closer view! I love all the shades she has used in this cloth...

So pretty soon this gang will all be tucked away for another year...

My husband has been ordered back onto crutches to rest his achilles heel, but hopefully I can get back to weaving soon..... look, its patiently waiting for me!

I have decided to increase the prizes for the Blogiversary from one to three guest towels! So your chances of winning just got better. Sign in as a 'Regular Reader' and you are entered. I will scientifically pick the names by drawing it out of a hat on January 8th.

Wishing each of you a healthy, happy New Year! 

All the best, Susan