The Procession is Over - Finally!

Yesterday I completed the Christmas stocking I was making for Megan. Entitled "The Procession" it consisted of 105 pieces to cut, embroider, sequin and bead, sew together and in many cases, to stuff. Wanting her to have a stocking similar to Andy's (and five others I have made for the family), I purchased a Bucilla kit. The last one I made was in 1991 for Katie. They have come a long way since then, with much more intricate designs and many more pieces. It must have taken me over 100 hours to complete this stocking. I had seen online that a lady will make stockings for you, charging $135. Now math is not my forte, but I paid $20 for the kit and put in a lot of hours of my time. So she gets what? $1.15 an hour for her time??? Yikes!

At any rate, it is now done and it is slightly larger than Andy's, not to mention much more dynamic. It will be interesting to see what he says when he looks at her stocking hanging next to his on the mantle. Will he be requesting a new one for next year? Or will he be sentimental and want to keep the one I made him when he was born?

Stocking Up For Christmas

One of the bonus items of going to see my in-laws last weekend is that it forced us into getting our Christmas shopping done - at least for them. It feels really good to say I have that side of the family finished. I've been picking up a few things here and there, and the kids have been sending ideas our way. It shouldn't be too hard to finish things up. What has been time-consuming is the stocking I am making for Megan. I hand made felt stockings for the four of us years ago - the kind with all the beads and sequins on them. Andy had requested that I make one for Megan to go with his.

Her stocking is called "The Procession", so it has Mary on the donkey holding Jesus, with Joseph and the three wise men walking along with her. Oh, and an angel and star for good measure. In the years since I made our stockings, Bucilla (the manufacturer) has added a lot more pieces to the kits. Or perhaps I picked the one with the most pieces. All those little faces and hands to be embroidered and stuffed. Thank God for cheater readers! I've been working on it here and there, and finally realized I had better kick it into gear if I have hopes of her getting it for Christmas in 2009. I worked on it for about 5 hours yesterday and will try to do the same today. Needless to say, I won't be working on any new quilts for the time being!

One Less Stocking

Jim and I began putting up the Christmas decorations last night in preparation of hosting his Christmas party here this weekend. As I placed the decorations on the fireplace mantle and hung up the stockings, I thought back to a request Andy had made on Saturday. He asked if he could have his Christmas stocking. I made all four of our stockings, and two for my mom and dad which have now returned to me, by hand. Each one is similar in that it is constructed of felt and sequins with a hand embroidered name across the top, yet each design is unique to the person for whom it was intended. First there were two stockings hung by the chimney with care, then a third and fourth as our family grew. Andy and Megan will spend Christmas with her family in Indiana this year, though they will visit with us after Christmas. Andy wants to hang his stocking up there next to Megan's. I guess his request really brought home to me that for the first time in his life, he will not be with us for Christmas. We must share him with another family now. I thought about the first Christmas after we got married. Jim's mom proclaimed that we would spend Christmas with them (we were in St. Louis, they were in Iowa and my folks were in Ohio), and that is what happened. My parents got us for the first Thanksgiving, his parents got us for the first Christmas, and we alternated each year until my folks passed away. Looking back on it now, I wonder how my mom felt that first year when the baby of the family wasn't with her? It is the way of life, I know, and I'm grateful we will see them at all. So I'll pack up his stocking and mail it off to Huntingburg. But the fireplace just won't look the same with only three stockings hanging there.