Tasting Table Tuesday - A New Year

Happy New Year!  Seems like forever since I've posted anything new here.  The holidays were a flurry of activity, both before - and during - leaving no extra time for blogging.  I made almost all of my Christmas gifts this year, and in hind-sight, I probably got in a little too deep this time.  I got a little stressed out in  my attempts to finish everything on time, but in the end, it all worked out fine.

Following tradition, hubby and I got up early Christmas morning and drove to a nearby State Park at the PA Grand Canyon for a daybreak pancake breakfast.  We always do this when we find ourselves alone on Christmas morning, and it's a very special start to our holiday.  This year there was a fresh snowfall and absolutely no wind.  The weather was perfect.  We built a fire in the huge stone fireplace in the pavillion, cooked pancakes and drank coffee.  A peaceful start to a perfect day.

Our daughter, SIL  and granddaughter were here for most of the week, including Christmas, and the 5 of us had plans to travel to Western PA to see my parents and brothers, but Mother Nature had other plans.  We got dumped with about 18 inches of snow between Wednesday and Saturday so that brought our travel plans to a screeching halt.  Very disappointing, to say the least.  But we made the best of it and enjoyed a quiet end to the week and enjoyed the time together.  And you have to admit - the snow was beautiful.

Little Miss R kept us totally entertained as she played "dress-up" for hours on end.  Grammie's hats, shoes, jewelry, purses, scarves - you name it - she wore it.

Now for some of my Christmas projects...
My husband loved his target quilt, so that was a huge success.  In my rush to get everything done, I neglected to take a picture of it after I finished quilting it, and I just now realized it.  Oh well - I'll take one later.
The Weekender Bag was also a hit, as was the I Spy Matching Game, as you can see here.  She's not yet two years old, but was already finding the pairs and matching them up.

At the last minute, I also decided to make a Computer Bag for my DIL.  I used the Two-Zip Hipster pattern by Dog Under My Desk, but made it twice as wide and an inch taller, so it would hold her laptop computer. I also added a padded, elasticized pocket for the power cord and the mouse, along with some slip pockets on the other side.  I love these fabrics.  They're from the Juggling Summer collection by Moda.

There were many other small miscellaneous gifts, but I neglected to photograph them all.  Besides, I don't want to bore you with picture overload.  Next year I think I need to get an earlier start on my projects...
Thank you for sharing 2012 with me here at the Cotton Cellar, and I look forward to keeping in touch with you all in 2013.  Happy New Year!
Cheers!