Merry Christmas

Here it is, Christmas morning, the family is asleep and the few gifts I have are waiting to be wrapped.

I finished making two full sized quilts with the help of Anita and Marilyn - my binding buddies and passed the quilts to the mother of the two girls who will receive the quilts. My thanks to local long arm quilter, Nancy Freese for coming to my rescue and doing such a beautiful job on these quilts. In my true fashion, I waited till the last minute to really work on them and then, spent what felt like days sewing at the Attic Window. While I am lucky enough to have a large spare bedroom for my sewing room, it is a mess and I am unable to spread out without clearing said mess. So, I cross the river and sew at the store. My thanks to Diane and Marilyn for welcoming myself and anyone who either needs to spread out or just wants to sew with friends.

Being in the store so much lately has given me a chance to see many of our friends come in to "Stuff their Stocking", our 12 Days of Christmas specials. It is always fun to help people pick out their next projects or the new must have tool. (Have you seen the new 4-in-1 tool? Stop in and see this tool - look on the front counter for it.) And it is nice to meet your friends and family, who come in and pick up a gift from your wish list.

And sometimes we have someone come in and provide a smile to all. On Wednesdy, a well dressed gentleman came into the store. Kathryn said he came in dodging here and there which was a bit curious. He came back to the classroom area where I was receiving a Comfort Quilt from the NCW Quilt Guild for a local bowler who has just had a stroke, our prayers go to Jim and his family.

I asked the gentleman if I may help him and he quietly said he was there to get a gift for his mother. The problem was he had come into the store without seeing his parents' car in front of the store. Was he ever surprised that he had walked into the Attic Window at the same time his mom and dad where in the store. So, he had ducked behind racks and worked his way out of their line of sight.

I sent him back to our Christmas room out of anyone's line of sight. Taking his credit card with me to the register at the front of the store, I pulled out the gift certificate paperwork and went to the register, where I had to put his mother's purchase on a hold receipt as she was still shopping. As his mom came to the register with her final purchase, I was ringing up the son's transaction - being careful to keep the credit card out of sight (no way was I going to ruin this surprise). I take the receipts with me back to the Christmas room. After the son finished signing and we filled out the certificate, I went out of the room to check if his parents had left. Nope, now they were having Diane show them something on one of the Viking sewing machines.

So, here is the son stuck in our sewing room as the only way out of the shop is right in the path of his parents. I whip off a Santa pillow from a chair and offer the son a seat until it is clear. A few minutes later the parents go out the door and as they didn't come back in to see why their son's car was parked in front of the store, I would assume they didn't see it. At last the coast was clear and the son gave his thanks and left.

I just get such a kick out of seeing people come in to the store. This is a happy place, a stress free place where people want to be. I want to thank Diane and Marilyn for hiring me. It is such a great place to be, whether working or sewing.

After finishing two quilts, I have 2 projects that need to be done and mailed by the 2nd. I had one of those weak moments and signed up online to make 2 sets of pretty kitty blocks for exchange. So, I am making 2 sets of six identical blocks. Fabric is washed, EQ pattern for one block's background is printed and this weekend I hope to finish the blocks and mail them by Tuesday.

And just so I could have an easy project to do, I took home a sample for the shop. I hope to finish the March Pocket sample from Briarwood Cottage before the 31st. We still have a few kits left from past Pockets. They make nice small wallhangings, or would look good on a coffee table. I am curious to see April's pattern.

I hope you all are able to spend your Christmas with your family and friends. For those who have loved ones in the military serving away from home, my thanks and prayers are with you. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!