Advent

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Today I am participating in Jo's advent calendar. I'm actually assigned to the 19th, but I'm posting a little early so perhaps those in Australia can read it when it's still the 19th for them!

"Advent" means "arrival," so I am sharing Snowflake Nativity by Chatelaine (with modifications by me). I started stitching it when it was just "Christmas Mystery"! I have since done other mysteries, but this is the only one I kept up with until...the naked baby happened (yeah, I'll wait while you go look). I tried really hard to like it (well, maybe not that hard), but I just couldn't do it. So I waited to see what the rest of the piece was going to look like, let it hibernate for a few months, then finally decided to use some of the remaining motifs and a couple from a Just Nan pattern and make my own top for the piece. I am always tempted to sign up for mysteries, but this one kind of cured me and convinced me I needed to wait until I saw an entire pattern.

Jo asked us to share a Christmas tradition as well as a stitchy picture. One of my favorite Christmas traditions is going to a Christmas Eve service with my family, especially when I get to sit next to my oldest sister. She and I both have sung all our lives, and she has a beautiful, very high soprano, while I am a slightly lower soprano. She does the most beautiful harmonies (or descants) above the melody, and we blend very well since we're sisters. We like a service with a nice, loud organ so that we can sing as loud as we want! =) Afterwards, we go back to my parents' for a nice snacky buffet supper of hammy sammies (ham and some kind of magic sauce on rolls that my mom makes), chips and dip (gotta have French onion dip!), and Christmas cookies. I suppose there are some vegetables in there somewhere, but I couldn't tell you what. Let the healthy holiday eating begin!!!

My three sisters are all a lot older than me (12 - 17 years), so I was a little like an only child sometimes. But my mom always made every holiday so special for me. She was a great Santa, and was only disappointed when I "figured out" it was her doing the gifting. My next question after she told me that, yes, she was Santa, was, "Are you the Easter bunny?" "Yes," she said, "I'm the Easter bunny, too." Then I asked, "Are you also the Tooth Fairy?" My mom told me later that I had ruined all her fun at once. =)

I'll leave you with the Advent calendar my mom made me when I was little...you see, we have a fine tradition of handcrafts in my family! =) I can't remember how old I was, but I do know that the last few days, she was working just ahead of me on the squares, and the last few were not sewn to their backings, although the fronts were done!

Shhhh...don't tell my husband I turned the 19th over early to get this picture! I've been making him guess what each square is every day! ;)

JiffNotes
Merry and Blessed Christmas to all! Come back in a couple days to see more stitchy Christmas decorations!