Gifts given, goodies gobbled, and gorgeous Grumpy Cat

It's 2018--hope everyone is having a wonderful start to their new year! I have a few Christmas ornaments that I gave to friends and family to share with you today, but first, I want to tell you how much I enjoyed your comments on your favorite moment of last year. They certainly made me smile and I could truly feel how much they meant to each of you who shared... Blogging can sometimes feel like a one-way street; I share some of my life and stitching with you, but, often, I don't get to see your pretty stitching or hear about your life unless you, too, have a blog. So, I really appreciate your remarks and experiences and if any of you who don't blog would like to email me photos of your finishes--I'd love to see them. I have a couple of people who do that already and I always enjoy seeing what they have created! So, thank you for sharing a bit of yourself--it meant a lot to me!

This pretty blue and white ornament went to dear June, in England. This is a Renato Parolin design called "Inverno" and I just love the simple elegance of it.  I stitched it on 40 ct. white Newcastle with a Victorian Motto Sampler thread called "Sky Blue." The cording is made out of the same lovely thread and the ornament is backed with the perfect shade of blue gray fabric adorned with tiny stars. A gauzy ribbon and silver bell finished it off nicely. I'm happy to say that June loves it, too! (And there are some very nice freebies on Renato's blog if you click here and then click on "Schemi Free" in the tabs).

"Inverno" in blues

This next ornament was stitched twice and sent to my dear friends, Lois, in Northern Ireland, and Cindy, in Tennessee. Most of you will recognize this as Little House Needleworks' "Season's Greetings." I stitched this 'over one' on 28 ct. black Monaco using a variety of DMC threads and overdyeds.  I was so happy with how this one turned out and I may just stitch it again on black for a little gift in the future. The small ecru x's take a while, but they add so much to the overall look, don't you think?

Little House Needleworks "Season's Greetings"

The last one I'll show you today was given to my middle son in honor of the new (very non-grumpy!) cat that he and his girlfriend adopted. You will all recognize this sourpuss of a kitty--he's the cantankerous Grumpy Cat! He is a freebie from Brooke's Books which you can find right here. I changed up the design a bit; I eliminated the red and white border and added additional snowflakes and beads to turn it into a design suitable for turning it into a round ornament. I stitched this on a 32 ct. blue/gray linen with the suggested colors. My son loved it--but not quite as much as he loves his real cat!

Mr. Grumpy Cat himself

So, yes--I (sadly) have no grandchildren, but I now have a "grandcat!" My son and his girlfriend adopted him a year ago from an animal shelter and he has made himself right at home in their apartment. He came with the name "Spike" (because he has a white, furry "spike" going right up the middle of his forehead) and at first, my son wasn't sure if he would keep such a dog-like name. But, it really suits him--he is so much more of a dog than a cat in many ways and he's quite a handful. One of his favorite tricks is unrolling the toilet paper and then rolling it back up (I guess he's hoping no one will notice!). Hmmm... I'm afraid you can't hide that mess, Spike!!

Who, me? I didn't touch the toilet paper :)

I forgot to share my Christmas baking with you in my last post. I didn't bake nearly as much as I would have liked to because there were only four of us here most of the time  (except for Christmas dinner when we had seven). And you know what happens when there are too many goodies around--yes, the weight piles on! So, I baked just a few cookies which you can see below...

Which one would you choose?

On Christmas morning, we traditionally make some lovely frosted cinnamon buns, but our bread machine broke last year and I just didn't have the time to make the dough. I was simply going to run out and buy a coffee cake or some sweet rolls when this recipe caught my attention. It was so quick and easy and practically baked itself...  Oh, yum! Just click here for these tasty "Land Of Nod Cinnamon Buns" (how cute is that for a recipe name?!). We all loved them--in fact some of us loved them more than our old recipe. I would probably add chopped pecans next time, but the combination of cinnamon, raisins, and melted butter was the perfect way to start off our Christmas morning.

The easiest cinnamon buns in the world!

And there you have it--my first post of 2018 all done and dusted! I have a couple more ornaments to share with you, but I've run out of time today. I'm off to the dreaded DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) to renew my driver's license and you know what that means... Sitting for what seems like hours waiting to have another horrible photo taken that must remain on my driver's license until the year 2022! Oh, my--not one of my favorite experiences...

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead, everyone! Hope it includes lots of time to sit and stitch now that the hustle-bustle of the holidays is over. I do relish these calm winter months so much, don't you? Thank you, as always for your wonderful comments--I do read each and every one even if I am unable to respond to some of you who  haven't included an email address. (Please, please remember to include your email address in your comments if you do have a question for me, okay?). Bye for now...