This year for Christmas, I definitely set my sights lower. Although I love Christmas, I came into the season a bit more...down than usual. My husband has been out of work for 8 and a half months, so we decided to not do Christmas for ourselves this year. We deemed Elvis our Christmas present and left it at that. Underneath out tree is bare. It's a bit disheartening, but is a great reminder that Christmas isn't just about presents!
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| Love those whales! I'm thinking I'll fussy cut some of them from the scraps into some hexies. |
As usual, I wanted to make sure the kids in the family at least got something from us since it's harder for a small child to understand. Last year I made them all quilts, but I knew that wasn't in the cards this year. Instead, I've made them little baggies with some candy and stickers, as well as a notebook with a special cover. I just bought composition notebooks from the dollar store and used fabric from my stash (some of it was fat quarters that had been on clearance, so double win!). I thought about trying to personalize them, but honestly, I just didn't have it in me. I wrote a little note on the inner flap that it was made with love and left it at that.
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| It's a little tough to tell, but those flaps are wrong side out! |
I think these covers are quite darling, I hope the kids like them as well! I used
this tutorial that I found on Pinterest. The only issue I had was getting the inner flaps to face the right direction; I think two of mine had backwards flaps, but I left them since they didn't look too terrible.
For the moment, I think I'm not sewing until after Christmas. I've been doing some cross stitch which has been surprisingly fun. :) I'm also doodling some ideas as they pop into my head and planning the coming year. I already posted my goals post, now is just for me to decide how to get those goals accomplished! If I don't post again by Christmas, I want to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas! :)
May your Christmas be one filled with family and love which are the greatest presents one can have. I'm so very sorry that you and your husband are going through such a rough time. Hoping the New Year will bring a job for him. The composition books are adorable and I'm sure the kids will love them. Big hugs!!!! It'll be fun to be how we do on our 2016 goals.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jennifer. :) Family time is what I'm looking forward to the most this Christmas. That and our candlelight service at church on Christmas Eve. That's probably my favorite tradition; my family and I have gone every year as far back as I can remember. :) My husband actually managed to find a part time job right now, but other things are cropping up that dampened even that good news. But I'm staying as positive as I can! Having such wonderful quilty friends online makes me smile everyday. :)
DeleteI hope your husband finds work in the New Year. The notebooks are a great idea. I think I might give it a try. I hope you enjoy the time with family and friends.
ReplyDeleteThanks Anja! Luck was on my side and all my patients are well enough to not need me over the holiday, so I'm getting to enjoy family time to the max! :)
DeleteChristmas is a tricky, tricky time. The pressure of being happy can be overwhelming. You're not alone in those feelings. You made a smart choice in dialing it back in the present department to suit your financial situation (lots of people wouldn't have). I love those notebook covers... especially the whales! Thanks for sharing the tut! I'll be pinning it for future reference.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jenn! Christmas really is a tricky time, I never fully realized it until this year. I was still happy but life definitely dampened the Christmas cheer some. Giving up some of the pressure and keeping things small definitely helped out, it was a relief to just sit back and relax a little. :) I'm keeping that tutorial handy for the future, these covers are definitely nifty!
DeleteThose covers are a great idea, definitely one to squirrel away for next year, thank you! And I hope 2016 brings more positive prospects on the job front, fingers crossed.
ReplyDeleteThanks! This is definitely one I'm keeping in mind, I'm sure I'll be using it again. And thank you, I have high hopes that 2016 will be more positive than 2015. :)
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