Oh Christmas Trees ...

I finished my little wool appliqué tree quilt and it's hanging in the living room! The corners really are square, even though they don't look it in the photo. No matter how I tilted my phone I couldn't get it right. I'm going to go back later and add some quilting in the borders, but for now I just wanted to get it up.

Here are a few of the planters. Each one is different, and I veered away from some of the pattern's stitching suggestions. (The pattern is "Tinsel" by Sue Spargo.)

 

I love the velveteen green rick rack, which I tacked down with green glass drop beads.

The pom-pom trim wasn't in the pattern, but I had some in my stash and it adds the perfect snowy touch.

Each tree topper is also different but uses the same red wool.

It was really fun adding all the little touches, like the silver bows on the packages and snowflakes on the mittens.

I also decorated my big trees:

 

The ornaments have special memories, like the sewing machine given to me by one of my stitching friends.

My parents gave me the wooden German doll when I was young because I was born in Germany (and they also thought about naming me Heidi). I pulled the string so many times to make her dance that it finally wore through and fell off.

I added snowy saguaros after I moved to Tucson, and the fancy gym shoe is from one of my walking group friends.

The wooden sleigh ornament is from a dear neighbor in Gig Harbor who loved everything Norwegian. Every year she gave me a different painted wooden Norwegian ornament.

I didn't forget to decorate outside, either, but instead of putting lights on trees I put ornaments on my yuccas.

Parting shot: The gnomes have gathered in my kitchen and make me chuckle every time I look at them.They stare at me when I make my coffee in the morning. (I made the smaller ones.)

Have a colorful day

Christmas Tucson-style

 

I went to two holiday concerts this weekend and realized how strange it must seem to my northern friends to see our musicians in t-shirts and sunglasses under a sunny blue sky. 

The TubaChristmas concert took place yesterday at an outdoor festival with a striking backdrop of the Catalina Mountains, palm trees and a brilliant blue sky. There were 50 local musicians ranging in age from 12 to the 80s playing carols on all types of tubas and decked out in their Santa gear. It was a blast!

Today's concert, by the Civic Orchestra of Tucson, was indoors at El Conquistador resort, but afterward we went out to the poolside patio and waited for the snow machines on the roof to bring "snow" to the desert.

Again, there was a striking backdrop of the mountains and palms with the crescent moon high above. And I was perfectly comfortable in a lightweight short-sleeved shirt and capris.

We also decorate our yards differently here in the desert because we don't have to worry about snow storms. Here's my front yard, with ornaments stuck on the tips of my yucca. People also hang ornaments from their trees, but that was too much work for me because it would've meant hauling out my ladder.

Have a colorful day

Christmas tree blocks and hiking

 

I've been working on my wool appliqué Christmas tree blocks on my patio this past week because the weather has been so nice. My goal is to have all nine done, bordered, quilted and hung by the end of next week. They're heavily embroidered, which is the part that takes the most time.

Here's the current one in progress. Below are the seven I've completed.

I've also been hiking a LOT! I can't get enough of our intense blue skies and gigantic saguaros. I really feel alive when I'm hiking in the desert in the dry, warm air under a clear blue sky.

 

I've seen a lot of horseback riders at Catalina State Park lately. Many snow birders bring their horses down here in the winter.

The desert mountain scenery never gets old for me. I'm so fortunate to live within a 15-minute drive of these trails.

It's also the holiday baking season, and besides binging on the baking shows I made some peppermint fudge yesterday. I left the crushed peppermints off of half because some people don't like the hard, sticky candy on their teeth.

Have a colorful day

Thankful

 

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving yesterday. I'm feeling especially thankful this year for becoming a grandma to this little girl! That's her mom and dad in the middle of the poster when they were little kids.

And I'm thankful for old and new friends who gathered at Beth's house yesterday for a bountiful meal and lots of laughter. We even decorated some gingerbread people and got a start at gluing together the pieces of a gingerbread house kit.

My family is spread all across the country, but we talked and exchanged photos from our day. Here are my mom, 92, and dad, 93, at the full Thanksgiving feast prepared from scratch by my dad. My brother is taking the photo. They're in California.

My son and his wife went to her parents' house in Illinois and didn't take pictures, so Rachel sent me this one instead of their hike.

My daughter spent the day unpacking after moving into the house that they bought last week in Washington. Her husband was at work. I love this picture that she sent of Juniper and the cat cuddling with her during a break from the unpacking.

My sister Terry, right, and her husband hosted Thanksgiving for friends in Louisville. The other sister, in Washington, threw out her back yesterday so they were postponing their big meal until she felt better.

I'm also very, very grateful to live in such a beautiful desert town with endless blue skies, big horizons, and plenty of hiking trails. We even have some fall color!

Barb and I hiked a new trail today in Catalina State Park, the CDO Ridge Trail, to help balance out the Thanksgiving calories.

We saw horses, hikers, dogs and bicyclists. We chatted quite awhile with a woman hiking with her dog who is a traveling jewelry artist who lives and works in her RV. She's here to sell her jewelry at a big outdoor art fair this weekend in Oro Valley, which I'll be going to. 

Have a colorful day

New tree, new trail, new key

 

I finished the fifth little tree in the "Tinsel" quilt. Four more to go.

I found this mini pom-pom trim a few years ago and I'm glad I bought some because it's perfect for this tree. I'm diverging quite a bit from the pattern with my trims and stitches.

Here are the first five. I love them!

I've also been hiking a lot now that the weather is nice.

Earlier this week I did my favorite trail, Canyon Loop. The views are spectacular.

If you're wondering why horses need a special trail for part of Canyon Loop, it's because the people part is a steep winding staircase with 98 (I counted them) steps. Going down is a good thigh workout, and going up gets the heart pounding.

At the bottom of the stairs you enter the leafy lower part of the canyon, where I always stop to visit my petroglyph rock. I think this figure looks like something from outer space.

At the end of the hike, the picnic area is a nice spot to sit for awhile before leaving.

Yesterday, Barb and I explored a new trail, Alamo Canyon Loop, which took us a couple of sweaty hours to complete. It's longer and more rugged than Canyon Loop and was a good workout. That's me by the sign and Barb down below.

And for something totally different, my daughter and her husband closed on their first house yesterday, and look at the key they received! Now that's a fun key! My sister suggested turning it into a piece of art inside the front door.

Have a colorful day