Yarn Along and Christmas So Far...

I got lots of knitting done during our Christmas down south.  First up on Yarn Along this week:

The Traveler's Stocking socks.  I'm not that happy with the fit.  The tops are kind of snug.  I may see if Ella likes them.  If you have skinnier calves, they were a fun knit.

A bit more work on my Clock Socks.  I've finished the lace so now it's just plain knitting to the top.  The book was one of my presents from the Advent swap.  It was set in the pre-war South and was quite good.

Finally looks like Christmas!  Luckily it waited until we got home from Bowmanville.  Ella was snowed in over at Grandma's yesterday.  Daddy has gone over this morning to dig them out.

We've got about a foot of snow, but it was really blowing around.  It was a couple feet deep on the machine shed, so Colin was up there shoveling.  I hate when he has to shovel the tarp building -oval isn't the best shape for standing on.

We had a great time with my family for Christmas:

Santa found Auntie B's house with no problems.  He was even able to find the Om Nom that Ella really, really wanted.  Mrs. Claus knitted Om Nom some candy for the trip since that's what they eat.

Ella was totally spoiled by Auntie Belinda and Uncle Stefan. I think her favourites were the Ever After High dolls. She got Ever After High Rosabella Beauty Doll, the daughter of Beauty and the Beast. And Ever After High First Chapter Cerise Hood Doll, the daughter of Red Riding Hood and the Wolf.

Ella loved the blanket Petra had on the bed at the B&B in Enniskillen. We've been staying with Martin and Petra for about 8 years now. They treat us like family and we look forward to seeing them every year.

On the way home we stopped at Grandpa Jim and Grandma Linda's in Peterborough where we got spoiled some more!

More presents waiting for us at home.  Ella got Doll Travel: Trips to take and crafts to make!. Everything Olivia and Caroline need for their travels.

Ella loved the doll bed from Momma and Daddy. I didn't get the blanket finished, but that's because of Ella's cold just before Christmas. She was so stuffy she had a hard time sleeping so there was little stealth knitting time. I'll get it finished soon. Only Caroline is in the picture, but it's big enough for both girls. Also, it rolls under Ella's bed like a trundle.

Tim thinks it's a pretty good place for a nap.

I got a nice new stainless steel roasting pan (with lid) from Grandma. It will replace the one that I burnt this summer.

And here's my favourite present!!  If you had told me 14 years ago (while working at the stock brokerage in downtown Toronto) that my best present would come from Colin's farm paper I would have told you you were crazy.  But here it is!  A sewing store in Woodstock had a bunch of machines they had ordered for a school's home ec. class, but the order was cancelled.  From what I've seen online, the Janome HD-1000 is a real work horse.  It's actually made of metal!!  I love that it's run by knobs and not all computerized.  It doesn't have all the fancy stitches, but I never use those any way.  One video I found online actually showed this machine sewing a wooden yard stick!

We've still got one more family party to round out our Christmas holiday.  I hope everyone is having a great Christmas with the people they love.