The Holiday is Almost Over

As i sit here, i am in awe that it is already January 2009, and my holiday is almost over. I kept to my simple plan of reading, watching movies, and eating at home. But, now i feel like 2 weeks has gone by and i'm just not READY to return to work! I have slept in, yes. I have relaxed, yes. I even have eaten well. But, now i feel like a couch potato instead of the having just had the luxurious at-home vacation i so craved for. Maybe because i haven't crafted or done much home work. But, hey, i am more relaxed than i have been in months.
Having said all that, this holiday was also filled with some great visits with friends and family. I have to include the whole month of December, as we started our festivities early. Seeing friends from out west, and friends we don't see enough was an added bonus or two! Also, spending time with family was lovely this year. The drives to see them weren't as treacherous as we expected, and each visit was longer than the typical dinner visit. Very nice. Very chatty.So, now that the holidays are over, i can share with you what i was working on. Here are some of the projects that kept me busy post-gift giving. I made a long scarf for my father-in-law (it was nice to make something straight off of someone's wish list!), i embellished some linen napkins i gave to my sis and soon-to-be-brother-in-law(!) using the Blender Pen method (don't you just love this simple technique!), and i made my sis a long necklace of found objects i thought she'd appreciate (knit balls, a very old key, and a replica of the Empire State Building).

A funny story about the scarf: I had been working steadily on it for about the whole week prior to Christmas. My father-in-law was looking for a long scarf of at least 60 in. I figured a scarf would definitely something i coudl finish in this time period. So, i estimated how many balls that would take, and bought an extra, Just In Case. Well, you know how the story goes. It's the eve of Christmas Eve, and i have used up all my balls, but i only have 55 inches or so, and i was pretty much done. Not wanting to give my FIL something he didn't want, and already taking a chance knitting him something myself, i was determined to find a knitting store open on Christmas Eve. Sure enough, the lovely shop Lettuce Knit was open for a shortened day - the staff person there even told me they're open just for last-minute holiday knitting emergency needs like mine. Whew. Thankfully, the 1 1/2 hour drive to the families allowed me to finish the project without a worry at all.