Happy New Year!

I saw a funny graphic on Facebook the other day.  It isn’t something I made up and I don’t know to whom I would credit this but it resonated with me.

Of course, it is even worse now.  It isn’t a couple of years out.  Next year is 2020 so, 30 years ago will be 1990.  How can that be? Thirty years ago seems such a long while back. However 1990 doesn’t seem that long ago.  Ah, I am such the philosopher.  These are the deep thoughts I have been having as we move into 2019 – 😉

I have had the pleasure of spending the New Year’s holiday with my oldest son and DIL in Vermont.  It has been a wonderful week of family time – my middle son and his wife drove here from Toronto for the holiday.  My grand daughter has been charming – I gave her a little plastic tea set for Christmas and we have had a number of tea parties with her stuffed animals..  I am surprised to see how quickly she fell into this pretend routine of pouring tea (she calls it ‘pepper tea’ as she can’t quite say peppermint tea). She adds a spoonful of sugar, stirs the tea and then blows on it to cool it off for her hedge hog and her Elmo doll.  I love it!

I also brought her a little dress that I made a couple of days before flying out.  This is the first time I have sewn anything with a Burda pattern.  The directions were clearly explained though so I didn’t have any issues. When I was making this, my DIL’s mother was visiting in Vermont so I was able to ask her to take a few measurements for me.  I made a size 2 and, for the most part, it fits nicely

The fabric is a soft and cozy fleece from Jo-Ann Fabrics. It is a deep navy with little hearts outlined in silver. H called them stars, maybe because they are sort of sparkly?

The neckline is finished with a strip of the same fabric.  I am STILL having issues with my serger so I finished the seams with a small zig zag stitch and then trimmed the seams.  It worked just fine.

Here is a cute picture of H wearing her new dress.  Is she not absolutley adorable??

Earlier that same day, she asked Grammy to put ‘pretty-pretties’ in her hair which means a pony tail.  She has so little hair, but I did the best I could!  She makes me smile.

This morning we woke to a little bit of snow.  Perfect timing – we get to have just a bit of wintry weather before heading back to California tomorrow to the real world.  School starts next week for Julia and I have orders to ship. We had such a great visit though – Vermont life is pretty wonderful!

 

 

28 thoughts on “Happy New Year!

  1. Kathleen

    Your granddaughter is adorable!! I had to laugh at the pigtails. I did the same thing a couple years ago with my granddaughter’s hair because it was just beginning to get in her face while she ate. I managed a couple quick pigtails that stuck out the sides of her head and looked stinkin’ cute! Took a picture and sent it to her mom at work. I could just about hear her laughing when she texted back “eeeek . . . I haven’t tried that yet!”

    Reply
  2. JanineMarie

    This is so sweet, Bernie—the dress, the tea party (we had similar parties, but ours were “pizza”), the pretty-pretties, and of course, that adorable little girlie. I’m glad you got to have some snow—authentic Vermont weather—as it seems your visits are always during unseasonable weather of some sort or another. Hey, Vermont will now pay you 10K to move there. Any consideration for that?

    Reply
  3. M-E Jinno

    Children have so much wonderment, too bad it doesn’t last forever, because it should.
    Tea/Cocoa parties are so fun. They learn to be great hostesses along the way. I miss it already.
    Enjoy all you can, while you can.. The dress is so cute also on your cute Grand daughter. Good job Grandma.

    Reply
  4. Barbara Esposito, The Quilted B

    Oh Bernie! That little cutie is just so precious! Those chubby little hands and cheeks just cry out for loving nibbles. I am certain those tea parties were one of the highlights of your trip. And thank you for the philosophical perspective of time. I laughed out loud when I read about 30 year ago being 1970. I had to stop and think, “wait…it isn’t?!” Have a wonderful New Year and thank you for “inviting” me to your granddaughter’s tea party!

    Reply
  5. Kaholly

    Vermont IS pretty wonderful, as is that cute dress. I used to make all my daughters clothes 30 years ago…no, wait…..it’s been 40! Oh, my, I can so relate to that saying!

    Reply
  6. B2

    What a great post! Your granddaughter is adorable—aren’t they fun?? I love the pictures and just the whole thing. 💕

    Reply
  7. Wendy Tuma

    What fun, and there is no tea that tastes better, right?!?! Those little piggies are just too cute, and the dress is too. The little one wearing it is adorable 🙂

    Reply
  8. Kathy in WV

    My baby was born in 1990—-her birthday is tomorrow and I’m having a hard enough time thinking that my baby not only could be 29 years old, but SHE is having a baby due April 2nd! How is this possible???? lol
    I’m so glad you got to visit your family in Vermont and yes, I’m even happy you had some snow. The little one is quite adorable, especially in the pretty dress. Enjoy those tea parties—-those times pass all too soon. Ask me how I know. Blessings in this new year….

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Oh, a grandchild on the way! Hurray Kathy. How wonderful. I hope you will be close by so you can enjoy lots of baby time. So nice to hear from you!

      Reply
  9. shirley bruner

    OMG….she is just the cutest thing. I’m glad you got to play tea party with her. you are probably her favorite grandma. hahahaha

    Reply
  10. Melody

    Happy New Year Bernie! I must say that the snow in your photo looks prettier than the Vermont snow I see outside my window! lol. Your Granddaughter is adorable. If you remember, she was born about the same time as mine. It’s absolutely amazing to watch them grow – so/too quickly. Born one minute and pretending the next! Glad you got to see your east coast family!
    And 1970? That WAS just a blip ago!

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      I do remember Melody. This age is really a lot of fun. Plus she seems to remember us now between visits which is so cool. The snow was just perfect. Now we are waiting to board a flight and head back home. Hope you are doing well!

      Reply
  11. Mari

    You mean that it wasn’t just 1990 a couple of years ago? I could have sworn. . . What a great dress, and she looks adorable in it. How lucky that you got just a little snow! Safe travels home.

    Reply
  12. Debra Miller

    Just absolutely adorable grand baby, dress and pigtails! I had to think about the time thing too-WOW! Time seems to be going by so fast sometimes. So glad you have enjoyed your visit!

    Reply
  13. Torry

    I loved the tea party! We just gave our daughter’s set to her son; he is 18 months and is starting to pretend. I had 16 years and 11 months between our only two grandchildren, so I’m really enjoying my second chance at being a grandma! ( Our granddaughter thinks her cousin is the smartest, cutest, best baby in the world!)

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Oh how sweet to have another grandchild. It is really the most special relationship, isn’t it? Enjoy him. I hope he lives somewhat close to you so you can see him often!

      Reply
      1. Torry

        Yes, he does! About 45 minutes away. Or daughter makes a real effort to make sure we get to see him quite a bit. So no complaints.We were spoiled though as our granddaughter lived just 4 minutes away for most of her life. She is now in college and is further away.

        Reply
  14. Roseanne

    BERNIE!! OMG – can H be any more adorable??! Nope, it is not possible. Look how cute she looks in her new dress, although truthfully she’d look cute in anything. Seeing her playing with her stuff, with those sweet little fingers and those pony tails just makes my day. Plus, you are inspiring me to make a few cute things like this for Baby Girl when she is born. Just another reason to buy cute fabric, right?!

    Reply
  15. Barb Neiwert

    Oh, I’m right there with you on the 70’s thing! Definitely just a few years ago….
    Your granddaughter is precious, and such a joy to spend time with her and the family. Special, indeed!

    Reply
  16. Linda (txquiltgal on IG)

    Yes Bernie she IS adorable, and I love that little dress. Even the sleeves look the right length. Did you buy the pattern from Needle and Foot Sews? 😉
    You are listed on my goals for 2019 I blogged about today! I intend to make a quilt to be used by a male for Mercyful Quilts this year. 🙂

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Thank you Linda. The sleeves were the right length but the elastic is a tiny bit snug. I think it is ok tho. She looked so cute in it. We really had a great time. Just read your blog post! Oh my gosh, you have so many great ideas all planned out. Congrats on the baby coming this spring! ❤️

      Reply
  17. Louise Hornor

    Yeah, who moved the 70s when we weren’t looking? How did they get to be almost 50 years ago??

    Your granddaughter is just the cutest thing, and looks so adorable in her new dress and pretty-pretty hair 🙂

    Happy new year, Bernie!

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Haha – you are so funny. Time just needs to slow down a tiny bit – It is racing by so fast.
      Take care Louise. Hope all is well with you!

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Mari Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.