Woke up to a very cold morning - burrrr! Now the "count down" to Christmas is on. One of my chores for the day is to list all of those small things that have to be done, There always seems to be more of the "small things" than we count on and these are the things that cause me the last minute panic.

I spent part of Friday cooking and have made several more dishes for the Christmas dinner. I always feel like a squirrel as I put the dishes in the freezer. The pumpkin pies and a peach pie are ready as well as several main dishes. I try very hard to please everyone - we all have our own special traditional dish - so a wide variety of things have to be prepared. In the long run, it really is part of the joy of Christmas to prepare those things that the family enjoys and I love doing it.

I want you all to know that Richard's operation was a success and he is doing well. He had hoped to be home in 5 days but the healing and getting all systems back to normal is taking longer than expected. We hope he will be home on Monday or Tuesday of next week.

I have only about an hour or so more hooking to do on the "My House Sampler" that I started with Cynthia Norwood in November. I can't believe that I have accomplished a rug in this short a time period. As a "fine hooker" I can't believe that I have actually hooked with a size 8 cut and really enjoyed it. I am very pleased with the way this rug has turned out and expecially the background. Thank you, Cynthia. I have put the wool and binding to soak this morning and will dye it this afternoon. I am planning to do several more primitive rugs - just for the fun of it!

It's time to get going on some of my chores for the day. I hope each of you has a wonderful day with lots of happy thoughts.