A Christmas Story ...Part 2

Christmas was a great success and everyone was happy to spend family time together.  But, alas, it had to end.  As summer approached she and DH decided to go away for a short vacation.  She had been very depressed since the accident that had left her disabled.  She missed her nursing and missed seeing all her friends each day.  They decided a trip to Myrtle Beach was just what she needed.  Although long walks on the beach were out of the question, she was able to relax and enjoy the pool and the Jacuzzi.  The sea breeze was refreshing and she felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off her shoulders.  DH seemed to enjoy himself as much as she did.  Since his retirement he had been feeling a little lost.  But they both returned home feeling renewed and ready to take on the world.  But something else awaited them….

When they got back home they discovered that Brad and Kathy were expecting their first child [Bo’s first great-grandchild].  They were thrilled and the Stitcher began to plan.  The baby was due on March 2^nd.  She knew the perfect birth sampler to do.  However the color scheme was in pastel “baby” colors and the nursery was being decorated in bold primary colors.  So first the Stitcher would need to convert the colors.  When this was done she started to stitch and soon it was done except for the personalization.  She put it away for safekeeping and moved on to her next project.

Before she knew what was happening it was time to decorate for the holidays once again.  She pulled out the beautiful tree skirt and ornaments and placed them around the tree,  The Santa Sampler was hung above the mantle.  And as she hung the stockings she thought of the future grand baby and decided it would be wonderful to make him or her a quality Christmas stocking—one that would be hung each year with pride.  So she started to plan.  However, she would have to wait for the ultrasound to begin.

 The holidays were filled with joy and a touch of sadness.  It became obvious as the days went by that Mom would not be able to have “Christmas” at her house anymore.  Early on Christmas Eve morning Mom called and asked the Stitcher how to make potato salad.  Now you must understand that cooking was something that Mom was an expert in doing.  But now she couldn’t remember the ingredients.  This alone didn’t raise any alarms but as the day went by the Stitcher noticed some other irregularities in Mom’s behavior.  The Stitcher had always gone to Mom’s on Christmas Eve to help with the preparations but this year she ended up doing almost everything.  As least Mom had already baked the cakes and pies before her “lapse.”

On Christmas Day she noticed several more oddities but no one else seemed to take notice.  Her brother, David, seemed oblivious to anything being wrong, so the Stitcher just chalked it up to stress.  But she did suggest having Christmas at her house next year to make it easier for Mom.  Mom objected but the Stitcher filed it away and resolved to talk with David later in the following year.

With the holidays over, the waiting began. She was going to give the kids the birth sampler when the baby was born and she could personalize it.  And she couldn’t start on the stocking yet—she was still waiting to learn the sex of the child.   Then one day she got the call saying, “It’s a Boy!”.  So off to the LNS to get that chart that she liked so much—the one with the sleeping child dreaming of Santa and Christmas goodies,  “Christmas Visions” would be just perfect.  With chart, fabric, and floss in hand she began her task and loving every minute of it.  Although technically this was her step-great-grandson, to her it was her grandbaby.

She stitched for the next few days with Bo looking over her shoulder admiring the design.  He realized it was for the new baby and he was excited about it.   This was going to be the perfect “first” Christmas present for this little one.

As the last stitches were sewn she began to realize that she didn’t want her beautiful hand made stocking to be hung beside some cheaply made store-bought ones.  So she decided she had to stitch Brad and Kathy each a nice stocking also.   So back she went to the LNS where she found the perfect charts for these.  For Brad she chose “Santa of the Forest” and for Kathy ”Victorian Santa” was purchased.  They would love them and the colors and style would coordinate well with “Christmas Visions”.  So she stitched and stitched until she got them done and noted how well they would look hanging together.

Suddenly it dawned on her.  Her grand daughter Pam would be very hurt if Brad and Kathy got stockings and she and her David did not.  So this meant two more stockings to stitch and time was getting short.  So off to the LNS she went, looking for yet two more charts appropriate for her family.  She found a “Snowman” and “Snowlady” that she knew was just right for them.  She stitched like mad to get them done before Christmas.  As she finished the last of these she glanced at the calendar and realized there were only two weeks left before the family get-together on Sunday the 20^th.

Now everyone in the family had a beautiful hand stitched stocking.  That is everyone except for her step-daughter, Wilma.  This would never do.  So off she went to the LNS again.  And back to work.  A beautiful Angel graced the front of this one and the Lady felt she would definitely need this angel watching over her to get this one finished before the 20^th.  She stitched and stitched until finally the last stitch was placed at 11:45 pm on the 18^th.  “Just in time” she thought!

But Nooooooooo!!!!!!!

To be continued....