Yes, I know that Christmas is officially over for this season. But I
took these pictures myself with my new camera (which I may have
mentioned in previous posts) and I wanted to show them off. We
haven't taken our decorations down yet. We'll probably do that
next weekend. I find myself a bit reluctant to take the tree down
this year. I think it's because it is a new tree and looks so pretty. It's
a nice feature in the living room.

The top picture, assuming that the pictures remain in the same line up
when I post this entry, is of a family group that my talented friend Linda
made for me many years ago. It's a set of her "profile" bears, so called
because they are wider on their sides then across their fronts. I don't
remember where she got the pattern for these from, but she used photo-
copies to adjust the sizes for a Father, Mother and baby. They are very
beautifully stitched, and are stuffed perfectly. The arms and legs are
movable, with buttons providing the hinging mechanism. She covered
the buttons with the same fabric that the bears are made out of so that
they blend right in. The baby is in a little wicker cart, the father has a
guitar and the mother plays the drum. I put this set on this side table
in my living room every year and it's one of my most prized Christmas
decorations. I have other pieces that Linda made for Christmas as well.

The bottom picture shows a set that I bought a few years ago of a Grandpa
and Grandma bunny reading to their grandkids. This year I placed them
on the floor, in small chairs, in front of an antique table and I placed some
string between two of the legs of the table to hang small stockings that my
Mom knitted for me. It looks kind of cute. You can see the ledge of our
bay window behind the table, with some more of my Christmas stuffies on
it.