I am not in the least ashamed to say

it is still Christmas inside our house. The trees are still up and all the stuff is still sitting around. Lyn did her part and removed the outside decorations while I was in Louisville.

I on the other hand took a couple of downtime days instead of charging right into de-decking the hall when I returned. My downtime days have almost turned into a week. In my downtime, I've read one book, and started on another. I've started cataloging my book collection. Don't ask me why. Lyn did and for the life of me I can't come up with a good answer other than I just want to. At the back of my mind I am working through a design for a quilt for my youngest daughter Rene who lives in Orlando. While I have many, many she could choose from rolled in the closet, she and I do not have the same taste and she does not do flowers or joyous colors, she is a abstract image autumn colors person. What to do, what to do?

I've put in lots of hours knitting a shawl for my Mom. It's nothing fancy, just something simply to keep her shoulders warm. I knitted her one like this one several years ago that she said she loved, but failed to tell me she had worn it ragged and she wanted another one, but was so sure I was too busy making quilts that she did want to ask for a replacement. Three or four more days and I should have it done and in the mail to her. Especially if I find myself sitting in front of the television on Tuesday watching the events of the day.

I'm not sure if I told you just how involved my daughter Lyn was with the Obama campaign starting last July. But she was, so much so that she is going to Washington for the inaugural. Because of her involvement, she has a ticket for the inaugural as well as an invitation to one of the balls.

For most of this day I've sat in my bed hemming her ball gown. One she drove all the way to Kansas City to find. It really is a very nice but as I was finishing the last of the three layers of this floor length gown, I was disliking it a lot mainly because it is dark blue almost navy, much darker than the images indicates and you know how hard it is to sew something dark with dark thread. After about a foot length of stitches I had to bring in supplemental light (a floor model Ott Lamp) to see what I was doing.

Our kitchen table is full of little brown bags filled with snack food. Nuts, cheese, cookies even Dum-Dum suckers. 114 bags in all. These will be given to the 56 people (mostly teens, and college students) who will be traveling with Lyn to DC by chartered bus from Columbia, Missouri on Sunday. She will be coming home by plane because of the ball.

I don't envy her being out in the cold on Tuesday or dealing with the crowd that is sure to fill DC, but just the thought of her being in the same room with this President is .... there are no words. And just to think I put the hem in the gown she will be wearing. Only a mother knows the joy :)