Lisa - Better in the ground than - where? When we bought our first live tree years ago we were told to dig the hole well ahead of time and store the soil where it wouldn't freeze. Is that what you did? I think that your tree will do fine. Better than if you had intended on keeping it in a garage or something. Make sure that you water it well now and again later if you get more thaws. Make sure that you treat it especially well in the spring and for the rest of the first year. Nice looking tree - your link worked. Deb (and her non-expert opinion)

Wow Jeanne! I love these pictures of your tree...its Magnificent with the blue lights and all the Lovely Angels. I mentioned in another post to you how I enjoy seeing Mr & Mrs Claus....as a Holiday Tradition here! Love their 'Group of Friends' too. TFS jane

Kirk ... looks like you've got some great pics for Christmas cards next yr! Bart is lookin' so GOOD this Winter! Love both the "before" & "after" pics! And I am so tickled to see that IA birdhse in your bkyard! & adding that BEAR just makes it so you! That birdfdr snowman is just the CUTEST...love the additions of the earmuffs & pine trees & such a cute idea to have the enamel pan for a feeder! (I think I remember you getting that.) Looks great out in the snow! Those poinsetta's on your ladder trellis certainly brings it to life for the Winter mos! A work of art, Kirk, love those old hinge type thingies & vine wreath...beautiful! Hope you use that last pic for something special! It's a WONDERFUL visual of God's beauty at your home! TFS! Happy New Year to you & your family! Jeanne S.

Thanks, everyone! I love sharing this stuff with you. Have you designed a project for a larger hooked rug yet? With your new frame how large of a rug can you create? One of my first hooked projects 20+ years ago was a small rug I designed. Then later I bought a pattern that appealed to me and hooked that. I think both still need to be bound and finished (procrastinating about this step is a problem common to many rug hookers). Currently, the two projects I have lined up are a chair seat (I have five but need one more) and a new cover for my footstool. My new frame (which should arrive in less than two weeks) is the same size as my old one, but both can accommodate any size project, as you just lift the rug up and move it to work on different sections. Here's a story for you: Last night I was trying to come up with a design idea for the hooked chair seat. I looked through one of my books on rug hooking, and got nowhere with that. Then I reached for a book on folk art, thinking as I did so that it had been years since I'd opened it. Inside the front cover I found cut-out patterns my daughter Jill and I had drawn for a quilted table runner I made years ago. I didn't use the horse she drew at the time, but there it was, a perfect size for the chair seat. I feel that I was guided to open that book. Here's a picture of the pattern I drew on the linen burlap last night. I'll do some sort of design in the outer border. Now all I have to do is pick which wools I'm going to use. It's like coloring. :-)