2 weeks and counting!

Okay - major panic time here. We'll be in Portland babysitting two weeks from today! I'd better get busy!

Today I met a friend at the library meeting room and we sewed - oblivious of a "winter mix" coming down outside! When we went out - someone had frosted our cars! We were both working on projects that not our favorite things to do [pink disappearing 9patches, anyone!] And it was great distracting ourselves, getting caught up while accomplishing that.

Advent calendars is my topic today. I love my advent calendar - you see the 25 days in December below and you decorate the Christmas tree and it gets fuller and fuller as it gets closer to Christmas. It never fails to surprise me how fast Christmas comes. Yes, I'm 55 and my children are grown and gone ... and I do the advent calendar every year! It's a tradition - that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Christmas Programs

Sorry I missed writing yesterday ... long day.

We had the most beautiful snow. I started to work from home and nothing. I got to 66th st and the radio mentioned it was snowing in South Lincoln. I was in North Lincoln and figured I'd get to work without problems. About 56th it started snowing. About 40th I had to turn on my windshield wipers! And by the time I got to 14th st - my parking lot - I put on my boots to walk the 4 blocks to work. It was big flakes, fluffy and it snowed for two hours. We got close to 5 inches. I enjoy watching snow from inside. Unfortunately, I was looking out my office window! The streets were, of course, terrible and Lincoln had over 100 accidents yesterday. It's official - I drive like an old lady - but I made it to where I needed to be without a scratch.

After work I went to Mom's and we waited for my sister to pick us up for a Christmas program at Capital City Christian. It was wonderful. Church programs are "a must" for the season. If you don't have a church home - look in the paper - there are hundreds of special programs this time of year. Go to one - you won't regret it.

We also go to church services on Christmas Eve. Usually the 11 pm service - there's something magical about coming out of church at midnight, hearing the bells and knowing it's Christmas. My favorite part of the service is the lighting of the candles. Our church passes out candles to everyone as they come in and at the end of the service the we pass the flame. When everyone's candle is lit - it's a beautiful light. Reminding us of the change we can make - if we only do our part - nothing big - just a little light.

This weekend I have do our Christmas cards, wrap some presents and finish some quilted Christmas presents - first I have to decide what to make! Man! It's way too late to not know WHAT you're going to make!!! What have I done to myself????

Christmas Cards - what's your take?

I'm almost done with our Christmas letter. Truly, I'm not one of those that you hate! I use 1/2 sheet of paper and there's a picture at the top! But we all get those letters that when we see the envelope we groan and set it aside until we are feeling stronger!

One letter that we get is TWO pages, single spaced!!! I have to have a cup of hot chocolate to tackle that one. And DH relies on me for the "executive summary"!

How is it possible that Christmas is approaching at the speed of light? In two weeks and 2 days we head for Oregon. Time to panic.

Miss P (14 months old now) went to see Santa at Daddy's Starbucks - don't like the looks of Santa!!! Nope, not at all!

I finished my Stashbusters fabric Christmas post cards tonight - they'll go out tomorrow. They turned out cute - I'll show you a picture later when they've been received. A friend is mading a calendar with monthly mini-quilts - the Santa was so-o cute that I threw him on the copier and reduced him to PC size! Easy peasy! C, my friend from Arkansas was here last weekend and she helped me cut all the pieces ... both nights, poor dear! Good friends are irreplaceable!

My husband's bookcase story

Two days ago I showed you "my" bookcase decorations in the family room - this is "my husband's" bookcase. Mine cheerily says, "Merry Christmas" in wooden blocks. DH's grumpily says, "Bah Humbug!!!" My mom always wrote things out in wooden blocks and I love doing that!

Favorite presents for kids: We went thru a really lean year or two. One year to fill the kids' stockings I made surprise balls. They were preschool and elementary age that year. Take one roll of crepe paper per child, some penny candy, small toys and a pile of coins,[if they are different-dimes, pennies, nickels, quarters it helps them learn their money -or not to trust their brother!!!]. Wind the crepe paper around the first toy and then keep adding other treats as you continue wrapping. The kids were so excited - at one point the crepe paper was unwrapping so fast that the coins and candy were flying thru the air! LOL!

My mom and dad wrapped a present without a box one year for me - and at bedtime I was allowed to squeeze it and try to guess what it was! Doesn't sound like much - but it was fascinating! It was a HARD stuffed pink poodle! Everything was sticking out - 4 legs, the nose, the tail, the top of the head ... I had no idea! It was the first present that I opened that year.

Nowadays, our favorite stocking stuffer is a dozen "Eileen's cookies". This bakery in Lincoln stacks their cookies in a round plastic bag. It takes up just enough room that we don't go broke filling stockings and each one of us has our favorites - Monster cookies anyone?

The Best Christmas party

Me (on the left) and S last year at the Scrap Happens Christmas party. It was at J's house and we loved all her decorating. I made the snowman pillow for Sue.

Tonight was Scrap Happens - my small group. There are 9 of us and we meet at each other's houses. Cozy, if not well lighted! I need this group - we laugh and relax and get to see each other's projects. A little consulting, a little kvetching!! It's fun.

In two weeks we have our Christmas party - one of our favorite Christmas parties every year. Everyone gets gifts for everyone ... there are alot of FQs given! We take turns handing them out and we take our time. And then you get a present from your secret pal - and get to find out who she is. It's wonderful - "quilt-y" gifts that your family just doesn't get for you.

Being spoiled by friends - it's just what you need before the holidays!

Now that was a busy weekend!

Today's picture is one of the family room bookcases. The Santas are counted cross stitch by Prairie Schooler. They started designing the yearly Santas in 1985 - I have all 22 patterns, 16 of the Santas are stitched and pillowed and displayed, 3 are stitched, but need to be pillowed - just finished them this fall and I need to stitch the last 3. Luckily, Christmas comes around every year!

I love Mary Engelbreit Christmas tins - can you tell? One Christmas my daughter L came into the room and said, "Everything is me,me,me around here." I thought, now what? and asked her what she meant. "All the tins have ME on them!!!!" That was a relief!!! LOL!

Most of the decorations are up. The trees are decorated and we watched our first Christmas DVD last night. Love Actually. Darling movie FOR ADULTS - there are so many big names in it and I can never remember who they are! Hugh Grant is the new prime minister of England! Others include Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Laura Linney, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley, Liam Neeson, January Jones, Rowan Atkinson

Judy L is having weekly accountability in reducing stash. We should report on Sundays - I'll see if I can get the link to work. This week I made 14 - er make that 13 Christmas post cards. The wonder under should NOT be ironed upside down! I did on the first card [insert your favorite cuss word here!] ... but if you get a sticky iron, leave it on and place a dryer sheet on the edge of the ironing board, "scrub" your iron against it. Works like a charm.

The PCs were from stash of course. PCs aren't very big but in groups they add up. The backgrounds were almost a FQ! Last weekend - before I joined this effort - I made borders for Birds of a Feather all from stash. Ice cream cone borders in greens and a few blues ... still haven't gotten them actually on the quilt - there were spacer borders to be figured out! ICK - math.

On the "No buy" front I managed to go into JoAnn's twice without buying anything extra! The first time I needed to get a ruler and timtex for the PCs. I had the 40% off coupon and got a 90" wide back for Birds of a Feather. That's all - no unauthorized purchases!!! A FIRST!

Today I had to go get some tiny jingle bells for the PCs. I did buy Quiltmaker to see Bonnie's article and two skeins of 738 floss that I was out of ... it feels like such a hurdle but I'll bet some people can do this any time they go!!! Amazing!!!

Nancy Rose, a week ago, asked us to list what we've accomplished - I thought she meant for the year after seeing her list ... she meant for the month of November! YIKES! I just don't move that fast anymore!

And the countdown begins

December 1st! Wow - that was fast! Lincoln is an "almost northern" city that thinks that it isn't! On the first Saturday of December we have the Star City Parade - it had to be cancelled today. We've got ice. We haven't been to the parade for years. We went a lot when the kids were little. I remember sitting on the hood of G's car with my two kids, G and her three kids. [Cars were bigger with flatter hoods back then!] Huddled under blankets with a thermos of hot chocolate.

Then there was the year that my girl scout troop was one of the troops picked to carry the banners announcing each entry. The girls were dressed in angel gear and the wind really whipped that glitter edged wing into their cute little faces. Ouch! That's Miss L - the mischievous angel on the left in the picture above. One thing I discovered about walking with the girls in the parade - on a cold day you can see a bunch of quilts in the crowd. Most were "picnic" quilts but there were a few that were not. "Grandma's best" is not the one you take to keep warm at a slushy parade!

Also pictured above on the right is A as one of the three kings in the annual church Christmas pageant. Another activity we were involved in every year. Something always happened that made you smile. But not like one of my favorite movies: "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." Loretta Swit is the emergency choir director! Really fun if you can find it!

Decorating commences today - I'll let you know how it went tomorrow.