Santa visited

A few Christmas videos.

Cookies

I baked and decorated Christmas cookies today. Got up early and finished cleaning the house...all except scrubbing the kitchen floor which is my most hated job. I'll get around to it though, maybe. Snowing again. They say we had 100 point something inches already this month. Today, though, it's packable snow so will be building a snowman soon. Bought a birthday cake today, it's a Santa face. Have to get Jesus a birthday cake as usual. All that's left is putting out some snacks and placing the gifts under the tree. Was going to have this big meal but my dear four year old grandson informed me that he doesn't eat pig (when he saw we had a ham). I just as soon not cook anyway LOL.

Got my flu shot today

finally my temp was normal. Personally I think something has been wrong with the thermometer at the clinic. Arm is sore which is a surprise because I've been getting these shots every year and never felt a thing.

Made some candy tonight with the kids. It was fun they were easy to make and the kids enjoyed it. Here's the picture I took...kind or dorky as they were posing.

After the candy the kids played with blocks and Lincoln Logs

Now snack time and story time.

This cold sure makes it hard to get ready for Christmas. Presents are ready and wrapped but I miss riding around looking at all the pretty lights. Just too darn cold.

I started knitting mittens again and am on my second pair. I can make the cuffs longs so they also cover the wrists and lower arms which make them warmer.

Well good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Sad News

Please join me in remembering a great icon of the entertainment community.
The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma
complications from repeated pokes in the belly.
He was 71. Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin.
Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects,
including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker,
the Hostess Twinkies, and CaptainCrunch.
The grave site was piled high with flours.
Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man
who never knew how much he was kneaded.
Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers.
He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite being a little flaky at times, he still was a crusty oldman
and was considered a positive roll model for millions.
Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, three children:
John Dough, Jane Dough and Dosey Dough, plus they had one in the oven.
He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.
The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.
If this made you smile for even a brief second,
please rise to the occasion and take time to pass it on
and share that smile with someone else who may be having a crumby day and kneads a lift.

And one more pathetic joke that isn't funny:

Mr. and Mrs. Tomato and baby tomato were going for a walk
Baby tomato started lagging behind
So Mr. Tomato went back and stepped on baby tomato...
and said ketchup....you know catch up.

I was never any good at jokes but it's snowing out again and is ten below zero.
I guess I can go clean and wrap...rap...gifts now.
So leave one of your jokes if you have time.

A cold winter day

Here we have the art box out and we're making Christmas cards. Owen is working on one for his teacher and Hali is working on one for the Door Lady at school. We don't know her name so we call her the door lady. She is so nice to us all the time we wanted to include her. We slipped in a gift card for the coffee shop in each one.

Above are Owen and Hali at the library story time. Santa was there this week and was giving out candy canes and asking what they want for Christmas. Hali wants a Barbie and Owen want Nerf stuff and a transformer. The more things change the more they stay the same. Hali is watching Owen pick out DVD's. They let you take five each week for free...he was looking for a Barbie one for Hali and he found it. He's such a sweet brother.

I went to the mall today looking for a pretty dress for granddaughter Hali. I found several but even on sale they were way over my budget. I was looking for a pink dress with striped leggings but didn't find any. I was also looking for a ring for me just a band with pretty stones for my middle finger, didn't find that either. Enjoyed the crowd though. Wow, it sure was crowded. They had bungee jumpers at center court which I thought was odd as that was where Santa used to always be sitting. I had to park a little more than six blocks away but that was good because I have been wanting to start walking a little more.

Taking Life Easy

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Christmas Carols

There were Christmas carolers here tonight. Such pretty songs they sang. There were about twelve people, young adults I think. They gave me an invitation to Christmas dinner before they left. Must be cold out there tonight.

Took kids to library story time today and Santa was there, gave them each a candy cane. Then brought Owen to school. Too cold to go outside for recess so they were going to have a special surprise. I didn't find out what it was cause his Mom picked him up. His Mom has rented a new house, has moved away from her parents. The house is huge, two stories and three bedrooms. Owen is excited about it having a play room too.

Put the lights on the Christmas tree today. Owen picked out the tree. We got it from the Boy Scouts Troup 1008 at Annunciation Church.

I'm going to try mall walking but it takes some prep time to think about getting out early and going to the mall before it opens. I don't even go to malls when they are open so I'm not sure how this is going to work out for me.

Got all set to write out Christmas cards tonight but then found out I forgot to grab a pen so didn't do it...ha ha.

I have a new Mother Earth News to read, so I think I'll go do that.

Goodnight Mr. and Mrs. America and all the ships at sea.

My Angels

There was another snow storm overnight that gave us eight to ten inches of snow they said. The snow storm had a name that began with a C but I forgot what it was. My little angels were snug and warm in their little beds. They fall asleep quickly, Owen was looking at a book of pictures.

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the lord my soul to keep, your love go with me through the night, and keep me til the morning light.

Don't let the bed bugs bite...

Snow Storm Brook

Cold and snowy outside:

North

South

East

West

Warm an cozy inside:

Having a picnic and watching a movie during the storm

Kitty was warm an Kozy

A nice thanksgiving

I got together with family and the weather was sunny. It was a very nice thanksgiving.

Today I went shopping for a few things that were in the ads. I waited until the initial rush was over and had a pleasant time. The weather was about 40 and sunny, just right. Loved watching the people, most were pleasant, some anxious, a few obnoxious. The clerks I came in contact with were all wonderful and helpful.

Tomorrow the children and I have plans and projects and will report on them if I don't fall asleep before I do that.

Goodnight and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Hi

A couple things.
Oprah Winfrey has a CD that can be downloaded for free. Very pretty Christmas music. She even has the CD cover and also an explanation on how to... it's only for the next 48 hours so hurry.
http://oprah.com/
The other thing is Barack and Michelle OBama will be on Barbara Walters tonight and it sounds like it's going to be a very nice introduction to our president and first lady elect. I believe it's on at 9 central time...may be Fox 11, not sure if it's on the same channel as the View or not.
Oops my bacons done, have to go eat.
Happy Thanksgiving

Oh, one more thing, to explain the pictures over on the right side there. That's a little thingy that displays all the pictures that have just been uploaded to all the blogs...if you click on one of them it will take you to the blog that the picture is on. Pretty cool. I met someone in Australia that had a beautiful garden.

Kitchen Inventory

Cleaned out my food cupboard and pantry this evening. It took several hours but I got it all straightened and inventoried. Some surprises ...9 boxes of speghetti and 4 additional types of pasta. What was I thinking! 37 little packets of kool aid...and this after we drank it all summer. Well mostly we drank fruit juice this year without sugar added. I have enough cans of veggies to last a couple years, and canned pears galore. I love canned pears but seems like I buy more than I eat. Birthday candles to last until we're all at least ninety I think. Some really cute ones though. I like wild rice and it seems that I must buy it just about every time I go to the store. I think I must have been going to make some sort of bean salad because I have every variety of canned bean there is in my pantry. Glad that's done, now I can re-do my grocery list.

Hi Gramma

What're doing.

It's cold gramma come in by me.

Fund Raiser Craft

We are having a fund raiser for an old friend from work. It's a craft/bake sale and I didn't have much notice so I thought I would make some little girl purses sort of like the bigger one I made. They turned out pretty good and I was going to price them at 15 dollars but now I'm thinking more like 5 dollars. I'll wait and let them do the pricing and just hope they sell and make a little money for the cause. Here are pictures of a couple of them that I made. They all look pretty much like this with different embellishments on them...all kind of pink and girly. I even made one for my granddaughter and she carries it around full of her things.

They are made from 18 to 24 month jeans...my granddaughter's outgrown ones, lined with a pretty lavender and pink fabric and hot glued together.

(edit) they priced them at ten dollars and they all sold as soon as they were placed on the table so I guess I did okay. I bought some baked goods. It was a very nice sale, still going on this pm.

Purses

Today I met with old friends at one of their houses. We made blue jean purses of all things. It was fun, though, and we had a lot of laughs. Someone else brought all the supplies and it only cost two dollars a piece to make them. I didn't finish mine so I finished it when I got home. I still had to put some decorations on it and put on the straps. As it turned out I have the straps on wrong I think so I have to take them off and put them on the right way. They told me to put some Oops on and the glue would disolve. So I'll try that tomorrow and then get them on right. Anyway this is the one I made.

It's quite easy even for me to make them. They sell for $40 to $50 dollars to strangers or $15.00 to friends. It requires a very small pair of jeans, 18 months to size 10. One yard of fabric for the lining, a sheet of foam to insulate, glue and glue gun, and any decorations you want to put on. Oh, and a friend to help you when you get stuck LOL. Also a magnetic snap. It was an enjoyable time.

Here is the group I got to play with today...notice how conveniently everyone has their head turned away.

How beautiful is the road to a friends house...

Goodnight and have a pleasant tomorrow.

'Tis the season of catalogs

Catalogs...

Today I got a really fun one to look at. Some of the prices were sky high, but some not so bad, and even some are at 'I think I'll get that price'. The catalog is called Wind and Weather and they have a web site at http://windandweather.com/

There are a couple things I have my eye on...

Solar Rainbow Maker
Recipe for Rainbows: Just Add Sun
This solar-powered rainbow maker works with a rotating, Swarovski crystal to refract and redirect sunlight into magical color, all year long. Easy suction-cup mounting to a sunny window is all that's required for a spectacular, natural light show. Clear body lets you see the motor and mechanism inside. Size6"H x 2"W x 1"D Size
one large box. 39"H x 69"W x 40"D





-->$29.95

Serene Sun Face
A Wind & Weather Exclusive
This brilliant masterpiece measures a full thirty-two inches in diameter to provide far-reaching radiance on interior or protected exterior walls. A substantial piece of art, it is handcrafted of cast aluminum and permanently finished with some of the most vibrant metallic colors in the powder-coat palette. Designed to meet our exclusive specifications, it brings Mayan and modern influences together for an unforgettable interpretation of the sun. Size32" Dia. ShippingAllow 4 weeks for delivery.Size
one large box. 39"H x 69"W x 40"D





-->$329.00 $20.00Extra Shipping Charge

These I figure I can make on my own. There are always plenty of little critters around in the stores especially in Spring and then just set them half in pots near some pretty flowers.

There is one more thing (well that's not the exact truth as there are quite few more things I would like), but these are starry lights powered by the sun. This is a string of tiny little starlets powered by the sun and they glow up to eight hours on solor power, never need to be plugged in.

The catalog is much more fun than the web site and it is free. There is also a link to http://windandweather.com/plaques

(No, I am not selling for them, just thought you might enjoy browsing too)

Goodnight and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Yes we can

My sweet grandson was for Obama all the way. He wanted to come to vote with me because he wanted to shake his hand and say hello. He believed Obama would be there even though I told him many times that he was far away. I guess at four years old distance is not quite a reality. He was sad that I voted for McCain even though I told him all my reasons. We went after he had a cap put on his back tooth so he was a little groggy, but he stood proudly next to 'his' American flag. I love this boy.

The granmaw story will certainly make him a shoo in now.

On to winter.

Nice weather

Playing with a computer program, very bored, stuck around the house until Friday...seems a long way off. Better, not well.

Have there ever been so many people voting for a black man to prove they aren't prejudice.

There have been so many black Americans that would have made a good president...Obama is not one of them. My only hope now is that there will be enough Republican's to make a majority, if indeed Obama's forecast comes true. He sure reminds me of old Joe...and not Joe the plumber either. The Joe I'm talking about is McCarthy.

The weather is supposed to stay warm until Friday then turn cold and snow is in the forecast again. I have a lot of flowers in bloom. My sweet Owen has been told by his other grandparents and his parents that when he's five he must give up his nuk. He cries about it and wakes up at night worrying about it. All of them smoke...wouldn't think of giving that up, a nuk doesn't harm anyone...why don't they just #%&* off and let this kid alone. What's the big deal anyway. He'll quit, I've yet to see anyone walk down the aisle with a nuk in their mouth. It makes me quite angry as you probably can tell.

We're almost out of apples and the kids want to go back to the orchard but I think the apple store is a better choice with the colder weather coming.

Goodnight and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Halloween is here

First snow of the season

Snowed today, sleet and hail too.

St. Vincent de Paul has a new Christmas store on the west side near Weight Watchers and across from Shopko West. Spent a good hour in there getting some outdoor stuff for my south garden. Also signed up to volunteer cause it was such a fun place to be that I hated to leave. They want me to be a cashier, I've never been one but what the heck. Now I have a place to wear my Christmas sweatshirts.

One last thing that I want to mention is that I sent for two coupons for the TV converter boxes and when I checked to see where they are they told me they had already sent them last summer and they have expired and I won't be getting anymore. Suggestions welcome.

School Autumn Festival

We went to the Autumn Festival at Owen's school tonight. Oh my gosh, I think it was the noisiest place I've ever been in. We stayed two hours. They had games, chili supper, crafts, cake walk, drawings and family pictures. It was fun but also I was happy to leave. When we got home we made apple ice cream topping and had that for a late snack. The kids sure enjoyed making it and eating it. Owen was Anakin Skywalker and Hali was a little witch.

Making Applesauce

The apple ready to be peeled, cored and sliced.

The apple about half peeled

The apple ready to come off the peeler

This is my handy dandy apple corer, peeler, slicer.

All cored and sliced the apples on the left go into the cooking pot and the apples on the right go outside for the birds and rabbits and squirrels and chippies. If they decide they don't want any of it I'll put it in the compost.

Once the apples are cored and sliced they are put in the 'pot'

Here is the applesause steaming and bubbling on the stove.

All finished and oh does it smell delicious. I added a little cinnamon and it tastes so good!

Below is a short little video of how the apple peeler works. I got it last year at the local kitchen store. I highly recommend home made apple sauce, a little chunky, a little cinnamon.

Have a great birthday!

I love you, have a super day