I'm done !!!

Yipee !!!!! The wrapping paper is stamped and the gifts are wrapped. The stockings are stuffed. The ornaments are finished and the tree is decked out in all of it's homemade glory. Dinner is set. Today is the great cookie bake off and the pies are ready to go in the oven. Bear is so ready , he's counting the hours until Santa comes. All that's left is putting the stuff under the tree and of course cookies and milk for Santa, but I'm done. I can't believe it! I thought I'd be working on stuff right until the last minute.
I took Sissy out on Tuesday to finish her shopping and when we got home I saw that my wonderful Hubby cleaned the whole house, and the oven . YAHOO!!!!!!!! I love that man lol. That was the best present ever!!!!!!!!! I have tons of stuff to tell you and a huge amount of pictures to post but that will all wait until next week. Right now I'm off to enjoy the next couple of days with the family. I want to wish you all a wonderful holiday !!!!!!! Enjoy !!!!!!!!

Merry Christmas to you and yours may all of your dreams come true!!!!!!!!

Buzz, buzz, buzz

Yep I've been buzzing around like a little bee trying to get stuff done. Here's just some of the list......

Write names on stockings: Done and it only took 2 years lol


Prep the stuff for the ornaments the kids want to make : Done except for the salt dough. I'll
wait til Monday when we plan to make them.

Make the wrapping paper: Hoping to be finished today.

Wrap gifts: hahahahaha I have to finish the paper first.

Post living room re-do pics : Maybe after I finish the paper.

Thank Amy for the awesome package: Not yet ... well I guess I just kinda did. I won one of her stocking stuff give ways ( pics after the holidays) and it is awesome!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks Amy.

Find cards , write them out and mail: hahahahahaha soon ... hopefully before Christmas is over.

Resolve the problem with seller on eBay: Done ordered 2 gifts in October needless to say no gifts.... contacted eBay , they took care of everything and got us our money back

Re order gifts that we didn't get: Done thanks to Sissy. She jumped on overstock .com and found replacements , and the best part ?????? We saved $30.00. ( ha UPS just dropped them off)

Sew up gift bags: Excuse me as I fall on the floor laughing. Not this year.

Finish stuffies and monsters: Getting there.

Put up the tree: It's going up Monday. Sissy asked me to wait. Where am I putting it you ask? On top of the booth table lol. We're just going to put up part of it . I guess we'll see lol.

There's more to do but I seem to have a very loose handle on things. OK I'm off for now . More to come over the weekend....I hope : )Til next time stay warm.

Stuff

We've been rolling along here. Still have some more outside stuff to do. Than hopefully we'll be good until spring..... well besides shoveling snow lol. We still have to get to the last 10 Cornish rocks but we're thinking about only doing a couple at a time . It gets to be to much when we do a bunch at once.

In the kitchen
I've been drying a ton of fruit. Mostly apples and pears but I have found some mango's and bananas on sale so in they went. Been using the bread machine but the bread seems to get moldy faster than the other bread. I have to come up with something to keep that from happening. I'm starting to prep for Thanksgiving. I'm not sure who's going to be here besides Hubby , Bear and me, but I'm going to be ready lol. We're going to have cheese and crackers, veggies and drip, chips, pumpkin and apple pie. As far as the kind of bird.....well lol it could be go old turkey, a 10 pound Cornish rock or duck. I guess it depends on what hits the freezer last lol.

Craftiness,
I'm still working away . I have a good start on Mr. C 's blanket I'm just hoping that I have enough yarn . All of the yarn I've used has been from the tons of free yarn that M's mom gave me. ( and I still have a ton lol ) I think I have some more of that type of yard in storage I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed. Dear MIL asked me to make some dollies for her to give to my sister in law for Christmas. HAHAHAHA I've never made dollies so after some trial and error I think I have some thing they'll both like. I did get Bear's curtains done, just have to get our done. The softies are coming along, they're not perfect, but they look OK. I have to finish closing them up , tossed them in the washer and dryer, than add the faces. I really want to make gift bags out of the fabric I got after Christmas last year. I'm hoping to find the time.... I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Homeschooling
We've had to move Bear from 3rd grade work to 4th grade. Now he seems to be more challenged. I guess we'll just keep shifting stuff around until he hits his groove. We're starting lap books next week. The first set will be on the 50 states. I feel that the lap books cover alot of subjects all at once. And gives him the creative side of things too. We still need to find something he likes for science.

Christmas
You all know that I've been cranking out gifts for months but there are still some things I need to buy . Now we're only buying for the kids and a couple of things each for Hubby and I. Well Hubby is done hahahaha, I'm picking up books and small stuff for me ( it is much easier on all of us if I just pick up my books other wise the kids and poor Hubby stand in the book store looking lost lol) So it's started. I picked up alot of stuff on sale or clearance. Bear and I where out shopping and he wanted to show me what Bakugan he wanted.... OK so we look. They where on sale $5.00 a set instead of $ 12.00 so ...... well I grabbed them. I know , I know that its terrible but it was one of those things ...... do I grab the ones he wants now ... with him here or do I wait. I figured if I waited they would all be gone and I was right. What was funny was that he got it lol "Mom at this price we can get 2 for one" Thankfully Santa can pick up the slack . Bear has been out growing he's clothes at a super fast rate. So again I took him with me and he picked out what he wanted good thing too because I was going to buy 8's and go figure he wears a 10 lol. But he didn't see the cool shirts I got him for a $1.00 each :). Bear even picked out a set of books he wanted. Books ....Books.... you want books for Christmas.... sure Honey grab what you want lol. So yes he knows about a couple of things he's getting but at least I know he'll like them.
So as it stands now , I have to do some more shopping but I'm thinking about doing it when I have the tires done on the van . Just me !!!!!!

OK enough about how cheap I am . I swear there must be a support group for the cheapskates lol. I've written a book and you guys must be bored lol. I'm off for now .Til next time have a great day and stay safe.

Just popping in

Before we finish up here for the night and I sit down for a glass of wine I wanted to wish you all.....

A truly wonderful and magical Christmas.
May all of your dreams come true.

Santa's coming, Santa's coming.

That was Bear's chant this morning. He's really ready . Looks like I got everything done , at least I hope so lol . Gifts are wrapped. I picked up the veggies, chestnuts and wine yesterday. Oops...brb. It helps if I take out the duck for tomorrow's dinner uh . Took out the Christmas movies, got out Bear's Christmas pj's. Made the cookies for Santa. I remembered Santa's plate and mug.Cut the tags off the kids new ornaments. Double checked to make sure I have all of the stocking stuffers together. I even put together our menu for the big day, duck , shrimp cocktail, fresh veggies, deviled eggs, mashed taters, and pie ( just not sure what kind).

We're just gonna hang out and putter around to get ready for Santa's big arrival. Sissy is working today, Buddy is going with his dad and step mom to see her family . Than they are heading here. Of course we'll head to bed early cause little Bear likes to get up at 4 lol.Those are the plans any way you know what they say about the best layed plans. Good thing I can roll with things lol .
Ok I'm off for now . Til next time have a great day

Ta Da lol some pics

Yahoo Pictures finally lol lol

Scarf for C's wife

Scarf for Dear sister in law




Tote bag for mother in law

Picture frame and cross for our friends new baby

Buddy's blanket Big enough to cover his full size bed lol

Stockings I made for the little kids

Looks like Bear is trying to tell us something( hopefully you can see where the ribbon is lol)

The kids have a 2 hour delay so I'm running around getting stuff done. I tried to let out the chickens but I can't find my boots (gone don't know where Bear wants to know how boots can walk away on their own lol) It's way to icy to use my sneakers. So now I'm going to try hubby's boots , and try not to break any thing brb. OK I'm back and no broken bones lol . That hill is way icy . But the chickens are free lol . Today's plans are cooking and canning. I'm off to make sure everyone is ready for school. Stay safe .Til next time have a great day .

Rollin with it

Did you miss me lol lol lol ?!?! It's been too long . But I'm back now lol . Ok grab a cup of coffee( or tea if that's your poison lol ) and we'll catch up :)


I'm feeling better, thanks to everyone who asked. It took a week but the pain is gone. Than I ended up with a cold . It's slow going ( lots of cold meds) but it looks like the end is near. I really don't want to be sick for Christmas. Buddy was cleared to play so he's back on the court, so he's happy. Hubby got 2 deer so the beginning of last week was spend processing them.


We got hit with that storm last week. What a mess. Thursday night the power went out and we didn't get it back til Friday night. Thank god for the wood stove. M and C's brother T came here . I made coffee on the stove and Bears oat meal ( Bear thought that was way cool lol ) but they opened school.The town closed the main road so it took an extra 20 minutes to get any where so no bus for Bear. The big kids where at their dads and there where so many trees down the bus couldn't get to them. We had a huge tree down across the drive way and we couldn't get out. So needless to say the kids had a day off. We spent the weekend playing catch up. Did alot of cleaning. Still some to do but thankfully thing are in some kind of order.


This week will be crazy lol . We're having our annual family Christmas party here at the funny farm this weekend. Today I'll go grab the last minute stuff and start the cooking. Nothing fancy just pasta , meatballs and sausage. My mil is making sausage and peppers and yummy brownies. Just about all of the wrapping is done. All of the gifts are done but the totes. We just have to can the apple butter.I decided to make cranberry sauce ( Yep I'm nuts lol ) so that has to be canned too.Than add to all of that we're supposed to get another ice storm. Yuck and double yuck. Looks like I'm going to spend some time today getting stuff ready just in case.

So today looks like this . I'll go play free the chickens lol . Get the kids off to school , pick up the mail. Make the meat balls and sausage, toss in the fridge. Can the first run of apple butter. Whip up the cranberry sauce. Make the last of the apple butter. Start dinner. Pin the totes. Knock some stuff off of my ever growing to do list. Clean , do laundry lol .Post some pics to this blog if it kills me lol lol . That's it I hope lol . So I'm off . Talk to you soon . Til next time have a great day.

****** As you can see I started this post yesterday lol lol 24 hours to get a post done . Have mercy lol lol *****

Craziness

So much shopping on Thursday, for posting pics on Friday. I woke up Thursday morning and could turn my head, my neck and shoulders where killing me. OK I'll shop on Friday right... wrong. Poor Buddy stubbed his toes and we ended up in the ER. After 2 hours and a ton of x-rays thankfully it was just a sprain but he can't play basketball until he gets cleared on Monday. After we left we decided to shop. Poor Buddy 4 stores in an hour. But I did get most of the shopping done. I still need to grab some stuff but the big stuff is done.

On the Christmas front. Both of the boys scarfs are done . SIL's scarf is done ( Hubby is picking on me about how fast I can croquet lol lol lol) I started a scarf for "C's" wife lol lol. Today I have most of the Christmas cards done, I'm hoping to start painting what gifts are left, and get the rest of my weekend list done.

So I'm off . Til next time have a great day.

So

The last day of school Bear's class had a save a turkey brunch. So I went down to help out. 5 pounds of bacon , 2 dozen eggs and countless numbers ( and flavors) of pancakes later we had some stuffed kiddies on our hands .Our thanksgiving was great. We just hung out , watched TV and ate. The Black Friday sale on the other hand .... well.... sucked. Not as many good deals as past years( we did get a couple of things) and the fighting. Have mercy .. 2 older women got into a cane swinging fight ( yes canes) over the baby alive dolls. 2 guys had a slug fest over a TV, oh look here comes the ambulance. I looked at the kids and we got out of there. We put up the Christmas tree and most of the house is decorated. We just hung out for the rest of the weekend.

Now the fun begins lol lol. Most of the Christmas shopping is done, and I started wrapping stuff( yes I can hear all of my friends booing me lol they say I'm too organized) There is a meaning to my madness. I just want it done. I want to be able to enjoy the holiday season with out stressing over what I still need to do. Buddy's blanket is done . Now the boys want scarfs (lol lol ) made in the same colors . Bear's is done and I'm almost finished with Buddy's. I want to make a scarf for my SIL. I have the yarn just need to get it going. Than all of the crochet stuff goes in the gets washed and dried . Of course I still need to dust off the sewing machine and get those tote bags done. I still need to get some stocking stuffers for the kids. But I did get me gift box sorted out so at least I know what I have. I still have to make the apple butter and jar it all up. Than I can box it all up yippee and it's out of here lol. I have some gifts to paint but that normally goes fast.Our friends had their baby so I have to get all of the stuff I made out ( and of course finish a couple of things ) and bagged up this way I'm ready when they get home.

Tomorrow is big shop day,than I have a dentist appointment. Hopefully Friday will be a easy day and I can post the pics I have lol lol lol .So with that I'm off to get some stuff down . Til next time. Have a great day

Unplanned Blog Break

I haven't had much free time lately, so blogging has taken a back seat. Here's a quick update .

School started . Buddy has been moved up to varsity soccer ( go Buddy lol ) Sissy is a senior
( feeling old here lol ) and only has half days. Bear thankfully loves school and couldn't wait to get back into the swing of things.

I've been busy trying to get the fall cleaning started. This year I want to make the fall cleaning a little less crazy. So the lists have been started lol. Every year I bum rush things and than I'm tired and cranky lol. Maybe slow and steady does win the race.

The chickens are laying eggs. They taste so much better than the eggs from the store. I'm still baking and putting up everything I can. Soon apple season will be in full swing , that means lots of cooking , drying and freezing. Looks like we have some pumpkins in the garden yipee . Once those are ready I'll cook and freeze them too.

Yesterday I started some Christmas shopping. Mostly stocking stuffer's and some stuff for our nieces. I found 3 make your own stocking kits at the $ store. I'm going to give them to the little kids full of goodies instead of the bags we normally do. I was able to get Bear the first 11 of the Lemony Snicket books on eBay . We have the 12th one here so I just need to find the last one. Now I just have to figure out what else to get the kids lol. They are no help either. Every time I ask them I get "whatever " or " I don't know". Ugh !!!!!!!!!!!


That's it for now. Off to get some stuff done . Til next time have a great day !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crockpotting ,crafting and Christmas gifts

Our aunt gave us a new Crockpot, a box of Crockpot liners, and the Fix it and Forget it cookbook. The cookbook is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!.Recipes are simple and made with stuff I normally keep in the house. I've been trying new recipes out weekly . I can't wait til the cooler weather comes so I can try out the soups and stews.

I finished 2 more baby blankets (yipee lol) and started a scarf for Sissy. Buddy asked for another blanket this time in orange and lime green :0. I have a small pile of dish clothes done , one started and God knows how many more to go lol lol . I still have to figure out who's getting them and how many each. I'm thinking about tossing together a couple of more scarves. Just have to dig in my yard stash and see what I have. I've been whipping up zucchini bread I might freeze some and give them as gifts. If the crew doesn't eat it all first lol.

Ok I'm off . Til next time . Have a great day.

Christmas in June

I've been thinking about what to do for Christmas this year. Yes I know I'm nut's, who thinks about Christmas in June lol lol. . I've been looking for different ideas for home made gifts while staying with in my goal of thrift it or make it. Yard sales have been few and far between but either its an bunch of unusable stuff or the prices are so high that I can get it new.
I'm kinda hoping that the 2 big yard sales that are coming in July will be better than some of the stuff I've seen.

Bear likes to read which is good so I'm on the hunt for books that I know he'll love. Sissy and Buddy are really easy they are more concerned that Bear gets stuff than with what they get ( yeah I know they're great kids and we're lucky to have them) but we'll still get them stuff. Hoping to get so computer games lol lol . Maybe a couple of PS2 games. Sissy is so girly girl that anything pink and frilly will work lol. She has been hinting around that she wants a canopy for her bed. I guess I'll see what I can find made something will pop up. Sissy is easy lol the boys not so much.Buddy loves sports and Bear loves anything science. So that helps lol lol .

I do have some ideas floating around in my head. If I can get them made I'm hoping that they turn out the way I picture them.

Where to begin.....

Well let's see.... Bear woke up Monday night screaming his head off. He was complaining that he couldn't move his neck and his ear hurt. So it went all night he just couldn't sleep. Even with Tylenol, ear drops and tongue strips he was in pain. The next morning I called the doctor and took him in . He has a massive ( that's what the doctor called it) ear infection in his right ear. You guys know the drill antibiotics , different ear drops, Tylenol, and heating pad. Last night was no better. He was up most of the night.The poor kid screams every time he moves his head. He's a bit better today but not by much. He still cries when he moves his head but he can get himself into a sitting position by himself. An ear infection is bad enough but the neck thing still kinda freaks us out. We never can tell when he's getting sick . He rarely gets sick so when he does it usually bad. He's sleeping now so I'm trying to get some stuff done . Hubby and I are both ready for bed lol lol and it looks like another long night. Thank God for coffee :)

We still have on alot of things to do , have to do our monthly shop ( yuck I hate shopping), the van needs an oil change, the house need to be cleaned, still haven't gotten the Christmas cards done. Than there's still finishing the presents that we're making , start wrapping, get ready for our family Christmas party that's on the 15 th. It will get done sooner or later. Thing's are easier when you get some sleep but never fear we sleep sooner or later :)

So that's it for now. I'm gonna try and get some ( sleep lol lol ) stuff done. Take care.

xoxoxox

Let it snow , let it snow, let it snow !!!!!!!

We rolled out of bed this morning and yep it's snowing. Bear is in his glory. He has been drawing sledding maps for weeks lol. Poor Hubby. Bear wants jumps lol. Bear thinks he's a Stunt Junky lol.
We'll see what the weather does. If there is enough snow and it's not too cold , maybe they'll get some sledding in.

With the snow comes a small problem. I'm supposed to meet someone today at 9am. We have 4 wheel drive so that's not the problem. To tell the truth I don't have any problem driving in the snow at all but for some reason people around here ( people who have lived here for year's I might add) go into a panic when they hear snow. Some snow on the ground and they can't drive. I've seen people end up in a ditch right in front of me. So maybe I'll call and set up something for tomorrow afternoon.That's probably a good idea.

Yesterday was busy. Buddy had basketball practice 10 to 11:30 and he had to go to work at 12. Sissy had to work at 2 so we spent alot of time in the van lol. I did get to go to a local Church for their Christmas bazaar. Here's a picture of my finds. Aren't they awesome???? All for $1.75 :) Hubby's been picking on me saying that I was going thought yard sale withdrawals. The doll is for a friend's baby for Christmas . I might give 2 of the 3 trivets as gifts than again maybe not lol . The Santa head I'm using on the stove ,the candle and the tin are on the hutch. The other Santa pot holder( at least I think it's a pot holder) I think I'll use as a wall hanging some where.

Today is just about cleaning. It's not to bad. I'm almost caught up. Hopefully by this afternoon the housework will be caught up and I can kick back for a bit. Bear and I still have some crafting to do. Than that will finish up the Christmas gifts.

Ok I'm off to get some stuff done . I'll post some pics later . Have a great day


XOXOX