Time Off

I'm taking a break from blogging for a little while. My step-father of 30+ years has been admitted to hospice care, and I will be spending a lot of time with him and my mother in the days to come. Pray with me for God's mercy to surround all.

Merry Christmas

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. I Timothy 1:15
Wishing you all the blessings of Christmas.

Almost Ready!

The turkey and dressing are just about ready to go into the oven, and the tables are set. The dining room table will seat 12 and the extra table set up in the den will seat 8. I hope the rain holds off until tonight.

What Do You Do Two Days Before Christmas?

In Georgia, you mow the lawn. Actually, it didn't need cutting, but James uses the lawnmower to mulch and vacuum up leaves. Our yard will be nice and tidy tomorrow when our guests arrive. I need to tell you about the weekend parties, but I'm still in the midst of housework and then I have some cooking to do. But for now, I'm catching my breath.

Getting Paid to Shop

It's been a long time since CVS (or any other store) has paid me to shop, but I got a great deal today. When I scanned my card upon entering the store, I got a coupon for $5 off of a $15 purchase! Wow! The best I've ever seen has been $5 off of $20, and those coupons are few and far between. I also got a coupon for $5 off any two Excedrin, and there was no restriction on package size. What I planned to purchase was already nearly $13, so when I found the travel-sized Excedrin for $2.49 each, that put me over the $15 I needed and the Excedrin was free anyway!

Here's how it all worked out:

Body wash $5.99, EB reward $5.00; net price 99 cents. I used a $2 MF coupon, so I earned $1.01.

Dental floss $2.88, EB reward $2.00; net price 88 cents. I used a $1 MF coupon, so I earned $0.12.

Listerine $3.99, EB reward $3.00; net price $0.99. I used a $0.50 MF coupon, so this cost $0.49.

Excedrin $2.49 each, used $5 CVS coupon. I earned $0.02.

Here's all the math, for you math geeks out there.
Listerine $3.99
Floss $2.88
Body wash $5.99
Excedrin $2.49
Excedrin $2.49
TOTAL - $17.84
Less $5 off of $15 purchase = $12.84
Less CVS and MF coupons of $8.50 = $4.34 final cost
Extra bucks received (to use on a future purchase) $10.00 - $4.34 = $5.66 EARNED AT CVS TODAY! I love free stuff.

The Rush is On

Later today I will have 18 (or thereabouts) people at my house for a Christmas party. My family has the best time exchanging white elephant gifts. Rarely is anything given that is either pretty or useful. The "best" gifts are exceedingly tacky. We excel at tacky.

James' family will be gathering at our house for lunch on the 24th. That guest list is around 20 people. Yikes! Beyond 18 means it is likely to be disposable plates and not the china.

Here's the denim purse I made for Angi.And here's the cute teapot and cup she gave me.

Christmas Event # 1

Angi and I take every opportunity to celebrate virtually anything with lunch and sometimes another activity, usually shopping. We didn't have much of a shopping list yesterday, but we did try a new place for lunch: Douceur De France. It is a local French bakery/cafe, and I had heard really good things about it, all well-deserved as we experienced first-hand. In addition to the quiche and chocolate-filled eclair consumed on site, I brought home a dessert for James and one for me. His was the cute, little snowman, and mine was a chocolate tart. Yummy! The snowman had sponge cake, coconut, and strawberries inside his belly. Now it's inside James' belly.

Trade-Offs

I usually get my hair cut at a salon at the mall by Mona who has been doing it for years. The cost for a shampoo, cut, and blow-dry is $36. I could go elsewhere and pay less, but since it's only a couple of times a year, I don't mind paying a little extra. The last cut I got there in September is growing out rather raggedy, and it's been bugging me for a couple of weeks. This morning I decided that I would run in one of those "quick cut-no-appointment-needed" places and get it trimmed up. And they might as well shampoo and blow-dry it, too, and save me the trouble. It cost $25, which was a bit more than I expected, but it's done. During the thirty minutes that I was there, Rosa tried to sell me (in this order) shampoo, hair color, eyebrow waxing, manicure and polish, a gift set of salon products, gift certificates, a fluff-up blow-dry prior to parties, and hair spray. Mona, with our long history, doesn't try to sell me anything I didn't ask for. As a matter of fact, she always comments on how pretty my graying hair is, and discourages me from ever coloring it. I think having to schedule an appointment, driving to the mall, parking at the mall, and paying an extra $11 are worth not having to listen to a thirty-minute sales pitch. What trade-offs in life are you willing to make?

How Many Days Do I Have Left?

As I tidied up in the sewing room this morning, it occurred to me that even this little pile of swept-up stuff tells what season of the year it is. Have I finished my gift sewing? That would be a negatory, captain. But I'm hopeful of reaching the finish line. I've wrapped only one present, and it is too large to fit under the tree. Actually, I've wrapped James' birthday gift, too (December 22) so that should also count. Here sits poor, little Chilly Willy, all alone under the tree. (Technically, he's not alone. You can see a bit of Rudolph's haunches in the background.)

Feeling a Little Foggy

This is the view off my screened porch this morning. Forty-eight degrees and 100% humidity. Monday is when I usually do my grocery/drug store shopping, but I'm going to wait a bit until I can see more than ten feet in front of the car!

Finishing is Good

I finished baby Jordanna's dress on Saturday. It seemed like I was making doll clothes! I hope I'll get to see (and post pictures) of the three kids in their matching Christmas outfits..

Coming Soon to a Mailbox Near You?

Yesterday I finished sewing two dozen unique Christmas cards. It was fun!

It Never Hurts to Ask

Eight days ago I spent $32 at J C Penney. The next day, I got a coupon in the mail for $10 off of a $25 purchase. So I went back to Penneys yesterday, showed them my receipt and the coupon, and asked what they could do for me. At first the cashier told me that the dates of the coupon were still valid, so go ahead and use it. But I pointed out that I would have to spend another $25 to do so. Then she told me that if I would come back to her register, she would give me $10 off a purchase of any amount. I got a Christmas ornament on sale (regular price $11.99), and a three-pack of men's socks on clearance (regularly $12). I didn't make a photo because I hope you know what socks look like, and the ornament is a gift. I paid less than a dollar out of pocket for both the socks and the ornament. As a matter of fact, once the $10 discount was taken, the socks rang up at 43 cents, and the ornament at 35 cents. Not a bad deal at all!

New Grandbaby Today

Jordanna Ruth was born today at 2:20 p.m. weighing in at a "small" 9 pounds, 8 ounces. I say "small" because she is the smallest of Emily's three. Enjoy these sweet pictures!

Out With Old

I never liked the fireplace mantle in this house. It was supposed to look like a rough-hewn piece of wood, but to me it always looked like a scorched, rough-hewn piece of junk. I kept it covered with a quilted mantle scarf that I made. When we got the plasma TV, we hung it above the mantle, but it was really too high. Sometime this year (boy, doesn't it fly!) we took the mantle off and lowered the television. I would like to lower it some more, but that is still being discussed around here. When he'll listen to me. Anyway, without a mantle, I had no place to put the stocking hangers I formerly used. They were "gold" and spelled out N - O - E - L. Here's my new solution. The stockings are "still hung by the chimney with care."

I made these stockings the first year James and I were married, and they originally said "James" and "Joan" in red felt letters. I took those off when the children came along, and made their stockings in a green stripe. I wanted green pom-pom fringe on theirs, but I couldn't find any nearly thirty years ago. I'm not sure if this photo will enlarge, but across the toe, the girls' stockings have a bit of lace, and the boys' stockings have rick-rack. I traced the shape of the stocking from the one given to me by my great-grandmother when I was a child.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Two Down, One to Go

Alexa's dress is finished, Caleb's vest is finished, and both have been delivered. All that remains is baby Jordanna's dress, but she's not even here yet, so I don't think it will be needed for Sunday. Alexa let me put the dress on her when I got to her house, and she liked twirling around in it so much that she wouldn't take it off and return to her play clothes. Caleb was pretty indifferent as he usually is about clothing, but there you have one of the defining differences between males and females, manifesting itself at the ripe old ages of two and four.

One Done

It's not pink, but I still think Alexa will like her Christmas dress. One outfit down, two to go.

Merry Thanksmas Day

Since Phillip is home for Thanksgiving, but he won't be home for Christmas, we celebrated "Thanksmas Day" with him today. Sunday afternoon he'll be on a plane headed back to Tampa.

Tree's Up

Caleb & Alexa came over today to help Grammy, Gramps, and Uncle Phillip put up the Christmas tree. They're a big help for about ten minutes, and if you like all your ornaments on the lowest branches.Afterwards, we swept all the leaves from the front porch. Again. Gramps just did this chore yesterday morning, but it was totally covered again. The worse part is that we don't even have any trees in the front yard. We're sweeping our neighbors' leaves!

Happy Black Friday!

I'm not helping the retail industry recovery efforts today. This is the first year in a while that Emily and I haven't gone shopping at 4 or 5 a.m. Being 8-1/2 months pregnant is an excuse, I guess. (Her, not me.)

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner yesterday at my house. Phillip's Grandma and Grandpa didn't know that he had come home, so they were naturally delighted to see him. He had acquired another crazy hat in Tampa, and here is Caleb testing it out. The only problem is that it's way to big on him, so he can't see a thing!

Christmas Outfits Update

I have been able to work a little bit here and there on Caleb & Alexa's Christmas outfits. Although I measured both kids before I began, I still wanted to check the fit before I went any further. As expected, Caleb's vest is a little big, but Alexa's dress is a good fit. Obviously, I haven't attached the skirt to the bodice yet. Because the dress is designed with a high waist, the bodice is sort of a midriff top right now. Caleb didn't like seeing the skin around Alexa's middle. He said the dress is too little and she'll be cold. It's really hard to explain the finer (or even the simpler) points of dressmaking to a four-year old!

That looooong, gathered piece of tulle you see is the ruffle on the attached petticoat of the skirt. Gee, I wish I knew about that before I chose this pattern!

Always Thankful

In exactly two days, we'll be pigging out, but I hope we'll also remember to do what the Pilgrims did so long ago: Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. In All Circumstances. That's the rub. What were the Pilgrims' circumstances? After religious persecution drove them from their homeland, they endured nearly three months at sea (and it wasn't anything like a Carnival Cruise). Even after reaching America, they continued to live aboard the Mayflower for many weeks, as this was their only shelter from the New England winter. They faced cramped living quarters aboard the ship, then starvation, sickness, fear of Indian attack, and grief as half of their original numbers died. Help came the next spring in the form of Squanto, about whom William Bradford, the governor of Plymouth, wrote, "he was a special instrument sent of God for good beyond their expectations." And you know the rest of the story. So let's be thankful every day in which God gives us breath. And especially on Thursday as we celebrate the bountiful way in which He has poured out His blessings on us.

The Problem with Inflation

A $20 bill isn't what it used to be. It's apparently only worth $12.80 now.

Two-Person Job Done Solo

Previously, I had my "design wall" sitting on top of the cedar chest... Which made it really inconvenient to get into the chest. Yesterday, I hung it from the ceiling all by myself, and got it remarkably straight in one try. Ideally, it would be a bit lower, and would be hung with fishing line instead of string. Good thing I'm not an idealist.

In Real Life

Well, my Thanksgiving dinner guest list is up to 17 (and it could go higher), so I thought I should do a little cleaning. Actually, I usually do a little cleaning. That's the problem. I need to do a bit more with company coming. There's a trend in the blogging world, at least in some of the blogs I read, to be more realistic -- tell it like it is -- don't crop the messes out of the pictures, etc. So, in that spirit, I took down the kitchen curtains yesterday to wash them, and I honestly can't remember doing this before in the eight years we've lived in this house. Now it's quite possible that they have been washed and my memory is faulty, and they didn't seem to be eight years' worth of dirt, but there you have it.

I need to wash these as well, but I'm afraid to. I'm afraid I won't remember how to recreate the bunchy, floral-looking knot in the middle.

Doing the Design

I finally made myself a design wall Saturday. It's not really a whole wall -- just about 4' x 5'. It's a sheet of that lightweight, foam, insulating stuff (not the technical name) covered with a small fleece blanket that I got at the half-price day at the thrift store last week. Unstitched quilt blocks can be placed there and moved around until a pleasing arrangement is achieved. It works just like those flannel boards used in the preschool Sunday school. Below is another project of undetermined specificity.

Soaking Up the Sun

Blinky has been keeping me company while I sew. You've heard of a cattle prod, but I have a cat prod that I use to keep her on her window shelf and off my sewing table. Today, she got a bit too relaxed and sort of drifted off the shelf. Since there's an inch or more gap between her shelf and the top of my very messy table, I don't see how she found this to be very comfortable.