I'm Trying to Keep it Simple

I found this pretty, bright shiney red Christmas ornament at Walmart last week. It's sitting in my kitchen waiting for the tree. I love it! It's metal, shiney and has Peace written all the way around it a couple of times with zigzag cutout trees in between. I know this will look good by the fireplace at night.

Miss Abbie is vouching for peace too. Her first thing in the morning sweet look.

We almost have a regular kennel going here now!

Please ignore the safety manuals and the qsnap frame on the floor in the background! :0

But, anyway, we don't keep this kitty cubicle in the middle of the floor but tonight she played

Hide and Seek with her daddy with it. She looks like a rabbit and prounces all over the place.

AAABBBIIIEEEEE?

He says, ok, mama's wired and Abbie's wired. Or either he's saying, I've fallen and I can't get up.....one or the other.....LOL

Oh how I'm trying to keep it simple.....that is the holidays, but caught up in the after-work Walmart-experience tonight, I picked up the few (ok, maybe, more than that) items for the rest of our week. My sweet simple menu is planned. We will be carving and carbing as well!

I got drawn into the Christmas area again at Walmart. It's like I have a magnet on my shoes and I just slip right over there dreamily (is that a word?) looking at each and every ornament and visualizing it on different trees. Strange, but the ornaments are hypnotizing to me.

I'm ready now to put the tree up. Or I should say my kitchen island is ready, because it's full of stuff I've collected to go on the tree! ;)

After dreaming at the ornament section at Walmart, then I drifted to the magazine rack and looked through all the decorating magazines and quilt magazines.........oh, I guess for about an hour. Yep, that's put one in the mood for Christmas decorating really quick.

So many recipes mean decisions.........

Note to self---take frozen turkey out of freezer tonight! Oh, I remember one year I forgot until the day of......not a good thing.
I'm eating bland foods this weekend and today with stomach issues but my mind is looking at all these recipes going around the office. No string bean casserole for me this week that's for sure! LOL
I know I'm having Turkey and dressing and cranberry sauce. I have to decide what else.
Bodyguard just HAS to have potatoes and corn of some sort. So, probably good 'ole mashed potatoes or I called them Smashed Potatoes for sure too.
Desert will be a cake......probably a sour cream one and also make a sweet potatoe pie.
I usually make Pumpkin pie but the southern girl in me today is thinking Sweet Potatoe instead.
Then again, chocolate sounds good too.......hmmmm....... well that seems to be a good mushy meal plan for Monday! ;)
There's just something about needing that extra color, like green beans or carrots.....yep, carrots it'll be. I saw a good soup on the Pioneer Woman's blog and may try one of those. If you haven't seen her pictures of her Thanksgiving Spread, zip over to her blog....caution......will make you want to eat alot.....almost worse than walking around Walmart!
Ok, back to work now.

Enter for a 75.00 Gift Certificate!

http://be-stitched.blogspot.com/2009/11/ok-stitchersare-you-ready-for-some-fun.html

click link above for a chance at a 75.00 gift certificate!!! Be-Stitched blog. What a generous offer!

Visions of Christmas Dancing in My Head

For the past week, I have been up and down in Christmas decorating. I usually do not put a tree up until after Thanksgiving but for some reason this year we got a new artificial tree that, thank goodness, has prelit lights and I'm ready to be done with it.


Yes BG and I went back and forth in the Walmart checkout about if we wanted multicolored or clear lights on the tree that was in our buggy! I wanted all clear lights and he wanted multicolored. Does this opposite thing surprise me? Nope! LOL So, I caved and said ok, the multicolored but he insisted then on clear and had to actually drive out of town to another Walmart the following day to get the one with clear lights. I think when God made my husband he then made me the total opposite and put us together!
Is that love or what? It's in a box on our front porch and as soon as my regular coffee I'm drinking sends me into orbit, I'm going to wake him.....yes, wake him at 9am.......to get this tree out of the box. I'm ready to find a spot. We were out of Decaf this morning so I'm humming on regular right now.........sometimes not a good thing. ;)

Our house is......not cluttered......but has alot of "stuff" in it so finding that spot for a tree every year is a different spot every time. This year, something for sure has to be stored in the basement for the season. I'm thinking of this wild idea to fold up my dining room table and store and then have plenty of room for the tree and more room to walk around if I invite guests over for finger foods and cider. And when I invite our community friends over we will have room for a little Christmas dance by the tree........ Hmmmmmm............anyway,

Yesterday I fretted over where to put the tree. This morning I'm fretting over if I should put the tree up. Because this holiday is going to be one stressful one. So, maybe I could just show you a few pics from last year (when I had Christmas spirit) and you will see what I usually put up.
But today, is one of those dreaded monthly meetings from the military and I usually end up crying all the way home and the day is over, done.
I can't predict how today will go but it's anxious-inducing enough to wonder about it right now with all the craziness in Afghanistan, sometimes, I would just rather not know. But again, it's all over the news and online and an up to date from the commander in person today will be .......interesting. I'm not so sure I trust them anymore with the truth or even if they have any sense of care. At first I did, but like most, it's just a job for them and the morale has reached an all time low.


I have enough china to feed 16 people. Honestly, I had no china until I got married to BG. We were on a trip to Pigeon Forge Tennessee and he insisted I get some china if I loved looking at it so much. So after a few years of collecting............now no one to eat on it!
But, I do love the Old Country Roses pattern and I'm glad I have it......just in case.

I want to show you on the left of this picture the large silver tea pot and cup and sugar. He surprised me with this silver last year and I love it! Right now, it needs polishing bad, so I'll show you last year's pic. I did not ask or even hint of it but he surprised me with it!

Now, these are Christmas dishes given to me by a friend ;ast year. She gave me the glasses and the plates to feed 12. Each plate on the bottom sings one of the verses to The Twelve Days of Christmas. She is in her 70's and said the plates were very old. The glasses were added later but she knew for sure the plates were used by her husband's mother each Christmas for dinner.
She wanted us to have them.
We used these last year when my family decided to run over for an hour to pick up their gifts. I rushed and cooked a big feast to present on them and they stayed about 30 minutes longer than usual.....really surprised us.

Here's the most favorite part of Christmas that has been a tradition only since BodyGuard and I have known each other. Every year we expand pieces of this village. Last year it was so big, my piano would not hold them, and I had scenes in both upstairs bedrooms as well. Each piece has a story and throughout the Christmas season this year, because we will be alone, I will share from time to time an ornament or part of a village and tell the story behind it.

Two years ago I added this market, Dept 56 pricey lil' piece when I was in an extreme Christmas spirit!! The people in the market go around like their walking and it's so cool! The fruit and meat are detachable so they really "hang" there. As long as these folks are on a magnetic strip they don't break their necks on those trees close to them! LOL

This is most of it and the house in the back, directly center is called Jennifer's Craft Shop. I got this one at Walmart 5 years ago. Instantly when I saw it, had to add it, with my name and all.

This camper and old car was one of my first gifts to BG when we first dated in 1996. We were really good friends at first, then,......well.........things changed. But he had a camper just like this and liked to go fishing so I gave him this Dept 56 collectible. When we married 5 years later, it became part of our one village.

This is my future craft shop, lit up at night.....really at the top it says Jennifer's Craft Shop!

If you know anything about Helen, Ga. you would know that this would look just like a building there too. An Alpine looking shop. Oh, wait a minute, That is ME in the top there looking through my linens! LOL Be careful when you visit the shop, there is lots of ice on the ground.....

The house on the left, not fully visualized in the pic, was a Walmart find and looks almost exactly like our old house in Waynesboro. The red house is a Dutch Colonial Dept 56 piece I added 2 years ago. Got it on Ebay or otherwise wouldn't have been able to get it. The Dutch colonial roofline is just like our house today, even has the chimney on the left side.

This piece I stitched from a Mill Hill design. It's on perferated paper and has many beads. The skating couple in front of a village was inspiring to me, reminded me of us.

Well, this was yesterday, when the sun was out. The 2 Lumps of Coal are our Labs. They haven't gotten the attention that Miss Abbie has this week but they are still loved.

Well, I'm fixing to wake up Santa so I can get moving on some of this stuff. Outside today is a rainy, gray, misty day, a miserable weather indeed.

Yes, the village would just take my mind right out of war right now. So, it's a must.

This year I found a small outdooor dog kennel.

I have looked for 3 years now for a Vet office for the village. If anyone sees one on Ebay or knows of one at Walmart or such, send me an email. I would really like to add either a Animal Shelter or Vet clinic to our village!!!!!!!

Abbie is calling to play, must go.

Talk later...

Jennifer

Dutch stitching

Examplars from the Heart design called Tulips for My Love. I found this on Ebay this week.

I am awaiting this pattern. I fell in love with it when I saw this one!

Here's the website for the silks:

http://hand-dyedfibers.com/oscnuked/index.php

You will drool over the Mother-of-Pearl winders and buttons on her site.

the silk thread packet here from Vickie Clayton for this particular design:

http://www.hand-dyedfibers.com/oscnuked/modules.php?name=catalog&file=product_info&manufacturers_id=89&products_id=3317


The price for her overdyed silks are very, very reasonable.
I can't wait to see the pattern to find out where in the world that beautiful tulip frame can be located!

She also has beautiful pins and oh, so many stocking stuffers.............(taking a deep breath)

Anybody want to join me in mid December?
Methinks this to be the one to take on our Chicago trip.

A Song I stumbled upon today

Love So Rare -----lyrics


By Aselin Debison


Like a tiny seed firmly in the soil
Nurtured with a love I think so rare
Given room to breathe, given time to see
It's now so clear to me
You were there, you were there


When I was just a flower
afraid out in the forest
Hiding from the shadows all alone
I knew you'd be along,
my faith in you was strong
Like our favourite song
To lead me home, you led me home


And with each changing season
I grow a little stronger
Rising up to touch the open sky
And if I gave you a reason
Not to hold me any longer
You gave me a thousand reasons why



You are my steady oak
standing tall and strong
Protecting me with everything you have
And I know deep inside I would not have survived
Without you by my side



I love this song! I heard it on Playlist today and it reminded me of an anniversary song that would fit me and BG perfect! I think she wrote this for her dad but I really think it could apply to anyone who is strong and loves you. Sadly I couldn't relate to this for my dad.

This girl has a beautiful voice and such lovely and inspiring music. I will definitely add her to my Playlist music.

Jennifer

When you think of your honey getting ready for Christmas

Be careful putting up those lights this year. hehehehe

When I think of my honey I know I have three more days........and we have our 8th wedding anniversary!

So, I'm having trouble finding the perfect Bronze gift for a man.

Any ideas? Traditional gift for 8th is bronze.........so put your thinking cap on and see what you can suggest!

Thanks so much to you!

Jennifer

Friday Fashions

I had a long day at work....but, a long lunch, so I zipped over to Target and found my Abbie a coat for our Chicago trip. Isn't she cute?

"Thank you Miss Tanya for letting my mommy know about this sale!" says Abbie



and another vest....
Ren has a special T shirt.......LOL

Here's Miss Priss

with her mommy

Hope you are having a GREAT FRIDAY!

Silent Night Pillowkeep finished

Silent Holy Night

designer~~Primitive Betty's

28 ct Zweigert Amsterdam Blue

fibers~~Crescent Colors, DMC

fabric~~The Common Thread--Dahlonega, Georgia

Stitching by the Light of the Sun

Our transformer went out today. My day off too. I had many plans but with no electricity and hot water....and total silence in the house (except for dogs), I gathered some stray strands of floss and my mind started thinking. Well, I had to go to the sunniest part of the house because my magnifying light of course, was out.
And this is the one I found, with a good chair and all! ;)

I followed the light. We have a generator, actually 2 of them, but without my honey running it, I'm lost. I"m very mechanically-challenged. That is too much like logical for me :0

with my scissors and glasses, of course. I started a new ornie from one of the freebie patterns at Primitive Betty's http://primitivebettys.blogspot.com/
I have a remnant of Amsterdam Blue 28 ct about 5 x 5 inches. Then I picked out some fabbie that would inspire the colors I chose.

To this comfy chair for the rest of the day. Silent Night turned silent day.

Thankful for you!

I’m Thankful for You

Thanksgiving is the appointed time

for focusing on the good in our lives.

In each of our days,we can find small blessings,

but too often we overlook them,

choosing instead

to spend our time

paying attention to problems.

We give our energyto those who cause us trouble

instead of those who bring peace.

Starting now,let’s be on the lookout

for the bits of pleasure in each hour,

and appreciate the people who

bring love and light to everyone

who is blessed to know them.

You are one of those people.

On Thanksgiving,I’m thankful for you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

By Joanna Fuchs

I found this poem this morning to just say to my blogging and stitching friends that I'm most thankful for you at this time of year and always! Sharing life's journey with people all over the world is the best blessing of all! Wouldn't it be fun if we could all have a "get together" and eat turkey left-overs around one big table? ;)

Everyone bring a dish. So, what would you bring if we could????? hmmmm. I would bring sweet potatoe souffle'. And you?

Seriously, I do appreciate you! Stay-tuned for a Christmas Give-A-Way. Be sure to see the poll in the side bar. I'm trying to get together something that you would love the most this year............

Friends always,

Jennifer

Decisions, decisions.........

Well, at lunch today I did finish the red stitching around the piece here. I plan to cut this down more. I'm in a fringie mood this week! ;)
However........one thing is for sure I plan to cut off the fringe to refringe and make it smaller. Decision will be which style buttons for the corners....big or small? Rickrack or no rickrack?
Thought about making this into the end of a runner for my kitchen island or keep for the tree ornie.
I'm up at 1am thinking about such things because I came home, ate, got drawn to the fireplace and a heavy quilt on the sofa and just woke up. I usually don't fall asleep but BG had the history channel on and they started talking about the 14th century and I was gone after that..............

This is a pillow cover I've had for 2 years. I got on Ebay then. Each year I declared that it would make a great Christmas pillow. It's quite large so I'm thinking that maybe I will this year and maybe I won't find a design for it. I like the ruffle alot.

Its a larger even weave so I may play with it tomorrow.

Miss Abbie has a a Christmas dress! Isn't it cute?

Even with a XXS, it's too big on her through the bodice, so I will have to mend it a bit. for her to wear. She is not demonstrating a great interest for clothes like Ren and has been really active lately. So wrangling her for fashions may be a challenge. I'm going to try to get a picture with Ren in his Christmas sweater and her in this little dress......wish me luck!

Off to sleepyland again..........

Be Still and Know Finished and Framed

Today was a repeat of yesterday in the busyness of life. But no sun, a gray, misty cold rainy day.

Errands to run. Drycleaning to pick up. Pharmacy. And then we tried out the brand new opening of Captain D's! Our little town is moving right along at getting restaurants. Conveniently located near the Walmart. We were simply too tired to cook tonight!

We had a few things to pick up there, like Chicken-flavored Dog Dingie Bones for Little Abbie and she loved them. We strolled through the Christmas part again and decided we will put up a tree this year and were like kids in the toy aisles and looking at trees, and beautiful bright ornaments!
I came home and went to work on framing the Be Still and Know Sampler by the Sampler Girl that I finished a couple of weeks ago. I initially, thought of making a pillow but then I decided I needed to see this right when I wake up in the morning. So it's housed directly across my bed on the wall with my angel collection.

I fringed it and put the pretty fabbie behind it. The frame actually is wood but came from Walmart for 3 bucks. I really like it.

At first glance I really, really liked the fabric to coordinate. After a while I had second thoughts for using this fabric as it was a busy pattern for such a statement.

But it grew on me and I decided to fringe.

And just let a little show around the edges.

Housed right over my angel collection, I will see it first thing every morning as I pass out the bedroom door.

In looking at it, I decided that it fit. The background swirls of paisley reminds me of all the directions my life takes and how busy it gets. The central reminder to Be Still in the middle of the busyness is sometimes necessary.

I also picked up a few pieces of fabric from Walmart last week in Dahlonega. Luckily, they still have a fabric section.

And I also have this beautiful piece of Jane Austen Moda fabric with large brown swirls that will finish a special piece nicely. This was also from The Sampler Girl Webshop.

This fabbie in my stash came from a quilt shop I stumbled upon last month.

My stash has gotten way out of control and scattered in various places. My mind is thinking of all the Christmas pieces I must do now and I'm getting pretty tired, so I'm calling it a night. Even though I set time to play with Abbie tonight after work, she is very upset at my not holding her for an hour before sleepy time and shredded 3 potty papers by the time I finished ironing and finishing this piece...........she is quiet now.

The Night is here so fast.........

Nite is already here. Today went pretty fast at work. Much faster than a day off where I have too much time on my hands......I mean your day goes by pretty fast when you deal with folks and talking about their colon cleansing......and divorces, and children......and oh, my........interesting gynecology issues.....but there's something about helping other people I think, that helps me take my mind off my own worries. And for the most part, people are thankful for the advice or help.


Got home a little late, and Body Guard had cooked some spaghetti which was good and we quickly ate and took Abbie to show her to an elderly friend that lives down the road. I had promised her that I would bring her this week. She really liked her alot. She has really been a good puppy for us.
Ren is coping......I mean, moping, well, as long as he has his meals on time and he has a sweater or T-shirt on, he won't leave us a puddle at the oven.


Funny, because tonight BG had fixed Ren a bowl of noodles. Ren kinda sniffed it and walked off and looked around...blindly.....but anyway, I know I have spoiled him when I grabbed up the bowl, put 2 spoons of sauce and meat on top, a little sprinkle of Parmesian cheese and cut it up into little bitty bites.

Yep, he wolfed that down in about 2 seconds flat! ;)


He's back to his little sweet self, snuggling in his Christmas sweater today that Parsley sent....he said to tell Auntie Parsley haaaaaaaay!!!! (in Southern accent, of course)

I want to let you know that satelite radio has been worth every single dime since we got it in this past summer. No commercials and a good variety of music. In our previous car, I literally wore off the paint on the button to switch radio stations because I just like music, not commerials, and yacking in the morning. I found a channel for a Book Radio tonight.
.
Now, on my way home, I have about 45-50 minutes so this Book Radio channel sounded great. Actually, I listen to 80's or 70's channels on the way to work, flying at about 85 miles an hour and then on the way home, I'm switching over to the symphony or pops stations. (no, I'm not Bipolar). I just find that the classical is more calming and after a day of listening to 20 people talk about broken relationships, periods, and children, I'm ready for a calming effect.

I love the classical flute, violin, and piano. So, on the symphony channel tonight, this guy encouraged checking out the Book Radio channel occasionally and

so I found it.......

And let me tell you something! I started listening and they were into Chapter 2 of some book and it sounded at first almost like a Jane Austen book. Then it went pretty much like a harlequin romance book and it was very risque for public radio satelite station, interesting indeed.
Well, I was into the Chapter 3 by the time I drove home and ready to give my hubbie a great big long kiss!!!!

His answer to that and a back scratch was......."Now this is what the world needs for a stimulus and we would be all just fine!!"
I couldn't stop laughing at him.


Well, it's almost 11p now and I'm doing my favorite....NOT....activity of laundry. I had sorted it out in the hallway last night and Ren walked into my robe sleeve and he got hung in the sleeve. It's time to get the laundry done......
We are also mapping out our Chicago trip which BG wants to drive. EEEEK! So, I went to yahoo maps and have it planned to a T. It will be a 12 hour one way trip. But honestly, by the time we bought plane tickets and rented a car when we got there, and all the other fees they put on there, we probably will save about 900.00. The airlines get 100.00-150.00 dollars one way just for me to carry my 1 lb chichi in my stowaway on board. That's 300.00 right there.

So, he won that one.......besides, I'm imagining more money for shopping that way too....... it all evens out.......

Like Scarlet said, tomorrow is another day. By the time our return trip takes about 3 days because I will want to stop at every "after Christmas sale" in 25 towns, I promise you we will fly next time.....hehehehehee

Finished Little Women pillow

Had fun with this one for sure!
I put some bells at the tie of the organza ribbon. This is Meghan's room or the Rose room now I guess you could say. This is the Little Women by the Sampler Girl.

Meghan is an artist and this is one of her pencil drawings from several years ago. She really is talented.

I have a very old table I need to refinish here. This is the minature child tea set to Old Country Roses that I have in my dining room. It has the little cream and sugar, the tiny teapot, and two tiny cups and saucers. I just got this table last year from my brother. It was my table and chairs when I was 3 years old. He had been using it for a TV stand. I think I've waited this long to refinish it because I'm not sure I want to paint the oak or just restain it. I can remember playing on this table at a very early age and having imaginary friends......LOL

I like how the heart buttons look.

and the bells on top...

Well, here it is midnight, or about, and I'm wide awake again.......6am will come early.......

I hope everyone had a good weekend!