Monday Musings

So slowly and steadily the sniffling, sneezing, stuffy nose, coughing, snot production is leaving. I am getting over whatever the heck bug knocked me on my butt last week. I spent three days at home, shivering, blowing my nose and sleeping, yes an incredible amount of sleeping. Thankfully the bug is on its way out and I am beginning to feel like a human again. Back to work just in time for month end. Oh the joy!!

Other than being sick there have been some things going on around here. I am deep into Christmas gift production. I cannot share pictures though. Its a big secret you know!! I will share once it is safe. I am rather pleased with the results so far. Its been fun, I am giving the creative brain cells a work out.

On Sunday a gaggle of my friends and I headed to a small town to take in a local Production of ELF. Princess Diva is part of the cast and they did so well with Mama Mia we thought we would take in this one. They did not disappoint!!

So much local talent, such a fun performance and the theater is so quaint!! I think it was an old opera house and its just so lovely. The chairs are not the most comfortable but its worth it. It even has private boxes. I just love it.

We made a day of it. Drove out for the afternoon performance, came back home and them went out for supper. All in all it was an excellent day! I love doing things like that. 

Oh I finally got my little cart in from the car and put together! It was super easy and took no time at all. 

Then today I took it to work. A very kind co worker carried into the building for me and I rolled it upstairs to my cubicle. Its not heavy just a little awkward.

It is seriously perfect. Its the right size, fits where I had hoped it would fit in my cubicle. It rolls like a dream. If it had a place to hang my cane it would be perfect. Its not tall enough though and frankly I am ok with it as is. I can gather twice as many files, and get them put back in record time. It was awesome today. I tied a little white rope on it so I can pull it behind me like a wagon. Such an improvement in my world and when I am retired it can come and live in my craft room somewhere. 

I am still working on the purging. I did not take a picture of this before I started to work on it but trust me it was full of stuff. 

This lives in my porch, I have not used anything out of it for years so it needed going through. Some of it was donated, some relocated and some was just garbaged. Now I have an empty tote and things put in some more logical places. My never ending quest to get things organized. It feels so good to keep working at it. Its when I totally give up I will really feel I have a problem.

I am starting to get the itch to decorate for Christmas and that is always a good sign. Its a lot of work but I love all the Christmas things. I have one or two Christmas decorations so I do like to get them out. Since I will be here for Christmas I will want to have it all out. I even have a new big tree this year that I can decorate without having to crawl up on chairs.

Toodles
Linda

Oh Yes, Another Week Has Gone

Wow the time is flying, mostly because I have plans to have book club here next Wednesday and my house needs a lot of work. Its coming along. I have puttered away at it and I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I have decided to have a lovely chest infection and head cold this week which means I have little to no energy and or will to do much else but lay on the couch and sleep when the spirit moves me.

Big accomplishment this weekend, I made it to Michael's. I have talked myself out of the trip for a few weeks but today I managed to make it there. Ok so there was a 55% off coupon and there was something I really wanted so that was incentive enough to get me up and moving. I will show you my treasure another day because currently its still in the car.

Except for the blur box and the sissors this is part of my haul. A flower punch, some stickers, some jewels, three pack of paper and the second album I will need to complete 2019. Since I seem to be unable to keep it to one scrapbook I will at least keep them to two of the same colour.

2019 is this pretty robin's egg blue. I do like it. Instead of getting at the housework, I placed the stickers in their appropriate places, revamped my embellishment list and got everything put away. The wee jewels just made this page, although they don't show up all that great in the picture.

My other big accomplishment to day was I made a trip to Shoppers. After all those shenanigans I was in for the day. Prescriptions were purchased, eggs and bread are at the ready for breakfast tomorrow. Its nice to get the errands done.  Teddy Bear popped over in the afternoon and brought me coffee. I love when she does that. We had a nice visit and then she had to get going. Its good to have some time to have some one on one time with our friends. Gives you a chance to talk about things that you can't in a group setting.

Tomorrow will be laundry, washing floors and working on some Christmas presents. I have a long list of things I want to make for that most favourite  occasion. I have my weekly quilt block to make and probably a million other things. By probably I mean definitely. I really have developed an amazing ability to ignore the obvious. Trying to change that habit.

It was the Christmas Parade tonight. They get ready on my street like the summer parade but for some reason, its not as much fun to watch it now as it is in the summer.  Could be because its dark, cold and I'm a wimp. At least it did not rain as they predicted.

So I am going to say goodnight. Not much of interest to share this time. Same old same old about my struggle with keeping the house decent and my usual routine. Oh well I would rather this quiet life than one filled with drama, drama, drama.

Toodles
Linda

Frantic Catch Up

Well maybe not frantic but it is time for a catch up, its been a bit busy round here. Lets go back in time and start on Halloween shall we??

So on the morning of Halloween I woke up around 3:00 am with a hammering migraine. I don't get them very often. I used to get them rather often through my teens but as I aged they faded. Now they just pop up once in a while and remind me that I am not immune. I was not best pleased but with lots of laying down and quiet and not moving, some pain meds, it eventually went away, leaving me feeling sore and bruised but it was at last gone.

Halloween around here was a bust. As usual, hardly anyone put on their lights on my street.I am amazed that any children wander down my way.  I decorated a bit, not as much as I could do but I got some things out

I had a sad little string of pumpkin lights out as well. My big light up pumpkin and big black cat did not make it out this year. I have to get some fixing done on the basement door first. I has only five kids all night. It was very cold that night and that never helps matters. The last three that came to my place made out like bandits. Better them having the chocolate than I.

The next day was scrapbooking weekend. KitKat, The Banker and I look forward to this all year. I was so glad I was feeling better and could go. Thanks to The Banker I can participate. I could haul my stuff myself but by the time I got it all there, it would be time to come home. She acts as my Sherpa and I am able to get in on the fun. Have I ever mentioned how blessed I am?? Well I am.

We scrapped from 9:00 am to midnight on Friday and Saturday and then from 9:00 to 3:00 on Sunday. There were 47 of us for the weekend, some old familiar faces and some new. We did the silent auction and The Banker, KitKat and I donate some baskets of goodies for the cause.

The snowman basket had some chocolates, a candle holder and a Merry Christmas sign added to it. Most of the donations were things we had laying around and then we added some new stuff. It all helps raise money for a good cause. The weekend raised over a thousand dollars for the Safe and Warm shelter

We are doing the raffle again and had the prizes on display. It also raises a good chunk of money for the cause.

I made the patchwork quilt, Princess Diva made the star and her Mom made the ragtime quilt. Ticket sales have begun.

I took Monday off because I knew I would be exhausted and I was. We did our traditional Chinese food supper on Sunday night where Sweet Baboo and Teddy Bear join us. All in all its a wonderful weekend and I completely enjoy it.

Monday I puttered about putting the scrapbooking supplies away, had lunch out with KitKat and just generally lazed about. I was horribly stiff from so much sitting and the weather changes. All well worth it though.

The week its been back to work and back to normal, what ever that is. My house has suffered terribly with all the quilting and the scrapbooking. Its a disaster and the laundry has piled up like nobody's business. Today I made up my mind that I had to get at it and get it under control. I cannot continue to blindly ignore the mess. Its not healthy, mentally or otherwise.

This morning I did my usual groceries and breakfast then I got at it and started with the mountain of laundry and the kitchen. Aw the kitchen, my age old enemy. I did make a good dent in it all today. Five loads of laundry done, dishes washed, dishwasher emptied and reloaded, stove top shinned and polished, garbage bagged, recycle sorted and more things put away. Its a never ending job and it frustrates me because EVERYTHING takes me forever. Stupid sore legs and back. I know I'm not as bad as a lot of people but it frustrates me. It astounds me as well, things I never liked doing all that much I dream of doing pain free. Taking out the garbage, running things upstairs, making a trip to the basement, oh I could go on and on and bore you to tears. Poor poor me.

I am up to date on the quilt project

I am busy doing Christmas gifts and some other projects for other people. I am making lists of things I want to make for next year. Tomorrow will be more house work. A couple more loads of laundry and some crafty things. Monday I will watch the service from Ottawa on tv then head up to The Bankers for some binge watching of The Discovery of Witches and supper with the usual suspects.

I am thrilled that just this evening my throat is feeling scratchy, my nose is stuffy and I'm chilly. CRAP. I cannot get sick. I just can't.

Toodles,
Linda

Sunday Round Up

Another week under my belt. I am not trying to wish my life away but I do have to admit that I am counting down the days and weeks to retirement. I am so looking foreward to being at home and not having to deal with all the stress and crap at work. Everyday there seems to be something new and I am just tired of it. Ok so lets not dwell on the crappy stuff lets move onto the good things.

 I FINALLY found the selection on the Superstore web site that allows you to let them know that you are bringing your own grocery bags for your order. I gave it a shot on Saturday. It worked like a charm. They bring out your groceries, bag them at the car and off you go. No more mountains of plastic bags!! Honestly so many times there would be one item per plastic bag, I have tons of them here and I have donated bag fulls to secondhand stores and given some to KitKat for the kitty litter. From now on I will be using my own bags and doing my bit to save the landfills.

Speaking of my own bags, I made myself an "everyday use" one this weekend. I was using a store bag but its seen better days, so I shopped the house and made myself a new bag

All the materials were given to me at some point or another. I am happy to have them put to use. I haul a bag with me every day to and from work. I never have ever learned how to travel light. I expect I will be trying to take stuff with me even when I am dead.

Its been a cold, cloudy, dull weekend. even today the snow has started to softly fall. I do wish it would hold off until after Halloween. It makes it so cold for the little ones to be out and about.

I have started to decorated for Halloween. I hauled the box down from upstairs and put a few things out. I have to get rid of some things and get some others. I will take a few bits and bobs to work to dress up the cubicle. I will hang the skeletons on the veranda and get the big black cat out of the shed at some point. The big light up pumpkin needs to come out of the basement at some point but I can assure you that it will not be today. My legs are too sore.

Our scrapbooking weekend is coming up rapidly. So I did some work on the silent auction things this weekend. The Banker donated some Grinch themed items

We usually do one basket together but I had this little green basket hanging around and I thought her things deserved to stand on their own. One little basket and some fancy ribbon and this is her basket of grinchy goodness.

I have started my basket. Its more winter/snowman/Christmas themed. I have a couple more things I want to add to it but you get the idea. I made the runner earlier in the month and the pillow was given life yesterday.

I found the pattern on Pinterest and I had left over material from cushions I made last year. I have a nice Christmas jar to add, then some candy and a couple of candles and its done. KitKat has a sign to go in as well. Now all except for packing up my scrapbooking supplies I am rather ready for the big weekend. I am really looking forward to it. Its always such good fun.

While I was at the sewing machine yesterday I did this last weeks block for my Facebook quilt project.

This has been so much fun. I was wondering what I would do when its finished. I have given this some serious thought and the answer is right under my nose. What's that you say? Well I have an applique quilt that I have the pattern and all the material but have never started. I think in January I will start to do it as a block of the month project, should be fun and it will finally get the thing done. It cost a fair bit of money and I have not touched it in years. Well I have never touched it to be honest.

The raffle quilt is in the dryer. I still have not taken a picture of it but I will. It needs to go to the office tomorrow and the ticket sales will start in earnest. I cut up and stapled together the last of the tickets yesterday. I love my paper cutter!!

Once I am off this machine, I am going to start working on Christmas gifts for The Wee Girl and Sweet Pea. I need to get them done. So I suppose I should get off here and get the crafting underway.

Toodles
Linda

I Finally Quit Talking About It

I tend to talk about something for a good long time before I actually kick my arse into gear and do it, whatever it is that I have been going on about ad nauseum. My Dad used to do that too and it drove my Mom up the wall. One of these such subjects has been a trip to :

This is our west end location and its still a normal sized store. It has not been turned into one of those giant supersized locations when just about everyone needs a golf cart to get around. For the longest time I have toyed with the idea of taking a trip here to see how far I could get before my back and legs gave me up to the pain monsters. I FINALLY did it.

I got down the fresh veg/fruit aisle and up the deli aisle before I had to call it quits. Not a terribly long way for most but a major triumph for me. I have really missed shopping for my own food. I would have gotten farther but I lingered over the brussel sprouts and grapes. YES I bought grapes, I am a child and I wanted to celebrate my victory, So I choose carb laden red grapes and they were WONDERFUL!!  I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this outing and now that I know I can do it, I will be going again and again. If I can pick up my own meat and fresh produce I can still you Superstore  PC Express for the other stuff if needs must. I was so happy that I finally got doing it instead of going on and on about how I should try it.

The other thing I did while at the store was I did not use as many plastic bags as normal. I did not put things like celery and cauliflower in a plastic bag. I wash it when I get home anyway so no need for the bag. I will be taking my mesh veg bags with me the next time so I have something for the carrots, brussel sprouts and apples. I am making a real effort to reduce the amount of plastic single use items that I use. Every little bit makes a difference.

Enough about food I have other things to be happy about and I am so happy!! The Safe and Warm quilt is finished. I finished sewing the binding this morning. I have to wash it and then take a picture of it. I will post it when I have done that but for now here is a little peek at the quilting

All those little x's and the big O's has me calling this quilt Big Hugs and Kisses. The pattern did not have a name attached to it when I found it on Pinterest. I have worked hard on this for this this last week and my hands are paying the price. I knew I was overdoing but I wanted it done............ well it had to be done by November 1st . Its completed now and I can take a break and move onto other things. I have some Christmas projects on the go that I need to get working on.

Nessy and I finally made it to the bottom of the Thanksgiving stew/soup. It was good and long lasting. I tell you this little soup ladle makes me so happy. I cannot help but smile when I get her out and use her

She will be getting more of a work out in the coming days as we move into the soup and stew sort of weather. I do love fall and I love it more these days as the snow is gone again and we are more back to normal weather once again

Its not been all sunshine and roses. There was a fly in the ointment. Saturday when I was to meet The Hostess and Teddy Bear for an afternoon coffee, I discovered my front tire was as flat as flat could be. Thank goodness for modern technology. I texted both to see who wanted to give me a ride and I left the tire to be dealt with today. Any other time I would have had a melt down. The Hostess picked me up and Teddy Bear took charge of me after out lovely coffee was done. We did her errands and then she and I went out to supper. It was a lovely day which could have been so easily ruined by a screw in the tire.

Today CAA came and fixed it all before I knew what was happening and I am mobile once again. One phone call and my troubles are taken care of. I love it. I would have had more of a melt down if I had gone out Monday morning and made the discovery. That did not happen, it was found, dealt with and is behind me once again. I have had more than my fair share of flats in this last year. I am ready to move on.

I have more to tell but its going to have to wait for another day. Right now I need to have a little nap and then get into the kitchen to organize something for supper with left overs for lunch for the coming week. 

Toodles

Linda

Mother Nature's Little Bitch Fit

OMG Mother Nature needs a few new meds as she is getting more and more prone to pitching a legendary bitch fit. This weekend she picked on us and it was not pretty. It is seriously too early for these shenanigans. My area  did not get the worst by any means but enough to ground a lot of Thanksgiving weekend plans and send us all scuttling to our homes, to stay safe and warm. I was going to spend this weekend with family but called that off. I love to be with my family but not if it means travelling in horrible weather. Nights in the ditch in the winter are not my thing. We did manage No Cook but did not stay out as long as usual and we did not transfer from one place to another for coffee after supper. We coffeed at the restaurant.

Like I said we did not get the worst of it but it was nasty. These were taken Saturday morning. It continued to snow for the most of the day.

This last picture shows the snow that was stuck on vertical surfaces all over the place. This snow is so heavy and wet. It broke branches and all manner of things. Its perfect for snowman making. Boy if I could,I would have been out there making one.

I did however get the sidewalk shoveled........today............ at long last. Sigh. Spent more time fretting about it that it took to actually do it.

Probably if I had left it, it would have cleared itself by tomorrow but I needed to do it. I need to get used to doing this stuff. I have to push myself to do more, I cannot let this osteoarthritis in my knee and lower back win and rob me of all my mobility. So I am rather proud that I did it. Its such a little sidewalk but I can turn it into a mountain. Its one of my talents, molehills into mountains.

It so sad that my marigolds were still blooming when this happened.

It is a blessing that we did not get all the snow that other regions got. We did not loose power. Thank God for that. As for me there was sufficient food in the fridge to get me through the weekend. I had crafty things to do and enough housework to last the entire winter.

Time for show and tell. I got this finished for my friend's father:

I got caught up on my 52 blocks project:

Then I did this pretty for the silent auction at our upcoming scrapbooking weekend:

It was going to be snowman themed but being trapped inside, I had to shop the house and come up with stuff I had  on hand to make this. I did not get to the fabric store to get back and batting for the Safe and Warm quilt so I could not work on that. Stopping at the fabric store is on my list for tomorrow. To stop from going completely crazy I turned my attention to other things that needed doing.

Christmas is coming so I need to get at those things that I want to make for that. So many ideas racing around in my head. For others, for myself. It never ends, thank goodness!!

I have got the kitchen cleaned, the laundry done, the bed in the spare room is finally made with clean sheets, all ready for the next visitor. It took me forever to get that done. It amazing how easy it is for me to ignore that sort of thing.

Groceries will need to be ordered to day. That is usually done every second Friday but since the snow had nipped my Saturday plans in the bud, it was not done. Its getting to be like old Mother Hubbard's cupboard around here. I was really regretting the lack of yummy snacks in this house when the storm hit.

Today is more household chores, some computer things, finding a new craft project and folding up the last of the laundry. Nothing very spectacular.

I was invited out to Thanksgiving supper yesterday but I choose to stay home. It was celery stuffed with cheese whiz appetizers, Hamburger "clean out the fridge" stew/soup for main course and sliced apples with peanut butter for dessert. Not turkey and pumpkin pie but very tasty. I do regret the lack of pumpkin stuff this weekend. I had pumpkin spice marshmallows but I am saving them for when I have rice krispies. I have resolved to have canned pumpkin and cream cheese in the house before hand so I can make a pie or cheese cake if I need to. I could have roasted a chicken but the stew/soup made use of so many things that needed using up.

So that's what's been up with me this weekend. Snow, snow and more snow. Its stopped and is rapidly melting yesterday and today. I am not sad to see it go.

Happy Thanksgiving

Toodles
Linda

Sunday Stuff

Slow start to the morning but that is the norm at this house. I take the day of rest thing to heart. I know I have mentioned this before but Sunday is my day to sleep in. I get up late, have a big proper breakfast, bacon, eggs, toast, hash browns and coffee. Today I got breakfast cooked almost perfectly. I baked potatoes yesterday so I used some of them for hash browns and they are my favourite. Bacon nice a crispy, toast just golden, the eggs were a tad hard but on the whole I did good. I don't usually. Sometimes I rush and things get overdone or are underdone but today was perfect.

Right now I am sipping on my second cup of coffee and feeling a bit defeated. Back in the day I would have finished my breakfast, jumped in the car and headed to the big craft sale in town. I would have roamed the booths and gotten a million ideas, bought some stuff and had an old fashioned lemonade for sure. I can't do that anymore. Its way too much walking and I would never manage it. It makes me sad that these simple pleasures are out of my reach. So disheartening but really things could be so much worse for me. I can still manage, it just gets me down now and then to deal with the fact that my world has shrunk. That's all, I will get over it, I just like to indulge in a little pity party now and then .

I just realized I have no pictures for this blog post. Honestly not much has been happening this week. I was not feeling well for part of it so that limited any activity. Thankfully whatever it was has passed on and I am as normal as I ever am.

I can reuse some pictures since the relate to the blog

I am doing a lot of quilting right now. I have my friend's quilt to finish and then the one for the Safe and Warm raffle to get done. I have less than three weeks to get this accomplished. Not to mention I need to prep for my scrapbooking weekend and get something gathered/made for the silent auction we have there every year. The Banker and I usually do up a basket for that. She, of course, has her stuff ready and mine is still a tiny germ of a thought in my little brain. Sigh. It will all get done but I am at that stage where I feel overwhelmed by it all.

So there you go, I am feeling defeated and overwhelmed but breakfast was awesome. I am sure once the coffee kicks in I will be fine. Of course I will be fine, everyone has a wobble once in a while maybe I do more than I should but so far I have always worked my way out of it. 

For now I need to get back to the quilting hoops and get the last two rows quilted on my friends quilt. My goal it to finish this quilt today. A unattainable goal, maybe, maybe not, time will tell. I will, at some point need to go to the fabric store and get back and batting for the other quilt. I was going to do that  yesterday but it never happened. Once I sit and quilt, time seems to evaporate and I get nothing else done. It truly is my favourite thing to do.

Off I got to the hoops. I thought I needed to add one more a picture, even though its not related to the blog in the least. It makes me happy.

Toodles
Linda