Happy Holidays

Pat took this photo of what he called the angel when we were out Christmas shopping. She has a lovely tranquil expressions but it made me laugh because she was modeling lingerie which Pat seemed to miss completely. The red house is across the street from ours and shows the huge amount of snow we received over Christmas

CLH update - getting warm

Delivery status -
Your item arrived at the delivery Post Office in CANADA at 9:11 AM on December 23, 2008.
At Foreign Delivery Unit, December 23, 2008, 9:11 am, CANADA
Out of Foreign Customs, December 23, 2008, 3:49 am, CANADA

CLH Are we there yet?

The Club Little House contributions left Amy's place and are on their way to destinations across the United States, Canada, Uk and Finland. I got a tracking notice and it is exciting and pretty neat that progress can be tracked. Heres the status of the parcel on its way to me.

Into Foreign Customs, December 19, 2008, 10:07 am, CANADA
Arrived Abroad, December 19, 2008, 10:07 am, CANADA
International Dispatch, December 17, 2008, 8:32 pm, FOREIGN CENTERJERSEY CITY NJ 099
Electronic Shipping Info Received, December 15, 2008

I can hardly wait....

Devon's Wish List

i dont need or want anything... but you guys do owe me some moola :P

Caitlin's Christmas Wish List

Caitlin’s Christmas List

Dexter Season 1 and 2
Gossip Girl Season 1
Grey’s Anatomy Season 4
Private Practice Season 1
Pushing Daisies Season 1
21 DVD
Across The Universe DVD
Atonement DVD
August Rush DVD
Becoming Jane DVD
Bucket List DVD
Definitely, Maybe DVD
Juno DVD
P.S. I Love You DVD
Sweeny Todd DVD
The Other Boleyn Girl DVD
First 2 books in Twilight Series (Twilight and New Moon, I have the others)
Gift Certificates (Chapters, Clothing Stores, Loblaws, etc.)
Wool (fun colours)

Christmas Came Early

Ian gave me an early Christmas present at dinner tonight: The Best Christmas - 3CD pack with 75 Recordings I love it - this is the music I remember being played at home when I was a kid - a little nostalgia with my hot chocolate!!

Disc 1

White Christmas - Bing Crosby
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Judy Garland
The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) - Nat 'King' Cole
Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt
Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town - Frank Sinatra
Sleigh Ride - Leroy Anderson AND HIS Orchestra
Here Comes Santa Claus - Doris Day
Winter Wonderland - Perry Como
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow - Woody Herman AND HIS Orchestra
Jingle Bells - Frank Sinatra
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer - Bing Crosby
Frosty The Snowman - Gene Autry
(All I Want For Christmas) Is My Two Front Teeth - Spike Jones AND HIS City Slickers
It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas - Perry Como
Silver Bells - Margaret Whiting AND Jimmy Wakely
The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot - Nat 'King' Cole
Christmas Island - Andrews Sisters
Christmas Alphabet - Dickie Valentine
Blue Christmas - Ernest Tubb
The Night Before Christmas Song - Russ Morgan AND HIS Orchestra
I'll Be Home For Christmas - Bing Crosby
Christmas Dreaming (A Little Early This Year) - Frank Sinatra
The Little Christmas Tree - Nat 'King' Cole
Santo Natale (Merry Christmas) - David Whitfield
I'm Walking Backwards For Christmas - The Goons

Disc 2

We Wish You A Merry Christmas - The Weavers
Mary's Boy Child - Harry Belafonte
Here Comes Santa Claus - Elvis Presley
I'll Be Home For Christmas - Perry Como
What Am I Gonna Do This Christmas - Frankie Laine
Mistletoe AND Holly - Frank Sinatra
Jingle Bells - Eddie Fisher
Suzy Snowflake - Rosemary Clooney
(Everybody's Waitin' For) The Man With The Bag - Kay Starr
Ol' Saint Nicholas - Doris Day
Zat You Santa Claus - Louis Armstrong
Boogie Woogie Santa Claus - Lionel Hampton (Vocal: Sonny Parker)
December - Kay Starr
Ring Those Christmas Bells - Peggy Lee
Christmas Carols By The Old Corral - Tex Ritter
Will Santa Come To Shanty Town? - Eddy Arnold
The Reindeer Boogie - Hank Snow
The Mistletoe Kiss Polka - Margaret Whiting
Merry Christmas - Judy Garland
The Toys Gave A Party (For Poppa Santa Claus) - Bing Crosby AND The Andrews Sisters
One For The Little Bitty Baby (Go Where I Send Thee) - The Weavers
The Christmas Spell - Peggy Lee
You Don't Have To Be A Santa Claus (When Christmas Comes Around) - Mills Brothers
Silver Bells - Doris Day
May Every Day Be Christmas - Louis Jordan

Disc 3

That Christmas Feeling - Perry Como
Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney - Ella Fitzgerald
Mrs.Santa Claus - Nat 'King' Cole
Snow - Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Peggy Lee AND Trudy Stevens
Christmas IN Killarney - Bing Crosby
Christmas And You - Dave King
St. Nicholas Waltz - Lita Roza
C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S - Eddy Arnold
Mele Kalikimaka (Hawaiian Christmas Song) - Bing Crosby AND THE Andrews Sisters
There's A Train Out For Dreamland - Nat 'King' Cole
That's What Christmas Means To Me - Eddie Fisher
The Merry Christmas Polka - Andrews Sisters
Little Jack Frost Get Lost - Peggy Lee AND Bing Crosby
I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus - Beverley Sisters
O Come All Ye Faithful - Frank Sinatra
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Bing Crosby
The First Nowell - Dick Haymes
The Birthday Of A King - Judy Garland
Cradle Song - Glenn Miller AND HIS Orchestra
O Little Town Of Bethlehem - Dick Haymes
Medley (Part 1) (A) Good King Wenceslas (B) We Three Kings Of Orient Are (C) Angels We Have Heard On High - Bing Crosby
Medley (Part 2) (A) Deck The Halls (B) Away In A Manger (C) I Saw Three Ships - Bing Croby
Star Of The East - Judy Garland
Silent Night - Deanna Durbin
O Holy Night (Cantique DE Noël) - Mario Lanza

Karen's Wish List

Old Classics - Pop Christmas Music - Peggy Lee, Doris Day, Bing CrosbySweater from Anthropologie
knee socks
Jelly Fruit Slices
Peppermint Patties
Shawl for work
Mitts
Gloves

Ian's Wish List

Ear Buds for Ipod Nano
Waterproof breathable cycling pants - goretex
PD James new book
John LeCarre new book and CD
Fedora
CD case for car

Patrick's Wish List

1. WII
2. Fellowship of the Ring CD
3. Ipod Nano
4. Pokemon 2000 The Movie
5. R-4 (DS Game download from the internet)
6. Digital Watch
7. Sour Candy

Matthew's Wish List

Hey Mom here are a a couple of things that I'd like:

Shock Doctor:
Titan Alloy Flex Cup
Power Compression Short with Cup Pocket
16oz Velcro Sparing Gloves Good brands are Fairtex, Rival, Twins, and Winning
Hayabusa long sleeve Rashguard
Hayabusa MMA Gloves
Combat Sport International MMA Training gloves
Custom mouth guard








Long sleeve shirts and sweaters (36" sleeves, 40" chest)


Smart Wool Socks and Fox River Socks












Macbook Pro Charger and of course pounds sterling would be helpful!








See you in a few weeks.

A Club Little House Sneak Peek

Betcha can't guess what I made for Club Little House!!

Christmas is Coming

It is a month to Christmas. Last year at this time I was thinking about moving to Vancouver and here we are all moved to Vancouver. The time has flown by and we are pretty well settled in our new home. The only place not sorted out is our laundry storage room which is where the Christmas ornaments are...somewhere there. This weekend's project will be to sort out the storage room and find the decorations. That will be a good incentive to get the work done. Then we need to find a place for a tree. Our new place is small about 900 square feet and so Pat keeps asking where will we put a tree. That is a very good question. Hmmm something creative needed.

True Confessions

I would really love to read the Twilight series but I am afraid, very afraid, very very afraid. I read a novel in high school about vampires and it took a month before I could get the creepy fascination/fear to abate. This may even have been the novel that Tom Cruise movie was based on but I have so blocked this I cant really be sure.

I have picked the book up many times and put it down. But so many have read and raved about the book that I am sorely tempted. For you Twighlight lovers Lisa at Pumpkin Pink Cottage has a very creative blog and she has Twilight items on her cafepress store



Here is a link to her cafepress store

www.cafepress.com/tartlet

http://www.cafepress.com/cp/members/products/preview.aspx?s=2524060_6189748

you can also check out her blog at http://pumpkinpinkcottage.blogspot.com/ as she is having a giveaway that closes on Nov 22 in honour of her 101st post.

Bonne chance

Camille's Generous Giveaway

You may wish to check out the quilt give away at http://camilleroskelley.typepad.com/simplify/2008/11/feeling-lucky.html?cid=139215360#comment-139215360

I love Camille's "simplify", her fabric and her patterns. Sassafras is my favourite pattern and her fabrics are perfect.

Our Kids

Happy Halloween - How Not to Make Caramel Apples

Buy Purple Spartans at the Farmers Market 2 weeks ago - deep red skin that polishes up beautifully -sometimes called lunch box apples because they are not too big and don't bruise easily - sweet and juicy too.

Search the Internet for recipes that don't involve syrup, molasses, caramels, or candy thermometers because its 9:30 pm and its too late to go shopping.
Let your son poke the apples with the skewers because he really likes poking things with sticks but tell him after each one that its the last one he is doing and that he really needs to go to bed now.
Add 2 tbsp butter to pan and then 2 cups dark brown sugar to pan over high heat - note recipe calls for light brown sugar over low heat and gentle boil but go your own way instead.
Wonder why the melted sugar is still gritty - add sweetened condensed milk to compensate - not in recipe
Leave pot unattended to put son back to bed. Listen to him maintain he can't sleep - its just too exciting to think about his Death Eater Ring Wraith skeleton faced double nunchaka carrying costume.
Go back to kitchen to find burned bottom of sugar mixture - but not too burned - tastes a bit brule.
Dip apples - search for something to dip the dipped apples in to cover up the strange looking caramel with the burned bits.
Settle on almonds - press into apples - Looks good.
Inadvertently break stick on apple as nuts pressed in - take a deep breath - continue more carefully.
Give dipped apple to son.
Verdict - "pretty good for your first try at caramel apples" thumbs up sign
Give another apple to husband
Verdict - "delicious - can I have another"
Son now asleep - wonder if soporific effect due to apple or just coincidence, fleeting thought about Snow White.
Try apple yourself.
Verdict - "Actually pretty good"

Witch Sighting ---

There were 2 little pixies sitting in the pumpkin patch. The first one said: "Ohh my its getting late!" The second one said: "There are witches in the air... but we don't care!"

As soon as I saw the photo on Pam's blog header I knew I wanted to incorporate that image of her as a witch flying through the air for the Zombie Swap. (A good witch) Then she updated her blog heading with a new photo and I had to search deeply in her blog to find that image again - I found it - Phew!! and the other great images of her family. Her husband had a bit of mischief in his eyes which seemed perfect if she was flying in to give him a kiss. There are so many great photos of her daughters on her blog it was hard to chose but they do look cute in the pumpkin and so pumpkin pixies were created.

I was really reluctant to send a glass container in the mail and wanted to incorporate quilting so a shadow box format came about and it also speaks to Pam's scrapbooking interest. Pam's girls are young so I wanted something not too scary but that still reflected Halloween so pumpkin orange, gold, green and brown colours seemed right. I have not done much hand sewing for awhile so that was a bit challenging but I really enjoyed working on this and am glad to hear Pam liked it too.

I also really liked seeing what others have made and checking out their blogs. Pam for instance makes very beautiful jewelry (http://pbjewels.blogspot.com/ and http://rkjewellery.blogspot.com/) I love the potions that Pam made me and just can't thank Saucy enough for hosting this swap.