Oh my goodness, Belle, that looks so pretty, but also so cold! I shouldn't tell you that it's supposed to be 69 here today should I? LOL We've been getting rain and it's been down to the 40's and 50's but now warming up again. Thanks for sharing the pretty pics, and the kitty is darling. Luvs

Luvs....It is pretty isn't it? and yes it is cold but getting warmer.

It's raining, never thought I would be glad to see the rain but I sure am! It's up into the 40's and I am venturing out today for the first time since the 6th. The "S" word isn't even in the forecast!

Didn't get anywhere near my painting area yesterday and I doubt that I will today, seems almost impossible that I used to paint for 6 or 7 hours everyday. Where did I get the time? I painted more when I was working! May be that I had more people to paint for and then there were the craft shows....no not going to do that again! Guess it really comes down to keeping to my schedule. So, with shopping today and dinner out I guess my projects will still be there tomorrow. But I promise to try to get pictures of some of my decorations and post them today!!!!!

Take Care!

Belle

Hey yall....I'm baking baking baking and making candy. About all I have time left for to do for my neighbors so trying to get things made up and packaged prettily. Made 5 dozen cookies this morning for a friend and for some baskets we are making up for the widow ladies at church. Fixin to start my first attempt at making pralines. Just got done making all the tags for the bags. Sorry I'm not here much. Just busier than normal if that tells you anything. I did try to post my pics over the weekend, but my stupid cable company had a problem and my internet service was out for a while. I'll try to get in here maybe tonight and put those up for ya. Just my TS finds. Ok, ya'll have a good one. Belle...your pond is beautiful, but I like it much better in the summer! ha Cya ladies. ~Anj

Anj......I worked for a fantastic couple for the last 8 years of their lives and we baked for weeks before Christmas. They were unable to delivery the goodies but their daughter (my best friend) did the deed. It was always fun because the dear lady would talk about their lives in Alaska during the depression and then the war years. What they endured during those years make me shutter even now. The cold, loneliness and about some of the wild animals that didn't make it to the dinner table. But even into their Eighty's they still wanted to share not only their faith but the bounty which they enjoyed, and I use the word bounty lightly because they weren't rich or even well off, but struggles with finances and the increase cost of aging, but still caring for others. They reminded me by their daily lives just what Christmas should be about. They died 6 months apart after 76 years of marriage and still very much in love.

Looking forward to seeing your pictures!

Belle

Belle, what an amazing couple! Just goes to show that it doesn't take a whole lot to be happy. Wow! married 76 years--that is truly amazing!

Anj, I haven't baked or made candy yet--if I do, DH and I will eat it! LOL I'll probably go ahead and make our peanut brittle--won't seem like Christmas without it! But might not make the fudge this year.

My present to myself this year is going to be a membership to Weight Watchers--this retirement lifestyle and eating out so often is piling the weight on me and I sure don't like it! ;o(

Can't wait to see your TS finds. Hope you get time to post them this week.

Luvs

Darling kitty and beautiful pictures. How much has thawed? Looks pretty frozen. Will your plants survive this, Belle? TFS Punk

Good Rainy Morning!

Like you Luvs I haven't baked a think but did go shopping with DH and got everything I will need. All of the family will be here for Christmas Eve so I need lots of goodies and they get to take the leftovers home, like you said DH and I will eat them and I don't need to add anything to this frame. I like you idea of your own gift to yourself...hummmmmmm

Well, did I mention I didn't like the color I painted my wall, if not I didn't! So while shopping got more painted and did two walls this time and I HATE the color. It's a pretty blue but just toooooooo blue! Will try again but not until after Christmas and DH say by then I won't even notice it....bet me! It does have a warmer feeling than the white everything. I still have one wall in the kitchen to paint and I am going to accent a wall in our bedroom. DH and his carpenter friend believes that we have to remove the old ceiling and insulation in the kitchen and just put up insulation. Being closed in and cold up there is why it is sweating....it will be fun to remove the sheet rock and all with the wire grid for the drop down new ceiling to move around but not move. Oh! Well! Another bump in life's road.

Punk...Things are beginning to thaw and I hope my plants survive, they have before but never with this much ice or this cold. We still haven't started the pumps yet, the filter tanks are still frozen.

Better get moving, still need to put some things back in order after yesterday and I still need to take some pictures to post.

Stay safe!

Belle

Ahhh ladies...what a very long day this has been. I've been at it since 4am. Just sat down for a sec to rest my bones and kick off my shoes. I can't believe I'm ready to go to bed and it's only 8pm. ha So much going on here. We are trying to do a consolidation loan and refinance one of our properties so lots of paperwork and running around. Had to take my mom to the grocery store today. I'm still making pralines. Ruined a couple of batches, but I think I have it down now. Will start on more tomorrow. I've gotten some of my gifts delivered. Got the cross guard lady, and one friend done today plus 5 yr old's little friend. I made donut snowmen for him and he LOVED them!! Got an amyrillas for my widow neighbor. DH is taking off from tomorrow until the 5th of Jan so maybe he'll be able to help me with deliveries. Still have lots to do. Teacher gifts go in tomorrow with the kids.
Went to my brothers graduation last night. He got his Associates degree and will start on his Bachelor in Jan. I've got to take DD to her ortho appt tomorrow. The Saints are playing on Saturday! Can't wait for that. They are 13-0 and playing the Cowboys. It will be a tough game. Then Dh's Christmas party is Sat night. Sunday church and then a family thing Sun night. The kids will be home for the holidays no school. We have a neighborhood block party to go to Monday night. Then the attic guy is coming Christmas Eve to insulate the attic. I called that one. Sigh. So there you have the condensed version of my week. ha One day things may slow down again for me.

Ok, I'm gonna try to get these pics posted real quick.

Luvs knows that I have a herd of cows in my kitchen. ha So when we met a few summers ago she gifted me with this adorable little Christmas cow shelf sitter. Isn't it cute? I love it!

Now on to the TS finds from 3 weeks ago. ha
Let's see if I can remember prices. I think the little snowman tile picture was $2. The paint holder was $3 and the books were 50 cents each. Oh and the stocking holders were $2.

Wow! I'm exhausted just from reading your list of "to do's"! No wonder you are tired and want to go to bed! I hope you have a nice big calendar to track all of this--otherwise you will never be able to rest for fear of forgetting something! LOL

Great find on that wooden paint holder, those things sell for big bucks! Love the little snowmen tiles too. And it's always so fun to find painting books or magazines isn't it? Even if there are only a couple patterns in each that you really like, it's just fun to look through them.

I need to snap a picture of the jar you painted for me and share it on here too! It is so cute and you did such a great job on it. It was just so much fun to get to meet IRL and then exchanging goodies with each other was the icing on the cake! ;o)

I had hoped Punk would have been over here to tell us all about her trip to Vegas. Maybe tomorrow.

Belle, hope things are thawing where you are. Sorry about the problems with the ceiling--it's always something, huh?

I'll check back tomorrow.

Luvs

Hi All,
Yes, I'm home and coming down with a sore throat and my life is close to Anj's. Makes me wonder why I thought I could take off but sure glad I did. Don't know that I want to go back right away but had fun. I'm not the BIG Gambler or Drinker so I can have fun most places.

We saw most of the casinos and all of them were decorated with beautiful decorations. I took alot of pictures but for some reason most turned out blurry. I only had 2 drinks so I don't think that had anything to do with it.HUM

The roller coaster at New York, New York was awesome and the castles at night, super. The water shows, amamzing and the night views, stunning. We spent one day at circus,circus for DGD so she could ride rides.

I was a loser while there but we did shop alot. It made me feel like I wasn't throwing all of my money away. The food was wonderful and it seemed like we ate all the time.

We stayed in the blue green condos behind the MGM and our rooms were more than wonderful. Complete with washer dryer, dining rooms, kitchens, living rooms. One even had two bathrooms within. We had doors that opened in between the rooms so we could all visit when we wanted.

Fun to get away but now I'm so far behind and Christmas is not going to wait for me. I will be doing alot of shopping so hope everyone else is done and outta my way.LOL

Work has been so busy (which is a good thing) that it's hard to catch up. Maybe after the Holidays, I'll be able to stay on track better.

Anj looks like you got some good deals. I made some cows like that years ago. I even painted some black for angus customers and some like herfords. They are pretty cute. I'll take a picture of mine and post when I have time.

I did end up with a blister on one of my toes from walking so much. One day we walked a couple of miles late in the afternoon and rode a taxi back. I'm to old for all of that.

We are having Christmas Eve here and then will only be us and DS for Christmas Day. I ask him what he wanted for Christmas dinner and he said you might as well cook Burgers. Who knows what we'll have. Maybe leftovers from Christmas Eve.LOL

Missed all of you but need to hit the hay so I'll yak later with all of you. Take Care. Punk

It's 2:30am and guess who's still awake? ha Took a little cat nap on the couch trying to watch CSI with DH. Now I'm awake.
Luvs, I do keep a large desk calendar on my wall and everyone has a different colored marker for their business so I can keep track of who's doing what. I still overbook myself. Last Saturday was trying to figure out how to be 3 places at the same time. ha
Punk~ We try to get to Vegas every year for our anniversary in May, but something always comes up and we don't get there. I have a cousin who lives there and wants us to stay with her if we ever get to go. Hope you can get caught up on everything now that you are back. We will be staying home on Christmas and I'll be cooking I'm sure.
Belle~ It's always more fun when you have help in the kitchen. Your friends sound like they were really happy even thru hardships. Good luck on the painting. I still need to get mine done. Keep putting it off cause I hate to get interrupted once I start.

I'm yawning every few minutes so I must have sufficiently bored myself enough to go to bed. ha Ya'll have a good one. ~Anj

Punk, it sounds like you had a good time. I've not seen Vegas all decorated up for Christmas, bet the decorations are fantastic. I know what you mean about all the walking, just don't do it all that much anymore, so need to go in training mode before going sightseeing now. LOL

Anj, sounds like you have a good system going. Just that the young uns all have things going on and it's hard to keep up, huh?

I've been shopping and wrapping. So hard when I really don't know what I want! Hopefully, I've found a few things that will entertain little GD and her daddy--he's the biggest kid of all!

Well, we're heading to the mall for lunch and a bit more shopping there, then we have dinner with my little friends daughter, sil, and gs tonight. I thought it would be nice to get acquainted with them and give them a respite from all the packing they have been doing. I'm so relieved that they are going to take her home with them, she just really shouldn't be living alone any more.

See you all later.

Kay

Luvs, I'm so glad to hear that your friend will be living with DD. I'm sure you will miss her though.

Luvs, alot of my friends are going to WW and they are losing their weight by adding to miles a day to their walk. It's to cold for me to consider this and I don't have any exercise equipment. Guess I need to stop feeding my face so much!

Anj, I know what it's like to have to many places to be at one time. Not good for you and that's probably part of why your not sleeping well. Take care and SLOW DOWN if you can!!! It's great that you are so involved in what's happening.

Belle, did things go ahead and thaw?

Hope all of you take care and I'm heading off to do some shopping.

Punk

Good morning all! I've been up since 6 this morning, went down to see my little friend and her daughter off--they are heading to Oregon today. Not sure how I feel--sort of relieved to not have to worry about her so much anymore, but still a little sad knowing she is gone and I might not see her again.

DH and I took her daughter, husband and son out to dinner last night, and I know she is in good hands and won't be lonely anymore. And I'm so glad tomorrow is Sunday, I'm missing the little GD.

I've gotten some wonderful gifts this week, box full of dried fruits and veggies from my brother in Missouri, basket of homemade jams and salsa from my little friend's daughter, and a surprize box in the mail full of wonderful acorn goodies from a Holiday forum friend! I feel so blessed. ;o)

I've got a few more gifts to go buy and some more wrapping to get done. Need to find out what DIL wants me to bring for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day since she wants to have both at her house this year. Not really trying to get anything painted right now--will get back at it after the holidays are over.

All of you are busy too, I know. Just drive carefully and practice patience as you wait in those lines while out shopping. This too shall pass--at least for a year anyway! Why do we do this to ourselves anyway? LOL

Luvs

Good Morning!

Wow! So many posts to catch up on, so if I miss something, please excuse my short term memory!

Our weather is much milder and the pond is almost thawed but the two 100 gallon filter tanks are still solid. Oh! Well! I really doubt that any of our fish survived..but I still have hope.

Anj....what can I say girl that you don't already know...so busy, but also doing so much good! Luvs cow is adorable. I have a close friend who collects "cows" and did a cow chime for her. The chimes were black with white spots or white with black spots...kind of like a Zebra...which is it? White with black stripes or.....? Anyway hope DH can be of some help with your schedule.

Nice finds at the TS and great prices. I like the Snowman!

Luvs.... the ceiling has stopped dripping, we just need to find someone who knows how to fix the problem without adding an "I think this will solve the problem" I don't like "I thinks"

I am glad that your DF is going home to OR. I am sure that you will miss her but I bet you find someone else to help before long, you just sound like that kind of person!

Punk....what a fantastic vacation and it sounds like you need a vacation from your vacation! I hope we can make the trip one day soon. I am a very light drinker and as I don't like to loose money I could do something else with, don't gamble much. But start talking about a home poker game and I'm in....so go figure! Glad you had a great time with the family.

I'm all done with my Christmas shopping. Did almost all of it in one stop, the bank, to get the green stuff for most everyone. Almost forgot to pick up some stocking stuffer's, I used to collect things all year long but slipped my memory this year..is that called Long Term Memory Loss? Anyway, picked up a few things for each and could have spent all day doing it...so many choices this year or maybe I just didn't see them before.

Thought I had all of my decorating done...but no, just keep finding place to put things and things to go somewhere. Even went out and got more garland, my book shelves looked really "blah! Think I should have used green but was going gold in the rest of the living room so gold it is. Maybe I will add some real cedar to tone it down a might. Need to start baking tomorrow, did I ever mention I really don't like to cook and baking scare's me more than anything, but what has to be done gets done....sometimes! And as I have 5 new cookie recipes, I need to get moving.....Ah! not moving yet! But soon!

My kitty has taken over the one living room window and we had to kitty proof the ornaments that hang in the window after he broke one of the balls. I put up a really cute plastic blue one and I now hope he doesn't break the window...DH say's "won't happen." But he is so much fun to watch, I hope he never grows out of the playful stage.

OK....going to clean the oven before I start baking (as if I use it enough to get it dirty) but was taught that you always start desert baking with a clean oven and I'm not going to disobey my GM now, anyway I have put it off long enough.

You all Take Care!

Belle

PS...thanks for reading the latest chapter in my book! lol

Belle, sounds like your kitties are so cute to watch.

Like you, I seem to think I need to find a place for every decoration! I just don't have enough surfaces for it all, and I keep collecting and making more! LOL

I always enjoy reading the "chapters of your book"--don't stop sharing. ;o)

A friend from the Holiday forum who lives on Long Island emailed this morning that they got dumped on with snow and have four foot drifts! Said they couldn't even get to their car yet--and no traffic allowed except for emergency vehicles!

As many problems as Calif. has right now--this is when I love living here! LOL

Luvs