Connies Words While on the Go!
When Sammy told me that he wanted a new Yamaha for Christmas, I thought he was talking about a new motorcycle or an ATV.
I can remember driving past a motorcycle store and seeing the word “Yamaha” prominently displayed on the building. I just about flipped my lid! I started telling him how dangerous motorcycles and ATVs can be, and he started laughing at me!
I was so surprised when he told me that he was talking about a new guitar! What a relief that was!
Many of my friends are very crafty and love to make homemade gifts to exchange over the holidays. My good friend Lindsay is especially talented with cake decorating. She made a cake shaped like a Christmas tree and then used sugar fondant in different colors to make the ribbons and ruffles that are the icing on this beautiful cake.
The funny thing is that she had just made a gorgeous Christmas tree skirt out of red and green fabric that looks like ruffles, and she used that as inspiration for this cake. The ruffles on the cake look just like the ruffles on her tree skirt made from real fabric. I wish she had taken a picture of the tree skirt so you could see how much they look alike. She is an amazing talent and I admire her homemade creations.
All of my friends adore chocolate. I’ve been letting my fingers do some shopping online and have seen some great gift ideas. I usually don’t eat sweets or much sugar at all, but every once in a while I get a craving for some chocolate. It’s a craving that usually strikes believe it or not, in the middle of the night. My mom is the same way. She keeps a chocolate bar in the drawer of her night stand and in the middle of the night, will break off a piece and eat it, then go back to bed. In fact, my oldest daughter is the same way. I think we get it from my mom!
Online I found some great gift packs to give my friends and family for Christmas. Usually my mom will always get a box of chocolate covered cherries from all of “us kids” (I have two brothers and three sisters), but she secretly gives most of them away, I found out. But we have been giving her boxes of them since we were young. It’s sort of a tradition. I like them, but only if they have the clear liquid in them, not the white kind.
My youngest daughter always asks for her stocking to be stuffed with chocolate. She loves the dark chocolate, so she’ll be set for sometime. I found a great sale on it and the chocolate mint is my favorite!
This morning I got into my truck and clicked on my favorite radio station, fully expecting my country music to surround me, since it was a country music kinda day, right? *deep sigh* Not to happen. Out of my speakers came not only Christmas music, but the one song I can not stand!!! Something about a kids mom making out with Santa. Okay…push buttons to find something not Christmas, since it’s not even that close to Thanksgiving and a few days ago, I was still taking off Halloween make up that sort of stained my neck. The only station I could find was the one my guys listen to and play with their band. Since I can’t understand the vocals of Death Metal, for all I know, the songs could have been Christmas themed also.
I really dislike retailers and such pushing Christmas on me if I just got over Halloween, and have yet to start my lists for Thanksgiving dinner. It is one of my peeves, I don’t like to be rushed to do anything.
I got out of the truck, went into the house and grabbed a CD off the music shelf. Can’t win for loosing, since I had grabbed Christmas with Harry Belafonte.
My daughter will be home from Florida tomorrow and I’m so excited to have her back! I told her to write her Christmas “wish list” while she was on the plane. It will maybe take her mind off the flight. Her brothers who are still living at home are still indecisive about what they would like, so I have a feeling I’ll be getting them a prepaid debit card, so they can just get what they want and I don’t have to go through the hassle of shopping for them. Except the stocking stuffers, of course. That is a biggy for me and I enjoy it!
This week I’m going to shop for my sisters, brothers and my favorite aunt that always celebrates with us. I’m pretty proud of myself that I’m not waiting until the last minute to shop, as I usually do. With my daughter coming home and all the other preparations that need to be done, maybe this year I’ll be able to relax on Christmas Eve!
I’ve been told the stores of course are already really packed, and I hate fighting crowds, but this year, I have lists! Can you all tell I’m trying to be somewhat organized? We’ll see how THIS goes!!!
Though my kids are either in their middle to late teens and two are adults now, each year as tradition, I “track Santa” for them. I’ve been doing this since they were old enough to talk and ask me to do this special thing. To this day, I still find a television station or a radio station that will tell where Santa is at each given hour. Now with internet, it’s much easier to do, if not for them to find a smile or memory in, but for me. My oldest daughter has taken the tradition over with her children, even though my grand kids are older also.
Right now, Santa is dropping off gifts to the people in a country I can’t begin to pronounce let alone spell. I know I’m more excited about this than the kids, but I’ve noticed them paying attention to where Santa is when I holler it out so they can hear me in their rooms. The house echos with, “That’s cool, Mom”, or a “He has a long way to go, Mom”, along with other acknowledgements, from various rooms. I’m loving having them all together for Christmas.
So, to your house from ours, we wish you a very Happy Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
With only four (actually less) days left to finish my shopping, as I look at my lists it seems rather hopeless. I wonder why I do this to myself. But I know it’s the procrastinating nature I have, yet I must say I do work well under pressure.
Each year, I make a vow that I am going to start my shopping at the beginning of the year and be all “together” by Christmas eve to enjoy the holiday. And each year, something comes up where the money is needed elsewhere. We don’t get my husband’s bonus pay until about a week before Christmas, which we depend on for gifts and the holiday trimmings. We’re fortunate to have this extra money.
As usual, this coming year I’m going to once again try and pick up the little gifts and also am planing on using my crafty ideas as gifts too. I would much rather have a gift someone made than one that is bought in a store, and it seems like as prices soar and money matters take a knocking, this is the way to go.
Anyone who can make a quick and easy salt dough and has cookie cutters can easily make these salt dough ornaments. I found this on photo on Facebook and was intrigued. The coloring of the ornaments is like a wash rather than a dense painting. I think the wash effect makes them look more old school and authentic. I suspect that if I glaze them with a matte glaze they would be OK hanging outside on a door wreath or yard tree, too.
My cake decorating tools would adapt well to making the designs on the cut outs. I think the next snow day we have I will mix up a batch of salt dough and give these a try. Its too late for this year’s tree, but I can make some every once in a while and build up a nice collection over this next year for my tree next Christmas.