The Simple Woman's Daybook

Sara is going to think I am copying her because every time I see a Simple Woman's Daybook post by her, I do one too. Well, actually I am copying Sara. Her posts inspire me.
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For today - Monday, December 14, 2009
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Outside my window - the sun is shining but I can't really see it because I'm in a classroom with the blinds closed. It's another very cold day in Alberta!
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I am thinking - I should be doing some marking while the kids are working quietly, but I marked for an hour and a half already today and I need a little break. I am also thinking about how Edmonton was the coldest city in North America and the second coldest place in the world on Saturday (beat out by a town in Siberia).
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I am thankful for - Christmas vacation, which will start in 4 1/2 days.
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From the learning rooms - my knitting skills are improving. I'm really enjoying this "new" hobby, but my sewing is suffering because I haven't spent anytime with Bernice lately.
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From the kitchen - the OnlyChild has been baking lately ~ cookies, butter tarts ~ I'm having a hard time resisting temptation. But she's not baking for me... she has a little crush.
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I am wearing - a black skirt, a rust-coloured blouse, a black sweater, pantyhose (yes, really) and black heels.
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I am creating - still working on the Swanky quilt for the OnlyChild's best friend. I was trying to do some quilting on the weekend but I kept making mistakes (I think my needle was dull) so I put it away and finished my second Seed Scarf.
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I am going - to Costco after work today with Mr. P. Why am I looking forward to this?
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I am reading - The Creativity Book by Eric Maisel.
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I am hoping - to get most of my marking done before the Christmas break starts so I will only have essays to correct over the holiday.
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I am hearing - very little. My grade 12 class is working industriously, which is more than I can say for myself.
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Around the house - Christmas decorations are up but shopping still needs to be finished. I was hoping to make more gifts this year but ran out of time. I won't beat myself up about this; I have been extremely busy.
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One of my favourite things - is the vacation time I get as a teacher. We work hard for it, though.
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A few plans for the rest of the week - marking, marking, marking. And I'm hoping to do a bit more quilting on Swanky. I would also like to make a seed scarf for my neighbour because she admired mine yesterday. She likely won't get it for Christmas though.
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A picture thought I am sharing -

My sweet puppies. I wish I could be home with them, snuggled on the couch under a quilt!

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Have a wonderful Monday. Stay warm wherever you are.

Brrrrrr

Today's weather (9:26 am):

That's -36.4 F.

Tell me again why I live here...

Snowman-a-Palooza

Some years ago, my mother sent me a snowman for my birthday (which is in January). For some reason, that set off a storm of snowmen and I continued to receive them as gifts as well as to make/buy them myself. I now have well over a hundred snowmen (and snowladies, I guess), all of which make their way onto every flat surface in the house during the Christmas season.

My friend, Kim, gave me this pattern a couple of weeks before Christmas last year. I had it made within a week. I had to adjust the pattern a bit because I wanted it to fit into this window frame, which came from our Prince Edward Island house. This hangs above the fireplace in our living room.

I picked this little cutie up from the fabric store, of all places, at 50% off after Christmas a few years ago. I have it sitting in the window of the stairwell so the light shines through the coloured glass. When the sun is shining, it's quite pretty.

These snow couple wall hangings were actually 'prototypes' for the Snowman in the Woods quilt I keep saying I'm going to make (I have it cut out but still not sewn).

Before I knew anything about quilting, I made this primitive snowman wall hanging. The pieces are just fused on the background because the fusing was so stiff that I couldn't applique them down. Really, I didn't know better.

One of my students gave me this lamp about 8 or 9 years ago. I have it sitting on the baker's rack in the kitchen.

My mum gave me this cute little tray for Christmas one year.

Another 50% off special after Christmas. I think his little face is so cute. He is sitting, with many of his snow friends, on one of the bookshelves in the dining room.

This is a tealight holder, but I never put a candle in it. Another one from Mum, and another cute little face.

I wish my camera took better photos. I'd like to have blurred out the background a bit so you could focus on the snowman. I wanted the OnlyChild to take the pictures for me because her camera is much fancier (and she knows how to use it), but after two weeks of asking, I just gave up and did it myself... as usual.

This is our Prince Edward Island snowman. He is made out of wood from the Island and wears a scarf from PEI tartan. His heart is formed from red PEI clay.
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There are, of course, lots more to show you, but little time for me to take more photos and write more today. Such a busy weekend!

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Yesterday I skipped out of work a little early (it's okay - the kids are done at 12:50 on Fridays) to attend a practice for the dance show in which I'm performing on Saturday. Then I came home and did my marking - yes, on a Friday night. What fun! I missed my staff party because I just feel so tired and needed the time to get other things done. But that's okay - with that crowd, it's just drinking and eating and silliness.

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Tonight is Mr. P's work Christmas party; it's much more formal than my staff party would have been. I'm quite looking forward to this, mainly because I have a pretty new dress to wear. Nothing like a pretty new dress to make you feel like partying. It was an early Christmas present from Mr. P and the OnlyChild.

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Tomorrow... dress rehearsal for the dance show, then the show itself in the evening. More marking in between. And my neighbours are having a get-together in the afternoon so we should make an appearance.

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FIVE more school days until the Christmas break. I can hardly wait!

Christmas Tree

Mr. P and the OnlyChild bought us a Christmas tree last night... finally!

They set it up and put the strings of lights on it. Then, while we were at work/school today...



I wish...

As much as I was hoping to farm out... I mean, share... the decorating task this year, I ended up doing it tonight, with a little help (ahem) from Mr. P.

There's still a box of ornaments for the OnlyChild to put on the tree. I've made her one every year since she was born. They're all cross-stitched, except for two: one year we made salt-dough ornaments and painted them and the year I got Bernice I made her a mini log-cabin quilt ornament.

Pictures soon. I must vacuum first and learn how to use the OnlyChild's very nice camera. Mine takes lousy pictures in dark-ish rooms... and everything's dark-ish lately.

Christmas is coming together at our house. And only 8 more school days until VACATION!

November ATC Swap

I was finishing off my Artist Trading Cards for the December swap, when I realized that I hadn't even posted about November's cards. So let's go back to November for a few minutes, shall we?

Here are the wonderful cards I received from my swap buddies. I have found a way to display them so I can enjoy them all month. I just attached them with tiny little clothes pins to a brown ribbon tacked to the wall above my sewing machine. I love to look at the cards while I'm sewing (or, lately, marking).

From left to right the cards are from Jill, Deb, Cheryl, Stacy and Cory. There's such a wide range of interpretation of the theme every month. It's neat to see what everyone creates!

And here are the cards I created for the group. As you will notice, I strayed off the beaten path this time and did something a bit different.

I found vintage family pictures on the internet and injected a touch of humour to my interpretation of the theme "Family".

I added some fancy letters, typed words...

Colourful paper...

Silly accessories...

And even did a bit of "hand-tinting" with my pencil crayons.

It was a lot of fun!

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My December cards are almost ready to go... I just have to let them dry.

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Yep, dry. You'll see...
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Oh, the weather outside is frightful

Photo from The Edmonton Journal

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We're in the middle of a snow storm here! Our first big dump of the white stuff this winter and everything's a mess. It took me nearly an hour to get home from work yesterday afternoon, usually a 10-minute drive. There are no distinct lanes on the city streets, big snow drifts in the middle of the road, and ice under the snow. It's horrendous.

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We have snow here five or six months of the year; you'd think people would have learned how to drive in it. But no... some of them aren't very courteous, either. I think I'll stay inside for the rest of the weekend. I've got enough to do to keep me busy (marking, marking marking - will it ever end?), so no need to venture out.

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I'm feeling very Christmassy, though. Mr. P and the OnlyChild are going to pick up our tree tonight (I hope) and decorate it tomorrow. I think I might just hand over the tree-trimming reins to them this year (gasp! how can I do that?) and adopt a laissez-faire attitude. What damage can they possibly do...?

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Okay, I can always "fix" things later.

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Pictures of our Snowman-a-palooza, tree, snow storm, etc. soon. Promise. I asked the OnlyChild to take photos of the decorations a week ago. Still hasn't happened, so I'll just have to do it myself.

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I hope you're warm and cosy inside!

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Let it snow...

So beautiful...

Isn't this little quilt just breathtaking? I think it's so beautiful... so beautiful, in fact, that I am keeping my fingers crossed to win it.

Geta is giving this little quilt away. I don't know how she can part with it; honestly, if I were this talented, I'd be hoarding all my creations and would never part with one.

But Geta is exceptionally generous and you can also have a chance to win this if you visit her at Geta's Quilting Studio. But hurry - the giveaway ends on December 6!