Farewell 2010...

Goodbye to a year that has been so happy and so sad.  I have made new friends (thanks guys) and said farewell to loved family members.  I have begun doing things I love for myself, and not just for others.  We have made life changing decisions, to stay in the UK, but to move to 'the country' for a better life for the whole family.  My babies have grown into fully-fledged little people, and have made me more proud than I ever imagined.  If I made any resolutions this time last year, they were forgotten a long time ago!  My wonderful husband has been there the whole way, and makes the possibilities of 2011 all the more exciting.

I hope 2010 has been kind to you all, and that 2011 will bring you all love, fun and adventures.

New toys...

Today I treated myself to a well-earned upgrade to my poor old camera in the Sales, (we popped to Curry's for a tumble-dryer vent hose, and well, came out with a Samsung ST61!).

To test it out, what better way than to show you my best Christmas presents!

Super-duper Father Christmas read my blog, and even got Emily Peacock to send me a personal note!

I did get loads of other wonderful things, and my dad gave us each a stained-glass leaf; I will definitely photograph them to show you once they have been given pride of place in the new conservatory.

This time next week we will still be surrounded by boxes, but in the NEW HOUSE!!!

I cannot believe that tomorrow is New Year's Eve - 2010 was pretty good, and a real turning point for us, but I cannot wait for 2011!

Family Fun...

This is what it's all about!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!  

Hurray, it really is Christmas now; so postings may be few and far-between over the next week or so whilst we eat, drink, travel about and be merry. 

I hope Santa brings you all you wished for, and you all have a relaxing and {insert 'vice of choice'} filled/fueled time!

... I think I spy a tin of Quality Street with my name on!  Mmmmm Christmas!  xxx

All wrapped up...

I spent about 4 hours cleaning and moving the packing boxes around today, so that the house now resembles more of a home that the backside of Tesco!  I managed to cram in a couple of Christmas movies with the kids, and then once they were tucked up in bed, I got wrapping!

I didn't take any pictures of the finished piles, as to be honest, I don't want any photographic evidence of just how spoilt our kids are going to be!

But I did nip out to late-night Boots to get purses and lip balm for the girls, mid-wrap, as today's insistence that all they wanted from Santa was a 'Make-up bag'(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), and 'why?' I asked...'For our make up' (obviously!!!!!).  So how could I ignore that!

I also succumbed to a copy of Cross Stitch Card Shop magazine, with a free Snowman kit.  Oh when will I learn!?

Proud Mummy...

I couldn't get this to upload before, but indulge me!

I'm making a list, checking it twice...

...except mine revolves around the most non-festive things!

Today though, I ticked off the next two biggest 'items' on my list, after 'sell house' and 'buy house'!:

• get confirmation of son's school place for January; and
• complete girls' online school applications for September.

This house move is 50% about getting the kiddies into a lovely school, all together.  So today that part of the dream was pretty much fulfilled, (OK, we have to wait until 1st April for the girls' places to be confirmed, but that should only be a formality - remind me in March when I start getting the jitters!).

PS.  I have all but given up on that little cross-stitch, it was just looking ugly!  But with all my lovely things now packed, I can see me trawling the magazine racks for more 'freebies' to keep me going on a small scale!

Boxing Day!

Well today was very busy; trips to the solicitors, the post office, the tip and supermarket in rain, snow and sleet, and then back home to more packing.

So, it had to happen eventually...

See you soon my lovely books!

Sunday sorted...

A lot of the long lost artifacts from the garage have been unearthed today; repackaged, dumped or stacked for new homes; we are reducing the cardboard mountain, slowly but surely!

This afternoon we all sat and watched The Nativity!  Not quite in the league of Love Actually but a surprisingly good British feel-good movie to get us in the festive spirit.

Now I have a box of Chocolate Fingers and The Apprentice Final - happy days!

OK, enough now!

Woke up, got up and went straight to the supermarket at 8am, in a bit of a literal haze as the snow fell from the sky, again! 

I even bought a small turkey joint just in case we aren't able to get the real Christmas lunch sorted.  I know it was a bit of a panic buy, but for the first time ever, I am worried that Mum & Dad might not make it down for Christmas day, and as we are splitting the food and preparation between us, I at least, am buying much of the bits Mum is meant to be bringing, just in case! 

So thanks for the thought of a White Christmas, but no thanks.  7th January, it can snow as much as it likes, but until then, please stop! 

Oh but the trip out did mean I ended up buying the latest making.

It comes with a free cute 'KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON making' A5 cutting mat, I should take heed!

Happy Happy Happy!!!!!!!!!!

We are moving on 6th January 2011!!!

We have just exchanged...  I am so happy I am literally telling the world!

So now off to my work's Christmas lunch with a smile on my face :)

I'm on my Christmas holiday!

I have finished work for 2010!! 

Not that I can rest for a second, and the waiting continues; but 5 hours of 'interference' per day can now be spent doing worthwhile things!

...and so to bed!

I'm loving angels instead...

Stressful day, agony prolonged, but these little angels took the edge off!

Time now for a little stitchery; the freebie card I got with The World of Cross Stitching, but I am fearing as 'cross' is my over-riding emotion at present, it might not end up looking like the pattern!

Writer's cramp...

Well I took the bull by the horns and got most of the Christmas cards written; another tick against my To Do list.

The majority are for the children's friends, and the rest will need change of address cards added too - and hopefully we will be able to be send those without fear of jumping the gun after 'tomorrow', but for now, I am totally on tenterhooks!

Roll on tomorrow, if nothing else, it's the girls' Nativity, the work Secret Santa, and myself and fellow Managers are putting on a buffet for the team, (this involves us stumping up money and sending others off to the shops and kitchen to prepare it - my kind of meal!!), so lots to take my mind off the move...

May my luck keep on going - or at least rub off!

Before I head to bed, a great chance to win a fun Punctuation layer cake over at Simply Solids.  Check out Mandy's blog, online shop and the techno places like Facebook and Twitter - she is fab!  Good luck everyone xx

Starstruck!!

Today it was dear son's Nativity - he was one of the Narrators, and he was brilliant!  He looked a little nervous, but got his lines out, perfectly, and as we had front row seats, it was all very special - we are very proud parents!

"Woops-a-daisy never let the snowflakes melt on the ground.  She always took them back to Heaven.  One day, Woops-a-Daisy was very excited!"  Words I will never forget!

I also received a cryptic email about a door sign today, then I remembered that I had added my two-penneth to the blog that got me into blogging!

If you have never heard of Chez Larsson, then you have been missing out!  I think Benita has the house I dream of, clean, white, simple, stylish, one lovely tidy helpful son, and she makes gorgeous things for her home, and even has a lovely stash of fabric that she is planning to quilt with!  (I wouldn't really swap what I have though!).

I have been following her since way before I thought about doing this myself, she was in The Times 50 Best Blogs last year, and she gets thousands of hits a day, and is basically wonderful (is that too grateful!!?).

Anyway, she had a giveaway for a traditional porcelain enamel door sign, so I had to enter didn't I!  Lo and behold, under my alter-alter-ego/pre-FB 'Hxx', she picked me, look!!!

I don't know what I am more thrilled about - winning, or being name-checked on Chez Larsson!

May the rest of the week be this brilliant!

..and here's another one!

I managed to sit and stitch my Grandma's little 'foot' quilt at my parent's today.  This, in between birthday presents, cake, mayhem and general madness that a trip to Kent usually entails.

So that's the third all finished, and can be taken pre-Christmas to my dear old Grandma.

Anyone know anything about restrictive covenant indemnity?

It's Christmaaaaaaaaaaaas!

Today was spent clearing, cleaning, enduring the supermarket dash and doing 'Christmas'!

I have popped up the pop-up tree, and it really looks quite fun; I have also decorated (mostly with chocolate!) a 3' pink tree for the girls, and a green, Buzz Lightyear-inspired tree for dear son.  They have battery lights, which I know will be left on, run down, and followed by tears within a few days, but hey!  I have put them in the sleeping-one's rooms already, so they will find them when they wake.

I need to crack on with the border of my Grandma's mini quilt; I think I will be taking it to my parent's tomorrow and trying to get it finished, or is that too cheeky on my father's birthday?

Two down...and probably just one to go...this year!

I have resigned myself to not getting my own Christmas table quilts finished in time for the big day, but you never know!

I have just completed the one destined for my mum - I will give it to her on Sunday so she can have it out in the run up to Christmas.  Otherwise, if I wait until the day, which they will be spending with us, it'll be a little late in the season and she won't get to gaze upon it in awe and wonderment for as long as I'd like!

TFI Friday!

Old bags!

I forgot to mention that yesterday I received my pattern from Prints to Polka Dots of the cutest Melly & Me 'Handbag Addiction' pincushion and needle case. 

It looks quite complicated to my tired mind at the moment, so I won't even consider tackling it until we are moved and settled.

Until then, I have to deal with my own handbag addiction!

Little Angels!

I had a pang of performance anxiety this afternoon, so I got the girls to try on their angel outfits again, with the wings and everything - and lo, they looked lovely! 

We can now confidently take their outfits into nursery tomorrow, in preparation for next Wednesday's Nativity.  Ding dong merrily on high...

Keep calm...

I need to take my own advice!

I have only just sat down; having come home from work at 1pm and basically moving the contents of half the loft into the lounge and then getting in a panic as we couldn't actually move.  Another huge pile for the charity shop and the skip now at maximum capacity, means we must be making a dent! 

Anyway, in need of inspiration I stumbled upon this fab Etsy shop, and I think I need all of the posters, and to obey at least one or two of them!

Happy Monday!

Despite the frost, a long morning at work and the piles of 'things to do' that I have to do, coming home today was really lovely.

I had two parcels, one I had been eagerly awaiting, the other, a complete and utter surprise!

My winnings from Fat Quarterly arrived - some always fantastic Echino fat eighths - thank you Brioni.

The surprise, all the way from Australia, some completely cute gifts for the small folk from wonderful Helen, aka Aunty Henny.  Absolutely beautiful ballerina bags for the girls, and a brilliant backpack for dear son, already full of marbles, lego and 'my things' apparently! 

What a superb surprise - everyone is completely thrilled and I am totally in awe of Helen's skill.  Thank you Helen, you are the best, even though you are in lovely sunny, warm and totally enviable Australia!

Oh, and just to prove that the skip isn't just for show...

Tonight, there's Kirtsie & Phil on TV, and I am going to get on with some sewing.  A very happy Monday to you all!

Super Sunday...

We got so much done today!

The skip is almost full - I will prove it with a picture tomorrow - we have cleared the shed leaving only the things we actually knew were in there and are needed...

...I did some Christmas/Birthday shopping, (blind panic and my father's birthday next weekend meant that I really did need to go to the shops), so I paid Arundel a timely visit, Sparks Yard is my saviour...

...and I bought a Christmas tree, the opposite of everything I love about Christmas trees - it is artificial, it is white, it is pre-lit and pre-decorated, BUT comes in a little box, pops up, and will mean we can have a christmassy home after all, amongst the packing and mayhem!

Our plan is to have another week of mad culling, sorting and carnage, and then try to relax and 'have Christmas' starting next weekend! 

I also have to get two more table quilts finished this week, no pressure then!

It's the weekend...

Here is the completed table quilt destined for a summer Christmas in NZ; lucky quilt!

It rained in the night and the snow has all but disappeared - hurrah!  So bring on the skip!!

One down, 4 to go!

I have just finished my sister and brother-in-law's Christmas table quilt - I'll take a couple more pictures in daylight to show you tomorrow. 

So now I better get myself sorted and make up a parcel for them - I'm sure we've missed the last posting date to New Zealand, but the snow has scuppered many plans!

It was another 'snow day' today, so I just ventured round the block with children in tow, picked up a few essentials, tinned macaroni cheese, pink doughnuts, washing up liquid and soup, and spent a lot of time snuggled in front of the TV watching old 'Sarah Jane Adventures'! 

It's now raining, so hopefully tomorrow we will crank up the sorting with the arrival of a skip!

A lot more snow!

It snowed all night, so school was closed, nursery was open but I was not venturing out at 7.30am for anything!  Dear husband walked to work, and I did some more sorting, before having a bit of fun in the garden.

... and this evening I even got a bit more of the Christmas quilts finished; tomorrow I should be able to get all the binding cut, joined and pressed.

Best of all, we had our boiler serviced - I rang to see if the guy wanted to cancel as it was so awful for driving and he said 'no, he'd make it', and he did!  So the central heating has been given a clean bill of health right at the perfect time, phew!

Snow!

It snowed last night, it kept snowing all day, it is still snowing.

It is so cold, I normally love playing in the garden with the kids, making snowmen and having an excuse to throw stuff at them, but today I stayed behind closed doors after school - they didn't last long.

So we have now reached sorting gridlock; we need to shift more to the tip for re-cycling and there are huge piles for the charity shop, but it is all in the hall, lounge, every spare inch of floor space and we can't take it anywhere.  So no quilting for me either, as I can't even get in my little room to retrieve my bits and pieces.

This weather is not my friend!