My Halls Are Decked!

My house is decorated for Christmas. I do not have the same "Bah-Humbug" attitude I had last year, but I am not entirely into this season! I spend much of my time pulling this little one out of the Christmas tree! Dozens of times a day she is in there!She is certain I put the tree there for her enjoyment! Finally I just left her in there this afternoon, and eventually she came out! Remember how I could not figure out WHO took those pics of the kitties? Well, um, it was me. I was reminded by one of the kids. Thank goodness I did not accuse someone of fibbing! I really thought one of them had...I am not naming names!
My mother in love is having open heart surgery tomorrow to replace a valve. She is such a sweet lady and a huge blessing to our family. Please say a prayer for a fast and full recovery and for the actual surgery (in the morning). It has been crazy-busy here this week. Charlotte got braces on her upper teeth this morning. She gets the lower ones on January 4th. She also got her hair cut a couple of weeks ago....just below the shoulders....and layers added. Her straight hair is now FULL of curls! It was the strangest thing! I need to get a pic for you all...the back is all ringlets of curls! I thought the girl had used a curling iron, but no...it is all natural. She NEVER had curls before. Weird.
I have been writing on my food/weight loss blog (in fact I wrote this entire blog post, pictures included, over there before I realized I was on the wrong blog!). If you want to read it, you can click on the fruit tree on my sidebar and it will take you there. Lots of changes in my diet and I am down 24 pounds since August 2nd when I joined WW. Anyway, I thought it best to separate these subjects....of course this blog is a hodge podge of everything in my life.

I won a giveaway at Debi's blog! What a great giveaway to win!!!! 30 fat quarters!

I plan to make a quilt for Emerson's birthday in September. TJ has his Sailboat quilt here and Em needs a special quilt for at Grandma's house too!

Debi also sent pillowcases for the kdis. She does this for them every winter, and she sent them in the Spring, Summer, and Fall one year, so they have all the seasons. They love getting their holiday pillowcases every year! Debi is so loving to my kids!

She also made me 2 Infinity Scarves! I am HOOKED!!!!I either have to learn to make these, or commission her to make more for me. My mother wants some too! They are such a classy accessory. I wear lots of solid colored long sleeved tops, so they are perfect for making something plain look more stylish! Thank you Debi!!!
Well that is about it for now. I am looking forward to a quieter weekend. No grandkids til the 19th and then I get to see them all week! I am thinking I will get some sewing done. Tomorrow is filled with housework and laundry, so I will deserve the time to play. See you soon!

Happy Birthday Sassy!!!

Sassafras turned 2 today! She didn't seem to notice or care much, except for the extra goodies that came her way this afternoon. Treats usually wait til bedtime, but she got a noon treat today! Of course, Cammy had to have some too, and she deserved it. She got her kitty shots this morning and did so good.

Look who came to spend the night with Grandma!!!!I am so thrilled to see them. We just finished a game of Yahtzee...Emerson was on my team...and Zachary beat us all!

How was your Thanksgiving? Mine was busy, but good. We had the newest member of the family here....Mamie LOVED the trip to "Sissy's house"!I am still recovering today. It was hectic, but it would not be Thanksgiving if my feet did not throb when I crawled into bed that night!

Charlotte had a "finish" last week. She had been given some beautiful yarn by a sweet neighbor, so Charlotte made a cover up afghan for her. It turned out beautiful and I am sure our neighbor and friend is warm in the evenings while she curls up with a book.Remember the black spot in the pics in the last post? It moved.....Now it is in the RIGHT hand corner. ???? It has to be something on there, but I tried to clean it. Oh well...we'll see where it moves to next. While loading my pics I came across these.....I didn't take them, and each kid says they didn't take them.I can't imagine Sweetheart taking them....someone is forgetting...HmmmmCammy gained a full pound, going from 1.2 pounds to 2.2 pounds in 4 weeks! She has grown so fast! Well that is all the news here. I am going to spend the evening hand quilting (and snuggling with Grandbabies) while watching SpongeBob!

Best Friends

Isn't that a sweet sight? My girls are buds! They are even napping together!
My camera got dropped so there is now a "spot" in the lower left hand corner. I think the lens got broken :( We can ignore that, right? These kitties are so darn cute! Cammy can get up on those chairs all by herself now, so she shares Sassy's favorite napping spot in the afternoon!
Last week I cleaned my sewing room, so I spent some time down there yesterday. The room is actually quite cozy. Other than my sewing table, it looks more like an actual family room. I used the afghan Charlotte made to cover the worn couch cushions.Most of the time, I prefer to spend my time in the studio alone, but once in a while a little company is fine too.What prompted my trip to the studio? My dear friend, Winona, sent me 2 books for my birthday. HA! My Sassafras loves quilting so much she will even lay on a quilting book!!!!Both are filled with wonderful projects and I was inspired by the Log Cabin quilts in both books....see that book mark? Winona made that for me! It is GORGEOUS!So, inspired by these Log Cabins, I decided it was time to start the one I have been planning for 15 years! I got all the centers cut....I went with red for love and warmth...and got the first section sewn on all 100 blocks.All blocks are pressed and the next sections are cut and waiting to be sewn on....next weekend, or maybe Friday. I was also able to get the next 2 block backgrounds done for Henrietta Whiskers. Blocks 3.........and 4....The applique pieces are all cut for block 3 and ready to stitch during the evening hours.
The rest of this week will be very busy preparing for Thanksgiving Day. I will shop tomorrow and Wednesday will be filled with cleaning and cooking. I am sure I won't make it back here until after the holiday, so I will take this opportunity to wish you the happiest of Thanksgivings!!! May the Spirit of Thanksgiving rest on your hearts as you reflect on all the blessings our Heavenly Father has poured out on us!

Blessings~ Bren

The Prize

When I was a little girl, our centerpiece on the kitchen table was often a pig, much like the one in the picture above. It was made from a bleach bottle and it was the "prize". My mother belonged to a weight loss group named "Tops"...I am not sure what that stands for, but it is still around today. Her, or her best friend, Jeanna, would usually end up with the pig. The pig was given to the member who GAINED the most weight that week. Poor Mom and Jeanna. They were not at all successful in their Tops venture, but they sure had a lot of fun! I think they always went out to eat after their meetings! Well, now Mom and I are in Weight Watchers, and, though we DO go out to lunch after our meeting, we eat healthy, point friendly foods! I got a prize last weigh in....my 10% key chain. (meaning I have lost 10% of my body weight...if I tell you how much, you could easily figure out my weight and then I would have to hurt you!) It was a goal I have had since I started on August 2nd, and I reached it...not as fast as I thought, but I did it! The powers that be at WW tell me I am doing just what they want...losing steady and slow. I am averaging 1.5 pounds a week. My next goal is only 2 pounds away....a charm to put on that key chain! It is all down hill from there!

I got a prized package in the mail yesterday....what a surprise that was! Copperswife made these beautiful knitted dish cloths for me and the gorgeous fall kitchen towel! It hangs on my oven door with everyone being informed NOT to use it...it is too pretty!Thank you, Cher!

I did a little deep cleaning in my make up/skin care bins. Gosh, how do we collect so much "stuff" we never use? I put all my skin care and make up that I use everyday and found a cup with my name on it, that I never use, and put my pencils, mascara and brushes in there...some hair spray even fit there. It all looks so much nicer and there is nothing there I don't use. The prize here was I found a $55.00 set of day and night serums that I forgot I had! They are not that old, but I had misplaced them somehow!

I saw this stitched on a pillow recently....

"Put some lipstick on!! Everything will be just fine!"

Somehow, I doubt that is true, but it sure can make you feel better! LOL
Now an update on those prized kitties! Sassy is TOTALLY warmed up to Cammy. They play together, sleep together, and eat together.

Well not so much eat together, cause Sassy is a hog!Cammy can not eat dry food yet, so she gets soft food several times a day. Sassy thinks she needs it too, so I give her a "little" bit outside of her full can of Fancy Feast in the mornings. Still I need to use 2 bowls. Cammy looks like she is getting a bit of chub herself from the back view LOL! She gets her kitty shots next week, on Sassy's birthday, the day after Thanksgiving.
Sassy has become a kitten again! She is so playful again and they love to play hide and seek in the box!Cammy wears out and needs a nap in the comfort of someones arms....there are always a pair ready to oblige her!So that is all the prize news here at my home! See you again soon...are you all excited that Thanksgiving is just next week?! I am!!!!

Some Favorite Things

My most favorite "things" are my girls.
I thought I would share a few more of my favorite things! The very first snow fall of the year was GREAT! This was yesterday and I knew Alesha would want to see this!My favorite quilting item is my hoop....Sweetheart made this for me. I LOVE it!
My new favorite treat is Red mango! Only 2 WW points per 1/2 cup. It is wonderful!Dried Rose Hips in the winter....LOVE these!
(ignore the date on that pic...it was way off!)


My new coffee cup from my Mom...Whippers!!!! (or slippers to most) LOVE these for the winter. A new pair each year makes the season fresh! These are fur lined! (thanks Mom!)
My WW cookbook (a gift from my Aunt) and my WW pedometer are favorites!
So recently I had a mishap with my hair. I FRIED it and had to get it all cut off. It is "okay", but the favorite part of this is the products I had to get.
My favorite hair products are Matrix Biolage. I LOVE the smell and what it does to my hair, but they are pricey. I splurged at Ulta and bought some of the Biolage volumizing shampoo and conditioner. Oh, I had forgotten how much I love these! I picked up some Kenra hair spray and am not as thrilled....next time I will try something different.

So those are a few of my favorite things....not all, because let's face it, it does not take much to thrill me LOL

Here is some happy news! Meet Mamie!!!! She is a 3-4 year old Yorkiepoo. Is she darling or what? She is very little...only 6 pounds. If you remember, it was not long ago that my mom and dad lost their beloved Ike.....get it??? Ike and Mamie.....Uh huh! Mom and Dad go pick her up from her foster home on Saturday morning. She was rescued from a kill shelter as they felt she was just too sweet to put down. She is completely housebroken and ready to be loved. Her temperament is loving and docile. She is a lap dog and LOVES to be carried around. The PERFECT dog for my dad! I am so excited for them....my mom is beside herself with excitement!

Ok...more later! I am off to do some hand quilting for the evening.