Christmas - Dec 23rd - 25th

Dec 23rd

Okay my Christmas cards were sent electronically this year and phone calls made. I'm on the last of my laundry and dishes just about too! In between I've been pressing and cutting 2.5" strips of hopefully appropriate bindings for Quilt Canada donations! Decided enough, time for a holiday dressed break! Thank you Cindy and Angela for the cookies!!! Feet up with Jets recording on!

Dec 24th

A lovely Christmas Eve visiting family and friends delivering cards and picking up a present from Pat. Then stopped at Poke Mono for tomorrow's lunch, Oakwood's frozen borscht and strawberry rhubarb tarts for another day besides a borscht serving for my supper and Ukrainian perishke to join my supper from Michelle! 

Still pretty clean after driving around. 

All was delicious, then opened my presents that I kept for tonight! Thank you all!!! 🎄💞  

So knitted booties, stitched landscape and a mug from Sylvia, Chamois car wash GC and gas money from Edna and from Pat the sign (need a special place for it) and her lovely embroidered and quilted ornament! Thank you everyone!!! 💞💞💞

Dec 25th ☃️🎄🥂

Late breakfast with coffee in my new mug along with more gifted cookies!!!

I really thought I was getting my asked for knitted green booties for Christmas but she fooled me. When Sylvia was getting ready for teaching her landscape art class for ACQ I picked out a kit that I wanted to buy and make my own landscape. She said she'd keep it for me. HA HA!!! Instead she finished it off beautifully as a gift for me. I tried to get the colour right but still not quite, it has some teal green in the blue but I can't capture it - it's in between these two!!!

Now relaxing watching Christmas movies with some of Cindy's gifted wine!  🥰

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Dec 23rd

I love chickadees especially on my frosty walks with my friends too!

☃️🎄🎶🥰🎉

Catchup - Dec 19th-22nd

Dec 19th

Can you believe it, I double booked my Wednesday and totally messed up my massage appointment. So rescheduled for Jan 2nd - UGGGGH!!!! Then someone else messed up and I landed up taking her appointment yesterday - AWESOME!!! 

Then over to Sylvia's for some online fun and puzzle setting! That one was so dang easy, finished maybe in 2 hours. The pieces were like 1.5 inches, a sinch to do!

Dec 20th

Today up early to Urban Garage to get my new tires on! 

All done!!!

WOW!!! Nice ride and at stop lights only ONCE did the skidding light come on instead of nearly each icy corner. In the new year it'll be the back brakes and hopefully that's it for major maintenance for awhile. I totally love the service here!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Pat!!! 🎉🎂💞

After my tires got replaced, I picked up Edna and headed to Joey's on Kenaston to lunch with Pat, Randy, his Mom Edith, Byran, Sylvia and us last to arrive! LLovely lunch and visit but GOSH DARN it was NOISY!!!

And DANG Amanda showed me to select Portraits and that way blurry the background! DUH!!! I forgot to!!!

Dec 21st

I'm again on a tatted dragonfly mission. Basically using Riet's Dragonfly pattern with some of my adaptations. Top left unknown thread, the rest I used blues Parlak Oren Bayan Dantel Ipigi 50, blues/mauve 185 Lizbeth 20, dark greens 167 Lizbeth 20 and botton right greens/brown 179 Lizbeth 20.

So I gifted my car a Christmas present!!! Yeppers since it was warmer I took it to Chamois for a thorough cleaning, in and out, then off to Winnipeg Square heated parkadefor another wipe down, doors open heater and fan full blast for a half hour at least. It's so pretty again!!!

Then back home for another crazy quilted postcard and more tatting embellishments for it, probably finished tomorrow.

Dec 22nd

I did lots of shopping there and remember those slight bumps in the warehouse floors especially!

I've completed the embellishments on my PFA swap postcard. For the embroidery I used gifted Rajmahal Art Silk threads (very slippery), Lizbeth #124 size 20 for my tatting and dismantled a bracelet for the hummingbird charm. 

Now to pick up my fixed laptop today, prep n print off my back and try finish it for mail off in the New Year!!!

After picking up my now working laptop and visiting Angela (was gifted a tray of her cookies - Yummy), I finally set up Angie's gifted tree which does not have lights attached - I'm drained! 

Next year I'll put the tree on a chair, wind lights on, then up onto the table! I'm relaxing now. Figured if I'm home I should put the tree up with a small amount of her decorations and mine that are out and around all year! I should have put my crocheted angel on top, next time. Maybe I'll put them away this year?

Catchup. - Dec 15th-19th

Dec 15th

So charming!!!

Early afternoon I ran some errands that kinda backfired before settled, then headed out to Sanford for a visit with Cindy and Janice! Cindy shocked me with these awesome pickled asparagus (from Costco) appies! Yummy!!!

Dempsters smaller wraps

Plain cream cheese spread slightly thicker like peanut butter on toast

Honey ham thinly sliced from Sobeys

Pickled asparagus from Costco

Then wrap, set in fridge and cut to 1" pieces before serving

Experiment with roast beef n horseradish or other cheeses.

Then a walk around her area checking out the Clubhouse and lights enjoying the lovely winter snowfall before our yummy supper!

And here are some of Janice's pictures.

After some scrumptious Italian desserts via Janice and vinetarte from me - we were stuffed.  I headed back to Winnipeg before the snow got heavier, safe and sound!!!

Dec 16th

So today was for Sylvia finding a new retreat sewing machine, but first yummy lunch at The Red Top. Talk about beautiful window art there!

Well after driving across the city to Sew Embroidery Warehouse only to find out they did not have floor models of the two machines she wanted to "test drive" and would not open stock boxes either. Basically we have to wait till approval for floor models is received then we can drop in again. Watch the sale will be over by then and they won't honour it!!! 🤔

We checked some online and she'll wait and see!

I did some shopping then stopped at Urban Garage and bit the bullet and ordered new tires, these were 6 years old in August!!!

Dec 17th

Today Aida and I went for a lovely walk through the CN Station to the Forks for a cinnamon bun and coffee, checked out the shops upstairs (spotted this crafted tree) before heading home again.

Then picked up Edna at Polo Park after her shopping before taking her elsewhere to get another present and again an apple fritter and coffee before driving her home. And me home to put my feet up!!!

Oooohhhhh this is catching the sun beautifully today!!! Thank you Jan!

Dec 19th

Awesome idea for these beauties!

Catchup - Dec 13th-14th

Dec 13th

Nifty!!!

I'm glad I was not in Winnipeg till 1973! One huge blizzard was enough for me!

Dec 14th

Today was ACQs Christmas potluck party (awesome decorations and fabulous foods) and a lovely time with friends. 

Even a fun time with the pincushion pick n steal game alongwith a hilarious spool snatch game (needle minders prizes were made by Barb F) followed with a group picture!!! 

My choice was A Pincushion to Tat pattern by Marion T. Leyds found in Pieceworks, March/April 2015. 

The pincushion I finally ended up with was made by Jackie J. 

Thank you for this unique pincushion - that I'll not being sticking pins into!!! It was very popular and stolen a few times!

Dec 4th-8th

Dec 4th

It's vinetarte making day at Sylvia's!  

Lunch was at the Red Top for Greek gyros and shared fries!  

We are done!!!

What a lovely day with the girls and after it rests a week or so we'll have some vinetarte to enjoy! Funny, Edna said she didn't know why we only do this for Christmas, why not throughout the year, then we wouldn't forget the process! Funny girl!!!

When driving home the sundogs encircled the sun that I had to pull over into the bus stop on Abinojii Mikanah (formerly Bishop Grandin and I don't know it yet had to look it up) at 3:55pm. Then later again off McGillvary on Loudoun Rd at 4:17 pm. They were lots stronger earlier but no place to pull over for an uninterrupted view!!!

Afterwards I did some minor home repairs for Edna before heading home and cooking a pork tenderloin, my first time!!! Hope it turns out!

Ohhhh I did it! Aaaaannnnddddd so tender and scrumptious sandwiches!!!!! I'm so glad I tried this!

Dec 5th

Yesterday sundogs and today a yellowy/pink sunrise! WOW!!! It sure changes fast!!!

Today was Astro's first school winter concert, A Celebration of Music, at Darwin School, Kindergarten through to Grades 5 & 6. I was totally amazed at all the different types of instruments the school had for students to play and their choices too!!! Totally awesome! AND my heartfelt gratitude to the Music teacher here and other schools that have the patience and talent to engage all ages of students to participate! Sorry no pics as others around Astro!

Afterwards I took Sylvia to Mook's as she needed more black fabric for her landscapes and since I had the 15% off total purchase coupon we got extra too! Then to the Collection Outlet Mall for some Oriental soup, yes I had a craving to try something different. So tried the Udon shrimp soup from Kimchi. It was yummy, even ate the tofu, but half went home with us for supper. I added some of my pork tenderloin and stir fry veggies and had another huge serving! YUMMY!!!

Dec 7th

I'm tired and finished sewing for today! See I've been working for over a month now on 3 sets of Lori's Fat Quarter Place Mat Tutorial from her Night Owl Quilting & Dye Works website (Sylvia and I both cut the FQs 14x20 inches). These are all for the ACQ program for Meals on Wheels. I'd finished 4 similar and 2 of Jackie's kits earlier and those were already handed in.

Tomorrow will be a sewing day at Sylvia's when both of us will try and catch up on the ACQ BOM step two, hopefully before the next step is sent out!!! 😘

And these were the fabric gift card holders I made yesterday too. They had to set before using. I think I'll still press the folds too.

Had a lovely day sewing and lunch at Southdale Family Village Restaurant, introducing Sylvia to quesadillas. She said she'd try them again!   Her new entrance!

Well Sylvia finished off step 2 of her ACQ BOM quilt, but I only sewed together the individual braided flying geese. I was getting sore so packed up, picked up some groceries and straight home. I've decided to correct my step 1 mistake while watching hockey.

Dec 8th

Well here are the four finished braided flying geese blocks I started yesterday. Step two of the ACQ BOM for this year.

Okay I've finished redoing step one of the ACQ BOM that I accidentally sewed up wrong. I removed the second round of orange/gold HSTs and replaced them with the dark blue/green sashing fabrics. YEAH I know, it's checkered and does not sew up so great, but I do like them. 

The first layout set - the current layout set.

The first set of blocks layout.

The current set of blocks layout.

Will see what happens with the steps around them on whether it stays or I look for a tone on tone no print in that colour!