Not long to go now.

Keep your eye's & ears open for Santa Claus now!!!

Merry Christmas to One and All

I would like to send best wishes to you & yours for a safe & joyous Christmas season.

Also a big thank you to all those out there in Blogland for visiting & for all of the lovely comments throughout 2008 - it's great to have friends living in my computer.

I look forward to making lots of new friends in 2009.

Smith Family's Toy & Book Appeal

The company that I am currently on assignment at are supporting the Smith Family's Toy & Book Appeal by helping to organise the collections of gifts and books from staff members. The Smith Family rely on the generosity of Australians so that children can be included in the spirit of the season. In 2007 they delivered more than 17,000 Toy & Book Christmas packs to children around Australia. This year they are aiming to deliver 20,000 Christmas packs to disadvantaged Aussie kids.

We have a christmas tree in the foyer and as you can see there are already many pressies under the tree. I decided this year to contribute as it is a wonderful cause and every child deserves to receive a present at Christmas time, no matter how big or small. I purchased two books. One for a girl & another for a boy.

I would encourage all Australians to donate a gift to one of the many organisations who have a gift tree in their local shopping centre. The Kmart Wishing Tree supports The Smith Family in NSW, VIC & QLD.

2008 Christmas Stocking Swap

I am a very lucky girl. Last week, I know I'm a bit late in posting, I received my parcel from Aunt Pitty Pat for the Christmas Stocking swap. Here are the gifts received still all wrapped up. Now I'm not known for my patience, so of course I had to open them. I just couldn't wait until Christmas day.

I received some lovely items. The stocking is so cute. The chocolates didn't last long. And one can never have enough fabric, thread & other notions. A practical red & white tea towel, which will be great as my existing ones are looking a bit worse for wear. Thank you Marcel, I love everything that you sent, but where did you hide the buttons!! LOL. You should be receiving my parcel very soon, that is if it hasn't already arrived. Can you do me a favour and take a pic of the parcel when it arrives, before you open it. I forgot to take one before I posted it & I did something special with it.

The Winner is......

Last night at the weekly stitch'n'bitch night we checked the naughty comments made for the plum pudding ornament. I had chosen the one I thought was the best and as one of the other ladies in the trio had made a comment, I asked the third member which comment she thought was the naughtiest. She chose the same one which I had chosen.

So.......drum rollllll...............

The winner is Lindi. So Lindi if you could please contact me with your postal address I'll arrange to forward a plum pudding ornament, so that you can put on your tree for this year.

Thankyou to everybody who visited my blog and left a comment.

This is for all my blogging buddies.

The Cuckoo

On Sunday my Friday night stitch'n'bitch friends (Nita & Pamela) and our DH's got together for a Christmas celebration luncheon at The Cuckoo Restaurant which is located at Olinda in The Dandenong Ranges just outside of Melbourne.
It has a wonderful atmosphere so if you are ever driving around in The Dandenongs be sure to pop in for a smorgasbord luncheon, afternoon tea or dinner. The building itself is done up to look like a Bavarian Chalet.However, I would caution the driver not to order the 1 litre tankard of beer. One of the DH's ordered one & it was massive. Now I would've taken a photo of this, however I forgot to take my camera didn't I. But the other girls did & if you go to Pamela's blog she may have put up some of the pics from the luncheon.

They would also have to have the biggest cuckoo clock ever hanging in the restaurant. But, I don't remember hearing any cuckoo's going off on the hour. I don't think I had that much to drink that I didn't hear them. Perhaps they had over indulged on beer and were sleeping it off.

But as you can see from the pics, there is heaps of scrumptious food, which I did happen to over indulge on. I didn't like everything, but there was enough variety that one could still have a good chow down. We all had a very enjoyable afternoon.

What Christmas Carol are You?

Your Christmas Carol Is

Gee, if I could only Have my two front teeth, Then I could wish you "Merry Christmas." At Christmas, you are a happy soul who's easy to please. You're biggest concern is making those around you smile.

Santa's Younger Brother!

It's almost that time of the year again girls, don't ya just love Christmas.

Meet Jared - Santa's younger brother...he takes care of the naughty girls.

Hmmmmm....So, I wonder who is going to be the first crafter to be naughty????

Leave me a comment of how naughty you would be prepared to be to be disciplined by Jared (within reason of course...no XXX please) & I'll send one of my plum pudding ornaments to the person I vote the naughtiest. (I will pick the winner on Friday 12 Nov 08 after 7pm)

Happy for you to put a link on your blog if you wish.

Santa Must be a Woman

The Truth, as We All Know . . . . . . .

I think Santa Claus is a woman....I hate to be the one to defy a sacred myth, but I believe he's a she. Think about it. Christmas is a big, organized, warm, fuzzy, nurturing social deal, and I have a tough time believing a guy could possibly pull it all off!

For starters, the vast majority of men don't even think about selecting gifts until Christmas Eve. Once at the shops, they always seem surprised to find only socket wrench sets and mood rings left on the shelves. On this count alone, I'm convinced Santa is a woman.
Surely, if he were a man, everyone in the universe would wake up Christmas morning to find a rotating musical Chia Pet under the tree, still in the bag.

Another problem for a he-Santa would be getting there. First of all, there would be no reindeer because they would all be dead, gutted and strapped to the rear bumper of the sleigh amid wide-eyed, desperate claims that buck season had been extended. Blitzen's rack would already be on the way to the taxidermist.

Even if the male Santa DID have reindeer, he'd still have transportation problems because he would inevitably get lost up there in the snow and clouds and then refuse to stop and ask for directions.

Other reasons why Santa can't possibly be a man:

• Men can't pack a bag.
• Men would rather be dead than caught wearing red velvet.
• Men would feel their masculinity is threatened...having to be seen with all those elves.
• Men don't answer their mail.
• Men would refuse to allow their physique to be described even in jest as anything remotely resembling a "bowlful of jelly."
• Men aren't interested in stockings unless somebody's wearing them.
• Having to do the Ho Ho Ho thing would seriously inhibit their ability to pick up women.
• Finally, being responsible for Christmas would require a commitment.

I can buy the fact that other mythical holiday characters are men.........

• Father Time shows up once a year unshaven and looking ominous - definite guy.
• Cupid flies around carrying weapons.
• Uncle Sam is a politician who likes to point fingers.

Any one of these individuals could pass the testosterone screening test.

But not St. Nick. Not a chance.

Camera battery found

Yippeee!! I finally found the battery charger for the camera and the batteries are now charged and pictures taken. Moral of this is to unpack all items from bag after a trip away before putting bag away.
Below are some of the sewing related items which I have been working on the last few months and have actually completed.





Left: disappearing 9 patch with vintage chenille borders









Below: Maria quilt challenge finally completed. Read more about this subject in previous post....click here





Left: first batch of mini plum puddings

Left: they look good enough to eat don't you think!!

Above, left & below: Puzzle balls. They also rattle...great for babies. These were actually quite fun to make.

Above, left & below: Now I don't particularly like mice, but I do luv these cute little fabric mice. Fun to make and I luv these Moda fabrics. I've got some more in the making but this time with more bright retro fabrics.