Best/Worse/What did I learn today?Chat with friends new&old

I have the blue version of the birds Betty has... love 'em!

Beautiful Box of GOODIES Betty from your Santa warren's Katie and Susan !

Great gifts ladies !

Joyce I'd love to have you both come by ! We are right by the interstate and so have had several travelers !

This was our best day (yet had several SNAFU's) MIL had sent her hospital "Golden Opportunities" folks by so 14 from a club then another mystery gathering and we were quite swamped. The New Orleans folks were in to observe and help.

Grand Opening tomorrow... We are learning so much...

Hugs
Mary

Sending our best wishes for an wonderful Grand Opening Mary. Hope it is so great!!
Barb and Norm

A quick good morning.

Have appointment to get my hair done, and forget life for a couple hours I hope.

Lots of snow here with MUCH more on the way. I have read up in Dianne's area
there is over two feet!!! I hope she has power.

Will try and post more later, but I have hit a brick wall. Nothing particular, just
overwhelmed with kids and life....and snow!

Miss you all, but have been reading.

Debbie

Good SATURDAY Morning!!

Tadah, I am back and in a fabulous mood...In the Christmas Spirit!
Thursday, Dec. 12, was not only my Last day at the job, but also My Babygirl's 24th Birthday.
She and David came over for Steak dinner prepared by Dad. It was delicious...

Later in the evening, I happened to recall Dec. 12 was my official last day at McDougal too, thought it was kinda funny. Whew what a ride this last 5 months has been. Got to say, I did learn quite a few new tricks along the way, plus play with some pretty cools toys. I also learned, I will NEVER ever work retail again...
and Roll my eye balls, IF I ever make another freaking list, it will be because I'm so Bored i need to find something to do!

In the meantime, my entire life was, as was everyone I know, put on hold to work the crazy hours. So yesterday was just great, got my house back into some order, and worked on my Santa Warren Pressie, so please be a little patient Buddie! I can now concentrate on your pressie with all the Love you deserve..

A big Thank You to all I have been able to chat with live via ringle jingles, you have no idea how much i felt your love and support through all of the last 5 month, and of course all of you since we've come together here...I whole heartily apologize for not being able to be a part of this family, I have missed you all more than you know, but did try and at least "lurk' " when ever I got a minute. As usual, I laughed, cried and prayed as things happened.

Betty, what an incredible picture of Alex and Addie with Santa, oh yeah, tears streaming right over the ear to ear grin. What an incredible journey these to precious little Angels have been through and continue on...Still praying for them to continue growing healthy. May Jesus wrap his arms around them.

Wow, you sure have made some exquisite gift, lol as usual! You've outdone yourself once again! The Pointsetta stained glass pieces!! my eyes did a pop out at how gorgeous they came out. Oh my gosh and the Eagle wall hanging...heheh, you know i've got plenty of wall space should your Godson, not like it, which I'm am sure he will, just spectacular...Now in the last picture with the rag quilt on the table, what is that machine in the background to the right (of the pic)??

Oh and Just look at all the beautiful pressies you received from Katie and Susan, Great teamwork, ladies!
Is't it fun to to team up? I have a couple of times and found it to be a great way to get to know each other and just have fun..

Liz, woohoo girl, now i understand why you received such a big workshop kit! Beautiful gifts from your Santa Warren, Betty...Bet you just smiled big at all the pieces.

...And so I backtrack a few minutes here...Marilyn, you know I just love reading your posts, have enjoyed them since you started. I did not miss, How proud you are of Lorna! She has been through so much and Wow, making great strides at recovery, I am so very happy for you all, sounds like you both are great fighters for health...Oh and also, how fun and what a beautiful Mrs. Santa you are!! loved that photo, have you already played the part?

Where is Diane?? Waiving hi and keeping warm next to my fires. Always think of you. How are the pups??
I hope that you are doing well and feeling well too...wanted to answer your question...first lol thanks about my brother being handsome, ROFLOL, did you get aload of his hair? Hahaha, he got tired of waiting for his wife to cut it so he chopped it himself, said at least he could see now. But anyway, to answer your question about the fire wood, We have a great log splitter, We had a tree Service for a time and it was a great investment. It takes four of us to haul, split and pile our wood and generally we can get it done in a day. The wood stack you see in the picture is in the Harport...half empty, so Jake and buddy will reload sometime this weekend....And funny thing, our neighbors will often rent it on occasion. Everyone around here has a fire place, either indoor or out. Nothing like a rip roaring fire and so i hope you are staying cozy warm.

OH Mary!! Wishing you and Lance the Best for Grand Opening! Hope you got all the ironing out done...which you know will take time, so don't be so hard on yourselves. Also, wanted to say, i was so glad the misplaced money was found, I'm sure it lifted a good weight off your shoulders.

OK Got to run for a bit, DH keeps pacing the floors wanting to get on this computer!
So will bid a great day...and i'll get back shortly to finish up... Some people just never change, still have a ton to say!! hehehe, bet ya's just missed that about me! Love to all

Waving Debbie ~~~~~ Hang in girl!

Good luck today, Mary! Hope it's wonderful and smooth!

Love your gift box Betty. You must have been a really, really good girl this year! ^_^

The stained glass looks amazing, as always! How are you feeling, Betty?

Guess I'll put some ornaments on the tree today. Just can't seem to get with it!

Morning everyone! It is a cool 30 here this morning, cars and roof tops covered in frost. Supposed to warm up to 61 today.
Debbie, glad to see you pop in, as well as Judy!

Check this out. Betty did you know about this???

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FU79Uj2Fe70&feature=share

Afternoon everyone, can't believe it's afternoon
Been up since 5a.m. And working in Santa's workshop with Christmas tunes playing

Was just after 7:30 when young Rylee was up sitting with me asking a zillion questions as to what I was doing..wanted to help but told her we'd do projects later.

Before long Rita was up and Rylee decided to make a rag quilt for Missy and Riley. Lol

Before long Jordan joined in, became quite a chatty room.

They are making placematts for mom, on the floor they went to trace their foot then at the table to trace their hands..they will be as cute as can be..

I got the came done, mad at myself for not doing the sky in an orange brown but piece looks ok
Everyone gone to the chrismas party at the community center, I'm making lunch and sitting painting color magic in black on the came..it's almost like finger nail polish, takes a bit but finishes the piece

When the crew get back I will have the girls make glass fused tree ornaments for their mom and each a necklace pendant for their grandma so won't have time to play with me projects tonight

They are expected to be home by 5 or so

Best press send and check on lunch then be right back

Sean finished his snowman.... check the project thread!!!

I got a call from Dianne!!!

Her car is broke, and both computers are down!!!

She is fine, lots of snow and wind.....but possible wires down....so no connection.

Boys are fine also.

She received her Santa Warren Present from Mary......and is thrilled with it all.

Said one of the boys smelled the treats in it....and wouldn't leave box alone!! LOL

She hopes to be back soon. She sounds well!!! So happy to hear from her.

Debbie

Hokey doodle so much going on in here :-)
Betty .. your Santa Warren gifts are totally awesome !! ENJOY .. good job Katie and Susan ^_^
Nice to see you posting Judy .. we are in the never ever world of WOOD CONSUMPTION right now due to the extreme cold! .. DS came out today and over to the place that sells wood, they're ALL OUT .. there's several othe places to go to though.
We have lots stacked, but when you sit at temps of -31F ALL day for days on end, well, the wood pile goes down quickly!
Thanks for your remarks re Lorna, have had more than one person say I should right either a book or a short story for a magazine about the whole ordeal, don't know if I have it in me, but, you never know ...
She has dealt with just such a huge loss, and, lived to prove LIFE after the loss of a limb is VERY doable !!

Debbie, hope the hairdo is all you need to give you a lift ..

Mary .. rootie toot tootin for ya from up north ..

Katie, nice to hear your coming along .. I was up at 6:30am with DH this morning and off to the Country Market at 7:15am .. my hip felt GREAT !!!!
After a couple of hours of walking it was kinda cranky, but, that's to be expected.

Made fudge today, sad to say, it's gonna be icing .. won't set for me ..
Sugar cookies turned out A OK though ^_^

Barb, I'll check the project thread re the snowman ..

Best be shufflin on here

HUGS to everyone

~M~

And I thought it was cold at -19c, think I shall play in my neck of the woods.

Storming lke crazy here, squalls are happening..Lordy almost as much snow now as we had last winter..Andrew has been here to plow every day since a week ago Friday.

Doesn't bother me when I'm laying down covered up looking outside

Rita and the girls aren't home yet, won't leave much time for crafting..hope weather ok to bring them home tomorrow and have their family Xmas together. They will all be disappointed if that happens.

Debbie, thanks for the update on Dianne, thought it might be the weather causing her problems..she has the generator so at least she will not be n the dark..anxious to see what was in her Santa Warren box.

Ending you hugs Debbie, know Christmas is difficult for you as well..how is the new do?

LindaKay, enjoy the heat. Lol. Bet you are out in shorts

Mary, you will unwind somewhat once open house is behind you, you will be pro's by the time the new year is here.... So far is it better than you anticipated?

Got to call Kyle..18 today..bought him a gas card..am sure with all this snow he will be out snowmobiling and will need the gas card

Mary,

I really like the new do. She cut about 5 inches off the back and put highlights in.

We are freezing here....same temps as you Betty with wind chill. Have about 8 inches
snow already.

My heart is struggling so this season. And looks we will have yet another resident.
Shannons BF Andy....has a hernia....and needs surgery ASAP. Has no family close
and no way to get back and forth. SO, DH and I said he should be here...so someone
to watch over him. Not sure when...but within next couple days.
Maybe will help me to care for someone else.

Talked to Shane last night, taught him how to make meatloaf over the phone and
chatted about work. That helped some also.

Dianne did say she lost power for three days...but all was well. Weather report is horrible up
that way on our news. This storm isn't supposed to stop HERE til 11:00 tomorrow morning.

Happy Birthday to Kyle!!!

Debbie

Is indeed terrible Debbie, was housebound Wedn/Thurs/Fri..today and likely tomorrow
do I dare pray for a snowday on Monday lol

You've such a kind heart Debbie, as you say it will do you good having someone to fuss over..you are always at your best when you do that.

Nice that you can gab with Shane, do you have Skype? You are making a cook out of that boy.

Santa's workshop is busy..

making deer xmas placemats using their hands and foot, they just cut Christmas design out of fibreglass foam and have their ornaments in the kiln..will have to stay up until it reaches 1600F

got the black edging painted on the Georgian Bay window hanging..I rushed through it as you can imagine doing it in 1 day..lots of wide gaps, Doug won't mind and I won't tell lol
used all my scraps..should really have added yellow/orange/red mix behind the tree line..oh well that's what you get when it's a scrap project

placemats being made using hands/foot to create a deer

glass ornaments in the kiln..they cut out their own design in fibreglass sheeting..let's hope they turn out..won't see till morning

Did any of you hear about the Christmas Angel in the Villages ??? It was at my store!!
Sooooo coooool. This guy came in to get a few bikes for toys for tots... he was at the lay a way counter asking a question. When this girl comes up to next register and says she has to cancel her lay a way. Every one could tell she was upset... he said to the cashier...no no.. use this to pay it !!! Handing the cashier his credit card..

To make a long story...short.

The guy ended up spending just under thirty thousand dollars!! Making payments on a mess of layaways. Paying off others.

Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus !!! He is a Wonderful Angel. Who helped a bunch of families in a little spot of Florida !!

Christmas pressies are looking great. Mine is on its way. Hey buddy call me
when you get it !! I am working 8-5 ..mon & tues off..then 8-5 untill Christmas. ..

Hugs to Y'All

omg isn't that wonderful Thunder..I believe there are earthly angels and this proves it.

Holy Cow Thunder. That so did my heart good to read that. How wonderful for all those people!!! Thank you Lord for this mans generosity.

Yup yup...Angels among us :)

Santa's workshop is closing, much to the dismay of the little ones
most was done them sewing

Betty this is for you !! http://sourcefed.com/elvis-back-hes-sixteen-canadian/

Thunder where do you work? My neighbor said she heard that story on the news today.

This message was edited Dec 14, 2013 10:40 PM

Hello To All ;
HUGS !
Barb and Norm Thank you for the well wishes ! Debbie ! Glad to know Dianne is okay... was getting worried. and The Boys :o)
So Glad Andy will have you and family to help him. Hubs had a double Hernia the "worst year of our life 2004"
Agree with Betty... good to have you all to help him ... Hope the snow doesn't cause any more difficulties for you all
Judy I think this will be a lifetime of "ironing out" LOL... glad you are able to take a hiatus from retail... I am learning how difficult it can be and you can't please everyone....
HUGS Joyce, Marilyn Etc... for the well wishes....on our Grand Opening
Betty I think Things will wind down as we get employee's who can open and close the shop without Lance there... This could happen soon.... I hope. He is exhausted. The opening is going as well as I had hoped. There is no way to tell if we will make any money as I have had no time to work on "costs" and our labor costs are most likely very high since we all are training. I expect it will take time to get settled and to actually begin making money on this venture but I sure do appreciate all your thoughts and prayers and they are surely working.

Dianne....part of the problem with me getting pics of your Santa Warren pressies was that once I walked in the door with the packages....
I had a certain family member (*cough* BELLE) being VERY EXCITED and whimpering and whining uncontrollably... it so upset me that I packed everything up fast as I could and placed in my car thinking I'd unpack it once I got to the post office....which never happened....

I had plenty of packing material as you can imagine with all the pkgs we are receiving for the "shop" but none of this fooled little Belle... and she was inconsolable... plus the poor child has been seriously neglected with Hubs working 7a-10p every day and I'm surprised we haven't been reported for abuse. LOL

Thunder what a wonderful story... there are Angels among us !

Our Grand Opening was perfect. The business was steady. I even had some time to visit with several friends that came by. We had a mandolin player who was excellent and set quite a nice mood.... and a caricature artist/face painter that all enjoyed.

Oddly enough.... we grossed more today than yesterday when we were crazy busy. Everyone came in at a good pace. THANK YOU all for your thoughts and prayers they are working and I appreciate you all ...

LOVE
Mary

Congratulations Mary and Lance!!!!! How wonderful your post is to read of how successful your grand opening was and how it is continuing. Hope sales continue to grow and that the help is perfect.

Good morning ^_^
Temps are UP, may have to trade in the Mrs Santa outfit for a fur lined 'bee kee nee' LoL, NOT!!
The wind is UP so, even with a temp of -1F, I tend to think it's likely closer to -10F
Poor Dianne, hope she's making out alright, and, i SO hope the ticks are not bothering her anymore !

Debbie, who better to look after someone who needs a hand, I sure hope he comes through the surgery OK, but, he's young and vital ..

LOVE the 'feet n hands' Reindeer .. those young ones are so sweet, ornaments look pretty as does your stained glass piece Betty.

Cat had ME up at 6:30am! Gonna be a long day ..

Mary, awesome news re the opening!!!

Best get a cuppa, once people get mobile i have a special brkfst I want to fix, a recipe from FBook with the eggs done in muffin pans in the oven .. hope it turns out !

TOOdlEs

~M~

PS, we have SNOW ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Woke up this morning to several inches of the white stuff. It is all soft and fluffy so not too hard to clean up..... Norm is going out soon to clean off the cars. No work yet from my daughter as to how they fared up in the hills. I'm not sure if she is coming to get Sean or if Norm will be taking him home.
We really enjoyed having Sean here this weekend. He can be so very funny and silly and I think Papa and I needed a bit of that. He brought one of those inflatable mattresses with him and it worked out good. We are thinking we should get one to keep here. I'm sure I can find a corner to store it in.....
Breakfast here was egg and cheese on an English muffin. Tasted good!!! Your breakfast sounds good "M".
Off to do my breathing machine (nebulizer). Have a great day all.....

Barb, those blow-up mattresses are very handy to have around. Worst thing people do with them is to blow them up all the way. Makes them toooooo firm.have the sleepee test and let out a bit of air until comfy. They take up very little storage space. We even have one with a memory foam top. Our greats favorite part was helping Bumpa let the air out by rolling around on it.

WOW .. talk about nice n easy and tasty, not unlike yours Barb.

Whatcha do is get a muffin pan, mine was a 6 hole one .. spray WELL with Pam
Into each hole you place a slice of ham, like a slice of luncheon meat, I used a half and lined the muffin hole, then you add some diced tomato, a tsp (I used canned), then some shredded cheddar cheese ( I think you could use any type but sliced), then, you crack an egg into the lined muffin cups and bake for 18-20 minutes at 350. Salt and pepper or Mrs Dash before cooking.
NOW, when I brought them out I was kind of bewildered as to how to get them out!
So, I ran a knife around each one and loosened them up, surprisingly, they weren't even slightly stuck ! After that I got a small spatula and coaxed the eggs out onto toast .. only 2 of the 6 flipped over, but, were done enough that they could be uprighted .. we all dug in, and, YUM!!! This is a KEEPER .. will be used Christmas morning for sure !!

Off to the gym ...


~M~

Morning all

-22c I think they said, know the windows are frosty and it's snowing..we've as much snow as last year and it's only Dec.15th..got to say Greg and the boys are thrilled, snowmobiling AND ski'ing..

Won't attempt to travel to the city due to the weather, will call Sharon and talk with Jim and mom.

still considering getting my act together and delivering gifts then be back early and settle in, pressure off so now will be my 'enjoy the Christmas season' time..do you believe that?

Barb just know Sean enjoys his time with you both as much as you enjoy his.
bought a self inflate/deflate air mattress a few years ago, remember when I was on the mission of buying a pop up tent trailer and going to travel/travel..well, got the trailer but it hasn't move more than a few feet..another one of my bright ideas lol

Sure was nice getting the update from Judy and Mary..

Mary, know you and Lance are both stressed out but sure that once the Christmas season is over you'll be able to find more time for relaxation..how's witchypoo, is she on your back knowing the shop is now open? How's your FIL

"M" think you ought to find some woollies, dress in layers..cold even for you is it not.

Rita is just getting ready to take the girls to their family Christmas party..they are wired for sound, so much excitement going on..they will leave at 10 and Rita won't be back till tomorrow night barring any storm

slumped Christmas ornaments -can you see the design they cut now into the glass

wrapping gifts for mom chatting just how pleased she will be

and there in a box was a reversible apron that I had but one tie strap to put on..now to remember who I gave the identical one to last year so I don't give the same..lol
likely Mel was making aprons so I wouldn't have given her one, but will give her this one.

Fabric and pattern was purchased when I was in Frankenmuth meeting up with Judy/Karen/LindaKay and Joyce..nice when you work with something that was bought from a gathering..all those memories come back

so that was Santa's workshop this weekend

any photo's to share

best I go curl my hair, have breakfast and decide what I will do

need a plan

sounds delicious "M"
Suzanne has the greatest Christmas morning breakfast, done the day before and you just warm it up Christmas morning..

now I am hungry

last photo of the little ones..

Rylee made a blanket for the kitties

now Riley the kitty isn't the friendliest of my kitties but her she us all tucked under enjoying the gift made for her and Missy

Looks like you have been busy in the workshop this week end Betty. How cute they asked for a sewing machine!

I am exhausted just reading all the thing everyone has done. So many crafts and goodies being made. I spent the day celebrating my oldest GDs 11th birthday...where does the time go?
We did make Christmas ornaments and stenciled canvas tote bags. Of course the youngest wanted to keep the one Grandma did....silly child.

Mary, sounds like things are going well inspite of the stress and busy hours. I, too, am wishing you all the success in the world......some place I would like to come some day.

Judy, Judy, Judy...so good you are a lady of leisure (really now) again. Sending you a huge armwrap from down south.

Yike, Dianne must really have been hit with a storm. Glad you spoke with her Debbie as I was wondering why she hadn't been on line.

Waving to all the others......mind a wee bit slow today.

Betty, when I picked up my sewing machine the other day I noticed a smaller machine on display. It is a Bernina made for the beginning sewer and was $159.00 (US). I sure wish I had seen it before I purchased the one I did for Abbigail. Really nice little machine and very sturdy. Still might be tempted to think about getting one a little later for the girls.

Well off to help Kim make cupcakes (I do quality control) for the faculty party tomorrow. She was hoping to take something other than dessert but when the principal ask you to make the desserts, what do you do? Oh well, I take it as a compliment for her. Guess all the Wilton classes have done something.

Mary and Lance, so glad to hear the opening went well. You have been in my thoughts a lot as it is a difficult undertaking. I, tooo, am wondering how "witchy" is doing with this.

Yesterday I found a site called kulikulibar.com. Can't remember how I got there but it was interesting, founded by a former Peace Corps volunteer. Their bars are made from moringa and they also use fruit from the baobob tree. These are both plants which might grow here so I checked them out here on DG. No seed sources listed so i went to my old reliable seed source jlhudson.net and, sure enough, they had both the varieties mentioned. Thinking this might be useful information to the bar people I wrote to them. AND got a nice response, thanking me for the information, saying they have had inquiries about seed sources and also telling me that they, too, found the catalog interesting reading.

I love the internet.

Sunny day here. Temp in the 60's.

hugs, katie

Hi everyone! Typing one handad here lol!
Debbie thank you for letting everyone know what is going on!!!

Mailynne & everyone else who doesnt know my past, I am the world known clutz. These are my 7th & 8th broken bones, all arms, & the 5th time this elbow has been dislocated. It only dislocates partially and I never leave it dislocated, I popped it back in place about 20 seconds after I hit the ground. I was doing all these relaxation exercises so it would pop back in while sitting in the middle of the road, I'm sure that was an odd sight! LOL!

When I dislocated it in June all I did was lean on a wall with my hand and it popped out, and no broken bones that time.

We could get to the hospital on Sunday afternoon, the roads were still iced over so it was a slippery drive but I had never felt pain like that before so we had to go. I havent seen the xrays yet but I cracked the ulna just below the elbow bone where I smacked the ground, and the radial head also has a hairline fracture where it connects to the joint. They said that everything is 100% aligned and all I need is immobilization. I'm wrapped in the worst made splint I have ever been in and on Wed I go to the bone doc.

All my Christmas shopping will be done online, which is what I was thinking about doing anyway as I have to ship everything. I have an office job so doing it isn't too bad. I wont be working for Hobby Lobby for a long time, but oh well.

I'm going to quit going on and catch up with the posts!

This message was edited Dec 15, 2013 4:00 PM

What I learned today .. not ALL bakers are meant to make fudge, I am one of them .. so, I know have 2 containers of very sweet chocolate icing .. I froze it (won't freeze) and will undoubtedly use it in the coming months ..

Crissy, you will have an 'owie' for a long time .. I would imagine you'll eventually have a cast put on, or a splint?
Feel bad for ya .. horrible to have something like that happen ..

Did the gym thing, actually had fun today .. wasn't as many folks there and Lorna lost 2 pounds so she is in heaven !!
Went to Tims for coffee then home to play in the snow (Lorna) I stayed in .. wuss .. !!

Supper is on the go .. spiral ham, sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts, AND a few perogies.

Off I go

~M~

Marilynne I already have a splint. The visit to the bone doc will likely be another xray to check healing and a cast. Bone fractures take 6 weeks to heal, I'm on the 2nd week.

I don't like making fudge at all, takes too much stirring and mine always comes out gritty. Now that dinner sounds delicious! I'll be there tomorrow for leftovers!

Hey Crissy, so sorry to hear about your arm! Sending prayers for a speedy recovery.

"M", whats wrong with your fudge? My first batch, i realized I added too much Bailey's and it came out really soft, so the next one, I measured twice, and made sure I followed the instructions.

Thinking of you this morning Crissy and hoping the healing goes with no problems. Sure wish I were there to lend a hand when needed.

Sean went home yesterday afternoon and it is sooo quiet here now. He really did a good job on his snowman - Betty's craft this year. I traced his face for him but he basically did the rest.

We got about 10-12 inches of powder snow here yesterday and it looked so pretty until the plows came by!!!

LindaK, not sure what happened with the fudge, everything was measured properly, and I fillowed the directions to the letter .. when I Googled 'fudge making', I did notice talk of using thermometers for proper temps etc Like I said, it's soft, but, I can use it down the road as icing on something ^_^

Good luck with the whole healing process Crissy, I am sure your day to day life has had some major changes.

Dinner was yummy, loads of leftovers, so come on over !!

DH and I are heading out in a bit to finish up the Christmas shopping (yeah right) LoL
Roads here are VERY slippery, with accidents happening everywhere :-(

Take care everyone

Toodles

~M~