Sick - mas

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and Santa was good to you all.
Unfortunately our Christmas was full of sickness and germs and most of the last few days have been spent like this. Not many Christmas pics this year!



Today we all felt a bit better so decided to get out of the house for some fresh air. We went a couple of miles down the road to a park which used to be an open cast mine.. It's not my favourite park as it's a bit to open for my liking but its still quite pretty with some nice views.
Plenty of ducks, geese and swans to feed too









We liked the stone snowman and his woolly hat





It was nice just to get outside for a short while.

Now speaking of outside , if you'd like to win an amazing piece of quilting with flowers just pop across here or if rockets are more your thing than go here.. Kellie is having not one but two giveaways and if you don't win these gorgeous pillows they are also available as downloadable patterns.. What are you waiting for --- go on click a link , you might be lucky.

Sheep In The Road..

Thursday was Milos carol service, all the children did really well remembering song words. Baby G didn;t do so good and threw up all over me half way through!!! Thanks to my mam and dad though I still managed to see most of the service.



It looks like most people are signing off now for the Christmas period, I couldn't go without showing you where we went today.
We wanted to go somewhere away from hoards of shoppers so we headed off to the country. These places are only about an hour or so from where we live.

Hamsterley Forest





and Frosterley. We bought some fish and chips here then sat in the car on the moors to eat them. We made some new friends too.



Milo thought it was really funny that the sheep just wandered around everywhere including on the road.

So on that note I'm going to wish everyone out there in Blogland a very Merry Christmas and hope that Santa is good to you all.
And a very Merry Christmas from these two also ( G isn't really being strangled but it was best pic of the two of them I could get.



Take care
Lisa x

So Why Don't I ?

Small tree with toys and Hubs childhood tinsel in the kitchen



Black tree with copper baubles in the playroom



Traditional in the sitting room ( so hard to get decent tree pics)



Gorgeous poinsettia - gift from Hub



Some of the books read so far



A few of the films watched so far



Lovely, cosy warm fire ( hidden behind fireguard )



Santa says only 10 days left



So why don't I feel Christmassy?

Deep Breaths MaryAnne.............

A little while ago I signed up to a Christmas Swap hosted by Jo from French Knots, after I'd done it I had shivers thinking oh my - what have I done!! This was my first swap where I had to actually make something and what appeared to make it worse was that my partner didn't have a Blog so it was quite hard to try and do something not having a clue as to what she actually liked - although we did swap some quite lengthy e-mails.
MaryAnne ( my partner) recieved my swap first ( which I forgot to take a pic of altogether ) and then a few days later I recieved mine. Now at this point I know that MaryAnne is going to be nervous , she has been waiting for this post with trepidation ..

When I opened it the first thing out were these gorgeous crackers , there are actually 4 of them



beautifully wrapped, there is even the strip that makes the crack noise inside along with what sounds like more goodies. These have been put on the tree awaiting our Christmas Eve carpet picnic.

Next were these 2 little felt bags



You can guess who these are for..... Inside the bags were these little guys



How cute are they and beautifully stitched. MaryAnne did say that they weren't quite age appropriate for Baby G and I could maybe cut the bell off --- erm I don't think so. They will be placed higher on the tree until he is age appropriate.

Next out of the package were these amazing figures, to gauge the size baby Jesus is in half a walnut shell and I just could not get a decent picture of him no matter how hard I tried .. but believe me he is tiny and is in a little cape just like Mary and Joseph and just look at the little donkey. MaryAnne tells me that the nativity idea is a Waldorf one. Two of her children are starting at Waldorf school next year.



I've just realised that I haven't taken a photo of the chocolate biscuits that she sent... that is probably because I have hid them on the top shelf of the cupboard as Hub was trying to pinch them. They are called TimTams and will stay on the top shelf until Christmas - fingers crossed.

Last but not least is this little lady, a Waldorf doll. Her dress is a pale pink needlecord and her hat is a pale blue chenille - least I think its called chenille and she is so soft. Can you believe this is the first one that MaryAnne has ever made?



Just look at her gorgeous face and curly hair - so sweet. I have called her MaryAnne after her maker. Mary also happens to be my mams middle name and mine is Anne so a good choice I think.



I feel quite honoured to have a Waldorf doll made especially for me. I'm never very good with words but I do so really appreciate what you have made for me and my family - thank you so much MaryAnne

Now you lot reading my Blog...... should MaryAnne be nervous about having me show all her goodies on my Blog - No and secondly all those who think she should start her own Blog say AYE.

And on my crafting front I've made these wristwarmers , guess what everyone is getting for Christmas.

Oh The Weather Outside Is Frightful..

Brrr is it freezing where you live because it sure is bloomin cold here, but you know what ... I like it. I like the crunching of the ice beneath my feet and the numbing of my nose and the coming through the front door into warmth and mugs of hot chocolate. Hub was commenting on the fact that we don't normally get this type of weather until January so fingers crossed we might even get a white Christmas -- oh I do hope so.
This is what we have woken up to for the past few days.





Everything white and frozen, it's a pity not many people feed the ducks in the winter as this is when they need it most. It's a good job this lot can ice skate!



We are well under way with our Christmas countdown, the advent calenders are up and Milo is having a Christmas story every night before bed. There really are some great stories out there. I think I get as much a kick out of reading them as he does .Do you have a favourite story?

I have been busy with presents too and can now cross three off my list. Firstly is this little hooded cardigan for my nephew, I started this back in October but have only just got around to finishing it because I found it a bit boring. This is to go with Charlie the blue and green elephant I made a while back.



Then we have wristwarmers to go with the cowl for the MIL.... this has to be the easiest pattern in the world. It only took me about 40 minutes to knit the pair so I can see a lot more of these getting done .



You'll have to excuse the photo, it is so not easy trying to take pictures of your own hands. I got the pattern for these from here
Last but not least is this little fellow, I couldn't have an elephant peeping out of Milos stocking and nothing out of Baby G's so this is for him.



I just love this little guy - he is from a Debbie Bliss pattern and was also lovely to knit. You will probably be seeing a few more of these too.

This morning I went to the post office to pick up a parcel from Maryanne who was my partner in the Christmas Swap... she doesn't have a blog or a Flickr account but she most definately should as her work is amazing... but you know what ... I'm going to save all her goodies for my next post :-)

Oh I nearly forgot - I still haven't had any chocolate , I wonder if I can make it to Christmas Eve?

A Blatant Copy.

A couple of weeks ago Julie from Little Cotton Rabbits had a shop sale. Milo got his eyes on this little chap


( image taken from Little Cotton Rabbits )

Aha I thought this could be an excellent idea for Christmas . So at 10pm I was poised ready to type "buy" and hopefully win him. As the clock ticked I typed furiously but alas it wasn't to be . I just missed out - I was 2nd .The next day Milo asked if I'd won him ( I had told him it was a competition) , when I said no his face dropped and he looked so sad.
After he had gone to school I went to the library and found a pattern in a Debbie Bliss book for a similar elephant. I e-mailed Julie and asked if she would mind if I attempted to copy him. Julie being the lovely lady that she is said no she didn't mind and even told me where I could get the wool for the jumper. ( now you know my secret Kitty ! ) How nice was that?
I knit up the pattern but didn't like the original arms and legs so I messed around until six limbs later I got what I wanted. Then for the jumper - after 3 attempts I finally hit on the right size.
What do you think of my copy? I'm thinking about moving the eyes?



Do you remember back in August I was coveting this magazine



thanks to one of the kindest and most generous bloggers I have yet to meet this magazine landed on my doorstep. Even though it was no longer on the shelves she contacted them and asked if they would send her a copy. Thank you so much again Kellie. I have to say it is one of the best magazines I have ever read and there are so many gorgeous things in it. My aim for next Christmas is to do this knitted blanket. I think I'm going to be shouting " mam help" a lot. Did I mention that one of Kellies quilts is going to be featured in the next issue of Quilters Companion - no, well now you know so go check it out all you lucky Australians.



There wasn't just this magazine in the package she sent either - oh no , there was also these



Just how cute are these little animals. As soon as all my Christmas projects are out of the way I am going to learn how to make these, but I can't decide which one to start with - maybe the hippo



but then again I do have a bit of a thing for elephants



decisions decisions, I want to make them all!!


Tomorrow we are going to attempt another family day out in the car now that the petrol pump relay thingamujimmy has been fixed - wish me luck...

OOhhh I nearly forget to tell you all - I haven't had any chocolate for 5 whole days ( hot chocolate doesn't count cos I don't do tea or coffee ) don't I feel good , not craving it or anything - nope hmmmmm nope

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

Crafting With Milo.

We thought we'd show you what Milo has been up to on the Christmas crafting front.



Mammy drew some Christmas trees



Pops drew some santas



Milo glitter painted around the outlines but it was mostly his own work and designs





He had a proper little production line on the go.

On the car front, it's apparantly on it's way back as I'm typing this. The garage man said it was the petrol pump relay that was at fault!!

And I think I'm in danger of becoming a pink/gold sky bore. Has anyone else in the UK noticed the beautiful skies we've been having lately or the strange weather of giant hailstones with thunder and lightning at the same time? Very weird.



Hopefully I'll have finished something to show you next time ...

The Joys Of Motoring !!!!!!!!

On Thursday Hub and I walked for miles looking in garages to find ourselves a car - have you noticed that you actually need a car to get to these out of the way places ? Anyway , we found the perfect family car for us. plenty of room inside and a big boot for the pushchair and for camping stuff in the summer. It had just been brought into the garage so the guy said he would get it all cleaned up and then bring it to our house so I could give it a test drive. The test drive went fine and a friend of ours who knows about cars checked it out , gave it the thumbs up so we agreed to buy. The guy said it needed a few more bits and pieces doing to it so took it away and then dropped it off for us yesterday afternoon. I kept checking out of the window to make sure it was still there. It might just be me but doesn't it seem odd leaving something you own out in the street?



This morning we loaded the car up and with me shaking like a leaf we set off on our first journey. Our first destination was my parents house to show them our purchase. My parents live in a village with only one road in and out of it, as I was driving round the roundabout at the top of this road the car died - slap bang in the middle of the roundabout -- kaput -- nothing. Hub and a very kind man pushed it off the road and into a bus stop. My dad arrived to help and started the car straight away saying it might have been a bit of dust in the petrol as we had just filled it up. We spent some time at their house watching a lovely pheasant in their back garden and then decided to go for a spin along the coast .





It was bitterly cold ( I forgot to mention we did have a very thin covering of snow this morning) but the waves were amazing and it was a really great feeling just to be able to stop whenever we wanted and then jump back into the warmth of the car and go somewhere else.



We decided to stop for lunch of hot roast chicken and sausages , but when it came time to start the car again - NOTHING, it just wouldn't start and the sudden smell of petrol was overpowering. I tried to call the garage where we bought it only to be told they were closed on Saturday!!! Luckily there was a mechanic from the AA ( car breakdown service) close by, he had a look and told us that the cap had came off the fuel pipe so there wasn't any fuel getting to the engine. He managed to mend it temporarily but said we must get back in touch with the garage we got it from on Monday .



So off we set again, 5 minutes down the road - NOTHING AGAIN - to say that both me and Hub were furious was an understatement. What with 2 upset and crying tired kiddies I think if I put into words how we felt I'd be banned from Blogger !!!! We called the AA and a lovely man called Ken came to our rescue



He deduced the petrol pump had burnt itself out and very kindly gave us a tow home



This photo is courtesy of hub who thought it quite amusing I'd asked him to take a pic of our tow truck.
So there you have it - my first drive out and my first tow home. Driving is great fun isn't it?