I have been using  lap-top to post the last few days.  The computer that the family uses is really messed up.  I have all my pictures on the home computer and am learning how to use a zip drive, to transfer them to the lap-top.  It is so funny to think that I can even do the things that I am doing now on a computer.  Ten years ago I never thought that I would be where I am now with computers.

Remember my local store?  Well here it is.  I had to get thread the other day and found these cute things.

I can't wait to try them out.  I am not sure what I'll make with them, but I'll find something.

Life is getting back to normal.  Becky goes today for a post-op appointment with the surgeon, payroll today, being it's Friday {business keeps going}.  I do have to finish up my projects that I started, and finish up my Christmas shopping.  I know what I am getting, I just have to get it.  I am not all the way done with my shopping, but I am happy where I am at with it.

Today is the last day of November.  Where did the month go?  Yikes....I would love life to slow down a bit.  How about you?  Well I am off to start my busy day.

You all have a wonderful, beautiful day.

My friend Elizabeth over at My Simple Journey, is doing a drawing.  Go on over and check it out.  She is giving away a couple of neat things.

I got my hair cut...{{grin}}...and I love it.  It is shorter than before in the back but that was how I wanted it.  I told her exactly what I wanted and showed her 3 pictures of hair cuts, each picture had something I wanted.  They were all very similar but different, and the results were good.  I'm happy.

Now I am off to bed to get some sleep.

Last night I made Shepherds Pie, with my leftover mashed potatoes {which I had so much of}.  I had some leftover gravy from my roast on Sunday and leftover turkey gravy.  I just mixed the two in with the meat and vegetable mixture.  It was surprisingly good.

Becky found this recipe for Shepherd's Pie.  I didn't use it, as I concocted my own, but this one sounded pretty good.  I think I'll try this one another day.

Last night was sauna club.  I did some more sewing, but couldn't finish my project, because I ran out of thread.  I am about 98% done with it too.  Now what am I going to do when my local fabric store will be closing in January.  It's just down the road about 2 miles.  I don't mind going to W*l M*rt for items, but they don't always have the selection.  I don't mind going to the other JoAnn's store, but it"s not in my backyard.  I have to make about a half hour trip there, and that all depends on how traffic is.

Tonight I get my {{{shudder}}} hair cut.  I have been cutting my own lately in the back, but now it is driving me nuts.  I have been trying to grow it out some, but not too long just about to my chin with longer layers.  Well......every time I go and get it shaped up, they chop it off.  Now I just really need to get it shaped up and I am going back to the lady that I really like.  I like how she cuts hair, just not that she doesn't listen to me all the time in how I want it cut.  I am going to be very FIRM with her in what exactly I want.  I don't think that is too out of line to say firmly what I want.  Maybe firmly isn't the word, maybe I should say, strongly express my desire of how I want my hair to be cut.  Yes that sounds much better.

Well I am off the begin my day.

You all have a great day.

Here is the apron that I received today from my Apron Swap partner Jennie, who is from Australia.  She also hand sewed Merry Christmas on the front.  Thanks Jennie it is sooo cute.

Oops...sorry Jennie, I was so excited about the apron, that I didn't look in the bottom of the envelope that the apron came in.  Inside I found a 2008 calender, which I use always in my purse and haven't bought my 2008 yet.  Now I don't have to, and a mini bag charm that will go on my satchel bag.  Thank you I love the gifts.

This is the one I sent Jennie.  The apron swap was held over at Rhonda's Down-To-Earth Blog.  This was really fun to do.  I plan to do it again, if there is another one sometime.  I not only got a new apron, I found a new friend, a pen pal, or maybe I should call it a cyber pal.

These are very fun to make.  You can use felt like I did or fleece.  The middle insert is just a tassel that you can buy at any fabric store.  You just tuck it in the middle.  I really don't suggest tacking or gluing it in, as you would want to take the napkin holder apart to store them for the next year, but you don't have to, you could just keep them together.

The measurements are the red flower is:

11 1/2 " long, and 3 1/4" wide at the widest part of the flower petals, and 3" wide at the middle.

The measurements for the green leaves are:

6 3/4" long and 4 1/4" wide at the widest part of the leaves, and 2 1/4" in the middle.

Cut 2 green leaves and 1 red flower with a hole in the middle of each green leaf and 1 hole in the red flower.  Make the hole size just big enough to be able to put the felt through.

I hope this all makes sense to you.

Step 1

The measurements are the red flower is:

11 1/2 " long, and 3 1/4" wide at the widest part of the flower petals, and 3" wide at the middle.

The measurements for the green leaves are:

6 3/4" long and 4 1/4" wide at the widest part of the leaves, and 2 1/4" in the middle.

Cut 2 green leaves and 1 red flower with a hole in the middle of each green leaf and 1 hole in the red flower. Make the hole size just big enough to be able to put the felt through.

I hope this all makes sense to you.

You can add a tassel to the middle for an added look.  I just stuck it in and did not glue it so that I could take it apart and store it for future use.

Today is Monday and I am not going to do the Monday Menu Plan as I have been doing.  I will resume next week.  With the holiday just getting over, I haven't even made my meal plan for the week yet.  I just haven't thought about it.  It's been pretty busy here.  I do have a few things up my sleeve for dinner and with Becky's surgery in 2 days my mind just has been elsewhere. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I know I did.  We had a quiet one.  I got to thinking that I didn't even take any pictures of my table or anyone, just RM, Pete and Jason carving the turkey.  When I went to put them on my blog, I couldn't find them.  That is when I realized that I deleted them off my camera thinking that I already transfered them to the computer.  So now, I officially don't have any pictures of Thanksgiving day.

One good thing, is I got my Christmas card picture taken and I made my own this year.  So I'll go and pick them up tomorrow and start on them.  I took another bunch of shots of the kids before Dan left for Iowa.  The girls were very cooperative, but the boys, or rather I should say, a boy wasn't so happy to get woke up from his afternoon nap, and it wasn't the one leaving either.  Like I said before it was much easier when they were smaller and there were more of them.

Now to get back to post holiday schedule.  RM is having sauna club here tonight.  My laundry room is loaded with laundry.  Someone decided to clean his room over the weekend {something is up, I just know it, he never cleans his room for no reason}.  Life is back to normal around here. 

Well I better get going.

You all have a great Monday.

My daughter was asked to make some table runners for a wedding.  The serger that I had given her isn't working quite right, so she sent the fabric to me already cut out with Dan when he came for Thanksgiving so that I could make them.  The aunt who wanted her to make them just wanted the edges to be serged.  Which is not a big deal if your serger is working right.  The fabric is very silky and the pointed edges were a bit of a struggle but I guess it doesn't look too bad.  They just need to be pressed and they should look okay on the tables.  I am assuming the bridal table is where they'll go.  Now I just have to mail them out so they get there by the time the wedding comes.

Hey, don't forget the Christmas giveaways over at 5 minutes for mom.  November 25th is the last day.

When our children were small, I always got an Advent Calendar for them.  Have you ever seen them?  There are 24 windows to open up and each window has a piece of chocolate behind the window.  Each day they would take turns opening up a window and getting that piece of chocolate.  So basically it averaged out that each child got to open 2 windows in the month of December, when there were 11 children still under one roof.  What in the world was I thinking, they aren't that expensive to buy.  Why didn't I just get each child their own Advent Calendar.  When I think back to why, I guess I can't really find the answer.  Maybe it was that I didn't want 11 Advent Calendars hanging around my house, who knows.  I got the idea many moons ago from my mother-in-law, who always had one for her children.  Maybe that is where the "only one" advent calendar came from.  I just know that was how it was. 

Now as you can see there are 5 advent calendars.  One is for one child who doesn't even live at home anymore.  I guess these last 5 children of mine are pretty spoiled.  I do know the kids would look forward to me getting the Advent Calender, and fight over who gets to get the first one, but more importantly who gets to get the one on December 24th.  Talking to my dear husband about this, I said how dumb it was for me to have bought just one.  He remarked about how it really taught the kids to share and maybe helped them to have patience.  So maybe some good did come out of buying only one.

With Thanksgiving over the house is quiet.  Jason, Kate and the baby are gone back home.  Dan is still the only one left, he'll be leaving tomorrow.  The leftovers are going fast.  I do have mashed potatoes left, I may make a shepherd's pie out of them.  I tried getting a Christmas card picture taken.  When I say tried, I mean I did take the picture, but.....someone almost always doesn't like how they look {I'll guarantee is isn't the boys either}. 

Calgon take me away......Far away......I am not sure what I am going to do.  I'll try one more time, but the boys are getting pretty tired of their picture being taken.  Five children young adults, ages ranging from 14 years to 21 years, and I had better luck getting a Christmas card picture taken when they were much younger and all 11 of them were in the picture.  So back to the drawing board it is, and I am off to go sew.

Have a wonderful weekend. 

I have been tagged by Joyce over at Home Again Vintage Treasures.  What was I doing 10/20/30 years ago?

10 years ago?.........Hmmm lets see.  Ten years ago, we were waiting anxiously for our oldest son to come home from college on Thanksgiving break.  Our youngest Lauren was 4 and helped him carry his bags into the house when he came home.  Everyone was really excited to see Pete, the first one of many to leave the house for the first time.  When he left for college I cried, cause I knew that he wasn't going to be the only one to fly the coup.  This year we had all 11 children in school, from Pre-school up to College.  Life for us was very busy.  RM also just started his business the previous year, so we had a lot of changes going on.

20 years ago?.........Hmmm now I have to start using my brain.  Ha that wasn't too hard.  I was pregnant with our 8th child who was due December 27th.  I even remember my due date.  He didn't come until the 29th though.  I remember that during this pregnancy, I wasn't so organized as I was with our 4th child who was due on December 20th.  I was still Christmas shopping a few days before Christmas.  I could hardly move by the time I got home.  Ugh!!!!!!!!  That I will never forget.  Also, when this one was born the one before him who was 14 months old still wasn't walking yet.  So if I went anywhere, I basically had 2 babies to carry around.  Needless to say I didn't go out much that winter (he did start to walk by 18 months tho).

30 years ago?........Yikes now I really have to pick my brain.  I was a junior in high school, and my boyfriend at that time was.....the guy I married.  My High School sweetheart.  We went to different High Schools, and RM was a senior.  We went to the same church growing up, so I knew him all my life.  I became an aunt for the first time 30 years ago, my brother and his wife had a baby girl.  I was going to school, talking to friends on the phone, going out with RM on the weekends, going to RM's hockey games.  Just being a teenager.

Now I tag Jennifer, Maddy, and Sue.