Friday, December 6, 2019

Yesterday was a busy day – I got another parcel ready for the mail, a bank deposit done for the Hall, and a little bit of last-minute shopping. And then I was off for an afternoon of sewing; I have so much hand stitching to do that it almost felt like an afternoon off. Jessie finished up two quilt tops and I managed the binding on one item; Gail never accomplishes much but we have good visits. Then right after supper I was off to the Guild meeting. I must say I am thoroughly enjoying NOT having to write reports for the meetings. And I came home with an extra (almost) $25 because I won the 50-50 draw.

I got another parcel ready for the mail this morning and I also got all my knitted items donated to the Salvation Army. I planned to do it right after the sale last weekend but the bin got buried. I was afraid they might already have put their Christmas baskets together but they were happy to receive what I had.

After that package was mailed I came home and got started on another parcel. I was able to get it into the post office before the cut-off time so it will be on its way tonight. I love the tracking feature from Canada Post and I keep track of how far it has travelled each day.

After taking care of all that I sat down for a cup of coffee and decided I needed a nap. I had no trouble falling asleep and now that I’m up again I don’t feel terrible.

We are off to a show at the Hall tonight. It isn’t one the Hall is presenting but one that Pat wanted to see. I volunteered to do the closing (and perhaps the cleaning) so we’ll have to take two vehicles; gas was down to $147.9 today so I filled up.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

I would have liked to have stayed at home all day but that didn’t work out. I got the Hall minutes out this morning and then moved on to making tickets for an upcoming show. I had to drop them off at the newspaper office (they sell for us) and I had a cheque I needed to get in the mail. I was wanting to get to the 12 Days packages but I needed some wrapping paper so I was off next to the dollar store.

Once I was home I started the documentation for the 12 Days packages. The games are the same for everyone but there are some personal touches this year.

I got one set wrapped and into a box and decided that I had enough room to include the actual Christmas gifts in the same box. So I have one entire family’s Christmas wrapped and ready for the mail tomorrow. If I’m up really, really early tomorrow morning maybe I can get another one done.

We’re off to the movies tonight.

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

I was up early this morning (no surprise) and before breakfast I got the two birthday packages wrapped and ready for the mail. I packed up a few things for sewing that I had forgotten when I did my packing last night. And then I got a start on the minutes for the Hall. On my way to sewing I stopped at the post office and mailed my packages. Everything was going well.

My first project at sewing was the block of the month. I knew it had to be red and white but the diagram in the pattern showed a black centre. So I made a black centre. The entire thing was almost finished before a fellow stitcher pointed out to me that it wasn’t supposed to have any colours but red. I’ll be starting that project over – and it needs to be done for Thursday!

Next up was a Christmas gift I wanted to make. When I packed up yesterday I realized that I didn’t have enough fabric for what I really wanted to make so I picked something different. But that same fellow stitcher said she thought I could make my initial project work but, of course, I didn’t have all the fabric that I would need. Another thing that will have to get done quickly.

So all I was left with were my Christmas cards – and they were only stuck in as an “if I have time” project. Surprisingly they come together quite quickly – I finished one sample and have a bit of stitching done on all the others. Whether or not I have enough time to finish all I’d like to do is another question. These will have to be at the bottom of my priority list.

I have time for a little more computer work before supper and I’ll be hand stitching again this evening.

Monday, December 2, 2019

I’m drowning –

• in Christmas gifts that need to be wrapped and sent
• in birthday cards that need to be wrapped and sent
• in 12 Days of Christmas piles that need to be sorted, wrapped and sent
• in stitching that still needs to be done for Christmas
• in paperwork for the Hall
• in fabric that needs to be stored in my new cabinet
• and 16 other items on my reminder list

We had a busy weekend on Texada. I debated a lot before we went. Would I go on Thursday night or Friday morning? Would we go together or would I drive myself? Would I go as a walk-on? As it worked out, I skipped sewing on Thursday and we took the afternoon ferry over (together).

We’ve had a dip in the temperature the past few days and it was too cold in my workshop to feel much like sewing – and I had such a lot of sewing to do. I also didn’t think the cold was good for my sewing machine. We packed up the machine and brought it up to the studio. Pat had a desk that he was planning to move down to the workshop so we moved it into the spare room and it worked just fine for sewing on. We don’t need that room until at least February so I’m set for the next few trips. Quilting with this setup won’t be as easy as it is in the workshop where I have tables set up for extra space but it will work for smaller things. I also like the fact that I have a bathroom close at hand.

Saturday was the Legion Craft Sale and we both did okay. Pat sold more books than he expected and he has ordered another 100 books from the printer. I only sold a couple of quilted items so I have my usual package to donate to the Salvation Army.

Saturday night the local theatre company put on a play so we went out to see it. The place was packed but we were there early (surprise!) and had great seats near the front. The play was okay and now that we know a few more people I think we enjoyed it more. There were no Oscar-winning performances but I give every one of them credit for doing it.

The plan was to come home on Sunday after the Trivia Meat Draw at the Legion. I was going to stay at the studio to sew while Pat went out and won his package of bacon (he wins that almost every time he goes). I was able to finish up the main part of my quilting (still some hand stitching to do) and have everything cleaned up in time to go along with him.

The local cafe was hosting a Tree Lighting Ceremony so we went there for supper. We didn’t stay long enough for the tree lighting because we wanted to be sure we caught the evening ferry. We’ll see the lights another time when we are over.

Today was busy trying to get everything done that absolutely needed to be done for both the Guild and the Hall. I have a couple of birthday gifts to get wrapped and ready for the mail tomorrow and I have lots of hand stitching to do this evening.