Christmas Season Album

Just a few pages from my Christmas season album











I also want to do a page with this photo, such a stormy day yesterday that my umbrella  has completely had it, metal twisted and cover hanging on by threads

title has got to be The Weather outside is Frightful but I don't have a fire to finish the line :-D

have a good Christmas Eve everyone.

Today I am grateful for the weather calming down and the sight of the big yellow ball in the sky
for family to spend Christmas with
for all the goodies ready to take over to the family

Christmas Cooking

I've been having fun today, I've made some sausage rolls and made them more festive than usual

take some good quality Pork & Apple sausages out of their skins
add finely chopped (done in my electric chopper) cranberries & mixed Peel (I always buy fresh peel each year for my puddings and then the rest gets left so thought I would try this)
mix well together
shop bought puff pastry (can't be faffed to make my own)
roll the sausage mixture back into sausage shapes, put on their pastry coats and cook for 15 mins at 220
ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS (these are staying here for me to nibble on when I'm on my own)

also tried a different variety of mince pies I used filo pastry for the base and shortcrust for the top they look good but still have to taste them.

also made Neil (my son) some coconut crisps, I think I would be in his bad books if I hadn't lol

pasties are already made and in the freezer ready to come out tomorrow and cook for Christmas Eve dinner another tradition that we love to continue.
Neil has been over and taken all the rest of the food (I have a large chest freezer so plenty of room for all the goodies)

today I am grateful for being more or less ready for Christmas
for tasty food tempting me to eat
for being good and not eating too much yet

Journal your Christmas

Half way through December only 8 days to go till Christmas and as usual I am no where near ready.
but I have been scrapping I am making a Christmas season album so not exactly following the prompts for JYC but some of them do tie in.
My first page is what Christmas is all about, it's why it is called CHRISTmas and not crimbo or xmas as so many people seem to call it now-a-days. The greatest gift that man has ever received
For unto us a child is born, who is our Saviour, who showed us how to live our lives for our Father God



I really enjoyed my birthday, spent with Helen (Ben was at nursery and Danny at School) we went to Boulton Abbey, had lunch in the Cavendish and then took a stroll along the river. The sun was shining and reflecting off the trees into the water in such a beautiful way making my day, a birthday present that is beyond anything that money can buy



here is the double page I did to celebrate my birthday


Neil sent me a lovely photo of Eli and I just had to do this page


one of the prompts for JYC is Special treats, my special treat is a Luxury Pick-a-mix from Lindt. Earlier in the year I had discovered the Lindt shop in the outlet village, all my favourite chocolates in bowls that you can choose your own. Well I couldn't resist having a big bag of them for my Christmas treat, the only difficulty is keeping them till the 25th.


Although I am struggling to really get into the atmosphere of Christmas I am enjoying all the little things that make this time of the year special.
I have put up some decorations, have sorted out some presents, still have more to get but it's finding the right things especially for my son so perhaps a trip into town today, a mingle with the crowd, perhaps taking some photos of people rushing hither and thither and hopefully finding something that will bring a smile to Neil's face when he opens his present

today I am so thankful for the warmth of family love
for the warmth of my bungalow
for the warmth of a friends smile.

God bless you one and all

A trip up to Skipton

Thursday 28th November, sees me on the train journeying north to see my daughter and family. The trains were on time but somehow I seemed more anxious than usual. Maybe it's because I was developing a cold.
Good to be greeted by my two grandsons and a lovely hug with my daughter.

Saturday, a slower start then a wonder round the town and a little Christmas shopping. Now have a few presents to wrap.

Sunday 1st December and church in the morning, Danny lit the first Advent candle, shame I didn't get a photo of that.
Andy does have some brilliant remedies for colds a glass of Mulled berry drink with a tot of Whisky did the trick and I was able to get to the evening service in which Helen was singing in the choir.
The church looked beautiful both outside

and in


I did get a photo of Helen in her gown


Monday and I feel much better, I take Ben to Musical Tots and we have a lovely morning together. Go for snacks in the Craven centre and take photos of Ben and the Christmas tree for my Christmas Album.



Today I am grateful for fun with Ben
for not falling when I tripped (long story)
for being with family

Christmas pudding stir up

Saturday I decided would be Stir up day and time to make the Christmas Puddings. This year I wasn't going to do them on my own, I had a little helper. Rufus came over with his Daddy and he and I made the puddings while Neil sorted my paperwork.
I left some of the bread for Rufus to grind to crumbs and some of the weighing of ingredients and of course the big stir up with wooden spoons and the Christmas wish/blessing.
Neil took some photos for me and of course I have made a page for my Christmas Season album with them.


While Rufus and I were busy Neil sorted out all my paperwork that I just stuff into the sideboard cupboard, he thought it was going to be a far more mammoth job that it was too. It is so nice to have it all sorted and tidy again.  (should have taken a before photo but I didn't)

Pudding cooked, smell and taste delicious, well the crumbs sticking to the side of the basins do. Wrapped and now in the freezer along with the turkey, duck & pheasant. Christmas is coming.

Today I made a start on packing for my trip to see my daughter and family in Skipton. Also wrapped the presents I have already got that have to go up there, the rest I will get when in Skipton which saves having to transport them.

Today I am grateful that I have such a loving family

Christmas Season

Goodness me a month has gone by since I last posted. It is nearly December and time to start my Christmas preparation. So that means starting my Christmas season album.
I have decided to go for a 8x8 size this year and I'm hoping that I can fit enough pages in the one I already have, I still have to decorate the cover but I have made a start.
My first page is my shopping expedition to ASDA for the pudding ingredients plus so extra goodies

As I hadn't made up my mind what size when I bought this years papers my pad was only 6x6 so I am going to make the background pp myself for several (if not all) the pages

Hopefully tomorrow I will be making my pudding, this year I will have a little helper, Rufus is coming over and we will be mixing and making a Christmas wish/blessing as we stir the lovely fruity mixture.

Today I managed to get Andy's present and also Danny's, Ben's I will get in Skipton when I go up next week and Helen wants clothes so that will be easier to do up there too.

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I have done a couple pages of my newest grandson Eli but as yet I don't have many photos of him


I've also done pages of Rufus this one is a double page

to make it easier to see here are the individual pages 



another page for last years Christmas Season album


a couple for my Florida album (yes I am still adding to that one)



and three taken last June/July when I was last up in Skipton with my other two grandsons and my Daughter and Son in Law of course.




finally I did this one for this week's challenge to use no patterned paper a photo that wasn't people or pets & a cluster of embellishments.

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today I am grateful for a successful shopping expediton

for the sunshine this morning as I sat in bed and watched it rise in my mirror

and for the start of the Christmas season

October catch up

quite a good month for me with several nice things happening.
Saturday 5th October
A visit to Steam (the railway museum) for a Lego exhibition with Neil & Rufus some really fantastic models. The enthusiasts spend hours and hours building them, nothing is permanent as nothing is glued together.




Rufus was in one of his fancy dress outfits, and although I thought he was being Dracula apparently he was a superhero Batman because he had a bat on his cape, makes perfect sense doesn't it


Friday 11th - Sunday 13th I was in Birmingham for the Green Button Scrapping retreat. It is great to meet up with friends that I chat to on line but only meet once a year.

I wasn't too well, I'd caught Rufus's cold but still managed to have a good productive weekend, completing 7 pages






I was determined to get this page done of the second scan picture of Grandson No.4 before he made his appearance.


Saturday 19th Elijah (aka Eli) made his entrance into our world


I now have so many lovely photo to use and really am itching to get on with them. I also have more photos of my other grandsons Daniel & Ben to make into pages where oh where do I start?

Today I am grateful for the safe delivery of Eli
for being able to see him, Rufus and my Son & Daughter in Law often (living in the same town makes that possible)
for a free day today (Wednesday) to take things at a slower pace.

Learn something new every day

I am chuffed that I managed to complete the month all pages done and in the album which is looking good (well I think so anyway)

the last few pages
Thursday and of course I'm tired in the afternoon, I eventually gave way to the temptation to just snooze in my chair


Friday I had lunch in town to save cooking in the evening. This made me smile


Saturday I have at long last started preparing for the Green button Retreat not long to go it starts on the 11th looking forward to a good weekend, just hoping the grandson number 4 doesn't choose that time to make his appearance.


Sunday, it was good to have a relaxing day. I usually love being in company on a Sunday but as I haven't been at home for Sunday Lunch for 3 weeks this week I really enjoyed the pleasure of being able to shut myself away, scrap and watch TV and generally relax and be myself, by myself.


Monday 30th and last day of the challenge.
 

It's been a great month for me to be able to scrap so many pages and also to scrap most days. I had one space left in my album so I decided it would be nice to add a final page as a backdrop to the month


Thank you Shimelle for the enjoyment this challenge brings each year
thank you for all of you who have shared your pages
and I hope to see you all again next year and perhaps in December when we do Journal your Christmas

and as a final footnote I noticed that in 2011 I didn't put in a final page so I've rectified that with this page it is a digital page so that it matches in with all the rest for the year