Generosity Abounds in Blogland

I entered the blogging world in June and soon learned that bloggers enjoy just giving things away...Well, I love reading other people's blogs and leaving comments, never imagining that I would actually win anything. To my surprise, I have not only won once but five blog give-aways!! Again, I want to thank each one for their generosity and I suggest you look at their sites for some great Holiday gift ideas...like these...
My most recent package came from Suzanne at Just Another Hang Up. She has a talent for coordinating fabrics to create these fabulous totes. I love the blues and greens in this one. Her workmanship is wonderful...definately, Purple Ribbon at the county fair! And you should also see the "dwipes" she sells. The perfect gift for a mom on the go!


I have always admired these cup cozies from Kylie's shop Boutique Creations. She just had a new baby about a month ago, so has 3 little boys. I'm sure she is a busy mom...but still has time to crochet. You should also see the sweet little snowflake ornaments that she is making.

This adorable Wristlet is one of my favorites and is available from Lane Designs. I love the fabric because it is neutral enough to go anywhere, but fun at the same time. Deb also has her wristlet key fobs on sale for $5.00. They would make awesome stocking stuffers.


These Holiday Enclosure Cards are my favorite item from Inkspot Workshop. Their work is done to perfection. You will find items for all occasions with awesome prices ranging from $5.00 to $18.00. Definately "handcrafted paper goodies that make you smile".


My 5th package was from Michelle in honor of her 200th post. She sent some awesome Pampered Chef items...a mini tart pan, shaper and cookbook. From what I can tell, she doesn't have an Etsy Shop, but you should check out her blog, It's Just What I Do.
For those of you keeping track...you can see that I am nearing my 100th post. There will definately be a give-away here, but it will be tough to top anything I have won!

Black Friday Fun

Darling Daughter 1 could not be here this holiday...and she is the master shopper...she likes to shop more that DD 2 and I put together...but we still went out. Yup, it was 6:03 a.m. when we pulled out of the driveway. Once we found our first gift...then, there was no stopping us. DD 1, you would be so proud of us!
But, I came home before everyone else, because I had a paper due today. I am working on my "Masters degree plus 45". I am taking a graduate level class at Northen State University. So...here is my schoolbag, my laptop and my school laptop on my dining room table...almost ready to submit my assignment online...

Thanksgiving ~ Things in my House Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving

Things in my house today...there's a stuffed turkey in my oven and this stuffed turkey on my table...

...but most important in my house today, is my visiting family. My mom came on Tuesday. She's 88 and doesn't travel very much. She hasn't been here since Thanksgiving last year. Our youngest daughter arrived last evening after attending her university classes. Our oldest daughter is spending this holiday with her boyfriend and his family. While we wish they were here, we understand that as our children get older we have to share them with another family. We are so thankful for the time we do get to spend together.

Best Wishes to You and your Families!

What'cha Workin' On Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve

I made several new things for Winterfest...and my Etsy shop. I just listed this Santa. If you would like to by-pass Etsy and purchase him directly from me, please leave me a comment or email...

My mother-in-law wants to make the thanksgiving dinner this year, but, of course we all help out. Today I am baking the apple pies. She and my sister in law picked all the apples, I just put it together!

When I get a chance to sit down, I will try to finish this scarf. I have only about 10 rows to go...The yarn is soft...it's 100% polyester...made from recycled plastic bottles. What a fabulous idea!

Turkey Tuesday

Call me "Crazy Turkey Lady"...that's how I feel, anyway. For my Basic Foods classes, I purchased 4 turkeys for a total of 70 pounds. I hauled them all in last Friday, so we could discuss how much to buy and how you need to plan ahead, to thaw them in your fridge for 3 days.

Yesterday, the students and I prepared the turkeys and had them ready in the oven roasting bags. Today, they needed to be in the oven around 4:30 a.m. to be ready for 1st block. It's a little eerie at school, by yourself, that early in the morning!

Then I went to the grocery store to get everything else that I needed. This is what the cart looks like with potatoes, corn, gravy fixings and juice for 70 people.
When I got back to school, the aroma was amazing. You could smell the turkey all over the building!

I invited our Assistant Principal and Resource Officer in to carve the birds. I asked them to talk about the family tradition of having the oldest man in the family carve the turkey. Our Assistant Principal taught sociology for years, and did a nice job talking about families and the importance of honoring traditions.
The students made desserts yesterday...a Chocolate Pudding Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Cheesecake and Apple crisp...

It is usually against the rule for teachers to post pictures of their students on the world wide web (however, most have Face book), but this sweetie asked me to take her pic...

...and since she is a friend of our daughter, I included her...

...she and all the students were so excited about the meal that they had prepared themselves!

Pumpkin Pie ~ The Impossible

Impossible Pumpkin Pie

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 can evaporated milk

1 - 15 oz. can pumpkin

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 cup Bisquick

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Measure all ingredients into a blender. Blend one minute or until smooth. Pour into a deep dish pie plate. Bake 50-55 minutes. Knife in center should come out clean.

Our Turkey Dinner in my Basic Foods classes is tomorrow. The students made desserts today for the Dessert Buffet Table. I took this pic before I left school today of the pies my students made in 4th block class. You will not believe how easy this is...It is very similar to the Impossible Buttermilk Pie Recipe that Renna shared with us a couple of weeks ago...except this is pumpkin. It actually does create its own crust!

Tins and Treasures booth ~ Winterfest 2008

Winterfest 2008 ~ Ready or Not, Here We Come!

As usual, I woke up early...so I put finishing touches on the Chenille Snowman that were waiting to go to Winterfest. We set up the tent, lights, shelving, and tables on Friday night.

On Saturday, we bring our items, finish displaying them...and wait for 10 a.m. when the doors open.
My DH made different display stands this year. The antique ironing board...which is over 110 years old... belonged to my grandmother Hilda (who is pictured at the bottom of each blog page). We use it to showcase our small items.

We have a small tree for our ornaments.
Here are must trusty assistants at home...Callie is in charge of pricing. She gets right into the box with the price tags.

Lucy is in charge of boxing things up...

Volleyball State AA Championships

Our volleyball girls are at the State Tournament this weekend. They lost only 2 games all year...No, I'm not there...I copied the pics from the State HS Activities Association site. Here the girls must be listening to the starting line up for the opposing team, which would explain the serious looks on their faces! I have had all but 3 of them in class. They are all darling girls. See the player that is the 4th from the right? She is pretty
special to us. Her dad and my DH have been friends since college and we continue to be good family friends. In fact, we are honored to be her Godparents.

She is a Junior and she starts on varsity.

Looks like she (#18) got in a good block yesterday...


Well, they won yesterday, in 4 games...they play again tonight. Wish we could be there...but we'll be, again, watching the webcam and cheering from home. Good luck, girls...and #18...we're so proud of you!!

Things in my House Thursday?

Can't show you my house today cause it is a disorganized disaster...a result of my "What'cha working on Wednesday"...
...which was preparing for Parent/Teacher Conferences...so today is the day we teach all day and then meet with parents from 5-9...I have papers, projects, and computer gradebook on living room floor, ready to pack up and go to school.
...and also preparing for Winterfest, our local arts festival. Set up is tomorrow after work...I have projects, pricetags, display items in kitchen, dining room and living room, ready to pack up and move to the civic arena.
So...I am looking forward to a busy, and enjoyable, next few days!

Top of the Morning Tuesday

I finished my Pilgrims last night...now I am off to get Pizza-making supplies for my Basic Foods classes. When Winterfest is over, I promise to blog about something else besides crafts!

Winning Blog Give Away & Crafting Frenzy Day 3

Last night when we got home this package was in our mail...my awesome new tote bag from Suzanne at "Just Another Hang Up". It is absolutely perfect, as it is striking, yet neutral enough to carry with any of my other bags.


The inside has two side pouches...one for my phone and one for my camera...
This plastic shopping bag is what I have been using to carry my latest knitting project...but, not anymore...my stitching and knitting will travel in style!! Thank you, Suzanne. Please check out her blog...she has more totes with amazing fabric combinations. It will be hard to resist!

Here...my crafting frenzy continues, preparing for Winterfest next weekend. The Chenille Showmen were stained with a Cinnamon Vanilla Coffee mixture and are drying by the warmth from my oven. The tins are in their 3rd stage...fabric appliques...

Still...3 more steps...before they are done...

Anyway...I must move on to correcting tests, worksheets and projects. There are parent/teacher conferences on Thursday, and all grades must be up-to-date...

Deer Season Opens Today

It is the official opening day for deer hunting in South Dakota. My husband and his good buddies left at 5:30 a.m. to be ready and in place by daybreak. The high today will be in the 30s. They start to organize their gear days in advance...clothing...knives & knife sharpeners...guns...tags...coolers...snacks...

Today, I will continue my crafting frenzy that began yesterday. I hope to have enough items to fill by booth next weekend at Winterfest.

Finish It Up Friday

9:30 p.m. update...
...Well, this evening, I had some dinner with my DH...and since, have been hand stitching on these Christmas Tree ornaments. They are almost done...and so am I!









3:30 update...

I had a little lunch; enjoyed a 40 minute nap; did some housework; and prepared a package to take to the USPS. The freezing rain and snow pellets made driving a little slick!



12:30 update...
...these Santas are finished now, too! They were just waiting for their belts, which I purchased at the Nearly New Shop ... so, no two are alike. There are beans in their bottoms so they sit.

11:00 a.m. update...
...just finished these hanging Santas...I really like how their beards turned out. The belt is just tied in place and I'm still deciding if I like it...what do you think?

Today is Comp Day ... that means ... because we teachers spend 4 evenings during the school year conducting parent/teacher conferences, we get one extra day off each semester.
Now ... those 4 days are very long, because we teach from 8:10 to 3:20 and then conference from 5:00 to 9:00 ...and are back in school the next morning...
but having this day at home definately makes up for it!! I am focusing on the UFOs today!
Stay tuned to see my progress...

Things in my House Thursday VI

A blog give-away package!

I'm not a gambling woman...but, my DH thinks I should start! I have won two more blog give-aways this month. This package was on my doorstep when I came home today...and what a "pick-me-upper" it was! It has been a crazy week at school. My Basic Foods class is in their Yeast Bread Unit...so twice this week, I have left for school shortly after 6:30, in order to get their bags of homemade yeast dough out of the refrigerator. This generous gift came from Michelle in Oklahoma. I am so excited for my new mini tart pan, mini tart shaper and fun little cookbook. All the items are Pampered Chef items...which I adore. You, too, will enjoy Michelle's blog, It's Just What I Do. Click on her link over in my Blog List and say "Hi". She's a teacher, too.

What'cha Workin' On This Wednesday?

If there is such a thing as Adult ADD, I probably have it. I always have several, and I do mean, several, craft projects started at one time. There are certain advantages to this strategy:

1. While paint is drying, you can always be stitching or stuffing something else.

2. If you have your machine threaded with black thread, you can stitch everyone's boots and hats at once.

3. If going on a long car trip, you can have several portable projects to work on while traveling.

These Wild Santas are all finished, except for their black belts.

These snowmen and angels are done, but need to be priced and packed into their crates.

This batch of mini Annies are finished, except they need loops on their backs for hanging.

These are the tins that I primed last week. They need their fabric appliques and handles.

These arms and legs are now stuffed and need to be stitched to the bodies that are ready and waiting.

Every November I promise myself that the next year I will finish one project before I start another...now, what fun would that be??

Honoring Our Veterans

This picture of my daddy was taken in 1941. He served our country during WWII. He was a member of the 164th Infantry Division of the United States Army.
We have school on Veterans' Day. The community Veterans' Day program is held in our high school arena. The veterans and their families are seated on the main floor. Students fill the bleachers and the balcony. My first assembly was 10 years ago today...and I remember it so vividly. I wanted to go, especially to hear the All-City Chorus. Our youngest daughter was a member of this elementary auditioned singing group. They always sing the Star Spangled Banner and other patriotic selections. Also, Senator Tom Daschle was home and the keynote speaker that year. But what I remember the most was when the band played the Armed Forces Salute and all those veterans stood when their song was played. Some wearing their uniforms, standing so proud and so erect...
It brought me right back to the memories of standing with my mom and my family at my dad's funeral 10 years before. The uniformed veterans took the flag from my dad's casket and so carefully folded it and handed it to my mom while a lone trumpet played taps...And all my mom could say was "Your daddy was so proud." Here I sat, 10 years later, with tears streaming down my face... remembering my dad...
And today, again, I was so proud of our student body. Over 1200 students...the all city chorus...the Central High School band...all paid tribute to the men and women, and their families who sacrifice so much for our country.