Just over TWO weeks

I  can hardly believe that we have only 2 1/2 weeks and it will all be OVER for another year.  The Christmas tree is up, the house is decorated, the Christmas cards are arriving (as are all the on-line shopping parcels), and food is filling the fridge and cupboards.  I need to write out my Christmas cards this weekend, as well as deciding what cake, fudge etc I will be making.  I LOVE Christmas.  However, I do not enjoy how tired everyone gets.  I collected the two older grandchildren from school yesterday and it wasn't long before both were in tears due to tiredness.  The little ones are spent from a hard year of schooling (I hope!)

Our social life is even busier than usual, which is rather pleasant.  Mostly it is due to birthdays, one is a Christmas get together with my cousins, which I already know will be a lovely evening and Mum will be thrilled as she loves her nephew and nieces very much.

This week on the  Christmas Planning page this week there will be many recipes for all things 'Christmassy'.  Sweet of course, Fudge, biscotti, bark, truffles and I must look for a White Christmas recipe too.   I also found a craft from 'Art Threads' it is a fibre blog and has many different ideas on using threads and fibres.  For the people interested in craft it will be quite an interesting site.  

For  Recipes this week there is a Pot Roast Recipe for dinner one night this week.  Beef seems relatively cheap at the moment so why not make the most of it and put the slow cooker on one morning before you go to work or school.  When you get home you have a meal with gravy ready, all you need do is maybe cook some greens.  Although many of the Christmas recipes are on the Christmas Planning page they will be added here to so you will not miss any of them.  The next thing I must learn is how to organise my pages better so that recipes can be in their genre collections.
Slow Cooker Pot Roast    

Crafts this week will be focused on Christmas.  I will place a couple of different ideas, so that you may find a suitable one to under take.  The first one is a delicate gift tag using a doily, and the other is a  Little Crayon Apron as something different for the little people we love.
 Doily Gift Card

Little Crayon Apron

  Children's Activities this week is fun & edible.  Dipped Oreo Snowmen!  It is an adult activity but I thought the younger people might enjoy it too.  There is also a Christmas Ornament made from toilet rolls or kitchen paper rolls (for all the people that feel a little 'iffy' about using toilet rolls)

Toilet Roll decoration

Dipped Oreo Snowmen

My Quote of the Week: will still be in the Christmas theme as that is about the only place my mind will go at the moment. 

"The merry family gatherings - the old, the very young; the strangely lovely way they harmonize in carols sung. For Christmas is tradition time - traditions that recall the precious memories down the years, the sameness of them all." - Helen Lowrie Marshall

 Helen Lowrie Marshall lived in Denver, Colorado during her writing/publishing years until her death in 1975.

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There are so many great Christmas quotes and jokes that I have decided to place one a day until Christmas.  So remember to check back each day to see which great person has supplied the quote for that day.

I hope your week is productive and Christmas filled.  Enjoy all the end of year break-ups and may the children have a great last week of school for 2013.