I think this is the skin I've decided on.

It makes me feel....different. It feels like fireworks, if that makes any sense.

I'm tired of this skin. It doesn't look so crisp and fresh to me anymore. I'm ready for something different. I'm browsing and googling....Get ready for a change folks.

This is a video of the church 1conference that I went to in November. The workshop that I went to in the morning was for youth and it was so encouraging because there was actual real live youth there! Sometimes I get discouraged because I am very nearly the only person between 12 and 45. It was also very encouraging because the Moderator of The United Church of Canada was at that workshop. It was a big honour to have her there with us, the young people of the Church and the folks that work with Youth. The afternoon workshop was about how community gardens and markets can change neighbourhoods for the best. It was very inspiring.

Well, it's been a while. I haven't posted in almost a month. I've been uber busy and not had much creativity. I've also not been working on anything that I usually post about. We've fallen off the money bandwagon sort off (I'll admit that I've pulled out my cc a few times in the last month), I've barely made any crafts/crocheting (honestly!), and I've not been in the mood for any lists. :P

I went on holiday to Calgary (see that expired ticker up there?). Had fun. Took a zillion pictures. Went over budget (but not by much). Came back. I've been busy, busy, busy, busy since then. Actually, this post has taken me 3 days to write. :P The Children's Ministry is going well. I find it hard and scary and chaotic, but exciting, rewarding, and fun all at the same time. My full time work is there and boring. Same ol' same ol'. At home we are in full swing for Christmas now. Getting things ready and getting organized is tough work. lol. I've got a zillion things I want to do before Christmas...and I hope to get 5 done.

Due to a stroke of luck (ok, it's not luck, it's called being a Public Servant) I received an extra week's vacation this year. woot for me! I thought about saving them for an 'emergency', but then I said fuck-it and booked off the Christmas Break. I had a few days left of Annual Leave as well, so I am off from 19 Dec to 03 Jan!!!!!!!!! 2 weeks!!!! I'm so excited and have big plans....but will be happy and settle for lazing around and watching TV.

It's good to be back! How is everyone else doing?

I was talking about what I should name by Crafty Business.

Sadly, I still have not made a decision and it's 365 days later. I ended that post by saying that things were happening...but just slowly. So, I guess the definition of 'slowly' is really 'standstill'.

I gotta get moving on that -- slowly. :P

We bought this fleece for Christmas Presents. We got 1.5 metres of each for a total of $24.

I've got big plans for this 3 metres of fabric. I'm hoping that I'll be able to get 4 items for presents for Andrew (possibly 5). Andrew loves cars, so this fabric is perfect for him and it was not too expensive, only 8.99 metre. The solid blue was on sale for 4.99/metre, so it was all good deals!

1. No Sew Fleece Blanket - We got a blanket like this from my half sister a few years back. Everyone loves it here and Andrew has a small baby blanket version, but he's rapidly outgrowing it. If this blanket is successful and not too difficult to make, we will make more of them for other people for Christmas.

2. Fleece Hat -- I'm thinking a simple one like this, but with some spikes added down the top ala dinosaurs.
3. Fleece Scarf -- A nice easy scarf.

4. Fleece Mittens -- Just some simple mittens for Andrew that match the hat and the scarf.

5. If there is any fabric left over perhaps another scarf, hat, and mitten set for my young cousin for Christmas.

I think the no-sew blanket is perfect for us because Husband can do most of the work (ahem, tying ;P) for the blanket.

We were at Value Village on the weekend. Husband needed some new pants and Andrew needed ski pants for the winter. I was browsing in the housewares department (cause I love housewares) and found these wonderfully fantastic melmac bowls. Andrew is hard on his bowls and we've thrown quite a few of them out because of questionable uses and finding them under the couch with food molded into them and him leaving them outside...or whatever.

I got 4 bowls (there's only 3 in the picture because I'm soaking the price tag off the 4th) for $2.99.

These things are crazily unbreakable!

What an incredibly awesome idea! I'm trying to figure out how to work this into one of my Sundays....I could have the bulk of the bag done (ie. the 2 seven foot squares and have all the batting) and then we could put together?

It's also a wonderful way to upcycle and reuse and recycle and reduce what would otherwise be thrown away. Saving the Earth and helping the homeless--what a good combination!

There's so much to do, but instead I'm procrastinating. I'm surfing the net while my child is absorbed in watching "The Magic School Bus". I should be cleaning up or organizing my church stuff or finishing planning for my service or exercising or anything. I'm so good at this procrastination stuff. :P

I'm validating this lazy behaviour by making advance blog posts for days when I don't have so much to say.

Has anyone had time to think about Christmas yet? Crafts and presents and baking and shopping and decorating--oh my! I've not even had a minute to think about any of it yet this year.

It is comforting knowing that we have just under $100 saved for gifts, we just need to sort out who we're buying for and what we're planning on buying for everyone.