Christmas Village

From about 1986 until now, we have been kicking off the holiday season at Christmas Village. My friends and I always looked forward to it. When we started, the preview night tickets were $25.00. Now it's $45.00 for the opening night---nothing to sneeze at! Really, that's the only way to go. It's so crowded---even on the opening night. But they don't allow strollers on that night, so you can move---a little! We'd shop and then I'd make a deal for photos with all of us surrounding and sitting on Santa's lap. Somewhere along the line, the people who "put on" Christmas Village decided to hire a professional photographer. The cost is ridiculous, so we stopped doing that a number of years ago. Believe it or not, that's when I was "over it!"

Well, Stephanie and Mindy started going with us a few years ago. They are not "over it!" Soooo, I'm continuing to go. I've always said, "if my girls want to spend time with me---I'm doing anything they want!"

We had a good time. There wasn't anything really new this year. Lots of food, as always.

 I can't tell you how many times over the years that I've purchased these dip mixes. Then I would forget about them and throw them away the next year!

I had to laugh that Stephanie and Mindy paid $8.00 for little jar of mustard. It's really good---and I have to admit, I bought that exact same mustard about 20 years ago and several times in the years that followed. They got the champagne mustard which is exactly the only one I ever bought. It is really good!

The girls spring for the wine--which is only available on the opening night. This year, they offered this insulated wine glass. Mindy got it for me. It's nice and did keep the wine cold, but now I have another big cup for my cabinets!

I broke a record this year. I only bought 2 things and spent $30.00! The girls found a few things, but they didn't spend much either. I think we're starting to control ourselves! I told myself, "no decorations (I'm trying to scale down and get rid of stuff), no jewelry (and now I'm mad that I didnt' even look (Both Stephanie and Mindy found some really cute necklaces and bracelets), and no food (for the reason I already mentioned). Still, we had a fun time.

After we went to a new restaurant in The Gulch---I've already forgotten the name. The food was good, but not really remarkable. There are so many new restaurants down there, that when I go back, I'll try another.

Anyway, it was a fun way to kick off the holiday season---but mostly, it was a nice perface to our Washington trip the next day!

That's up next!

It's That Time of Year!

Yep! Fall and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. I'm ready!

And if you recognize these pictures from last year, they you get a gold star! It's all the same stuff. Maybe it's arranged a little differently, but you get the idea!

Friday Funnies

By the time you read this, I'll be in Washington, D.C. with Sandy, Stephanie and Mindy. We're going specifically to see the debut of Tina Fey's Mean Girls before it hits Broadway. We love the theater! I have a lot of fun things planned. I'll report later. I hope you have a great weekend too!

A Few Layouts

When I met my sisters for a scrapbooking weekend a couple weeks ago, I managed to complete quite a few layouts. Other than my AYM club monthly, I seem to do most of my scrapbooking when I'm away from home.

You know I'm all about the story---right? Well, this one is about the time I set the alarms off at The Louvre.

 I did quite a few layouts for the "grands" scrapbooks.

 Notice how I used the same format on many layouts? They all look different, plus, they aren't even going in to the same album.

 This one is about Camp Aunt Barb.

The interesting thing on this layout is the "games" title. I used the Spirograph to make the frame. I hadn't used it in years. Okay, well, never! But I'm going to try it more!

 This is just to show that I have a series of photos on the left and used washi tape to make a flip up book.

That's it for now!

Movie Pass

Have you heard of "Movie Pass?" It's one more of the ever growing subscription services. Movie Pass costs $9.95 a month. It allows you to go to as many movies as you want during the month---but just one a day. You put the free app on your phone. When you get to the theater, you open the app, select your theater, select the movie and voila! The cost is loaded on your Movie Pass card or you can do it electronically right on your phone.

In Nashville, it works at every theater. It's been simple to use. Just like my books, I've decided to see how much money I save with it.

Connie and I saw "Goodbye Christopher Robin" (really good) on Monday. I asked Jason---our box office guy--if a lot of people are using the Movie Pass. He said not so much at the theater we were at, but at the other theater he works at, there's been a marked rise in attendance. I asked him how this company makes money. If you see more than one movie, they lose. The app is free and there isn't any advertising. For the movie theaters, it's a win/win. More people go to the show AND since the ticket is free, they spend more money on concessions. Jason told me once a few years ago that---that's where the movie theaters make their money---concessions. They don't make any money selling tickets as that goes to the producers.

Anyway, Movie Pass has been incredible easy to use. It's totally worth it. You can check it out for yourself here:
https://www.moviepass.com

If you subscribe, let me know how you like it!

Will it Never End?

The painting of the house continues. We're hoping they will finish today. It's been sort of a nightmare! I already reported on the "flooding" we've endured and the mess that came with it.

I've already mentioned that our painter retired. Well, little did we know that the whole process and method to painting has changed. After the cleaning and the mess that caused, came this:

 They covered every window with masking tape and paper.

On some, they just taped and sprayed some sort of cloudy liquid. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason.

Anyway, the whole house seemed so dark. Moles living underground came to mind. It was weird to feel so closed in. I like bright. This was depressing.

 Butch and I couldn't get over how long it took to just do the prep work!

It looks like a construction site. The front looks like this too. They removed every window. They numbered each one, so they know where they go back. We're on the third week and finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. There have been between 6-8 guys (a couple were women) here every day. They interfered with our parking---there were cars and trucks everywhere!

Once the painting started, they had to leave the doors and windows open. OMGosh! We had hundreds of lady bugs! Butch was going crazy. He got out the vacuum. It's gong to be awhile before we get rid of them all. For the past couple of nights, they have been flying towards my little book light while I've been reading in bed!

At first, it looked like they were doing a lousy job. We were already freaking out. And then---they painted part of our NEW columns and rails that we spent a fortune on. We picked materials that would never have to be painted again. And they PAINTED them! OMGosh! Butch was beside himself. He was on the phone with the owner of the company---several times---complaining about many things. Again, he did the homework and hired what we thought to be a reputable company. The owner couldn't have been nicer---reassuring us that we would not pay until we were satisfied. He's even agreed to paint the columns and rails for as long as we live here---whenever they need it. Yes, I know, that sounds too good to be true, but so far, the guy has been really fair with us.

Now that the job is nearing completion---we've both agreed---they have done an excellent job! Also, we agreed that maybe we jumped the gun with the complaints and didn't give them the opportunity to "make it right." Everything looks great! It was just a hassle and a lot of work to get it to this point. It still seems to us that it would have been faster to just paint the old fashioned way.

Oh, and as an added bonus? They cleaned our windows--and we have a ton! It's been 5 years since I last had them washed. It was $1500 then. I figure it's got to be close to $2000 now. That's one expense I'm happy to avoid! Especially since next up is the kitchen!

I Love Learning!

Really, I do. It almost doesn't matter what it is. I love taking classes.

This past weekend, I did a workshop at Nashville Needleworks. The teacher was Mark Young from Labors of Love out of Atlanta. Check out his "Birthstone Santas" under the "what's new" tab---they might be my next project(s).

This project:

 Four-sided santa. The design is rich with intricate stitches. It's going to be a fun project.

 Each side has so much detail. It will be a work of art when completed.

 As soon as I saw it, I knew I HAD to do it. After all, my last "pudgie" was a huge hit.

Morgan has already laid claim to my Halloween "pudgie!"

Anyway, I'm going to call him my Santa "pudgie."

The design is beautiful---gingerbread house, toys and a Christmas tree. The stitches give it so much depth and dimension. There are beads, twisted cord and Swarovski crystals.

I'm going to really enjoy stitching this---especially during the holidays. I love stitching Christmas things at Christmas time.

When I arrived at Nashville Needleworks, this was at our place:

Our canvases were already mounted. I didn't think to bring my lap frame the first day. I couldn't wait to see what stitches we would use.

Mark, our "teacher" is in the background. Connie on the right is the owner of the shop. If you are a stitcher and ever come to Nashville, you MUST stop by Nashville Needleworks. It is the BEST needlepoint shop you will ever visit--and I've been to quite a few. I've never seen one better. Notice the box of fibers in the front.

This is what's IN the box. When I look at this, my heart starts pumping! As soon as the class started, I knew I was going to love it. Every time I take a class---and it doesn't matter what type---I'm always reminded of how much I love learning.

The workshop was 3 days long from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It was expensive, but then, needlepoint in general is a pretty expensive hobby---really, no more expensive than a college class or a weekend trip! Plus, if you put a dollar amount per hour of the enjoyment you get out of it, it's cheaper than a movie! Not only do you get the enjoyment of taking the class, you have something beautiful when you are done!

After awhile, they gave us each one of these:

The gift certificate was a nice little surprise. But then you realize, you've actually paid for it in your class fee. Still, what a great way for the shop to encourage more sales. Just another way to keep you buying. I guess that's good marketing. That's another thing I love about Connie---she's a good business woman and keeps the shop stocked with great things.

After day one, I learned three things:
1. I needed my lap frame. It's hard to do stitches that take two hands while trying to balance the canvas at the same time.
2. My back started hurting me within the first hour. I usually stitch with my feet up on my ottoman. The next day, I brought a pillow and some extra strength Tylenol. That helped some, but by the end of the day, I was done!
3. 6 hours is too long---not to stitch, but to concentrate. I'm a morning person. Had the class started at 8 a.m. or better yet, 6 a.m. (I wish)---I would have been fine. By the afternoon---after about 5 hours, I started making mistakes. I'm tired in the afternoon. Plus, the class was interfering with my nap time! You know I love my naps! I left at 3 p.m. the first day.

I had so much fun with this. Mark was an excellent teacher. He challenged my OCD tendencies---I start at the beginning of a stitch guide and work straight through---no skipping ahead! I'm very methodical and work on a reward system--"when I finish this, I'll be able to start on that!" Of course, in a class setting, in order to learn the stitches, you have to skip around. I totally get that.

 I like to say that there's a rhythm to the stitches. Once you learn that rhythm, it becomes pretty easy to stitch.

 THIS BEARD! It's driving me crazy. By looking at it, you would think there's a rhythm to the pattern. I'm just not getting it---yet! What I had done in class looked all right, but I could not figure it out! At! All! On Saturday night, I took out what I had already put in.

I've already asked Mark twice for help with this stitch. In my head, I "get it." But I could not make it work. That's when I decided that I was off somewhere. I'm going to wait until I have the time to really focus on this stitch. Once I get started, I'm sure I'll figure it out. Let's put it this way---I've never been defeated by a stitch yet!

A lot of stitchers do not like doing this stitch for the curls. It's called a bullion stitch. I actually enjoy doing them. Sometimes, the biggest problem with the stitches is that you don't do them often enough to remember them. Thank goodness for the stitch guide! Notice the sweater--it looks just like it's been knitted!

This class was not for a beginner---but then, that's what I loved about it. I love learning new things---especially when you can have three solid days doing nothing but focusing on the class! I guess it's just like scrapbooking---it's more fun to get away with nothing else to do but devote all of the time to just one thing. And the food ain't bad either!

Thanks to Connie and Mark for a great workshop!