Secret Santa Swap

Once again, I've joined Shawnee's Secret Santa Apron Swap and I'm so excited.  I love Christmas and this swap always gets me in the holiday mood.

Here are a couple of questions that Shawnee asked us to answer for the swap.

1. What are your hobbies? Sewing, quilting, scrapbooking, and running.  I also love to read.
2. What are your favorite colors? Red. Teal.
3. Do you collect anything? not really except fabric and craft supplies
4. Are you allergic to any fibers or animals? cats but I have one so unless the package is covered in cat hair, I'm fine
5. Do you have any pets? Yes, a toy poodle named Bueller and a black and white cat named Boots. 
6. Coffee, Tea, or Chocolate? Flavored coffee, hot tea - green, white or herbal
7. What do you like to read? Current fiction, thrillers, quilting magazines, cook books
8. Do you prefer Cookies or Candies as a sweet? Both.  I LOVE cookies! Also like chocolate, especially dark. I love chocolate covered cherries.  I also like twizzlers.
9. What is your favorite holiday treat? Chai tea lattes - they smell like Christmas to me
10. Describe your favorite holiday tradition. Decorating the tree and baking cookies
11. Did you believe in Santa as a child? YES!
12. When do you open presents? Christmas morning!
13. Do you put up a tree and when?  Yes, usually between Thanksgiving and the first of December. If not, how do you celebrate?
14. Does your tree have a theme? No
15. What has been your favorite gift to give?  Something homemade.  to receive? Something homemade, from the heart. books, Barnes & Noble gift cards to buy Nook books.

And one more thing - my daughter's birthday is December 25.  She will be 18 this Christmas.  So, I received the BEST Christmas gift EVER 18 years ago!

Back-to-School Pencil Case

Last weekend was tax-free back to school shopping in NC so my daughter and I hit the stores to pick up her back to school supplies.  She will be a senior this year and she really didn't need a lot.  We picked up a couple of notebooks, paper, pens, and pencils.  She wanted a new pencil bag but could not find one that she liked.  So, I offered to make her one.  Now, I am always offering to make things for her but I am very guilty of not being fast about it.  I promised that I would have a pencil case made for her before the start of school.  So we headed over to the fabric store where she picked out the fabric and zipper.  And I searched online for a pattern.
I googled something like zippered pouch tutorial and found a blog post on one of my favorite web sites, Sew Mama Sew.  The post lead to a free class offered on Craftsy.  So of course I signed up for the class and printed the pattern and today I made this:

The zipper is orange (which is her favorite color) matches the bird's beak. 
Here is the inside:

I hope she likes it!

And now, I have to make my husband a pair of golf shorts.  And suggestions?

It has been a long time since I've swapped but Shawnee is hosting a Favorite Things Swap and I am so excited to join in.

Valentine Fat Quarter Swap

I recently joined in on the fun at Shawnee's Valentine Fat Quarter Swap.  My partner was Jennifer.  Here is the apron whe sent me:

 

She also sent me some wonderful goodies including the BEST Chocolate Covered Cherries that I've ever had.

Thank you Jennifer!

What I Made for My Secret Santa Partner

As you know, I joined the Secret Santa Swap again this year. This is one of my favorite swaps. I LOVE Shawnee's swaps and I LOVE Christmas. We had to choose a word for a "theme". I picked MERRY. Here is what I sent:

And I made an apron too...

It's hard to see from the picture but the apron has snowmen on it. I think that it is super cute. I really hope my partner likes it.

Secret Santa Swap 2012

A Christmas SWAP - I'm so excited! Shawnee wanted all swappers to answer a few questions to help out our partners so here they are... 1. What are your hobbies? I love to read, sew, quilt, scrapbook, and make cards. 2. What are your favorite colors? Red! I love the traditonal Christmas colors but also pink and lime green. Also liking teals right now. 3. Do you collect anything? Not really unless you count fabric. 4.Are you allergic to any fibers or animals? I am allergic to cats but I live with one and so I stay medicated. 5. Do you have any pets? I have a Mini poodle named Bueller. My daughter has a cat named Boots and a guinea pig named Nester. 6. Coffee, Tea, or Chocolate? Love all three but only green or herbal teas (no black or red tea, please). I love flavored coffees and drink a lot of tea especially Blueberry green tea and Peppermint tea. 7.What do you like to read? A good thriller and sometimes a sweet romance. My favorite authors are Nicholas Sparks and James Patterson. I do have a list of books that I've read this year and last on my blog to give you a good idea. 8. Do you prefer Cookies or Candies as a sweet? Both. I really like dark chocolate! 9. What is your favorite holiday treat? Chocolate covered cherries! 10. Describe your favorite holiday tradition. Putting up the tree and also celebrating my daughter's birthday. She will be 17 on December 25. 11. Did you believe in Santa as a child? I still do! 12. When do you open presents? Christmas morning! 13. Do you put up a tree and when? If not, how do you celebrate? Yes we do. Usually the weekend after Thanksgiving or the next if we go out of town for Thanksgiving. 14. Does your tree have a theme? No. 15. What has been your favorite gift to give? to receive? I love to give homemade gifts. My favorite Christmas gift EVER was my daughter. I also love getting pj's, slippers, and socks to keep me warm. Also love knitted things like scarves because I can't knit and am in awe of those who can. Merry Christmas!

First Snow Day 2012

No, I didn't take any pictures but I wish I had. We received just a light dusting of what looked like a pretty big storm that hit just north of us but it was enough to cancel school today. And BRRRR its cold outside. However, my the end of the week, the highs are suppose to be near 60. Go figure!