December December full of Christmas Cheer

The moon is full and there is a nip in the air that can't be ignored. The wonderful smell of wood smoke fills the senses as all the fires start to be lit. The first of December is near.Busy little fingers are making, baking, sewing, knitting and getting busy with a hook, my days play along to the hum of my sewing machine. Yes its that time when this Mommy gets too busy to blog as I am so busy making for the big day. Wanted to pop in and say hello and wish you a Happy December. A lot is going on in the Suzie Sews household, some good and some not so good, but presents and decorations are busy underway, my calender is filling up by the hour, school concerts, appointments and all things BUSY!!! Its the time of year when the house comes alive, people popping in to say hello and being warmed by a glass of mulled wine.

The school fair has been and gone is a flurry of baking a few dozen cakes, its the first time of not being able to help on the day. I have to admit it was nice to go along and support the event with my children, especially meeting Santa.

By the end of each day, the children are asleep, I have plans to settle in my sewing room or stand over my stove to make some more tasty money saving treats...somehow though I only seem to manage to curl up on the sofa in front of the fire with a warming class of rich red wine ...dreaming of all things cosy.

Can you hear it....

Can you hear it?

Can you feel it?

Its on its way... soon you will have that giddy feeling in your tummy, the winter will take on a romantic slant, it will be all about cosy nights around the fire, quilts over the knees, twinkling lights, hot chocolate with marshmallows or rich warming mulled wine in the local pub after a walk over the moors, all with the soundtrack of carols and Christmas songs from many years each one bringing you memories of time gone by.
OH my word, yes I am feeling Christmassy, it just kinda snuck up on me, suddenly it was November a grey miserable month for me personally, it marks the end of outdoor play, time on the beach and just being outside. November holds some unpleasant memories for me. So one minute I was looking out of my kitchen window to my view over the hills, watching the clouds racing across the sky bringing with them so much rain, feeling sad inside and desperate for brighter days. The next minute I am in my sewing room, going through my Christmas craft books and sewing in red, white and green fabric... MAKING ME SMILE!!!
Today I started the Christmas baking, the rich warming smells of cinnamon and spice, the warmth from the cooker chases away the blues, and the Christmas cake finally gets started...
The fruits steeps in brandy,I treat my boys to Christmas ham for supper (Nigella's Ham in Coke) and of course all the baking calls for the thick, runny jewel coloured delights of syrup and treacle...
Oh yes the tasty treats of Christmas are just warming the heart of my home right now...
Happy Thanksgiving to those of you who celebrate it. I heard on the radio today a debate about the British adopting the day, it was described as Christmas without the stress of presents a day to count your blessings. I believe in our crafty blogging community we have the gift of counting our blessing anyway, but a day to think and share it with those we love, a day with food and tradition...yes Happy Thanksgiving.

Christmas fair...

Lookie Lookie...what came in the post for me...I am a bit of an owl fan and I was so very LUCKY to win this little one from Lucy Kate Crafts, she is just so cute and even came with a few pieces of lovely fabric and the most adorable buttons, especially the little daisy ones...I was so pleased to get this gift, the sewing is beautiful. Go check her out if you do not read her blog already, she has just made the cutest elf hat in blog-land using a pair of leggings...yes you did read correctly...yer how clever is this girl? Well I never did get round to telling you about the Christmas fair at our little village school. I have to admit it was all a little stressful, I completely unintentionally upset a friend and I shed a tear or two about it, plus my own kids wanted to go with Mommy to the fair and not have to watch Mommy with all the other children. I always thought it was a great example for my children to see Mommy doing lots of things in the community, but when they miss you and want to be with you, well I did feel guilty. I did however make time to take them to see Santa and grab a little something sweet (to late for the bacon butties) in the school cafe at the quieter time of the fair.
Now saying all of that (I do not mean to be a moaning Minnie) when I actually got down to the crafting with the children to see their little faces and some of the creativity going on I knew it was worth it all. A few creative makes where laid out, kit style and a free for all table of papers pens, glue, stickers, beads...you name it...it was all there. The reason for this is we have so many children in at one time and there are only two of us doing it and at times only one, we need something the kids can do completely on their own without adult help...this table provides this and it was by far the most popular one...some of the things the children come up with when they are left to their own ideas just blows me away.
I had planed to make the little Reindeer badges for the children, alas ran out of time and to be fair we did have enough on already...I wanted to make all the pom poms for the day, I had a couple of older children round for dinner one evening and I thought they could help me...Best laid plans and all that...Still lots of baking got done and everyone was happy to join in.
The night before the the fair was a little hectic and family members got cross with me as I worked until late surrounded by a mess, dinners remained uncooked and bedtimes got delayed...naughty Mom!!!
The joy on the faces of my children as they told a rather fantastic Santa what they wanted for Christmas and all the children full of excitement that at last Christmas was on its way, the school was decked out in all its Christmas sparkle and they ran around filled with Tinsel Fever!!! On the PTA side of it all we made a whooping £1800. So you know its worth putting that little bit of effort in.

Its been an emotional week this week, I have thought a lot about the
previous post, I thank you all for your amazing comments, Moms have been reduced
to tears at the school gate, even Moms that never met her. Such an
unthinkable thing to happen. I am awaiting the funeral date, I have been
told that it is requested that we all wear bright colours and sing her to
heaven. I think this speaks so much about the person she was. I thank you
again for your comments.