Christmas Traditions

I was reading today's Scrapgirls newsletter and was reminded of some of my favorite Christmas traditions. There's the basic ones, like when we put up the tree and It's A Wonderful Life and Christmas dinner, and then there are some that are completly ours. Others may not understand them and many came about more by accident than anything else. For example, for as long as I can remember we always opened one gift on Christmas eve, then one year us girls all got matching pajama's and every year it has been the same. Santa always leaves a new set of ornaments on our tree, something going back to when we used to spend Christmas with my paternal Grandparents before my Grandmother passed away. Often these are gorgeous feathered birds which we would look foreward to putting up each year. Though not 'traditional' ornaments I thought they were the most beautiful things I had ever seen and always made sure to put the prettiest near the top. Then there are my personal traditions, like buying a new role of paper each year just for my gifts and my new book ritual. This started when, angry at being sent to bed when I wanted to play with my new gifts, I decided to spite my parents by reading 'this dumb book about a wizard'. That book turned was Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The rest is history.

So I have a proposal for you all. What are your favorite Christmas traditions? You can make an LO or just leave a comment. I'd love to hear about them :).

Bank Boredom

In line for the bank and bored out of my mind. This is why I don't come inside unless I have to. The machine is so much easier! More polite too sometimes.

So it's a new week and definitely the holiday season. This past weekend we had our local Santa Clause parade and the weekend before was the Toronto parade. I think I'll think up a Christmas themed tutorial for you all. Look for that by tommorow night :)

This post is mostly just an update. Like I said. I'm bored. And in the time it has taken me to meticulously type this out on my iTouch the line hasn't moved once. I have overheard some interesting conversations though. I really need to get out of this town.


**Bank Update**
30 minutes later I'm finally free and off to get a much needed London Fog.

Happy Scrapping ♥

City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style

Ah Christmas shopping. Is there any better time to be in the mall? Unless of course it's December 24th or a you happen to be in a Toys R Us when schools out. That's not a good scene. I went to drop off some resumes and pick up a new planner for myself (same brand as 09 ♥) and ended up spending several hours. I probably shouldn't have, in fact I definitely shouldn't have, nut it's just so festive. I actually didn't buy much in the end and still had a blast. Here's a freebie for you inspired by the Sears Wishbook.



I'm also toying with the idea of creating some freebies specifically for those following the Twitter feed. Get over there now just in case :).

Happy Scrapping ♥

Pumpkin Spice Freebie

With Thanksgiving coming up for so many of you, I thought I'd put up this great autumn themed alpha. It's a full set of Capitals and several bits of punctiation. I've also thrown in a little surprise :)

I'm fully in the christmas spririt thanks to the Toronto Santa Clause Parade yesterday afternoon and as a result I expect I'll have many seasonal freebies, tutorials and even a few quick pages for you in the coming weeks. Check back often and to be sure you don't miss anything you can now subscribe to my Twitter account! (On a side note, the background on my twitter page is a modified version of the one I've been trying to get up on the blog).

Happy Scrapping ♥

Leisk #7

I am proud to present Jack. A 6month grey striped Tabby and the latest addition to our family. Zoe got him for her birthday Wedneswday and today he finally has a name. He's absolutly adorabe and tiny and incredibly fast. Alsway underfoot and still exploring the house. I'm definitely in love.

The Best, Softest, Easiest Cookies Ever & A Freebie

These are the greatest cookies ever. My mom showed me this recipe. Incredibly soft and chewy and ready in a half-hour tops you'll never bake anything else. You can make any variation you want, so long as you have the cake mix.

Ingredients:
1pkg. Cake Mix 2 Eggs 1/3c. Oil Chocolate Chips/Dried Fruit/Sprinkles/etc. (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Mix Cake Mix, eggs, oil and add-in's in mixing bowl until dough forms
3. Drop evenly spaced onto greased cookie sheet
4. Bake 8 - 10 minutes
5. Remove from oven and let cool before removing from baking sheet. Cookies will be very soft.

Can be stored in an airtight container for a few days, but the softness doesn't last long in the open. Which is why is good these are so easy.

I made this adorable little recipe card to go along with it using the Dinner Party set from Shabby Princess, but can't offer it as a quick page or anything of the sort because it's not my stuff. I'd love to see some other recipe cards though if anyone has their own design.



And finally, here's the aforementioned freebie:

A New Fanaticism, Freebies and WTF Suri?

Hey all,

Yes, yes it's been months. I'm sorry, but absence makes the heart grow fonder...or...something like that.

In the time that I've been not blogging for my non-existent readers, I've been working and in the time I've not been working I've been getting addicted to a few new shows. Sex and the City (which really started last summer when L from the Del had a few seasons), Gossip Girl (I love the clothes and actually prefer it to the books), Chuck (adorable super-powered nerd anyone?) and finally...True Blood. I'm working my way through season two right now and O-M-G. The only negative is that I pretty much have to watch when no one else is around as there is just enough nudity that anyone who walked in the room at the wrong moment would probably be like WTF are you watching and that could get awkward. Same holds true for SatC, but I'm not supposed to be watching that anyways apparently.

So today I was browsing the Peices of Flair application on Facebook - which is an Office Space reference, which I love - for True Blood flair when I found this:

I love it because it's about Lafayette, promotes True Blood and bashes Twilight*. So, needless to say I added it then I made a DP for MSN and a new desktop background (side-note does anyone call them 'wallpapers' anymore? 'cause I have been and no one seems to know what I'm talking about). So if you want 'em:




















Of course, I mean no copyright infringment, I don't own any of this.

In other news Suri Cruise, in true celebutot fashion, is wearing heels. Or at least she was in Boston. They're not even those fake little plastic Disney Princess ones, which really, aren't supposed to be worn out. They're for dress up. As in put on them and Mommies old dress and feed baby from an invisible bowl of cereal. Now I don't know the first thing about the very-young and fabulous set, but I heard about this through my cousins Facebook. This distubs me for a few reasons. I love heels as much, and maybe more than the next woman (or man. Whatever floats your boat), but I'm 20, not 3. First we'll start with the health issue. It is no secret that high heels are damaging. It has been proven time and time again. There're the obvious blisters and pinched toes, but then there's the long-term damage to knee's and ankles, but we do it anyways because as women that's our perogative. Key word being women. Not toddlers.

Secondly high heels have always been associated with...well sex. Not outright, but have you ever noticed how in those movies where the girl gets made-over she ends up in heels? I mean they make your butt look smaller and force you to walk with a bit of a sexy sway. Would it be ok for a 3-year old to wear a shirt with a promiscious slogan on it (or dress like a Bratz doll)? My final words on the matter? This is wrong and potentially harmful to such a young girl. Love the rest of the outfit though. She really is adorable.


That's all for today, Happy Scrapping ♥


*Disclaimer I loved the book Twilight and somehow, in a bizzare fit of telepathy or foreshadowing or whatever knew that if my sister read it, she would get all obsessive and it would ruin it for me. It's happened before. Well she read it. She loved it and it actually wasn't so bad. Then...everyone else read it. Then everyone elses sister read it. And now it's this media-whoring, pre-teen exploiting, tabloid feeding typhoon of OMG's, squealing and obnoxiousness. just my opinion, if you're a rabid twi-hard (even the name sounds dirty...) please don't hurt me.