I know you won't believe this...

This is actually progress on organizing my craft room. Slowly but surely, I will be one of those people with one of "those" craft rooms that make crafters drool. At least that is what I want to be. I figure progress is progress (even if it is unrecognizable by the naked and untrained eye).

Also (insert gasp of excitement here) I am on Thrifty Threads again! This is really exciting for me because I very much admire Angela's blog. Stop over. Take a gander. Look at more than just my listing because she has some great things to say. I dare you to leave unmotivated.

I am crawling (with a chest cold that rivals Camille- old movie reference, forgive me if you don't get it) towards the weekend. Christmas cantata coming up at church and I am supposed to be a dignified Queen Elizabeth. That is very hard to do while you are hacking up a lung. Bah.

Merry Christmas if we don't meet again until after.

Felt is my medium

I love to work in felt. Somehow it is so satisfying. In particular, felt has nearly no match (in my humble opinion) when it comes to making Christmas stockings.

I have made all of the stockings for my family (somehow my dog ended up with the biggest one) except my own.

My stocking was made for me by a friend of my mom's when I was just a baby.

I just finished Miss Tiny's stocking...finally...I have had part of it done for over a year.

See our stockings hung by the foosball table with care (a tradition in the Tabanou home).

Miss Z and I also worked on our annual gingerbread house this weekend. I use a kit because it would make me want to die a lot to try to make the pieces myself. This year we used the Trader Joe's kit and it was really cute!

Miss Tiny helped us by eating cheese puffs (notice the telltale cheese dust on the shirt and the bit of cheese puff drool on her chin).

The results...

I will not let Christmas make me crazy (my new mantra)

There were never more devoted sisters...

This past weekend I had the supreme privilege of getting to visit my sister and her family. This was my first time to see my youngest nephew in person. IT WAS AWESOME! Here are just a few pics of the adventures we had during my trip (BTW- somehow I didn't get a picture alone with my oldest nephew or my brother in law but I am just stating right here that is not for a lack of love... gotta be fair and all).

My dad, Glen, sent deer meat home with sister at Thanksgiving so that I could eat my favorite chicken fried backstrap. I haven't chicken fried anything in a while, but you know, it is kind of like riding a bicycle.

MMMMMMMM...does not begin to cover it.

I also brought my niece a late birthday present. She loves fashion, crafting and recycling, so I thought we would make some recycled t-shirt necklaces (link to Threadbanger tutorial). This is such a fun craft and so fast and easy. It is very satisfying to walk away with a finished project in so little time. We ended up having so much fun that we pilfered shirts from my brother-in-law so we could make more stuff. We made a headband, scarf, two necklaces and a bracelet. Now I want some for me!

(does this dress make me look like Loretta Lynn?)

I love my sister to pieces. We always have so much fun together. At one point this weekend when we were Ebaying together on side-by-side laptops and giggling uncontrollably, my nephew peeked his head in and said, "You guys were meant to be sisters." I couldn't be more blessed.

horses...horses...horses...horses... (if you don't get this, see Sleepless in Seattle)