I'm really back to blogging now. Promise! I've really missed y'all, too. That either proves that we are all dear friends or I am waaaaay too addicted to bloggy pals. Honestly I am not sure which one is true.

So a quick review in bullet points to bring y'all up to date:

* I am nearly finished with my Christmas shopping. Bestie helped me figure out my last gift for my family's Dirty Santa/Yankee Trade game. I have found out over the last few years that the name you know the game by depends on if you live above or below the Mason Dixon line. Do my Canadian and UK friends call it something different too?

* I do believe that I will accomplish my goal of never setting foot in any sort of mall this holiday season. I feel this warrants bragging on my part as I detest malls at holiday time. Seeing scores of shoppers (read: grubby teeny-bopppers and people with runny noses and germs) hovering over the extra stations in the middle of the walkways (peddling lotions, potions and calendars) is just not my thing.

* All hail free shipping charges! The majority of my Christmas gifts are from the beloved internet. How ever did I survive without it? Plus I can sip a hot toddy while shopping. Malls tend to frown upon that.

* Ironically I am raising my etsy shipping charges to cover tracking numbers. I have now had two orders never make it to the buyers. Not only does it make me feel incredibly guilty (and the first time it happened to a bloggy friend- making me feel even worse. She was sooo nice about it though.), but it means I have to make and ship and item twice when all is said and done. I didn't used to add delivery confirmation to items that were inexpensive, figuring that people want the lowest shipping charges possible. I don't profit from those charges and will refund a buyer if I miscalculate and overcharge. But I'm tired of feeling terrible from missing packages.








* I made what I thought was a lovely gift basket for my Junior League's Holiday Cocktail Party that also has a silent auction. It's a baby girl gift set that included a lot of Lilly fabric stuff like a burpee and bib set, onesie, bow headband and coordinating headband for mom and more. Clear bags are my gift wrap obsession right now.





* The craft show last Saturday was a bust! I got there right on time, set up and was ready right on time. And then I sat. On my ass. Reading Facebook statuses. The entire day. I hands down had the best booth. And it was a decent size show. Not huge by any means but not tiny either. In a school. So you would think all the families would attend. Crickets. My biggest sales were from fellow crafters. Making me feel obligated to return the sale favors. Anyway, it was so odd. And funny because when I found out where my space was, I was thrilled to bits. Seriously a great space. Right in the very center facing the front door. And of course I was the most colorful. But if no one is there....

* We also got our first snow of the season that same day. But not like blizzard material. Less than they have down in Texas. So that's like nothing by mountain standards. A good dusting really. Not an excuse for people not to come to their own child's elementary school craft fair, that's for darn sure.

* I pronounce the word elementary like elemen-tare-E, not elemen-tree. When I lived down south, people thought this was the funniest thing ever. Before people started pointing it out, I never thought twice about it. There's no tree in elementary.

* I bought ginger zucchini marmalade from the nice jam lady across from me. Simply because I thought it was unique. Can't really taste the zucchini but it is quite yummy. I'm planning on using it on chicken in the crockpot one night when I don't feel like cooking.

* Sunday was my town's annual Stroll and it was lovely as always. It was followed by a dinner at a neighbor's home, which was even lovelier. One neighbor made THE BEST lemon bars and I need to track down that recipe. Lemon bars are one of my most favorite deserts. Sweet and tart and what's not to love?!

* A while back Bestie told us about how she volunteers to be a product tester for Spanx. They send her products now and then and she wears them and gives feedback. So I signed up but never heard back from them. Until a package arrived a few days ago. I can't tell you about the product but I can say I was tickled pink that they picked me to participate in the testing program. So fun!

* Monday I finally swapped out my summer and winter shoes. It's ridiculous that I waited this long, I know! Bye bye sandals and hello boots. Not that I was wearing sandals. But they were still out and the boots were not. Now that snow has fallen, I need boots to at least walk Sadie Kate each night or my tootsies will freeze right off.

* Today I spent the second half of my day in my beloved Vermont. Golly, I heart that state! My hairs are cut and blonde and rather cute, if I do say so myself. I think it had been 5-6 months since my last visit. I just got side-tracked and busy and then was trying to plan it around travel to pinch a penny. Hopefully it's still cute mid-January when I go to my Godson's baptism.

* As always I popped in Lilly and found a few things I wanted but only walked away with one pair of sale priced cords that I needed. I only have a few pairs of pants that fit well right now and it's too darn cold to wear a dress when avoidable. Unfortunately, my experience was less than fabulous. The sales gal was rude and completely bothered when I asked if they had the Kaya dress. I was literally the only person in the store and she was flipping on the internet. Which is fine, when no customers are around. But it's not like I asked her to make me a dress. I just asked if they had it. She never once offered to take my items or get me a fitting room or how anything fit after I got myself and my arm full my own fitting room. Disappointing. Especially at the Pink And Green Mecca. I almost didn't buy the pants but I really need them and they fit well. So home they came from the rude girl who literally wadded them up in the tiniest bag possible.

* I ran into JCrew before my hair appointment and tried on four tops, bought two (they were 50% off), used a very ancient gift card that apparently had like $2.50 more than the price of the items left on it. So I walked away with two tops and $2.50 in cash. I made money on the transaction. How fun is that?! I bought myself the rarely seen by my lips these days Diet Coke from MickeyD's (they have the best formula!) and made it to my apt with time to spare. I've got skills!

* I brought home a slice of the very best creme brule bread pudding ever to be made. It's huge- like 3 pieces worth. And full of naughty bad stuff. But worth every nibble. Kate Moss is wrong. Skinny does not taste good.







* I stopped at a Salvation Army on my way home from Vermont because I always manage to find a little something at this particular store. I scored big time! Five perfect (albeit dusty at the moment) silicone baking pans. I make bread constantly and keep reusing those tin pans. But seeing as how they are not intended for re-use, they are now all wonky. These are perfect. The square pan is for making marshmallows later this week and the muffin pan is for....muffins. Total price for my five pans? $7.05! The SA was NOT a bust!

* Sadie is very tired from doing all that ....whatever it is she does. Just being a princess takes a lot of energy, she claims. She is soundly sleeping on the sofa. On a blanket. With her head on a pillow. It's a rough life!