Christmas?!?

It's hard to believe that we're so close to Christmas! Where did '09 go? I've been thoroughly enjoying my Christmas break...my mind and body needed it!

We've done many Christmasy things this week! Kitty got to open his stocking tonight...mostly because he smelled the catnip the second el maestro walked into the house!

But even more than the huge mouse, Gideon likes to help me wrap presents!

See? He's taken over the gift wrap.

And whenever I'm in need of assistance, he's there!

Over the weekend we were up at the ranch where Big brother and his family came for a family Christmas celebration! We enjoyed beautiful nieces...

Pregnant husbands...oh, didn't I mention it? Hahahaha...

Chess games...I played the first game of my life. And I was taught by my 9 year old nephew. Who has played chess once. Twice now.

And, of course, there were gifts to be opened...(I have, like, the cutest sister-in-law ever!)...

Merry Christmas, my friends!

And the winner is...

NANCY!

The apron will be hand delivered tomorrow up at the Ranch. See you soon!

Until the Weekend...

This week has been positively dragging by! I am so ready for a break! My students have really been quite well behaved considering the extra sugar/lack of sleep/looming two weeks spent at home...I think I'm the one that can't handle it!

Does anyone else have this issue???

Anyway...to help us through the last little days of this week....and in honor of my beloved mum's birthday today...Let's have a giveaway!

Who wants one of the cute green Christmas aprons? Leave a comment telling us what you'll cook or bake the minute you tie it on!

I'll draw a winner on Saturday morning (or afternoon...depending on when I wake up ;)

I don't usually do this...

But here are two YouTube videos you must see.

#1: Surprised Kitty
The most adorable kitten you've ever seen. And only 17 seconds long! It's worth it. Trust me.

#2: I'm Yours
Are you familiar with the Jason Mraz song? If not, watch this first.

The Apron

To make the fabulously simple Christmas apron, start with your basic dishtowel, approximately 20 by 25 inches.

For the ties, cut two strips of fabric, 5 inches wide by 3.5 feet.


When I'm not cutting fabric that is striped, I like to fold it over itself and iron a crease where I'll be cutting.



Then my scissors fit right in the crease to make a straight (enough) cut!

Fold the each tie in half, hot dog style! Make sure the right sides are together, so you're looking at the wrong side of the fabric. Pin your tie so the edges won't slip.

Then, if you'd like, trim one end at an angle for a decorative look.

Then, using a 1/4 inch seam, sew each tie, leaving the straight end open for turning.

Turn each tie right side out. This may take a while. Especially when you're making, like, 100 of these babies at once!

You'll need to iron each tie flat. Then, place it on the dishtowel....

And fold the towel over the tie...

Pin the ties in place, and make a long seam down over the tie, across the width of the apron, and up the edge of the other tie.

Viola! Your apron is finished!

Really quickly...

Report cards are due this afternoon, so I'm off to work to finish them! But before I go, I wanted to share with you a few pictures that el maestro took last week. Some friends of ours wanted a family picture for their Christmas card...and here they are! (Straight out of camera, no editing or cropping at this point)

Yuletide

My local craft store sells plain dishtowels for 2.99 apiece (2 bucks on sale!). They can be used as-is to dry dishes, or embellished to make prettier dishtowels. Or, you can turn them into a simple apron! I took a look at the example in the store, and headed home to make a couple much cuter, more Christmasy versions, if I do say so myself.

*Sorry about the blurriness...I was still half asleep and swaying a little bit during the photo shoot.*

What do you think? Should I make a few more to have on hand for hostess gifts this season? Should I do a blog giveaway? Would anyone like a tutorial to make one themselves?

Or am I the only person here who even likes aprons?

Good Morning!