It's Newsletter Time...

it's the beginning of a new month, and that always means a newsletter chock full of inspiration from my lovely team members at Scrapsupply. for the December newsletter, i was the support for Sue Thomas' article on using tags. you see, every other month i write and article with a FREE tutorial, and on my off month, i support someone else's article. you can find links to all my tutorials over there in that sidebar on the right-hand side of the screen! personal use only---please do not redistribute as your own. sharing a link to the download is okay. :o)

anywho. here's a little peek at one of my projects. click up there on the words December newsletter to see more!


Journaling reads: For as long as I can remember, Christmas Eve has ALWAYS been spent at Grandma Pearce’s house. It’s just known. It’s our little tradition. Grandma goes all out. After donning her festive shirt or sweater she gets to work cooking all the food and pies herself. Every year. And, every year I offer to arrive early and help her cook, but it never fails; she always, always says she can handle it alone. She makes the turkey, and ham, and dressing, and a special dish of oyster dressing for her boys (my dad, Craig, and my Uncle Terry). And then there are always homemade mashed potatoes, and the most delicious noodles with gravy to go on top. And a relish tray loaded with pickles. Mmmmmmmm. My favorites are the dills. It’s worth mentioning that the pickles are from her own canning. Grandma has always put away the fruits of her harvest to enjoy all year long. And we have deviled eggs, and pickled beets, and enough green beans to feed an army. After dinner, it’s the rule that the table must be cleared and dishes all washed before we all gather in the living room for presents. It used to be that the children hand-washed them all, but Grandma has had a dishwasher now for several years. Christmas at Grandma’s has always been an “all are welcome” affair. Through the years we’ve celebrated with close friends of hers and their children, even. We’ve always just seen them as part of our family. Glenn and Eleanor have since passed on, and so has Grandpa, but their spirit remains with each passing year. Now, we’ve welcomed new faces to our circle with the addition of Joel who comes by way of my cousin Nannette, Terry’s daughter. We open gifts—all at the same time, talk loudly, share stories, and laugh a lot. And “A Christmas Story”, the movie is usually playing in the background and the echoing sound of each line of the script being quoted word for word. Then we all disperse to the kitchen to scarf down the pies...always a cherry one (for me and Greg), apple (for Doug), and chocolate meringue (for just about everyone else). Yep. We’re a spoiled bunch...thanks to Grandma.

it's worth a mention that Christmas Eve also holds a touch of sadness for me too, since it's the last i get to see "little grandma with the crumbles on her face" as ashlyn calls her---so descriptive, that one. for the past several years she's packed up and headed to Florida with my aunt and uncle in their RV. it'll be the same this year. Florida will be their home until April. i can't say i blame her escaping this cold Ohio weather, but dang.........i.want.her.here. i'm SO lucky to still have grandparents alive and doing so well.

do you have any special Christmas Eve/Christmas Day traditions? and are you ready for another winner!??? the winner of the lovely pink goodies goes to...............PETRA! email me at taniamwillis at (yahoo.com) with your address.

and up for grabs today................it's mystery prize! hahhaaaa. seriously, it's something good, but it's dark here this morning, and my hair sopping wet up in a towel, and i have to have a kid at school in 40 minutes and then another at the doctor on the other side of town 30 minutes after that. so no time for pictures this morning. forgive my poor planning, pretty please? i'll update with a photo later. enjoy the newsletter!