Christmas Concert Completed!

I used to put on the Christmas concert at our school. That is, I did until they hired a real music teacher. And she is amazing. She teaches music to all the elementary grades, as well as teaches band to the whole junior high. So to say that this is her event is an understatement. Also an understatement is how great the show was last night.

The Preschool class sang We Wish You A Merry Christmas (or as Cohen sings it, We Wish You WERE Merry Christmas), and he was one of the few who was singing the verse he was supposed to, when he was supposed to. (Imagine me beaming with pride!) He also snuck up on stage at the evening performance to sing it with the rest of the school.

The grade one/two class also did a great job. I don't know how she got 31 kids to do the choreography without someone getting a black eye, but she did. I was so proud of both my kiddos. They are fortunate to attend the school they do, and have the teachers they do.
I am clearly full of the Christmas spirit! :)

Wheat Bag Making Machine!

So... thanks to Pinterest I saw some adorable little owl ornaments. And from that post, the idea for teacher gifts was born. I made mini wheat bag owls out of felt, and the wheat that Grant had leftover from his samples this harvest. Holy time consuming. And these ones aren't the ones that were blanket stitched all around. But they are adorable, and I might make some for the kiddos for their stockings! I had grandiose plans of making 10, which would have been doable had I completed them when I started them, but alas, I got six done by staying up until 12:30 last night....
But they are done. Yay! And they have been handed out. We had our afternoon performance of the Christmas Concert today, and it was awesome. The play was great, the band was great, the preschool kids were adorable, and Avery is the cutest singing reindeer I know.

Not Gonna Happen

So, when I made a goal for myself to complete 50 layouts this year, I thought it was doable. In fact, I was sure I would easily complete it by summer, and be on the next 50.
Alas, this wasn't my year to scrap. I have never been this far behind, and I am okay with it. I think a lot of my lack of productivity is that I didn't attend a retreat this fall, which is something I usually do. I couldn't make it work. I remember I used to look at friends with kids older than mine who never seemed to have the time to scrapbook, and I thought they just didn't prioritize right. Now I get that they do... that scrapbooking isn't more important than my kids getting the chance to participate in extra curricular activities, or volunteering at their school trumps paper these days. So I won't be reaching my goal. But it certainly wasn't for lack of trying. Or maybe it was that I was so preoccupied with all the stuff I have pinned, that scrapbooking took a back seat to crafting. Since discovering and addicting myself to Pinterest, I have made several things I have pinned. Including a yarn wrapped wreath, teacher gifts for Christmas, a bunch of yummy new recipes, and I am working on a t-shirt rug. So, although I wasn't scrapping, I was getting my creative juices flowing, and that is a good thing. (Aren't I Martha?)

12 Sleeps and 10 Randoms

There are 12 sleeps. 12 SLEEPS! 12 Sleeps until Christmas. I am excited because I am ready, but looking at my calendar, I have a million (or so) things to get through first before Christmas Eve. Here are at least ten of them!

1. Three more Guided Reading sessions at school. I love being able to go in every Monday and Wednesday morning to Avery's class, and work with her classmates with this program. The group I have been working with made huge gains this week, and I am so proud of them!

2. Thursday morning play date. A neighbour and I have been trying for months to get our sons together for a morning play date. It has fallen through for a variety of reasons, including my kid was sick, her boys were sick, I had to work, etc. But this Thursday, I am loading Cohen up, driving 5 kilometres, and spending time with Jenna and her boys!

3. Family Dance night! Our school has an amazing tradition of teaching the students a variety of traditional dances (like the Butterfly, Bunny Hop, and Schottische) and then we dance! It is a free night out, and the kids get to move like Jagger. Outfits are picked out, and moves have been practiced. Can't wait!

4. Avery's first dance recital of the dancing year. She is dancing twice on Friday, and she has been working so hard on both the Fling and Sword dance. I can't wait to see how much she has improved since last year. She has come to realize that she isn't going to master the dance immediately, and she is okay with that. (And I am so happy she is done stressing about it.)

5. Tickets for Coldplay. I am crossing my fingers, toes, eyes, arms, and everything else that crosses that I get two tickets for Coldplay. They are coming to Calgary in April, and the last time I saw them I was floored at how truly talented they are. Tickets go on sale on Saturday morning, and you can bet your ass I will be on the phone, and computer trying to get some!

6. Curling date with Tara. Last year the Boston Pizza Cup Men's curling was held in High River, and Tara was the driver for the coolest team. They were why I curl. For the social element of it. (And they were clearly good enough to make provincials... which I am not.) Anyhoo, we had such a great time with these guys, and Tara just got a message that they will be back this weekend for play downs. You can bet we will be there cheering! (And perhaps imbibing.)

7. Studio C stuff.... I have sittings, weddings, images, proofs, discs, and birth announcements all needing to be done this week. And I don't know when I will get it all done. Maybe when I stop blogging???

8. Teacher gifts. I saw some adorable owl ornaments for a Christmas tree, and thought they would be super cute as mini wheat bags for the teachers to warm up and keep their hands toasty during supervision. I am also making sugar scrubs for them. Thank you Pinterest. Now I just need Pinterest to make me some time.

9. Christmas Concert. Next Wednesday is the school Christmas Concert. There are two performances, and it is always so perfectly adorable. Cohen has been practicing his song for days and he has been singing "We wish you WERE Merry Christmas" at the top of his lungs. I don't have the heart to tell him.

10. Wrapping the kids gifts. That is the only thing I haven't wrapped because they were hell bent on helping me last weekend. I don't have time on Christmas Eve because we host a scotch tasting for friends and family, so sometime in the next 12 days that will need to be done too....

So, I guess if you look at it from a positive perspective, I have 12 days and 10 things to do, so clearly plenty of time!

Layout #39 - A+

Loved the Fancy Pants school line. I seem to find myself drawn to it lately... I guess it has something to do with the fact that I have two kids in school.
I would also like to take credit for this layout, but it was one I scraplifted off one I saw on Pinterest. What a great little way to bring sketches and inspiration to crops! Anyhoo, these were the school pics I took of Avery, and she didn't make her silly "I'm a model" face for any of them! Perhaps that is what I should have scrapped instead!
TFL

Layout #38 - Read

Cohen started reading this fall. I think he maybe felt a little left out whenever he saw Avery reading, and wanted in on the action. He started the same way Avery did. He picked up a Dick and Jane book, and started sounding out the words. I am so proud of him. He is doing such a great job, and is learning new words every day. I bought him a bunch of new readers for his stocking this year, because the Barbie and princess ones of Avery's aren't cutting it.
As for the layout, I don't know if it is done or not. It is really simple for my liking. Too simple perhaps, but maybe that is just as well, considering the topic is equally simple....
TFL!