A little bit of Christmas

Simple paper gifts

Because I wasn't around home during the Christmas week, I didn't get a chance to tell you about some of the gifts I received or made up to give away. Above is a photo of some of the smaller paper items that I made to include in some of the Christmas gifts. These are also some of the items that I make for the craft table at the Amherst Island Christmas craft sale. The paper teapots hold three singly wrapped tea bags. Santa and Frosty are simply wrapped chocolate bars and the reindeer noses are 8 malt chocolate balls with one red candy cherry ball. Templates and papers are free for printing on the Web, and seem to add a lot of fun to an otherwise frugal gift. 

Spice mixes make a nice gift

I bought the tiny mason jars as a set from the Dollar Tree. The labels I printed from the Web. These are spice mixes that I make myself at home for my own use, which include taco seasoning, seasoning salt and Rajin' Cajun spice mix. All recipes I got from various sources on the Web. I have seen small spice mixes like these in gift stores for quite a bit of money. The homemade gift that I made "in bulk" this past Christmas was a mini scrapbook. They took a lot of time and effort to make, but I think were quite worth it. I didn't take a picture of even one of them. But I have decided that I will make more of them (at a slower pace) throughout this year. I will post a photo of my next one. 

Woven wall hanging

I received this lovely home-made gift along with a gift certificate for pizza. It is presently hanging in my living room. 

A sign for one of my flower beds.

I've made these garden signs for other people, but never made one for myself. My son's GF made this for me. She and my son also gifted me with a new patio umbrella for my deck table. They took a cue from a small wish list I keep on my fridge of things that I want to replace because they are broken or torn or cannot be mended any more....things that are not dire needs but are important enough to make my wish list. I was so happy to get this. 

Our very dear friends in Charleston Lake gifted us with a collection of home preserves and a portable roaster oven that works a dream. I used it to cook our turkey when my daughter and her family came to visit after Boxing Day. It will save me electricity from not having to use my oven. My brother in Smith Falls gifted me with a mandolin and another admission to the Annual Cheese Festival in Picton this summer. I received a lot of gift certificates and a ton of crafting supplies which made me feel really happy and blessed to have so many people around me who know me well. 

The gifts I gave seemed to be well appreciated. Some of them were very simple. For instance, my brother got a cardboard box from me that was wrapped in brown paper and string, with a tag that read "brown paper package tied up with string, filled with a few of your favourite things". Inside were smaller packages also wrapped in brown paper tied up with string. The tag on the salsa jar read "from your nacho ordinary sister". The tag on the box of assorted hot chocolates wished him  "warm winter wishes". The tag on a box of brandy beans (liquor filled chocolates) assured him that he had "bean" a good brother, etc., etc. There were 6 or 7 gifts inside the gift....all with terrible puns and word plays. What I lack in funds, I try to make up for in imagination and creativity. 

And speaking of creativity, I made four more valentines yesterday afternoon, while I cooked the chicken thighs in my crock pot. I added water and a bag of peelings from the freezer (onion, carrot, celery and cauliflower) to make a pot of soup stock for the freezer. I took all the meat off the bones to make a chicken stir fry later in the week. My son and his GF are making us dinner tonight. I forgot to mention that I used the crock pot the day before yesterday to cook up a pot of pinto beans for the freezer. And today I am making black beans. The crock pot is the most used appliance in my arsenal. 

I am off now to get some laundry in the machine. It is the weekend, when hydro rates are the lowest. Have a great day everyone.