Countdown to Christmas

We've got snow, plenty of it!   The sun is shining and the morning is beautiful, with bright red spots of cardinals digging in my yard for the bird seed that they mostly ignored before the storm hit.   And it has been bitterly cold -- minus 3 degrees right now -- so I will put out extra rations again today.  I can see that the bunnies and squirrels have been visiting, too,  as there probably won't be much wild food available for the next day or so.   If the very, very fat and very, very furry squirrel is any indication, the critters have been preparing for this time.

My primary goal this weekend was to finish my sewing projects so that I could put away the sewing machine and get the house clean for Christmas!    I have taken to sewing on my dining table because the room is brighter and the view is less restricted than it is in the corner of my 'craft' room, but that means that my sewing takes over my house unless I am careful to restrain it.   And with family planning to come over for Christmas brunch, restraint was the order of the day.     It was no hardship since I was pretty much snowed in yesterday by our last winter storm, so there were fewer distractions than usual.  My last sewing tasks included holiday napkins, several men's scarves, and a couple more pillow cases.  

All simple projects, so the sewing and finishing was easy, and the housework was no big deal  -- the HARD part was not starting the many new projects that are on my mind!

But I had an incentive not to immerse myself in something new, since my fella and I are planning to go to Chicago for a quick 2-day trip.    It's just an impulsive couple-of-days away, with no visits to the people we usually want to see, just some relaxation and maybe a little shopping.   I'm thinking of it as my reward for a clean house and completed projects, and I'm looking forward to it, although it looks like we DID pick the coldest couple days of the year!   But we are hardy folk, and it will be fun to ride the train, fun to have a little space to pay attention to each other, and fun to enjoy the city lights.    Whatever you are doing this last week of advent, I hope you are also having fun and spending time with people you love!