wishing you a HAPPY Holiday Season...

Thank you for a WONDERFUL 2010...your support and friendship has been priceless(really ...truly it has)

Wishing you ALL a Merry Christmas...and a FABULOUS 2011.

We will be taking a wee BLOG-cation...and will be back Jan 2nd.

Until then...many Christmassy HUGS...and Mistletoe kisses...

take care and keep safe.

Char.x

(painting above of all the cousins here in UK-they're all growing SO fast)

Wordless Wednesday

snowy HUGS

Char.x

Snowy Blackbird...oh so plump...

 sitting at the breakfast table with the girls working through their holiday school work...a little plump blackbird sat on a snowy chair top basking in the light of the Sun...

 quick...get the sketch book out.
I really have never drawn birds from life...but have noticed it makes a HUGE difference to my lines of the little creatures.

He was so still that his silhouette was pefect against the white of the snow.

I used watercolour crayons,Mr.R bought me a wonderful Faber-Castel set before we came over to the UK...sketch in pencil crayon and then finish with water...

I adore this little watercolour pad I have...Strathmore watercolour Postcards...paint your own postcards and send them to those special people in your Life...

Talking about special people...thanks to you all for your Holiday wishes and sweet comments...we're counting down the sleeps...and will be celebrating on Christmas Eve as this is a Scandinavian Tradition.

More about traditions this week...today we are celebrating Morfar's Birthday...back with pics tomorrrow.

Wintery HUGS...

Char.x

SNOW strikes hard on the UK...really!!!

 Decorating our Christmas gingerbread ornament cookies with all the cousins over here is always fun...only little M was running around by our feet without patience to sit and place tiny silver balls on the icing...oh well...those pitter patter of feet will grow bigger very soon...and then we'll be waiting for the next little cousin to be on the move...my sister is expecting another one in January...busy times...the families are growing!

 this is Miss J's gingerbread house which she is right this moment as I type...stealing spaceships from and spiling sherbert ALL over the mantel...(SUCH fun!)

 Miss A needed a break from cookies and switched to play-doh for half an hour...

 then out came the lego...aaahhhh the lego...they both can play with this for hours upon hours...

 down went the Sun and out played the girls....we had another 15cm of snow yesterday afternoon...wonderful for us...not for travellers over here in the UK...they REALLY have NO idea how to function in the Snow...
LUCKILY Mr.R arrived early Sat morning and on time...3 hours later Gatwick and Heathrow closed down for the day...and I do beleive are still cancelling flights.

 Jumping in the snow never looked like SO much fun! Wouldn't that hurt ones knees though?

 I drew SNOW KINGS in the snow...and the girls made mazes and snow houses...

the trees are covered with with snow...as are all the roads...and the news can't stop talking about it.
England has a LOT to learn about how to deal with Winter conditions, but I don't think they want to pay out what they would need to to keep their Country running in these conditions....

How is the weather where you are?

Snowy wishes for a wonderful week...hey, perhaps we'll have a white Christmas!
HUGS
Char.x

CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS : gingerbread ornaments...

 every year when we visit my Scandi parents we make a fresh batch of Gingerbread ornaments for the tree...the tradition started 10 years ago...my parents moved into  their home and hadn't unpacked all their moving boxes....so ornaments for our tree were no-where to be found...

 so out came the flour and rolling pins...cookie cutters and aprons...we decided we would make the ornaments out of gingerbread cookies.We have continued this each year when we come over for the Holidays...as the girls get older...they get more and more excited.

 this year we bought ready made dough from AHEM(Ikea) ...this cut our time in half and we were able to make ALL the cookies yesterday...
The hearts have already been eaten...we have stars,angels,trees,snowflakes and houses to decorate this afternoon.

 my Mama loves to help out...which the girls love too!

what have you been baking lately?

Ok...back to decorating...I have a little lady tugging at my arm saying "I'm ready!!PLEASE Mummy...now?!"
Cinnamon HUGS
Char.x

handmade FORTS

We visited our Fort today in the woods..Miss A helped me fix it up a little as in the Summer when we were back here we couldn't restore it as the nettles were SO bad...

It's JUST AMAZING how it has withstood 2 winters already and we can see the deer are using it as a shelter...I LOVE being out with our girls...the woods here are like a HUGE playground for them!

I am visiting your blogs today...can't wait to say hello!

HUGS

Char.x

Christmas IS magical...

 for any 6 and 4 year old who truly believe...I as a Mum of these 2 gorgeous girls...am absolutely in LOVE with this Christmas this year.

Aunty B took us to see Santa today...we walked through his Grotto of blue irredescent lights and reindeer munching on carrots and elves making pressies...to arrive at a door where the kids had to BANG and BANG and BANG and say "wake up SANTA"...

The door opened to this wonderful "cockney" spoken Santa...who proceeded to tell all the little ones about how he would love PORK pies instead of MINCE pies this year...

Miss A was GLEAMING...BEAMING from ear to ear...and Miss J was listening to every word said...what would we do without cameras...to capture those rays?

The best part of today was when Ashley said..." he WAS the real SANTA Mummy...I know he was..."

Christmas IS Magical!

Have a wonderful weekend :-)

I know we will.

HUGS

Char.x.

On the 9th day of December...

We have arrived in the UK for our Christmas stay with our Scandi family over here...and we have INTERNET!...YAY...I was getting a little worried as it's been 4 days since we arrived and I had the SLOWEST dongle in ALL the Country...

Mum is walking SO brilliantly...I am amazed at the difference between our Summer visit when she had both hips replaced to now...just wonderful.

Little miss J is enjoying the fact that the weather is VERY similar to in Canada right now here...LOTS of snow and Sunny skies this morning.

Missing Mr.R...but he'll be over just before Christmas...

HUGS to you all and thanks for your patience...I can now visit you more often and leave little comments...because even though I visited your blogs...I was not able to comment as it would time out as I pressed enter...so frustrating...

Until tomorrow...we're off to see Santa and his Reindeer.

Char.x

WORDless Wednesday

sparkles and hugs
Char.x

Wordless Wednesday

 

SNOWY HUGS

Char,x