It's been way tooo long...

It's almost Christmas! I'm a last minute crafter... I'm not sure that you'd be shocked by that admission... : ) Let's get real for a minute. It's more fun and artsy to craft for Christmas with your favorite Christmas music playing while you're wearing fuzzy slippers because your toes are actually cold and your favorite hoodie or sweatshirt is keeping you warm. It's a sense of urgency that motivates us to finish that project when get to a part that is fairly tedious. Only boring people make Christmas stuff in the summer and still know where it is by December. Am I right? Can I get a witness??

Today, I'm re-arranging flowers. I revived two arrangements that needed some new life breathed into them. Here is one of them. This vase entered my house as an unfinished vase from the craft store. I painted it with black craft paint and then and interference purple pearly powder mixed with the paint medium that Biblical Impressions used to sell. I like how the flowers (which were in a different container) look in it.

We are just trying to spruce up the family room as we decorate. You are going to notice a color theme in a second. I don't want you thinking this woman is absolutely so purple crazy that she's torturing those poor people with all that purple with even her Christmas decorating...

I want you to know the purple was all "Christmas Boy's" idea. [FYI, my oldest son, lovingly referred to as "The Boy" becomes "Christmas Boy" during the holidays.] Decorating had always been a chore for me. I do it because I like to make it festive, but it wasn't on my top ten list of favorite activities. On the other hand, a few years ago I was too busy and didn't get around to decorating fast enough for him (he was around 9) and he asked to do it. He not only put up the tree by himself, but he really got into adding decorations to other areas. including lights around his bedroom doorpost.

Last year I found some purple lights at Lowe's and decorated The Card Castle. Remember >this

This year, Christmas Boy chose to use those lights on the tree. And then he said he wanted a purple and silver and gold tree. ( gasp! I think I hyperventilated at this point) Who am I to stop Christmas Boy? I'm helping him by making the bows he wants at the top of the tree. The next few pictures are some of our decorating 'ingredients'. We are going to get busy here and I'll be back (eventually... let's be real here, I don't promise anymore! LOL ) with the pictures of the decorated house, OK?

On a personal note:

I've got a few cards to make this week for special birthdays. ( note the silence)

There is also a big blog hopping party next Saturday. I'm participating in Hero Arts' New Catalog Release Blog Hop next Saturday!! I'm pretty excited about it. Have you seen the previews this week on the blog? But for today, it's back to organizing and decorating. We are preparing to have a big family Christmas with my husband's family. I'm am soooooo ready for Christmas, but soooooooo not prepared. Christmas shopping?? I've only purchased one gift, and it was for me. Shhh don't tell my offspring.

The exercising is going well. I haven't been on a scale in a couple of weeks, but I need a belt all of a sudden. I'm off the meds except the one I take weekly for Lupus. It's all good. : ) I choose to look at life that way anyway. Be blessed as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ. I don't have to join a group or don a t-shirt with the slogan, Christ will always be my Christmas.