I need to go see Santa.

Okay. That's it. I'm in love. First off, I switched from Internet Explorer 9 to Google Chrome for all my web needs about 8 or 9 months ago and I will never leave Chrome. I am a huge Google fan and think that it is the best thing for working on the web. Well, I caught the end of a commercial the other day so I had to go check it out. I "googled" it of course. 

It is called the Google Chrome Book and I want one...really, really, really bad. The only ones I found are Acer and Samsung right now. But oh, I'm in love. 

It has an Intel® Core™ Processor with 2 GB DDR3 RAM 320 GB Hard Drive - 5400 RPM. Weighs 3 lbs. and is just 11". It has built in ethernet and wi-fi. Three USB ports as well as an SD card reader slot. It has Google Chrome Operating System and is geared toward using applications that reside on the web instead of on the machine itself. It boots up in 20 seconds. Wow! And the best part is the cost is only $199.00! It even comes with its own carrying case. 

Then when I was at Target recently with a friend, I saw this little camera. It is smaller than a smart phone and only weighs 3 oz. I love it. It is on sell $80 off right now, making it $99. It is a 10mp with all kinds of neat settings. I am going to have to keep this in mind. It actually fits right in the palm of your hand. I lost my Canon and have been using my cell phone as a camera for months.

I also saw the perfect sewing machine for me. It is about 1/2 the size of a full size machine and said it was perfect for hemming, mending and crafting. Which is exactly what I want one for. And at $59.00 for a Singer, I think it is a good buy.

My vacuum cleaner is not working well. We have cleaned all the filters, checked all the settings and it still picks up, but not like it used to. We've had it about 16 years so I guess we are due a new one. I am thinking about a canister one, but not sure. Does anybody have any thoughts? I don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a vacuum cleaner.

But Hubby doesn't think appliances make good Christmas presents so I found him some ideas. I love this sweater. It would be perfect for those times when it is too cold to go without a coat but a coat is too bulky. I really like this neutral color as well. 

Don't laugh, but I love the gift sets everybody puts out at Christmas. And my favorite soap of all time is Dove. I need to tell Hubby about this. Things like this just thrill me at Christmas. I'm a simple person and very easy to please.

Do you remember how much I love nesting dolls? Target has a nesting salt and pepper shaker and a nesting measuring cup set. How cute are these?

Yes, I think I need to visit Santa...and maybe even Cupid and the Easter Bunny as backups. 

My motivator (or instigator)

Edgar has appointed himself as my personal motivator. Last night Mr. Bear and Edgar were reading Twas the Night Before Christmas.

When they got done, Edgar went investigating. He stood in disgust as he noticed there is not one single present wrapped and under the tree yet....which is so NOT the normal for me. 

Then he went snooping and found our stockings and wondered if I had done any shopping for Hubby's stocking. He thought he would get cute and try to put them on. Just a tad on the big side for him. 

So he went to see if I have any wrapping paper. As usual, he got side tracked. He was trying to use them for stilts. 

Next I thing I know, he is worried because we haven't started baking yet. He started snooping through the recipe cards to find the orange cookie recipe. (We'll share it later this week). 

Once he got it, he checked this fridge and realized I had bought the oranges yesterday. So he felt better because he knew I had a plan. 

He actually was very helpful when he accumulated all the ingredients into one place so I could grab everything with ease when I was ready to get started. 

Not leaving anything to chance, he decided to make me a list. You will notice that three of the five items revolve around cookies. I think he is getting excited. He has a thing for cookies. 

He was so busy he finally had to break into my Junior Mints and Orange Crush for a little Christmas snack. Thanks Edgar for all the help. You deserve your snack. 

Pyrex online

It is so easy to find those favorite Pyrex pieces on E-bay. And many times the price is unbelievably low....until you add the shipping. Here are some items I found that were at a great price, but the shipping made them more than I wanted to pay. I would rather keep my eyes open at our local antique store. Even though antique stores are higher than thrift shops, they are still more reasonable than e-Bay with shipping.

I am looking for one of these casseroles in any color, even though pink is my preference. But not at $36.50

This isn't a bad buy for four of them for $15.00. But they don't have lids. Since I want them to store stuff in, lids are a must.

Another set with no lids. This makes me sad because this is the pattern on my mixing bowls and at $13.00 total that just made them about $4 each. I wish people would keep their lids.  

I love these solids. But at $37.20 each, I would not pay it. 

This is a pattern I want really bad and $13.65 is a pretty reasonable price since it does include the shipping. However, I am wanting it in a mixing bowl, not a Cinderella bowl so I'll keep hunting.

This is a pretty baking dish. I have a casserole dish in this pattern. I just don't think I want it bad enough to pay $20.24.

A flamingo pink baking dish at $20.17. I would pass simply because I just don't like to pay that much for one piece.

You will recall I bought my Hamilton Beach Large white mixing bowl for $12.00 locally. The small one is $19.00 on eBay. As much as I want to complete my set, I am going to keep looking locally. 

This is one of my dream pieces that I would love to own. I just would not be able to look at it knowing it cost $39.99. I would cringe every time I would see it. 

This is a cute pattern and one I would like to find some pieces in. I am not sure about $16.00 for the price. It's not that bad, but again there is no lid. 

I bid on this one because this is actually a really good price since it includes shipping. Plus it is exactly one of the patterns I collect and it is the style I have been looking for $19.49.

Weekend Wrap Up

We had our community Christmas parade Saturday. It was a nice turnout and it went off without a hitch. We started right on time. 

A special thank you to my neighbors, The Claus's, for their participation. The kids loved them.

Shelby wrote with her cousin Brystan and their Papaw Kenny in his old Chevelle.

  

Caleb wrote with his Daddy in his Papaw's Kenny's old truck.

Santa and the Mrs. road on the church train. 

Sunday morning I went to church with my son and his family to see Alexis's Christmas program. Her and Colby came home with me. 

We spent the afternoon together then went back to their church last night for Garret's play. I wasn't able to get photos of either play but let me tell you they were both wonderful. There are some talented kids in that church and the adults really worked hard to make both programs a success. 

That Crazy Edgar....

I went to church this morning to watch Alexis in A Super Christmas at Richardson Cove Baptist Church. Alexis and Colby came home with me and we are going to go back tonight to watch Garret in his program, A Main Street Christmas. We stopped at McDonald's to have lunch.

Colby fell asleep and took a good nap. 

Alexis thought it would be fun to play with Edgar to see what he got into and then she decided to write the rest of this blog. So Alexis, take it away.

Hi this is Alexis. Writing on Mamaw's blog. 

Edgar, what are you watching? Oh, I see, an elf cartoon. You would be able to see it better if you sat right....and in a chair!

I gasped when I saw Edgar and Frosty playing. 

Edgar loves the Mrs. Bear. 

Edgar is with Santa and Rudolph. My brother Garret made the tree for Mamaw one year. 

That is the end of the blog for today. This is Alexis signing off. 

Christmas Music

Here are several videos for your Christmas pleasure. These are some of my favorite ones. 

A great start to a great weekend

The family all gathered last night to celebrate the three birthdays we had this past week. I don't know what I was thinking, but I failed to get any pictures of the kids and grandkids. We were so busy having a great time that I just forgot. That is so not like me at all. They will be back at Christmas so I'll be sure and get some the. But we did have an awesome time. We exchanged gifts and I was beyond excited with my presents. 

My son's family had gotten me a candle that smells so much like vanilla ice cream it made me want to go grab a bowl and chow down. 

I was ecstatic about the new cookbook they got me as well. It is a cushioned type cover and I fell in love with it. There are a lot of really good recipes that I can't wait to try. They know how much I love cookbooks and this one will go in a place of honor on the shelf. 

Every once in awhile my daughter really surprises me. When I opened the gift from her family, I was speechless. I think she thought I wasn't excited, but the truth was that I was so stunned that I couldn't get past just staring at it with my mouth open. 

She is not into vintage collectibles and sometimes I wonder if I bore her with my talk of Pyrex and Cinderella bowls. Unbeknownst to me, she does pay attention to her mother. She called around the local antique stores to ask about Cinderella bowls and when one lady said she had the 441 in Colonial Mist, my daughter realized she had scored. 

This was the set I had gotten when I got married and over the years, I didn't had sold it....never dreaming I would become a Pyrex collector some day. I have bemoaned the fact that I wish I still had it and was despairing of ever finding the pieces. I got one on trade online the other day and now this one from her. You could have blown me away I was in that much shock. Just a few days ago, I couldn't find any of these anywhere and now I'm halfway there on my collection. I guess she knows I'll be dragging her around to more shops after Christmas until I can complete the set. 

I immediately started scouring through my new recipe book to find recipes to make using my new bowls. I kept finding perfect ones. I cannot wait to try it out. My daughter and my daughter-in-law both know me so well that I always get presents that are absolutely perfect for me. This year was no exception. I love everything I got. I am really blessed. I was really amazed that Edgar sat quietly through the gift giving. He didn't ask for any birthday cake. He didn't snoop in any of the presents. He just stayed quiet in his little corner of the house. 

But after my bath, I went looking for my new book to see what I could make new for Christmas. I finally found it in my office chair with Edgar's nose stuck in it. He was about to drool over the peanut biscuits. I agreed with him that this one is going to be a MUST to try. 

Of course, he is a normal person so the Chocolate Cake held his attention for several minutes. I didn't think he was ever going to turn the page. This looks so good with the glaze/icing dripping down the sides. 

But the one that made his jaw drop with desire was the raspberry cheesecake. 

I have a busy day planned today. Hope everybody is enjoying their weekend as much as I am so far.