Winter solstice 2019

The winter solstice occurred at precisely 4.19am this morning here in the UK.The word literally means "sun stands still" and the sun is at it's most southerly point and we are the furthest away from it. Although today will have the least number of daylight hours from tomorrow the nights will get shorter as daylight starts to slowly return. Hooray!

There are also just 2 more sleeps until Father Christmas takes to the skies on Christmas Eve. To me this really is the most wonderful time of the year and keeps me in good spirits at such a naturally dark time. I am not religious but I always put the crib, which I have had and added to for years, and I bought some star lights last year in the sale which light it perfectly.
It sits on the shelf looking out to the hall and I love looking at the scene and remembering all my Christmases past, present and those yet to come.

My trees are looking gorgeous and I love to see the lights twinkling on them when I come down on these dark mornings. 

We have some last last food shopping to do before the big day but other than that we are all ready. 

I promised I would share my handmade crackers so here they are all ready for the dinner table.

Here are a few of them.

I used a cute Lili of the Valley simply print reindeer and some die cuts. The colours are to match the table ware.

Shhh don't tell anyone but these are some of the gifts inside...the boys are going to have such fun with those emergency mustaches.

I would also like to share my latest card challenge card, a late addition to my shelves at Dotty's Teahouse, Carshalton, SM5 2AE , where my cards are sold

It is another of my popular traditional Christmas cards. I so love this image. The papers are old from my stash and the dies are by Memory Box and Cheery Lyn. The tag was stamped using an ancient Lili of the Valley set I own. 

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges;

Pixie's snippets playground #368

Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas #469

Cute card Thursdays 2/3 anything goes

Simon says stamp It's Christmas card day!
As you like it 1/3 favourite die and why mine is this old bells die  (I am sorry I don't know the maker.) It works for any celebration, not just Christmas
Mod Squad 1/3 Christmas/Winter

A vintage journey a holly jolly Christmas

I would like to enter my crackers into the following challenges;

Moving along with the times 1/3 anything but a card

Simon says stamp Wednesday party time

Try it on Tuesday 1/3 Christmas is coming

The cutie pie challenge 1/3 Christmas cuties

Enjoy the lighter days from tomorrow and all your last minute Christmas festivities.

I will be back on Christmas Eve with my last countdown to Christmas post.

Bye for now,

Jane x

No more days til......

I cannot believe we are here already, it's Christmas Eve and the big day is tomorrow. I am all ready for the family to arrive. My daughter and her fiance are driving up from Essex after work tonight...poor girl, doctors never seem to finish early. My parents will be over in the morning and my son and his girlfriend are with us most of the time anyway! The house smells so festive...mmm and my wonderful tree is still twinkling in the corner. I have even made some of Vivienne's fudge, it is superb, thank you Vivienne for sharing it. Nigella eat your heart out..!

I have my crib up which holds some treasured wooden crib figures we have bought over the years,some
from the German Christmas markets and others from of all places, the Vatican. Their gift shops sells some wonderful crib items.

It's very hard to photograph my crib as it sits on the archway between by hall and dining room. I love it, nothing is really to scale hence the huge hay fork but it is a perfect reminder for me of the season. The wise men are not real wood, we hope to buy those on another German visit.

I cut greenery from the garden: holly, ivy and fir to add to the mood. This year I have no berries on my holly, the hungry birds have eaten them all. Never mind it has been a hard time for the wildlife this year.

I have opened number 24 of my Advent Calendar and would you believe I actually have a number 25...it's such a rarity I have only ever seen one once before. My brother had one as a little boy and I was so jealous he got the extra window. Well it's my turn now, I only had to wait 40+ years!

 (For those who have Eagle eyes this photo was taken when I first put up my calender which is why number 14 is shut. The pictures inside this have been really delightful.

My cards are all hanging in the hall. Here are some of them. You will see that I have also hung the chocolates from here as we are not having our "chocolate tree" as we are in the middle of decorating. I am not sure that my son has spotted them yet as they all still seem to be there! Once they are seen there is usually no stopping him.












The weather for this Christmas has been truly festive, it's the whitest Christmas for many, many years. The last time I can remember thick snow on the ground on Christmas Day was our 1st married Christmas in 1981! I have enjoyed taking all these local snowy scenes.

Some  parcels have started appearing  under the tree (minus those which Father Christmas of course delivers tonight for my children)

The mince pies are made.

The fridge is stocked and the champagne is chilling as it will be such a special Christmas for our family celebrating my daughter's and her now fiance's, engagement.

I have also been busy creating an engagement card with a slight Christmas twist as you can see below - a heart with holly leaf. I had such trouble finding engagement peel offs and this was the very last sheet in a local craft shop.

I also used my trusty heart punch.

I really liked this rather funky heart paper. It was quite hard to get as this is certainly not the time of year to find heart themed paper.

I have used a photo of Milly's ring for the centre of the card. Sadly we did not get to their "engagement" lunch last weekend. It snowed so heavily that we could not make the journey.

This is the end result on the left.
I can't wait to give it to her and Tom. I am also so looking forward to seeing the ring in the flesh and hearing how the wedding plans are starting.

Billy will be getting a new collar. He is very good at not touching the tree but he so likes to give all the parcels a good sniff - this one is not even his!






I have also  received  2 wonderful parcels from my dear blogging and Etsy friend Mia.

This was the snowman scarf I won at the beginning of her Christmas craft calender which she wrote everyday from the 1st December. I was so pleased to win it and it has kept me warm during this bleak weather. But last Saturday the postman arrived with a new parcel from Finland....

Just look what she made for me........................I squealed with delight when I opened it up and found this darling candy pig inside ready to join us for Christmas. Mia knows how much I love pigs. Thank you so much by dear friend. It really cheered me up as it arrived on the day we were unable to get to my daughter's engagement lunch. How kind can someone be??

I think that is now about time to bring my final countdown to Christmas post to a close as it will soon be time to think about welcoming our guests and perhaps opening up the sherry this evening. I have got to work today until 1pm ish but I will then be home until after the New Year, bliss!

I have so enjoyed sharing this countdown to Christmas right from my very first ** days to Christmas post back in November. Thank you for all so much for joining me. I have been delighted to read all the comments and that you too have enjoyed sharing my Christmas traditions and preparations. As I am quite sure you realise by now I really do love Christmas. I am such a kid when it come to this time of the year and I cannot see me ever changing.

So I will close Jane's Journal for a few weeks. I will be back in the New Year and  intend to reopen the pages of my journal on Thursday 6th January 2011. To help to ease us into the new year I will also be holding my very 1st giveaway! Without giving too much away it involves my handmade jewellery and cards...so spread the news and do come back to visit me then.

The final thing I want to do is to wish everyone who reads my blog the very merriest of Christmases and the healthiest and happiest New Year. Enjoy spending time with your loved ones and catching up with friends. 2010 was the year I started my writing blog and it has been such fun - thanks to all of you who take the time to read it.
Here is my last piece of Christmas prose which I would like to dedicate to you all - wherever you are around the world!

Somehow not only for Christmas
But all the long year through,
The joy that you give to others
Is the joy that comes back to you.


And the more you spend in blessing
The poor and lonely and sad,
The more of your heart's possessing
Returns to make you glad.

(Written by John Greenleaf Whittier)

Merry Christmas everyone!
 
Bye for now, see you in the New Year
 
Jane x