Did you read my last post? I was so proud and eager to be at the doorstep of vacation. Remember, I closed my shops, made plans for all things Christmas? First and foremost cookie baking? Remember?
Well .... ever have those weeks where nothing goes as planned?
All I know was Monday's crawl out of of bed was so much harder than usual. Throat was a burnin' and muscles ached as if I'd played a game (or two) of football. I knew something was stirring and it wasn't a mouse. It was some dreaded virus attacking my system. But I refused to accept that fate. Not today, not this morning. I had Christmas plans, darnit. New cookie recipes had been researched & old favorites had been dug out from the bottom of the recipe pile where they lay since last December. Today I needed to hit the grocery store for my share of the Christmas dinner and the necessities for cookie baking. This virus or whatever it was was not going to stop me. At least that's what I thought when I finally made it out the door and into the car, not quite on Monday morning, but more like Monday afternoon. It took me so long to get ready and I couldn't quite get warm no matter how high I set the temperature in the house or how many layers I wore.
I made it to the Christmas Tree Shoppe for some last minute gift tags and wrapping supplies. And then went into the grocery store. Half way through, I thought I was going to pass out and I'm not even sure how I made it home that afternoon. By the time I got everything unpacked and put away ... I knew before I put the darn thermometer in my mouth that it wasn't going to be good. I had a fever and my knees were buckling. That was it for my Monday. There would be no Christmas Cookie baking for me today, or the next day for that matter. I barely got out of bed at all on Tuesday. Today, I'm still not feeling great, but the good news is that there has been some baking (in between big long, restful naps on the couch). And I have a few lovely tins of cookies to show for it. :)
What I couldn't do in the kitchen, I made up for in Photoshop. Because, Photoshop is super easy to do while lying in bed with a fever (while kids bring you big, icy glasses of orange juice with a straw) for two days. Here are two new layouts full of Christmas Cheer.
jessicasprague.com
Chestnuts and Mallows Paper Pack - coming soon!
Swirdles Stamps & Brushes
Paper Swirlies
Warm Wuv & Soft Hugs - The Elements (buttons and frame)
EZ-PZ Template 06 - Fotocentric No.1 (overlay)
Tape It Up! - Noted
Titl-express
Kraft Tag from Holidays in Hand class
{Queen of Quirk}
Reindeer Games Accent Pack (bow & holly sticker)
Aubergine Alpha Pack
{In the Making Design}
Glassy Alpha
jessicasprague.com
Oh Joy Paper Pack
Oh Joy Candy Candy
Mr. Campy Paper Pack (solid background)
{Queen of Quirk}
Scrap Canvas - Momento - coming soon!
Patti Knox: Pin Its - Pearls
Katie Pertiet: Stamped Stitches No. 11
Fonts: Pea Marie-Christine, Pea Dacia
While I didn't get to make all the cookies I had planned to make, that virus forced me to slow down and watch "Christmas" more. I spent more time on the couch watching movies with my kids, instead of turning a movie on for them. I played a ton more games with them than I would have had time for if I had been at full energy and hadn't felt the need to sit down and rest so much. I snapped more photos of the days leading up to Christmas than I usually do. And for all that ... I'm grateful. I think I'll save those other cookie recipes for the week after Christmas or the couple of days off we have in January. Something to look forward to after the thrill of December has come and gone and the long winter is still hanging on for a few more months. So yeah, that's my new plan. Accept what I was able to accomplish this week. And look forward to another baking session in the near future. So long as some random virus doesn't knock me off my feet again first!
-xo Jenn
