We have in floor radiant heating and a very old-fashioned and basic syste m it is too. Provides a very comfortable heat when it was working, but now that it isn’t, its freezing in there. It isn’t expensive either, I wish my home had this heating system instead of an oil furnace. So clean, all- encompassing, comfortable and downright easy to use.

Took some doing but we managed to find another Hot Water Heater with the necessary pumps and fittings and it is almost repaired. Tomorrow our heating repairman says we will have heat once again.

Since returning home from Florida this past November we have had to have the roof replaced, the vans two new tires repaired, insurances renewed, heating bills to pay, and now the heating system in the Hut needs repairing, without that heat running through the floor joists, our floors will begin to buckle from freezing. It has certainly been a very expensive few months, and so around and around it goes, hopefully 2010 won’t be the year that bankrupts us.

Thankfully most of our orders have been made and in the main house ready for shipping. It would be impossible for either my mother or I to work in there under the current conditions.

Of course on top of all this wonderful excitement I managed to bring home someones’ virus and have been coping with that since last Sunday.

Some very horrible things are happening in our world today and not man made tradegies either. Haiti as you all know has been hit the hardest. I certainly am praying that those agencies who are collecting money for this disaster will see to it that 100% of the funds raised will all be used for Haiti and not administrative costs. IF you are donating to charities for this disaster, please, please make certain that the agency will provide a receipt and that 100% of its funds raised go directly to Haiti. Discover what other items you can give if money isn’t available but you would like to help, like clothing, footwear, childrens’ clothing, high chairs, cribs, even play pens, educational toys, eye-wear (this is where your old prescription or even reading glasses will be welcomed with open eyes), hearing aids, bedding, pillows, pots and pans, silverware, lamps, beds, chairs, tables and so very much more I haven’t touched on. The Libraries will need books once these are rebuilt, the homes will need furnishings once rebuilt. There will be agencies that you may donate these much in demand items to, all you have to do is search the internet and you will find such agencies.

Right now, medicine, medical supplies, food, clean drinking water and shelter are the main much needed things to have. So when you are ready to donate even if you cannot donate money, then possibly the cellar, or the attic, even a spare room or stuffed closet may hold a donation which you can afford to give. For your information I have included a link about those agencies and other useful donor information.

This world and its weather patterns and natural disasters are things mankind can do little to avoid, but there are ways and means for all of us to be able to give help. When I stop and really think about the way my life goes day to day, I am so fortunate, I have one thousand times more than the bare necessities of life and I am blessed. When I think I have problems and then I see what this natural disaster has provoked for those people who were already downtrodden, already beleagured, the poorest of the poor, it is heartbreaking, simply heartbreaking. Unless the Universe has decided a wake up call was in great demand and now Haitians may have this one hand up instead of a hand out. Who knows, I sure do not, all I can do is pray for goodness to come out of this disaster.

If your reading this today then you and I are still above ground so I wish you a wonderful FRIENDTASTIC day and blessings upon us all.

Moving the desk and the large armoir was the hardest part of the pushing and the shoving, it seemed to take me forever, but a friend stopped by and between us it was finally accomplished.

Today to the errands and then back here to the sewing machine. What a fun day I have planned, sewing, making my totes and getting ready.

I have a new friend who has graciously agreed to help me with the Scavenger Hunt I am planning to host for the Frost Fest. This year will mark this activity’s debut. I really hope people will think it is a great activity for themselves and their families or their friends and all have fun trying to come in first. There are prizes and if the weather co-operates this year should be more successful then any Frost Fest year prior to 2010. Cross your fingers I make good on this Hunt.

The morning is rapidly becoming afternoon and if I do not get myself up and away from here I won’t meet my own deadline… LOL

As I have begun to say lately, if your reading this your above ground with me today and I am wishing you one fantastic day.

I have been holed up here because I simply cannot get into the loft where all of my fabrics, thread, notions, desk and other related equipment including my wonderful books and magazines are. You see mother has taken over the main floor of the Hut and it is crammed from door to door and wall to wall with flowers and the such, never mind things moved from home to home over the past 50+ years which she simply cannot seem to divest herself of. So out of self preservation I set up shop for the time being in the upstairs bedroom. Seeing as there is only one other bedroom up here and it is relatively small, I can only spread myself out in the largest of the two rooms, and I mean spread out. I do believe though that I can make a very comfortable and suitable arrangement from what I have now been working under which was not at all palatable to say the least.

So for the moment I won’t post until I am finished and can take a picture of it all neat and tidy. Though how long neat and tidy will remain is anyones’ guess.

Wish me luck, it will take hours or pushing and shoving because I simply cannot lift so I will today be that someone who shoves things around.

I’ll be back soon, I hope!

While I am sewing I am also making an effort to work and finalize the details of the scavenger hunt I am responsible for this year.

If it won’t bore you too much I thought I might begin to share the progress of the totes as I go along for awhile in an effort to keep me legitimate and working every day.

This bag will be stuffed full of Frost Fest goodies and donated to the Committee as a Prize.

Now to finish it – I was working away last night on this bag when all of a sudden the lights went out. We had no power for over an 1 1/2. Not too difficult for us to live with because we cook with propane and our living room has once of those gorgeous propane fireplaces, so at least should it have been necessary we could have burned that all night long. After the power came back on I just didn’t feel like sewing anymore. Today I must finish this piece as there are so many more to be made.

I am wishing you a wonderful day from Seeley’s Bay.

With this new year I am thinking of making a new start and hopefully I won’t be suffering from the guilts anymore for ignoring this wonderful space being provided so that people such as myself may express themselves in a million different ways.

I won’t say that while I was absent from blogging that I have not been involved with my quilting, because you see I have, however, the faster I go the behinder I seem to get.

This year there is as usual alot on my plate because of my propensity to volunteer. My father used to tell us that while volunteering was an essential service one could overdo it, which I have been guilty of.

The annual Seeley’s Bay Frost Fest is once again being made to the ready and new and more exciting events and activities have been planned, so I am quite involved in this one avenue of a day in the life of a Town.

I am hoping you’ll visit and read about just how much fun everyone is anticipating. Why not come for a visit during Frost Fest and enjoy the fun and the games and the food.

My mother, Johanna has been busy creating more and more floral arrangements and I have been busy creating and crafting more totes.

We took a nice long vacation this past Thanksgiving and drove to Ft. Meyers, Florida, such a good rest I had, except for the long drive, it was really a fantastic vacation. The weather was just perfect and we only experienced rain on one day, and then went through the various weather changes on the way north again towards Canada.

I am preparing to finish off new totes, some which will be dontated again as prizes for the frost fest, and others I hope to sell through my Esty Shop. I have much catching up to accomplish, but I promise to come back tomorrow with more and hopefully of much more interest too.