Solstice blessings and the rise of the Domestic Goddess...

Yes, my internal Domestic Goddess has risen her head early this year. It's usually around the start of January that she arrives - coming in with a flurry of cooking, cleaning and creating but it looks likes she's impatient to get started this year.

It's been a long standing joke with my friends and family that, as someone who lives with an ex-chef and compulsive cleaner, that I never get a chance to cook and apparantly don't like cleaning (well with 3 kids it's like shovelling snow when it's still snowing and besides there's more fun things to do isn't there?) Yet at the beginning of January, I turn into Mrs Beaton and go through a cooking, baking and cleaning frenzy, organizing everything to within an inch of it's life! Only this year, I think I'm a bit premature. I woke up this morning at 1.45am (it's now about 9am) and I've spent the time sorting out my knitting patterns, choosing what I'm making as presents for NEXT year. Forget about birthdays and the like - the next Solstice is sorted!!! I've even got my cards planned - now that's really sad (or extremely organised - take your pick!)

Of course the truth of the matter is that come the start of February, I'll have either totally burnt myself out or have gotten so caught up with other things, that I'll completely forget all my wonderful plans (most likely the latter!)

In the meantime, I have this year to sort out - Solstice and christmas gifts still to wrap and then it's a (sort of) relaing day today with Tony and the children. Definitely knitting today and then maybe spend an hour or four going through cookbooks and craft books - just incase there's any ideas I may have missed!

Whatever you're all doing today, I hope it's magical and beautiful! Now where's that Jamie Oliver book...

It's beginning to feel a lot like Yuletide...

I finally managed to get the tree up in the shop yesterday - only been trying to do it for the last few weeks (us retaillers have to start early ya know!) I have to adnit the window doesn't look too bad considering we've not got much to put in there but Tony was panicking last night that all the stock had gone in & I'd left nothing on the shelf! I've been trying to do the displays so that the window's filled with finished pieces rather than stock so hopefully it'll encourage people to want to give it a go. The problem at the minute is trying to convince people that it is actually cheaper in the long run to make your own cards etc but with the recession on they tend to just look at the prices - I mean who would want to pay £5 for a pack of 50 blank cards that you have to decorate yourself when you can go down the road and buy a load of tat in the 50p shop. But I digress - the tree is up, the wreath is nearly finished (just waiting on the silicone to dry) and ready for lift off on Tuesday and I am starting to feel mighty festive!!! I've even been keeping Tony going that I'm going to send the Art Gallery (owned and run by Jehova's Witnesses!) ,across the street form our place, a Yule card as because Yule is the celebration of the welcoming back of the sun and therefore they can't technically have any objections! I won't do it though - but it was worth it just to see the look on his face - he's an ex-JW you see!

And so now I'm starting to (try) to finish off all those gifts I'm making for Yule - a treasure chest and jewellery box for Ryan and Rebecca, and a hand-knitted teddy for Jonathan (he never got any when he was born so I just have to make sure he gets at least one!) We decided a few years back that as we'll be celebrating both Yule and Christmas (well how can you cancel Chrimbo when all the kids friends are talking about what they're getting?) that Yule would be for all the homemade personal gifts and we'd keep Christmas for the kids. All my cards bar the family ones are made and ready for writing (Yule cards going off this week - wheyhay!!!) so now and can relax and start thinking about the deccies. Means a whole rearrangement of the living room (which should be fun - not) but it'll be worth it. I want it to look traditional - loads of garlands and swags, like the holidays we had when I was younger - only better - but having the idea in my head and actually finding the right pieces are two totally different things. I'm going through a "Big and Bulky" phase as Tony calls it - big fat tinsel rather than the anorexic stuff most of the shops sell - and huge baubles (2 reasons - 1: takes up more room on the tree - less to put on or take off - and 2: plenty of space on them for me to decorate them!) I've even had a notion about crocheting some stars for it this year - yeah, like I'm ever going to get round to doing that! But the idea is there and that's all that matters isn't it.

So today we're doing our annual decoration shop, when we each chose a new piece for the tree. I'm hoping Woolworths have some stock left when we get there - after the news the other day I bet they're probaly having the best sales ever as everyone gets in to bag a bargain. Ryan's devistated - he thinks Christmas is cancelled this year as everything he has on his list is from Woolies. Hopefully today will set his wee mind at ease while daddy will quietly thanks the Gods for Amazon! I'm just hoping they have the small wreaths for £1 each that I spotted last week - I've got a crafty idea about having one on all the downstairs doors.

At least the roof is near enough done - just to paint it so hopefully the frost has lifted from up there. It's been absolutely beautiful in the mornings - typical that both my camera's need new batteries so I can't get any photos. Totally brass monkey weather but beautiful all the same. Not good for my mid-life crisis - I keep finding myself reminising about childhood holidays and then depressing myself that I'm getting old. Now don't get me wrong - I don't care about getting old - I'm looking forward to it and afterall as they say - growing old is manditory, growing up is optional! - but I think it's the fact that 35 has crept up on me in a blink of any eye and totally slapped me in the face. I'm hoping it passes in January for my birthday - I don't think the kids could cope with my fashion sense for another 12 months!!!

Well, I'd better run - Tony's taken the big'uns grocery shopping and if he comes and catches me on here I'll never hear the end of it. Have a great weekend one and all - I'm away to stick on some Celtic Christmas music - just to keep the mood going.

Now just where did I put that Santa hat....

I guess I'd better introduce myself...

What can I say about me? I'm 35 years old and originally from Belfast in Northern Ireland though I've lived on the Isle of Man since 1998. I've been engaged to the most wonderful man since 2001, who has single handidly made all my dreams come true!

My fiance Tony and our children are my life - though most of the time they probably would argue with that! Ryan is 7, Rebecca is 4 and our baby Jonathan has just turned one. In 2006 we were blessed with the news that we were expecting our twin boys, Aaron and Benjamin, but sadly lost them both at 34 weeks due to cord complications.

When we're not trying to keep up with 3 energetic kids, Tony and I own and run our own craft shop here on the Island - he's the technical wizard and I'm the creative goddess - which basically means I spend most of my time creating greetings cards, scrapbook pages and jewellery amongst other things, mainly for my kids, family and friends and ocaissionaly to inspire the customers. In other words, I spend most of my time colouring in and cutting things out - the ultimate 4 year olds dream job. When I'm not there, I'm at home with the kids - colouring in and cutting things out. Basically everything I dreamed I'd be doing since I was a child myself.

These pages are basically my way of keeping track of everything from homelife, through to shop stuff and beyond to the launch of Crystalwitch Designs. Sort of my diary if you will and your more than welcome to tag along for the journey. I will go into more detail later about CD- what I do and what I hope to achieve with it but I think I'll leave it there for now. It's getting late and the caffine's starting to wear off.

So thank you for stopping by - I hope you will enjoy your visits here.

Brightest Blessings

Shaz