{ Ironing and my favorite Vlogmas Channels }

My skin has been so dry the past month or so, it's quite awful and no matter how much wash it or apply lotion, it just doesn't seem to help.  So this morning, I decided to start with a Rose Face Mask which I've had on hand for a while but hadn't yet gotten around to trying it.

It smells amazing, and it worked really well hydrating my face.  I'll have to keep using it throughout the winter months.

One of the first chores I had on hand, was a pile of laundry to iron.  It's been sitting and waiting since Monday, and I just hadn't had a chance to get to it.  So I popped in Sunday's Outlander episode and got to work.

I love ironing, it's one of the household chores that I most enjoy.

It didn't take me too long and I was able to get it all done.  It was mainly tablecloths, kitchen towels, dishcloths and one black shirt that Jasmine wears to work, so not a huge pile and while watching TV it went by super quick.

Once laundry was done, I moved into my bedroom to give my carpet a quick clean.  Marley got down last night, around 4:30am and threw up, and even though I cleaned it up right away, it always leaves a bit of a stain.  I was able to get the carpets nice and clean.  I guess it's the joys of being a dog mom, right?

The weather was a bit off today, it started off sunny and then slowly began changing to dark cloudy skies.  We didn't get any rain, at least not yet, but it is expected for tomorrow as a new storm system creeps in.

Of course with the changing weather, the temperatures also dipped a bit and I felt a yearning for a hot cup of tea.  I usually have Rooibos, which my brother brought from South Africa, it's actually called Five Roses and is the tea I've been drinking pretty since I was about 10 years old.

It's so weird how different things bring about a surge of memories, even the scent of the tea in the cup takes me back to cold afternoons with my great grandma and grandma.  We would sit around the kitchen table and share a cup of tea with a splash of milk, and some cookies. 

Some of my favorite memories revolve around those moments.  I learned so much about both of them as they shared stories from their childhood over sips of hot tea.  I miss them dearly and I would give anything to share just one more cup of tea with them, but I guess one day we will meet again in Heaven and go right back to that round table and our talks.

Jasmine was home this afternoon and she came to hang out with me on the couch, we talked, we watched Small Foot and drank tea together and chatted back and forth.  My girl is growing up so fast, she is turning 20 in April, and working and adulting and I as much as it feels strange that she is so grown up, I am also really enjoying watching this new phase in her life.

These moments we spend together will be some I treasure for the rest of my life.

While we chatted, I grabbed my knitting and worked a few rows on my Triangle Scarf, I'm going for a quick and easy project, just to use up the remnants of yarn that I have laying around but also because I need a project that doesn't involve counting stitches or rows or paying too much attention to what I'm doing.  A mindless WIP is what is needed for this time of the year, that and the knowledge that at the end of this I'll have a warm cute triangle scarf for the cool weather months.

It wasn't a very productive day, not in the sense of homemaking, but only because everything that needed doing was already done.  I did make an upside down banana cake, one of my kids favorites, for after dinner.

Before I leave for the night, I wanted to quickly share some of my favorite Vlogmas channels on Youtube.  Some of you may know what Vlogmas is, some may not, and for those that don't, it is basically just every videos the month of December.  Some of the Vlogmas videos I watch are so incredibly beautiful and uplifting that I thought I would share with you all.

These are all knitting channels filled with gorgeous yarn and yarn dyeing and the best advent calendars around.

Coco and Flora
Amy Florence
Fiber Tales
Sandra Paul - Cherry Heart
Nordic Stitches
Sew Sweet Violet
Once Upon a Corgi
Dunderknit
Little Drops of Wonderful
Makers Haven
By the Lakeside
Skeindeer Knits
Sweet Sparrow Knits
A homespun house

If you have a spare moment and want to indulge in pure beauty on screen, take a peek at these channels or even just one or two, you will understand why they are my must watch channels on Youtube. :)