Feeling excited ...

... due to the thermometer
Yes, I realise this is a little opaque, but ours has just risen above 0C for the first time in nine days. Coldest night? Minus 6.5C (20.3F). We are celebrating and hoping the icy, hard-packed snow will melt over the next few days. Oh, to be able to walk and look around without watching every footstep!

... because we've had The Letter
You know. The one that says" "We have sent you this letter as experts recommend that people in your age group should be among the first to receive the free NHS coronavirus vaccine". We have to decide where: a centre thirteen miles away, or wait until our GP contacts us (hopefully soon) for an appointment in town. Given that the road over the hills to the former is currently closed due to high winds whipping the drifts of powdery snow off the moors and across the carriageway, it will probably need to be the latter.

... now that I've finally got over my fear of looking at my handwriting on a layout
and I am enjoying using a planner notebook (Heidi Swapp) for day-to-day snippets of memory-keeping. OK, so I'm still a little hesitant and tend to stay inside the lines - nowhere near as creative as many I've seen - but it's a start. I do love interactive elements ... The card with little foxes is a lovely piece of Happy Mail from a blog friend. Have I ever shown you the 12x12 layout in my daughter's album with (I think) over fifty photos on it? No? Next time, then :).

... because we're halfway through February
and every day is another step closer to the end of lockdown and being able to see our beloved family. I am finding this time very hard now, but trying to be optimistic. This cannot last forever!

... having had a Zoom catch-up yesterday
with the lovely Blogging/Creative ladies whom I've known for a decade now. Last autumn was the first year for the last seven that we weren't able to meet in person for our annual weekend (you can see some of them over here); so wonderful to catch up and chat! (Waving to you, R!).

Hoping that there is a seasonal lift for you too wherever you live, and thank-you - as ever - for popping in!

Comments

[Becky]

Alexa - your planner is beautiful and I am very touched that you included the postcard I sent you. I am still dithering over whether to use one of these for next year - well I’ve got a few months to make up my mind! I hope you enjoy the handwriting class and Stop the Blur. I was lucky to win a place on Scrapbook 101 on Scrapbook and Cards today with Meghan Andrews - it’s going back to basics which is quite fun after 15 years of scrapbooking. Let’s hope this lockdown is soon over - I too am missing seeing my family and missing hugs - it’s been too long.

[Mary-Lou]

How very exciting to get your vaccine letter. We are so far behind in this whole process, I am sure it will be October before we get our letter.

You are certainly making the new scrapping format work for you. How absolutely wonderful to catch up with friends in Zoom.

[Ruth]

Hooray for news of a vaccine appointment for you!
Zoom calls can be so good for the soul (if they're not work related!) and scrappy-related ones are always fun.

[Melissa Gross]

It sounds like y'all are getting a break in the weather just as we are snowed in here in Texas! The weather is breaking hundreds of records it's so cold all over Texas and the states. We, of course, are staying indoors where it's warm & safe from the people who are trying to drive on the icy roads.

[Juliann]

First let me say that your handwriting is lovely. I found some old notes mom had written while she and dad vacationed and it made my heart sing to see her handwriting. Also, I love this idea of using the planner to create memories. Well done. We are waiting a bit to sign up for the vaccine because the system for getting appointments is such a mess. Many who had the first were not able to get the second. Just don’t want to make the whole process any more difficult than it needs to be.

[Karen Walker]

The planner is lovely---and so is your handwriting---no surprise! The bitter cold and icy sidewalks have kept us inside for several days now. A huge storm is crossing the U.S. and expected to arrive here later today and into tomorrow. But it looks like things might begin to warm up by the end of the week. Tracy goes for his vaccination today, and mine is scheduled for Thursday--he'll beat the storm and I'm hoping it will all be cleaned up by Thursday morning.

[Susanne]

Yay on getting the letter. I keep checking our appointment website so that as soon as the age range drops another 5 years I will be signing up. Our snow has slowed things down a bit, cancelling a day or two of appointments, but the local health department has vowed to get everyone caught up timely, especially for the all important second dose. I trust them to do that. Really, I am in awe of our local and state officials - and feel sorry for those in areas of our country where it is all talk and no action.

How fun to add interactive elements to your planner layouts. And I think the lines helps the handwriting look more uniform. Not that handwriting needs to look that way, but I am an accountant and we like our spreadsheets with everything in the boxes where they belong!

[Paul]

Love your planner and glad you're accepting your handwriting. I still have trouble doing the same with mine. The longer days and the start of Spring always brings a bit more hope and excitement to the year. And as you say, thankfully it's warming up too. P xx

[Deb]

Amazing what a little extra few hours of daylight, a bit of sunshine and a letter inviting you for vaccination can do to boost your mood! There is definitely a little glimmer of hope on the horizon!
I love seeing your handwriting on your pages, and in years to come your family will enjoy seeing it too!

[Barbara]

I love your handwriting. It looks so nice and consistent in your planner. I think it's important to have your handwriting in/on things! I love that I have a few recipes with my grandmother's handwriting. After all, your planner is a scrapbook! I'm still waiting for the "letter" although here it's an email. Should be sometime next week. I hope so!

[sheila 77]

Your planner looks lovely, so neat yet so arty too. You have very neat attractive hand-writing. It's a great thing to document your life like this with words and pictures and I think pictures are essential but it does take a lot of time. I like the little Distress stamp pad at the top - they are so seductive, aren't they, with these marvellous colours with unusual colour names.
Yes, Zoom is marvellous for keeping up and it's great to meet blogging friends and even easier now to meet ones in other countries.