project #366 week 49

I expected this to be a nice quiet week, as I had the week off, but their are always things that need to be done :-)
Sunday 2nd December
In the run-up to Christmas the shops are allowed to open on a Sunday.On principle, I try to do my shopping during the week, but as we were a bit disorganised, I went over to the supermarket near the house and,- to my surprise- the fishmonger was open! I decided to buy some of the mixed fish and try a fish pie recipe I had seen on the internet.  Miles came to dinner, as usual. The meal was a great success and I have been asked to make it again in the future :-).

Monday 3rd December
I don't have to work this week, but I need to go in to the college as we are going to clear the staffroom of all our things in preparation for a makeover:-) I have so much paperwork and so many books that I don't know where to start :-(
My plan  for my break is to marry-up my files and my boxes of material, and put them onto dropbox to share with my colleagues.
I drove past the town centre where they are erecting the marquee for the winter ice-skating rink. It should be in use by the weekend.
Tuesday 4th December

 Today I have to prepare some crib sheets for our Carol Singing Extravaganza. We are meeting at Carl's house to have a practice this evening. We go singing round the pubs each year at Christmas to raise money for the Christmas Appeal . Last year we made £850, which was impressive when everyone is tightening their belt. I decided to add a bit more decoration to the house, as my students will be coming for coffee and mince pies after their exam. It feels icy cold today- at this rate I'll be digging out my thermal underwear- a change from the lovely warm weather we had in Spain:-(

Wednesday 5th

 My ornaments and decorations are kept in the box seats of the bay window. When it was empty, Ebony- who cannot resist a box, bag or hole to climb in- went exploring. Cairis bought me a spicy room spray to add to the general ambience. It certainly makes the house smell welcoming!

Thursday 6th

Today was spent trying to write the #ELTchat summary with help from my cat.Every time I moved my hand she attacked it. She is so clingy since we went away that I can't go anywhere without her worrying about me returning. I started to look out a pile of books to take up to the college tomorrow in preparation for Saturday's fayre. I also made my own mincemeat for the first time. I wanted a vegetarian mix and I had promised to make some mince pies to sell at the weekend.

Friday 7th

I spent the whole morning making mince pies for tomorrow. I made a variety- my personal favourites are the ones with macaroon topping:-). In the afternoon I took them up to the college and helped move tables and chairs around and decorate the building. It looked nice when we were finished. I hope that lots of people come.... Went to the pub with the gang in the evening, everyone was tired, and the pub had a roaring fire in the grate, so we didn't play much.

Saturday 8th

Well, the big day has finally arrived. We have been planning this since JP died. We want to raise some money for the oncology unit at the hospital and for Jersey  Hospice Care. We decided to do a mix of things for children, a bring and buy sale, tombola, raffle, food stalls and an indoor car boot sale. In the student lounge, the teachers took turns to play music for an hour. The live music started at 10.00 and continued until 3.00 pm when the winners of the prizes were announced. My lot turned up for a spot at  12 pm  In the afternoon we had a visit from Santa and his elves and sleigh. They are members of the Rotary Club De La Manche who tour the Parishes in the weeks before Christmas, to the excitement of  all the children. And finally, when I got home in the evening, for a quick wash and change before going out to play for a ceilidh, I found that the tree had been delivered. It will spend 24 hours acclimatising to the indoor temperature and tomorrow we will be able to dress it to my satisfaction :-)