#Christmas lolly bags

[lollykingdomstrathpine]

Christmas Lollipop Bags 2023: The Ultimate Buying Guide

It's that time of the year again – the season of joy, festivities, and, of course, indulging in sweet treats! If you're on a mission to spread some holiday cheer with delightful Christmas lollipop bags, you've come to the right place. In this comprehensive buying guide, we'll walk you through everything you need to know about the perfect Christmas lolly mix, where to find the best lollie shops near you in Strathpine QLD, and how to assemble the ultimate Christmas lolly bags for 2023.

Unwrapping the Magic of Christmas Lolly Mix

Let's start with the star of the show – the Christmas lolly mix. The key to creating irresistible lolly bags lies in the careful selection of treats that capture the spirit of the season. Here are some must-haves for your Christmas lolly mix:

Festive Shapes and Colors: Opt for lollies that come in festive shapes and colors. Think red and green hues, snowflake shapes, and perhaps even Santa Claus and reindeer-inspired candies. These add a visual delight to your lolly bags.

Classic Christmas Flavors: Embrace the traditional flavors of Christmas. Peppermint, gingerbread, and cinnamon-flavored lollies are sure to evoke the warm and comforting feelings associated with the holiday season.

Chocolate-Coated Delights: A Christmas lolly mix is incomplete without some chocolate-coated treats. Consider including lollies like chocolate-covered nuts, berries, or even marshmallows for that extra touch of indulgence.

Variety for All Tastes: Remember that your guests may have different preferences. Ensure your Christmas lolly mix includes a variety of textures and tastes, from chewy and gummy to hard and crunchy, catering to everyone's sweet tooth.

Finding the Perfect Lollie Shops Near You in Strathpine QLD

Now that you know what you're looking for in your Christmas lolly mix, the next step is to find the best lollie shops near you in Strathpine QLD. Lucky for you, we've scoured the candy landscape, and we've got the perfect recommendation – Lolly Kingdom.

Located in Strathpine QLD, Lolly Kingdom is a treasure trove of sweet delights, especially during the festive season. Their Christmas selection is nothing short of magical, offering an extensive range of lollies that are perfect for creating the ultimate Christmas lolly bags. From classic favorites to unique and seasonal treats, Lolly Kingdom has it all.

When you step into Lolly Kingdom or browse their website, you're greeted with the enchanting aroma of sweets and the sight of lollies in every shape and size imaginable. It's a haven for those looking to curate the perfect Christmas lolly mix.

The Art of Crafting Christmas Lolly Bags

With your Christmas lolly mix in hand from Lolly Kingdom, it's time to dive into the art of crafting the perfect Christmas lolly bags. Follow these steps to ensure your lolly bags are a hit at your festive gatherings:

Select a Theme: Whether it's a traditional Christmas theme with red and green or a whimsical winter wonderland, choose a theme that ties your lolly bags together visually.

Mix and Match: Take advantage of the variety in your Christmas lolly mix. Mix and match colors, shapes, and flavors to create a visually appealing assortment.

Personalize with Tags: Add a personal touch by including small gift tags with festive messages. It could be a simple "Merry Christmas" or a playful holiday pun – let your creativity shine.

Consider Dietary Preferences: In the spirit of inclusivity, consider the dietary preferences of your guests. Include a mix of gluten-free, nut-free, and vegan options to accommodate everyone.

Packaging Matters: Invest in quality, festive packaging for your lolly bags. Clear cellophane bags tied with colorful ribbons or adorned with holiday-themed stickers can make all the difference.

Why Choose Lolly Kingdom for Your Christmas Lolly Bags

So, why make Lolly Kingdom your go-to destination for Christmas lollipop bags in 2023? Here are a few reasons that set them apart:

Wide Selection: Lolly Kingdom boasts a wide selection of lollies, ensuring you have access to the best Christmas lolly mix to suit your preferences and theme.

Quality Assurance: Quality matters, especially when it comes to sweet treats. Lolly Kingdom prides itself on offering high-quality lollies that are sure to impress your guests.

Convenience of Location: Located in Strathpine QLD, Lolly Kingdom is conveniently accessible, saving you time and effort. No need to search endlessly for lollie shops near you – you've found the sweetest spot in town.

Online Ordering: For those who prefer the convenience of online shopping, Lolly Kingdom's website allows you to browse their selection, place your order, and have your Christmas lollies delivered to your doorstep.

Expert Advice: The friendly staff at Lolly Kingdom are passionate about all things sweet. If you need guidance on creating the perfect Christmas lolly mix or assembling show-stopping lolly bags, they're more than happy to help.

In Conclusion: A Sweet Celebration Awaits

As you gear up for the holiday season, remember that the magic is in the details, and what better detail to focus on than the sweet delights tucked inside Christmas lollipop bags? With the ultimate Christmas lolly mix from Lolly Kingdom and a dash of creativity, you're well on your way to hosting a celebration that will be remembered for its sweetness and warmth. Here's to a Merry Christmas filled with joy, laughter, and, of course, delicious lollies!

Lolly Kingdom Strathpine Shop 2/333 Gympie Rd, Strathpine QLD 4500, Australia +61404674152 https://lolly-kingdom.com.au/

[avaf00rd]

Australian kinda Christmas

Leah Williamson x Arnold!Reader

ava what is that shitty header photo job…

tumblr fucked up its quality

anyways I’ve been thinking about writing this one for ages now

enjoy <3

——————————

“c’mon love” you groaned at your 10th attempt to get your girlfriend up from your Power Nap. You pair were already late as it is “don’t you wanna shower before you can’t for a whole 24 hours?” You asked, her head still buried in the pillows. She stayed like that, contemplating for another second before getting up and heading to the bathroom “don’t be long” you said before tapping her ass just as she opened the bathroom door.

You got a text from your sister Mackenzie telling you that she was already at her lay over flight and would be boarding again in an hour. This year you pair didn’t get the same flight over for the Christmas break. But it was the first year you would both be bringing your girlfriends with you.

You and leah had been together 4 years now. The second year you spent Christmas with Leah’s family, last year you and mac both went with your parents overseas for Christmas. And this year you would both be bring Leah and Kirsty.

Some how an hour and a half later you were just passing security only just and were going to get some small snacks for the plane. Leah, with the food palate of a 6 year old. Got some watermelon gummies “they help with feeling sick on the plane” she tried to convince you as you glanced over the packet she said was holding.

“4 years and not once have you been sick on a flight” you said

“The headaches” she shrugged and smiled at you. Of course you were gonna grab them off her and buy them for her. You grabbed some random chip snack you found at the front counter and shorty paid before handing the bag to Leah to put in her carry on. You were both absolutely beyond excited. This would be her 5th time in Australia, so she’s been heaps. But you would be staying at your family’s new place on the Gold Coast, QLD. You both sat in the lounge near your gate as you took a photo of Leah as she threw a Lolly into her mouth while smiling. Quickly adding it to your instagram captioning ‘see you soon 🇦🇺’

———

After 26 hours of travel. And your sleepy girlfriend who was currently clinging to your bicep as she slept. It was asked to put on your seatbelts as you went for landing. You slowly woke Leah up slightly so she would be ready for it.

You held hands as Leah started giggling about her funny dream. You looked out the window and squeezed your girlfriend’s hand extra tight as you saw the coastline of Australia.You squealed like a little girl due to your excitement as Leah pressed a kiss to your lips. “Welcome home love” she said before laying back in her seat. You took photos and sent them to your dad and brother to let them know you would be at GC airport in about 45 minutes so they could you pick you both up. You also texted your mum just out of excitement before putting your phone away.

Once you and Leah had gotten off the plane, you walked your tired asses over to the baggage collection. Before you felt someone tap your shoulder. You turned to find your smiling dad and brother. You quickly clung on to them both in a huge hug “oh how i missed you oh my gosh” you said into your brothers neck with a sigh of relief. You also felt small hands tug your sweat shorts, you didn’t realise one of your nieces would be here too.

“Hello beautiful girl!” You squealed pulling away from your brother as you picked up your niece and spun the giggling girl around.

“I missed you so much!” She said before quickly clinging to your neck.

“I missed you so much more” you smiled back. You hadn’t seen the small girl since the World Cup back in August.

You held her on your hip as you turned around to see your girlfriend finally hugging your dad and brother Sam with a big smile. After struggling to get both of your large suitcases off the conveyor belt while you had your mini family reunion.

“Aunty Lee!” You niece squirmed in your arms as you put her down so she could run to Leah.

“Hello you!” Your girlfriend smiled and she knelt down to give her a big hug. It melted your heart the way she was with your nieces.

Leah handed you your suitcase as you pecked her cheek before you rolled it out the airport with your smiling niece riding on top.

“Hello” you yelled out once your dad unlocked the front door to your parents home. You were met with your mum, 2 nieces, Mackenzie and Kirsty all rushing around the corner at the sound of the front door.

You and Leah gave all of them bone crushing hugs and chatted for a little while, had some of the left overs that was left from their dinner since you told them not to wait. It was already 10pm. It was convenient for your girlfriend and you so you could just get yourselves straight to bed.

——————————-

After multiple days of walks down on the beach, family dinners, more surfing lessons for Leah, lots of jet lag, swimming pools and relaxation for you and your girlfriend. It was officially Christmas Eve night and you couldn’t have been more excited if you had tried.

You, leah, Macca and Kirsty were all on the living room floor carpet wrapping presents. Everyone else was in bed. But the four girls in their twenties were not as prepared as everyone else and still had to do all their wrapping.

The holiday played on the TV in front as you had about 40 gifts to wrap for people. For everyone in your family besides the people in the room with you currently. “Stupid wrapping paper argh!” You groaned knocking your head back in frustration as the huge cut of wrapping paper you cut wasn’t large enough by a few centimetres.

“See you didn’t even need to get that gift in the first place” Leah laughed. As you were wrapping your 20th gift for your parents, you comepletely spoil them every year.

You dragged Leah around the large shopping centre to get more gifts for people. “Baby you bought your mum the same scent candle last year i remember you showed me” she grinned as you looked at the box before putting it in your trolley. “Yeah but it probs ran out. That’s the thing with candles lee” you debated back as she shook her head with laughter.

“Sorry I’m just so nice to the People i love” you said to her.

“And you absolutely are, beautiful. But I don’t think we will be able to get return flights anymore once we leave here” Leah said.

“I make alright money Leah Williamson. Plus if you think this is a lot wait till you open your presents.” You smiled at her

“There’s only just a few things I want” she grinned at you as you both walked to the car

“What would those be baby” you smirked back.

“You…and that pop corn machine thing I showed you”

“You showed me that just yersterday! How am I supposed to get that” You panicked. When it came to gifts you were amazing at giving them. Everyone knew that and got excited to receive one from you. If they weren’t perfect for them you would always worry.

“I’m only joking…” she laughed as she kissed your head “at the second one”.

Once you were finished you cuddled up next to Leah on the floor against the couch to watch the end of the movie. Before heading upstairs to your room “night love you” you yelled out softly to mac and Kirsty “goodnight!” They replied before shutting their door. Leah changed out of her normal clothes that she strangely got into after her shower earlier in the night.

“Please match baby” you pouted, sitting on the edge of the bed holding up the Christmas Pajamas that matched yours.

Leah laughed as she saw them, “when did you get those” she said before cupping your face and kissing the tip of your nose.

“Back in London. I forgot I had packed them. Anyways here” you shoved them into her chest with the wide smile of a toddler.

“Of course I will” Leah skipped away to her dresser to change quickly. You giggled getting under the sheets before Leah jumped on top of you just as you were leaning over to plug your phone in. You laughed as she wrapped her long arms around you and placed kisses all over you shoulder.

“I’m so excited to for tomorrow” you smiled looking down on her.

“Me too” the English girl replied as she rolled over so you could cuddle into her side. That’s how you slept every night. It was just the best way that your bodies melted into each other. “Love you baby” she whispered.

“Night beautiful” you smiled before drifting off to sleep.

——-

Christmas morning started with slow cuddles in bed with Leah before very hyper toddlers came running down the bedroom door. They had forced you to come downstairs because they weren’t allowed to “open presents until everyone is awake”.

Leah gave multiple gifts to everyone in your family. Even though she hadn’t met some of them heaps. You gifted Leah a new designer tote bag, some belt she wanted, 2 new Apple Watch bands, YSL perfume, and Tiffany earrings along with other small gifts. She spoiled you loads as well. You two spent a long phone call with her mum before lunch started.

The afternoon was still hot. As the rain cleared, you dragged Leah, your sister and everyone down to the beach.

You were putting on sunscreen in the long mirror in your room. Leah had just done up her bikini before coming up behind you “let me help” she grinned as you were reaching for your back for the sunscreen. You gladly let her as she took the bottle from you. She rubbed gentle circles into your back with the cream, you groaned when her hands made their way up to you shoulders.

“That’s nice” you breathed out as she massaged your back. She sent a grin to the mirror.

“Let’s go” she said before tapping your butt and heading out the door, sunnies on her head. You laughed to yourself as you followed her out. You carried two of your nieces the whole Walk down while talking with Leah and Kirsty. Talking about Kristy mewis’s new transfer to their club.

“I don’t want to jinx anything. But I had a dream last night I did my ACL” you blurted.

“What-“ Kirsty laughed as you said so

“That’s not funny” Leah said

“And then…I died from it. Is that possible?”

“No it’s not. And you’re not going to do your ACL alright?” Leah reassured

“Shit who’s done their ACL?” Mackenzie said catching up to all of you with your third niece on her shoulders.

“Maybe me”

“What!-“

“No!” Leah said putting her towel down in a mess on the beach. You jumped on macca’s back as she ran down to the water. Leah and Kirsty slowly following down after.

“Come here!” You yelled, arms wide open for your niece to jump into them as you took her to the deep end. Leah laughed taking a photo of you and the small girl. “Get in Lee!” You yelled out to her

“Yep soon hang on” she said typing something on her phone. You rose out of the water, putting the child in your arms down near Mackenzie as you ran up to your girlfriend. “No no no” she said backing away.

You somehow, caught up to her and threw her over her shoulder

“No no I have my phone y/n!” She yelled. You muzzled it out of her hand and slowly put in down on the sand next to you.

“Down we go” you sung. As you carried the laughing girl into the water. Before completely dumping her in fully.

“Your done” she huffed as she pushed the wet hair out of her face. You swam and hid behind your taller sister as she just grabbed you by the shoulders and placed you in front of her, right in target for Leah.

“Thanks” your girlfriend said before pushing your shoulders under. The water was actually cold for the humid weather outside.

————

It was late at Christmas night. Technically very early Boxing Day. And even though at 1am, there was light Christmas tunes playing on the radio tv.

Everyone including Leah was asleep in the house. You came down for a midnight snack. You had been for the past few nights here.

“Shockers” a soft voice was heard a long with footsteps. The presence of your older sister brought a smile to your lips. You stuffed the last bit of pavlova in your mouth. “Anymore of that?” She pointed to the dessert.

You just giggled implying you at the last bit. “Again shockers”

“Oi”

“I feel like I haven’t seen you in a year”

“You never got back to me about meeting back in London. And you missed last camp” you implied

“I know sorry. Promise to try more”

“Stop you do try. You were just injured” you said softly as you poured both of you a water. “Are you planning on going with Kirsty to her family next year?” You asked curious.

“Yeah most likely I haven’t been there for Christmas before. What about you?”

“Yeah I’ll probs stay in London with Leah. I told you Caitlin brought Katie and Jordan here?”

“Yes. I’m shocked about Jordan. Not Katie. Oh I love her” she said sipping her water then refilling it

“They’re just really close as a three. Caitlin said today Sam is heading back to America in 2 days to go back with Kristie”

“Damn maybe she’ll finally feel jet lag for once. And did Caitlin call you?”

“Yeah. Just to say merry Christmas and all that”

“She didn’t call me” Mackenzie said joking in a sour way. You poked your tongue out at her as she yawned.

“Ok I’ll go back to bed. I’ve been up since 5”

“5?!”

“Yeah. The girls woke us up first. Proof I’m the favourite?”

“Maybe I’m the favourite and they just respect my beauty sleep more”

“Keep dreaming. Night. Get to sleep so your not cranky” you sister said, back to her bossy self. You heard more footsteps coming back down 1 minute later.

“Love come back to bed” said your love in a croaky voice. You turned to find Leah in her short Pyjama set and her hair everywhere.

“Hello. Looks like you slept well” you said pointing to the sheet marks left from her pillow on her check las you quickly pecked her all over her face.

“Yes I did. And I would like to get back to it. With you” she tugged you slightly back up the stairs.

“I think I’m still a bit jet lagged” you said as your body stayed leaning against the bench. Eating the strawberry punnet you grabbed out of the fridge earlier before.

“Ya think” she giggled now pulling out a kitchen stool to sit with you. The faint sound of The Christmas song by Nat King Cole was played over the radio.

“C’mon dance with me, then bed I promise” you put both your hands out the help her get up and slow dance with you.

“Only cause I get to sleep” she smiled taking your hands. You slowly started dancing with her as she put her head in the crook of her neck. The dance slowed into a long hug with each other’s embrace in the middle of the kitchen.

“I love you” you mumbled slowly into her hair

“Love you most. And again thanks for bringing me” she pecked your shoulder

“Wouldn’t miss the opportunity for the world”

——————

So this was supposed to come out ages ago. And it’s shorter than I hoped. But hope it was alright. Luv u all❤️🎄

[kneecoal-mooma]

Weasley Siblings Doing Very Specific Things As Children

Bill Weasley: Jammed a VHS player by shoving bottle caps inside of it because he thought it was a bottle cap "storage" (He tried to put bottle caps in the CD player too but they wouldn't fit)

Charlie Weasley: Has put multiple bowls of spaghetti over his head because he thought he looked cool with spaghetti on his head (he thought it was a hat)

Percy Weasley: Got a plastic doll for Christmas and played with it the whole day until he went to sleep and chewed on the hand and woke up the next morning with the hand shrivelled up

Fred Weasley: Flushed coloured pencils down the toilet and the rest of the family only found out when they were renovating The Burrow and found the pipe full of pencils

George Weasley: Woke up in the middle of the night to eat one lolly, only to keep going back until he ate half the packet and the family to find all the lolly wrappers in his bag the next morning

Ron Weasley: Drank green food colouring when he was three because he thought it was a cool drink, only for him to spill it all over himself and turned his lips, hands, and clothes green (which meant the rest of the family found out immediately)

Ginny Weasley: Climbed a tree to prove her bravery only to realise she was scared of heights and refused to climb down until they got a ladder

[r0tt1ng-c0rp53]

☆ Christmas Eve Leon x Male Reader

TW: none

⚠️: cute shi

Short: You and your boyfriend Leon go out Christmas shopping, come home and chillax or something idk

24th Of December 2006, Christmas Eve.. the time of year where couples and families come together to spend the holidays in gratitude.

This year was different, it was your first Christmas with your boyfriend Leon. He wasn't necessarily the biggest Christmas lover but he still enjoyed the occasion, especially now that he gets to spend it with you..

You both had plans to go out Christmas Shopping, buying just some snacks and a few DVDs to watch through out the night together

Holding hands, you both walk into your first shop shortly before he picks out some little raspberry liquorice pack, smiling like a loon over some small gummy type lollies. You on the other hand grabbing a bag of sweet chilli chips, "Happy?" He asks, smiling at you.. but really he was smiling because of the tiny pieces of flavoured liquorice, "Yep, sweet chilli is like the best flavour.. Honey Soy Chicken making a strong 2nd" you debate with him laughing at you, immersed in the few different selections of wine dating back to the 40's in a locked glass cabinet. "Shit," you look in suprise "those must be expensive." You chuckle, "But imagine the taste, the term 'aging like fine wine' is true yknow?" He smiles at you, "Careful, might have to spend the money for another Christmas gift" you chat back..

You both managed to get back home, snacks n movies in hand, you were on snack duty as he was to pick which movie to watch first.. debating between the classics 'Elf' and 'The Polar Express', obviously sticking with The Polar Express.

About half n hour later and your cuddled up with your boyfriend on the couch, eating chips n liquorice together watching a Christmas Movie and slowly getting more drousy.. "Best Christmas ever" you mumble, your eyes getting a bit heavier.

[lesbewriting]

christmas cookies

[ Streamer!Hazel Callahan x Fem!Reader ] [815 words]

SUMMARY: In which you make Christmas cookies and your girlfriend, Hazel's a little cookie thief.

WARNINGS: Nothing, lol

A-N: Okay, so I didn't know if I should make Hazel as a streamer or not(considering this used to be for Quackity). But also, I didn't really want to change too much of the old fic, lol

[masterlist]

You adjusted the oven mitts over your hands, your e/c eyes glancing up towards the clock situated above the dining table a little further away from you. A sudden loud laugh erupted from the office down the hall of both Hazel's and your apartment. She'd been streaming in there for the past hour or so now.

The rather small kitchen that was only really big enough for the both of you smelt like gingerbread now. Seeing as you'd taken to baking Christmas gingerbread cookies as a means to keep yourself occupied whilst your girlfriend streamed.

A sigh falling out of your lips as you moved your gaze from the clock above and towards the oven behind you, the sound of the timer you had set previously ringing now as you turned. 

You positioned yourself accordingly, reaching your mit-covered hands out towards the oven door in front. You opened it carefully, making sure you weren't in range as a burst of steam flew out from the hot oven. A small, delicate smile fell onto your features as you took a grasp of the tray of gingerbread cookies that lay inside. 

You shut the oven door quickly once you stood, and you placed the tray upon the counter. Hands now slipping from the oven-mits you had, and you allowed them to fall to the countertop beside the tray. Carefully, peeking up at the clock once again. 3:15 p.m., you read.

Surely, Hazel would have to be almost finished with her twitch stream by now. You shook your head briefly, tucking your head into the palm of your hands atop the counter near the cookies, which now sat out cooling.  

A yawn manages to suddenly fall through your lips now, as a few more minutes ticked by waiting for Hazel to finish streaming. Head tilting up a bit as soon as you heard the sound of a door closing and footsteps wandering into the kitchen from the hall. A subconscious yet tired smile befalling your own features at the sight of your girlfriend making her way towards you. 

"How was your stream?" You asked her, turning slightly as she fell in beside you behind the counter. Your eyes flit up to look into her own to the best of your ability, considering the small height difference between the both of you. 

"Fine but tiring." She responded, her arms finding themselves wrapping around your waist as she stood behind you. She sniffed, allowing for her to smell the sweet scent of the cookies that still remained on the counter now. "Did you make these just now?" 

You nodded shortly, reaching over to where you had prepared the packs of Christmas icing and lollies you had bought to decorate them and pull them over. All the while, you remained in the warmth of the girl's embrace. A warmth you'd since come to enjoy tremendously, since you'd begun dating Hazel.  

You allowed a chuckle to slip out, eyes watching as Hazel reached forward with her closest hand in an attempt to snatch an undecorated cookie. 

"At least wait till they're decorated, Haze." You told her, your finger pointing to the icing packet you now held in one hand, as you fiddled to get it open. 

You suddenly discarded the bag of icing back onto the counter, once you had noticed your girlfriend not listening, as she still grabbed one from the plate, with a playful roll of her eyes.

"Ok, and what are you going to do if i eat this now?" She pulled the cookie up to her mouth as she spoke. Just as you had turned around in her arms to face her. 

Your eyes watched as bits of her brunette hair fell partly into her face, and you found your free hand reach up to move it from her eyes. Until, your eyes locked onto the stolen cookie in her hand. 

"Well I'll…" You started before stopping when you couldn't think of anything else to say. You continued to stand there in thought for a few moments until you spotted the cookie now missing from her hand. 

Guess she did end up eating it. 

You felt a feather-light touch to your nose. Hazel suddenly decided to boop it with her finger after she'd finished the cookie. Her eyes connected with your own as she found her other hand now finding its way back around your waist. "See, you did nothing?" 

This time, it was your turn to playfully roll your eyes at her. Yet, you couldn't help but allow a small giggle from slipping out. You weren't really mad, of course you weren't. It was only one, and you had plenty of others. Wait- you spotted her slowly, inching her hand towards the tray again, out of the corner of your eyes.

"Hazel!" You gently smacked her hand away now. "I really do need to ice these now."  

[epicrainbowsheep]

Darlin’ just you wait till then

Joel Miller x Reader

Joel and his darlin' make gingerbread houses, and things get frisky...

This is for the amazing Puddles @gasolinerainbowpuddles , Merry Christmas from your secret Santa!!!! Hope you enjoy :D

Walking into the kitchen with the box of the gingerbread house you just brought. “JOEL COME DOWN STAIRS” you yelled as you unpacked the decorations, lollies and candy, making sure to spread them out. “I don’t understand why I’ve gotta do this” He grumbles as he walks down the hallway, zipping up his jeans.

“Come on Joel it’ll be fun, plus Sarah said you need to do something holiday related since she isn’t able to make it this year” Joel grumbles yet again, standing next to you now, slowly surveying all of the parts of the gingerbread house they’ve got to build. 

Grabbing two sides of the house, “How are we supposed to put this together” He questions, looking around for something to stick it together with. You chuckle and hand him the piping bag with the icing in it.

“You use this darling” Joel takes it from your hand and pipes it along the seam, placing the two pieces together, it manages to stand up. Making sure to do it with the others, you start to pour some lollies into the middle before Joel attaches the roof. 

“Alrighty now that’s done” Joel stands behind you, wrapping his hands around your waist, pulling you in tight as he kissed your neck. You sigh as you give his access to your neck, “Darling we’ve still got to decorate it” he nuzzles your neck and speaks husky into your ear. 

“How ‘bout we do it together like this” he slides his big hands over yours, he picks up the decorative icing and slides it slowly into your hands, gently caressing as you both move your hands into position. His big hands squeezing yours and guiding the tube over the roof, you start to blush at the feeling of his hands enveloping yours.

With his hands over yours you both continued to decorate the gingerbread house, you could feel his errection against your arse. You bent forward a little making sure to grind your but slightly into his cock, Joel groans in response and grinds his bulge back into your arse.

Both of you moan, dropping the icing bag Joel grabs your hips pulling you even closer to his cock, grinding even harder. He sets a decent pace, groaning out in pleasure. “Darlin’ you feel what you do to me?” humping stronger to emphasise his raging hard on, his arms flip you around with his hips pining you to the counter, his arms wrapping around your body.

You hook one leg onto his hip, his left arm making sure to grip it tight. His clothed cock rubs perfectly against your cunt, both resuming from where you left off, this cock grinded hard into you. 

“Shit ba-aby” He stops himself suddenly, his head resting on your shoulder panting. “You okay Joel?” You questioned, worried something was wrong you bring your leg down from around his waist. He stands up, stabilising himself against the kitchen counter.

“I’m okay sugar, just not as young as I used to be, nearly got to excited there” He gave a sheepish grin, “Can only really come the one time before I’m pooped” He grabs your hand and leads you towards the bedroom. “Besides I can think of a better way of makin’ you cum” He walks you backwards towards the bed, pushing your shoulders so you fall onto the bed.

You bring yourself to rest against the pillows as Joel slides your underwear off. “Been thinkin’ about this pussy all mornin’” His arms wrap around your legs, hands gripping the meat of your thighs, pulling you roughly towards his mouth. He licks a stripe along your pussy, earning a moan from you before he shoves his face into your cunt.

His tongue licking rapidly around your clit, he moves his mouth downwards, making sure his nose is level with your clit and starts to rock his head from side to side. “Shit Joel” You moan out, arching your back, he groans in response to you, grabbing your arse with his big hands and grips it tight.

He starts motor boating your pussy, his mouth going crazy sucking and licking your cunt, his nose rubbing against your clit hard. “Joel I’m close” You manage to speak, your orgasm building up with all the pleasure your receiving from Joel, the thing that pushes you over the edge is the feeling of his beard scratching against your clit.

Your hands fly to his head and tightly grip his hair as you moan out Joel’s name in pleasure. You move your eyes to Joel who has his head raised, mid-wiping your juices from his mouth on to his sleeve. He crawls up towards you with a smirk on his face, bringing his mouth up against your ear “You enjoy that darlin’” Making sure to bring out his southern accent heavily, knowing it gets you going.

“Y-yes Joel I did” You moan out again as his fingers tease your hole, sliding two fingers in, starting to pump them hard, he gripped your shoulder and pulled you into him, his mouth staying right next to your ear, speaking in his deep southern tone as before.

“Your such a good girl baby” He groans out as he hears the squelches from your pussy, “Your positively wet baby girl, hear that?” He purposely slows down his fingers, making slow movements to prove his point, “Your pussy makes the most delicious sounds” He feels you tightening up around his fingers, he picks up in speed which takes you over the edge for a second time.

Bringing up his wet fingers to his mouth, he sucks your juices off, making sure to wrap his tongue around each finger, putting on a show for you. “Taste even more delicious baby” He kneels up and strips off his shirt, and manages to pull off his pants. “How ‘bout you show me your pretty tits baby, so I can see them bounce as I fuck you” He growls, staring you down as you strip the remanding of your clothes off.

You lay back down as Joel crawled back up your body, slotting between your legs, his cock nudging against your thigh. He brings it towards your cunt, moving it up and down, teasing you. “You want my cock darlin’” Joel says against your lips, teasing you even further. 

“Yes Joel I want it, please fuck me” Joel chuckles, just putting the tip of his cock in. “I think you can do better than that, beg for it” groaning out in frustration, “For fuck sakes old man just screw my brains out already!” You grip the back of his head and pull his lips to yours in a passionate kiss, this seemed to spark something in Joel.

He slammed into you, pausing to make sure you adjusted to his cock, his thick cock stretched you with just the right amount of length, not too big but real thick. “Shit Jooelll” You groan out, feeling the stretch, he moans out as you clench around him, he breaths in and starts thrusting into you.

He rolls his hips into you at a languid pace, making sure to get his cock as deep as it can go, you could feel his cock rock into you, rubbing against your g-spot with every thrust. “Joel faster~” moaning out as he obliged. He started to set a bruising pace, his cock managing to hit the right spot every time, you clamp around his cock as you came, screaming his name.

Joel groans out as you came, he’s trying to hold out on summing so he could last longer but your sweet pussy has a death grip on his cock. “Fuck darlin’ I’m cumming” He moans out your name as he came, giving a few more thrusts before he pulls out, nearly collapsing on top of you.

“Shit sweetie… that was…” You puffed out, can’t finding the words, feeling half fucked out. “Glad I can still make you breathless darlin’” He curls into you, resting his head on top of your chest. You both cuddle in silence for a while, enjoying each others warmth, you break the silence groaning “We still gotta go shopping to get your brothers present”.

“We can do that later” Joel grunted in response, pulling you closer to him, nuzzling his head into your chest again. His legs wrap around yours as he closes his eyes, “We can just nap for now, too lazy to get up” you chuckle and stroke his hair. “A nap sounds good baby” You get comfy, adjusting the cushions to accommodate both you and Joels bodies.

“Joel?” You asked out to his, closing your eyes, getting a ‘Hmm’ in response. “Do you ever think about our future?” Your question wakes him up, he lifts his head up, leaning on his arm to look at you. “Yeah of course I do” He smiles, looking even more handsome in the late morning sun. 

“What exactly do you think about?” You look into his eyes and he smiles again, “Marriage why you askin’” you look sheepishly at him as you respond “We’ve been dating for a good few years, I’m just wondering if it ever crossed your mind, I know we joke about it but I just wanna know where you properly stood”.

He grabs your jaw and kisses you lovingly.

“Christmas is comin’ darlin’ just you wait till then”

[that-one-enby-ranger]

Into the Halloween spirit! Time for some Rangers Apprentice Modern AU Halloween Headcanons:

Gilan: Really wanted to go trick or treating. At first Halt wouldn't let him go but then Gilan annoyed and pissed him off so much by asking over and over again and whining that Halt basically begged him to go trick or treating in the end just so he would leave the house. Gilan knows all the best houses and the best techniques to getting the most treats somehow always had the best costumes. Nobody knows where he gets them from. He just shows up wearing them. Brings a pillow case.

Will: Will also asked Halt if he could go trick or treating. After remembering how annoying Gilan could be Halt gave up pretty quickly and just let Will go. When he got "too old to go trick or treating" he kept trying to go with other little kids, pretending to be a baby sitter/supervisor, but in reality he just wanted to have fun.

Crowley: Will decorate everything spookily and has a wide variety of lollies to give out to the kids. Still keeps some for himself. Compliments all the younger kids on the costumes and says that they look "very scary". The entire neighbourhood loves him. He had the best decorations. Each year he had to buy more bags of lollies since everyone comes to him first and runs out very fast.

Halt: Doesn't do much. He only likes it for the scary stuff. He uses it as an excuse to watch horror movies with Crowley. And an excuse to watch The Nightmare Before Christmas. Once Crowley's done with all the kids he basically drags him into the lounge and watches It and other horror movies with him. Also Coraline because why not.

Alyss, Horace, Jenny and George: Go trick or treating with Will. Jenny makes treats and spooky biscuits for everyone. George suprisingly doesn't get that scared by horror and scary things and researches a lot of old horror stories to tell everyone while they are walking around the streets from house to house. Horace calls everyone weak for feeling sick from eating lollies. Alyss. She's just kinda there. I honestly don't know anything that she could do.

Arald: Throws one of the biggest Halloween parties for the adults, and any other kids who didn't go trick or treating. He plays songs like Monster Mash.

Pauline: Gives treats out as well but not as much. She's the type of person who only gives out one or two lollies to each kids, unlike Crowley who gives them like two handfuls. Sometimes raises her voice slightly so the kids won't overhear the screams and gore coming from whatever movie Halts watching.

[httpiastri]

Questions for “Last Christmas” (extremely random): How tall are you? Thoughts on mint chocolate chip? Favorite form of potato? Favorite form of pasta? Tea order? Something you’re proud of yourself for? Have you ever gone to therapy? Pet peeves? How many tabs do you have open right now? 💞

i'm 174cm tall (google says 5'8.5 feet?) !! well my problem is that i can't do mint at all, i think i'm like... not allergic but almost? because something goes pretty wrong whenever i eat mint 🙃 so no mint chocolate chip for me!

too many good forms of potato to choose just one... i really love tater tots lol even though i have them maybe once per year. in sweden we have something called potatisbullar (i would translate it to potato buns?) which is kind of like a big tater tot, but in the form of a patty. very common in schools, but i always have a bag in the freezer and pop them in the oven, and 20 minuter later i have the best meal ever 🤤 we also have a kind of potato pancake that i really love!! and waffle fries are amazing too. soft potatoes > crispy potatoes. and potato gratin!!! pasta doesn't matter a lot to me, it depends on what kind of sauce imo. penne is great though, works with almost everything!!

i don't actually drink tea... idk, there's just something about it that sits wrong with me. i've tried so many types, but nope. i love ice tea though (the european version, not american) !!

i'm actually proud of myself for being so good with the kids i coach. it's not often that i feel proud of myself for something, but i can sometimes acknowledge that i'm doing a good job with the girls and then i get happy and proud of myself over that <3 i started going to a therapist this fall actually, i went to someone else two times before this summer but we did not click at all (he told me that i need to be angry more 🤨 sorry sir but i am not going to force myself to be angry) lol

oooo a recent pet peeve of mine is girls who have like really high ponytails? idk why?? i used to think they looked really cool and even did them myself, but now i don't wanna look at them. and idk if it counts as a pet peeve but i just can't take people chewing on ice cream (like the water-based ones, ice lollies or whatever)? i get goosebumps just thinking about it?? chewing on regular ice is okay, but i just shivered imagining myself chewing on ice cream, no kidding

i cleaned out all of my tabs and windows yesterday so now i only have one window open with 19 tabs!! feeling tidy 👍

[fighterkimburgess]

Life In The Fast Lane Chapter 2 - Saudi Arabia

Summary: Plouch Racing is the first team to hit a Formula One milestone, but discussion brings memories Kim’s wanted to forget back to the surface. The time away from Adam doesn’t help either.

Words: 4.6k

Warnings: fatal car crashes, the dangers of motorsports, death. There’s some context notes at the bottom.

—

Kim knew there was a difference between the team budgets, but that difference had become night and day. Especially considering she was spending over a week alone. Before Adam moved team if there was a weekend between races they’d usually have five or six days alone at home before going to the factory. But now he had multiple media appearances and was flying to and from the UK to get to the VR factory. It was constant travel that tired him out. And Kim felt completely left behind.

Usually a race engineer was half engineer, half strategist. She’d work on the strategies on the off weeks. Sometimes she’d still go into the factory to see people and have conversations about car upgrades but usually she’d work remotely. Instead she spent her time between races in Plouch’s Swiss factory, sitting in her usually unused office and plotting strategies for Roman for Saudi Arabia.

He’d actually finished the last race which had surprised her. Not in the points yet, but he wasn’t the last to finish. Plus Antonio had come in P10 to get a point for the team. It could have been a lot worse.

She sat in the cafe with a coffee in hand, picking at the salad in front of her. Adam wasn’t back in Monaco for another few days and she wasn’t heading back before flying to Saudi Arabia. From there it was straight to Melbourne. Sarah and Crockett were flying up to meet everyone so she wouldn’t be alone.

But the little apartment she still kept in Geneva was lonely at the best of times. She hated having to be there, having to be away from Adam. They texted almost constantly and they were on FaceTime every night or two but it wasn’t the same. Lying in bed alone felt wrong after all the time they had together.

One of the only bright spots was that she’d gotten to know and get along with Gabby Dawson. The younger woman had grown up as her slightly older brother’s karting mechanic and until Antonio hit F3 she’d kept it up. But then she’d become his strategist and that had continued on. She was good at her job, enjoyed the work they did, and she and Kim could have good conversations. They hadn’t clicked the same way that Kim and Sarah had but it was a nice friendship in their crazy world.

The day before they were to fly out to Saudi Arabia Gabby was lounging on Kim’s sofa. There was a pizza box open between them for lunch and Die Hard was on tv.

“Is watching a Christmas movie in March really a good idea?” Kim asked and she watched how Gabriella shrugged.

“I’ll pretend I’m on the anti it’s a Christmas film team if it means we can keep watching?”

“Deal.”

They were having the lazy day before going back to the Middle East and everything a double header would entail. Their strategies were as good as done and would be finalised on the flight and they’d spent a solid hour going over ideas for the potential tyre compounds that they could get. There was nothing else to do until either the flight or they arrived at the track on Thursday to set up. A knock at the door surprised Kim, but she opened it to Sarah, Crockett, and Lolly standing there with their cases.

“Hi Kim!” Lolly said before going mute at seeing Gabby there.

“Hey Lolly. Do you remember Gabby? She works with Antonio on the other side of the garage.” Lolly nodded but still clung to her dad.

“It’s really nice to meet you. Trudy told me a lot about you, she showed me your desk in her office.” Gabby moved to the armchair while speaking and the mention of Trudy helped calm Lolly down.

“Sorry for bagging in, the hotel we’d booked screwed up our reservations. Can we stay in your spare room tonight?”

“Of course, come on in.”

They ended up sitting on the couches and armchairs watching movies. Instead of the evening of well watched thrillers it became a Marvel marathon. The four women sat there and watched while Crockett cooked blackened chicken for them to eat. It was a chance for them to all get along and get to know each other, and as far as bonding sessions went it worked really well.

Gabby looked at Lolly’s kart bundled in the hallway, turning to the little family as she put her coat and hat on to leave.

“Is this Lolly’s?”

“Yes.” Lolly had gotten her AAC app back up to talk to the new woman.

“When you decide to go karting will you tell me if I’m around? I used to go with my brother all the time, I was his mechanic. I can be yours if you want?”

It was really sweet to offer and Lolly nodded seriously. The app said thanks before Gabby left the apartment. Once she was gone and the four year old was tucked up in bed Kim sat on the couch with her best friends, Disney Plus turning Criminal Minds on instead.

“I think Gabby’s lonely,” Kim said slowly as Sarah turned around.

“We talk to her!”

“We talked to her three times, Sarah. I heard VR weren’t fans when she took over as her brother’s strategist but she knows her stuff. We should hang out with her for meals at the track. Especially if she wants to help Lolly, she loves that kart.” Crockett smiled at his wife before squeezing her hand once, Kim watching how Sarah nearly melted into him.

“We took her to Eze three times, it’s not even funny how much she enjoyed it. Al Olinsky was there with his daughter, Lexi is doing French F4 this year. She won her karting class last year and managed a sponsorship. He said Lolly has a talent for it but I don’t want to push her into it when it’s our lives.”

Kim let the conversation run over her as they sat there with the show on low. For the first time since returning from Bahrain she felt vaguely normal.

“Was it just the two of you?” She thought she sounded normal but Crockett’s expression made it clear that she hadn’t quite hit the mark.

“Adam came twice, he was in Monaco for a couple of days. Voight had him doing events in France and Belgium because Halstead doesn’t speak French. He made a joke about Bob traipsing around Europe for karting races with him helped for something. Have you been talking much?”

“We’re trying.” It was quiet until Kim spoke again. “We’ve both been so busy and I couldn’t leave Geneva. Texts and bedtime FaceTimes had to be enough. I think.”

“You’ll have time together in Saudi. We’re all staying in the same hotel, and the morality police won’t be allowed in the hotel.”

Kim smiled and tried to let it roll over her. It’d be fine. It had to be.

The flight to Jeddah was nearly six hours with everybody on the one wide body jet together. It meant that most people could have two seats as they lounged around or worked for the flight. Kim and Gabby had taken over a row of three seats to work on tyre strategies as they passed data points back and forth on an iPad. It was easy to ignore the noise as they worked. Roman was himself and had fallen asleep over a row of four seats with his eye mask on, but Dawson walked around the plane to greet everyone he hadn’t met yet.

“Kim Burgess, it’s nice to see you again!:

“Hey Antonio,” she replied as she stood to hug the older man. “Sorry I wasn’t here for your first race with us, well done on the points.”

It was clear that the drop to their team had hit him hard but he still smiled at the praise. “Platt runs a good team and Gabby’s good at her job, it was everyone’s hard work. It’s nice to see you here with all of us this time. Te gusto Bahrain?”

Kim replied in Spanish and the Dawson siblings continued the conversation in their native language. It had been a while since she’d gotten to stretch her Spanish skills and it was nice to have an in depth conversation in Spanish about work that wasn’t with a reporter who’d criticise if she missed a verb. Instead of the generic brief she’d given Roman shortly after boarding Antonio was interested in the tyre strategies they’d come up with for the race.

“So it’ll be a one stopper you’re telling me?” He asked as he looked over the colour coded spreadsheet in front of them.

“That’s the plan. If you’re potentially in the points we might try get you on softs with ten to go and try to get a fastest lap point to go with it. We’re pretty sure it’s going to be a Spa style race.” Gabby nodded as she showed the fastest lap point plan they’d spent a solid twenty minutes refining from their initial point of “drive fast”.

“This is…thanks. It makes sense, but if I’m not near the points then it doesn’t really matter, does it? Or do you want to take that point off people?”

“A little from column A, a little from column B.” The three of them laughed quietly, not noticing Roman coming up behind Antonio until he was there.

“What’s going on?”

“We’re talking strategy for the race. Do you have a preference for a one or two stop?”

“Does it really matter?” He walked off and Kim rolled her eyes, the action not going unnoticed by the other two.

“Is he always like that?” Gabby swapped to Spanish.

“Unfortunately. But the sponsorship money helps put up with it. At least Rhodes and Hawkins care about their teams.”

The heat hit them harshly when they made it to Jeddah, everyone piling onto the buses when they arrived in the evening. Lolly had begun to get tired and cling to her parents with Kim sitting in the row behind them. Fortunately one of the travel aides had the genius idea of doing a group check in so she could just hand out keys to everyone as they arrived. Once Kim took the card she hoisted up her bags to make it to the small room.

As soon as the door opened she was surprised to see the lights were on and a blast of cold air came out of the room to her. When she went inside and closed the door Adam was standing there with a paper bag in his hand, making Kim grin at him.

“You’re here?” It nearly didn’t feel real. It had been nine days without each other. They’d left Bahrain on Monday the week before and now it was Wednesday. But he was there and standing right in front of her.

“I’m here.” She dropped the case and ran into his arms as Adam pulled her close easily.

“This sucked.”

“It fucking sucked. Mouse kept telling me I looked like I was missing a limb when I was at the factory.” She reached up to kiss him, being in his arms and having him right there was enough for now.

“I think that’s the longest we’ve gone since we started dating.” He nodded and pushed a kiss to her forehead.

“I got you some rice dish that they said was good in a restaurant down the street. It’s rice and chicken and dates and I don’t even know what spices. Sarah said you were all getting room service together so I wanted to make sure you ate.”

“She helped you plan this?”

“We were in Eze with Lolly and she saw how miserable I was without you.” Kim laughed, sitting on the little desk as Adam sat in the armchair for them to split their meal. “Can I stay here tonight? I just want to be with you for a while.”

It felt like things were the wrong way around for them in the morning. Kim lay in bed and watched Adam slip out, head swivelling so he could get away unseen. She went down for breakfast and sat at a table with Sarah, Crockett, Lolly, and Gabby. She could feel Adam across the room from her but refused to risk looking over at him. Instead though Lolly ran to hug him when she saw him.

“Adam!”

“Hey Miss Lolly, let’s go back to your mom?” He came back to the table with her and greeted everyone. It was a weird moment to need to be professional because Gabby was there instead of not being able to be themselves.

“When are the two of you just going to sleep together?” Gabby asked as Lolly was occupied after Adam went back to his table, Kim turning and staring at her.

“What?”

“You know half the paddock has bets on the two of you getting together, right? I thought you just weren’t because of his dad. But he can’t take his eyes off you.”

The conversation stopped after Kim denied it, but the thought kept going through her head. If it wasn’t for the job at VR they probably would have announced they were dating over the winter break. But the idea of not getting to work with that strategy team hurt. She’d fit in well and thrived and she wanted to wear the uniform. She was good enough for it. She deserved it. She’d proven herself but if Voight didn’t think that she was professional enough and good enough she couldn’t get the job and that would be the end of it.

The setup time at the track was normal, Kim keeping an eye on Roman’s performance at the press conference as she showed Gabby the ways she set up the pit wall. Everyone did it differently and it was a good way to help her learn how she’d want to do it. Between them everything was finished and connected to their systems within half an hour so they could head for the debrief with Trudy.

It was the one thing that their Team Principal insisted on every day that they were at a track. The two lead race engineers would go over their plans so far for the weekend, what had gone well and what could be improved on. It was tiring and stressful and Trudy picked holes they hadn’t considered in their plans, but she did it because she wanted them to succeed. This time it was the two of them them with mugs of coffee in hand on the sofa, Lolly sitting in her corner colouring away on a Goat Racing colouring book.

“Miss Olivia’s in here because Sarah’s doing some work with the drivers and Crockett’s meeting the medical team. Does that work?”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

They went over the strategy plan and what had changed on each car, sipping coffee as they chatted. It was as informal as any of these got.

“We need to be careful with the front wings. We’ve swapped out to more downforce available because it’s a street circuit, but I’m not sure if it’s totally stable. I don’t have any worries about Dawson but it might be an issue for Roman. I’d re-evaluate what’s going on after FP1 tomorrow and then decide if we’ll change back. We’ve got both wings here.” Gabby took a cookie from the plate on the coffee table after she finished speaking.

“I agree. I want to see how Sean does around the circuit and what his lap times come out to. Last year he crashed out on lap twelve but the year before he finished. Our decision should depend on the mood and the track. It’s supposed to be good weather with temperatures around eighteen degrees. The track temp will be around thirty or so but we’ll get accurate weather information tomorrow. Hopefully the downforce and some good track conditions will get heat into the tyres easily.”

“You’ve got it well in hand. I don’t think I need to remind you that this team is making history this weekend, do I?” Kim and Gabby both looked at Trudy quizzically. “This is the first Formula One race weekend that a team will have a team principal and both lead race engineers be women. Wallace Boden reminded me of that when I saw him earlier, and Netflix want to interview both of you about your careers. They’ll be around after FP2 tomorrow for that.

It was an early night in Adam’s room before Kim got up and went to the garages for the first practice session. The cars were sleek, carbon fibre and steel ready to race around the track at outrageous speeds. It was a hive of activity and people getting ready to go.

But the practice sessions passed too quickly for Kim to really enjoy with the interview hanging over her head. She didn’t want to go and didn’t want to deal with it, but once the cars were back and Roman and Dawson were out she was sent to the media room Netflix had set up. She sat in a chair in the middle of the dark room, looking around.

“It’s just some questions, nothing big. We’ve got a lot of female fans and we want to show them that they can have a job in motorsport too.”

The first few questions were softballs, how did she get into engineering and how did she start in Formula One. Had she ever regretted going into it? Her response of the awful sleep pattern being a regret got a laugh. But it was the last question that made her stop for a moment.

“What does being involved in Formula One mean for your life outside of work? We see drivers not able to keep relationships going when they’ve got the money to fly to places for a night or two. What happens when that’s not an option?” She swallowed and tightened her fist for a moment.

“It’s hard. It’s really hard. I’ve missed birthdays, weddings…my niece was ill and I only found out afterwards because I was in Australia when it happened. Being honest and explaining what happens helps. But its not easy. We’ve got a married couple working with us at Plouch, they travel with their daughter. And that’s a stress on them but we all love it. You can’t do this job if you don’t completely love what you do and love motorsports.”

“Do you think you can keep doing this if you want a family? It’s a dangerous sport to be involved in.”

“I don’t know. There’s drivers who do it - look at Matt Casey. Sylvie’s there with their kids at every race when school isn’t in session, and at basically every European one because they’re close to home. Daniel Charles at Gaffney has his wife and daughter with him at every race. Ethan Choi’s family don’t tend to come to many races but he’s the first one to leave after everything’s done on Sundays to get home to see them. Trudy Platt set this team up when her son was in his teens. I think it’s hard, but it’s doable if you have the right support. But this sport…” She paused and took a minute to breathe, blinking back the tears that threatened whenever she talked about it. “It’s so much safer than it was in the past. If you told people there’d been two on track deaths in a decade they’d have called you a liar. But I was Justin Voight’s race engineer and I remember trying not to beg down the radio for him to respond to me after that crash. I was watching the telemetry and we knew something bad had happened even before the medics got there but we were just praying something had gone wrong with the sensors even though we knew it hadn’t. This is a dangerous sport. And we don’t tend to acknowledge just how dangerous it can be at times. I’m on the pit wall, I’m generally safe. But I can see why between the travel and the danger people can find it hard to make it work. God knows I do.”

“So there’s nobody special in your life?”

“My life has a lot of special people in it. Right now I’m not missing much, except maybe my bed!”

Kim left after saying goodbye, texting Trudy that she couldn’t make the debrief. She got back a terse no problem but she could explain what had happened in the morning. Right then all she wanted was a large drink to wipe away the grief and misery of having to talk about Justin. But they were at a stupid race in a stupid country with stupid no alcohol rules for most stupid places and she couldn’t let herself be seen like this. She couldn’t let people see her upset.

Instead she forced a smile as she walked down the paddock. A little girl stopped her as she walked to ask for an autograph because she wanted to be a “nengine-eerer” like Kim. She grinned and bent down for a photo with the child, signing her Plouch Racing shirt and promising if they were at the entrance to the garage in the morning she’d get Gabby to sign it too. The parents were grateful and thanked Kim repeatedly, the mother realising something wasn’t quite right and pulling everyone else away. Finally she got a cab back to the hotel and went into Adam’s room.

It was only once she’d gotten in there that she could let herself feel again. She’d seen awful crashes before at so many tracks. Kelly Severide’s car had gone up in flames when she was watching and he’d barely made it out. But Justin had been a freak accident, his car had clipped another and spun sideways into the barrier in Spa. The radio was open but he was barely speaking unless it was urgent, in the much needed points. He’d been driving around the corner and whatever way the racing line went he couldn’t follow and he’d spun out to hit the barrier at far too high a speed. The car had crumpled just like it should, the halo protecting his head from anything external.

“Justin? Justin can you hear me? Justin get out of the car. Hit a button. Something. Tell me what’s going on.”

The silence on the other end of the radio was endless as the red flags were called and everyone was brought in. Adam had been their reserve at the time and he had a headset on like everyone else in the garage. Everyone was tuned to the silent radio line. Kim could hear the muted tones from the coverage on the large TVs. The sound was blurry in her head as she focused on the fact that every piece of telemetry was showing nothing.

“It looks like that was one of the Plouch cars that went into the barrier. Do we know who it was, Bob?”

“Well we’ve just seen Halstead back in the garage so it’s Voight. The marshals are going over but there’s no signs of fire. I can see—“

“Let’s go to the pit lane. What do you see there, Sharon?”

It took twenty minutes for them to get him out. It was nineteen minutes too long. She knew from minute two what the outcome would be but she had to be professional, couldn’t yell. Mouse’s hand had gripped hers hard as they waited for confirmation before Trudy gathered everyone into the conference room. Hank had been there and Kim had never seen a more broken man.

The tears were streaming down her face as the door opened, Adam spotting her and dropping to the ground to hold her hand.

“Hey, hey, hey. Kim. Kim, what’s going on?” She felt him pull her close and wiped her eyes, desperate to stop sobbing.

“I…we’re making history this week with all female engineers and an all female team principal so Netflix wanted to interview me. Longest serving female engineer still on the grid and all that. But they brought up how dangerous the sport is…”

“And they mentioned Justin?”

“Yeah.” The sobs started again and Adam just held her closer.

“It wasn’t your fault. We all know that. Hank knows it, the FIA knows it, Erin knows it. You hadn’t talked to him for three laps and conditions hadn’t changed. None of it was ever your fault, Kim.”

“But if I’d just done something.” His fingers carded through her hair as he kissed her forehead, holding Kim close.

“Every single time we go out in those cars we know what could happen. It could be like Justin, or it could be like Andy Darden’s crash, or it could be one of the thousands that have happened. Its why I always tell you I love you. But we know the risk when we get involved, Justin knew it too. It was bad luck and nothing else. I promise.”

It took a few more minutes for Kim to calm down, wiping her sore eyes with the back of her hand.

“I should be more put together about this. It’s been almost three years.”

“You watched your friend die, Kim. You didn’t get to have the hope everyone else had because you had access to everything. Plus we all saw the way Voight spoke about the accident afterwards. I know he apologised but it’s still gonna leave a mark.”

“Yeah. Ugh, I’m sorry.”

“Nothing to apologise for.”

She managed to do her job for the weekend, just about keeping her head together even with the memories flashing through. Roman got through practice and qualified P18. It was a sign of how things were that they were celebrating not being last. Antonio made it to P12 with a good chance of scraping into the points to make the mood high in the garage post qualifying.

It didn’t last. Roman was lapped twice but had a DNF in lap 42, causing a safety car that meant Adam lost out on a podium. Antonio stayed in 11th, Stella Kidd’s smart defending keeping him out of the points and putting a damper on the whole weekend. Kim was thrilled for the first female F1 driver in years getting points, she’d wanted to talk to Stella if she got the chance. It would stop the media only talking about Stella and Kelly Severide at least.

But this was a double header so once the debrief was over everyone went back to the hotel to pick up their bags before heading to the airport. She pulled her eye mask down as soon as they took off. It was a stopover in Singapore where they could get off the plane, stretch their legs, buy some food and relax for an hour or two before onto Melbourne. Nearly as soon as she arrived she’d have a meeting with VR to discuss strategy and the last thing she wanted to deal with on the flight was more complaining from Roman about how he finished. Instead she pulled her hood over her head, curled up, and forced herself into the first dreamless sleep she’d had since the Netflix interview.

Notes: 

Netflix does a TV show called Drive To Survive, that’s what Kim is interviewed for.

Justin Voight’s crash is essentially the same as what happened to Anthoine Hubert in the F2 race in Spa in 2019. He clipped a car, his car went over another, and Hubert was killed while Juan had spinal injuries. Correa only returned to racing in 2021, and made his F2 return in November 2022 for the last race of the season.

Andy Darden’s crash is based on Jules Bianchi’s crash in 2014. A car spun out on a corner at the track in Suzuka, and while under double yellow flags (a warning that there’s something on the track), a tractor crane was brought onto the track. Bianchi’s car collided with the tractor crane thanks to poor visibility. Bianchi died nine months later after being in a coma since the crash as the first fatality in Formula One since 1994. His death brought in more safety features such to FIA open cockpit racing.

Burzek Taglist: @aruzlover @haiileyshalstead @morganupstead  @adamruz @fullwattpadmusictree @redpoodlern @everythingaddictxx @write4life13 @jeanjacketjesus @tuxieboy101-blog @thelittlepterophyllum @planecrazylex @sophiatellerrhodes @ossypooh @kimburgess-ruzek @thestarrynightslover @reidskitty13 @etamne @torreshalstead @itsnotpersonalbut @kellykidd @dedlund82 @pinkwhitebrown @mmacke3613 @upsteadlovingheart @ittybitty-tittycommittee @takemetooneverlanddd @oracle23 @thedefinitionofendgame @headlightsatmidnight @butterflylies @afriendlyneighborhoodhufflepuff @withakindheartx @bebataylor84 @whoiamwhoistrivetobe @multicouple-lover @eviehalstead212 @soupysoup @daniellexoc3 @storiesofsvu @keenmarvellover

[imaushiji]

Yahoo~

Santa Ji is back again with her trusty bag of goodies 🎅🏽 And with the help of your blorbos, we're delivering candygrams!

So, what is a candygram?

according to Wiktionary, a candygram (plural candygrams) is a box of candy/lollies, delivered with a greeting or other prepared message

Your darlings are hard at work crafting the perfect little note for you, and they'll be dropping off candygrams to your blogs this Christmas weekend!

To receive a candy(cane)gram from one of your faves...

Send me a "🍭"

Your top 5-3 blorbos

And what you would like to do this holiday season

If you'd prefer something spicier...

Meet me under the mistletoe. Or will it be your fave waiting for you instead?

Send me a "💋"

And what flavor chapstick you're wearing (irl or for when you meet "me" under the mistletoe)

And I'll write a small blurb about who's smooching you on Christmas night. These will also be answered during Christmas weekend and there are only 5 spots available!

Even Santa has some rules...

I will be accepting asks from now until December 20, 2022. After the 20th, asks for this event will be deleted.

You don't have to be following me but you must be 18+ with your age somewhere on your blog.

You must have your asks open (anon optional) if you would like to receive a candy cane gram.

You can do one or you can do both! But please limit your asks to one "🍭" and/or one "💋".

Happy holidays from Santa Ji!

[councilingmychaos]

Scene Six

After finishing the first book I read, I decided to gather my things and head back to the dorm room. Hopefully my roommate is done, or better yet, not even there. I was getting quite comfortable with the route, so I managed to make it back to my room quickly.

I stepped inside, my nose blasted by some sort of earthy scent that I wasn’t familiar with. I looked around the room, realizing whoever my roommate was, was able to unpack and decorate in such a small amount of time. I placed the books I had gotten onto my desk before looking around briefly, once I realized she wasn’t here, I decided to take a closer look at her side of the room. Was that weird to do? I feel like most people are curious.

There were a ton of plants that bordering her bed hanging from the ceiling. She had decorated her desk and chair with bright colors and other plants. She had a small herb garden hanging on the wall that her bed was up against. Everything was so earthy and bright. It was extremely loud and overwhelming also, but something I’m sure I’d get used to.

I looked around a little more, admiring all of the things she had to make her side of the room feel comfortable for herself. I looked over at my side and laughed a little. I didn’t even remember to bring blankets, pillows, shower items. All I brought was a change of clothes, my phone charger, and a picture of my Lolli. (I call my grandmother Lolli)

I unpacked my bag, placing my one change of clothes in the small closet that was provided. I set my charger on the bedside table and threw all the items that were in my pockets, into my book bag. I then climbed onto the bed, now that my clothes were no longer soaking wet. Some areas were a bit damp, but nothing too annoying that I felt the need to change into my only other pair of clothes. I grabbed my phone to see the time, realizing it’s still pretty early in the day. It was around 3:30pm now, and though that seems like early in the evening, it does get dark in Redwood around 5PM.

I began searching stores in the area that were within walking distance so I could go out and buy some of the things I needed. Unlike Abel, I saved all of the money I had ever gotten for my birthday, christmas, and for chores. Arthur also promised when I started highschool, how much money I saved from Freshman year to Senior year, he would match. So I could afford to go out and buy things I needed.

The biggest problem is the fact that I’ve never gone shopping before, in a store. If I needed stuff, I either sent a list with Angie and Arthur for when they made their monthly trip into town. Or I ordered it online. When you live two ish hours from town, it’s easier to order everything online. I found the only other Library I’ve ever been to, Lillian’s, on Google maps and began to look at other shops near by. Down the road from the library is a small grocery store, and across from that is a boutique. I just needed to find a store that sold bedding and other items to decorate a room. I didn’t really have a theme, nor was I really into anything other than reading, writing, and painting.

There was also a small shop called Gerty’s Home Goods, and from the website, they seem to sell all things for the home. I made a note in my phone of the shop's names, and the items I needed to get. I wanted to be as prepared as possible, since I’ve never really done the whole shopping thing before. I laid there, staring at the ceiling, contemplating whether or not I wanted to go out tonight to get the things I need, or just wait until tomorrow. I don’t have my first class until Friday, and today is only Monday. I knew though, that if I didn’t go now, I won’t go later either, and then I’ll get too anxious and overwhelmed that I’m not prepared, and I’ll lose my mind. So it’s happening— I’m going into the village.

I haven’t been into the village of Redwood in a little over a year. After what happened I vowed to stay out of that hell hole as long as possible. I knew one day, I’d need to go back, I just didn’t know it would be this soon. Despite how ready I DIDN’T feel, I needed to get over that obstacle, since this small Village is now my home for however many years it takes me to graduate college. I sat up quickly, sending a rush through my head and making me slightly dizzy. I sat there for a few moments, trying to gather myself, before getting out of bed and putting my boots back on.

I brushed my fingers through my long black hair, yanking out any tangles I got with all of the rain that had covered me. It surprisingly took me a lot longer than I expected, but I did have a lot of hair. I then tied it up into a high pony before making sure all my items were in my bookbag. I placed my bag on my back and headed out the door, flicking the light off before shutting it tightly.

I decided to walk out of the main doors so I could walk down the sidewalk. I made sure to put GPS on my phone, just in case. There really wasn’t much to Redwood, but if you ended up in the mountains, you’re bound to get lost. That is, unless you’re from around here. But even if you are, like me, you’d still get lost. It’s upsetting that I hate this village so much, for what I’ve been through while living here, because it truly is a beautiful place to be.

[kitchenknickers]

I bought candied pears at the grocer on sunday

whole candied pears. they are SO beautiful, I’ll take photos when the light is better, but…god they are so pretty

they came home with me in a double bagged plastic bag of sticky mess and I haven’t felt up to dealing with thhat mess till today and even then I probably should have left it but I was cutting up the candy peel that resulted from a semi-failed batch of olio-saccharum and thought my hands were already sticky so why not…?

anyway those slices are all air drying now

I want to put them in the sand christmas - the whole clementines will go in whole as I cannot bring myself to cut them up, and some of the pears are also going in whole—even though the seeds are still in—but I just…the thought of slicing it and having the whole fruit in the middle is just such a pretty picture in my head

meanwhile the cut slices look like little gem shards. hoping air drying them will give them a bit of a crust so that I can serve them like lollies on my cookie platter

[the-fiction-witch]

10/10

REAL LIFE SCANDAL COUPLE TBS X READER RATING CUTE

"Welcome to an outside edition of why the hell not!" y/n smiled sitting in her garden in a small sundress rubbing what appeared to be suncream on her arms with Thomas beside her in a small vest and shorts with what was clearly beer in a glass

"Becuase it is... way too hot to even consider being inside"

"Pretty much. It is in London at this very moment 28 degrees. So the idea of setting up lights in order to film is just... not an option"

"To be fair this time of year the average temperature is usually about 18 maybe twenty on a good day and that's in July and august so. yeah"

"Tis hot"

"Tis fucking hot," he says "I put ice in my beer. that is. that is a signal of how hot I am"

"It's gonna be 37 on Tuesday"

"I know. they say it is. I am afraid."

"to be fair if you hear a noise and see movement behind us that is a pool that is being set up. because yeah. we need a swimming pool"

"That's the plan isn't it?" "Yep. big parasol. and swimming pool. and I have filled our spare freezer to the Brim! with ice lollies and ice cream" "You did?"

"Yeah. did you not notice like the six bags of ice cream I bought when I went to Morrisons?"

"No. I was sitting in front of the fan with the girls"

"Yeah I was kinda hiding them from the girls.... and you"

"The video can wait," he says bolting up and clearly running of inside

"What where- are you getting ice cream.

"Yes!"

"Bring me one" she yells back

"what sort?"

"Uhhh bring me a jaffa cake one"

"You got those!"

"I did last box and I think a woman behind me was after it took she gave me such an evil look"

"Woooo!"

"ahh yes, they are fine. also very hot. but they are currently at their friends."

"I was so close to going with them. Lisa's house has airconditioning like American style air con in every room it's amazing" he says as he arrived back with ice cream

"I know you were. but we are setting up this little pool for them. and for us"

"defiantly for us." she smiled taking her ice cream

"what are we doing today? other than complaining about the heat?"

"Ahh yes. we are playing a game"

"A game?"

"from the internet"

"Ohh no. am I going to offend anyone?"

"I mean... you might. it's the internet Thomas it doesn't take much"

"Okay tell me the game"

"so you know how... people rate like potential partners out of ten"

"......... yes. yeah okay" he nods clearly confused for a moment

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I know people who do."

"So I'll say like she's a nine but then a catch and you have to say to you what that actually makes them"

"In theory"

"Yes in theory."

"Good. I don't need to think and rate other people I have my beautiful wifey" He smiled giving her a cuddle

"Awww thank you darling, but... no cuddles too hot"

"Yeah I realized immediately"

"Shall we begin"

"Alright."

"She's an 8"

"Okay."

"But she only plays a ukelele and if you ask her about it she gets really defensive and yells about being a serious artist"

"No. Ohh fuck no your a four lady. maybe even a three"

"not into that?"

"No. I mean you can play it. and if you wanna... release an album cool but don't be a dick about it"

"do you have one for me?"

"Ohh I get to do you too"

"You always get to do me thomas"

"I know I married you. I went through a lot of bullshit to be allowed"

"Bullshit?" she glared

"we both know I would have married you in a fucking Tesco car park if you let me, I didn't care. no a year of prep and several thousand pounds"

"I love our wedding"

"I did too but still" he says "Okay... he's a six"

"Okay."

"But every single Friday night he goes to the gym. doesn't matter what other things you could plan that day not gonna happen he's at the gym."

"so Like if Christmas fell on a Friday"

"He'd wanna be in the gym,"

"My birthday"

"In the gym"

"He's a two."

"oohhh"

"You can go to the gym I have no issue with that but I feel like at that point it's more of your personality than anything else. like that's more cult behaviour"

"Good point."

"Okay she's a three"

"Right"

"But she knows every one of breaking bad"

"she's an eight"

"See that's the thing with you. you like nerds."

"well... I sort of have to. I am a nerd. be kinda dickish if I didn't like nerds and then expect someone to settle for me" he laughs "That and your my cute little nerdy girl. we go well together"

"True"

"Okay he's a nine but his only job is as an 'influencer'"

"you sir. are a minus seven"

"Ooohhh.  no love for the influencers?"

"No. you can be an influencer, not a problem, but have another job too that should not be your only income. like if Instagram or tick-tock just shut down tomorrow you shouldn't be fucked."

"That's a good point"

"Right, she's a 10 like a straight up 10/10. but she says star wars is overrated."

"she is a one."

[homeofjonicles]

The Jonicles - Entry 29

It is currently the 31st of October, 2022 at 4:51 am, the morning of a very spooktacular day: Halloween!! You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this day even though they always have school on this day for some... stupid reason... That's like having school on your birthday... But now is not the time to be gloomy! Tonight is the night of binging scary movies, playing your favourite horror games and making yourself sick from eating too much junk food all night! Today also marks the #165th day of my Jon Arbuckle hyperfixation!!

You know, Garfield isn't a stranger to celebrating holidays at all. He celebrates Christmas, New Years, his birthday, Thanksgiving because he's weird and lives in America, and finally the spooky day itself, Halloween. When they were making the cartoons back in the 80s, they made these holiday specials - around three to be exact - and the Halloween one was the one I watched the most as a child!

I remember sitting down on the floor in front of the TV at my old house when I would have been around five or younger, and the Garfield Halloween special would be playing. It's nostalgic to think back to that special and remembering Garfield having a musical number about deciding what to dress up as, going out into the night with Odie, finding that spooky old house and being told of the story of these ghost pirates from the weird old guy living in the house. The ghost pirates were definitely the one thing that stuck out to me the most.

The old man in the house tells the story of these pirates that once plundered the seas looking for treasure, but as they found their riches, they had to bury it for their doom would soon come iiii'm not actually too sure what happened to them... But they swore that come 100 years on that very Halloween night where Garfield and Odie stood, they would return to claim their riches as ghastly spirits right at midnight. A ghostly ship that rippled in the wind soon came sailing across the water towards the house, promptly scaring our two heros shitless in the process. They were horrific, undeadly, spooky and they wanted their treasure. They chased Garfield and Odie away, leaving them to fend for themselves, desperate to get back home...

The special also had plenty of other memorable bits (at least to me anyway), like our favourite boy Jon looking absolutely bored out of his mind scooping pumpkin guts out from a carved Jack-O-Lantern and being startled so hard by what he thought was a ghost that the carved fruit (is it a fruit? it has seeds...) landed right on the lad's head. There was also the aforementioned song number about Garfield deciding who he'd dress up as for Halloween, eventually coming to the conclusion that him and Odie would be pirates! It's funny because as a child, I used to have this plush Garfield who was dressed up like a little pirate. Actually, it was my dad's, but the little thing was fun to play with. I don't know where the guy went, we moved houses years ago and he seemed to disappear. He was most likely donated but I miss him...

A-Anyway, the two both go plundering out i to the night as two pirates, Garfy baby being the captain and Odie as his crewmate. They have this smooth jazzy number about how Garfield isn't a scardey cat, he's all good, nothing to eb afraid of! ...Before promptly being scared by everyone's spooky costumes when they realise some of them aren't who they appear to be before they find a boat and row to the house. At the end of the special, when they've been scared shitless by the ghost pirates and collected their goods, Garfield has a tough choice to make. He's got two bags of lollies (because that's what we call candy here in Australia), and he's gotta decide: Does he keep them for himself, or pass one on to his old buddy Odie? Garfield made it clear at the beginning of the special that he'd use Odie to get two times as much lollies (or candy) and keep it all to himself, but... Ultimately, with Odie being his bestie, his bro and saving him back at that ghost pirate blunder, he decides to give Odie his share of lollies and goes to sleep for the night... Not before seeing that creepy old guy wearing his pirate hat on TV!

There's other pieces of Halloween media related to Garfield too, but most likely, you already know about these ones. Back in the 80s, Jim Davis created a series of strips for Halloween where Garfield wakes up to find his home completely abandoned and boarded up. As he ventures deeper into his home, he finds out that he's just been here for years and his beloved Jon and Odie have been long gone. Unable to face the truth of the inevitability of time and probably slowly starving to death, Garfield realises he's only one weapon: Denial. Jon and Odie soon phase back into existense and Garfield meets the both of them with an embrace, revealing Jon and Odie to merely be a figment of Garfield's warped imagination. This comic is freaky, it makes such a scary concept - the inevitability of time and death - even scarier by having Garfield be trapped in a reality where he doesn't exist and be in complete denial. It's both relatable and depressing. Time is such a horrifying thing and you don't realise how much you care about something or someone until they're gone because of time. That's already powerful in itself, but I think the last panel has the most punch. It reads:

"An imagination can be a powerful tool. It can tint memories of the present, or paint a future so vivid that it can entice... Or terrify, all depending upon how we conduct ourselves today."

There's also the Garfield's Scary Scavenger Hunt games, which I may make a separate entry about! I never played those as a child, but I remember hearing about them through learning about Lyman's disappearance. There was a long gap where I didn't read much Garfield between when I was a kid and when my Jon fixation started, so I never really played Scary Scavenger Hunt when I was little despite having played a bunch of flash games. But, it's still a great spooky duo of games that definitely is worth a mention!

So, with all that said, have a Happy Halloween, folks! Lets hope your day is scary and spooky and full of treats and surprises! And for those who don't celebrate Halloween, have yourselves a great day regardless! If you don't mind, I'm off to watch a bunch of spooky stuff, rewatch the Garfield special and play Luigi's Mansion for the day... As long as I don't have any school, that is...

Last edited at 5:46 am. Happy Spooky Month!!

Cheers,

Your Local Jonnoissuer

Posted on the 31st of October, 2022 at 5:50.

[stampwithtami]

Last Day for Warm Wishes - November 2023 Paper Pumpkin Kit

NOVEMBER 2023  PAPER PUMPKIN KIT TODAY IS THE LAST DAY TO SUBSCRIBE FOR THIS KIT The Warm Wishes November Paper Pumpkin kit comes with everything you need to make traditional Christmas treat packaging boxes that you can fill up with all sorts of small goodies, treats, gifts, and more. Subscribe to Paper Pumpkin kits by November 10 so you can take part in spreading the light of Christmas around them with this kit! October Kit Coordination For Even More Creative Possibilities! The November Warm Wishes kit coordinates with the October Home for the Holidays Paper Pumpkin Kit! If you can’t get enough of this traditional Christmas scene and need more cozy crafts, then make sure to check the October Refill’s availability and spend more time crafting this holiday season! An Add-On To Take Your Crafting Further You can purchase an add-on to the November Warm Wishes kit—and it’s one you won’t want to miss! The Warm Wishes Cards & Envelopes includes 20 cards and 20 coordinating envelopes you can use for even more Christmas crafting. We love the extra creative possibilities to make the season shine even brighter for the people around you!   SUBSCRIBE (PAY AS YOU GO) PRE-PAID KITS ABOUT THE KIT Kit Name: Warm WishesThis kit includes: - 8 boxes; 4 each of 2 designs - 1 Mossy Meadow Stampin’ Spot - Iridescent glitter accents on paper - Precut paper pieces - Linen thead - Treat bags - Warm Wishes photopolymer stamp set - Completed box size: 4-1/4" x 4-1/2" x 1-1/2" (10.8 x 11.4 x 3.8 cm) and 4/1/4" x 3-3/4" x 1-1/2" (10.8 x 9.5 x 3.8 cm) - Coordinating Stampin’ Up! colors: Balmy Blue, Blueberry Bushel, Cherry Cobbler, Crushed Curry, Daffodil Delight, Lemon Lolly, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, Old Olive, Pecan Pie, Real Red SUBSCRIBE ABOUT THE ADD ON Warm Wishes Cards & EnvelopesAvailable for purchase starting 11 October; only while supplies last.Item number: 163985$14.00This add-on includes:• 20 Cards & Envelopes • Irisdescent glitter accents on paper• Folded card size: 5" x 7" (12.7 x 17.8 cm) SHOP ADD ONS AND REFILLS PPX VIDEOS Subscribe to Paper Pumpkin through me and get 6 alternate project videos with each month's kit. Find out more about my free PPX Crew videos and how you can get them Paper Pumpkin kit subscription. PPX VIDEOS TAMI'S PAPER PUMPKIN VIDEOS & GALLERY OF IDEAS WHAT ARE PAPER PUMPKIN KITS? Paper Pumpkin is our monthly One-Stop Box™ that offers a unique variety of paper projects for subscribers of any skill level to enjoy! These thoughtfully themed and all-inclusive craft kits encourage Stampin’ Up! customers to explore their creativity, try new techniques, and discover their potential in papercrafting.  SUBSCRIBE TO PAPER PUMPKIN Paper Pumpkin is our monthly One-Stop Box™ that offers a unique variety of paper projects for subscribers of any skill level to enjoy!    TAMI'S PAPER PUMPKIN GALLERY Read the full article

[booksandwords]

Fire Truck Santa by Nic McPickle. Illustrated by Nathaniel Eckstrom

Author: Nic McPickle Illustrator: Nathaniel Eckstrom Age Recommendation: Pre-School/Kinder Topic/ Theme: Christmas Traditions Setting: Country Australia

Rating: 5/5

This is such an adorable book. Combining an Australian tradition, the spirit of Christmas and slightly quirky but charming illustrations. The faces on the animals are just cute. There is some diversity in the children. Indigenous children, a child in a wheelchair both boys and girls of other varying tones and appearances that are common in Australia. Eckstrom's art is not exactly unique per se but perfectly suited to this fun style of book. I like the message it sends. That idea of giving back, of helping people out and togetherness at Chrismas. That tradition of gifting Santa cookies appears too. Honestly, it's a simple book. But would work so well as a read to in libraries or school or as a bedtime story during the holiday season. Total respect to the dedication too, to volunteers in the fire services.

On the cover of the edition I'm reading is the comment in a bauble "an Aussie Christmas tradition!". And it really, really is. Every Christmas, even during covid, members of various fire brigades around Australia drive around the streets greeting children and adults alike and giving gifts (usually in my area bags of lollies). This is just something that we do at Christmas, we don't have snow we have heat and sunshine. So rather than a sleigh, our Santa has a firetruck. This tradition doubles as fundraising for our much-deserving firefighters. They really do need it, they are underfunded at a state and federal level.