Who is that masked man?

Here's Mr. Tim with his birthdayTwinkies and ice cream. He has on the balaclava I ordered for him from SlackStitches at Etsy and his new leather jacket that I got him for his birthday.

He had a good birthday and we did get to visit with our friends last night. We went to IHOP and I enjoyed two cups of tea while we listened to Scott's tales of Turkey. Their two teenage daughters were with them and I could not get over how they had grown up. They're both beautiful girls, smart as whips and funny as all get-out. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit with the four of them.

We went to church this morning and now we're getting ready to enjoy a cup of coffee. Hope everyone has a wonderful New Year's Eve and the best year yet!

Happy Birthday, Mr. Tim

Today is Tim's birthday. He didn't want a cake. He's not a big cake eater but he did ask for Twinkies so I'll run and get some for him later. I have a couple of gifts for him and one ordered that won't come until later next week. I hope it's a good birthday for him. Tonight a friend of ours will be returning home from Turkey and we're hoping to meet up with him and his wife at the airport and get a drink or something before they drive home (a couple of hours away). I haven't seen them in years since Tim and I can't both leave his mom for that long. He's been to their farm a few times over the past couple of years. Some of my favorite memories are from being at Spirithaven. They are some of the dearest people I've ever known. They have and will always have a very special place in my heart. I really hope I get to see them tonight. It will be an especially nice birthday for Tim if we do.

Tim and I went out for the first time on his birthday, so it's sort of an anniversary too.

I have some Christmas cards and things I want to get pics of and show everyone. I have been so lazy in taking pictures. I will eventually get pictures of some of the things I got for Christmas too. The boys gave me some wonderful craft things that I have had so much fun playing with. Molds and paper clay and some fasteners that work like staples. They have words on them and can go through three layers of cardstock. I'd never even seen them before. Fun! Tim gave me a beautiful snuff box from Turkey and guess what he told me it was for? Glitter!!! Does he know me or what? lol I did put glitter in it. It's very cool.

I've been on here reading all morning. I think I'll go play and see when Mr. Tim would like to open his gifts.

The boys are leaving today. Their dad, stepmom, step-siblings and they are going on a cruise. They're pretty excited, although Nick hates leaving the girl that we can't call his girlfriend for New Year's eve. I hope they have a wonderful time. I will miss them desperately. I plan to organize their room while they're gone and hopefully they will come home to a much more comfortable space.

Hope everyone has a good day and a great weekend.

Steel Rose

The box is a stencil of the recipient doing a ballet move, apparently in the hallway at school. Nick removed the lockers and made a stencil of her and spray painted it on to the box. A box that he cut down and rebuilt to fit the rose. He tied the black ribbon on and placed the rose inside. He explained to me how he went about cutting, soldering and bending the metal but there is no way on earth I could explain it to anyone else. I am as amazed by the little doohickeys under the rose as I am the petals. The stem is textured, too. It really looks to me like a rose that was magically touched and petrified while in its prime.

Ok...I know, I know. I'm his mom. hehe I'll shut up now.

Christmas Day Happenings

I took these pictures knowing they would be really dark and hoping I could fix them on the computer. My program didn't quite cut it, but Nick showed me another one that did a pretty good job.

Here are Nick and Michael as we were gathering our gifts and Caleb was on the phone telling his favorite aunt that he loves her.

Michael was Santa, handing everyone our gifts. I had way too many. Tim says that's coz I'm the Momma.

I have a pic of Tim, too, but he doesn't want me to post it. We also took one of his mom opening gifts, but I'm thinking he probably doesn't want that one here either...so...on to.............

ATiller The Hun! This was my big gift that I never would have guessed. lol A tiller. I can't wait to start tearing up the dirt and putting in pretty flowers. Between the shed being built and my new tiller, things should start shaping up around here.

We had a really nice, quiet day. I pretty much glitterfied everything in my path yesterday. I had so much fun. I've had a real dry spell in the creativity department but it all came flooding back yesterday (and a little the night before) and I just cut and glued and glittered and had myself a merry time.

Nick's girlfriend (well...they won't say they're dating but if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck..you know...chances are...) anyway, she came over last night and brought us a plate of cookies which are very good. I thought that was sweet of her. She brought Nick's gift and he gave her the absolutely stunning steel rose he made for her.

Michael got video games from Emily and he got a DVD set of Mystery Science Theater 3000 from his dad that he brought with him, so he enjoyed that a bunch yesterday. He and Nick received a guitar from their stepmom and Mike spent a good hunk of yesterday learning the tabs for one of the songs from the Nutcracker. He did great.

Cale's girlfriend came over last night and they exchanged gifts. She's real sweet, too.

I was happy when all the girls left (lol) and I could turn out porch lights and lock doors and actually go to sleep.

Tim made all the Christmas fixins'. He made ham, green bean casserole and sweet potatoes. It was yummy. We really don't sit down in the house all together. I don't know why. I think it's a wonderful practice and we sort of thought that would happen yesterday, but it worked out fine as it was. Emily, Tim's daughter, called while he was eating and she and I had a nice conversation and then he talked to her while I ate. LOL The boys sauntered in and out of the kitchen eating when they felt like it and it just all seemed ok with me.

Our laid back lifestyle would probably make some people crazy but it seems to work for us. I will admit to wishing I'd been a little less laid back about cleaning house when those girls came here. hehe but...if I get all bent out of shape about it, I end up aggravated at men who could care less, so I figure I can create peace at least in my little (messy?) corner of the world.

I hope everyone had a loving day. Ours was pretty good and I'm glad it's over. :) Now...to "UNdecorating." I love that as much as decorating.

Tim got me a beautiful table cover so I'm anxious to replace the Christmas runner. I'll try to get pics of some of the beautiful things he bought. He went a bit overboard this year...but I'm not complaining. ;)

Happy Birthday

Elisabeth!

And the stockings were finally hung

Chenille Stockings
Originally uploaded by GroggyFroggy.

I kept putting off making these stockings. I have had in mind to make them from a chenille sweater I had but was afraid to start cutting. I am very pleased with the way they turned out. I may eventually sew something on them to dress them up a little but for now I'm pleased. They're the sweater sleeves if you were wondering. :)


This is a little primitive angel I sewed. I drew her face with markers. The wings are stuffed felt and there's a button that you have to squint to see in this pic. I enjoyed making her and I may give her to a lady in our church if I can bring myself to let go of her.


This is a little quiltie I made. I designed the angel and stitched her. I first made her into an ornament but I didn't like the ornament so I "unsewed and unstuffed" it and made a quiltie. I like it a lot.

I finally got all my shopping done today. I'm so glad I didn't make myself go out in the rain yesterday. It is absolutely BEE U TEE FULL today. I had the best time, was focused and got everything I needed to let folks know I love them Monday morning.

I have so many people "out there" in internet land who I love and want to send things too. After Christmas I plan to start crafting and arting a lot more. I have been the recipient of so many beautiful wonderful things and it has been really appreciated.

Tim and I had a big fight yesterday. I stayed in bed for the remainder of the day. (I never do that) I threatened to leave...it was horrible. I was sick, sick, sick. Today we kissed and made up. I made my New Year's Resolution to be a kinder, gentler partner. (Now if I could get Minnie Pause to cooperate with me) A gruff speaker and a sensitive soul probably should not try to commune but the choice is made. lol What to do. We love each other despite ourselves. hehe

I hope everyone has a wonderful, wonderful holiday. Love to you.

Etsy Listing

I just listed this on etsy with this description.

Description

I made this doll as a response to those suffering at the moment. While there is much happiness and we are right to celebrate Christmas with good cheer, I wanted to acknowledge those who are, instead, experiencing crisis and grief. This doll is a bit of an incarnation of my sadness for them, yet the hope I feel for them shows itself in the cross which is attached as well as in the beautiful lace head covering. "Yes, we grieve. But not as those who have no hope." ~~St. Paul

Added on Dec 22, 2006

Don't Wait. Act Now. Got it.

From a sermon by my pastor (that I read just last night): This has infinite repercussions, but I would like to point out just one this morning. We need no longer keep waiting for something to happen. We need not wait until we are good enough, or understanding enough, or faithful enough, or anything else enough. Either Christ lives in us, or Christ doesn’t. If he doesn’t, then what we must do this morning is trust him, trust this message for yourself and the world, trust it enough to say, I am willing for Christ in me to change me and my relationship with God and neighbor. That’s all. Then, I assure you the Holy Spirit is within you and each time you trust Christ in a given situation the Holy Spirit will help you. What I’m concerned with is that you and I quit waiting for God to do something. He has. He has made us his children, and he is Incarnate in us…he is enfleshed in you and me!

From TUT (totally unique thoughts) (received early this morning):Haven't all the years you've spent being Santa Claus, Lisa, been more fun than all the years you spent waiting for Santa Claus?

And not just for the joy you've helped place on your favorite faces, but for your ability to act instead of wait. Acting makes the suspense bearable. It gives you a starring role. Time passes more quickly. And best of all, it makes possible the dance of life as you network and mingle with other dancers.

It's the same for your dreams, Lisa. Act, don't wait.

Happy Hallelujah, Santa Claus!
The Universe

Wonderful gifts from Sweden!

Wonderful gifts from Switzerland!
Originally uploaded by GroggyFroggy.

I got this wonderful parcel in the mail a couple of days ago from my sweet, dear friend Elisabeth at VintageWineWritings. I feel like the luckiest woman in the world. As I told her in an email, I feel as though I've reached into my favorite blog pictures and pulled out lots of goodies that I love. There was also a pair of beautiful candle ringers but I was so excited to put them on my candle sticks I forgot to get a pic! Bliss to infinity!



I'm such a dope. I don't know why I put Switzerland, Elisabeth. My apologies. You were so sweet you didn't even say anything. :) Thanks so much for catching it Hulda..I never would have!



A while back, I won a piece of art from Delta at the Art of Quilts. In the midst of all her busy-ness this Christmas she took the time to send me this wonderful box with gorgeous hearts and houses. It is lined with special fuzzy paper. I took a picture of the inside but somehow didn't manage to get it uploaded. I love the beaded ribbon closure. oops..you can't see that. I need to be a better picture-taker.



The magical Ms. Kaigoddess was my secret santa in our glitter sister ornament swap! I was so happy to receive this little wonder. It is made from recycled things so it is even more especially Kai-like. She is a phenomenal steward of our planet. Isn't it wonderful? :)

And now that everyone has received their Christmas "Santa and Me" Chunky Book, I will get a photo of mine so you can see it. It was a lot of fun and turned out to be an amazing bit of Christmas joy. Adding: You can see it at Violette's blog! Isn't it amazing?

Hope everyone has a great day. Our new stove was just delivered! I'm going to go play.

Ooops.....a little late I just realized we weren't supposed to show our ornaments until Saturday. So act surprised Saturday, otay?

I just listed this in my etsy shop , although I made it a while back.

Take a letter, Maria

Our dear Sarah has completed her "B" list. Check it out at Faith, Hope and Love.

Elisabeth at VintageWineWritings has completed her "L" list and it's truly Lovely.

I have some pics to share but it will have to wait until morning. I'm a sleepy girl and just realized I missed Everest. grrrr Maybe we can rewind it.

My Favorite Things

One of my Favorite blogs is The Sacred Art of Living. Christine recently did a list of her 10 favorite "T" things and invited us to do a list of our favorite things that start with a letter assigned by her. I was assigned F for Frog. :)

I wanted to do this because I feel that gratitude is important and I know that I am not always as grateful as I should be. Sometimes we need a little extra kick to think of all the things we really like and are thankful for. So here is my little kick in the form of 10 things that start with the letter F.

1. Friends. That may seem like an obvious first choice, but there was a time in my life when I really didn't care about having friends and now I am so blessed with wonderful women in my life, both on the net and in the flesh and blood world.

2. Felt. hehe I love making things with felt. It only takes a few minutes to have a little cute something-or-other and makes me feel I've accomplished something semi-creative.

3. Furry kitties and puppies when they want to be all snuggly and lovey. I don't have one like that but one day....... (my cat says "hmph, go pet your own self)

4. Fabulous coffee. What? Am not cheating! Ok...but I had to get coffee in there. It's something I love a lot. Coffee is the reason I get out of bed in the morning. I go to bed looking forward to morning because I get to wake up and have coffee.

5. Fairgrounds. I love the smells of food cooking intermingled with the smell of farm animals and their gifts. I love watching the many different people that a fair seems to leech from the surrounding area. Different cultures, different races, different incomes, different religions...all there to have fun riding, eating and seeing the world's largest pig.

6. Fall. What's not to love? Beautiful colors, intoxicating smells, crisp air and blue skies. Hey, even better when it lasts well into Christmas, as it is here. :)

7. Fabric. Need I say more?

8. Food. Which is why I am dieting. My clothes have sounded the battle cry, "Too tight, too tight."

9. Fans. When I was about nine years old, I went on a trip with my aunt to visit some friends of hers. When we arrived and had said a few hellos, we went up to our bedroom to take a little nap. It was very warm, but there was a fan at the foot of the bed. My aunt (who is the coolest) suggested we lay with our heads at the foot of the bed so the fan could blow on our faces. It is one of my favorite memories and I still sleep best with a fan blowing on my face. (even if I need 9 quilts to keep me warm).

10. Finishing! Like I just did. :)

If you would like to do this on your blog, just let me know and I'll assign you a letter. Then let me know when you've completed your list and I'll link to you. Fun!

Whoo hooo!

Thank you Andrea! I hadn't thought about using bloglines. You have saved me so much work. Now I will just add them as I browse. Thanks a bunch.

Thank you for all the helpful and kind comments.

I did try to switch to beta but my blog is too big. They'll get me eventually. In the meantime, I realized that I could register with google and now I can comment. I don't know why I hadn't thought of that before. So, it's all good.

Sidebar

Boy, I wish blogger had a feature that automatically entered a blog into your sidebar if you visit it over and over. It sure would save me a lot of trouble. I am trying again to add links to the sidebar. It is an ongoing process. This is a heartening thing, though, because it just means there are so many wonderful women in the world that I can't sit down and manually type each of you in in one sitting. It does my heart so much good to know that spread out all over this big blue marble, there are women such as I've come to know here in Blogville. Because of the women I've come to know here, I honestly want to know more about the women that I rub physical elbows with here around my town. I find myself a better listener because I understand how much goes unsaid in real life because we chatter on about nothing. Sometimes it only takes a question to bring out the deeper thoughts of another person. Sometimes it just takes shutting up long enough to listen. I look at the women around me differently now. I don't worry so much about how they see me. I worry more about really seeing them. That is thanks to you wonderful women in Blogville.

Yesterday, I attended the funeral of my friend's husband. She was incredible. She was comforting everyone else. I must say that I was relieved to find that it was not entirely shocking for her. He has lived with a heart condition for some time and they always knew this was a possibility. I was so worried about the shock aspect of it. I know she will miss him and I know that the full realization has not come to her yet but I am grateful that she is surrounded by people who love her and loved him.

The meditation given by our pastor was one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard from him. (and there have been many, many beautiful sermons and meditations from him) We presently have a stable set up that the congregation must walk through in order to reach the sanctuary. We are adding stuffed animals to it and at the end of the holidays will disperse the animals to foster children in the local area. There are all sorts of animals out there..some who probably would feel very strange in a stable. Pastor Garden pointed out that the animals in the stable are a poor reflection of the animals they represent. He likened them to us as poor reflections of the light we represent. He spoke of my friend's husband as now being a true reflection of that which he represented here on Earth. He is the real deal now. It's as if God went into that stable full of stuffed animals and said "Today you will be the reality of what you represent," and they suddenly became real bears and sheep and puppies. It all reminded me of Narnia, a bit. I mentioned to the pastor how beautiful the sermon was and he thanked me and said that it reminded him of the Velveteen Rabbit. Indeed. I hadn't even thought of that, but it surely fits.

After the funeral, my wonderful friend Elizabeth and I were talking and she needed to stick around to deliver some groceries into the kitchen, but didn't want to do so while the reception for family and out-of-town guests was going on, so we decided to take a walk to the coffee shop down the street. The air was indescribable. You know when you're in a lake and there is cool fresh water and sun-warmed water swirling around your body all at the same time? It was like that. Ok, so it was describable. There was cool air coming up from the damp ground and the warm sun shining down. Yummy. So, we walked and had coffee and chatted up a storm. We walked back, unloaded the groceries and parted company. I came home and napped until choir time. LOL Isn't that terrible? It felt good, though. Elizabeth brought me a Christmas gift to choir. I am not allowed to open it until Christmas. She trusts me, huh? hehe Tim almost opened it..he said she didn't say anything about him opening it. :) Choir rehearsal went well..then we went to a local surf 'n turf (in fact, I guess that's the name ,come to think of it)and I had a beer and some fries and good conversation with good friends. Then home to watch Top Chef with Tim and then to sleep, perchance to dream.

Today is our date day, as we postponed it for the funeral. I need to get on the stick for Christmas. I am starting to feel a bit panicked.

Lots more detail than I intended to offer. lol It's fun to relive a good time though.

Talk to you guys later. Lots of love your way.

Rambling on again

Thanks for all your kind comments. Amy, your dream about your Opa brought tears to my eyes.

I've made a couple of things over the past week but haven't taken any pictures. I tell ya, it seems like you turn around and it's dark already. As determined as I was to keep things simple this year, I seem to be doing alot of running right now. None of it has anything to do with shopping, though! I have bought one thing. One! Oh well, I mainly have to get stocking stuffers because I'm giving the boys money this year. Oh yeah, I need to make stockings. I pulled theirs out of the box and they just didn't look so good and I said "I think I need to make you guys new stockings." Nick said, "Oh no, poor you, having to sew and make new stockings..how awful for you." Would you say he was teasing me? lol

I've had a lot of last minute stuff pop up. Last Wednesday night I was asked if I could sing Sunday night at "The Journey to Bethlehem" and I did. I enjoyed it and I'm glad I did it. Yesterday I had a woman's circle (Presbyterian Women) meeting that began at 9am and ended with lunch. I got home after 1pm. I thoroughly enjoyed it, though. Some of those ladies have so many wonderful stories to tell. Some were telling Christmas memories from 80 or more years ago.

I just had this thought about the women's group. When I first came to the church 20 years ago, there were certain women who did just about everything that got done. You know how that is. There are always people who can be relied on to get things done within the church or wherever larger groups gather. These ladies were all in their 40s and 50s then, as I am now. It just dawned on me that it's still these same women who are doing everything. Younger women are working or just not interested. They did start a group for some of the younger women that will meet during the Sunday School hour once a month and I think that's great, but I do think something is missed by not rubbing elbows with these wonderful women with so many amazing stories to tell.

I regret that I spent so much time away. But I fully appreciated the fact that I had come full circle in a way, as I was being installed as an officer yesterday. It was while I was moderator of this group that I began to turn away from God and from the church. That was almost 10 years ago (unbelievable) and it felt good to officially become a part of this particular group again.

I am rambling. I interrupted myself. I was trying to make the point that there is no group of younger women standing in the ready to carry on the work of Presbyterian Women in our church. There are plenty of younger women working in the church, mostly with youth-related activities. That is entirely appropriate and I'm not criticizing. It's just that there will always be parents for youth-related activities. It works out that way, conveniently enough. But where is the drive for younger women to come once a month in the middle of the week, just because? It really is a throw-back group, in a way, I suppose. Each circle, as the groups are called, has a few more than 10 ladies. They each have an organization (like womens's shelters,etc) that they help every month. Did you know that people still roll bandages? I kind of enjoy that one. They take care of business, collect the things they need for their organization, take up a small offering for other things that may come up and then have Bible Study with an appointed teacher. When this meeting is finished, there is a general meeting with hymns, devotional and some sort of program. Sometimes it is a speaker and sometimes music. Once we even learned all about vintage linens and how to take care of them from a very interesting lady who collected such linens. She rode in on a Harley. I can enjoy a dichotomy. :) After the program, we adjourn to lunch which is made up, generally, of sandwiches (pimento cheese, cream cheese and olives, etc), jello salads and the most yummy desserts..pies and cakes that look like they came from magazines. Each month one of these delicious lunches is made by a particular circle. They take turns throughout the year.

I suppose it's a little antiquated, although from reading way more blogs than I should, I know that there are women out there who would love these kinds of meetings. So, where are they? I wonder if these women who have been doing everything are tired? Do they worry that there will be noone to take over and let them rest a little? Do we all rely on them just a little too much? How long has it been since they just went to church and enjoyed an event from the pews rather than from the kitchen or from just outside the door?

Well, thanks for letting me ramble on about this. I used to write things like this in a notebook where they didn't bother anyone. lol Now I make you suffer through them.

I started out posting just to let you know that I'm fine; just busy...and now look. I hope everyone has a good day. I'm attending a funeral at 11am. After that, I have no plans.

Tim finished the shed yesterday! yay! So we'll probably spend the day clearing spots that have been driving me crazy for a few years. I'm pretty excited about that. Flylady is wrong. You can organize clutter. ha!

Friends, death and a light-hearted meme for a little relief.

Thank you everyone who said you'd pray for Lisa and her mother. Lisa's mother is no longer with us here but is no doubt watching over her very dear daughter as her very own special guardian angel. I'm sure Lisa would appreciate remaining in your warm thoughts and prayers for some time to come.

I got a shocking email yesterday telling me that a friend's husband died Sunday night. They were visiting their daughter and he had a heart attack. My friend is in Stephen Ministry and is always reaching out to others. She is wickedly funny and profoundly kind all at the same time. I saw the two of them together just last Thursday and am in complete shock that I will never see them together again. I cannot fathom the pain that she is going through. I keep seeing her face in my mind and praying that God will bring her comfort. We all hope for a death that is sudden, yet, there seems no easy way for death to come. For family and loved ones, death brings pain and loss and the need for healing. I know my friend will be surrounded by people who love her. I pray it will take away some of the sting.

I was tagged by Tinker to do this *Six weird things about me* meme, so here goes:

1. I never remember my dreams. Every now and then I do but usually they're just normal everyday stuff.

2. Except last night. Last night I kept dreaming about Tinker and this meme and also about Sombra. I dreamed that he walked into a store and a girl with blond hair and big blue eyes (perhaps another blogger) was absolutely mesmerized by Sombra and kept trying to hold his gaze as he was just trying to get a cart and be polite. He wasn't interested and was a little uncomfortable.

3. I love to read but if a writer puts something in parentheses, my mind interprets that as "skip. don't read." I often have to go back at the end of a paragraph to read the things that were in parentheses as they turned out to be somewhat important.

4. I forget to be mad. Sometimes someone makes me angry with something they say and I think I'll tell them a thing or two next time I see them and then I see them and go on with my day, only later remembering that I was mad and missed my opportunity because now it would be really lame to bring it up.

5. I hate to be shushed. HATE. IT.

6. I should never have let Tim know that I hate being shushed because now his favorite thing is to go "Lisa? Shh." Did I mention I hate that?

Light a Candle

For our dear Lisa Oceandreamer who is keeping a vigil for her mother tonight and trying to be strong as she says farewell.

We love you Lisa.

One more pic

Advent Candles
Originally uploaded by GroggyFroggy.

I made these little tags today from laminate samples. I've been seeing Advent candles on some pretty blogs. (mostly the ladies in Norway, I think) I love the idea of lighting a candle each Advent Sunday. I got started a little late, but I decided not to let that stop me.

I have had a quiet craft day. We went out yesterday so today I was in all day, just making things and rearranging things and blogging and all that comforting stuff.

I have choir rehearsal tonight and even though I would love to just stay in and continue what I'm doing, I'm also looking forward to rehearsal and seeing my friends.

I hope you've all had a good day. I know I've already put a bunch of pictures up today but I wanted to add this one because I was excited about the candles. lol I was able to make a new decoration without spending a dime. I wandered around the house, looking with new eyes and realized I had everything I needed. I love it when that happens.

The Seeker

The Seeker
Originally uploaded by GroggyFroggy.

Yesterday I was the happy recipient of two overflowing packages. One was from Kai, who was my secret Santa. She really outdid herself but I can't show you until we've all received our ornaments.

The other wonderful, marvelous package was from Me. She sent it "just because." That amazes me.

She made this beautiful paper and did the transfer. It is called the Seeker. Isn't it wonderful?

This tag accompanied the package.

These "bugs" were in a little box that said "Caution: live butterflies. Open immediately." I opened the box very carefully to find these little cuties. lol When I told "Me" about it, she said she hadn't even thought about that. She chose the box for its size. That made it even better. lol

Look at this gorgeous purse. She made it from a vintage dishtowel or tea towel. It has a long chain handle and I just love it.

Thank you, Me, for everything. It was very much appreciated.
Thank you also Kai and I will take pictures when allowed. Oh, other than the ornament, I have been given strict orders not to open the rest of Kai's package until Christmas. I am being very good.

We put the Christmas tree up last night. I couldn't believe how much cheaper a tree was this year. The boys are just like me. We stopped, looked at two trees and were back in the truck within 5 minutes. They had it in the house and unnetted and ready to go before I could even think of what needed done next. They are growing up so fast. Michael and I did much of the decorating. We seem to be the two kids who enjoy it most. :)


It's directly in front of the window and it's very bright outside so it's hard to get a good pic but you get the idea. It's. a. Christmas. Tree.

As is our custom, we boiled apple juice with some orange slices, cinnamon sticks and cloves. It smelled so heavenly while we decorated the tree and even still at bedtime.


This is what is left of the cider. I put it in a spaghetti sauce jar and tied a ribbon around it. The ribbon was wrapped around a bundle of fat quarters I bought last week. It perfectly matches a candle I have. It all sits together, at the moment, on a glass tray on the bar.


Before Thanksgiving, Michael took my fake pears and twig pumpkins and put them in this tray and in the hurricane and I loved it. So now I will use it to decorate each season. Thanks for the idea Michael.


I put some of our pearl garland in with my rose petals and grabbed this Christmas tree candle (from the kids' preschool years) and stuck it in the middle. I love it with the star candle (a yard sale find) looking on from behind.


I've been seeing these jar lamps on some of my favorite blogs since back in the spring. Last night I finally made myself one. I really like it.

Tim put lights on the bottom of the cabinets yesterday. They look really great and it will be much easier to cook (I think I remember how) with lots of light. Now..to get a stove. LOL

I hope everyone is enjoying the season. I'm taking things really slowly and trying to enjoy this time. Nick and I were talking about presents and he pretty much just wants money. I told him that people feel that it's very impersonal to give money. He said that "we're good" and money is fine with him. lol We came to the conclusion that we're very close all year long and there's no need to prove it on Christmas day. Gotta love his practical side. :)

I think I'll go play some more. Have a great day all.

Unexpected Pleasures

Last night, Tim let me know that he was planning to go to the library this morning. I have a noisy brake and he wanted to look at a manual for the car. I told him I'd like to go and maybe check out some craft books. After his mom was taken care of, we went out. We remembered that the main library has a store where they sell books for incredible prices. I'm talking 10-50 cents per book! So, to the basement we went. Oh the restraint that was shown! We spent $18.75 and left with almost more than we could carry. Tim thinks we probably left with at least $500 worth of books and video tapes...for less than $20!

I've taken pictures of a set of Christmas books I bought. I thought they were very pretty and fun. They have Christmas hymns in the back of them. They're full of artistic renderings of Christmases past and they tell about Christmas traditions all around the world. I really enjoyed looking over them and think I will start the new tradition of having them out on the coffee table during the holidays.



I also got a set of Dostoevsky books. I'm really excited to read them since I haven't read any of them before. Then again, I think the only book I've read of his is The Brothers Karamazov. I hope these are as enjoyable (painfully enjoyable, though it was).

Tim picked out a bunch of video tapes. It wasn't until we got home that he showed me the one on spinning yarn. That will be a lot of fun to watch. We got gardening books and Christmas tradition books and I got a bunch (oh, I knew I wanted to take a picture of something else!) of vintage magazines. Crafts, homemaking and swaps! Bloggers are not the first to swap crafts and materials. People used to put their full address in magazines and swap and become friends, just as we do now. I think that is so cool.

After we left the library, we went to a coffee shop downtown.

We each had a cup of house coffee and I had a yummy cranberry muffin. It was a nice crisp morning and all over the market area Bing could be heard singing Christmas songs. It reminded me of when I was a little girl and I got to spend a few days with my Aunt Berma in Charleston, WV. The streets, to me, seemed filled with vendors. She bought a marionette bird for me. I loved it! That is such a great memory. She is an awesome aunt. She sends a birthday card every year even now that I'm in my 40s.

The rest of the day has been fairly quiet. I got a little creating done. I didn't really have a project in mind. I just needed to play.



I hope everyone is doing well. I know some of you are going through hard things and I want you to know that you're on my mind and in my heart.

Advent

This is how I'll be spending my morning in just a bit. I am looking forward to it. Advent has a way of taking my breath. My heart feels overwhelmed and the Christ child feels so real. I think it happens because we are so often invited to sit quietly and think. As soon as I sit quietly, He comes to me. I am no longer pushing Him away with all my frenetic mind antics. I long to hold on to this feeling throughout the year. If I were to make a New Year's Resolution, that would be it. I want to go forward. I don't want to always be retracing my steps, although finding Him again and again is a gift for which I am most grateful. As Advent unfolds and we celebrate His coming, I am grateful again for a personal advent. I am grateful that he would come to a heart that sometimes must resemble that old barn, cold and uninviting. Yet he comes. Thanks be to God.