Tag: Christmas

on Christmas morning | 12.25.19…

Published on by Honoré9 Comments

I awoke to witness another lovely sunrise following Christmas Eve’s glowing sunset. Quiet as I write; the furnace, chugging along, keeps the house warm. A dog’s bark – that momentarily shattered the peace- has ended. Frost adorns rooftops and grassy surfaces.

~a friend is a present you give yourself~

Arriving just yesterday, a package from friend Kathy; I open this morning and am greeted with a delightful mug and all sorts of Christmas/Holiday themed paraphernalia to include in my Christmas album/journal. I squeal -only to my ears – with delight!

My second cuppa tea, graced by a delicious Christmas cookie made by friend Betsy. Yum! Betcha can’t eat just one! Right. I treat myself to two!

Two new books, under the tree, ahem, await my perusal. Gifts from me for me. Simple Abundance is an updated version marking the 25th anniversary of the original publication. 366 days of reading await! Norman’s gift is in the freezer: steaks; burgers; pork chops…what he requested. In my car, new floor mats…

Today, this morning, will be quiet; we’ll join family mid afternoon. I’m excited to see what Santa brought the little ones: Chris, 5 and Elias, 2. Two Christmases ago, Elias, after a two months’ early arrival and nearly a month in the NICU, was home for Christmas. We are so grateful that both he and his mom are doing well.

tgif | 12.20.19 …

Published on by Honoré10 Comments

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~day is done, gone the sun~

thinking… the month has really flown by, as has the year. Hard to believe that there are just 11 days left in the month and the decade! by golly, just this time 10 years ago I was preparing to retire…and wondering what would be next? how was I going to fill my time? realizing I’m still pondering that question…some things never change …

grateful … that we’ve not had to brave much cold weather this week, despite 20 degrees at the start of this day. Temps today made it to 40 degrees, and we’ve been greeted with sunny skies, thankfully …

intending … to brave the shopping crowds tomorrow and maybe look for twinkling lights that hang vertically in a window… still no decision on the tree (and soon it won’t matter – shhh). When I was a child, we did all the tree buying/trimming/decorating on Christmas Eve day…guess a part of me still operates on that clock … I recall that the year my sister’s son – my nephew – was just weeks away from his first birthday, she and I were traveling the streets of Toledo, well after midnight, looking for an open tree lot…which we found!

finishing … Just think, in a little over 19 hours, Fall will have been superseded by Winter.  Do you have shopping yet to do? Have a great weekend.

Cheers~

 

 

 

 

sometimes mondays | 12.16.19…

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… are cold, wet – both rain and snow; a great jammies day; and rest and relaxation -especially since I’m plumb tuckered out from yesterday’s Christmas make-n-take tree ornaments’ party with 5 kiddies, 4 boys and 1 girl, ages 7, 5, 3, 2 and 1! This is the back story:

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When Dolly was 5 – 33 years ago – I had a similar party for her and three other little girls so their mamas could do a little unencumbered holiday shopping and have a few moments of peace ;-)). My mom was alive then and the two of us had a grand time planning, preparing and playing with the little girls – who also had a grand time making the crafts and being five! One of the crafts they made was a cloth angel (in center of photo) stuffed with cotton and simply tied with package-wrap ribbon. I still have the angel…and Dolly has the memories.

Fast forward to now: Dolly wanted to have a similar party (for Chris, Elias and her very. best friend’s three kids) and asked if I would host it; of course, I said yes and yes, I’d provide the craft experience and supplies. Top of the list: cloth angels.Yesterday was the party. And to that, we (Chris – my niece – and I ) also helped (made) elf ornaments.

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The two older boys, Din (7) and Chris (5), made angels and elves with the help of their moms and me… tho’ Din spent a goodly amount of time coloring a picture he drew on newsprint with magic marker crayons. The 3 year old and Elias, 2 years, played, mais oui, and the littlest, the girl who just had her first birthday Nov 16, mostly sat on her dad’s lap. The two moms, nieces Chris and Kayla and I were run ragged by the two younger boys; that Elias is a mover and strong. Norman, my sister and the best.friend’s husband solved all the world’s problems…

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All good things come to an end as did this day. Time for the kiddies to go home for bed and the adults, to collapse. I’m sure we all will remember the day with fond memories and who knows, maybe the little girl will recreate the day when she’s all grown with children or grands, too.

… are a great day for memories.

Cheers~

unraveled wednesday | 11.7.19 …

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Totally late to the party…it’s been a busy day, with :

  • laundry – more loads than usual …
  • monthly reconciliation of XPNS (expenses), etc…
  • broken up by a lovely walk this afternoon, accompanied by Gretchen Rubin and her sister, Liz Craft, on their weekly Happier podcast – my favorite walking companion… and
  • text messages – gazillions –  among my nieces and sister. Dolly’s planning a Christmas craft party for Chris and Elias; invited guests are her mom, sisters, grandmother (my sister); best friend and her three kiddos and me…especially since the party will be here. Dolly’s excited and quiet as it’s kept, so am I!

Yesterday, I visited my local Barnes & Noble store: the doors wide open, an invitation to come in and browse…among a totally new display of books and more books, all brand new, multiple copies of a title, both fiction and non-fiction for all ages. Of course, I walked out with a title or two plus a couple gift items…

There are about 8 rows of stitches on my log cabin to knit and then, join the blocks…I’m thinking I’ll add successive rows around the perimeter in the lighter lavender yarn – I have lots of it…and somehow, also add smaller blocks of the various colors…all makes for good practice. I’m still practicing continental knitting…

This morning, I decided to make coffee – decaf! It was very good and a nice break from my usual, green tea. About 4:30 pm, I realized I had a headache! Green tea to the rescue. I am so grateful for the tea…and it tastes great in my reading mug, too!

Off to join Kat and friends…

Cheers~

collecting december 2018 …

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It seemed to me that we had an inordinate amount of rain-filled days in December, which may explain why 1/3rd of the photos are nature and sky themed…rain, rain but no snow! Despite, there was lots of holiday decorating and merry making spread throughout, including Christmas Day. This year, my sister’s oldest grandson joined us (#26). The photo before –  #25, tho’ not so clear –  is a group pic of my nieces and nephews…I guess I was taking the picture and not sure what happened to my sister… Throughout, there are a few quilts  – two made by fiends in my quilting group; I close out the month with two photos of the hanging of the Flower Garden.

2018 is a wrap and 2019 is off to a good and modest start!

Cheers~

holiday magic …

Published on by Honoré16 Comments

 

Christmas was filled with magic for one little boy and a chance for an older brother to show said little one, the magic of how this strange thing, called a toy, worked. We all gathered at the little boys’ grandmother’s – Mimi, as she is known! – for brunch that lasted throughout the afternoon! A grand time was had by all!

Today, I’ve been up to my elbows in a much needed activity, purging stuff, aka döstädning – getting ready for 2019! Hadn’t realized how late it was until I glanced out the window and saw the sun was setting! Time flies when you’re having fun!

Cheers~

3 on thursday | 12.20.18…

Published on by Honoré15 Comments

 

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  1. I  haven’t even started to shop… I’ve had that pin for 23 years! I looked for it earlier this week and t’was nowhere to be seen/found. Oh well, I thought, perhaps it’ll show up… I was sure the time thieves were involved. I was right! Today, I pulled out my Christmas vest and there it was – pinned (still?) to the sweater, last worn  in 2017. …
  2. I haven’t even started to shop… for my nieces, ages 32, 26, almost 18, who prefer $$$… (I do have an object for them, too that’ll I keep secret until after Christmas…just in case they happen onto this post) …
  3. I haven’t even started to shop… but I shall brave the crowds tomorrow and/or Saturday or Sunday to pick up a few groceries for dishes I’ll make for a Christmas Eve gathering…and go to Barnes & Noble for a few books for Chris and Elias.

My real reason for shopping so late in the season: I love being out among the crowds. It’s a real trip down memory lane for me. Norman and I often reminisce about how all things Christmas when we were kids  – from shopping to getting/putting up/decorating the tree – happened on Christmas Eve Day. Of course, when we were kids, we also didn’t have online shopping or Amazon …

How about you – shopping all done? Joining Carole and friends for 3 on Thursday…

Cheers~

it’s tuesday | 12.18.18 …

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~blue sky blooms and love the menagerie of dogs all decked out for the holiday ~

Another day filled with blue sky and sunshine, tho’ a tad brisk out…but, who can or should complain? Certainly not I.  A good day to run a couple errands: post office and a leisurely trip to Whole Foods. Feeling quite proud of myself for not buying any talenti gelato – t’wasn’t on the list and I did not even tempt myself by walking past the refrigerated section.

Home. After putting away the groceries and consulting with Norman’s son re: N’s IE Explorer acting up… somehow the browser’s image size got changed to a teeny tiny 10. Michelle (Obama;  I’m still listening to Becoming) and I took a brisk walk. She’s a great walking companion and had it been a tad warmer, I might’ve walked and listened a  little longer.  I’m not in a rush to finish the book – I’ve just finished the chapter on the night of Nov 4, 2008, when Barack Obama won the election for POTUS 44. I have very vivid memories of that night! My plans to give my nieces and sister each a copy for Christmas have changed: my niece – grand niece’s mother – beat me to the punch! Haven’t a clue about what to substitute…but, I still have time.

I don’t have much holiday prep to do; however, it might help if I sat down and made a list…

Have you finished with holiday prep?

Cheers~

 

n is for nutcracker …

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My childhood memories are filled with Christmas at Chicago’s Marshall Field department store. My recollection is the center court of the store housed the tallest  (I thought) Christmas tree in the world, reaching from the first to the 5th or 6th floors:

  • One could spend her entire lifetime just looking at that tree and hoping, wishing, barely-able-to-wait for Christmas.
  • One could go to each floor and look out from the balcony, getting a closer view of the tree’s decorations.

The 14th letter of the alphabet is N and Daniel Saboda’s Christmas Alphabet Book‘s popup is the nutcracker. Both of the only two I own have interesting stories:

The first – on the left –  I bought around my 50th birthday from a major Washington DC department store – Woodward & Lothrop.  Woodie’s (as it was fondly known ) was a real department store with 4+ levels and everything one needed, from clothes to furniture to toys, What I liked best about the store is that it was a smaller version of Chicago’s famed Marshall Field’s.  I don’t know why but nutcrackers were a big part of my Marshall Field’s memory and when I saw this one, I bought it. All for a mere $19.99, then… I still have the box.  Sadly, shortly after the holiday season, Woodies closed its doors forever.

The other nutcracker is a more recent purchase; I think maybe in the past 10 years. It – a “quilter” – usually resided in my sewing studio. Several years ago it disappeared;  I couldn’t find it anywhere. This year when I looked in a storage bin, there it was! No doubt, time thieves at work again: building time, picking up something by mistake, realizing their mistake, and putting the missing object back where it belonged so it could, would be “found!” Eureka!

A lot of Christmas holiday magic is remembering and reliving childhood memories, don’t you agree?

Cheers~