*just* the right things come to us in time

Happy Merry Christmas Eve, sweet friends!

Oooh! Check out these wonderful and perfectly humble Christmas ornaments that a dear, dear friend gave me for our little tree!:Don't you LOVE them?!?!

She got them from the thrift store, and they are perfect for our tree--I adore them. I'm going to save my Christmas cards this year, so that I can make more for the tree next year. But, really, the possibilities are endless, any card stock will do. My granny-square-loving cup runneth over.

The girls are watching Christmas videos for the moment, hot cocoa in hand. Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph, Olive (of course) and Little Women. For starters.

Bliss.

I do so hope your day is sweet, dear ones. Cheers!

xoxox.

all are welcome

Hello, dear ones! Whew! It's been a crazy few days. More on that later. Right now I really want to share with you what's happened to our little manger scene this year...You may recall it from last year, when I shared it on this post at Sweet Life the Former. Very simple, very sweet--very straightforward.

Well, it came out again this year (no way was I going to let it go in the big move). But this time it looks like this:

You'll notice right off the bat that it's a little more crowded. I put it out, just as I had last year, and...well. It just seemed kind of bare. And homogeneous. And boring.

So, I invited this single mom, her little girl, and her boyfriend, who's quite a bit older than her but loving and kind. The little girl's name is K'Neesha, and she's really good at math.

Next, Sofie added Yoda. I honestly wasn't going to go the plastic toy route, but she pointed out that there's not many guys who are smarter than a Jedi Knight, so he quietly joined the ranks of the Wise Men.

Then these two little angels stumbled in. They haven't said much at all, and we don't know their back-story. They like to hum very softly, and they hold hands most of the time.

Next came this little horseback rider...

She is autistic, and she was given this horse for equine therapy. (Since she started riding him in September, she's made huge progress.)

More friends arrived, including Santa and Mrs. Claus (in the very back, there).

And this is Hans. He's just a happy little elf who loves babies.

Front and center, right in the middle of it all is a tiny, tiny snow girl...

And, my husband's offering: Gumby, setting the mood (who's doing his best to kick a nasty cigarette habit).

Tucked back in the corner, right beneath the angel, is a quiet little woodsman, who really works to combat his shyness. He recently saved Little Red Ridinghood, and it did wonders for his confidence, but he still has to force himself to answer the darn phone.

Anyway. The title of the post is "all are welcome" and I that really encompasses how I feel about Christmas, Christianity (my kind, anyway) and life, in general. I remember reading years ago a quote by Brennan Manning that a church should be "a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints." I love that. We are all struggling, all imperfect, and all (well, most) doing our best. And that counts.

Have a lovely few days 'til Christmas, my dears. If you celebrate, enjoy it heartily, and if you don't celebrate, enjoy it heartily, too! If nothing else at all, it's another wonderful day.

xoxox.

p.s. You might like this lovely post by Jan about Canadian physician Sir William Osler. I am exceedingly grateful for it.

p.s.s. Upgraded nativity scene very much inspired by this one from Dottie Angel from last year, which is better than mine in every way. Just awesome.

snow day

We are deep in the midst of our very first snow day. This, alone, was worth travelling east for!

It's mighty cozy in here, and we intend to keep it that way...

I hope it's cozy where you are, too: snowy or sunny, rainy or bright, anywhere at all. Have a lovely day, dear friends!

xoxox.

making-do

Hello, dear ones!
A tiny bit more of Christmas cheer has crept into our tiny abode. Making-do with what we've got, that's the program in these parts. We've taken it to a whole new level, as you shall see. There are those bloggers out there who shop at thrift stores and pledge handmade because it's trendy, or (I get the sense) a nice diversion from their regular shopping, but not because they have to. I am not that blogger. Our new life dictates the utmost in frugality, and you know what? It's going to be a wonderful Christmas, anyway...:

The girls' silhouettes, topped with Santa hats made from the cardboard boxes that the little white lights came in...

And yesterday morning found me breaking up a large fallen tree branch in the twenty-degree weather. The girls need a Christmas tree, that's why, and we didn't have one, or the set-up for a live one. So, we're making-do.
A little of this, a little of that...Pine cones, feathers, paper snowflakes. Almost all of our Christmas decorations and ornaments were left behind in California, by necessity. We are having fun finding "nature" to decorate this little tree with. Olivia has plans to crochet some little ornaments, when the weekend arrives. The yarn awaits! I also envision something made from an old red flannel bed sheet, worn even softer with use. Stockings have been cut out from my vintage doll quilts and will be sewn and hung with care.

More make-do decor tomorrow, if you wish to stop back in.

Thanks for visiting!

xoxox.

mobile homes

Morning, folks!  Thanks so very much for the kind birthday wishes.  I had a lovely day, and I hope you did, too! 

For my birthday, my I gave my blog the human calendar, which you can see to the right...I've always thought it was super-cool, and anything on the internet that reminds us we are dealing with real people is welcome in my world.  (You can click on it to get your own, or learn more.  And, doesn't the guy in the Santa hat rock?  The whole thing rocks.  It just does.  I don't care if I'm years behind the curve, here.  I always have been, and I'm at peace with that.)

Moving on, though...You know what I like?  I like clever people.  And this mobile, cleverly called "mobile homes," is made by a very clever person, don't you think?

From artist Kim Baise, in her store jikits.  I just love it.  The little houses rock, and I like that there are all kinds of houses, even a mobile home!

And if homes, or alphabets, are your thing, don't miss this wonderful "alphabet of architecture" that Kim has in her shop too!  Lovely.

A wonderful gift for someone you love, perhaps?  I can think of a few people who would love it...

***

And hey!  Look!  Blogger has corrected it's spacing!  (My husband, bless his heart, has been heard to say:  "It just goes to show that 90% of the stuff that needs attention will eventually go away on it's own!"  That might explain a lot about our situation, now that I think about it...)  Unfortunately, blogger's miraculous recovery is not retro-active, at least I don't think so--meaning, the last several posts are still spaced all squishy and I don't think I can fix it.  But you know how it is...It may not be pretty, but it's mine.

I do hope your home is cozy and bright today, my dears.  Enjoy!

xoxox.

i try again

Hello, sweet friends! Happiest of Mondays, to you.

This morning while thinking about what to post today, I debated whether to share a picture of the number 13, which is my lucky number, or 40, which is how old I'm turning today. Thirteen won, hands down, as it's lucky (duh) and it's mine, and...well, it's not 40.

Not that I mind getting older--I definitely do not, although it does seem to take longer to get up in the morning than it used to. In fact, I wouldn't return to my teens or twenties for anything, not anything. They were hard and I never want to do them again. I love being where I am, and it was hard fought and well-earned. And, frankly, the alternative is not so attractive.

Still. Forty.

When Olivia, my twelve-year-old girl, was just a tiny little person, she was incredibly motivated to do everything adults could do, and to do it perfectly. She just wouldn't give up--it didn't matter what she was doing, she was going to master it, in as small an amount of time as possible. Of course, it didn't come instantly, her ability to do things like a 25-year-old, so she'd practice. She would try to climb the stairs, for instance, and fall. She'd stand up and say to the room at large, "I try again." Then she would, over and over. Nothing unusual for a child, of course, but I've always remembered that: "I try again." No pity, no tears, no real frustration, even. Just a clearly stated goal and the pluck to go for it. I love it.

And so, here in my fortieth year, I try again. A new place, a new home. It feels, sometimes, like a whole new world--literally, a different planet. All the mistakes of the past few years, all of the misplaced energy and bottomless wanting--gone, for now. Replaced by other wants, of course (I had some kind of image in my head of our new lives inflating instantly before us like those crazy Santas that people put in their yards this time of year: Shoop! Your new, simplified-but-fully-operational life! Ta da!). I pray, several times a day, for patience. There are many other things I could pray for, but I already have, and I'm pretty sure he's working on it, if it's meant to be. So, mostly, I pray for patience, and to see clearly, not through the lenses of my own eyes, but rather through his.

I try again. For the second half (hopefully!) of this life of mine. I try again, to love the way that I should, to appreciate all of the many gifts in my life, to forgive myself and others, and to enjoy it all. I try again, to be there for others at least as much as I expect them to be there for me--that's a big one. I try again to be the mother, wife, daughter, sister, niece, and friend that I want to be. What better day than your birthday to state to the room at large, "I can do better! And so I shall."

So, my sweet friends, raise a glass of whatever you love drinkin' to luck, and love, and new beginnings, and trying again, and hope, always hope. Because it's going to be a good year, don't you think?

Thanks for reading. Take care.

xoxox.

(photo via. thanks!)

this is not my sofa

It is very similar to the one I wish to buy (which is, most unfortunately, 200 miles away, so no progress there). This one here, though, is much smaller and in a brilliant print from delightful Canadian shop Wild Life Prints. I like it very much...In other news, I can't find my camera cord, so I am unable to share with you the pictures I took of a very lovely book. Just as well, though, as I'm out of sorts.

You know the feeling, towards the end of a vacation, where you think to yourself, "Ahhh, this has been really lovely--delightful to get away, see new sights, refresh one's outlook. But I'm really, really looking forward to just going home." Do you know that feeling?

That's how I feel. But I'm not on vacation, and I'm not going home. I'm here, in this new place that will become home, in time, and it will just take...a good, long while. I'm praying for patience and good humor. That'll get me through.

Hope your weekend is wonderful, my dears, where ever you may be.

xoxox.

just looking, thank you.

Hi, sweets!

Today is the day I try to hang some stuff around here. I really hate doing that, don't you? All that pesky measuring and what-not. How annoying.

Instead of getting crackin', I spent a good hour or so finding some wonderful items I would buy if I hadn't just had this whole life epiphany and gotten rid of almost everything we own. (Oh, yeah...also, we're unemployed.)

But, see?:

"Strings of Positivity"--I'm so in. From the ever-awesome ATLIW...

"Alix" poster from the wonderful, wonderful shop of Zoe de las Cases--you'll love it... (via Kireei!)

Really? Am I supposed to resist this?! From cool new shop TypePosters...

You've probably seent this before, I love it so. It's a card, but I would frame it. "Forget me not" from Amanda Monkey...

Totally awesome European street sign from Serotonum Soap...it's just lovely. Street sign, life coaching, all-in-one. You can't ask for more than that in your wall decor.

I told you how I got rid of most of my stuff on the road, and it turns out that what I have left is black and white and red. It sounds yucky, but it looks pretty good, tempered with the wood and the quilts and stuff. It would seem that I still love red. I almost forgot!

So that's what I'm lookin' at. (Just lookin', you know.) Hope you like it!

Later, 'gators. Love ya.

xoxox.

p.s. I don't know why the spacing is all squished on my posts now. Blogger is really messed up lately, for me at least. I'm hoping it will self-correct, because, lord knows, there's nothing I can do about it. xo.

tidings

Did you know, dear friends, that instant grits make a great stand-in for fake snow?

They do!

It may be the only bit of Seasonal goodness in the house just yet, but it's a start. And I get credit for that, don't you think? (Please tell my kids.)

Happy Wednesday, dears.

Comfort and Joy!

xoxox.

when did december happen?

Morning, my dears! How fares your day?

Thought I'd share a lovely Christmas find from my old stomping grounds, Southern California. These little reindeer ornaments really float my boat:

They are from Raw Bone Studio, who had some really wicked Day of the Dead stuff back in October that I wanted to post about, but never was able to (check it here and here).

I love how they walk the line between Mexican and Scandinavian folk-art so perfectly. Or is it just me? (I act like I know what I'm talking about, but really...it's all conjecture. You should know that.)

Anyhoo, check it out--lots of cute stuff there, for all days, holy and otherwise. Proprietress Robin is crazy-creative and original, the result of busy hands and a love of "childlike forms, unusual color combinations, and seeing the humor in life." (Hey, me too! Well, minus the "busy hands" part.) She also says, impressively: "If my hands are idle, I can't think. I once made a 12-foot gum wrapper chain in one sitting."

I kinda wish she was my next-door neighbor, don't you?

***

So, I know that I had promised that yesterday I'd quit talking about myself so much. And I really was going to, but then I had a "technical" issue, and couldn't upload pictures from anywhere but my own camera. (I know, how dumb.) I clearly had no problem taking it and running with it, so to speak...I even threw in a childhood memory, for heaven's sake. (Sorry!) Thanks for refraining from sending hate mail--I'm sure you were tempted.

Have a super-duper day, friends. Rock it, as usual.

xoxox.