“December 25th” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Mother Nature, Paul Militaru Photography
“Waterfall” – Hailey E. Herrera – fineartamerica.com
Filed under Creativity, water paintings
Our friend Nora came for dinner Christmas Eve evening. We exchanged gifts, ate, caught up, and shared lots of love and hugs. It was a really nice evening.
One of the gifts she gave me was called an Intarsia Puzzle Box.
It is handcrafted by ‘Carver Dan,’ Daniel Terrico. I would have loved this if it didn’t ‘do’ anything at all. It is made from 100% exotic hardwoods with NO paint or stains! Their color comes from the natural wood and hand-rubbed finish. Isn’t it wonderful?
Each puzzle contains a removable locking pin. You check around the outside of the puzzle box, locate the pin and remove it.
On the bottom right side of the box, you can see where I’ve removed the pin. Then you slide the ‘face’ off its dovetail style cut to remove it.
You then pick up the ‘lid’ showing the storage area below.
Nice, felt-lined storage area.
The workmanship is first-rate. The pieces fit beautifully and slide apart with no effort. This is such a treasure!
My husband sent me a small puzzle box a hundred or so years ago when I was 14 and he was in the Marines. We wrote every day. The mailman – ignoring rules – put the red flag up on the mailbox at the road when there was a letter to me from my husband. I would watch from the front window in the house, bursting out the door and running down the driveway to get the mail. :0)
One day the box arrived. It was supposed to take 6 or 7 movements in order for you to be able to open the box. No instructions, just the wooden box. I don’t know how long it took me to get the box open, but I finally did – to find a sweet, sparkly rooster pin inside!
THIS beautifully made box brought back wonderful memories of the past, as well as providing great fun on a Christmas Eve with a well-loved friend. TWO gifts in one!
Filed under Creativity, Friendship
just laugh-via-lynn moody
My cooking is adequate. I have always dreaded being asked to ‘bring a dish’ to a meal because I’m intimidated. The best cooks in the area – plus my friends – all have ‘signature’ dishes that they bring, seemingly effortlessly, that are simply out of this world. The kind of dishes you take a bite and immediately are transported to a cloud in Heaven, sighing with pleasure.
For awhile I experimented, trying to cook things my mother used to make, except that her best dishes were things like huge skillets of spaghetti sauce or a vat of chili – not easy to transport, to say the least. I have enough trouble keeping my mouth shut and not eating anyway, without trying to perfect some confection I can’t stay away from.
So – I only invite really good friends to our house for dinner, hoping that things turn out all right.
Last night I fixed a turkey breast with gravy, salad, deviled eggs, and sliced jellied cranberry sauce. Our friend brought cauliflower ‘mashed potatoes.’ We had wine before and during our meal. Simple and satisfying.
I’ve always admired people who cook ‘by feel,’ – not measuring anything – not going from a recipe – just having the talent for knowing how to cook things perfectly, what herbs and spices to add to bring out the flavor….
The best I can say is –
Filed under Challenges
Amber said, “WOOF!” quickly, then threw off the antler head band and tried to eat it.
We didn’t have a physically white Christmas here in Arkansas this year, but we avoided a possible ice storm this week, and that really adds to the spirit of Christmas around here. We had dinner last night with a long time good friend, ate well, exchanged gifts and good hugs, and laughed a lot. Amber was even more boisterous than usual when Nora came, but then thankfully settled down and was reasonable – until Nora stood up to leave…
I found some nice Christmas quotes I want to share with you today –
Norman Vincent Peale ~ “Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.”
Charles Dickens ~ “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
“Merry” – Paul Militaru Photography
Bing Crosby ~ “Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won’t make it ‘white’.”
Dale Evans ~ “Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it’s Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas” – Paul Militaru Photography
Bob Hope ~ “My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?”
Edna Ferber ~ “Christmas isn’t a season. It’s a feeling.”
“Night Snow” – Paul Militaru Photography
Calvin Coolidge ~ “Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind.To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!
Filed under Favorite Quotes, holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
I’m getting ready for our evening’s festivities as my husband naps in his recliner.
The house is clean, ready for guests, and the table is set for tonight. I didn’t do much for Christmas this year, but I have a wonderful infuser light decoration on the table. You put in essential oils for a wonderful aroma, and it changes colors! I also have a resin ‘chain’ of snowmen and women decoration behind the infuser. I have a string of LED lights going across the top of the window.
This is the diffuser that smells good and turns different colors.
Why is it that LED lights don’t show up well in pictures? They lend a festive note to the room.
Here are the snow people who will share our table tonight.
I’m going to fix something we’ll have tonight, take a break, then go fix something else until all is ready. A lovely way to spend the day and evening!
I hope that you are having a delightful day, too.
Merry Christmas!
Filed under Friendship, holidays
free-Christian-wallpapers.blogspot.com
These two photos are so precious. Maybe “I” didn’t get the memo when I was a child. I had so much adrenaline flowing through my veins and erupting that I’m amazed my parents didn’t put me up for adoption or squash me like a bug. I was cranky, didn’t eat well, didn’t sleep well until I collapsed from exhaustion.
I do remember SO many times when Santa, my parents, or my other relatives got me just the right gift. I HOPE I showed them by expression, unabashed joy, and spending a lot of time enjoying, how happy they made me.
I don’t remember how old I was when I finally turned the corner, preferring to save, plot, and plan what I would give to friends and family. I’m grateful that we get to experience both ‘ends’ of the material side of Christmas in our lives. Each is so rich, so special.
I’m listening to classic Christmas carols as I type this -what a joy! I’m going to see if we can arrange to play these in the background as we celebrate tonight with our friend, Nora.
We have a CHANCE of snow flurries today! I won’t expect it, because we almost never have a white Christmas, but it sure would be a wonderful gift!
Merry Christmas!
Filed under holidays
Amber would rather EAT the decorations than WEAR them, but we caught her quickly in a couple of pics for her first Christmas.
She appreciates the smell of roasting turkey, gravy, and more, but otherwise, seems unimpressed by any hoopla she sees around here.
She is getting more and more companionable lately. She wants to be where we are, no matter what we’re doing. One of her favorite things is going ANYWHERE in the “CAR!” (one of her recent words.) My husband is trying to get her to bark at the door when she wants to come in from being outside. So far, she hasn’t a clue what we’re trying to get her to do, although Molly does it when both of them are outside. We’re working with her every day, plus playing a sound byte on the computer of a dog barking. Her new words, if we’re successful, will be, “SAY IT!”
We’re having our good friend Nora to dinner tonight as our celebration. Amber will forget everything we’ve taught her, bounding around, clobbering all with her tail, trying to bowl everyone over for a bit. Then I’m HOPEFUL she’ll settle down and show Nora what a really sweet – if destructive – puppy she is.
Nora always sits on one end of the couch in the living room. For the past month or so, I sit there and then motion for her to come over, sit – THEN say, “OK” for her to come up and snuggle with me a bit. With my luck, the fact that Nora is sitting there will be all the “ok” she needs to get cuddly with Nora…. I’ll warn Nora and watch the sweet puppy, zapper in hand….
Have a wonderful Christmas Eve!
Filed under Amazing Animals, Family, holidays
“Christmas Eve” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
“Christmas Tree” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
Such an innocent, sweet puppy.
This is what I saw first when I went out to call Amber in this morning –
I picked it up and headed for the front porch to find –
(Only one head involved. I simply added it to the pieces for the pic before I got out the broom.)
SO –
I almost feel like we’re in the 12 ‘Weird’ Days of Christmas Song
________________
“On the first day of Christmas, sweet Amber gave to me – a hedgehog with a missing nose, not to be repaired.
On the second day of Christmas, sweet Amber gave to me – a duck with a bitten-off beak, not to be repaired.
On the third day of Christmas, sweet Amber gave to me – a completely smashed duck, not to be repaired.
And a par tri – idge in a pear treeeeee.”
__________________
I THOUGHT I had the duck in a safe place.
One can only wonder what will bite the dust next.
Poor doggie – she only has 85 (more or less) wonderful chew toys, plus sticks, plus another dog who likes to play sometimes, plus people who like to play sometimes…
Filed under Amazing Animals, Family
“Hello- 3 Days Left” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
Amber wasn’t feeling cooperative in our efforts to dress her up for Christmas, but I managed to get a few pics anyway. This will be her first Christmas, but she’s much more excited about playing out in the rain than she is about Christmas decorations – trying to EAT them instead of wearing them…
Filed under Amazing Animals, Family, holidays
“Santa Claus” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
Peter H. Stranks via pinterest.com
The Lunch Bunch group isn’t quite as old as these sweet women, but the feeling is the same.
We’ve been meeting for lunch on Friday at ‘The Barn” for about 30 years now. Each week we share what we’ve been doing, our plans, our dreams, and sometimes our heartbreaks. My husband has been officially inducted in the group, occasionally referring to us, as he sits at the head of the table, as his ‘harem.” He’s allowed to speak if he doesn’t get obnoxious… :0)
Today we’re celebrating Christmas together, exchanging gifts. My husband and I will wear our Santa hats to give everyone a giggle.
The group has changed over the years, It grows and then decreases on the number, but the core group has remained the same. It’s hard to believe how much of our lives we’ve shared. We’ve helped each other over the hard things and helped celebrate the good. We’ve laughed and hugged a lot. Friendships like these are amazing to me. I’m very lucky.
I hope that you have a good day today, too.
Filed under Friendship, holidays
Jimmy Leach via Michael Remillard
My friend Michael sent me an image of this gorgeous painting by his friend, Jimmy Leach. Apparently, Mr. Leach hasn’t gotten the memo that it’s impossible to paint snow…. I think it’s stunningly beautiful.
It reminds me of our driveway when we’re about halfway up. Our house would be just beyond the top of this….
Filed under Creativity, Oil Paintings I Love
I’m ambivalent about this being the first day of winter.
I love some things about winter –
We live on top of a ridge line in Greenwood, Arkansas. It’s good because we don’t have to worry about flooding. It’s bad when we have ice. Arkansas doesn’t ‘do’ winter well. Instead of having snow, we have sleet and ice first and THEN snow. We have snow tires on our Honda Ridgeline Truck, but they’re useless on ice. Our driveway is 650 feet or so and steep. When there is snow, we have little problem getting down and back up again. When it’s an ice skating rink, we might end up across the street in the field across from our place, and it’s impossible to get back up. We just have to stay home until all melts. Since our driveway is on the north side of our property, that could be a week or more after the rest of the area has forgotten about the inconvenience.
Because we might have trouble getting out and back in again, we spend a lot of time and effort preparing to spend a bunch of time up here, away from the rest of the world. We try to have back up systems so we have water and electricity. One year (I think it was 2000) we had a BAD ice storm. There were trees broken and down all over our property, including in our driveway all the way down. We stood on the front porch and listened to the awful sound of branches snapping like gunshots as they broke. The generator we had at the time blew a gasket. My husband and son rigged a big barrel outside the well house and filled it with water to try to cool the generator. We had to check it every half hour 24 hours a day. We were up here, trapped, for 14 days. No electricity. No public water. No way to get down to the road. That makes you get really serious about preparing for whatever might happen.
I don’t like it when I have to worry about whether I can get to an appointment or not. Plans made during the winter make me nervous. I know that I can reschedule doctor appointments, and that friends and family will understand if we get trapped up here, but I don’t like worrying about whether we could get out or not if we really needed to.
I’m happy if I can stay home and just take some days off to enjoy the ice and snow up here and it doesn’t bother anyone else. I can just decide to stay up here ‘until further notice,’ make snow angels, snow people, have a snowball fight, see how our animals react to the white stuff, and make some hot chocolate and some beef stew with garlic bread…..
Filed under Mother Nature, security, taking care of yourself
diyntetwork
I wish that my greenhouse looked like this. Maybe one day…
Right now it looks like big piles of ‘stuff’ on the floor, on the tables, all over the place.
I’m starting to find some ideas, though.
I’ve got a couple of things that take priority right now, but very soon I’m going to start trying to move things so that I have a good place to plant my seeds in March.
I’ve already learned from the beginner’s book I got on greenhouses a whole different way to start my seeds. I may be able to lose my “Serial Seed Killer” moniker, after all!
Meanwhile, the elephant ear and purple passion roots are safe in the garage, packed in peat moss for the winter. I learned that the greenhouse will definitely get below freezing without a heater. That’s okay. One lesson learned of many to come.
What I CAN do is –
I’ll take pics as I go. If you have suggestions, I’d be delighted if you’d write and tell me.
Have a wonderful Thursday!
Love Style Video via Garry Campbell
This is very, very important, and yet difficult to do – at least for me. When someone talks to me, I relate to what they’re saying because of something that has happened to me. I feel the need to share it with them. In face, I’m SO eager to share it with them, I have sometimes interrupted them!
When I realized what I was doing, I was mortified. I was giving my friends and family the idea that I felt what “I” was saying was more important. The fact that I don’t feel this way at ALL, really makes no difference. It’s not your INTENT – it’s what you DO that counts.
I first realized this tendency when I listened to my mom visiting with friends, or when she would come home from visiting. She would tell me about her visit, but all she talked about was what SHE said – how SHE felt. I would ask her questions about what the person was doing and she glossed over it. She didn’t know. It’s EASY to see this in others. I was really upset when I saw it in MYSELF.
In an effort to be a better listener, I now go with the idea that I want to be able to tell myself or someone else what the person I’m visiting with has been doing. I concentrate on asking questions about what they are telling me, rather than telling them something about myself. I want to know how they’re feeling. If they’re not feeling well, I want to know why. I want to know what they’re doing about it, and if there is any way I can help them. It’s what I’ve always wanted to know, but I was so busy blabbing that it got glossed over. :0(
I want to SHOW my family and friends that I’m interested in THEM. I want to know much more about how and what they’re doing than I did before I visited with them. I already know what “I’M” doing. If they would like to know what’s happening with me, they’ll ASK. :0)
Family and friends are the richness of life. Make it a point to listen to UNDERSTAND.
Filed under Attitude, Family, Friendship
FunnyNeel
I had a good day yesterday.
I had my regular breakfast (low carb and protein-rich). We went to Subway for lunch. I got a double chicken bacon ranch salad. I ate half of it for lunch. I drank my Meta Appetite Control powder stuff mid afternoon. (The only bad thing is that it’s 11 carbs, and I get 40 for the day). I ate the rest of the salad for dinner. And then I had an orange dream bar. I was way under my 1200 calories for the day and was under my 40 carbs.
Since my husband is enjoying getting something for lunch out, rather than my fixing our lunch at home, my new plan is to decide what we’ll have for dinner based on what we had for lunch, rather than planning it all out and then having to regroup, feeling a loss of control. Example: if we eat heavier at the deli, we’ll eat a salad for dinner. I feel good knowing that the Meta drink will help me manage my raging appetite.
I felt good being in better control yesterday. When I eat right and exercise, I feel that I’m taking better care of myself. I hadn’t felt that in a while – or only sporadically – so the new start feels good.
Today will be Day 2.
Filed under Acting Like a Grownup, DIET!, exercise
“Christmas Ornaments” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under holidays, Paul Militaru Photography
creativeartworksblog 