Category Archives: holidays

Happy Mother’s Day 2022

Republic World

Motherhood is such a gift.

“Motherhood has a very humanizing effect. Everything gets reduced to essentials.” Meryl Streep

My personal path to motherhood has been a rocky one – story shorter – two miscarriages, then our son, Brian, then two more miscarriages, then our daughter, Jade, and then we lost our daughter to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in 1979.

We are lucky to have a grown, intelligent and caring son who not only loves us as parents, but also seems to genuinely LIKE us as people. Although he lives across the world from us, we are very close. Before he left, he set up a secure chat program and a conference call program. We chat several times a week and we do the conference call thing whenever we’re all awake and functional at the same time. (There is 12 hours difference half the year, 13 hours the rest because of daylight savings time here.)

My sweet sister-in-law wished me a Happy Mother’s Day this morning, sending one of our favorite photos taken some years ago when Brian was visiting a zoo in China, I think.

When we married, I hoped that we would have a large family. In my head I figured 5 kids would be a good number. That wasn’t in the cards, but we ended up with a close family, nonetheless – so lucky to be on the same planet as the son we both admire and love.

“When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.” ~ Sophia Loren

Happy Mother’s Day to all those lucky enough to have children and grandchildren – the greatest gifts in the world.

4 Comments

Filed under Family, holidays

Happy Sunday 4-17-2022

Petr Vaclavek – Dubanci, cz

Happy Easter! Happy Passover! Happy Sunday!

I wish you a happy day, a happy celebration, a quiet, calm day.

ACEGIF.com

Yet another rainy day here in Arkansas. After today, we’re supposed to have something appear in the sky that lights everything up and warms the air. I’m interested to see what that is. Maybe we can find and plant some tomato plants either Monday or Tuesday!

Pinterest

I have Easter memories swirling.

Fuzzy SOFT pink angora sweater that made me feel very feminine for the first time a hundred years ago. Sweet rabbits my parents got for the family as pets – we named them “Welsh” and “Peter” Rabbit. Dyeing Easter eggs. Hunting for Easter eggs with a big basket. Eating Easter eggs. Then, many years later, Dyeing and Hiding Easter eggs for our son, plus for my students at school where I taught. Beautiful services. Soul-filling songs.

I am hoping for a quiet, calm day today. :0)

2 Comments

Filed under .gifs I Love, acorn art, holidays, memories, Petr Vaclavek - Dubanci.cz

Happy St. Patrick’s Day 2022

Live Science

May the Good Lord take a liking to you… but not too soon!

There are only two kinds of people in the world, The Irish and those who wish they were.

May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,
May good luck pursue you each morning and night.
~Irish Blessing

Leave a comment

Filed under holidays

Will You Be My Valentine?

Mary Krupa-ba-bamail.com
Readers Digest

Leave a comment

Filed under holidays, love

New Year’s Resolutions to Consider

AnimatedImages.org

We all have our personal resolutions, but I found a few I think we all should consider adding to our lists –

“One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this: To rise above the little things.” ~ John Burroughs

“Resolve to make at least one person happy every day.” ~ Sydney Smith

“This year I challenge you to a new resolution. I challenge you to just be yourself.” ~ Aisha Elderwyn

And

  • Eat chocolate often
  • Send flowers to near & dear ones
  • Smile more often
  • Listen to your heart
  • Accept your flaws
  • Adopt a New Vice
  • Live . . . Love . . . Laugh MORE!

Leave a comment

Filed under Challenges, holidays

Happy 2022!

Thanks to Susy, we can all enjoy Matt Dixon’s January image.

And, enjoying the beginning of January 2022 from a different standpoint –


I thank the Australia Firefighters for creating this calendar and making it affordable, reminding me that “I ain’t dead yet.”

On this, the 1st day of January, 2022, we caught a BIG raccoon in the humane trap we set on our deck, trying to catch whoever was eating all of our birdseed the last week or so. Last night we caught him, and will give him another chance at life later today, ‘relocating’ him about 5 miles from us, in a creek beside the road. Hopefully, he will enjoy the rest of his life, forgetting where we are.

Our weather is awful. The day started at 61 degrees with pretty heavy rain. It is still raining, and the temperatures are falling as a cold front barrels in. The low is supposed to be 19 tomorrow morning. We have rain now, the possibility of severe storms this afternoon and evening, and the chance of snow flurries tonight into tomorrow. Happy New Year….

I’m going to get a beef stew in the crock pot tomorrow to ‘comfort’ us about the change in the weather.

Help for my friend, Kay, seems to be on the way. They are now working to expedite the okay on insurance coverage and she should get some definitive surgical help in the coming days. Fingers crossed.

I hope that 2022 is a wonderful hear for you!

2 Comments

Filed under holidays

My Wishes for You in 2022

“My Wish for you in 2022:

May peace break into your house and may thieves come to steal your debts.

May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $100 bills.

May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips!

May your clothes smell of success like smoking tires.

May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be that of joy.

May the problems you had forget your home address! In simple words …….

May 2022 be the best year of your life!!!”

~ Unknown

____________________

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re Doing Something.” ~ Neil Gaiman, British author

Happy 2022 from the Lewises – via Calvin & Hobbes – Bill Watterson

3 Comments

Filed under holidays, Lewis Mailbox Decorations

Today’s Christmas Gift

We just finished a conference call chat with our son.


These pics were taken in 2018, the last time our son was home from Thailand. Travel is simply too expensive and dangerous, and even worse on the 24 hours travel time he had to go through last time to even think about his coming home until the world tames down.

Chatting with him on a conference call, where we can SEE him and watch him smile is the next best thing – a true gift. He stayed up late in order to talk with us and I’m still smiling. THE most wonderful Christmas gift for us. He is safe, healthy and happy. I told him that while I’m not biased in any way, being his mother, I am truly proud of the man he is. I don’t know where he got all the kindness that simply oozes out of him. I feel lucky that we value each other as people.

I hope that you, too, had a love-filled, happy Christmas.

2 Comments

Filed under Family, holidays

Memories at Christmas

Alphacoders.com

I’ve always dreamed of white Christmases. I was born in Chicago, but we moved almost immediately to Brooklyn, and then to Long Island. We moved to Oklahoma before I was 5, and I’ve lived in Arkansas for over 30 years now. I don’t remember much about my very early life in the Northeast, and it was almost unheard of to have a white Christmas in “tornado alley.” That didn’t diminish my love of everything Christmas.

I remember a Christmas when my brother and I both received 3-speed English bicycles. Neither of us even dreamed of such a present. My parents were amazing to keep the secret. This was a gift that kept on giving for many, many years of bicycling around our neighborhood.

The first time I ever MADE a Christmas present for anyone I was about 11 or 12. My mom was VERY good at making clothes and knitting. She altered all of my dad’s shirts, sweaters and sports coats because he had damaged his left arm falling off a horse when he was three. Back then, they didn’t know as much as they do now, and they were only able to save his arm and hand, leaving it shorter than his right and his hand was almost completely useless. I didn’t realize as a child

  • that my dad was considered ‘disabled’ my many who didn’t know him well,
  • how special my mother was to alter all his shirts, and knit cardigan sweaters for him. I think she could have knitted a bus, she was so talented.
  • how much patience it would take to try to teach her daughter to sew and knit.

I knitted a scarf/muffler for my grandmother that Christmas. It was really terrible, with lots of missed stitches and places where I got too tense and jammed all the stitches together. Other places, the stitches were really large, warping the whole thing out of shape. My grandmother’s favorite color was red, and so I knit her a red muffler to keep her warm when she walked the ugliest dog in the world, a pug named, “Unkie.” That Christmas we had traveled to Nevada, Missouri, to spend the holiday with her and my grandfather. He was bedridden with Multiple Sclerosis. I don’t remember him ever standing, but I have pictures of the two of them, looking amazing, all dressed up in the latest style of the day. (Sorry for a bit of rambling – the memories are swamping me.) My grandmother unwrapped the muffler. She sat, holding it in her hands. Then she cried. I’m tearing up as I type this. She GOT the love I sent with the muffler. She GOT it.

Sometimes I find things, particularly online, during the year that I think people I care about might really enjoy and I send them. Sometimes I wait for Christmas. Sometimes I can’t. Most Christmases I still try to make things for people. I hope they GET the love that is sent with them.

Leave a comment

Filed under Family, Friendship, holidays, memories

Merry Christmas 2021

Good Housekeeping

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” Norman Vincent Peale

The Awesome Daily

“Christmas, children, is not a date. It is a state of mind.” -Mary Ellen Chase

Wide Open Spaces

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.” – Charles Dickens

Mamamia

“Let the spirit of love gently fill our hearts and homes. In this loveliest of seasons may you find many reasons for happiness.” ~ Unknown

Leave a comment

Filed under Family, Friendship, holidays

Christmas Eve 2021

Merry Christmas from the Lewises

“Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart… filled it, too, with a melody that would last forever.” ~ Bess Streeter Aldrich

“From Home to home, and heart to heart, from one place to another. The warmth and joy of Christmas, brings us closer to each other.” ~ Emily Matthews

“Let the spirit of love gently fill our hearts and homes. In this loveliest of seasons may you find many reasons for happiness.” ~ Unknown

“The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.” ~ Burton Hillis

“A hug is a great gift – one size fits all, and it’s easy to exchange.” ~Author Unknown

Leave a comment

Filed under Family, Friendship, holidays

Christmas Wish

Women Working

Leave a comment

Filed under Holiday Gift Ideas, holidays

Hare Trigger

123RF.com

I had the BEST afternoon yesterday visiting with two friends I don’t see often enough.

Carla had a new bunny she name Wilhelmina. She is much like the sweetie above. Carla said she thought the bunny was 7 to 8 weeks old. I sat on the couch and Carla brought her over to me. While Carla and I were talking, “Willy” hopped from one end of the couch to the other, found a cord she really wanted to chew on on the table next to the couch, hopped all over me, sat on my shoulder and sniffed my ear and melted my heart. She was SO cute. SO soft, and SO captivating. She was bright, curious, and sweet all rolled into one. She was sneaky, too! I had covered the cord that intrigued her with a Kleenex box. She gradually moved the box off the cord so she could try to chew again. :0) The small pot I mosaic-ed (is that a word?) for Carla will be used to try to grow kale for Willy and one other rabbit Carla has.

My friend Nora has a small, criminally cute yappy white fuzzy dog named Belle. Belle barked at me for about 5 minutes, and then finally decided I wasn’t trying to rob the house or hurt Nora, so she settled down and let me pet her. She sat in my lap while Nora and I visited, moving continually to try to stay the center of attention. Nora grows her own herbs, so she was happy with the pot I made for her.

It was wonderful to relax for a bit, enjoy catching up with what is happening in the lives of two people who are so important to me. Though I don’t call, text, or visit enough – or tell them often enough – I HOPE they realize how much I love them.

Leave a comment

Filed under Amazing Animals, Friendship, holidays

Thoughts on a Sunday 12-19-2021

Anne Skjevik-500px.com

I’m having a quiet, happy morning.

This afternoon is going to be wonderful. I’m getting to visit with two of my favorite people, two ladies who mean the world to me, and it’s been too long since we got a chance to catch up. I’m taking them some presents, hoping they will brighten their day.

As usual, we always MEAN to see them, talk to them more often, then life gets in the way. I’ll try to make up for that a bit today.

I hope YOUR day is full of joy.

Leave a comment

Filed under Friendship, holidays

The Greatest Gift

Unsplash-GettyImages-iStockphoto

I told you that my Lunch Bunch friends couldn’t meet yesterday. I was disappointed, but hoped we could meet sometime early next week or something.

Today two of our friends came to our house to exchange gifts and visit. It was the greatest gift. We really got to talk after exchanging gifts, sharing some things we hadn’t mentioned before. It was truly wonderful. I’m so lucky to have met these people and shared friendship and love for over 20 years now.

Even now, as I type, I’m a bit teary over how lucky we are.

3 Comments

Filed under Friendship, holidays

Thoughts on a Thursday 12-16-2021

therandomvibez.com

Actually, it’s a nice Thursday for me, so far.

I just got home from having my monthly massage and I feel GOOD. I’ve been more stressed than usual lately and it felt WONDERFUL to totally relax, putting myself in the glorious hands of Lynn, my massage therapist. We exchanged gifts and a nice hug. AND I’m set up for a massage for next month. :0)

I’m about to fix us some lunch. My husband is taking a nap. He’s so cute. He puts a kitchen dish towel over his face in his recliner and zonks out. The cat is sleeping on his stomach. Our dog, Amber is snoring on the floor beside his chair, wishing SHE could sleep on his stomach, too.

No big plans for the day. It’s rainy, but we missed storms last night. It’s supposed to rain HARD tomorrow off and on, but I don’t think anything is supposed to be severe.

I told you that my Lunch Bunch friend, Kay, fell last week. She’s having an MRI Monday to assess the damage and see what can be done. Meanwhile, she is finally able to eat again, so my husband and I took her a cherry milkshake yesterday afternoon. Her coping mechanism is Word Search books, and she was out of them. We stopped and got her another one after we got the shake. We visited for about 10 minutes. I gave her the Christmas present and card I made for her and hugged her VERY gently. She is such a nice lady.

I’ll get presents together this afternoon to take to Lunch Bunch tomorrow.

Have a wonderful Thursday!

Leave a comment

Filed under Friendship, holidays, Thoughts on a ________

Thoughts on a Monday 12-13-2021

popularmechanics.com

It’s a beautiful, though chilly morning here. Lots of sunshine.

Mirka Lindfors-pin.it

It’s our son’s 43rd birthday today. I actually wrote to him yesterday, as he is 13 hours ahead of us in Thailand. He had forgotten that it was his birthday! I sent silly pictures, such as the one above, and wrote out the Happy Birthday song. We chatted a bit. I told him I thought he should play his guitar and record himself singing Happy Birthday. This is one of the many times I wish he weren’t all the way across the world from us.

This week will actually be most of our Christmas. Thursday I have a massage and will take my therapist’s presents then. Friday is Lunch Bunch and we will exchange presents there. I have several more to deliver around town, but that will be the bulk of it. I’m trying to get Christmas cards in the mail. I love this time of year!

Children’s Health

The scared inner child is trying to find the adult in the room. I’m waiting to hear from my doctor what and when the next step is. “One foot in front of the other. Do what needs to be done. Stop being stupid.” (Not only am I a wimp, I talk to myself. )

We’re going to run errands now. I hope you have a great Monday.

Leave a comment

Filed under Friendship, holidays, Thoughts on a ________

Thoughts on a Saturday 12-4-2021

cuteness.com

I sent an email to a long-time friend on the 30th of November, his birthday, wishing him a happy celebration. Yesterday I saw his email address pop up on my incoming mail. It was one of his daughters, telling me he had died of complications from cancer. He was creative, funny with a wicked sense of humor. He loved his family. I will miss him.

This is the time of year when Amber, our 95-pound yellow lab, starts bringing deer parts into the yard. Over the years I have built up my ability to take care of this myself, rather than bothering my husband with it. Today it was just deer skin. This is the first time for this. I can only think that someone killed a deer, field dressed it, and left the parts he didn’t want close enough for Amber to find. GREAT. :0(

While I was out, though, I saw a rose in bloom! It looked especially lovely with most of our plants gone now. I cut it to bring inside, then found one red rose bud on another plant, plus two twice-blooming iris. It really lifted my spirits to be able to bring them inside.

We are about ready to run some errands. On the way out, we will put up this mailbox decoration. We will have a very quiet Christmas, so this will be a fun way to wish any passers-by a wonderful celebration.

Yesterday I finished the cards and ornament I was working on in my art room. I’ll take pics and share them with you in another post.

Have a fun Saturday!

3 Comments

Filed under Friendship, Gardening, holidays, Lewis Art, Lewis Mailbox Decorations, Thoughts on a ________

Black Friday – Plus Other Thoughts 11-26-2021

The Hustle

“The earliest evidence of the phrase Black Friday originated in Philadelphia, dating back to 1961, where it was used by police to describe the heavy pedestrian and vehicular traffic that would occur on the day after Thanksgiving.” ~ Wikipedia

There is absolutely nothing that turns me off like crowds of people acting as if their life depends on the purchase of something. (I would understand it, maybe, if the fights were over food or medicine when peoples’ children were involved, but that’s it.)

The Christmas spirit to me is trying to figure out during the year what people I care about might enjoy and getting (or making) it as I think of it or find it. I store things in my art room labeled until it’s time to wrap it up or put it in a gift bag. Buying things during the year helps our finances, too. We have a lot of bills (mainly insurances) due in November and December, so we have to plan for those, limiting other expenditures as much as possible.

To show how truly weird I am, I don’t even like the idea of maniacal shopping online on Black Friday, resisting ‘herd mentality.’

I’m probably the only person on the planet who won’t be shopping today. We won’t enjoy Lunch Bunch, which is the way we enjoy our usual Friday, because the restaurant will be closed so the good people who own it and work there can enjoy two days off to be with their families.

I’m still grinning inside because 1) my husband offered to help with the meal prep yesterday, 2) remarked once during the meal and TWICE afterwards, that, “Everything was perfect and delicious.” This means a LOT since I am NOT a great cook!, and 3) he helped with the clean up after. Definitely a keeper. :0)

And the BEST is yet to come with turkey sandwiches today! Enjoy YOUR Friday – “black” or otherwise.

2 Comments

Filed under holidays, Pet Peeves

Thanksgiving 2021

tenor

It’s just the two of us this year. It’s 36 degrees, gray, and rainy here. Great time to enjoy being warm and dry indoors. We’ll have a quiet day (hopefully), I’ll cook our turkey breast, stuffing, slice cranberry sauce and make deviled eggs for this evening.

I’m thankful this morning that our son left a message on the chat program, wishing us a happy day. I found a wonderful performance of a man playing two guitars at once masterfully and sent it to him yesterday. Maybe you would enjoy it, too. The musician’s name is Luca Stricagnoli.

If this doesn’t provide a way to listen, here is the URL – https://amazingpandph.com/coolest-song-cover/
RumiArt-etsy.com
This is the turkey who stands beside a tree at the top of our driveway.

Have a wonderful celebration!

2 Comments

Filed under holidays, Lewis yard art, music

Thoughts on a Wednesday 11-24-2021

twitter.com

I’m very grateful this Wednesday-before-Thanksgiving morning.

  • I’m grateful that, although my joints sound like Rice Krispies (snapping, crackling, and popping as I move), I am still able to HEAR them.
  • I’m grateful that, when I finish my yoga stretches, I can get up off the floor without the use of a crane.
  • I’m grateful to be married to a man who still makes me laugh, still melts my heart into a puddle, and still brings out my fighting spirit, wanting to punch him in the face at times. After 52 years, too many people live with indifference. It’s never boring here.
  • I’m grateful that our son is living his dreams, but still wants to keep us close with chats and conference call programs
  • I’m grateful that my 95-pound yellow lab, Amber, still wants to climb up and sit in my lap. I DO wish she would decide that when I’m on the couch, rather than typing in my office chair, however.
  • I’m grateful to have a warm cat who wants to sit in my lap this time of year – though I wish she hadn’t thrown up in my chair yesterday…
  • I’m grateful that I’m as young as I feel – inside – where my thoughts, fantasies, dreams, run free as a river.
  • I’m grateful to be surrounded by books, music, flowers, dreams of the next veggie garden, art supplies and plans…

I hope that you have a Thanksgiving celebration tomorrow full of family, love, lots of food and laughs.

Leave a comment

Filed under holidays, Thoughts on a ________

“Gingerbread Cookie” Wooden Ornaments

These are one-of-a-kind, hand-painted wooden ornaments. They are made to look like ‘gingerbread cookies’ decorated with icing. The back of each ornament is personalizable with a name and date. This is a fun, affordable way to make your Christmas more personal this year to put on your own tree or to give as gifts. You can see more information about these HERE.

Leave a comment

Filed under HandmadeHavenByLinda on Etsy, Holiday Gift Ideas, holidays

Veterans Day 2021

Fox 19

Today we honor the men and women in uniform who have defended our country from those who would cause us harm. It’s a national day, but ultimately is very personal for each city and town. In Greenwood, Arkansas, where I live, the center of our small square is the Veteran’s Memorial. This is an old photo, but it gives you an idea of how the memorial looks today. There is a small bronze statue representing each service that are on the ground at the base of the clock. People have honored the veterans in their family, buying a small plaque which is engraved with the veteran’s name, rank, branch of service and dates. Newer plaques are added to the others from time to time. The park kind of resembles the spokes on an old wagon wheel now and each plaque has an American flag on days like today. There are sidewalks so that you can walk through reading the names, or sit on a bench.

The schools have assemblies honoring the veterans who wish to attend. There is a parade that goes around the square. Bands play. People remember. Veterans receive free meals today.

My husband served for 4 years in the Marine Corps before we were married. I told him I would like to buy a plaque for him to go in the park. He got upset with me, saying he didn’t ‘deserve to be there.’ He thinks that only veterans who died for their country should be there. We agreed to disagree.

Leave a comment

Filed under Greenwood, holidays

Trick or Treat!

Happy Halloween-PinkBananaShowcase
Pose-N-Stay-Seasons-crazybonezskelton.com
spirithalloween.comj
stolloween.com

Be safe – but have a spooky good time tonight!!!

Leave a comment

Filed under Gorgeous Gourds, Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Happy Halloween Eve

Ray Villafane-buzzfeed.com
Ray Villafane-inhabitat.com
Ray Villafane-thedailybeast.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Halloween Pumpkin Art

designbolts.com
hikendip.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Pumpkin Faces

9gag.com
buzznicked.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Jack-o-Lantern Creativity

Sandra Arteaga – etsy.com
John Neill-boredpanda.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Halloween is Coming!

gravetics.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Halloween Joy

ultimatepapermache.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays

Halloween Art

Brandy Davis-Witch-thefeatherartist.com

Leave a comment

Filed under Halloween - How Do You Carve YOUR Pumpkin?, holidays