December 5th, 2007
I feel like I’m getting the hang of this blogging thing, although I feel I should be writing a bit more. It’s hard to find the time some days. I love having a place to throw my very meek thoughts, & more importantly to share what I spend my afternoons on!
I was thrilled to see little Bernerd featured in Jellybeans‘ Etsy Features blog! She’s compiled many many lovely finds from Etsy sellers & her own shop is beautiful as well. I am in love with the watercolor Christmas cards. This one too…
Yesterday I saw the only Fall-ish tree in these parts (the only one I’ve noticed so far, anyway) on my way home from work. Several of my friends have told me recently they would like to/plan to move to the Pacific Northwest. Some have said it’s to see the change in seasons, to see the leaves turn colors, to feel the temperature drop, feel the rain drop…I didn’t realize until I saw that tree how much we are surely missing out on here. It would be quite lovely to see rows of orange tinted trees & then to take walks while the leaves fall & float about. I suppose we have other attributes that make up for those losses though. Like cacti. & xeriscape. Ugh. But being in the desert does make snowfall much sweeter. I remember each of the 3 times I’ve experienced it. Last year fragile flurries dotted our car as Anthony & I sat in the parking lot of Joanne’s. It felt very magical. Anyway, I will be one sad loner when all my friends leave. Hopefully they can drift off slowly, say years apart each move…
Maybe I will snap a photo of that tree on my trek home this afternoon.
On to productivity-
I’ve finally finished the body of these tiny shoes. A small elfin girl is now in the works…
Benecio the Elf
Meet Benecio. He’d much rather you call him Benny, unless you are an elf gal, in which case he goes by his fully foreign name. Benecio resides in the Popcorn Ball division of the workshop. He won the Kernel Award in 1905 for his famous Popcorn Ball flavor ‘Hollyberry Spice.’ (He may enjoy sharing that nugget of information just a bit too much.) Since then he has taken semi-retirement & currently taste tests new flavors in the shop.
…And here he is!
He’s so soft.
Have a merry Wednesday!
I thought this was a party...LET’S DANCE!
December 1st, 2007
Yesterday afternoon we experienced our first heavy downpour in the new house. We also discovered our dear Milly has a few holes to patch. (I feel she deserves a name after all the attention & care that’s been given–she’s had a complete modern makeover, afterall.) Luckily most of the damage is in the garage, albeit just above my boxes of knick knacks & old schoolwork that was waiting for its move to the attic. Sadly, however, Milly’s got a leak in her epicenter. I awoke from a nap & stumbled into the kitchen to find a big bubble of water beneath the thick layer of paint. Waiting patiently, building steadily. So I popped it. We heard the steady drops for the remainder of the night.
While the rain fell inside & out, Ant & I set to work holiday-ing the house. I baked, he played with his new electronics. I had come across a recipe for cranberry cake with hot butter sauce a few days ago & my mind & tummy were set on it since. I’ve realized that when the holidays hit I go cranberry crazy. They’re so nice & red & jolly. So there was some of this:
The lovely mugs are both from Etsy! On the left, courtesy of melabo. Anthony’s says, ‘I love you more than zombies love brains.’ By foldedpigs.
And with the leftover cranberries I thought we’d try to work them onto a garland for the Tree. I popped some kettle corn (which I’d also been craving). I’d planned to eat some of the sweet kernels but either the recipe was no good or I’m no pro at corn popping, because it was a let down taste-wise. But for the Tree it looks lovely! I also popped some plain white corn to mix in.
We’re slowly decking our walls & making our way through the good old Christmas movies. We’ve hosted Rudolph & The Grinch thus far & I think Frosty might just be the next old friend to stop on in. I am definitely feeling the holiday spirit now. There’s nothing like a glistening tree & a glowing nose to get you there.
I thought this was a party...LET’S DANCE!
November 27th, 2007
Really. It’s 53°! I know this is not cold & completely normal for the last days of November in lands that actually expect a change in weather through the seasons. But this is Phoenix, for heaven’s sake. Stinky hot, sweaty humid Phoenix. Thanksgiving seems to have been the turning point. The temperature dropped & the clouds rolled in. I do love gloomy days though, & the absence of the sun is making for a nice wintery feel.
Anthony scaled the roof last night to hang the Christmas lights. Speaking of which, there is a new company, one of many I suppose, that you can pay to string your holiday lights. Something like $2.50 a foot. Are they kidding? I think it’s kind of sad. Hanging Christmas lights is an important part of Christmas preparation! Whether you’re the one slinking across the rooftop taking direction so each tiny bulb lays just right, or the one with feet on the ground, pointing & yelling, this step in holiday decor should not be missed. We have a bit more to add in the way of lights & I am still in search of those old bluky plastic light-up lawn ornaments. New fangled blow up giants will not reign at our house.
Wintery pictures!!!
Amid last Christmas’s flurry on the way to Pinetop.
Sophia as Santa
Tonight I am hoping to finish up the doll these belong to. Crafting has been at a standstill since last week, & I must get back into the groove! Have a cozy Tuesday.
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November 26th, 2007
I am feeling badly about not posting a Thanksgiving note. Things have been so so busy here, & the only dears reading this, I’ve personally sent wishes to anyhow. Thank you for reading. : ) I was so looking forward to hosting Thanksgiving at our new house, so new that it’s not even finished yet. I always do this…get overambitious & my mind thinks I can somehow emotionally & physically handle more than is logically possible. Then I inevitably let myself down.
Wednesday morning was spent paying through the nose to get our washing machine working so we could once again have running water (although I was silently hoping the plumbers would let us down & Thanksgiving would have to be moved across the street to my parent’s). That afternoon was spent enduring grocery store havoc, wasting half an hour in search of cinnamon sticks (not found) & in the evening my in-laws arrived. Thanksgiving eve was full of pie baking for me & sink plumbing for them. They really are stupendous people. The pie finished up at 1 am with a break for The Turkey Dance somewhere in between. All I wanted to do by Thursday morning was watch the parade in bed. But alas, television we have not. I had given up on the idea that everything would get accomplished, that our house would be fully furnished & decorated, that I’d have the table settings just as I’d imagined…I’d settled on ‘the probable’ days before.
And so Thanksgiving came & our guests slowly drifted in. The rest of my husband’s family, my parents’ many brothers & sisters & their families. I think we had around 30 people in the house. As I took my designated hostess station at the stove next to my mother, I glanced outside & into the family room & realized just how blessed I am, how blessed we all are. Three separate families, some from out of town, some from across the country, all together to share the day with each other. My dad & uncles outside laughing with my father-in-law, Anthony’s grandma in discussion with Aunt Becky. Uncle Jimmy mixing his famous Bloody Marys & sending them off to new & old takers. And of course the newest tiny addition to the family, our little nephew V. It was truly an amazing experience, & so touching.
We have been renovating for months & as much as I complain & grow impatient that the house isn’t complete yet (& I’ve learned that it never will be fully complete), that day was the greatest reward we could have hoped for. It made our house a home. I hope you had a beautiful Thanksgiving, & have a hearty Christmas season to come, full of the things that really matter.
I thought this was a party...LET’S DANCE!
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