Last minute gift ideas…
To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect. ~ Oren Arnold
I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish all you you a beautiful and peaceful
Christmas time.
May your hearts be light and full of love.
Thank you for all the joy you bring to my world.
Big Love !
Monday and today have been bitterly cold in NH.
The sun was out yesterday though, and the light was spectacular.
Today’s high is only 13 degrees Fahrenheit.
The clouds have moved in as of noon today, and the snow has started again.
Another 4 to 8 inches.
It is really feeling wintery and Christmasy now.
I am surprisingly feeling quite at peace with it all.
I am cozy in my house, with twinkle lights and a gorgeous poinsettia serving as Christmas décor.
David is working from home and
tomorrow, we will be babysitting our 1 month old great nephew,
Baby Jayden, for the day !!!
Yay !
I am happily making some handmade Christmas gifties and
with a sweet reminder from my friend Laura Svencner,
I found some time to update and renew my Etsy listing for
The Word of the Year Rock in a Box.
For those of you who choose a Word of the Year to work with instead of resolutions that are never kept, I can custom paint a small beach stone with your chosen word and custom decorate your little white porcelain box in your favorite colors. You can have a sweet keepsake to keep your word in focus all year long !
These little boxes will be available for order in my Etsy shop through the end of January.
I am still waiting to come up with my Word of the Year 2014.
My word for 2013 was “Live”, as in “Live in the moment”, and I am working really hard on doing just that. The right word will be waiting for me when the new calendar year starts !
Off to enjoy a cup of chai tea with maple syrup and milk, and watch the snow fall.
Stay cozy, Beautiful Ones !
I’m checking the list.
Doing only what feels right.
Love, joy, season’s bright.
******************************
I think the perfectionist of old in me has finally truly got it.
There is no such thing as a perfect Christmas.
No amount of decorating, baking or fretting will make it so.
And there is no way to make someone else’s Christmas perfect either.
What there is is joy in giving wherever you can and without expectations.
Little things that make someone smile.
And not expecting everyone to smile, either.
Just giving because your heart feels open to do so, and because you know that it is part of your purpose on this Earth.
And loving what is.
And fiercely loving the people who are in that close circle around your heart,
not with the packages under the tree,
but in the kindness,
the loving gestures,
the real Love giving
that lets them know they are deeply loved by you.
This is what Christmas means to me now.
If it brings my heart joy, I will do it.
If it brings me stress or worry, it will be off the list.
I am making my season merry and bright !
Big Love to all of you, Beautiful Ones !
Be kind to your awesome self today !
for more haiku love, visit rebecca at recuerda mi corazon.
It has been snowy and very grey since Sunday.
Not the most cheerful weather for me.
I definitely feel the lack of light and how it effects my mood.
I am trying hard to use some of the tricks I know to keep me from sinking.
One is painting with bright colors.
I am so in love with my new “Fruits of my Labor” piece.
(11X14” acrylic on canvas)
I have to say that Golden Acrylics are such a joy to paint with when you need that vibrancy and saturation of color. Expensive yes, but they really are worth the money !
I haven’t done any Christmas decorating yet.
David and I always travel for Christmas,
and sometimes,
the decorating seems like more work than pleasure.
Maybe my Christmasy mood will increase this weekend.
But I have started lighting my sweet twinkle lights in the living room, my studio and our bedroom every day.
That is a light that makes me smile.
Another thing that is really good for me is to focus on giving.
Getting out of my own head and sharing my gifts with others in a genuine, no expectations way.
I did that at meditation class this week.
I brought my rocks with me and offered each of the 10 or so people in the class
to reach into my bag and choose three or four rocks for themselves.
The magic happened as always !
A couple of women were amazed,
and received just the message from the Universe that they needed
and I received loving hugs in return.
I am so grateful for those rocks and my Rock Fairy job.
I am working on other little gifties to bring smiles to some others in my life as well.
All so good for keeping Kimbo in a shiny place.
Today is sunshiny, even if it is cold.
I promise myself to get this head out into the sun and soak in some of those rays.
I hope you find your shinies today too, Beautiful Ones !
Big winter time love !
A Haiku for Joe
A weaver of tales
He made deep marks on this world
With his heart story.
Man of Peace, my Friend,
Now makes his journey onward
Flies on wings of love.
My friend, Joe Spado, died on Monday, December 2nd, 2013.
We connected through Haiku My Heart, lovingly hosted each Friday by Rebecca of recuerda mi corazon.
We never met in person but I know him by heart.
A beautiful work of art by him hangs in my bedroom window, catching dreams and shining with love and care.
I feel as though I have a new guardian spirit hovering in that gentle space beyond.
I know your new travels on the wind will be gentle and peaceful, Man.
I am sending love and comfort to the hearts of those you have left on this side.
Thanks for what your Beautiful Spirit brought to my world.
Love & Peace, Man.
xo
Thanksgiving was a sweet gathering,
and yummy food eaten at David’s Dad’s house.
David, I and Chica spent part of our Black Friday at the beach.
It was cold but we were bundled up,
and Chica kept warm, racing after her favorite object on the planet,
the blue rubber ball.
That,
and some turkey and stuffing sandwiches on white bread
made the day pretty much perfect !
******************
Off to Montreal and La Conception for a birthday hug for my sister Natalie, and some Christmas arts and crafts with the niece and nephew.
Many hugs from other important people along the way, I am sure !
Have a great first week of December, Beautiful Ones !
Pumpkin Paws…
Woke up to a very rainy Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
Mini-Journal Pages – A Visit to the Circus in my Head.
That is fine with me !
So glad that it looks like we are getting only rain, and not the snow and other icy stuff the Weather Drama people were predicting.
Today is all about some Thanksgiving baking,
(Like this Flourless Lemon Almond cake I am making for my sister-in-law who has celiac disease),
and making a version of my traditional stuffing but keeping it outside the bird so everyone gets what they like and need with the Thanksgiving meal at my Father-in-law’s house tomorrow.
And then there will be time for some more play in the old art journal.
Perfect for this rainy day…
Happy Wednesday, Beautiful Ones !
This photo is in response to Patti Digh’s post on 3X3X365 yesterday.
“We find happiness where we can. And that is everywhere.”
The Universe sent me this smile gift in the form of a food face last night.
Do you notice little gifts from the Universe?
Like food faces,
heart rocks,
or maybe a tune that the dishwasher brings into your head for you to hum along with ?
(Yes, I do need to get out more. Some of my Blogland friends do too! You know who you are !)
Sometimes,
they are harder to see
than the bright shiny gifts that friends give us.
Like this glorious print that arrived in the mail yesterday from my loving friend, Sherry.
The piece is by artist and wise woman, Julia Fehrenbacher
and goes along with this incredible post she wrote last week on the Painted Path.
At a time when I have been struggling with loving myself just as I am, right in this moment,
and making each day feel of value to my life,
Julia’s words are like a friend reaching out in the darkness.
Just like my friend Sherry does!
Thank you to both of you for making me feel seen, and loved,
and most of all,
thank you for inspiring me to see and love my blessedly imperfect self !
Blessedly imperfect perhaps, but perfectly blessed, that’s for sure !
***************
We are bracing for some kind of icky storm here. A crazy mix of rain and snow and ice and all the crap this time of year can throw at us.
I am off to get a haircut and do a little shopping today,
and then buckle down to some Thanksgiving prep. here at home tomorrow.
Be safe, and be thankful, Beautiful Ones !
Big Love !
Here we are at the last week on November.
These sweet ducks were swimming on the pond when I took a cold walk last week.
Saturday night brought the abrupt change from Fall to Winter weather.
I spent a lot of time thinking about those ducks and the little birds that have been happily eating at my bird feeder on the back deck
when that cold, cold, cold wind was upon us yesterday.
I was thinking about their bravery and strength to face the winters here,
exposed to the elements as they are.
Also made me think about the people who were not as blessed as I am
with a cozy shelter, heat and an abundance of warm clothes to choose from.
My thoughts led me to great gratitude for all that I have and for how really blessed I am.
That carried on into this mornings meditation, where I placed this little green treasure on my simple altar during my quiet Being moments.
My blog friend Kim from “art in red wagons” has created these little sea glass treasures to help raise funds for ShelterBox to help those stricken by the typhoon in the Philippines.
As we celebrate and give thanks for all we have this week,
I hope to spend time remembering those who do not have as many blessings as myself in this moment,
and find little ways to help
and do what I can do to share the love.
Happy Monday, Beautiful Ones !
Be extra kind where you can today !
From this week’s joy list…
1.The green eyes of this Pumpkin cat and her beautiful bitchy kitty face.
2.Chickadees et al. at the brand new bird feeder on the back deck. After three days of empty, they finally showed up !
Those sweet little black headed guys are the bravest!
3.New 3.5X4.75” watercolor book that feels just the right size to play in, no matter what else is going on or has to be done.
4.Bizarre creatures from my imagination that come to life with a bit of time and my hand.
5.Returning to my meditation class after over a year away.
It felt so good to be physically in a group of people who all had the intention of being in the moment and radiating love and gratitude out into the world.
I need more of this.
Happy Thursday, Beautiful Ones !
For more joy sharing, visit Meri at Love, Meri.
