The First Day of Lent

The last couple of days, I have read or listened to sacrifices that friends are making for Lent.

I have pondered what I could do.
Honestly, I have never been too successful at giving something up for the duration of the season.

I could, and probably should, give up the massive amount of Diet Coke I consume.

It would make me a healthier person in the long run, but most likely a very unhappy person

for the next forty days.  I would probably only substitute its absence with milkshakes or sweet tea.

 I do not think that is such a wise thing.

I could also give up chocolate and all sweets.

But, that would probably also make me grumpy.

It is a little difficult for me to give up the computer or internet, since it is the basis of my

business.  It is also the only way I am sometimes able to stay in touch with our son.

As I prepare to travel for a few days, my computer and cell phone become even more important for safety and communication purposes.

Somehow, I don't think God really cares if I indulge in soft drinks and sweets, or if I depend on modern technology.

I do think He objects if those things become the most important things in my life, decreasing the amount of time and attention I devote to Him.

As I sat in the darkened sanctuary today, the preacher shared that this season is not so much about changing habits, as it is about changing hearts.

I can do that.

Today, there is a cross-shaped smudge on my forehead.

It is an outward symbol of my faith and God's love for me.

Later tonight, it will be washed away.

It then becomes my responsibility, over the next forty days and beyond, to outwardly show

God's grace and love in all that I say and do.

That will, in some cases, require sacrifices and a change of heart on my part.

To those of you who are also observing Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent,

I wish you a blessed, peaceful, and reflective journey during these forty days.

Happy Heart Day!

Wishing you a sweet, fluffy pink icing, topped with sprinkles kind of day!

May your heart always know the happiness of loving and being loved.

Happy Valentine's!

In this New Year

May your heart know joy

May each day hold laughter

May doors open to great possibility

Wishing you abundant blessings in 2012!

Reflecting upon this past year, it has been a difficult year for me.

One might think that previous years, filled with illness, surgeries and uncertainties, would have posed more difficulties.

I am not sure that I could ever explain to others why this year has been more difficult.

It just was.

So, for those of you who continued to visit when posts were few,

thank you for the visits, comments and support.

I look forward to sharing more in this new year.

Happy New Year!

Christmas Wishes

The past few weeks, blogs, Pinterest and FaceBook have been filled with images of the perfect Christmas. 

 Maybe those really do exist in some lives, but not necessarily in mine or those of many friends.

If there is an empty chair at your family dinner table this year, and you are missing someone special,

you have known the gift of love.

If the stockings and the tree are a little more bare than previous years,

you have known the gift of prosperity and security --

something many will never experience.

If you no longer hear the pitter patter of little feet

and grown children spend the holidays with in-laws and others,

you know the gift of sharing.

If you can see the twinkling lights, hear the glorious music, and smell the fresh pines,

you have the gift of life and health --

even if some days are easier than others.

If you believe that next year will be better and brighter,

you have the gifts of hope and faith.

Love, joy, peace, hope and faith

are the true gifts of the season.

I wish you these and so much more.

A very merry and blessed Christmas to all!

Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!

For the hay and the corn and wheat that is reaped,

For the labor well done, and the barns that are heaped,

For the sun and the dew and the sweet honeycomb,

For the rose and the song, and the harvest brought home.

Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving!

For the trade and the skill and the wealth in our land,

For the cunning and strength of the working man's hand,

For the good that our artists and poets have taught,

For the friendship that hope and affection have brought.

Thanksgiving!  Thanksgiving!

For the homes that with the purest affection are blest,

For the season of plenty and well deserved rest,

For our country extending from sea to sea,

The land that is known as the "Land of the Free".

Thanksgiving!  Thanksgiving!

~Author Unknown~

Wishing all of you an abundance of joy and bountiful blessings on this Thanksgiving Day!

Remembering in appreciation

Remembering and thanking all Veterans,

past and present;

especially my father.

The dress that was not,

is not, and may not be made!

I had a plan.
I had the fabric, smocking plate and trim.

I was not completely committed to a pattern, but was narrowing it down.

With a little tweaking of floss colors, I was envisioning a cute little brown and white polka dot

back-to-school dress.  It would be smocked with an apple design and trimmed with lime green rick rack or piping.

I blinked, school had started and we were headed toward October.

Thus, Plan B was born!

So many cute Autumn, Halloween and Thanksgiving designs from which to choose!
Replace that apple with a happy pumpkin, plump turkey or silly scarecrow.

Substitute orange for the lime green, and it was full steam ahead.

Except, I ended up cleaning out closets and a zillion other things.

Knowing my slow pace of picture smocking, I may not squeeze this one out by the time the menu calls for turkey and pumpkin pie.

I may be headed back to a twist on the original color scheme.
Brown is the color of reindeer, and at least one has a very shiny red nose!  A great color combination!

Lime green has become a very popular replacement for the traditional Christmas green.

Several holiday plates could easily be tweaked to incorporate it.

Not to mention, the brown polka dots remind me of snowflakes falling, and there are also plates with winter themes and winter animals - polar bears, penguins and more!

I am not saying this version will come any closer to completion.  At least now, you know I do think about sewing and smocking even if I am not writing about it!

Not sure whether I hope to hear I am in good company, or sad to think we are all too busy to sit and stitch.

All fabric, smocking designs and trim from BessieMary.

What I Did this Weekend

I wove blue floss through the Swiss entredeux edging on the skirt from the Old Fashioned Baby sewing retreat.

I began embroidering the hemline of the skirt, too.

Jeannie used featherstitching on her dress.  I have substituted stem stitch.

Featherstitching on curves is not my strength, and I really enjoy doing this stitch!

We fired up the grill.  After the hot dogs and chicken, came the best part --

S'mores!

We watched some of these, which were much prettier than my picture taking skills portray!

Hope each of you had a fun weekend, too!

Now on to a very busy, but short, week!

Independence Day

God Bless these United States of America!

Have a safe and happy celebration!

Memorial Day

It should not be a day mostly for bargains and barbeque,

but a day to remember and pay respect.

To all members of our military, past, present and future -- and their families, too --

a most heartfelt thank you.

God Bless America!

Blessings on Mother's Day

Illustration by Robert O. Reid
c. 1932

A Mother's Creed

I believe in the eternal importance of the home

as the fundamental institution of society.

I believe in the immeasurable possibilities of

every boy and girl.

I believe in the imagination, the trust, the hopes

and the ideals which dwell in the hearts of all children.

I believe in the beauty of nature, of art, of books

and of friendship.

I believe in the satisfactions of duty.

I believe in the little homely joys of everyday life.

I believe in the goodness of the great design

which lies behind our complex world.

I believe in the safety and peace which surround us all

through the overbrooding love of God.

~Ozora Davis~

As you remember mothers no longer here,

As you celebrate mothers with whom you are still blessed,

As you honor women who act as role models,

As you give thanks for those who made you a mother . . .

Happy Mother's Day! 

Easter Memories

Between packing, unpacking and a few other activities in our home and lives, Easter seems to have sneaked up on me.  Only a few days ago, I managed to bring out the Easter Egg tree, and surround it with my mother-in-law's much loved Herend bunny collection.

But the much loved sugar eggs from my mother, which I shared here last year, remain safely snuggled in their boxes.  As do the needlepoint bunnies, also shared here last year, and many other favorite Easter decorations.

I know in my heart that Easter is not about the chocolate bunnies, brightly painted eggs, and cute baskets overflowing with colorful paper grass.

But, if I am to be perfectly honest, I do miss seeing all those things around my house this year.

So, I am thinking of Easters past, when those and much more were in great abundance.

My first Easter as a mother.

The thrill of the hunt!

For me, the search for the perfect little appliqued outfit and miniature top siders.

For him, that special egg!

The annual neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt, and a sugar induced high that lasted all afternoon.

No nap for him.  I was the one who needed it more!

Family.

Dearly departed, but never forgotten, family.

Brunch at Memphis Country Club.

I can still taste the cheese blintz with raspberries!

Real bunnies with whiskers that tickle!

No, these are not the things of which Easter really is.

Or, are they in some small way?

Because of a greater love, I have all these blessings.

A tiny hand was placed in mine, and I put my faith in His hands to guide us both, through hunts for hidden eggs and other adventures in life.

The holiday brought family and friends together.  Work and worries ceased for the moment.

There were smiles, hugs and happiness.

There are now special memories etched forever into our hearts and minds.

There is the promise of eternal life, and the glorious reunion with those we miss even more when we gaze at sugar eggs and beloved bunny collections.

I believe that God speaks to us in so many different ways, and holidays can be celebrated and savored in just as many ways, too.

And sometimes, we just all need to indulge in the simple and silly things that make us smile!

If you choose to celebrate Easter,

may you be abundantly blessed as you prepare your home and heart for this sacred day.

Happy Hearts

Love puts the fun in together,

the sad in apart,

and joy in the heart.

May your day be a sweet one!

Simple Joys of Christmas - Stockings

I will share more of my experience at Mayo next week. 

It is finally time to enjoy and celebrate Christmas!

   Due to our schedule and my inability to drive prior to or following surgery, there was little time or chance for much shopping, decorating or preparing.

That is fine.

Great joy is found in simple things.

Many are items that have long been a part of our family's holidays.

It is never Christmas for me until the stockings are hung by the chimney with care.

This stocking was knitted, for his first Christmas, by our son's godmother.

In this house, it always hangs by the family room fireplace.

Mother made these stockings for herself and my father.  They are red velvet with white satin lining and cuffs, decorated with felt cut-outs, and embellished with sequins and beads.

The one on the left was Daddy's, complete with a tiny train on the toe!

These also hang on the family room fireplace.

As our family grew with son-in-laws and grandchildren, my mother gifted us with beautiful needlepointed stockings.  A dear friend drew most of the designs, and Mother spent many hours stitching.  They are stitched primarily with wool, and accented with metallic threads.

Each stocking is fully lined with satin, backed and piped in velvet - completely and lovingly handmade.

Every year, as I unwrap these three stockings, it is a little bittersweet.  They will always be one of my favorite holiday decorations, but they make me miss my mother more than ever.  She adored the holidays, and kept Christmas in her heart all year long.

Our three stockings hang together on our living room fireplace.

So, are your stockings hung?

I hope Santa leaves you lots of goodies and no lumps of coal!

 

Blessings

In a world that seems not only to be changing, but even to be dissolving,

there are some tens of millions of us who want Christmas to be the same

with the same old greeting "Merry Christmas" and no other.

We long for the abiding love among men of good will which the season brings . . .

believing in this ancient miracle of Christmas with its softening,

sweetening influence to tug at our heart strings once again.

We want to hold on to the old customs and traditions because they strengthen our family ties,

bind us to our friends,

make us one with all mankind for whom the Child was born,

and bring us back again to the God who gave His only begotten Son,

That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,

but have everlasting life.

So we will not "spend" Christmas . . .

nor "observe" Christmas.

We will "keep" Christmas --

keep it as it is . . .

in all the loveliness of its ancient traditions.

May we keep it in our hearts,

that we may be kept in its hope.

~PeterMarshall (1902-1949)~

Counting the Days

until Christmas!

I recently made this Advent Calendar for my great nephews and niece.

It was a printed panel by Makower UK.

I simply cut and stitched the pockets onto the background, and

used coordinating fabrics for backing, binding and loops for hanging. 

I used a gold metallic thread for top stitching the pockets. 

I also added a layer of fusible batting between the front and backing, providing a little more stability.

Then the real fun began:  gathering goodies for the pockets!

I was able to locate several small ornaments, toys, holiday candies, and other assorted trinkets.

Some items were too large for the pockets.  On those days, a written clue will be slipped into the pocket, and the gift given after the clue is found and read.

I will always love childrens' books.  Some of my most cherished memories are moments spent reading to my son when he was young..  I was glad to find several classic holiday stories, as well as some newer ones.

Needless to say, the books will not fit into the small calendar pockets!  So, clues were printed on slips of paper and inserted into the appropriate pockets.  Some of the gifts or ornaments coordinate with the stories.

The Three Wise Men and their camels have always been a favorite part of the Christmas story.  I was thrilled to discover this new-to-me book.  Who could resist that face?  It's very sweet message is about the lesson of giving, instead of receiving.

I included the star ornament to coordinate with this book.

Who does not like Mary Engelbreit?

This is her holiday A-Z book for children.  Imagine my delight when I discovered ornaments almost exactly like the fun letters in the book!  There is one ornament representing each child's first name.

Of course, I had to include a copy of this book.  Trains are very special to our family.

Jingle bells, which resemble sleigh bells, coordinate nicely with this book.

There is not much time left to make an Advent Calendar!  Here are some of the items I included, as well as some other ideas.

Printed Bible verses, poems or other sentiments

Holiday ornaments

Small candy

Jingle bells

Supplies for making Reindeer Food

Books

Crayons, markers and coloring books

Holiday CDs and DVDs

Holiday cookie cutters for a fun day in the kitchen

Cocoa mix and marshmallows

Supplies for holiday crafts

Small mirror with note.  The reflection of the child is a gift from God, and their gift back to God.

Small decorative erasers, plastic animals, and vehicles

Stickers

Pieces of a puzzle to be collected and assembled during the month

Small figures and pieces of a Nativity

The most important ingredient:  Love!

Have fun marking and celebrating this special season.