The Holidays

Well, Thanksgiving is almost a memory now and Christmas is quickly approaching.

We had a nice Thanksgiving.  We had dinner at our son's home and it was a nice evening.  No leftovers, but that is ok because we always get tired of the food quickly.  Our daughter and her family took the week to vacation at Disney and I am so glad they did.  It sounds like they had a lovely time and we really enjoyed the daily photos.  We are also glad they are home safe and sound.

Over the week, since there was no huge cooking going on, we decided to put up our Christmas village and pull things together for the holidays.  It is lovely.

We chose not to put up a big tree this year -- we don't have room with the village -- it is one or the other and since we really don't buy gifts anymore (they all prefer money) then I don't need a tree to put packages under.  This works well for us. 

I have been making holiday cards this year and have been having a good time of it.  I have a few more to make and then will start mailing them out.  One I will mail this week because it is going overseas and I want it to get there. 

So, it has been a quiet week and a productive week.  I am looking forward to going into Advent next week (Dec. 2) and the quiet time that goes along with. I am glad we put the decor up already so we can just enjoy the serenity of the season. 

Diolch

Good morning! Today, here in the US, is Black Friday -- the day after Thanksgiving, the retail day that causes people to run amok shopping "fantastic deals" to obtain lots of material goods -- after spending a day being thankful for all they already have.  It is laughably sad.

I don't participate in Black Friday.  There is nothing in the world I want bad enough to fight the crowds of people who are overtired, haven't digested the food from yesterday and are generally disagreeable. Not my idea of a good time.

However, I do want a set of antlers and a Rudolph nose for my car.  I saw them a few days ago and passed on them, now I want them, but I will wait until the crowds are down -- or maybe tomorrow -- to see if there are any left.  If there aren't, I can certainly do without. If I get them I will post a photo -- and one of the embarrassed hubby who doesn't understand why his ancient wife would want to dress up the car.  I can't explain.

 Anyway, I started out this morning reading blogs like I always do and there were several from my British friends concerning Thanksgiving.  One, in particular, brought my mind around to gratitude.  I remembered that I had started a gratitude blog a while back -- quite a while back -- and I decided to resurrect it and make short entries each day as to what I found to be grateful for.  Full disclosure, this will be a religious faith based blog so if that isn't something you might be interested in you might just want to pass.  However, I feel compelled to write this blog for myself, to remind myself of all that I have been given and if it is helpful to anybody else, then so be it.

I have already written a post today and I invite you to visit Diolch -- loosely translated Welsh for "gratitude" -- I think.  Diolch won't be  discussed here -- two different focuses and two different vibes but I am using this time and this place to invite you to visit Diolch if you so desire. There is a link down the side of this page.

So, with that said, I am going to start my day by finishing picking up from the Christmas decorating and get read to go hunt for those antlers/nose! Wish me luck.

These Is My Words by Nancy E Turner

"These is My Words-- the diary of Sarah Agnes Prine -- 1881-1901" -- a fictional piece based on the family history of the author Nancy E. Turner.

It is the story of Sarah Prine, a spirited woman who grows up and comes of age on the frontier.  During the course of the book she goes from an uneducated child to an educated adult and from a young woman finding her way in spite of loss and turbulence to a loving mother and wife of cavalry captain John Elliot.

I enjoyed this book but it was rough and harsh and didn't gloss over any of the events that occurred during those times in those places to countless people.  It was happy and sad and a struggle.

It made me glad I live in my time. 

I recommend as long as you realize that it is a tough book to read.

Gotta Love Texas Weather

October is my favorite month.  However, somehow I missed it this year.  We were still having summer in October so I was indoors a lot.  It finally felt like fall fell on Halloween.  It got chilly.

It is now November 11 and we are in winter.  We have been near our first freeze.  The weather man was saying something silly like "stray flurries" on Monday.  So, it appears we have had about 10 days of fall.   Bother.

So, between the time change and the weather, I have been a bit out of sorts.  Allergies kicking up, joints aching, just sort of blah.  I haven't been getting much of anything done but I have been playing with card making.

Here are a few of my recent efforts.  I was trying to design a card for a small boy who is at St. Jude's for about six weeks receiving radiation for a tumor.  It is a difficult thing to think about making for a child -- get well cards can be so -- depressing.  So, I decided not to make a get well card -- I did something different.

Tell me what you think.

 Then I didn't know if it was too bland and not colorful enough so I made this one.

 And then I saw an anniversary card similar to this one and I made it just to compare.

I love the stamp set and it is easy and fun which I thought "fun" was exactly what the little boy needs.

So, I am probably going to send the first one.  I am thinking that I am going to send one once a week until he is home so I need to come up with some more ideas.  I have some cute digi stamps that I love to color so that may be my next project.

I will share whatever I do -- card making
is very therapeutic and a bit humbling.  I have two new "toys", if you will, a stamp positioner and an envelope maker.  Well, yesterday after hours of sitting and coloring and cutting and gluing I decided to play with my new toys.  I couldn't get either of them to work and was so disgusted.  I was tired and tired of sitting so I just closed everything up and left the room.  After a few videos on you tube and a couple of embarrassing "ohhhhhh" moments I realized that the toys were not at fault but rather operator error.  See what I mean about humbling. 

So, today is a new day and I will approach this activity with new knowledge.  I have some ideas!  I will share later.

Thoughtful Post -- Random This and That

The seasons are changing.  The time is changing (yuck).  Things are getting cozier.  I am looking forward to Christmas. 

Halloween was quiet.  We had a spaghetti dinner at my daughter's house.  It was raining so we didn't think any trick or treating would be going on so as we ate we watched "Harry Potter".  Alas, the rain stopped just in time for the Bean to hit a few houses right next to her and she made a rather large haul.  Here she is in her regalia -- what else would you expect with a British Dad? 

Hermoine Bean

 Last week we had the Brownies first backyard camp out.  It was organized chaos.  There was good food, good friends,  a nice fire and a really good bunch of girls.  Here are a few highlights.

setting up camp in my backyard

 hot dogs with the grill meister -- our troop Grandpa

activity stations -- the wind chimes are adorable -- more pictures later

Our campfire -- so enjoyable

I have been doing some cardmaking but I have nothing completed to show.  I have been doing a lot of coloring in preparation and mental planning.  I have seen so many good examples that I don't really know what I will come up with.  I am looking forward to getting started though.  

I am reading a book called "These Is My Words".  It is written in diary form and is the story of Sarah Prine, a woman living on the Arizona frontier, her family and her life.  It is a compelling book, I don't want to put it down, but it is really brutal in places.  I am not done but I already recommend.  It is really good.

 
So, that has been my week.  I have just about recovered from the camp out.  Just for complete transparency -- I did NOT sleep outdoors, on the ground, in a tent.  My idea of camping is a hotel with at least a complimentary breakfast and a bathroom.  But, I did enjoy the campfire.  We might actually do it again.

Thoughts About Genealogy -- How Much is Enough?

 I dabble in all sorts of things, none of it very well but I am diligent.  One of my pursuits has been my working on my family tree. 

Family history has always been a popular "thing" in my father's side of the family.  The family was fairly historic and it was something the family was very proud of.  There really wasn't a whole lot of research to do as it was pretty much already done, I just had to add to it a bit.

My mother's side was a different story and back in the late 80's she decided she would like to know more about her family so off I go to "discover" her roots.

It hasn't been easy but with I knew a few snippets of information and with the help of some distant cousins I learned a bit more and was gifted with some old photos.

The person I started with was my great-grandmother who was born in Cinderford, Gloucestershire, England.  She moved with her family to Wales when she was about 9 years old and then, as an adult with children of her own she immigrated to the US.  My grandmother lived with my g-grandmother at one time and she told me a few things about her.

The one thing that I learned about my great-grandmother (she had a  name, it was Dinah) was that she was very religious and refused to be photographed.  So, you can imagine how surprised I was when my cousin sent me three photos of great-grandmother Dinah.   Well, I felt I had to share with other members of the family.

So, long story short Dinah has been copied, mailed, emailed, put on Ancestry.com and put on facebook and I can honestly say I feel awful about it.  We all wanted to know our foremother but have we all been terribly disrespectful of her wishes and beliefs? 

I feel she would be appalled at the whole thing if she knew and she would probably hate us all! 

So, how far is too far to go with genealogy?  At what point does the research and sharing become an invasion of privacy? If the person is deceased does it really matter anymore?  I worry about things like this.

Personally, in the case of Dinah, I think we have overstepped the line. 

Apologies

Yesterday I  posted about wishing people would comment when they visit my blog.  Then, today, I set out to do my daily blog reading (yes, I really DO do it every day) and it became glaringly apparent that I was visiting and not commenting!

 Talk about awkward!

So, I set out to make it right and I decided that if I visit a blog, I will make a comment, even if it is only "hi".

I need to be more thoughtful.

My bad.

I am back to making cards and delivered my granddaughter's birthday card and I dropped off their Halloween cards to be given to them by their mother so I didn't have to worry about remembering to mail them.  I still need to deliver Bean's. 

I went shopping for some card making supplies today and am very put out with the selection as it is very meager.  Hobby Lobby is still the best place for stamps and dies and ink.  However, I did stop into Wal-Mart and bought two packages of card stock.  One was Neenah that is recommended and the other was Georgia Pacific which is also recommended.  The GP is considerably heavier so I will have to experiment.  I think the Neenah will be used to  print out digi-stamps for coloring.

I then went to Michaels with my 50% off coupon and bought a 24 set of Polychromos colored pencils.  I love the look of the copic markers but they are too rich for my blood especially since I don't know how well I would do with them.  And, I like pencils.  So, I hope to do some coloring later on this evening.

I purchased a Tim Holtz ruler as well and it is due to be delivered today -- yes, on Sunday -- and I hope it helps me cut things a little straighter.  I have a double astigmatism and sometimes it shows!  It is getting late in the day  and it hasn't arrived yet so not sure if I will see it or not.  Hopefully I do.

So, in the future if you see a shy little "hi" in your comment section it is just me stopping by for a read.  And, hopefully I will be able to share some more cards here soon.

Comments

I have been blogging for a long time -- not sure why but it appealed to me back in the day.  It still appeals to me and I love for people to visit.  It appears that people DO visit but I don't get any comments.  I would love to hear from  you if you do visit -- just a shout out that you were here. 

Thanks!

The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor

Just look at this cover -- how could you not be drawn into this book.  Everybody knows that I definitely judge books by their covers so it was a no-brainer that I would go for this one.

It is the  story of Elsie and Francis and the Cottingley fairies circa World War I.  It is also the story of Olivia, modern day Ireland.

The stories are beautifully interwoven and it is one of those books that is hard to put down. 

I will warn you, however, that it is a tear jerker.  I never cry over books but I did over this one.

I definitely recommend.

Catch Up

It is Monday.  It is raining and it has turned cold.  At least, to me it is cold.  The low last night was supposed to be about 45 and the high today is supposed to be 48. Not sure what happened to fall but it seems winter has bullied it's way into our lives a little early.

So, I haven't been up to much, really.  Trying to tame the beasts known as Messy House and Moving Boxes.  It appears that I am winning.  It is a slow battle but I am determined.

I have been spending a good deal of time in my craft area.  I inherited all of my mother-in-law's art supplies -- and they are plentiful -- as well as my father's supplies -- not quite as plentiful -- but it all needs to be organized and I have been working toward that goal.

I have also been  under a lot of stress lately so I have been turning to crafts to help me deal and escape.  I decided, after unpacking lots and lots of craft supplies, to turn back to doing some card making.  The fiddly nature of the  process forces me to concentrate on just that and not on other things.  So, I thought I would share some of the things that I have been doing.

I am new to this and I don't pretend to possess the sophisticated skills that many of the card makers possess.  But, it is fun, it satisfies a bit of desire for creativity and it is useful.  So, on I will go -- at least until I use up some of these supplies which will probably take about 25 years.

Saturday 9

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Unbreak My Heart

Welcome to Saturday 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme! 

Saturday 9: Unbreak My Heart (1996)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Songs like this are enduringly popular in part because each of us has had our heart broken. Give us the name of a heartbreaker from your own life.

There were two -- Charles and Michael.  It is a toss up as to who was the best heartbreaker -- they were both pretty stellar in that department.

2) Toni Braxton sings that "nights are so unkind." What did you do last night?
 "Blindspot" and I surfed the net looking at cardmaking sites.
 
3) While this song has Toni singing the blues, in real life her love life is happier. Now aged 50, she's engaged and has been sporting a diamond on her left hand. Do you believe that a bride is ever too old to have a big wedding?

I think a bride can have whatever sort of wedding she wants.  I had a fairly large wedding but I wanted a small, intimate wedding.  I was quite taken by the description and photos of Barbara Bush's wedding last week -- very nice.  But, I was also taken by the few photos I saw of Princess Eugenie's wedding yesterday -- I loved her dress.

4) Growing up, Toni Braxton's parents severely restricted how much TV their children could watch each day. Ironically, today Toni and her sisters participate in a reality TV show on the WE-TV network, so TV cameras are a big part of their daily adult lives. What TV show do you try not to miss?

I always watch "Days of Our Lives" and have since 1975.  Recently I have made it a point to never miss "This is Us".

5) She is prone to dry skin and applies Kiehl's Hand Salve to her hands and arms throughout the day. Tell us about a product you're brand loyal to.

I use First Aid Beauty and MooGooUSA

6) Toni admits to being "a bit of a germaphobe," and always maintains a supply of hand sanitizer and wipes. What is always on your shopping list?

Not really a germaphobe but I think I should be so I am going to try to remember to carry hand sanitizer with me.

7) While she is not shy about her body, and has worn revealing outfits on the red carpet, Toni Braxton refused a 2011 offer from Hugh Hefner and Playboy to pose nude. What's the last thing you said "no" to?

Ice cream.  I said no to ice cream.  

8) In 1996, the year this song was popular, Mattel introduced a Star Trek Barbie and Ken set. Have you ever fantasized about space travel?

Uh,no.

9) Random question -- Would you (or did you) invite an ex to your wedding?

No.

 

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!