One Week In, Two To Go

It might be spring if yesterday was too chilly to be outdoors and today is balmy.  If yesterday was gray and dour, and today is blissfully sunshiny.  If yesterday felt like a good day to cocoon and hibernate and today is an outdoorsy invitation.         

My garden is in no doubt that spring has just about sprung.  The yearly parade of intensely purple mini iris, tete a tete daffodils and crocuses (croci?) by the hundreds has been flaunting their blossoms regardless of snow flurries or shivery breezes.  Thank heavens for bulbs and perennials like primroses that lift my spirits each year.  

My vast collection of bunnies are lurking behind an abundance of green clad leprechauns and shamrocks, waiting for their turn in the seasonal spotlight.  Can lambs and peonies be far behind?  

I know that changing out holiday decorations is just too much trouble for most people nowadays.  I can't help embracing the changing seasons though.  A changing gallery of holiday reminders is just a small delight that makes my life a tad richer.

Plus, I get bored easily.  Eye candy is nice.

Time is a funny thing.  It hardly seems like it was only a week ago that we received our first covid vaccine.  The second dose scheduled for the twenty-ninth seems like an eternity away.  

I'm mulling how to celebrate being (relatively) street legal again.  There are some errands and projects that have been on the back burner.  Things I want to accomplish but have not been willing to risk the possible exposure, like a trip to a big box store to have a gallon of paint mixed for the family room or BB&B for a digital kitchen scale. The idea of going out without weighing risk factors and deciding on discretion is going to take some getting used to.  We are fortunate to live in an area where most people are mask compliant.  Still, those new variants popping up are not only more transmissible but also cause more serious infections.  I'll dream about paint and scales, but till probably resist the temptation until more of our population has access to the vaccines.  Better safe than sorry!

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Be (Inspire)d #1

The future belongs to those who believe in the  beauty of their dreams.   

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Yes, it's Meadowsweet Cottage.  Wondering where the blog title is?  Me too! 

I'm reworking the header and realized I need to edit the image of the truck to include the blog name.  Silly me! It's been awhile since I played the blogging game so bear with me while I figure this out with a new photo editor.  I miss Picasa3!

Farewell to the Year That None Of Us Wanted

Ah, yes, 2020.  As this year wanes, I'm sure I'm not the only one looking back on it for the lessons it holds and making plans to improve the year to come.

There were bright spots. 

Babies whose arrival brightened our lives and made us more determined to shape our world into a space where they could be safe and healthy.  A baby girl born on Leap Day and many discussions on how one celebrates birthdays.  A baby boy born to a couple who've been hoping for a decade.  A baby girl and the miracle of IVF. Each of them deserves clean air and fresh water, opportunity to learn and grow to their full abilities, ideals to live up to and a hopeful future.

A sparkly ring finger this December.  Because nothing could be better than knowing your child has found happiness and commitment in life and loving the one he chose.

Gratitude as I discovered the difference between need and want, between essential and optional. I realized how truly fortunate I am.  I value people more than acquisitions, simple pleasures more than elaborate plans.  Give me a needle and thread, seeds and sunshine, a neighbor's smile over the back fence. 

I've managed to foster some good habits.  Planning a dinner menu is now something I anticipate rather than a chore to dread.  I have my composting system dialed in.  I wake up to a kitchen with all the pots and pans cleaned and put away.  I have finished many a long-term project.  I am less a procrastinator and more a planner.

Gratitude, again, that I've spent a lifetime acquiring some very useful skills.  I can cut hair, cook from scratch, bake with confidence, sew cute and well-fitting masks for family and friends, grow a productive garden, give a good massage, mend and make alterations fearlessly, triage medical conditions, paint birthday cards, raise healthy hens, build a chicken coop, read for pleasure and escape as well as to learn and grow, tackle any frustrating internet app until it has bent to my will and also let science be my guide in confusing times. To these, I've added the ability to French braid my own hair, make a reliable loaf of sourdough, and match my pajama selection to the sheet set of the week. This was a good year to be fairly self-sufficient.

 

I'm content to stay in my little home, with the love of my life and my heart dog, and dream of better days ahead while I strive to make our current life delight-full.

So, 2020 might not have been the year I was looking forward to, filled with family and friends and all the cherished yearly events and holidays.  I can't change the past but I can foster the future.

A happy new year to us, each and every one. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay positive, stay kind. Be thoughtful, be open, be critical, be idealistic.

My All-Time Very Favorite Wondrous Christmas Ornament

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I always refer to it as the Soap Bubble.

 

There's nothing better than sitting together on the loveseat and seeing all the magic and beauty of Christmas condensed into one perfect sphere. 

 

It reflects the special ornaments made by little hands, the cross-stitch beauties made by family, the Shiny Brites from my childhood, the elves from our first married Christmas, the satin ornaments we bought for our first tree, the spun-glass icicles, the wooden European ornaments, the teensy-tiny ornaments that glisten high up on the most delicate branches as well as each colorful lightbulb.

 

My Cool Old Horse

Last October I bought a cool old horse at My Friends and I in Niles.

The horse caught my eye immediately.  I loved that it was a draft horse (my ranching family has a history of draft horses: my grandpa's Star that my mom drove during haying season, my uncle's Belgian mares, and a hitch and wagon owned by some cousins currently.  I loved the patina--but a bargain it wasn't. I walked past it a second time and found myself envisioning a Christmas tree being hauled home and was tempted, but the price still made me think twice.  Well, the third time I passed it...I gave in.  If an object is calling your name that insistently, what else can you do?

When I got to the register, my saleslady said she was glad someone wanted it.  She just thought it was a cool old horse so she'd obtained it for her booth.   I laughed when I saw my receipt.

(It's a bit faint, but it says "cool old horse".) Yeah, that's the price too.

Getting a Christmas tree for my draft horse to pull was easy--Walmart has bottle brush trees in various sizes and guises every year. 

You might notice that the tree it has a very realistic trunk.  I just pulled off the white plastic base, used my pruning shears to cut a branch the appropriate length, drilled a hole in said branch and glued the tree wire into it.  Easy upgrade!

Next project was giving the horse a harness.  I Googled "horse collar harness images", then grabbed some Sculpey and shaped my own version.

 After baking it, I painted it and then rubbed it with dark shoe polish--it looks just like leather!  All of the sudden you can see my cool old horse leaning into her load.

For the holidays I used doubled-over brown binding tape as traces (the straps that attach to the load being pulled) to let my cool old horse haul the tree home from the woods.

I plan to find some leather shoelaces to create traces as well as attach a swingle tree for a bit more authenticity.  Don't you love the evocative sound of "swingle tree?"  You can almost tell what it is from its name:  a wood piece between the traces and the tree   There would actually be several more pieces to a working harness but a harness, traces and swingle tree will do the job.

I'd been on the lookout for a vintage pickup that needed a Christmas tree on top but obviously the Universe thought I should use a horse instead. Good call, 'Verse.

 Stay shiny,

Part Ebenezer Scrooge and Part Buddy The Elf

News Flash:  Christmas happens on December twenty-fifth!  Every year apparently.

So why is it that my journal looks something like this year after year?

December 22nd:  I mailed packages to my out-of-state family.  Three whole days before Christmas.  Chances of presents getting to them by Thursday?  Pretty much the same chance Olaf has of surviving summer.

I decided I'm no longer worrying about when people get their presents.  In fact, I think I took a blood oath that I was NEVER EVER EVER sending packages to anyone out-of-town again.  Yeah, pretty Bah Humbug (although I just realized that I was channeling Taylor Swift too).

When I came home from the post office, I put five holiday albums on the stereo and strung my eighty-two Shiny Brites and other vintage glass ornaments into a holiday wreath while Singing Loud for All to Hear.  So maybe I'm not totally Buddy the Elf but I'm not a cotton-headed ninnymuggins either.

December 23rd:  Today I finally got myself to the music store to get a guitar tuner for my co-worker, but walked out after being ignored for twenty frustrating minutes by salespeople who helped other people who were there long after I showed up. 

I think I must have had my invisibility cloak on. It's a pain being a super-hero sometimes.  

Please notice I said I walked out rather than stalked angrily. I chalked the whole episode up to musical artistic temperament complicated by pre-holiday retail overload.  Plus they were very nice and helpful when I bought my ukelele from them this summer so they get the benefit of the doubt.

Since I'm no longer worrying about the date of gift giving (see paragraph 4, above),  I can order the Snark online instead and the recipient will get it as a New Year's present instead.

I also braved Whole Foods, TJ Max, Trader Joe's, Hobby Lobby, Walmart and Healthy Tails.  I waited patiently in lines, engaged in cheerful conversation with clerks, smiled at everyone and generally tried to spread Christmas cheer.  I even drove in the heavy traffic around the mall and didn't once utter a nasty word.

Truth is, I used up my monthly allotment of nasty words last Thursday when I was getting ready for Pajama Day at school.  I'm really not a Pajama Day kind of person.  It just feels wrong to wear underwear under jammies.  Plus you get some strange glances when you shop in your jammies after work. 

I was feeling relaxed about the whole Christmas scene until I realized about three o'clock that I'd forgotten to open the coop. I think I owe Pet a special treat for her Christmas dinner.


After losing a week to sickness, complicated by the way work interferes with the important things in life (like finding the perfect gifts for the people you love), I can finally take a breath, slow down and truly enjoy the Season.


Anyone else out there feeling a bit frazzled and promising themselves that next year it will be different?

Be (INSPIRE)d--not overwhelmed,
 

More Than a Convenient Holiday

Veterans Day seems to be one holiday that really brings out our grateful, heartfelt thanks.

Maybe because it isn't a three-day weekend? (It's always on November 11th because the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month marked the armistice that ended WWI.)

Maybe because we get to thank all our veterans, both living and deceased, for everything they sacrificed during their service?

Maybe because it has more to do with parades than shopping?

 

Whatever the reason or reasons, I always feel a great sense of reverence on this day.

To all those sons, fathers, brothers, uncles, cousins, in-laws, and friends who have served or are serving, thank you for our freedom and our liberty.  You inspire us by your example and we do not take for granted our right to vote, to freely speak, or to peaceably assemble.  You remind us of the power of One to make a difference.

And although we focus on our menfolk, I haven't forgotten that there are many ladies who've also contributed to defending our freedom.  We know how much strength we women have and how determined we can be.  For all you mothers who are separated from your children while you serve, you deserve a special place in our hearts. 

We are (INSPIIRE)d,
 

Winding Up Halloween

We have three adorable little boys under the age of four living across the street and three ex-kindergarten students and two current ones living in our neighborhood, so I went family-friendly this year.

It's hard to get friendlier than Woody!
 The kids loved him. And they thought getting to pick their own candy from my bowl was awesome.

The woodland owl was my spookiest jack o'lantern.

One dad told us that the Golden Retriever jack o'lantern was the clear Best Pumpkin winner. I've gotta agree especially knowing how much time it took my son to carve it.  Plus this one doesn't shed hair all over black pants like our real-life version does.

I enjoy my witchy Dollar Store blackbirds, but this little fluffy owlet was in impulse buy that I'm glad I indulged.  She's so cute!

Now it's time to Thanksgiving-ify the front door by adding pheasant feathers to the autumn wreath.

And put the prowling arachnids away for another year.

Farewell, monsters, large and small, until next October...

 

Welcome, pilgrims and scarecrows, squirrels and acorns, velvet pumpkins and fall leaves of every hue! 

 Be (INSPIRE)d,
 

Playing With Wood: Christmas in July

Yes, I know Christmas is in December, but I worked on these in July.  Happens every year--I finish a holiday project or two. In July.  Go figure. 

When it's hot outside, it's nice to have some small, easy, stress-free projects to work on.  And all three of these came under the "playing with wood" category.

First I painted a teensy frame red for this cross-stitched Santa that my SIL sent as our Christmas card for 2013.  I didn't realize that Santa's bag was purple before.  Who knew?!

Then I happened to be cleaning my workroom of clutter at the same time that I was browsing my Pinterest boards.  The result was these penguins created from the three little unpainted wooden flower pots that had just been sitting around awaiting inspiration.

  Love'em.  Wouldn't they be even cuter wearing little scarves?  I'll get on that.

Next.   I bought an unpainted laser-cut tree at Joann's last October.

Inspired by Jeri Lander's scherenschnitte (of which I proudly own a framed piece), I painted a tree of Life.  Not that I'm anywhere in Jeri's league, but her art makes me happy and so does this little piece.

Am I the only one who mixes up December and July?

Be (INSPIRE)d,
 
The comments section turned up other Christmas-minded blogging friends.  Including a party at Journey Back!

Happy (Vintage) Valentines Day!

Hoping that your day is just ducky! 

I'm So Sentimental

Or maybe I'm silly?  Or possess a quirky sense of humor?

Whatever. 

I'm printing this out for my special valentine:

I especially like the part about the salmon singing in the street.  See, definitely sentimental and mushy.

Be (INSPIRE)d,

MLK

Rather than treating Monday as just a welcome extra day to the weekend, I thought I'd look up some quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr.  I found a few lesser-known ones that resonated with me:

A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom. 

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. 

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. 

I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.

It's always heart-warming to watch the kindergartners reactions to the MLK biography we always read to them.  Through their eyes I've come to understand that love and empathy are innate; it's hatred and intolerance that are learned. 

Be (INSPIRE)d,
 

Sparkly White Snowflakes

I love snowflakes, real or faux.

An aside...We could use some of the real thing along about now.  I know there are plenty of people in the eastern U.S. who are shivering in the white stuff, but we're heading for another drought year here in the West.  My garden would appreciate a nice insulating blanket of snowflakes now and it would be great to have lots of cool water this summer.  Then too, I'd like to indulge one of my favorite wintertime activities--going for a midnight walk with Kharma after a good dump.  The fresh snow sparkles as though every crafter in the universe poured their glitter outside my door. But this isn't really about winter weather...

I'm not one of those people who look around the day after Christmas and take down their tree and pack away all the decorations.  The Queen Mother does that and I've never understood why.  I'm that friend, the one who firmly believes in the Twelve Days of Christmas and never puts one ornament away before Epiphany on January sixth. So I'm just now hauling in the bins, carefully wrapping Santas and reindeer away until next December.  I've packed away the holiday napkins and towels, the mugs and Spode Christmas plates.  The nativity sets and tinsel garlands are gone.  I'm making progress.

Sometimes I get sidetracked.  (I'm easily sidetracked.)

Partly because it's a lot more fun to get out eight bins of holiday crap than to put them away.  Partly because I know the cottage will seem awfully austere after the cheery Christmas treasures are packed up. 

Today the culprit was this coppery/orange snowflake (a gift two years ago) which managed to hold up an entire bin of holiday decor.  All the other snowflakes that hang out (literally) with a holly garland and white lights on top of my china cabinet are nicely packed away.  I couldn't bring myself to add this brash varmint to the starched white crochet flakes and iridescent sparkly crystals.  I'm sure there's a venue for orange snowflakes but it's not in my home.

 Even though it was breezy outside, that didn't stop me from a bit of spray-painting.  And it was plenty warm enough in the garage for glue and glitter.  So I did.  I wish you could see how sparkly this looks now that it's well-glittered with twinkles of silver, gold, green and turquoise.

My family won't have to look at an orange snowflake next Christmas!  Whew! I've saved them from a horrible fate.

Now I can add this last snowflake to the otherwise fully-packed bin and move on to figuring out how the wallhangings and pillows all fit into the next box.

Am I the only one who manages to complete lots of holiday to-do's after Christmas rather than in a timely manner beforehand? It happens every January for me.  I now think of myself as being prepared eleven months ahead of time rather than a month late.

Bring joy,
 

Merry Merry!

Favorite quotes of the day:

"Someday I'm going to surprise you and decorate the tree all by myself (imagine me registering pleased surprise) and I'm going to put every single ornament on (I'm joyfully thinking that he's got Real Christmas Spirit at last) and they'll all be right together!" proclaimed adult son #2  as he held his hands showing about six inches square, knowing that he really had me going there for a bit.  Hey, at least he kept me company while I finally decorated the tree early Christmas morning.  And he made me a delicious bowl of Apple Spice oatmeal for breakfast.

 

"Something that I've learned about your mother is that she never thinks there are enough ornaments on the tree," said my husband to aforesaid son. I promptly informed both of them that it's been over a decade since Every Single Ornament We Own has appeared on a Christmas tree at the same time.  Which is my way of admitting I'm guilty as charged.

 

"Wow, these Legos are older than I am!" marvelled my nephew as he opened a pack from Santa.  The nephew is a teenager and the pack was dated 1989.  The Queen Mother has a history of misplacing gifts which is apparently genetic.  My kids shake their heads at my forgetfulness but I have every expectation that they've inherited the same gene.  Although they do favor their dad so maybe the Forgetful Gene stops with me and there will be whole generation deprived of vintage Legos in original packing.

Another Christmas has come and gone, bringing memories of times past and creating new stories to tell.  Each Christmas with its own character, each to be enjoyed and cherished.

Happy Christmas to all and to all a Good Night.

Bring joy,

Vintage Ornament Wreath

I made a good start on my latest Christmas obsession.

I've been drooling over wreaths like the one below from BHandG on Pinterest for the past year or so.  It's almost a yard across and the ornaments are glued on.  It's gorgeous but how does one store such a beast?  Happily there are other ways of making them.

I've been diligently collecting vintage glass ornaments from yard and rummage sales all summer. Not only did I score some old Shiny Brites in their original box, but I found some oldies like these blue carolers and the green and gold flowered balls in the background.

 

I found that the simplest way to make one is also completely reversible.  Which means that I bent a white wire coathanger around my spaghetti pot to create a round shape, then strung my five boxes of thrifted glass ornaments.  I secured the coathanger and used the hook to hang it.  And when it's time to store it, I'll simply unstring the ornaments, replace them in their boxes so they can't break and tuck my trusty coathanger in the same bin.

Turns out I really need a sixth box to cover the last six inches of wire--so the wreath is temporarily hung from a wall sconce.  I'll either stop by the Goodwill in my spare time, cannibalize our regular tree ornaments or add a large bow and leave the wreath unfinished until next Christmas while I collect another six inches of ornaments.

I'm leaning towards option three since there are only nine crafting days before the Big Day and I am loving the sparkle it brings to Mrs. Santa's workshop.  Hopefully Mrs. Santa can stop admiring it and commence some serious holiday present-making now that she has wreath-making out of her system.

Bring joy!
 

October Thirty-first

Ah, my pretty, we've been waiting for you to drop by.

We've saved some special treats for you.

Don't let the zombie scare you away.

  He's just cranky from eating too many candy brains.  Kinda like the kindergartners will be tomorrow.  That's much scarier than any zombie apocalypse.

Our pumpkins get tricked out fancier every year, but this is one jack o'lantern pattern I won't be repeating--it was the hardest one I've ever attempted even though it was rated Moderate instead of Challenging.  I mighta kinda sorta winged it after I'd transferred the pattern when I couldn't figure out if the dots were to the eyes, mouth or hair.

It did come out cute though. 

Cute is allowable on All Hallow's Eve, right?

Speaking of cute, I can never decide which I like more: the little toddlers in costume (naturally I gave milk chocolate to the one in the sweet cow costume) or the middle schoolers (twins who were in my class many moons ago) who are still having fun dressing up and going door-to-door.  I know some folks think the big kids should stay home but the operative word for me is "kids".  I think we should all enjoy every bit of childhood while we can!  

Maybe I'm just a grown-up kid at heart, said the girl who dressed up like Dorothy, ruby slippers and Toto included.

(No maybe about it, actually.)

I hope you enjoyed your trick-or-treaters as much as we did.  And that you have enough candy left for you to enjoy, but not so much that you regret your lack of self-control.

Bring joy,

My New Halloween Wallhanging or the "I Need A New Camera" Post

Black Friday can't come soon enough for me!

Not that I want Christmas to arrive any faster than usual...but I really need a new camera.  Need not want,  NEED!  Really!

But behold, Exhibit A:  The former Monster quilt in all its hideous orangeousity.
 
Kinda sorta mostly in focus (I forgot to tell you put on your sunglasses before viewing).


And Exhibit B:  The New and Greatly-Improved Monster wallhanging. Only the front is sewn but it's hangable.  And before Halloween too!
 

But is there any focus-ness going on in this photo at all, people?  And this IS the edited version with as much sharpening as I could get.

Sigh.  My lens is permanently stuck open.  The camera might focus (or it might not, depending on its mood).

It's frustrating.  I've been productive throughout the summer and fall, but haven't been able to document my accomplishments.  Have you seen any more of the wedding projects of which I'm extremely proud?  Of course not--missed the boat on those. Thank you so much, Ms. Camera, I really had a special use for those that might relate to what I want to be when I grow up.

In short, Mrs. Santa has been combing the early Black Friday ads looking for an affordable steal of a new point-and-shoot.  I'll be reading reviews and doing a hands-on trial beforehand.  And saving my nickels and dimes.

Hang in there, people.  Help is on the way thanks to the Black Friday elves!  Golly, regular posting again complete with photos that are worth looking at.  Insert Big Smile here!

Bring Joy,

p.s. I just now stepped back from hanging Monsters2 above the mantel and did a little happy dance. All the colors play so nicely with the rest of the autumn decor. It's a keeper!

Spooky Silhouettes

There's a time to go over to the dark side. My kids are grown and my little neighbors are quite a bit taller than I am, so it's safe to spookify my Halloween decorating a bit.

There will still be benign scarecrows and lurking bats. You might find spiders crawling over orange pumpkins. But this year I'm having fun cutting out these seriously spooky silhouettes for my windows.

 

I copied the templates (Dave Lowe's blog always has inspiring Halloween designs), laid them over some black construction paper and cut away while I was watching Netflix.  I ended up with a blizzard of coal-colored scraps to pick off the carpet, but it was worth it to gain some spooky decor.  I had them laminated for durability.  Yes, it seems silly since construction paper is notorious for fading, but I spent plenty of time cutting them out and I figure that they'll still be provide a nice dark silhouette at night even if they do turn greyish or purply over time.  It's just plain easy to tape them to the window now and you can only see the laminating film if you're really looking hard. 

I have some zombies and other creatures from the netherworld that I'm currently cutting out.

I want to enlarge these to life-size to display in our front windows for All Hallows Eve.  Enlarging them is easy but I haven't figured out how to stabilize them (black butcher paper) since they'll be too big to laminate.  Maybe a clear Contact paper sandwich?  There has to be an answer.  I wonder if I could enlarge them just enough to fit on black poster board?  Hmmm.

Stay tuned.

Bring joy,

Hoppy Easter to All!

Peter Cottontail and I both wanted to wish you a happy day!

 

Bring joy,