Seven Swans A-Swimming

Traditional rich Christmas colors look so homey and welcoming when everything outdoors is leafless and colorless. The neutral coastal cottage look is lovely in its place but during a Great Basin winter that look would chill the hardiest soul. I don't even use white lights in my decorating--colored lights add magic to our tree. While I'm already mentally rearranging sofas and bookcases for a fresh new look, we still are flaunting lots of crimson and emerald downstairs.

The holiday typically hangs on for the twelve days of Christmas which don't end until January sixth when the Magi arrive--I love having an excuse to postpone dragging out the bins and packing all the goodies away for another year.

I've heard a rumor that the Dollar Store has cute little bird votives now. They're on my weekend to-do list along with half-price thread at Joann. (I crossed the thread off the list since the Queen Mother and I just returned with a rainbow of half-priced colors. ) Birds (new and old, inside and outside) will be the perfect upbeat replacements when the red-and-green explosion comes to an end.

It occurs to me that as many of us continue to nest during these hard times, birds are the perfect home accent!

Six Geese A-Laying

Old news: our snowstorms definitely helped our snowpack when they hit. Shoveling that last dump was like lifting wet concrete. The water content was HIGH! Snow, when it sits for weeks and weeks, trodden by dog paws, snow boots and tires, becomes a hard shiny icy treacherous surface. It's a far cry from the diamond sparkles flashing at one on a sunny morning after the storm ends.

The safe bet is to stay inside and bake bread, browse through recipes, unearth unfinished craft projects, mend and iron, and dream. Or so I thought until today. I couldn't stay inside for one more instant, so Kharma and I ventured out to the pasture for a walk. Surprise! The streets have started to melt and we can see pavement. The dusting of snow earlier covered up slippery ice so walking was easy. Kharma had a blast sniffing for varmints under the snow. We had so much fun that we plan to take a last-day-of-the-year hike.

I'm enjoying winter, but planning for Spring--I spent a little time researching urban chickens today.

Five Golden Rings

Cozy Winter Favorites

• A mug of hot cocoa
• Homemade Soup--tonight's was Barley and Lamb
  
• Homemade Chili fired by Hatch Valley chiles from NM--maybe on New Year's Eve?
  
• Warming my toes by the fireplace
• Fires made from pinecones collected on the Queen Mother's birthday, old Christmas tree trunks and our own oak logs
  
• Snuggling under our red plaid down throw
• Redwork embroidery while enjoying It's A Wonderful Life
  
• Toasty toes in my sparkly ivory slippers
• My blue muffler which doubles as an earwarmer
• My Sorels, my Sorels, my Sorels
• Colorful tree lights adding to the dinner ambiance
  
• Dog tails wagging ornaments on the tree
  
• Towels hot from the dryer
• Waking up to light reflecting off new snow
• Games played with family and friends

On the Fourth Day of Christmas

I don't know about you but I'm assessing all those goodies that came my way last week...

My willpower is perfectly illustrated at 1:25! Hit Pause on Playlist first.
The holiday season pretty much summed up in the lyrics (loosely translated): I become the chocolate woman/Let melt my Nutella hips/the blood which runs in me is hot chocolate. Sing it, baby!

Cut to me the hips with the axe/I ate chocolate too much. Ahhhh, Truer Words were never spoken.

Three French Hens

There are some projects so special--whether because of their uniqueness or cuteness or fun factor--that they become your signature item. I make elves.

I started with these three little guys. Let me introduce you--that's Casey on the left, Elmer is in the middle and Hal's on the right.I didn't name them. While I was working on these guys, they began whispering to me. No, I'm not loco--I think this phenomenon happens to many dollmakers. Or maybe not. As we became further acquainted I learned how old they were and what their jobs were at the North Pole.

Casey is 346 years old and works as a Toy Tester in the Boys Division. Elmer is the young'un of the group--he's only 120 and so is just an Apprentice Sleigh Packer. Hal is the eldest at 378 and has progressed to Toy Supervisor.

Casey and his pals lounge around our home each December. On their bench, under the tree, on a Christmas pillow, in a doll's rocker (which just happens to be the perfect size for an elf). The boys enjoyed posing them and moving them from place to place. We never knew where an elf would turn up or what he'd be doing.

For many years, there were only three elves. The boys grew and our nest got emptier. I finally decided that the kids were grown enough to deserve their very own elves and I couldn't part from my old friends. So Lance and Jacques came into being. Jacques went into Pierre's keeping last year. (I figured anyone grown up enough to own a house, especially a home that simply oozes hospitality and gets dusted with magic every December, deserves to be entrusted with (finally!) his special Christmas elf.

Somewhere along the line I gained an wonderful up-for-anything almost-daughter. I also inherited a step-granddaughter (woo-hoo!). I taught her to knit, draw what she sees not what her mind thinks she sees, and she taught me about Build-A-Bear. So this year I decided that two new elves would join the crew. But they couldn't be boy elves and my pattern didn't include dresses. So I sketched a couple thoughts down on paper...After spending some time on my trusty sewing machine and raiding my stash of Christmas fabrics I came up with these two cuties. Meet Solange and Gretchen:They now reside with Jacques in the wild hinterlands of New Mexico with my faraway family. Knowing that there are three little elves inhabiting Casa Coyotesong warms the sugar pine cones of my holiday heart!

Silly

Two words: Mr. Bean. Lambs. Okay, technically that's three words.


And you might want to pause my Playlist so you can fully enjoy the sound effects, sorry about that.

Merry Ho Ho Ho!

Survived--even enjoyed it! How could it be otherwise with the Christmas Spirit in every nook and cranny?

Reindeer...
and lots of Santas. Santas in the kitchen,
Santas on the dining table, (I love my peppermint swirl candles!)

and the jolly old elf himself descending from the cold air return. He acquired a pack this year--about time.
And speaking about elves, their annual invasion occurred on schedule. They watch out for naughty and nice behavior even from my computer tower. He's trying to look chummy with Winston the Snowman, but he can't fool me! Definitely on the lookout.
Little elves given to us on our first married Christmas. They've been cozily sitting in many, many years of Christmas trees.
Elves resting after the Big Guy successfully arrived and filled the stockings.
Maybe they're hoping for a nice hot cup of cocoa.
All the animals dressed for the holiday, even the Reets crickets. Someday I'll have to post about the many Reets creations that decorate our home.
It's exciting but tiring. Even Kharma feels like taking a nap.
It's time to ignore the unfinished projects in my workbasket. They'll keep till next year.

I'd rather sit and enjoy the beauty of another decorated Christmas tree. The soft lights color the holiday perfectly. Each ornament comes with a memory of people and places.

I'll sit back and enjoy the peace of a white Christmas and remember my favorite part of the holiday.I can't resist lambs or babies.