It's a day for tea (Earl Gray), a good book (South of Broad), some laundry spinning around in the dryer (fresh jeans to put on warm after my shower)and kitties curled up snuggly in little kitty balls napping. Soup on the stove for dinner and that wonderful feeling after talking to my BFF that I do have the power to be the person I want to be. I don't know if she knows she has that influence on me or not, but she does. I have lots of tools for making positive moves in a good direction, but she infuses me with the belief that I can do it.
I am making this a homemade Christmas this year. I did that long ago, and times of more affluence moved me from that spot. This year I find myself thinking about what I want to make, and I feel so blessed to have creative options! The better part is, I have family and friends to make gifts for and the making of their presents causes me to think of them more. In this busy time of year, I hope you will find yourself taking time with a cup of tea to just sit back and think about why the people you love are important to your life.

The season of hope and peace . . .

It's beginning to feel alot like Christmas . . . The little tree has been decked out in all the handmade ornaments, the Nativity scene is placed on the hearth, the decorations are on the mantle and the stockings are hung by the chimney with care. It is feeling like Christmas. I am still working on my cards, so if you haven't received yours yet, know it is on it's way! There is a thought that has been very prominent for me lately, the idea of needing to let go. To let go of ideas that aren't working for me anymore, to let go of things/stuff that is not serving a purpose in my space anymore, to let go of habits/and notions that are keeping me stuck. I am not one to take change easily, but I am starting to see the glimmer behind letting go of something so something else can come into your life. As long as I hold on to the status quo, I will be safe, but stagnant. The end of this year has made me realize that somethings are going to have to be different (daily exercise, diet, using what I have instead of buying more, connecting more with those I love and not taking it for granted they will always be here, looking at the spiritual side of things, and not always what the physical eyes see). These are the ideas floating in my head as I thoroughly enjoy my little tree, with the years worth of memories decorating it and ponder on this, the season of hope and peace.

Home from the turkey feasting . . .

It is feeling good to sit and chat for a minute as I sip my vanilla nut coffee, watching the setting sun blaze across the dining room wall, and looking forward to working on my Christmas cards tonight. I am a creative person, but I have never had the desire to make my own cards. However, I love to buy cards for other people. I especially like to sit and write notes in my Christmas cards. The start of the Christmas season started the day after Thanksgiving for me. Since my dad died 20 years ago, I lost my huge love of all things Christmas. My dad would not have wanted that for me, but I really miss his presence at the Christmas holiday time and have gone years without decorating the house or putting up the tree. This year I think I want to put up the tree. Merry Christmas, Dad.

A heart full of gratitude . . . .

I am feeling very thankful today. My heart is happily anticipating spending time with my family, my health is dramatically improving and I am feeling a deep sense of peace and goodwill.
I had a burst of creative energy today. I took my 4 1/2 mile walk, washed the car, washed the windows at the back of the house (now letting in lots of light and sunshine!). This afternoon I brewed a cup of tea and savored Joyce Tenneson's Wise Women. What an excellent book. The photos are beautiful and it makes me proud to be an aging woman embracing this part of my journey. I even had time to play in the art room. I know, it's a pretty darn good life.
Wishing you and your family peace in your hearts and homes this Thanksgiving season.

What I like to do when I don't know what I want to do . . .

Showing one of the little pieces I worked on in the art room today. I love to create tags when I don't know what else I want to work on. It gets me into my paints, rubber stamps and words. It helps me develop my skill of looking at something and deciding if it needs more, and if so, what or deciding it is finished. I don't know why I have such a fascination with these little pieces of paper, but I just love cool tags on boxes, presents, books, anything that a tag can be attached to. It felt good to sit in the room with the sun streaming in the window, music playing in the background and losing myself in realm of potential for awhile. Doing what I love today.

Peace in my soul today . . .

Earlier this week I had an opportunity to let the 9 year old in me come out and play with another 9 year old. Not being a mother/grandmother, and not having access to being around children very much in my more adult life, I wasn't quite sure how this get together was going to go, but let me tell you, I had a blast! One of the things we did was to create little books to paint in and here is one of the pages from my book. The quote is from one of my favorite books, Life 101 by Peter McWilliams. I hope I can remember this more often. Wishing you peace in your day.

Choices about the journey . . .

I am sitting here with my cup of green tea, my pumpkin spice candle glowing, and some random thoughts wafting around in my head. I am being mindful that we are on a journey here. There is a beginning, a middle, and an end. We have choices to make along the way that will determine how that journey is going to unfold. Some things will be beyond our power, like the choices others make that impact us or the random acts of life that we need to participate in. I want to be more mindful about the decisions I make from here on out. It's not that I have been a bad person, or a mean person, or a rude person (well, maybe once or twice!), but I guess I am feeling the need to live my life more on purpose. I don't mean more structure and less spontaneity. I don't mean every minute planned, all the days of my calendar filled in with more tasks to be performed. I mean, when given the opportunity of looking at a full day in front of me when I wake up in the morning, I want to see the beauty in my morning routine, noticing the sun shining in the window, the cats purring their good morning, the smell of the coffee brewing, the peace that comes from reading my morning devotional. Acknowledging the gift of time I have been blessed with to create with that room full of art supplies, the baskets of yarn I get to knit and the journals that lay open waiting for more words to be spilled across them. Being present to the people who love me and let me know that I am loved, and actively returning love to them. These are the conscious choices I want to honor within the rest of my journey. These are the things I don't want to be unconscious of as I move through my days.