Memories of Christmases Past

Yes, I know that it is now January 17 and Christmas was almost a month ago but this is a post that needs to be written instead of just inserted into my 2016 Blog book as I've done with other photos.

I always decorate early for Christmas, well, early for me! As soon as we've had our Thanksgiving, always on the 3rd Sunday in November, I love to bring out my favorite Christmas things. And they are always up for a couple of months. When Spencer was a child I usually had to *quick-take-down-Christmas* so we could have his birthday party on the 22nd! (And, yes, they are still up this year.)

I have A LOT, TOTES-FULL, of Christmas decorations. Many of them never emerge from the dungeon... I just don't have the heart to get them out. So about 4 totes are labeled *YES*.When I saw this lovely, living in one of the *YES* totes, I knew I wanted to put it out this year.

Decades ago rotten rodents got into the, then, cardboard box of Christmas decorations and chewed holes in this treasure, along with other items that are irreplaceable.

Reading this tag that my Mama taped there 43 years ago feels like a message coming through time. I know she still wishes me love, peace and joy. She knew all too well the heartache that comes at Christmas time when you have loved ones who have gone on before. Her mother died on December 19, 1927 when my Mama was only 14.

I briefly considered putting it on the floor, around my 3 trees, before realizing that if it was there it would get too much abuse from one *stupid-dog* Harley as he launched himself off the chair to go bark at the latest distraction he'd spied.

I settled on putting it on the chest with one of my creches on top. Why hadn't I thought about that before?

I may have hit on a new tradition. It has been so happy to have a little bit of my Mama around this season.

Christmas Reflections

The Christmas season can be a difficult time for those of us who have lost loved ones. I've given it a lot of thought on this 34th Christmas without Tony and Amanda.

Why is it so hard?

When I look at it from a faith based point-of-view (and I AM full of faith) I say, "This is the celebration of the birth of our Saviour! The one who makes it possible for me to have faith in that glorious resurrection when I will be reunited with my children."

So why is it so hard?

I've reflected on Elder Joseph B Wirthlin's talk Come What May, and Love It. But I've decided that I need to change that just slightly to-

Come What May, and Love HIM

With that slight change in wording I'm able to trust in the Lord. Trust that He will never leave me comfortless; He will never leave me to *go it alone*!

But why is it so hard?

I've decided that the Christmas celebration embodies everything that is good and family. It is frequently one of the few times that extended families gather and reconnect with their loved ones: older siblings come home from college or far-away locations. It is a concentrated dose of familial love which makes us feel more keenly those who are not with us here.

So is it still hard?

Yes, and no. Some fifteen years ago a friend, who'd also lost a son, was visiting at Christmas time and I commented that this was the first year that Christmas wasn't so hard. She lamented that I shouldn't tell her that because, in fact, 20 years was a lot of sad Christmases.

How can I make it NOT be hard?

Well, the only way I know of is FAITH! Faith in my Lord, Jesus Christ. Faith in His promises. Faith in His timing. And faith that He will help me CHOOSE to be happy.

And that, for me, is the key. I have to choose to be happy. I avoid those things that will throw me into a funk. When those sad, longing feelings come, and they always do, I try to replace them with thoughts of joy. Joy that my children have been freed from the trials of this world. Joy that I will be with them again someday. Joy that I was am given the privileged of  being their mother. Joy that they are ever near to me... just through the thin veil that separates us temporarily.

Yes. I choose joy.



On a lovely side note-

Today we had a special Stake Conference at which Bishop Gérald Caussé was our visiting authority. As tender mercies will happen, our Stake President, W Vince Wilding, was a missionary in young Brother Caussé's ward in France 35 ago where Brother Caussé served as the branch pianist.

Bishop Caussé and his wife spoke. She apologized for her broken English and strong French accent but spoke movingly of our Savior and the words of the song What Child Is This. When Bishop Caussé got up to speak he said he had a surprise for his wife. He went to the piano and played the most beautiful arrangement of What Child Is This. I was so touched not only by his ability to *speak* that pure language of music but the sweet gesture it was to his wife, who struggles to speak in English.

A New Tradition!

Last week while I was making my gingerbread nativity the thought kept rolling around in my head, "Wouldn't this be an awesome activity with the grandkids?" I knew that the kids needed to be old enough to actually participate so that ruled out the littles. (As it turned out, Jude came to hang in the highchair and eat copious amounts of fruit and beans while Mama went to see if she could get her 2-week migraine under control)

(You know what I love the most about this photo? Yup, that family sign that proclaims- THIS is my family!)

I knew that I needed to have the gingerbread baked and ready when the kids got here to keep this from being an all day affair. My plan was to have the icing ready too... but it wasn't so I had some champion frosting tinters on the job.

Once the frosting was tinted it was time to start decorating. I love how self-sufficient and creative these kids are. I gave them some general instruction and a demonstration and they were good to go.

Well, all except Sophie. It's hard when you have tiny hands.

(I just love her pixie hair!)

I told them about my black sheep and explained how the Savior's atonement cleanses us from all our sins when we repent. I'm so grateful that I can share my testimony with my grandchildren.

When it was time to go home Christian stayed for one last photo op!

(I do love this boy!)

Now can I just say a couple of things?
(Yes, yes I can! This IS MY blog after all!)

I am one of those lucky women who got to live my dream. As a child, when I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer was, "I want to be a Mommie, just like my Mommie!" I wasn't always able to be a stay-at-home-Mommie (just like my Mommie) but I got to love and enjoy my children. It is the hardest and most fulfilling job I've ever had.

But you know what? This being a Grammie is perhaps even more satisfying. (I am the Grammie-spoiler NOT the Mommie-enforcer) I recognize just how blessed I am that I can be a part of these darling children's lives!

I'm in hopes that next year I will be able to include more of our grandchildren. I do love this new tradition!

Gingerbread Nativity

Our Ward Christmas party is tonight. The theme is an old-fashioned Christmas. Several weeks ago they sent around a sign-up at church asking for the obligatory *funeral potatoes* or dessert AND something new... a gingerbread house to be used as a table centerpiece. I thought, "I can do that!"

Now I don't remember what came first: the sign up OR seeing a gingerbread nativity on Pinterest. But as soon as I saw the nativity I knew that is what I wanted to do. My first thought was to make a gingerbread stable and then use the little figurines from my Playskool nativity (and trust me I didn't pay what Amazon wants when I bought mine years ago). Then I saw a set of nativity cookie cutters (again, on Pinterest) They were so cute and... HOW HARD COULD IT BE?

(Are you ready to be amused?)

The cookie cutter set arrived late Tuesday so first thing Wednesday (yesterday) morning I contacted a Facebook friend to get her recipe for royal icing (the kind that flows and then dries hard and shiny). She generously shared her recipe and tips with me. I'm so grateful for that. I took my shopping list to Wal-mart to get the things I needed, came home, made and baked the gingerbread piece (my house smells so good!). I was aware, while shopping, that I was having some minimal-brain-disfunction, but that isn't a new occurrence for me.

While the gingerbread pieces cooled I mixed up the frosting. I decided that the first thing to do was ice the two triangle stable pieces and cover then with Wal-mart brand shredded wheat so it looked thatched and set them aside to dry. Now onto the figures. I had a few problems with the learning curve working with the royal icing, but finally figured it out. I'm sure it didn't help that I only have two small tips.

After the stable pieces were dry I decided to put them together, with royal icing, just like the instructions say. Ummmm, problem- the ginormous triangle cookie cutter is not a perfect triangle, but a triangle with convex sides so there was only about one inch of contact along the side.

OK, DESIGN CHANGE- get out the serrated-edge knife and saw them straight. Now how do I get it to stand up while the icing SLOWLY dries? I ended up propping it up with some canning jars and went back to the little figures.

Hours later I carefully pick up the stable and the icing-glue immediately breaks! I'm sure it doesn't help that the frosting and shredded-wheat cover walls now weigh approximately 40 lbs!!!

DESIGN CHANGE (again)- Maybe someone else could have made this work, but after fooling around with this for the better part of 6 hours already I WAS NOT THAT PERSON! I reverted to my original two-walls-with-a-flat-roof idea. I got out my saw serrated edge knife again. Ahh, much better.

Even with the design change the royal icing wouldn't hold things together and by now I've realized that this gingerbread nativity was never going to be eaten... Bring on the glue gun! (I think that if I'd used the glue gun with the triangle pieces it may have worked)

When I was doing the last of the decorating, after Primary presidency meeting last night, I mixed up some black frosting for the the sheep's legs, noses and ears. That is when I had the idea to make a all black sheep. My mind started to roll that black-sheep idea around and I knew that little black-sheep had to be closest to baby Jesus, the redeemer of the world.

Because when it is all said and done aren't we all black-sheep in need of our Savior's atonement?

Life's a Picnic

Technically this post should have happened last month, but I didn't want to spoil a surprise. Stuart is dating a very nice girl, Anna... (we like her a lot) and he wanted to do something special for her for Christmas. He found himself a *naked* basket and wanted to transform it into a picnic basket. He called to bounce some ideas off of me and asked if he could bring it down for me to *help* him. Usually *help* = mom-does-it-while-I-watch! But not this time. Stuart was a man with an idea and HE wanted to execute it. (My contribution was mostly instructional)

This is the finished product... I am so impressed! (The light green gathers in the center to cover the basket.)

The best idea of Stuart's vision are the leather straps that hold the picnic-ware in place. He went to Hobby Lobby and picked up a package of scrap leather and then went to town with my Crop-o-dile! What you can't see is the leather swatch on the outside of the basket that reinforces the attachment location.  He envisioned these cool straps with the rawhide ties.

The cup strap threads through the handle of the mug and ties them in tight.

But I think the plate straps made him the happiest! He made them to accommodate different sized or more plates.

I sneaked this shot on the down-low... he wouldn't even let me do the sewing of the basket liner (and btw- he is the one who remembered he needed to compensate for the difference in size between the base and the rim of the basket.)

What a guy! (And Anna loved it!)

Christmas Apples

Back in the day... we always got an apple and an orange along with nuts in our Christmas stocking. (Random fact... it has nothing to do with this post, but I thought about it just now as I titled this post.)

Now for the real post-

I suppose phenomenon of apple-ornaments has occurred other years and I just haven't noticed it but this year I'm noticing all of the apples still hanging, just like festive ornaments, on the trees (which is interesting, since if I don't spray my apple tree I don't have ANY apples on it by the time they should be ripe... am I babbling?)

I think they look so beautiful...



Yesterday and today have been wonderful sunshiny days, for which I am very grateful after a couple of weeks of fog.  I was able to capture these natural ornaments with a beautiful cerulean background.



The thing I want to know is this-

• Why don't the birds eat these? 
• Are they fermented? 
• Are they frozen? 
• Just not tasty enough? (The birds always want to eat MY apples!)

This is a different tree... a crab apple.  It lives across the street from the other apple trees.



These two trees are in my neighborhood, but I've seen these apple-ornaments on apple trees all over town.  Do you have any apple-ornaments where you live?

Grammie (&Grampy) Christmas

AGAIN-WITH-THE-SPOILER-ALERT!

IF YOU ARE ONE OF MY GRANDCHILDREN-

DON'T SPOIL THE SURPRISE!

A bunch of years ago I became aware that I was out of touch with what our grandchildren would like for Christmas. So I decided to give the gift that fits everyone- cash, check or gift-card! I know I always liked receiving cash when I was a child (hmm... I still do)!

In past years I've done different versions of the cash, check or gift-card. Most recently I was caught up with the Target gift-card coins.

Christmas 2010 I made photo greeting cards using photos I'd taken throughout the year (you can see the gift coins stacked in the background)



Christmas 2009 I made these darling origami containers (dang, I sure do have fun!)



This year I thought about a more universal gift-card but I hadn't found exactly what I wanted when I ran into my neighbor... he had rolls of coins in his hand, but they didn't look quite right for quarters. When I asked him about them he told me they were $1 US President coins!

HA!!! That rang my bell!! I envisioned coin purses... a Google search turned up lots of free ideas and patterns (Have I mentioned how much I love the internet? What a wonderful wealth of information and sharing!)

My hands-down-favorite is this dumpling coin purse.



OMSH... were they ever fun to make! I dug around in my stash of old zippers, courtesy of Edna and DI and found some good ones to use.



But since we have more than one girl in some families, I had to use some variety. I found a great pattern using felted wool. Then I carefully got out MY mom's, the original Grammy, embroidery thread organizer, which I totally love, and did some embellishments. The round coin purse hails back to my childhood when I had a darling little turquoise round coin purse.

But now I needed some zipper pulls.  I stopped at Hobby Lobby (love that store!) and found all I needed to put these zipper pulls together.  I just love doing things like this. I love using my tiny tools.  Several times since making these I've thought... hmm, wonder what else I could make! (Yep, it's an addiction!)



I was a little concerned about the grandsons... would they want a cutesy-grammie-made-coin-purse? But my worries were solved when I was wandering-aimlessly (one of my favorite things to do) at Wal-Mart and just happened to spot these darling rubber coin purses. (Do you remember the old simple rubber coin purses like this?)  You can see that they are bulging with coins!



What a fun project... I'm all finished now... made the last two last night... the far-away grandchildren should have already received their Christmas packages... hmm, what shall I do next year?

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Paperwhites for Christmas

About six weeks ago when I was shopping for a de-thatching blade for my lawnmower I saw some paperwhite bulbs (Narcissus papyraceus). They had various quantities, some even already planted in a glitzy-silver pot. But I'm not too much of a silver-pot-kind-of-girl so I opted to buy my own pot... a beautiful pearly black square pot that would look *just so* in my kitchen!

I brought the bag of 10 bulbs and new pot home, immediately read the directions and set about potting my bulbs. I've never *forced* a bulb before, but there were clear instructions about planting the bulb with the top showing and putting it in a cold place (under 50 degrees... hmmm wonder if I could find somewhere like that in November! HA! The garage! It's a second refrigerator in the winter) for two weeks and then bring it inside to a sunny spot (aforementioned kitchen window) and watch it grow.

Boy they weren't kidding! I could literally watch it grow! It sprouted up a couple of inches each day. Then last week the blossom heads started to appear. Now, just in time for Christmas, here they are in full bloom! What a beautiful treat!



I love their delicate fragrance. It tickles my nose each time I walk into the kitchen.  They remind me so much of their cousins in the Narcissus family.

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Beatrix and Anita

(Where to start the story?)

• Beatrix is roomer than you'd think (I've camped in the back)
• I have a tree that has been threatening to die for the last 3 years.
• I've had a fake tree every year since 1990!
• I've always wanted a live Christmas tree.

Hmmmm... maybe that last one is as good as any. The thought of buying a live tree for Christmas and then planting it afterwards has always appealed to me. And since I have a tree that is *mostly dead* (name that movie) I have a good reason to make this year be the year.

Friday was my day to run some errands which included a trip to Home Depot. A couple of weeks ago I'd seen a beautiful little Norfolk Pine that I thought would be wonderful in my yard... until I discovered that it wouldn't survive in my cold-winter climate. I headed outside and looked at the selection: some variety that would grow to 200 feet tall, hmm, maybe not! A Scotch pine, I never cared too much for them and since the recent wind storm that uprooted 1000+ pine trees, that was a definite NO. Then I spotted a Colorado spruce- Fat Albert- Picea pungens: hardiness -40F, mature size 10-15 feet, with the added feature of being deer resistant. But I've decided that this tree is not Albert... but Anita and she can be pleasingly-plump if she wants.

Now for the *how do I get Anita home?*... in Beatrix, of course! I pulled the front passenger seat all the way forward and then inclined the seat toward the dash to create a large space behind... just right for Anita to ride in the back seat (on the floor, of course).



A very nice young man loaded it for me, somewhat skeptical that Anita would fit behind the passenger seat. I will tell you that I thoroughly amused two ladies who were parked by me as we drove away!  When I got home I was able to lever her out using my foot to lift the pot up over the door ledge... but now, ugg... Anita is a bit prickly! (Well, I never!) I ended up putting my jacket around the tree to protect myself, balanced half of the pot on my snow shovel and while holding onto the edge of the pot dragged it into the garage, for safe keeping. I won't bore you with how Gordon and I got her inside- suffice it to say it involved a large blanket and an old bath towel.

It wasn't until I started decorating that I realized just how long it's been since I've had a real tree for Christmas (the aforementioned 1990). I totally enjoyed decorating Anita in her holiday finery all by mine-self while singing Christmas hymns. I carefully unwrapped and sorted through the huge box of Christmas decorations from all those Christmases-past... most of them with a special memory attached. I was even brave enough to open an old beat up box that has lived in the bottom of the big box of ornaments that belonged to Tony and Amanda. I put a few of them on the tree... all without a single tear... what a blessing!



This precious little basket dates clear back to my grandmother, El (short for Elsie), she would put nuts or candy in these little baskets.



Although I have very few ornaments from my mom, Elsie, this is the one that I think of as HERS. She made this for me in the early 70s. It used to have a ribbon to hang it by, but the mice got into the ornament box some 25 years ago and ate it! (How rude!) I also have some precious little porcelain bells that used to hang on Mom's tree.  I love to hear their tinkling song.



And then there is Rudolph... he's been MY ornament for as long as I can remember. You can see that he is much loved and only has two legs left. It is so nice to see him up and about again!



I'm looking forward to a peaceful Christmas AND years of joy with my new, somewhat prickly, friend Anita!

360- Second Annual Boxing Day

Last year Gordon suggested we have our Christmas celebration on Boxing Day! It is a fabulous new family tradition. Most of our children are married now so there is the obligatory sharing with in-laws and our grandchildren are old enough they'd like to spend Christmas day at their own house playing with new toys. And as I've said before... for me it isn't about THE DAY it's all about FAMILY and FOOD!

We had most of our local family and Stuart brought 3 of his roommates/friends (yeah, Chrissy isn't a roommate! hahahahaha)

Everybody... look at Grammie! What a great looking group!



These sweet cousins enjoy each other so much. What a blessing... it's all about family.


KAIA, CHRISTIAN, BRENNON, ASHTON, ELISE

The food fairly disappeared!


SHAN, JESSICA, SOPHIE, DOUG

And let it be said... "This feast wouldn't have happened THIS DAY without my Stuart!" He trouped in the kitchen with me from the time the celery & onion were being chopped to making orange rolls single-handedly to stowing the turkey-carcass in the ginormous bag to the last dish being washed. You are an amazing man!


SPENCER, CHRISSY, RUSSELL, STUART

359- Merry Christmas

Best wishes and all the love and joy of Christ to you this day.



My miniature pewter nativity.

353- Santa at the Manger

I received this whimsical nativity from Auntie P the first Christmas we didn't spend Christmas eve together [2004] (boo hoo hoo hoo).

I thought it was fitting to add this bald Santa bringing his gift to the Baby Jesus.

Why?

Because Christmas lives in Auntie P's heart all year long.

352- Grammie-made Cards

As I have for the last several years I got creative making Christmas card for our 20 (twenty!) grandchildren! Last year I made some darling origami containers.

This year I thought, "I've got a whole year's worth of wonderful photos so I dug through my Twenty-Ten folders and found some of my favorites.  I hope that my littles enjoy a little of their Grammie.

350- Santa's Trailer

Do you ever see something and wonder how someone came up with that clever idea? I noticed this little display just around the corner from my house a couple of nights ago. This little house is set back from the road behind enormous pines and a circle drive.

And what to my wondering eyes did I see than Santa's travel trailer that he would be hard pressed to fit into!



So cute, so very cute...

349- White Nativity

The last two Decembers, while I've been doing my photo of the day, I have spotlight some of my nativities. I've spent years collecting nativities. In recent years the only decorating I do for Christmas is my three little trees that stay decorated all year in the dungeon and my nativities.  I love the Christ centered feel in my home.

Although this wasn't the first nativity I got, it was on my *I want it* list for about 10 years. I saw one like this at a friend's house on a piece of red velvet on top of her upright piano... I fell in love.

Back in those days this kind of purchase was just out of my price range.



But! in 1984 a friend who owned a kiln offered to teach a 3 month class at good ol' Relief Society Homemaking Night! I think the cost was $65. Rose brought us each a set of green-ware all packed in those horrible packing peanuts that get everywhere! The first month we cleaned the green-ware and initialed all of our pieces. The next month we did something else or maybe finished cleaning the green-ware, I can't remember now. She fired the green-ware to create bisque and the last month we painted on the glaze. I used a clear glaze to let the white show through.

It spent many years atop my upright piano until I sold it. Now it resides where ever the mood strikes me.

This year I yoinked out one of my craft tables and set it up in the corner of my cozy little front room. But it just needed something. Brainstorm! What about all of those fun grapevine wreaths I made last month?  I'm so happy with the result.

The other thing I like about this photo... you can see my beautiful green walls... I just love green.

348- First Grade Sweeties

This is my fourth year being a *Grammie-helper* in Miss Lewis/Mrs Maynard's class. I love it!

One of my favorite activities comes at Christmas when we turn a 1st grade handprint into 5 little snowmen! It's magic. (Thank you Miss Sarah for this idea!)

This is one of the exemplary globes! What a good little artist.



This precious little girl stole my heart. Frankly, it's taken me most of the last 29 years to be able to look at a precious little red-headed girl and not burst into tears with missing Amanda. I'll admit that as I stroked her soft red hair I choke up a little.



Little Sweetie here! She is the face of 1st grade! Look at that typical toothless smile! We sang All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth while we painted her hand!



Speaking of toothless smile... this is a toothless birthday boy!



Think you're seeing double? I asked them how people tell them apart and the answer was, "They just guess!"



This is Camille's very best class! I told them so. If you want to read about previous year's globe painting click on the *1st grade* tag below.

342- Red Barn Christmas

When we exited the Creche Festival I could see this intriguing red barn through the naked trees. It felt like a Christmas card luring me in for a closer look. I took a little walk up the road to capture it. Can I just say... I'm in love?



This Christmas card is complete with barnyard animals: chickens (on an old pick-up truck bed/trailer), sheep and horse! How picturesque!



You remember I told you I'd tell you more about the gingerbread stable animals from yesterday? Well, this is it. Each year this baker chooses a local building to pattern his/her gingerbread scene after. Can you guess which building it is?