Showing posts with label gift(s). Show all posts

Thursday, December 17, 2015

STORY TIME...

CHRISTMAS is MAGICAL for me!

PERHAPS... because I was born in December? because I share my birthday with my brother (who was born on my first birthday)? because RED & GREEN are cheery colors? because of the traditions from my childhood? or the traditions I created with my daughters? because it means time with family (games, laughter, seeing the Nutcracker, movies, eating, decorating cookies...)

Actually, it's difficult for me to explain... certainly, one reason I can share is my LOVE of ornaments... well, to be specific, SANTAS. I've been collecting SANTA ornaments (or decor) since the mid-nineties! (makes me sound OLD, huh)... as word of this LOVE "spread like wildfire" among my family, friends & the kids I mentored, the number of my SANTAS exploded... into a delightful collection.

Several years ago, my grand-niece, Katie, tried to count the number of SANTAS in my collection.

Actually, my SANTA collection probably numbers in the 100's??
But, let's return to the MAGICAL! a "gifted" SANTA has been marked with the year & initials of the person who "gifted" the jolly, ole chap!

Many of my SANTAS were "gifted" by my ... they are also marked with the year & initials or name of the giver. Jackie (now the mother of 3 girls) gave me this red-glass tummy SANTA in 1997 (the year she was a junior in high school).

Unwrapping my SANTAS each holiday season brings back a "flood of MAGICAL memories"...

Oh... the story behind the glittery SANTA at the top of this post? One Sunday, during a drive through (a delightful place that oozes artistic talents), JPE found this SANTA & gave it to me our first CHRISTMAS together. That CHRISTMAS he also gave me a beautiful "COAT of MANY COLORS"... ummm, that's another story to share... and reveals a flaw in my character that I'd rather not share right now!!!

How are your holiday traditions MAGICAL for you???

Monday, October 12, 2015

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. V41

You've probably noticed (or maybe you haven't) that I had taken

a BREAK from blogging. It's NOT terribly unusual for bloggers to step away from posting... it can be exhausting, plus it takes TIME to create posts. When two of my favorite Swedish bloggers, Benita from Chez Larsson, & TinaJo who posted At Home, disappeared, I was disappointed initially... only to learn they had continued to post on Instagram. Gardening, her rascals (two sons) and a new dog are keeping TinaJo busy, but occasional posts can be seen @tinajo73. And Benita's beautiful, simple living style can be found @BenitaLarsson.

During my blog break, JPE & I traveled, visited family and spruced-up our patio. As you may have read, I've retired from a career in education. Since May 20th (my official retirement date), I've created a bridal bouquet (seen HERE) for my youngest daughter's wedding, read 11 books, purchased enough craft supplies to start a business (kidding, sort of), and slept (or puttered around, A LOT).

Since February, I've visited blogs, but have not felt like writing.

A couple of days ago, I realized I've missed blogging!!!!

So, here I am... hopefully posting on a regular basis, and journaling this new chapter of my life, RETIREMENT.

The best way to get back into blogging is to participate in a photo challenge.

Tamar @ Randomosity continues to host her Monday challenge, GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. So, I'm BACK!!!

We're (JPE, my mom & I) headed to Washington DC, to visit SLE & MB. Hoping to take a short trip to some of the Civil War sites and see the FALL COLORS.

Due to the California drought, we've replaced most of our flowers with beautiful succulents... don't you LOVE the fuzz growing on this vibrant green plant.

I mentioned my obsession with craft supplies. Well, I've also added several new books to my library... Valerie McKeehan authored The Complete Book of Chalk Lettering. It's amazing how lettering skills return with a bit of practice...

So, come back again, SOON!