SY-NES.... WHAT???

IS SPITTING ONLY ALLOWED IN THE SINK?

Joye at JOYEFULART is hosting WEEKWORD. 

This week's word is NEW to me! but looking at the list of bloggers leaving Joye a message they are participating means, I have some "serious thinking" to do....

WEEKWORD = S-Y-N-E-S-T-H-E-S-I-A

After doing some reading about SYNESTHESIA ~ I've decided I DON'T experience this condition... 

Ever the educator, I did some digging around HERE and discovered a wealth of information.

Unbeknownst to me, A MANGO-SHAPED SPACE is a book I planned to get at the library and is written about a young girl who experiences SYNESTHESIA. 
Also, check out A SIXTH SENSE on CBS NEWS which interviews people who associate words with flavors or flavors that have color.

JPE'S BISCOTTI

Perhaps I do experience SYNESTHESIA? I DO taste chocolate when I see the color brown (ummm, most of the time)... 

JPE completed his holiday baking ~  Double Chocolate Walnut biscotti... and my personal favorite, White Chocolate & Cranberry biscotti. Yumm! 

Stop by Joye's BLOG to let her know you are participating in WEEKWORD!

SELF-GIFTING!!

"Canvas SANTA"
purchased in Providence, RI
December 2003

Ummmm - you're probably wondering 
what planet I'm coming from?
what I mean is... 
Do you ever buy a GIFT for yourself?
guilt-free! no thoughts about your budget?

I HAVE! 
a photography course is the next
GIFT to myself!

call it an early Bday present,
IF an excuse is needed??
actually, 
JPE is supportive of any 
"creative" endeavor I pursue.

SO - I'm slapping down fifty buckeroos for...

"Find Your Eye: A photo course 

with Heart and Soul"

January 9 through February 19, 2011
6-week online course  

with KAT SLOMA
 
"Photography is art, and like any other art, 

is an expression of the heart and soul of the artist."
~ Kat Sloma, photographer on assignment
 

Sign up online at:

THE KAT EYE VIEW 

oh... and 
"Canvas SANTA" was a SELF-GIFT
He was on SALE!!
the paint was shabby & peeling on his back
~ but, don't you think he's "charming"???

GRACIAS... MERCI...

pic taken 12.1.10

Was browsing some blogs after dinner tonight... Came across one that "sparked" my interest... & especially important as we begin a "season of gifts & giving."

QUESTION: Do you write THANK YOU notes? 
being a person who loves PENS (click & skip past the first picture), paper, writing, fonts, quotes... it seems natural that I would enjoy writing notes of gratitude, appreciation, etc.

Actually, I DO... but I always struggle with getting started. Here are some tips from LESLIE.

1) Start with a greeting. Don't forget to include the person's name.

2) Express your THANKS. If you've received a monetary gift, I think it's nice to let the person know how you spent the money or whether you put any in your savings account (you have one, don't you?)... even better - if you donated some of the monetary gift to a charity. 
It's even more important to write a THANK YOU for gift cards... even if you haven't spent it, at least allude to how you might spend the gift card!

You should also express your THANKS for a great meal... for an overnight stay...  when someone has lent you a helping hand (took you shopping; helped you move; picked you up from the airport, etc).

3) Tell something about using the gift. Personally, I appreciate creative, flowery comments - anything that helps me visualize the gift and makes me smile! Remember - there is a lot of JOY in giving!!

4) LESLIE suggests you mention something about your relationship with the person! I hadn't thought about it - but I DO THIS! I can't give you any concrete examples... but I'm guilty of spending a lot of time trying to find the "perfect gift" and when the person doesn't respond appropriately, I tend to think I failed at "Gift Giving 101."

5) Give another THANK YOU! YOU'RE AWESOME! THANKS!

6) Sign off. Love, Truly Yours, In Appreciation... don't forget to include your name...

How easy is that?

Three comments (well four!)...

• I used to put a packet of cute THANK YOU cards in my daughter's (SLE & ACE) Christmas stocking... and some cool pens! One year, I had rubber stamps made with their names, so they could stamp it all over the front of their homemade cards... if you are teaching kids to write THANK YOU's (and YES, they can start at age 4, with a colorful drawing, or a picture of them holding the gift) ~ just make it FUN!
• When the girls received money or a gift card, they were not allowed to spend it until they handed me the completed THANK YOU card!!! No, I'm not mean... just instilling the importance of showing gratitude to the person who spend their "hard-earned" money on them.
• When I don't receive a note (or a homemade card) of THANKS, I get a bit sensitive about it! I haven't gone as far as eliminating the person from my gift list, but I have had to hold back from giving them a set of THANK YOU cards, a book of stamps, and a cool pen, as their next gift. 
• THANK YOU's are really IMPORTANT! and everyone loves MAIL... so no matter how busy we are (NO EXCUSES!! you can't "blow this off" because: you work, are busy with sports, your kids can't write yet, you don't know what to say, etc), it's your responsibility to express appreciation and gratitude....  JUST DO IT!!! (as Nike would say!)

ENJOYING THE SILENCE!!

"Reflecting on November"

 "Listen, and attend with the ear of your heart."

~ Saint Benedict, Christian saint

"Two Guys"
SLO-Express ~ 11.10.10

"Quotable" 
Gap ~ 11.10.10

Enjoying the silence... the end of a busy month, filled with loads of work (I'm not talking about home repairs or projects), visits with family, tasty food, lots of movies (Red, Hereafter, Tamara Drewe, Love & Other Drugs, Fair Game, Morning Glory & Secretariat!! JPE saw Harry Potter ~ not my thing!!) & celebrating our 6th Anniversary... 

Enjoying the silence... listening to birds, wind whooshing through the leaves, the quiet of the early morning, and the whistle of the tea kettle telling me I need to start another day!
 

Enjoying the silence... before the rush of excitement December brings! Will focus on LISTENING with with my heart & not get caught up in the deafening buzz of shopping!

Enjoying the silence of my own thoughts!!!

WEEKWORD = PYROPHORIC....

taken at 7:29am ~ 11/29/10

"Frost is the greatest artist in our clime - 

He paints in nature and describes in rime."

~ Thomas Hood, English poet & humorist

Cath C @ Musings in Mayhem selected the WEEKWORD ~ click on her bloglink to get a definition of the word....

"P-Y-R-O-P-H-O-R-I-C" 

makes me think of... fireworks? sparkly objects? crystals? spicy foods?

Looking out my car window this morning!!!

Stretch your imagination... just share your ideas with the WEEKWORD bloggers. 
Float over to CATH C's blog & let her know you will be posting your P-Y-R-O-P-H-O-R-I-C idea(s)!

LACUNA....

WAITING... WATCHING... TAKING A BREAK!!

The WEEKWORD was "L-A-C-U-N-A" and was selected by nature lover & biologist, Carmen at TAILS OF A BIOMOUSE.

I'm late to the WEEKWORD party, but tiptoe over to CARMEN'S to peek at other participating bloggers!

My mom, crossword "extraordinaire" offered some ideas for this post... but basically having SIX wonderful days with the girls - SLE & ACE plus my mom visiting for Thanksgiving - I experienced a "L-A-C-U-N-A" of sorts??!!

I hadn't anticipated taking a break from my camera or blogging, but it was difficult to squeeze more activity into our "action-packed days" ~ stuffed (appropriate word considering the abundance of foodstuffs consumed over the past week) with cooking + eating; discussions about books, movies, politics; trips to the beach; taking the dogs (Lola & Sea-bass) for walk(s); doing loads of laundry; visiting + more visiting - whew!!! 

After reading the definition for "L-A-C-U-N-A" - I would say I took a HIATUS from blogging without realizing it... 

lacuna (plural lacunae or lacunas), noun

1. A small opening; a small pit or depression; a small blank space; a gap or vacancy; a hiatus.
2. An absent part, especially in a book or other piece of writing, often referring to an ancient manuscript or similar. 

   

   LADYBUGS, LADYBUGS - ALL GONE HOME! 
   WHAT A FABULOUS TIME WE HAD!
   WHEN CAN WE DO IT AGAIN??