Christmas Gear Up

Well, the season of Joy is upon us. Our tree is up, much to my daughter's delight. The stockings are hung and the wreath is upon the door. I keep finding shepherds and kings scattered all over the house because Peanut is convinced that our Nativity scene is her own personal "Baby Jesus Action Figure Set" Baking is being planned, cards addressed, and soon wrapping will begin. And through it all I've been feeling like a fraud.

I care about my family and what impact we have on the world at large. I try to be caring and responsible. I feel the need to live life simply and happily. But often it seems that everything in my life is working against the ideals that I have set for myself. This becomes especially obvious at Christmas.

I go overboard when it comes to gifts, particularly when it comes to a certain little girl. I tell myself that we are not going to go all gift crazy this year, all the while, there are mounds of gifts waiting for one little three-year-old. A three-year-old who doesn't really want anything. A child who, when asked what she wants from Santa says, " Candy" or "Mail" or "Snow". She isn't old enough to have contracted the 'gimmies' yet. She wouldn't care if there was no more than a book or a doll under the tree. But, for some reason, her Momma does.

I find myself buying all sorts of nonsense that I will be tired of picking up off the floor before Twelfth Night. Piles of books, multiple Barbie dolls, Play-doh, Playmobile, Polly Pocket, as if trying to fill some void with toys that we don't need; and I'm not sure where it comes from.

Is it because I didn't have much as a kid? Am I trying to compensate for some area that I feel is lacking in my mothering? Am I just completely neurotic when it comes to Christmas?

I have these flashes of joy and peace sometimes, like tonight, sitting here with the lights off and the tree on, and it feels the way Christmas did when I was a kid. A kind of warm, glowing, happiness and anticipation. But the older I get, the fewer they are. It seems that all of the grown-up, commercial worries of the holiday tend to dominate my thoughts. As if the shinning, joyful, true meaning of Christmas gets covered up by all of this 'fake' stuff. Maybe that is why I buy so much. Maybe that is why I feel so fake.

I hope that I can get it together before the big day gets here.

Skirts! Skirts! Skirts!

I have found a new favorite in sewing books! "Sew What! Skirts" is absolutely wonderful for anyone who wants to sew, but hates following patterns.

I know that when I start out to make something, I'm very careful and precise, cutting out all of my pattern pieces and thoroughly marking them. But by the time I get around to the actual sewing part, I've either lost interest or have made so many changes that I might as well have not wasted my time with the pattern in the first place. I'm very much a "make it up as I go along" crafter. This book has 16 different skirts that anyone (and I mean even you out there who just took their sewing machine out of the box five minutes ago) can make, without a pattern. In fact, some of the easiest styles use a clever little dot-to-dot, follow the numbers method that I think is ingenious!

The best part of this kind of sewing is that you get to have all of the fun of mixing fabrics and embellishments without getting bogged down by the technical stuff that tends to put so many people off sewing. Plus, you get to make clothing in fabrics that you love and that are custom fit to your body. It's clothing sewing at it's best!

Go check it out!

Trick or Treat 2006

Peanut trying to see the end of her sucker.













Peanut, my sister, and my twin niece and nephew posing in the bright, bright, sun before taking a trip around the neighborhood.

Peanut's Pumpkin Party

Peanut hosted her very first party this October, and although it was nothing fancy and the guests spent most of their time jumping on the beds instead of decorating pumpkins, a good time was had by all. In fact, no one would stand still long enough to have their picture taken. So, as a result, I have more shots of the food and decorations, than I do of the actual party, lol.

   
Here they are painting and stickering away. Five minutes after this shot, everyone
dashed out the back door to run around in the mud and chase the Dads huddled around the "Dad's Fire" that my husband had built as an excuse for the guys to group together and feel "manly". lol

 












My "Sea Monster Sandwiches""Rrraaarrrwww! Anyone seen Nessie?"