merry christmas!

photo 9: presents

Saturday evening, our church hosted a Christmas party.  The guests of honor were about 100 kids who needed and wanted Christmas presents, without very many opportunities outside of this party to receive those presents.  Some of the older kids and adults put on a little Christmas show, complete with a couple of skits and some caroling.  Dinner was served, then Santa made an appearance.  So many smiles that evening!

Check out some of the presents!

Why am I taking pictures? Original post here.

photo 8: a christmas book

I'm definitely not going to make it through the entire list of photos this December, but a girl can keep trying, right?

I bet you can guess from the title of this post what's wrapped in these packages all tied up with twine.  Shh! Don't tell!

peace and goodwill

"Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of peace.  To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas."

-- Calvin Coolidge

photo 7: something cozy

Made a few new beeswax candles in mason jars this week, and specifically made on in an old, stained jar just for myself. I think it gives the bathroom character.

Find the original post here.

a little bit more

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!” 

― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

photo 6: addressed cards

Alright, so these cards aren't also stamped, like the list suggests, but they're addressed, and that's more than half the battle. So that's good.

You may have noticed that I skipped "something cozy."  That's because I wanted to take another picture this morning like the last one I posted, but I figured that would count as cheating.

The snow/ice mixture that hit the metro DC area on Sunday eventually turned into just plain ice that coated all the trees and all the power lines and all the sidewalks and handrails.  Our power went out for a few hours in a spectacular show of lights as the transformers across the street fizzled, banged, and popped their way out of life.

But, after calming down yesterday, the snow is back!  We're predicted to get at least two inches of snow today, and I'm so excited!  It looks beautiful outside already.

Stay warm today!

photo 5: christmas light(s)

We had snow today!  First the little flakes sputtering down, then the big beautiful flakes sticking to trees and sidewalks and hair and eyelashes, and then the little flakes again as if the snow weren't quite ready to commit to a full winter, yet.

I've heard more of the storm is headed our way, but for now, we're settled in with snacks and football and our little Christmas tree, having a lovely Sunday afternoon in our new apartment.

Find the original photo post here.

Hope you're all staying warm!

photo 4: candy cane

Have you ever eaten these? They're delicious. The only place I can consistently find them is Cracker Barrel (and I don't make it there often,) but I have seen them in other places.

Find the original post of this series here.

advent begins

"Take time to be aware that in the very midst of our busy preparations for the celebration of Christ’s birth in ancient Bethlehem, Christ is reborn in the Bethlehems of our homes and daily lives. Take time, slow down, be still, be awake to the Divine Mystery that looks so common and so ordinary yet is wondrously present.
   "An old abbot was fond of saying, ‘The devil is always the most active on the highest feast days.’
   "The supreme trick of Old Scratch is to have us so busy decorating, preparing food, practicing music and cleaning in preparation for the feast of Christmas that we actually miss the coming of Christ. Hurt feelings, anger, impatience, injured egos—the list of clouds that busyness creates to blind us to the birth can be long, but it is familiar to us all."

-- Edward Hays, A Pilgrim's Almanac

photo 3: a cup of cheer

In this particular case, that cup of cheer is filled with gingerbread coffee.  Mmm.

See the original post here.

photo 2: bows

Alright, so this guy doesn't have any actual bows, but there aren't any wrapped Christmas presents under our tree, yet, and there's a distinct lack of bows in our new apartment.  So I went with twine knots, instead.  Specifically, the ones on my little reindeer, here.

Original list of photos.

twenty five photos of christmas

A few days ago, a friend of mine pinned this (and posted it on facebook).  On the same day (ahem), I realized I haven't been very good about taking and posting photos.  I have a beautiful camera that I love using, but I just haven't used it as much recently, for any number of reasons (can't find a charged battery, too heavy to carry today, etc.)

So, in an effort to improve my skills and post photos to this blog more often, I decided to participate.

Picture 1: something red. 

I'm a couple of days behind, so I'll try and post more soon!

Susannah