The Slow Fade

I can't believe it's over... the nice holiday cheer... the shopping for that perfect gift... the talk about Christ and the manger....in the blink of an eye it's over and everyone but me seems to be anxious to get back to the same old grind. I just don't get it! The build up of the holidays seems to lead up to a cliff that everyone seems so anxious to jump off! lol Why would you want to just pack it all away the day after... why not saver it for a few days at least.... take some time to wind down and enjoy a few days of quiet enjoyment before jumping back into the day-to-day bustle of normal everyday activities?  It just makes me so sad to hear people saying that it's so great to have it all over with... on the day of Christmas... or that they can't wait to "reclaim" their houses the very next day! Am I the only one that wants to at least wait till the new year to enjoy the holiday season? 

In a world where you can buy Christmas decorations in June and they have Valentine's goodies out the week before Christmas... don't you just want to go against the flow and enjoy the holiday for what it is before moving on to the next one? As for me.... I will fight to keep this warm and cozy feeling in our house for as long as I can... I love the added light that the decorations bring to the house and I want my girls to learn to savor this time not cast it aside as some silly ritual that we do simply to be going thru the motions...Just because Christmas is passed doesn't mean that winter is over and it doesn't mean that we are ready to get back into the more fast paced days of spring and summer that will surely be here before we know it! I just want to take the time to breath.... to enjoy watching the girls play with their new treasured toys... to take joy in the quiet of a cold morning and a good cup of coffee sipped by the light of the Christmas tree... I am not in a hurry to banish this season of comfort and joy...I want to soak it in and keep it with me throughout the year... not rush off to yet another over commercialized holiday that seems to be losing it's meaning a little more each year...I want to take it slow and enjoy what is left of this year because as time tends to go... the new year will be here before we know it and with it it will bring a whole year full of holidays and other events to fill our days.

I guess what I'm really saying is, I wish this holiday could BE more... MEAN more and be ENJOYED more by people... if it really is the important holiday that it is... why would anyone want it to be over? Isn't it just making it about the presents if the Christmas season is over the moment they are open? Hmm... just a thought... maybe it's me that is holding on to it for too long but for some reason this whole topic makes me think of the Casting Crowns song "Slow Fade". Now, I know that song isn't about Christmas... but if you listen to the words it could be... if you give yourself away... not holding true to the meaning of the season then it's just a slow fade of falling into the general public's view of it...



It's a slow fade when you give yourself away


It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray

Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid

When you give yourself away

People never crumble in a day

It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade





... I just want to be sure we are celebrating for the right reasons... and don't want to fall into that grey.... ya know? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this...am I off my rocker?

Bring on the light!

Happy Solstice!

... I know... a day late... but since when can I get anything posted on time these days!?

This was taken during the eclipse... right before the clouds took over!

And this is one of the lanterns we made for our lantern walk on Solstice. We've never really "celebrated" the winter solstice before, I always read these amazing blogs about how others do it and I just always tend to run out of time for any preparations and end up just not doing anything because it won't be perfect.... So this year, I said to heck with it! We are going to do a lantern walk and if it's a flop we'll make it better next year!

We made these pretty little lanterns by covering a balloon with tissue paper and then popping the balloons. The four of us got bundled up and headed out for a walk in the woods... only having to light the candles half a dozen times or so before we made it to the woods! The wind was not cooperating! lol As we got closer to the woods, we saw a little light down by our little duck pond/large puddle.... We called out thinking someone was camping in our yard but no one answered.... and as we got closer we found it was a gnome couple fishing by candle light!!!

The girls were just giddy and even DH admitted later that it was SUCH a cool experience...

So... into the woods caroling we went!



This is the first Solstice that I was eager to welcome... bring on the light!!

Five Question Friday!!!

Want to join in on the fun? Fill out these questions on YOUR blog and then link back to My Little Life! It's that easy!


1. Do you regift...and if so, do you have a regifting horror story?
2. Do you know what you are getting for Christmas this year?
3. Who brings the most gifts in your family, you or Santa?
4. What store do you love to by jeans from?
5. Christmas meal: Big, All Out Meal or Snacks and Apps?




And now for my answers....


1. Do you regift...and if so, do you have a regifting horror story?

I guess I probably have regifted although I can't really think of anything in particular.....no regifting horror story either. Although, I did once recieve a pair of brand new pjs from someone... that I had originally given them too!!! lol I don't think it even dawned on her... and I was glad that I always try to buy something I would like! haha!!

2. Do you know what you are getting for Christmas this year?

I already got what I wanted... he's sitting right next to me! :) I think maybe I'll put a bow on him for Christmas morning... what do you think?? :)


3. Who brings the most gifts in your family, you or Santa?
 Umm... I would say that Dh and I bring more than Santa, but not much. We each usually bring one or two little things  (it all dependso n how much time we have to make them! ) and Santa brings one thing for under the tree and the stocking goodies.




4. What store do you love to by jeans from?
 
That's a tough one, I like to buy second hand but if I were to actually go to the store to buy them it would hands down be from GAP!!!



5. Christmas meal: Big, All Out Meal or Snacks and Apps?

We usually snack on Christmas day, hang out in our pjs and then actually get around and make a ham for a late dinner, sometimes with friends sometimes just us.

Can't you see it?

It's been almost two years since my obsession with little dogs began. If you are new to this blog you might want to start reading here first to get the whole story... Once again, I have had this eerie feeling that the stars are adjusting themselves and God is smiling down on us in great favor lately...

In light of my past postings about little dogs, it's no secret that for two years I have felt this hole in our lives that could only be filled by a little furry being... oh sure, I know how lucky I am to have the family that I have and the life that we live however I still have still felt this yearning that I can't discribe... Those feels came to a head last weekend.

I've been looking at dogs, secretly for months on Petfinder and Craigslist. Not really saying anything out loud to DH until a month or so ago when a friend sent me pictures of a little dog in Missouri. For some reason, that little furball really spoke to me and I had everything worked out in my mind as to how we would get him north! :) DH didn't go for it tho... so I started looking locally again with a vengence and started sending little "hints" to DH's email... lol Yeah, subtle is not one of my strengths! lol I would just send an email with a link and never mention it again.... I figured that if the pictures spoke to him then it would be the right time and I would just know....So... I waited patiently, or at least as patiently as I get haha! And nothing was said!  I didn't even know if he was getting my emails! lol I finally said a few bigger hints and then I at least got a response that told me he'd been getting them but not really the reaction I was hoping for! I had pretty much given up when we were talking to my mom on the phone about her newest love and I brought up a craigslist ad in front of DH on the computer....

When we hung up the phone from talking to my mom, he just casually said "He's cute, why don't you call about him?"

WHAT!?!?!?!? Did I hear him right? Take a deep breath.... maybe I'm imagining things, could this really be happening?!


As you can tell, I was a bit surprised and my mind was is overload!!!  So, I emailed and got all the questions answered that I wanted and set up a time for the owner to come by the next day!  Holy cow did that really happen? I think I am still in a bit of shock! The owner was a very sweet gal who just wanted the best for her dog. She found that she was working 12+ hour days and he was spending way too much time alone in his kennel.... So, she wanted to find him the best home she could and required a home visit to ensure he was going to the right family. This all transpired on the same day that we tried out our new church so you can see why we feel the warm glow of God showing favor on us...

But I'm getting ahead of myself...she brought him for a visit, and stayed for about 2 hours I think. You could tell it was hard for her to leave him and I was afraid that she might change her mind... but he really did seem happy here, and of course the girls were just crazy about him. Karma didn't seem to care in the least and DH.... well, you could tell he was trying to be the strong and silent type saying not much more than "He's cute" the whole time but I could tell he was interested and couldn't wait to start bonding too...
.
Now for the freaky part....as I mentioned, it's been almost two years since we "lost" Remi. It was the 30th of January, just two weeks before Valentine's day.... and this new little love of mine was born that February. Yeah, try to soak that one in....I knew even then that there was a bigger purpose. I just re-read my entry from the day we got the phone callfrom Remi's owners, and even then I knew that there was a reason we had to love a little dog only to lose her... I just never could have imagined that it was for a puppy that would be born and raised nearly 2000 miles away!!!

Once again this comes to mind... :)

Isaiah 43:19 (New Living Translation)
For I am about to do something new.
See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?

  And so...that is how Linus came to live with us... isn't he a dear!? lol This picture was taken the first day we had him... Karma hadn't had the chance to warn him about the girls' love of dress-up time! ha!

Straight pins and bobbins

It's been a mad dash of sewing to get things done in time to mail... and there have been straight pins and bobbins covering my table for days!! lol I am going crazy cause I can't share what i've been working on for fear of someone seeing their gift too soon so for now you'll have to settle on this... I think it's the only gift that is for someone without a computer! :) DH's Grandmother is crazy into crafts like me and is a GREAT cook so I thought this was fitting for her!

I got the pattern from Fiber Works in MT. It has got to be THE  prettiest quilt shop I have ever been to! Be sure to check out the pictures of the store when you get a chance! I can't seem to find the pattern on their site but I'm sure if you call you could just ask for it. It's called "Easy Apron by Laura Heine". If you do call, be sure to tell them I sent you! :)

And, I got my fabric at Gee Gee's (my newest favorite outing!) You can order from their site... they have THE best selection I've ever seen!!! It makes it oh so dangerous to go in there! :)

In progress

For once, DH is getting in on the fun of making presents for the girls too!

In a world where everything is bigger and better, we really really try to make an effort to simplify at Christmas. I think last year will always be the year we are striving to recreate... not to much, not too little, just right!

So this year, instead of going to the store and ordering a painted up, run of the mill Barbie house (wooden, plastic or whatever else they come up with these days!) we are creating one that will be bookshelf style and simple... perfect for their imaginations and love of crafting to go wild!

But, as we all know... a house is not a home without some of the creature comforts of furniture! So, Daddy and I went into the woods on the search for "logs" for the beds....I love that we were able to turn what would be garbage to anyone else into something that will brign such joy to the girls. Now I need to get working on the bedding!  :)

The blogger perceptions...

I read a blog today  called Along for the Ride that really hit home and seemed like she has been listening to the thoughts I've been having in my own head lately... I think it's something worth reading...


I too have struggled with these feelings... and continue to do so even more when I get compliments from friends saying "I wish I was crafty like you" or "You have so much talent, I'm jealous"...while all those things make me feel awesome, I also feel bad at the same time because of course what I post is the good stuff...the crafts that turn out or the recipes that are simply amazing...having really nothing to do with me! lol And then that makes me think... those blogs that I adore are doing the same thing... I find my self wishing that my house had more order and my kids were calmer and that life in general was just simple... and then I remember that other blogs are struggling too... only they are just sharing the good stuff... not the messes on the floor, and the screaming kids and the crafts that didn't turn out so great... I think we all have so much to gain from all the messes life brings ourway too...and we all have them...no matter how "perfect" our blogs are! lol :)