The Treasure of Giving and Receiving Christmas Cards

I have finally sent out the last Christmas card of the year feeling like I really accomplished something this year. Since we’re being more conscious regarding our spending, cards are our way to share with family and friends (mostly back home) that we love them very much and miss them even more.

A card is so much more than just a colorful piece of paper with a few kind words printed on it. A Christmas card especially is a simple treasure that we can share with those we love and care about.

It’s something to keep in mind while waiting in line at the post office. 

The Treasure of Holiday Web Inspirations

Though I love Pinterest, life was a touch more interesting when one had to actually find Holiday decorating, baking, and gift giving ideas themselves on the many Web pages once perused.

Here are a few of my finds:

Make your own Christmas card in Photoshop – even a novice like me can do this.

Glass Ornaments have so much potential – try this idea or for knit wits like me use scraps of yarn.

Need a Christmas shirt but don’t want to win the Ugly Sweater Contest? This one is easy peasy and fun to make your own designs.

I’m all about simplifying and this wrapping is a great way to keep it simple and still be very charming.

Need something for the pet lover in your life? This ornament embraces their love of animals and your love of DIY.

A touch of home in a wreath for the door.

It wouldn’t be a holiday without a special cocktail and cold weather just calls for Bourbon. 

Small-Town Christmas – 40 Days of Thankfulness

It may not be as extravagant as the Macy’s Parade, but the West Liberty Christmas in the Village Parade has quite a crowd. Taking all of 15 minutes, different service organizations, churches and businesses create floats out of whatever they can find and toss candy to children along the route.

 

Our neighbor is Santa Claus!

There is free hot chocolate, the lighting of the village tree, a 5K luminary walk before hand and of course Santa for all the children to see. Just two blocks away it’s an easy walk even in the cold, but the community feeling really warms your heart. 

Tis the Season – 40 Days of Thankfulness

Our Nature Christmas Tree!

The great American day of thankfulness is upon us. Lincoln made it official and the stories began.

I have many wonderful Thanksgiving memories and stories to match. From being a little kid and trying to patiently wait for the pumpkin pie (which I ate even though I was incredibly full) to spending a couple Thanksgivings by myself taking time for solitary meditation and exploration of the true meaning of the holiday to many parties and trips to New York and the beach for festivities that encompassed many families to today – a quiet day with my husband.

It is our first Thanksgiving as a married couple and we are excited about starting new traditions. Watching the Macy’s Parade on TV has morphed into putting up our Christmas tree and decorating it in a woodland theme. Last-minute runs to the store have turned into a long walk after our meal (which also changed from gorging ourselves to healthy portions and saving some for later). Cocktails at brunch and throughout the day have become a bottle of champagne shared as the sun sets.

My life has become quieter, but that’s not so bad. I have a loving husband, enough food to feed us both for days, cuddling puppies and a warm house to escape the cold. I am very thankful for all of these blessings and wish you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving. 

24 Days of Christmas

On the 25th day of Christmas my gumption gave to me 30 sheets of sandpaper to scour the wood paneling. On the 24th day of Christmas, my gumption gave to me sneezing fits of varnish bits from the scouring my bathroom walls with 30 sheets of sandpaper.

Though not a neat nut, I did have a minor panic last night when the counter, floor, shower and I were covered in dust and a quick prescrape. I had to wipe it all down and sweep up the floor just to be able to rinse off in the shower. How do people do it? I used to get all freaked out with projects like this, tackled alone, but not this time. I am relishing in my effort to singularly take on this mess and make it bright. I keep in focus the beauty that is to come.

However, I am not one of the lucky ones allowed to focus on one sole project at a time. There also is work to be done. My article is coming along and I feel confident that I am becoming, if not already, a healthcare IT expert. But the layers of other tasks keep stacking up and as I metaphorically scrape them away new job jackets appear on my desk to be handled right away. “Nice creative piece, can you cut it a bit … say about half?” or “Remember that newsletter we talked about a few weeks ago? Well here is some copy and you’ll need to do a little research, can I have it tomorrow?” or even “Can you give me about 75 creative words for 3 emails, for this afternoon?” The article is put aside and all these little nits come first so I can think again. I’ll just keep pushing on for now.

But I didn’t push myself too hard last night. I was ill last week and to jump into a vigorous activity like I am all well and good would be insane. Ren made sure I took a break, specifically to watch Heroes and discuss the physical attributes and personalities of select male characters. She also brought over some drapes I am thinking of using in the bathroom, her donation to my cause.

The job is already turning out to be more than I thought and I waylay the anxiety knowing it will somehow get done with baby steps. Today’s gruesome task will be scraping the blue bubbles of paint off the ceiling. These bubbles and dangling pieces of latex flesh have taunted me for a decade. So I just refused to look up, but with the onslaught of prying eyes, I must take into account that what is up, must come down. And down it will come in showering (hopefully lead-free) flecks.

Goggles ready, I will scrape my heart out so I may prime tomorrow! Charge!

The 25 Days of Christmas

This year will be the first that I host my family in my home for the holiday. Our tradition is to get together on Christmas Eve, since the nieces and nephews have other families and such to visit, so this is the only time we can get together. Unlike a lot of families, this time of year has never been very stressful for me since I make the stop to see the kids on the designated day and then spend Christmas Day with my friends. This year is making up for the past decade as I am already experiencing anxiety attacks that even double doses of Xanax and martinis can’t calm.

You see … I am the odd ball in my family, refusing through just simple choices to remain out of the box finding sitting on the edge a bit more comfortable. I have my own sense of style that no magazine nor Martha Stewart would approve of and never minded until now. There is very little ecru or beige in my home and my decorating motif is bibliophile mixed with crafter and a touch of animal tumbleweeds. There is no theme, unless you count my bowling ball collection in the front garden or the blue glass in the back, and my shabby chic tends a bit toward the shabbier in some eyes. I am assuming (always a bad thing) that I may be the talk of the day after with my kin as the crazy aunt who lives in the shoe.

But the blame for my anxiety isn’t only on how I perceive their perceptions. It is also due to my own expertise at indecisiveness. Until now. I found in my overflowing garage treasures I forgot about and have no one telling me to stop so here I go. With limited funds, friends and cohorts who appreciate my individuality and yes, a lot of creative vigor I am on a mission to not only transform my home in 25 days, but also to create presents for my friends and family and keep myself sane while doing it.

Here’s my game plan. Keep this blog up and running, since it allows me to do one of the things I do best, write. Also I am open to suggestions from readers, inspiration is key for anything creative. In times of stress the most important thing to do is to stay calm, so at the top of my list is a very healthy diet, daily exercise and meditation, and playing with all of my four-legged kids. Then comes painting, cleaning, knitting, cooking and wrapping all of the goodies I hope to bestow on gracious loved ones. It will be difficult, but when I think about all the work others are doing, I can keep up for at least a month and have fun doing it.

This week’s task: Re-do the hideous bathroom with what I have. This means spending next to nothing and retooling those things I already have such as paint, curtains, elbow grease, friend’s leftovers and dollar store finds. Plus a lot of hope!

We start with painting the dark wood paneling that has haunted me for 10 years, the ceiling which has had a sunburn peel forever and the door. I may even do the cabinets as well to give the basin a new feel. This should take a week of evenings after work and a Saturday of finishing. I would love to show it off the next time Paul stops by.

Ren has offered some finds from her garage to help out, draperies to enliven the room and a Web site to inspire and learn from. I may ask Paul for some help hanging lighting and other crafty ideas (he is a very creative man) and see what else my pals have to get rid of. It’s a small bathroom, but already I feel like taking all those projects that promised to be completed and egging them on to completion. No walls will be torn down or windows crashed through, just a few coats of paint, some hopeful finds in the mess called my garage and champagne toasts as I soak in my luxurious bath.

Plus as an extra incentive, since the shower will be out of commission for a week or so, I will be off to the gym each morning to workout and shower. That will be a nice touch to relieve the stress of the holiday and open myself up to a new habit.

Memories: Christmas Windows 2006

After going through all my pictures, I felt a nagging memory of thanksgiving a few years ago, the last time I was with Guy and Patrick together in NYC. After the busy weekend of giving thanks, Guy and I were thankful to just walk around the city on a beautiful fall day. The sky was so bright we ventured to the top of the Empire State Building and took in the panoramic view of the city. Afterward, in a way to kill time, we went window peeking.

All the stores had their windows done up for the holiday and from our first encounter at Macy’s to the last at Barney’s we were hooked.

    

On The Water - Exploring At Home

Kayaking has become one of my favorite things to do. Especially with Chris since he knows so much about all the shells, plants and wildlife in this area, as well as has great stories from his youth in Portland, OR.

Sunday morning was the third time we tried to get on the water. The first time was years ago and we had a flat so we couldn’t get there, second was last week and it started to storm and this morning it was perfect. We spent 3 hours out and only about a half hour not actually rowing.

We dropped the kayaks in just inside Fort DeSoto Park near Tampa Bay Watch. Note: if you haven’t been to Fort DeSoto you are missing out. We skirted around little islands, through canopies of mangroves and watched the littler fish hop and skip above the water as they ran from the bigger fish predators. The water was so clean, we could see the sea grass on the bottom most of the time as we made our way to Shell Key.

It was like out of Lost as we beached on one side of the key and made our way through the sea oats and other interesting plants (my favorites: railroad vine and beach sunflowers) to the other side. It was lovely with no human footprints but our own. I thought about rolling around in the waves, but was immediately entranced by all the shells. Now being a semi-native, I have always been around sea shells, but it has only be recently that I have started to really appreciate them. I can spend quite a bit of time traipsing along the surf finding just the right uninhabited shell. Some are broken into interesting fragments, others are delightful colors and some are just there to be picked up.

Chris knows all the names of the shells and this inspired me to get to know this area even more deeply since it is where I live and love. Every time I go to the beach, or kayaking or wandering along the water I recall that to many this is a vacation destination that they save to come visit and yet all this beauty is right outside my door.

On our return we cooled off in the pool and replenished ourselves with the most delicious smoothies. Chris is definitely the Smoothie King with a mixture of berries, banana and yogurt in a thick delicious pool waiting to be eaten. This actually tied me over for a few hours as I went home to nap and instead ended up trying to get some of my house clean (which is getting more and more difficult as of late).

But the feeling of salty breezes didn’t stop there. I had such a strong urge for seafood and something very fresh and light, that I made my own Ceviche with tuna and seaweed salad. In fact, when it was all marinated and ready to eat, I realized I could have eaten the whole pound of tuna. However, with all the veggies and salad, I saved a touch for tomorrow’s lunch (only saving it for less than 24 hours – never more).

Tuna Ceviche and Seaweed Salad

½ pound of tuna cut into chunky cubes
1 lemon – zest and juice
1 lime – zest and juice
1 TBSP of chopped capers
¼ cup roasted read pepper chopped
1 clove garlic finely chopped
¼ cup onion finely chopped
¼ cup tomatoes chopped
1tsp minced hot pepper
Dab of olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Put it all together in a glass or ceramic bowl, cover and refrigerate for one hour. Layer with store-bought seaweed salad in a nice cocktail glass and serve with chopsticks.

Fini and Begin Again

My stained glass angel ornament on my pink tree - that's Christmas to me

Life is what happens when you’re trying to write a blog. So instead of writing, I was living, but now I am back and happy to have some semblance of routine and normalcy. Nothing bad kept me from this personal task, all good with holidays to boot, but it did leave me snackered. Here are the top ten things that have transpired over the past 4 weeks. (In no particular order)

O Tannebaum

My perfect pink tree. Kitsche, I know, but aren't you jealous?

I just love my Christmas tree. It is pink with white lights and stands only about 6 feet tall (on a crate.) I have all kinds of ornaments on it even one that was crafted with my own wee hands when I was 3. I got the tree last year for $30 and the guy at the store said, “You’re goin’ to be the only person in Pinellas County with a pink tree.” My response, “I hope so,” even though I knew that there would be many folks in the gayborhood that would adore some pink plastic perfection. Even Guy was jealous. I wrap the bottom and its pedestal wine crate in a Santa-inspired, red and white faux fur skirt and even sans gifts it is a sight to behold. I hate the thought of taking it down and packing it away for another full year.

All the little children

Leilani having a blast at her recital. Her enthusiam was contagious!

It wouldn’t be a holiday without a children’s recital. I was invited to Leilani’s class’ Christmas program and had the honor of listening to three-year-olds massacre the old Christmas standards. It’s sort of like watching the auditions for American Idol, but not sad at all with kids forgetting their lines and waving to mommy in the front row, or those standing fear-struck as dad coerces them to look at the video camera. I just loved it. And of course Leilani stayed on cue and didn’t pick her nose nor lift her dress even once to the relief of her mother.

Noah, not to be outdone, does his famous rolling eyes routine. He's such a comedian.

I’ll be home for ChristmasA quick shot of my family during the gift exchange.

Since my family has developed into quite an extended posse, we try to make it for at least one day a year to be together, including spouses, mates, in-laws and kids. This year my niece Amanda hosted at her posh house. The food was divine with deep-fried turkey, pole beans cooked with bacon, Greek salad, butternut squash casserole and apple cobbler (my addition.) Plus it was great seeing the clan. My nieces and nephews are all grown with the youngest in his second year of college. Brian brought the girlies (his two divine daughters Madison and Sailor) and they are what really make the season bright. Even Laura, the actress, made it home all the way from LA and her Orange County-lifestyle. I miss the lot of them, but we just don’t seem to be able to hook-up much. Plus it is a nice time to catch up and do a simple gift exchange. This year was pretty weak though since my niece Erin left early and no one stole from anyone else, except me to try to get the ball rolling. Plus for me it’s all about giving so I was so pleased to see that Holley, Brian’s wife, got the afghan I made. She is so sweet and really appreciates things like that. My brother never makes it to these things since he lives in Michigan or something and I guess it is better to be there than with us.

Madison and Sailor Grace having a blast on Christmas Eve. They really make the holiday for me.

Sailor helping her mom with her new afghan. It was my first big project and turned out so sweet.

Feliz Navidad

You can't have black beans and rice without red wine vinegar!

And to balance out all the stress from driving to the family Christmas, I spent Christmas Day at Michelle’s and enjoyed my favorite meal of all time – Cuban roast pork, black beans and rice and baked ziti. Last year, she went to Ohio to visit family (why else would someone go to Ohio) and this left me beanless for the first Christmas in more than 10 years. It was painful. But I made up for it this year with double plates of food and a very sick belly that evening. Her family had done the Christmas Eve too so it was just us, Vivi, Ronn and her mom lounging around watching the Food Network and drinking wine. Mich and I recycle presents (meaning we usually take something we have and give that as a gift instead of buying something impersonal – except wine, that is good for all occasions.) This year I gave Vivi a Mary Poppins Barbie I had gotten about 12 years ago from an ex-boyfriend. It was still in the box with most of the accessories. I also shared with her half of my Hello Kitty collection (the other half goes to Leilani with her brother Noah gets my X-Men comic collection.) There was only a touch of drama, but it wouldn’t be a holiday without someone drinking too much and being all passive aggressive. (Vivi took the picture of her mom to the left, not too bad I thought. )
Vivi has already learned-leave the gun, take the cannoli!






Cause I’m a loser baby
Weight Watchers is a godsend. I am doing pretty well though I have fallen off the wagon a couple times. It’s the holidays and I let myself falter from time to time, but try to keep up with the exercising. I know that this is my time, and 2009 is all about me. I no longer want to think about my weight or convince myself that one day I will be thin. I am working towards my goal and I plan to be the hottest beatch at next year’s New Year’s Eve celebration. Now, I just need a hot guy to show me off. So far I have found a bunch of new recipes, including a vegetarian chili that so rocks, I just love a cup of it in the afternoon when I get ready to work out. I feel more alive than before and even when I am naughty (which I love being naughty) I can still be on track, a touch. I have vowed to not buy any new clothes until I get to the halfway point (which I am shooting for the end of April) and will be treating myself to exercise toys, accessories for my bike and cookbooks instead. I just love deciphering recipes, deconstructing them and making them more healthy. And that is what this is all about – it’s not a diet, it’s a healthy way to live.

I want to ride my bicycle
I just love, love, love my bike. I really do. I like to ride to the beach on Saturday morning, ride my bike to my friends’ homes, ride to the store and the library, and ride around just for fun. The weather has been great here and that only inspires me to get out and ride even more. My morning rides are the hardest to convince myself of, but when I do get peddling, the music in my ears and a fresh cup of juice or a smoothie when I get back really bring it all together. I feel so much better about myself when I ride. Since I can’t walk much, it is one of the only ways I can get mobile. My boss even gave me a harnessed pouch for Finnegan to ride in when I go out riding. I’ve thought about riding up to Georgie’s in the evening for cocktails since I will have to stick to one and not feel too guilty about the calories. We’ll see about that later. Future adventures include: the Saturday Morning Market downtown, visiting Michelle and Renee (both are just a few miles more) and maybe one day go all the way to Guy’s.
Santa baby

Made this when I was three - aren't you impressed???

Christmas was simple this year. I wasn’t able to give very much, if anything since money is pretty tight, but I was blessed with several treats. Ronn gave me a bottle of vodka accompanied by a bottle of deliciously spiced olives. That was my Christmas morning treat – a spicy martini to go with the healthy egg white omelet and tomatoes. Michelle shared with me a set of espresso cups and saucers from her grandmother and homemade marinara and cranberry sauce that she canned. Guy made it a Warholiday with a money tray in Andy style and a pink martini ornament for my pink Christmas tree. Heidi shared her generosity with my kids by getting the kitties some cat nip balls and Finnegan a squeaky toy. I just love how she always thinks of the pets during the holidays. Patty gave me a flask, though it only holds six ounces (HA) because she knows me so well. I know that will definitely get a lot of use. I always feel blessed when people share gifts with me, even if it is stuff that I never considered, I still am grateful since no one really has to do it. Plus, my friends are the same way since they appreciate anything that is given to them and they teach their kids this too, since just being kin is a gift.

Finnegan Begin Again
I waited 35 years to get a puppy for Christmas and it finally happened. Finn is still with his mommy and grandma since he isn’t weaned. It will be about 4 more weeks until he comes home to me. I have been visiting him at least once a week and even held him all night on New Year’s Eve. It was a quiet end to the year. Ronn joined me over at Patty and Jim’s where we sat out back, drank champagne and held puppies – what could be more magical? My first kiss of the new year was Finn with his sour puppy breath and newly opened eyes to see how much I love him. I am so excited to be a new mommy.

Kids in America

Dancing to "They Don't Know About Us" by Tracey Ullman

I ended the year dancing with my dear friends Patty and Tuttie to old 80s tunes and began 2009 dancing with Renee and Malika to reggae/hip hop favorites. I just love to dance, but don’t get the chance much. Being a goth kid in high school and college limited my dance moves though I have always loved dancing around the house. That is where it ended since I felt clumsy with my weight and lost with all the choreography. But that is all changing. Malika was showing me how to belly dance and Renee shared some of her Jamaican moves getting me up and running and I didn’t care how I looked, as long as I was having fun. So that is one of my new year’s goals – to dance more just for fun. Plus it is great exercise. Dexy's Dancing!!

Hot Hot Hot
For my new adventure in 2009 I got a new haircut. It isn’t too different from before and is even a recollection of a few years ago with short curls framing my face. I love it an am so excited with my new look. 2009 has so much possibility! Plus I have the perfect accessory for my new look - FINN!

And one sad note. On December 20, Jerry Taylor was murdered. Jerry and I worked together for several years. Though not close, we shared many laughs in boring meetings. As circumstances would have it, I spotted him a few months ago at my new place of business and found it a touch comforting to see someone from the old stomping grounds. He was an innocent victim of a deranged psychopath who also murdered Beth Evans, his ex-wife and a friend of Jerry’s. We weren’t close, but it still keeps me struck with sadness to think how this vibrant man and loving father will not longer be there to bring light into his daughter’s eyes.