Slowing Down

 This year for the holiday's I have "intentions" of slowing down.  

Not physically (there I hope to speed up a little) but in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. 

Remember what is truly important.  

Enjoying friends and family

Good food cooked together

Date night with Mr. B.

Relaxing by the fire

Cozy slippers and a good book!  

Feeding the songbirds

Enjoying my doggies

Spending time outside in nature. 

Flannel sheets! 

Laughter

Creativity

We have so much to be grateful for.....

I am taking a class with Tracey Clark from The Shutter Sisters called "Picture the Holiday's"

It's a gentle reminder to "breathe" this month and enjoy the little things around me.

Enjoy December my dear friends....

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? 

It came without ribbons.
It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore.
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

Lightness of Being

Junie-Maroonie - my niece

Last evening I got a text from my friend "J".  While we don't get together too often, when we do, it just feels like "home".  Neither of us are very "high tech" people but we can email and text and....oh yeah, sometimes blog!

Our text last night began over concerns about a mutual friend of ours who is in the hospital.  The evening ended in laughter and tears.  I'll tell you, there is nothing like a good ol' belly laugh to relax your body and remind you that you need to laugh.......and often!

Our waiter in Avignon (must of been my pronunciation of Diet Coke please!)

Here goes - typo's and all....


ME - Jill is doing great. I walked here up & down the hallway today!!

J - Great.  U walked the hallway or she did?

ME - Sorry.  I walked with her (Jill).  Up and down the hallway!
ME - Actually I probably needed the workout more than her!!!

J - Ok that makes more sense.  I thought u were proud of yourself for the walk!

ME - I am! ! !
ME - Thanks for the rose & dogwood info too!

J - Btw.  What's next on the schedule?  Nantucket, France ???

ME - I had to cancel my trip to France in June as Jon is graduating from Cal Poly on June 10th.
ME - When can the three of us get together?

J - January?  Maybe for a couple days-we can take over the apartment and plan our next trip.
J - Sh******, I need to buy and puck up my painting b4 Xmas.

Me - Okey dokey.  Let's book it!

J - Pick
J - Why r u so fast at this?  New phone?
J - U home for the holidays?
J - Forget what I just said "slow poke"!

ME - Yes.  We will be home.  And I will mail or

J - Or what?

ME - OK I was just trying to compose my message girlfriend!

J - Lol

Me - Is hubby helping you QuickDraw ?

J - What's that

Me - Or what is that I will bring it to PA.

J - Okely dokely
J - Let's check in next week

Me - Quick Draw mcGraw was a TV show.  And FYI I'm crying now because you crack me up!

J - R u drunk
J - Now that makes me laugh.
J - Are u skinny, medium, or fat?
J - I'm door #3 - fat.

Me - I just read our text to Jim and he is crying now too.  Good going!
Me - Me too...what will we do.  You are not Fat.  Just beautiful.
Me.  Next week.  Painting delivered.  Lunch?

J - What will we do?  Talk about our plan when I c u.

Me - I mean diet lunch?

J - Next week is BAD.  What about the following week

Me - Okey dokey.

J - Perfect.  Hi to Jimmy baby

Crystal clear.....right?

You know how when you are texting and the person responds faster than you can answer.  That's what was going on and we never really got in sync.

I think we will hook up eventually.

Maybe in Nantucket or possibly France......

Tyler at the Boadwalk - delighted to be "driving a car" with his big brother!

TJ & Jon - happy to be playful

Tyler laughing at himself for hamming it up for the camera

Paul & TJ - my nephews

Sweet, sweet Cal - my grand nephew

Jodi - my friend laughing at playing Canasta in Tahoe

Junie - Maroonie & Andy

My parents - Betty & Cal - happy to be at the World Series

Mark & Mr. B - (private joke) while boating in Tahoe

Me & Jackie in Paris

Even dogs have a lightness of being!! Especially if they live in Carmel!

“Laughter is carbonated holiness.”  ― Anne Lamott

Gobble Gobble....

Our son Tyler used to recite this poem to our family every Thanksgiving.

What a wonderful memory because he was so cute in second grade and because it was exactly how we all felt after our big meal.  

Happy Thanksgiving one and all. Hope you are enjoying time spent with your family and friends!

Ate Too Much Turkey

By Jack Prelutsky

I ate too much turkey,
I ate too much corn,
I ate too much pudding and pie,
I'm stuffed up with muffins
and much too much stuffin',
I'm probably going to die.
I piled up my plate
and I ate and I ate,
but I wish I had known when to stop,
for I'm so crammed with yams,
sauces, gravies, and jams
that my buttons are starting to pop.
I'm full of tomatoes
and french fried potatoes,
my stomach is swollen and sore,
but there's still some dessert,
so I guess it won't hurt
if I eat just a little bit more.

Giving Thanks

Picking Autumn leaves for the table

Mr. B and I are having Thanksgiving at our home on Thursday and we are just gearing up for the holiday. 

Today I set the table (always my favorite job) and borrowed my mom's china that goes beautifully with a Thanksgiving table.  Tomorrow I will clean (my least favorite) but I am so excited to have so many friends and family here!

Polishing the Silver which is so rewarding!

I am working at the gallery on Wednesday so that is why I am preparing a little early.

Arranging candles

This year we decided to have "the next generation" bring a pot luck dish, instead of my husband, mom, sister-in-law and myself doing most of the work.  The "kids" are in their 20 - 30's and it makes me feel really old to be passing the torch but I think it's an important step.  Everyone has been so generous in offering to prepare something special. 

My oldest son and his girlfriend Ashley are bringing "the all important Sweet Potato Casserole".  Tyler, our youngest son is set to make Cranberry Sauce from fresh cranberries!  Jon works at a diner in San Luis Obispo so I am sure he will whip something yummy for all of us!

My nieces, Katie and Kayla will bring appetizers while April & Sean are bringing a yummy Cranberry Rice dish!  My nephew Paul, who does not cook much, was more than happy to offer to bring some drinks.  That's a big help!  My brother Tim, who also does not cook (but creates a "mean BBQ") offered to create something special as well. Mmmmm....wonder what he might whip up?   **Special note to Tim - "No leaning on Donna for this one buddy"!!!

Meanwhile, Mr. B, my sister-in-law, Donna (who always brings incredible, tasty, homemade, over-the-top goodies), my mom and myself will fill in the few gaps!  Can't wait to see and taste all of the treasures brought here on Thursday.  I am so thankful that everyone can be together.

Picking flowers for Thanksgiving

“Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare.  They are consumed in twelve minutes.  Half-times take twelve minutes.  This is not coincidence.”  ~Erma Bombeck

RedOrangeYellow

My garden is a riot of color right now. Fall has finally come to my little neck of the world.


I just completed a month long photography class with Tracey Clark - "Picture Fall" at http://www.bigpictureclasses.com/ and do you think I could find one leaf changing color in October?
I think I submitted several Oak leaves turning from green to a drab brown.....does that count? 

I did enjoy that beautiful light that magically appears in the Fall...... along with those wonderful long shadows! 

And now our trees are all in full color and the morning air is crisp.

 

 

 The songbirds are waiting in line at the feeders. 

 

 

A little Chickadee patiently waiting for his turn at one of the feeders.

 

                                                           I love this time of year.  Sigh.....

 

 

“Every challenge is a sign that soul is seeking to make its presence more active in your life.”

– The Soul Journey

Timber's

Just guess who gets to put another candle on his birthday cake?


My little brother Tim!

Timmy in his younger years.



You can see he has always been a little cutie!

Bet you didn't know that he spoke a secret language for years that only his sister (yep, that would be me) knew how to interpret. I had to go with him everywhere - like to the neighbors across the street - so I could interpret his needs. "He would like for both of us to have an ice cream cone please, make mine a double". I'm just here helping out and that's what my baby brother needs today, thank you very much!

He was always just the right amount of mischievous and sweet.

And he could pull it off too.

One month he would be getting into trouble for breaking into our grammar school during the summer and the next month he would be the alter boy looking like he was angel.

Happy Birthday Tim - Enjoy your day & year - And thanks for all of the fun times!

Love your sister - the one who watched out for you in your younger years, the one who was your second mom. Just remember that as we get into our golden years!

"May happiness touch your life today as warmly as you have touched the lives of others."    Rebecca Forsythe

November yipes!

A few photo's from my Big Picture Class - Picture Fall with Tracey Clark

 

 

 

 

 

How to Be Dangerous by Jen Lemen

1. State your truth. Say as boldly and as clearly exactly what you see. Don’t candy coat. Be outrageously plain whether the truth reveals your joy, your passion or your pain. Say the thing that everyone knows no one should say. Say it anyway.

2. Let your body lead the way. Most of us lead from our heads. When you go from your gut you get a totally different course of action and direction.

3. Act boldly, with feeling. Don’t intellectualize or theorize on your next move. Tune into your gut and go. You can’t know what’s going to happen and it never turns out how you think it will, so you really have nothing to lose. Your body has a wisdom all its own.

4. Allow yourself ridiculous joy. Don’t hold back from where your heart is leaning. Put all your energy into the place where you are being drawn. Take your joy more seriously than your suffering. No one does this and if you do, breakthroughs are fast and furious.

5. Make friends with fear. Fear is part of the deal. Get used to it. Only dead people are not afraid and we all know how much we’re all looking forward to being dead. Fear can be a sign that you are getting very close to the truth and the truth absolutely will set you free. Free is fantastic, don’t kid yourself. You want it & it will bring a much needed relief to the people around you.

6. Follow your instincts. Obey your intuition. We are taught early on to disregard our intuition because it cannot be verified in a way that squares with other kinds of knowledge. But lose access to this more intrinsic, animal part of you and lose your ability to find your way in all those instances that you really need to rely on your deepest truth–in the dark, in danger, in love, in finding the way back home.

7. Listen to the oldest parts of you. The child in you, the adolescent…the parts of you that never got to be safe, that never got to have the comfort or opportunity or kindness that they so desperately needed. Promise the oldest pieces of you that it’s not too late, that you won’t ignore them now. Then take what they ask seriously.

8. Pursue your healing with abandon. Your psyche will be relentless in orchestrating the exact circumstances, people and places you need to put your soul in order. When you consciously choose to yield to this process, you will scare the shit out of everyone around you because from the outside it will look you’re losing your mind. You’re not. You will find the wholeness you seek.

9. Reveal what is hidden. Hide what is obvious. When you turn things on their side, speak to the deepest realities, while skirting over the superficial surface of things, you enter a new world. This is rare and risky behavior. Employ with extreme caution.

10. Love with your whole heart. Starting with yourself. Hold nothing back. Because in the end, no one will love you more than you love yourself. Because in the end, you’ll be so disappointed that you didn’t let yourself love and be loved more. Love this way because the people around you need it more than you can fathom.

11. Ask for what you want. Say what you need. This is one of the most dangerous things you can ever do, but you’ll find out really quickly where you are and who you are dealing with. Hard knowledge, but often necessary. Go ahead, push the edge.

I’m still in my little cave over here, drilling down for the essence of things. It’s not really that much fun, but your notes, songs and kind words have been so good. Thank you for that… I’d much rather be drinking whiskey, shooting the shit and twirling my hair, but for the moment the Universe has this cowgirl in a headlock til she wakes up and smells the coffee. Don’t you hate that?

Hope all’s well in your part of the world…that you can feel exactly when it’s time to be dangerous and when the best thing you can do is be safe. Blessings… -- Jen Lemen "How to be Dangerous"