Little Scraps of Magic

Christmas Greetings!

I miss Christmas cards; so few people send them anymore. Digital ones aren't the same; I want to hold them in my hands and then tuck them onto a shelf for display. Maybe, instead, I'll fill a basket with them so friends and family can poke through them. Years from now, I'd like to imagine grandchildren finding a box of them tucked away somewhere, or maybe someone may come across one in a junk/antique shop and try to decipher the message and wonder where the card might have been and what tales it could tell...stories of Christmas long ago. Somehow, poking through old computer files to find e-greetings doesn't hold the same allure. We seem to be losing the joy of touch...the feel of the foil or the bits of glitter attached.

I miss Christmas cards- keeping a few special ones intact and recylcing bits and pieces of others into my journals or art work.

I miss Christmas greetings and so does my mailbox. I love to send them as well. Would you like one? Complete with a decorated envelope, I promise! Send me your address (paulateach@cox.net) and I'll send one your way! It may be the one above, but if not, I promise it will have a penguin on it. Anyone who knows me well, knows that a card bearing penguins signals Paula!  I love the old fashioned black and white tone of this one; black and white signals an elegance of sorts, a timelessness. And, I love penguins...what could be better than this combination?

I hope you'll pop a card or two to someone this season...family, friend, or someone you've lost touch with. It doesn't need to be a slew of cards, just a few. Curl up with a good cup of coffee or tea and write out a few while listening to some carols or simply enjoying the peace and quiet. Enjoy the process.

Someone on the other end will bless you for it! I can't be the only one who misses a mailbox full of cards.

Oh, the Weather Outside is Frightful....

...and, no...it's not snow! The heavens continue to send me a perfect deluge of rain...not a soft gentle rain, but a heavy pounding of "I mean business" rain. If only it were snow.

If it were? Oh, we'd be having a major weather event as the local newscasters love to pronounce and announce. So, I simply need to think snow.

I need to think hard; northern Virginia gets so little most years. What closes schools here makes the rest of the east coast simply laugh!

Picture a little girl in Pennslvania, her long brown pony tail swinging from beneath her hat. She's bundled up, and she's headed to the top of the hill. She and her sister live at the bottom, right before it all deadends into the woods.

At the top, both little girls hop onto their "Friendly Flyers." Now, please don't, by any means picture them lying on their bellies or sitting on their rumps.

Nope, picture them standing on the sled, tow rope in hand, going down that hill, shreiking and laughing. In this position, combined with the speed they've picked up, there's no way to stop.

So, at the bottom of the hill, they make a hard right into the neighbor's driveway. which also heads downhill and ends at the neighbor's garage. Immediately before hitting the garage door, both girls bail out and go rolling in the snow.

Now...picture the little girls' mother on their porch across the street. Do you hear here shreiking and  yelling? When the little girls point out that they've done this dozens of time, their mom's decibel level continues to rise.

The little girls dutifully nod their heads and promise to never ever do it again. Of course, they do so anyway, just as soon as they're convinced that their mother is not looking.

Today, the little girls truely understand why their mom reacted as she did, especially since they've raised daredevils of their own.

But, oh, this little girl misses the sheer joy of it all!
 

Making Christmas Mine

This year I am making Christmas mine. I am going to honor the traditions and rituals that fill me with joy.

I am going to keep it as simple as possible and put as much of myself into as possible. I will keep a Christmas journal, both in written form and in my blog. Honoring all the little scraps of magic that make up Christmas is key.

I am letting Christmas be something that I relish, and I am promising myself at least 15 minutes each day to light a candle and breathe in the quiet and the peace, as I take some time to honor my Lord.

This Christmas I will make something with my own hands, my own words, and my own memories.

This is my Christmas manifesto.

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I have always loved Advent calendars and marking the days until Christmas. I have a wonderful three dimensional calendar bought a few years back at Starbucks. I've dreamed of redoing it with paint, paper, and goodies...of making it mine. But, I never seem to get to it until it's too late, and at a time where it will only create stress. Defeats the purpose, don't you think?

So, realizing that once again, it wouldn't get done as I've planned, I decided to regroup and think about how else I might make it happen.

Take some white paper bags, twine from Ikea, a few stamps....and 26 bags later, you can see the result.

Why 26? I have 26 students in my homeroom. We are couting down; tomorrow I'll attach bag number 23 to the bulletin board that marches around my room. Can't you just picture them...all hung up and tantalizing anyone who takes a minute to look at them?

Paper, twine, stamps, and such....nothing fancy, nothing expensive, but they made magic. I love them. 

Now, before I go, I must confess to a trip to the bookstore. Here's what came home with me...

 
 

Some are light, some more thought provoking. Some will lead to experiments in the kitchen and art room.

Have I told you that I devour books?
 
 
 

Waiting, Listening, Breathing

Rainy days continue to curl their fingers around me, and I am longing for light and warmth. The darkness seems to envelop me, and so, I light candles for hope and the promise of better things to come.

Advent...a time to curl up and simply listen. A time to breathe deeply and slow down all the craziness that seeks to take control. So, I focus on the flickering flame, and I listen with my heart.

I don't want the craziness and the malls. I'm not looking to get lost in the middle of my "to do" list.

I do want to enjoy the season. I love to decorate and well, not to bake the cookies, but I certainly love to eat them.

I love trees, ornaments, and wrapping beautiful gifts. I love it all, but I really really want to enjoy it...to take time on focusing what this season is all about.

So, I'm taking time to decide and to choose. I can't do it all, and if I even attempt to do so, I'm going to be frantic. I'm going to be broke. I don't want to regret the wonder and awe and all that Christmas brings.

My inner Martha comes out to play; I must admit to enjoying her company at times. We both love to set a gorgeous table. I have visions of this year's table dancing in my head. Oh, I could have so much fun!

Then I thought a bit, and I began to plan how to create my table using what I have. Oh, I'll buy a few things here and there, but I've decided not to make Crate and Barrel rich! I'm pondering and planning and taking delight in the choices and in making things work. I'm savoring the process and for me, that's part of the joy.

So, I fall asleep thinking, dreaming, and planning. I'm creating advent calendars and thinking about my Christmas journal.

I'm slowing myself down, I'm listening. Will you join me?
 

Gypsy Shoes, Part ?

You knew it couldn't last, right? I mean, we've really been pretty good lately! Today, though, found us out and about again in Frederick, MD. We've been here once or twice, and we both thoroughy enjoy it.  Besides being ever so whimsical,

there's antiquing to do, and of course, I had to...

 
play with the image in photoshop!

I can wander for hours through all the funky little shops. This one's called Retro Metro, and if you squint you can see me reflected n the middle of this awesome pink tree!

Dined on a wonderful beer cheese soup and a chicken/cheddar/apple wrap sandwich here, and then,

just wandered about enjoying the architecture and play of light and shadows!

Now, here's the best for last...no, he's not to be seen in Frederick, but we got to spend time with him this past Wednesday...

our beautifully healthy Dominic! 
  
  
 
 

Surprise!

So, are you giggling yet? Smiling? I hope so!

My good friend, Jeannine, and I are taking part in Chrysti's and Susan's project! Every few weeks they post a word or theme, and we supply a photo to showcase that word.  Jeannine drops me a note to let me know the word, and I send back a photo or two. We work "blindly," and it's amazing how they seem to fit!

Although Dominic looks mighty surprised at what's going on with the Kewpie and Blythe dolls, he's really looking at a blinking star.  I have to laugh everytime I look at his eyes; they almost seem to be popping out of his head.

I've been utterly lazy about posting lately, but I'll be doing some catch up today and the next. I have been creating some journal pages amidst some housecleaning, reading, and thinking1  Quite a bit has been going on inside my head.

More later!   
 

Morning, Noon, and Night

So, I've had better days, oh, yes, I have!

Early morning - Who Dey had an epileptic seizure. Guess who he was sprawled across when this happened? Yep, yours truly. Talk about waking up in a hurry!

Noon - rain, rain, go away. Paula's sixth graders need to go out and play.

Night - Kara, not Phil, picks me up. The car wouldn't start. We replaced the battery a few weeks back, when the same car didn't start. Guessing it wasn't the battery.

How am I? Positively calm. Our baby is healthy and that puts everything in perspective. Life is good. Really. It is!

Journal pics coming soon...if I ever get home while it's still light. If not tomorrow, I'm off beginning Wednesday.
 

Have Pen, Will Sketch...Maybe!

This past Saturday, heart in my throat, I journeyed down this pathway. A few months back, I had blissfully signed up for a sketching/journal class. The journal part? No problem. The sketching part...oh, yeah, bigggggggggggggggg problem. I absolutely want to draw, to sketch, and to be honest, it intimidates me.  Still, intrigue won out, and I found myself at "The Studio School" in Ann Marie's Garden on Solomons Island. The closer it got, the more butterflies danced in my stomach. (I think they were doing the calypso.)

When you enter the classroom building and look down,here's what you see - a huge palette stretching across the floor.

Look up, and you see doors like this one -

My kind of place! Along with Nancy and myself, 13 women and 1 man sketched and painted! You know you're with a group of artists when everyone runs outside to check out the cool bug on the wall with all of its color and patterns!



 
 

I'm glad I went - Nancy proved to be just what I needed.  She reminded us that our sketches/books would not look like hers. One, she's been doing this a long time, and two, we'd all develop our own style. But, she got me started. I learned how to block out some basic shapes, and then...with pen, no less, sketch out the scene. I also began to learn to sketch, not draw. (Insert husband, quizically asking, "There's a difference?) Oh, yes, there's a difference, honey. And, I'm still far too hung up on drawing versus sketching. I've got a control issue going on here...the need to make it "right." But, I'm learning, and I'm pushing myself, and there's got to be something said for that, right?

Working from a photograph of Nancy's, here's one study that I produced (Be gentle, please!) -

Not where I want to be, yet, but much farther along than when I entered the classroom. I really need to be quicker, to try for that "impression" as Nancy teaches rather than an official "drawing."

I have a journal.

I have a pencil.

I have a pen.

I have a plan.

I have great hopes!
 
 

I Have Met the Enemy and Getting Arborreal, Part 2

Oh, yes, I have met the enemy. Twice today. It's name? Technology.

Cox rearranged its home page yet again. Honestly; it's like a hormonal woman...just all over the place. It took me some time just to figure out how to access my email.

And, then, I opened up typepad, and well, my words weren't pretty. What on earth are these people on? They have just made it incrediably difficult to post.

I do not want to do a "quick post." I do not want to post from my nonexistant iphone. I just want to sit down with a computer and type. I hopped, skipped, and jumped all over the dashboard to figure out how to do that.

I really don't want to know my stats or the average daily views on my page. I just don't. I have far too much to do to worry about that stuff.

Guess you could say that I have a life!

Typepad and I may soon be parting. All you nontypepad users...is it any better elsewhere? Please tell.

Okay, rant over.

We'll now switch to a scene from Alice in Wonderland. Alice and the queen are running madly around a tree just trying to stay in place. That's me. (You know, when I started typing this, I didn't even see the connection between Arborreal and Alice running around her tree!) At any rate, I've had report cards, parent-teacher conferences, and worrying about our Dominic, who by the way is getting better every day.

So, I'm late. I'm late! My apologies to the lovely Julie who began this collaboration this summer. Oh, Julie, I know that you wanted us to group photos, but it's just not in me today. So, I'm late, and I'm not quite up to speed, but I'll do my best.

I picked a young tree that I pass by each and every time I come and go. It's very close to my door, andthe older trees around it tend to dwarf it. Since, I chose it this past summer, I've paid much closer attention, looking every few days to see if it had changed.

Very early in October, I saw these -

It almost looks like a holly tree, doesn't it? The squirrels and birds saw it as an all you can eat buffet and their comings and goings nearly drove Who-Dey and Tuxie completely nuts! 

About mid October, she began to display her autumn finery -

and like this

But now? Poor baby, she's just pooped! LIke me, she's kicked off her clothes at the end of a long day -

and she looks like this -

Poor baby. I know just how she feels. Do you suppose it was technology that did her in as well?
 
 
 
 
  

The Simple Things

Some simple things that make me smile -

farmers' markets

nail polish and flip flops

dark chocolate

Starbucks

scented candles

hugs and kisses

handmade journals

mail art from friends

   

little ones hugging their bears

books, all kinds of books

cats purring

crazy Australian shepherds

fudge

homemade bread

soup simmering on the stove

pens

neopaque crayons

handmade paper

photography

snow days

laughing

the beach

autumn's colors

white wine

Christmas ornaments

sunshine

daisies

holding hands

cheese and crackers

bubble baths

going junking

    a

restaurants with a sense of humor

sixth graders

thank you notes from parents

a clean home

setting a pretty table

photoshop

light streaming through the windows

sunrises and sunsets

snow geese landing

butterflies

cardnials chirping

    p

D.C.'s museums

framed family photos

crosswords

suduku puzzles

playing solitare

backrubs

weekend trips

the lovely Christina
 

 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

He's Home!

Thank you all so much for the prayers, thoughts, and love sent our way. Keep them coming, please, but our baby is home! Pneumonia was ruled out on the second round of doctor's visits and tests. After many hours of antibiotics, his levels rose, and he was released to recover at home. I'll post more later as I learn more, but out baby is home!