I had the honor of witnessing a new beginning. Katie and Robert Knight shared their love in a quaint church built in 1874. Surrounded by history with promises for the future, their story begins.
Expressing Love......
On the gorgeous faces of the bride and groom Through the eyes of family and friends In the sweet sounds shared by the musical gifts of some who love them With artistic photographic statements As words became vows When brooches, tassels, candlelights and ribbons created bouquets
Wishing Love......
To newlyweds, because this journey in marriage is sometimes hard. To loved ones far away, because sometimes love is the only way to get through the lonely moments. To those who are remembering ones who are not with us because they linger in our hearts and memories. To families, because they are the most important people in our lives. To you, our friends, because we want you to know we love you!
Well....In our 13 days of Christmas contest, April Darlin' did say she wanted a 13 caret ring......this is what she got....I don't spell very well... carrot/caret??? Strange sense of humor, I know. (Actually it was Lulu's idea)
Thank you, Thank you! to all who contributed. We really want to send all of you that participated an April Darlin' ornament so please contact us via the contact page so we can get your address.
One of my all time favorite movie moments just so happens to be in my all time favorite Christmas movie, Love Actually.(If you have seen it, I'm talking about that oh so amazing moment when the guy makes the signs for the girl that is married to his best friend. If you haven't seen it, I promise it isn't as "Days of our Lives" as it sounds.) This year, I decided to include that little moment in my Christmas tree.
For my tree topper, I made angel wings out of newspaper. The wings really has nothing to do with Love Actually.I just loved them.
I hope you all have had the merriest of Christmases... and I wish each of you only the best throughout the new year.
Wow! I miss my mother today. You know, I really ‘gear up’ for holidays and special family days; thinking that the missing her will be worse……. and I prepare, but then….. it never happens on those days. It hits me the day before or the week after, a day when my defenses are down and I am absolutely, utterly overwhelmed with homesickness. She died in 1990 and the missing may get less frequent but never less intense.
So I look for her;
in my sister’s face,
in my ‘quite time’ chair,
in the fall leaves (her favorite time of year),
in a cup of coffee on the porch…..
and I see her,
or I feel her
and the loss is lessened.
So go hug your favorite person and tell God “Thank you” for them…..and I’m gonna do the same!
Yep! that's me! on my birthday, with my sometimes adoring brothers. Scott is on my right and Chip is on my left and Thumbalina is hugged tightly to my chest.
She was my favorite doll.
I think I must have just gotten her that year when I was four. That's the year Ideal released her and she was all I wanted. It's four days before Christmas, 1967, my mom had way to much to do with: four kids and Christmas and cooking and life and yet, she still made time to bake a beautiful birthday cake not only for me, but one for my Thumbalina, as well. I thank God often for the gift of my mother. I never forget how lucky I am.
You may not be able to see it but even then I obviously had such a sense of sytle????notice the curlers in my hair...beauty is painful!!! And here I sit, on this birthday, typing, with curlers in my hair. My brothers are not beside me, but one did just call and sing happy birthday to me....and he never sings. But except for the curlers most things about me have changed in these last two decades, and that's a good thing.
When I look at her, my first thought, is Thumbalina's not looking so hot...but after 44 years, I guess she's really not so bad. Her string in the back is broken, so she doesn't stretch like she once did, but all her arms and legs are still attached, her hair is......bad hair day 101,
but she is still my favorite doll
and as corny as it sounds, she looks well loved....and that's not such a bad way to look, is it?
Welcome to Christmas. It’s opening night (at your house). The star, your fabulous tree, is dressed and awaiting the moment when your family and friends are gathered around it. The mantle, walls and furniture become the beautiful stage for the star. You are the director of this production we call Christmas. Every great show needs a supporting cast and we can use our gifts for this purpose. We hope that we’ve given the perfect thing to our crazy, funny, zany, unusual and just plain weird family members, which are our audience. When they attend our show on Christmas day, we want the outside wrapping of their gift to be as fabulous as the surprise inside. So what can we do to make it extraordinary?.....We could become the wrapping divas! Here's a few ways to begin.
A GIFT OF A GIFT OF A GIFT Glittered letters glued on the pages of an old book could be used next year as an accent on a table or nestled in a tree. The book on top is to start your 'to do' list for next year. And the gift inside......it's a secret.
ALL ABLOOM Felt flowers, wool roving and yarn transform this package into a beautiful gift. You might even want to keep it yourself.
WRAPPED IN YOUR ARMS A simple white box, dressed in a great sweater, accented with a feather brooch. (Safety pins help hold the ends together) The receiver may forget about what is in the box.
RAGS TO RICHES Who would have thought a rag rug could make such a beautiful wrapping? (Use safety pins to hold the rug together on the sides and the bottom) Adding beautiful ribbon is just the right finishing touch.
APRIL SHOWERS IN DECEMBER I love to use the ordinary and turn it into the extraordinary. A shower curtain cut to fit, secured with clear packing tape and bound with raffia. The flowers were made from coffee filters (2 for each flower, folded together and wire wrapped at base of flower to hold shape. Use the wire to attach to the raffia)
SWEET STUFFING Use their favorite candy instead of styrofoam to cushion the gift. Have a piece for yourself...you deserve it.
There are so many things you can use....
scarfs wrapped around a gift with knitting needles to hold it in place mittens or gloves could hold a gift card wallpaper, newspaper, pages from a magazine or junk mail to cover you packages would be eco-friendly and funky worn out legs of jeans or ams of a shirt could be a wine cover write words, quotes or the receivers name all over the wrapping
Now it's your turn to make that 'cast' shine and maybe even steal the show. Leave us some comments or better yet a picure or two!
The lost art of .....penmanship......having you over for coffee...spontaneity ....giving. My great aunt, Mary Katherine Geddie, affectionately known as Khaki, was famous for her penmanship. I still meet people that knew her, and the one thing they always say is, "She had a beautiful handwriting". I bet she never imagined that she would be remembered for her 'letters'.
What do you think you will be remembered for in the year 2060?
I hope mine is giving, but I'm afraid it's not.
In this world of quick, ready-made, from freezer to oven, from drive-through to table, it's a rare and lovely thing to know people who have the gift of giving. Two of my friends, Kim and Jamie, have just that. Pictured above are beautiful candy cane cookies (who takes the time to dye dough and wrap it?) and authentic fair candied apples (you have to pick your friends carefully to rate one of these after the fair has left town).
They make my life better! .... and funnier....and more caloric.
And once again, it's not really about money, is it?
When I was little, we lived, what for a child was an idyllic life, in Grand Isle, Louisiana. There was, of course, the ever-present threat of hurricanes, so my parents had a few rules to help them cope with the uncertainty:
· At night, always have a full tank of gas
· Keep all your ‘treasurables’ in one place.
(I’m assuming that even though they certainly treasured us, we were not included in the above-mentioned rule.)
My mom’s ‘treasurables’ place was an old, green, dome topped trunk that she had restored. The insides held the pieces of our family’s scrapbook. It was filled with pictures, birth certificates, cards, baby clothes, trophies and all the memoirs of a life with four children. We were all aware that in the event of imminent disaster, the trunk was definitely given a place in the car.
Yes, my mother knew that the trunk didn't hold our memories, but it held things that prompted our stories, jokes, and Geddie urban legends. It was the place we went when we had to do any school project that required family material. It was the place we went to hear stories of the “Wonder Boy” patch (given to my dad), the lady April Darlin’ made out of a cup and saucer, or why all Mom’s wedding gifts were pink, even the garbage can, and her favorite color was green.
Somewhere along the way, everything from the trunk was relocated to a cardboard box and the other day I realized that it just wasn’t right. So, I took a green, hard sided suitcase that is too heavy to travel with but too cool to throw away and surrounded the Geddie memories with green once again.
Okay, all of this was a (really long) preface to: If you could only take five things from your house what would they be? Lulu asked me this question and it made me start thinking about that old trunk. I’ve got lots of things in this big ole house that I love. Every room holds treasures that evoke memories for me. Doesn’t it just look like that kind of house?
But only five things……..
· The green suitcase
· My mom’s wedding dress
· Grandmother Gertie’s paintings
· A wooden box that my grandfather said was carved by a prisoner of war with a nail file (it has some small items in it; love letters from my dad to my mom, a tassel from my dad’s high school graduation, etc, but I am NOT counting those in my five……just the box)
· My bible – it has lifetime of notes and prayers in it (it’s almost like a timeline)
Maybe….just maybe, if you added up the monetary value of all of these ‘treasurables’ you would reach $100.00.
Hmmmmmm…….it kinda makes you think, doesn’t it.
It’s not about expensive gifts, is it?
Especially at Christmas
Wanna come spend Christmas with us? I've got plenty of room.
Y'all is a much loved southern word. So when we use this expression talking to you, we are giving you all our excitement, wonder, love and just our plain ole' strictly personal opinion. So, for this time, You are our treasured friend, standing at our front door, and we love that you are here. So welcome to our madcap world.