A Number of Days

Time - amazing thing that it is. You can sit and watch it tick away by the movements on a clock, or use it to turn a summer day into a series of productive accomplishments. You see it in the Christmas tree all trimmed and arrayed in her Yuletide finery, and on a once snow-laden sidewalk that's been scraped clean. Time - a number of days and hours and minutes that are our very own. I am ready to live mine simply and splendidly.

The future is something which everyone
reaches at the rate of sixty minutes an hour,
whatever he does, whoever he is.
~C.S. Lewis

Victorian and Bright

May your days be Victorian and bright~


Listen to O Holy Night

Season of White

Season of white
A Birth that made men right
For the infant King
The angels sing
Of Peace and Truth and Light
Season of white

Copyright 2008, Bookishkind
All Rights Reserved

Step Into Winter

I saw these gorgeous, nature-inspired "ice candles" on this blog, and it was love at first sight! They are simple and beautiful, yet very easy to make.

You could also use oranges, pomegranates, and other pretty winter offerings in these. These make me want to step into winter and stay awhile.

Photo Credit - elizabethandco

A Cup of Cheer

Someone just brought us this wonderful and yummy mix, and I can't stop munching on it. Here is the recipe:

Christmas Mix
almonds
cashews
peanuts
dried cranberries
dried mangoes
dried pineapples
dried bananas
white chocolate chips

Make Merrie

How the Grinch Stoll Christmas

A little book-inspired craft for the holidays. It's entitled, "How the Grinch Stoll Christmas," and I think it's perfect!
“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.”

Cold, Winter World

In December, the snow is as welcome as can be. Quiet and soft, light and airy. It brings with it such a stillness that allows you to breathe as you have not breathed since spring. It is fresh and invigorating. Cool and calm.








As a girl, I used to walk outside in the December wonderland, singing songs, happy as a lark. Perfectly content in the cold, winter world that was just outside the door. I have always loved the cold, so long as it's not unending bitter.

I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape - the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show. ~Andrew Wyeth

Ol' Santa Claus

I dare you to play this and not end up dancing, or at the very least moving your feet.



Harry for the holidays~

Crimson Sleeps Under Layers of Cold

I can't help but think of roses, even as we approach the official start of winter. I must dream about them at night, and when day comes, the thought lingers on. So lovely under a blanket of snow and ice. Little petals of crimson that sleep under layers of cold. They must be dreaming, too.

Warmed By Christmas

This photo shows a still from one of my favorite movies, "You've Got Mail," that reminds me of Christmastime - such a cozy little shop, all decked out for Christmas.

I love the spirit of Christmas. The lights, parties, and music, (don't get me started on the music!). Sipping eggnog, or reaching for a mug of hot chocolate. Crunching candy canes and getting them stuck in your teeth. Following traditions that were started a generation ago.

And giving. Not so much the giving of expensive gifts, but rather finding or making something you know will be meaningful to someone, really showing them you know them by a thoughtful gift choice.

It's a contageous thing, this spirit of Christmas. It's in the air right now, as you breathe in the evergreen, or are bodily warmed by a cup of steaming wassail. It's as simple as a taste of trifle or fruitcake, slicing an orange or cutting a pomegranite, or trimming the tree with ornaments you have not seen since last year. It's real and it's now.


(Carol)
Carol by Marty McCall/Vickie McCall
candle in the window, cider in the bowl
holly in the garland, joyful songs of old
come hear the ringing of the bells
come join the dancing in the halls
sing now the season has begun
come celebrate the birth of the Holy One

December

No one is a stranger in dear, sweet December!

Photo by Albert Chevallier Taylor

Winter's Breath

The snowy,
The white,
Star in the sky
That burns bright.

The holly,
The evergreen,
Christmas angels
Move unseen.




The silver,
The gold,
Winter's breath,
And Truth retold.

Burning fire,
Glowing flame,
Wreath displayed,
In Heaven's name.


Photo Credit - Reader's Digest