Tuesday, December 6, 2011

A Simple Woman's Daybook


From Mama Bear's Journal....
 FOR TODAY
Outside my window...the ground is saturated, we must have gotten 3 inches of rain yesterday afternoon and evening...its cloudy but I'm hoping the rain is over and done with for this week....its 45 °F, (7 °C), a Cardinal just landed in the bare branches of our Maple tree...I think they are so beautiful against the bareness of winter....we have put our suet out for our feathered friends...Inside: Smokey is asleep on his window seat beside my chair....
I am thinking...that I need to finish up with the decorating, pack away the tubs and clean up the clutter left behind...

Praying For...the family of our county club president who passed away last Thursday. We had our December meeting and pot luck luncheon that morning. She came early to help decorate but wasn't feeling well. Her husband, son, and two grandchildren performed Christmas music and led the membership in a sing-along. After the entertainment, she agreed to let the family take her to the emergency room, she died later that night......she will be missed so very much. Since she took office two years ago, her health had steadily declined. 
I am thankful...for a quiet morning...for the rain and the warm temperatures...for Honey Bear....for this time of year and the greatest gift of all...for our health....for my memories...for friends like you...the interview Honey Bear had on Thursday (looks like he has a job at the Veteran's Home)...
In the kitchen...I'm trying to remember where I put the cookie recipes I used last year....I'm decorating my Kitchen tree....menus need to be made for the weeks leading up to Christmas Day along with special items I'll be making this time of year....Oh, and the Christmas Elf is on the shelf above the sink...the pantry and fridge are getting stocked with all the necessary ingredients to make the season festive....I'm drinking a rich cup of coffee....
I am wearing...pink pajamas, white T-shirt, blue robe
I am creating...a home filled with the sights and sounds of the season...finishing up the December plan for Stitch-a-Long (here are a few of the blocks) 







  
....this is the candle mat I made for a swap...



...my partner, Teri, sent this candle mat and other goodies to me....


I am going...to Wally World today to purchase gifts for the child we've adopted for Christmas, along with a few items needed here at home....maybe I'll stop by Hobby Lobby for some stabilizer and thread so I can begin something in the evening...
I am wondering...where my cookie recipes are hiding....I may have to look for copies online if all else fails.......Daughter has taken back her maiden name and I'm wondering how many papers and official documents we need to change her name on...
I am reading...Far Away Home set in the 1800s about Irish immigrants.....and The Scarpetta Factor
I am hoping...to get back to counting my food points..I've been remiss since before Thanksgiving and have been getting by without gaining but really need to lose those last few points and reach my goal..It would be great to do that before the new year starts...
I am looking forward to...the club Christmas party this week....
I am hearing...Honey Bear pouring himself a cup of coffee....the furnace fan.....
Around the house...I have put up and decorated two Christmas trees already and plan to do the kitchen and guest bathroom trees today (they're both miniatures), decorate the mantle and porch....then there is lots of clutter to put away....
I am pondering...
“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.” – Bill Copeland
One year ago today....it was cold....I hadn't put the tree up or decorated the outside of the house yet...the sun was shinning....planning to make fruit cake....remembering how much Daddy liked it...I was reading Three Strikes for Christmas....making to-do lists...my asthma was flaring up...planning to fly to Houston on Friday for a Christmas party......
One of my favorite things...Our club's Christmas party: We have a catered dinner, this year at a club house in the condo village where one member lives, members bring dessert....we open our gifts and play dirty Santa where the gift can be stolen after its opened....we have our installation of officers for 2012 after dinner and before the gifts are exchanged.....it is always so much fun as we ladies dress up...we don't have much business, it is just a night to celebrate.
A few plans for the rest of the week: Decorate mantle, put up the two small trees and decorate them, do the lights on the porch and bushes, tidy and put away all the tubs that held decorations....shop for ingredients for cookies and last minute gifts.....lunch with Daughter on Wednesday to celebrate her Birthday which was Saturday.....Christmas party on Thursday night....Club is furnishing dessert for the Police Department's Christmas party on Friday night...book club luncheon on Friday...
Here is picture for thought I am sharing...



8 comments:

  1. Congrats on your husband getting a new job. It sounds as if your week is filled with Christmas! I personally don't like the dirty Santa game - seems like I always get my favorite presents stolen! LOL.

    I love the quote you shared - it is so true ...

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  2. It sounds as if you are keeping busy! I, too, am doing the last of the decorating today, then hope to get cleaned up!

    I'm so sorry to hear about your friend passing...she must have been seriously ill.

    That's wonderful about your hubby's new job. I hope he likes it.

    Please share your kitchen elf sometimes...I'm intrigued! I have an elf, too, named "Jingle", who sits atop my cuckoo clock and watches over the seasonal activities. He never strays like my granddaughter's elf "Buddy"...

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  3. We sure have gotten a lot of rain, huh? I don't mind though, except that it makes everything so soggy.

    I love seeing cardinals this time of year too. They're so colorful just when we need it.

    My prayers are with the family of your club president who died. So sad.

    You've got a busy week! It's that time of year I suppose.

    Congrats to your husband on his new job. Hope he loves it!

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  4. The red cardinals make up for the dreariness of winter. They remind me that there is beauty in every season.

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  5. Lots happening there... I love your stitching.. and congrats to hubby and his new job... and I am very sorry to hear about your friend..
    Hugz

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  6. What a busy week! So sorry to read about your club president. I can't imagine how devastating this is for her family. May the Lord give them comfort.

    I enjoyed your daybook. Have a blessed week.

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  7. Hope you find those recipes, but you might find them online. I've been surprised to find recipes online that I thought were our own.

    I am so sorry about your club president. This is a hard time of year to lose someone.

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