Not A Creature Was Stirring

Not even a mouse!

This little matchbox mouse ornament is one of my oldest and one of my favorites.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a Good Night!

Our Christmas Traditions

The husband has to have his chocolate covered cherries and eggnog. I make banana bread and forgotten cookies. Other things come and go with the baking, but these are constants. (And I've only just learned that hubs doesn't like forgotten cookies!) Poinsettias seem to show up annually too. So bright and cheerful!

Early in my marriage I began collecting ornaments for the Christmas tree. A house fire destroyed those earliest ornaments – the first Hallmark ornaments that were made of yarn, for instance. That didn’t dissuade me though. I picked up the hobby from there and over the years I have amassed so many that I am only able to display a fraction of them each year. Some of my favorites are figural Hallmark ornaments, but some of the handmade ornaments hold the most meaning for me.

I used to buy communication themed ornaments because I was a telephone operator in a past life. My husband's nickname was Hershey, thus the cocoa themed ornament.

My sons’ great-grandmother made this one with their photo in it when she was a cafeteria aide at her local school. I treasure it because of her, and because it so perfectly captures that special time in their lives. At about the same time, I made these little mice in stockings and personalized them with their names.

This is a remembrance of my other hobby, calligraphy - not that I need a remembrance of it! Evidence of calligraphy and mixed media art is all through my house!

Another tree is covered with angel ornaments, and my hutch is covered with my nativity scene and my houses and stores.

I barely decorated the house last year, but this year I had time to do it, and a family to do it for. Even when I don't go all out, my sons' stockings are pulled out, and hold many memories.

I recently found this old letter to Santa (and his reply!) I framed it and will have it out each year too.

What are your Christmas traditions? Do you have special Christmas collectibles that appear year after year?

This is December! First Frost

November's unusual warm and sun was bound not to last. This morning (fitting for December 1st) we had our first frost. I went outside and snapped several photos of nature's icy artwork.

This is November?

My birthday is in just a couple of days. It is typically a dreary gray day. Sometimes there is sunshine, sometimes mild temperatures, but usually it is gray and cold. My backyard this year is telling a different story.

Here are some of the neat surprises from my backyard stroll this afternoon. I noticed a begonia and an azalea wildly blooming at my mother's just yesterday, so perhaps I shouldn't have been so surprised.

Compare the above to what we more typically see in November here:

I realize that 'Global Warming' is a misnomer, but these things are unusual for November in our neck of the woods (Southern Indiana.) I do worry about the phenomenon of global warming, whether it is misnamed or not...but for today I am enjoying the nicer, pretty side effects.

Topsy Turvy Tomato on the Menu

Topsy Turvy Tomato languishes on the kitchen window sill no longer. Hubs asked me to put it on his ham sandwich the other day. He said it was delicious. He may have eaten the most expensive tomato in culinary history.

Topsy Turvy Revisited - Caprese Salad, Anyone?

Topsy Turvy (see previous post) revisited! I found a micro-mini tomato on the phantom vine that had been torn out of the Topsy-Turvy tomato planter! Tiny little thing. Here he is with the now orangey-red original mini...no larger than a wine cork. The micro-mini is no bigger than a nickel, if that.

Think I'll be making Caprese salad with these little guys anytime soon?

As Seen on TV: Topsy Turvy

My husband is always teasing/warning me about 'as seen on tv' products. My experience with these enticing sounding items has been mixed. I usually wait to purchase until I see them in a store, but the pasta pot - a pasta cooking pot with a strainer in the lid - would be such a blessing in my pasta-loving family. Both my son and I ordered them from the tv ad. Unfortunately, the lid was difficult to remove when the pasta was hot. It was dangerous in the long run, and wound up in the garbage.

The oxygen bleach cleaner sounded great, but not so. Didn't work as easily or as well as touted on those annoying ads.

The 'gopher' was better, and mine actually found a good home in Romania. (True story.) The gopher is a hand-held arm extender, for want of a better explanation. You squeeze the plastic handle and the three foot long metal arm's business end squeezes around the object on a high shelf you want to reach. I'm pretty tall and can reach most shelves in my house, but I used mine for reaching behind the washer and dryer for lost items. Fairly handy, but it was in the way a bit because I seldom used it. A friend's mother was incapacitated and confined to bed. I gave it to my friend to take to her mom - who loved it, wore it out and is on her second one now. Success!

The topsy-turvy tomato grower - ah! The green cylinder hangs upside down from a tree limb or hook. There is a device to hold the tomato plant inside, and the vine grows downward. Now this sounded like just what I needed to thwart the rabbits and critters in my backyard while providing me with delicious home-grown tomatoes all summer. To be fair, I bought mine at a reduced price in a second hand store and got a late start. I felt lucky to even find a few tomato plants left at a local farm store. I proudly planted the tomato anyway, and imagined all the juicy tomatoes I'd have on sandwiches, over cottage cheese, cut up in omelettes. I could hardly wait. It started out promising. The vine quickly grew, albeit upside-down. I went out of the country for three weeks late in the summer and when I checked in with my husband I always inquired about the health of the vine. On my return, he teased me about the two small green tomatoes that had finally graced the healthy vine. That's okay. Two is better than none. Next year I'll start earlier. An attempted break-in netted the backyard invaders one small green tomato. Yes, in their haste to outrun our dog, the boys evidently grabbed the plant and pulled one of the small tomatoes off. Okay. The larger of the two remained. Yesterday it dropped off. It is now on the kitchen window sill, the most expensive tomato in the world, pound for pound. (Well, even saying 'pound' in the same breath as my tomato is a real stretch.)

Yes, I set this little green beauty on the kitchen window sill in hopes of its reddening up a little despite its having two worm(?) holes at the top, and being barely as tall as a wine cork. Tiny little baby. Here's hoping the topsy turvy delivers the goods when I start it earlier next year. Fried green tomato, anyone?

That's Usin' the Old Noodle!

On a recent trip to a friend who lives near the KY/TN border, I stopped at a fast food restaurant for lunch. In the restroom these locks struck my 'oh no you didn't' button. Look closely.

Here's my take on this. The lower lock was installed. Someone complained that it wouldn't lock. Doofus can't figure out the problem because he installed it just like all the others...must be defective. He had a solution...by golly he's never had a problem with this kind of lock!

City of Brotherly Love?

Ha! Tell that to the people who were inconvenienced by the ineptitude of the USAir workers at the Philadelphia airport late Monday night! After having spent three weeks in France, I was aghast at the rudeness of the workers. It is not a good first impression for people coming in to the country for the first time. It was not a good impression for me of what the city of brotherly love has to share. No thanks!

(Yes, the airport had been evacuated briefly early in the day due to runway inspections following an earthquake in Virginia, but this was many, many hours later. I have not even mentioned the situation that existed with customs upon landing. Hint...a little communication with passengers would go a long way.) Customer service: is it dead and unwell in Philadelphia?

Shopping - artist versus husband style

I totally forgot about this article I recently wrote about shopping. Check it out at: http://blog.csnstores.com/2011/07/too-little-time-to-shop.html

Jan Hurst Calligraphy & Design Press Release

Jan Hurst Calligraphy & Design Adds Gift Services to Offerings

Calligraphy is not just for weddings. It can also be an excellent personal gift. Jan Hurst Calligraphy & Design has been assisting grooms by lettering song lyrics on photo mats, and lettering wedding vows and personal letters for framing as anniversary and wedding gifts.


Louisville, KY, June 19, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Calligraphy is not just for weddings. It can also be used to create personal gifts. Jan Hurst Calligraphy & Design recommends having song lyrics lettered on photo mats, or having wedding vows and personal letters custom-scribed for anniversary and wedding gifts. Calligraphy in letters, lyrics or resolutions are something to think of when looking for gifts or awards for many occasions.

If someone has a favorite song, having the lyrics to that song custom lettered onto a photo mat or for framing as art can be a wonderful gift. Even more personal would be a special letter written to a loved one, custom lettered in a choice of calligraphy styles. Proclamations and Resolutions have long been treasured awards for special employees or retiring employers, and there are still lettering artists capable of rendering those custom-lettered works of art today.

Jan Hurst Calligraphy & Design has noticed a trend among young husbands to celebrate special anniversaries with these personal gifts. Hurst has recently lettered song lyrics on a photo mat, a personal letter suitable for framing, poems and wedding vows for special anniversary presentations planned by loving husbands.

In some ways the old ways of calligraphy have been updated. Modern letter styles can replace the Old English used in Resolutions and Proclamations of bygone days for a more contemporary look, and some new metallic inks can add glittery touches unknown long ago. Calligraphers can still use the tools of the past to create modern masterpieces. Antique dip pens, gilding with real gold or with a modern alternative, and lively, graceful lettering are all a part of today's well-trained calligrapher's expertise.

Hurst says she is frequently asked to replicate the style of lettering from a wedding invitation to letter the vows or special readings from the wedding. "Each of these requests is unique for the bride and groom, and fun for me to do. Special occasions of all kinds could be opportunities to use similar gifts," Hurst said.

If you have a special event coming up and would like to talk with a calligrapher, contact Jan Hurst at least two weeks before the event to discuss your options. Email her at jan.hurst@insightbb.com. See samples at www.letterladysletters.blogspot.com or www.picturetrail.com/letterlady.

My New Favorite Tea

I'm a tea drinker. I don't like coffee. I love peach black tea. It's hard to find without other flavors mixed in. I can find peach herbal teas, but seldom find a good black peach tea. I stockpile it when I do.

Now I have found a new favorite. Hedley's Jasmine Green Tea. Oh! It is heavenly. Sitting on the patio with my first cup of it last week, I wasn't even thinking of whether it would be good or bad when I took my first sip. It was pleasantly aromatic, and the taste was wonderful. It's my new favorite.

I had bought this tin of tea at a local discount store. They often have odd lots, and I had no idea when I'd purchased it. A trip to that store was in order. I didn't want to run out. The tea was grown in Vietnam. Imagine twenty years ago sipping tea from Vietnam in my own backyard. Unimaginable. Imagine that it would be so good. Equally unimaginable. My first trip to the store was disappointing. They had Hedley's little green tins, but they were not Jasmine! Disappointment.

Yesterday I stopped in another branch of the store and remembered that I'd bought tea there not too long ago. Voila! I bought four tins of 40. At two cups a day, I'm going to have to intersperse some others to make this little stash last...or seek out more. It's so nice.

A little research has led me to these links. First, to read another review of this wonderful tea, click here. Second, you can purchase this tea from Amazon when they have it in stock, or from Tea Masters Ceylon .

Simon Who?

American Idol. If you are a hater, please log off. I don't want to bore you or worse, make you mad. I love the show. I expected to not watch it this year. I thought last year was pretty weak - didn't like the judges much. I thought this year with Simon gone (love him or hate him...I thought he WAS the show) the show would be pointless. How wrong could I have been? I don't know how much input the judges have on the choice of the talent, but this year the talent pool was deeper than ever.

The talent - amazing! I felt sorry for Stefano when Pia was voted off last week, and voted for the first time ever this week - for Stefano. I like him, though he's not necessarily my favorite. On a given night he could be. He's good, but so are the other remaining seven. I can't believe there are only seven of these talents left. Why did I feel sorry for him when he was lucky enough to stay? Because by everyone (all the judges, for instance) crying 'foul!' when Pia was voted off and Stefano remained, I put myself in his shoes. What must that have made him feel like? Rotten. In many ways. First, his friend Pia, whom many thought could win, was gone. Second, Stefano remained. Everyone who lamented Pia's departure was therefore regretting his remaining. So - I voted for Stefano this week. It wasn't his fault Pia was gone. Not hers either. She is fantastic! (She had guest appearances on many television shows last week and this...no one could believe she'd been booted. It was big news.)

I loved Paul, who left tonight. But I had picked Hayley or Paul to leave tonight. (I didn't want it to be Stefano who was the third in the dreaded 'bottom three'.) I wanted Hayley to leave for the opposite of the reason I wanted Stefano to stay. When Pia was voted off, Hayley grinned like a Cheshire cat. Less competition for her is what I read in her grin. That made me dislike her. Others disliked her overtly sexual maneuvers, but I disliked her smirkiness. And I'd been in her corner til then. (Am I entirely too much into this show, or what?!) I chose Paul for the other member of my bottom two tonight because his singing has become stale to me. One note. He does one thing, and he does it well, but the talent this year is too good to be limited to a one note, figuratively speaking, performer. Love his smile. Love his movements on the stage. Have grown tired of his high pitched voice. I think he made Stefano sound bad tonight when they had to sing together. Conversely, I think Hayley outshone Casey in their jazz duet tonight. And I'm a big Casey fan.

Jacob, Lauren, Scotty, Casey, Hayley, Stefano and James remain. James! He may be the one to beat. He did a great metal song last night. He is a rocker, but he can do many things. Casey is becoming too jazzy (and I love jazz)...not sure I want him there. Lauren is young and cute and sings well...but I doubt if she will win. Scotty is fantastic in his country style. He will be a BIG star one day. I don't think he will win Idol. Jacob is young (Gads! They all are!) and has a smooooth sound. Any of these could win. Any of the top ten could have. They are all very, very good. I pick James. Tonight I pick James. Tune in next week. I may be on to someone else.

The judges. Who would have thought that Simon could be replaced? Not only replaced, but replaced with something BETTER? Simon who? This group of judges, whom I admit I was prepared to dislike and fully expected to tune out, is better than the original. Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez (People magazine's Most Beautiful Woman in the World) and Randy Jackson, the only remaining of the original judging trio, are fantastic. No meanness, which along with brutal honesty, was Simon's trademark. They have my vote! I really liked Simon, but would have hated being on the receiving end of some of his remarks. Simon who? He's not needed at Idol now.

American Idol is soaring this season. I can hardly wait to see how it shakes out. Every one of the top 11 will have contracts and will do well. I really don't care which of them wins. But I am interested to watch it play out. Long live American Idol. It's good tv.

Wedding Calligraphy Etiquette

Weddings and etiquette seem to go hand in hand. Many people never think of etiquette until they are faced with planning their wedding day. One often overlooked bit of wedding etiquette is that wedding invitation envelope addresses should be lettered by hand. Handwriting - neat, of course - is all that is required by etiquette. Calligraphy, however, can set an elegant tone for your wedding. It can signal to your guests that this event will be very special. The lettering used on your envelopes can tell your guests whether your wedding will be traditional and formal, or informal. Calligraphy styles vary and your calligrapher will be happy to advise you on which will work best for you.

How do you find a good calligrapher? If you've received a hand written envelope that you've admired, ask the bride who she used. Ask your stationer for recommendations. look online for a good calligrapher near your city (although today you can find and use a calligrapher in any area of the country if you allow the time for mailing or shipping.)

Find a calligrapher who is informed about the rules of etiquette, ask to see samples, check their pricing to make sure it will work with your budget. Curlicues may look 'fancy', but unless they are gracefully constructed and flow naturally from the letters, they may be disguising poor letters. Look for grace in letter forms.

Find a calligrapher who is receptive to your needs and he or she will be an invaluable partner who can with beautiful hand written calligraphy help set the tone for your very special day.

Some Decisions are Bigger than Others

Putting my own indecision into focus, tonight a friend in South America asked me for my advice on a major life decision. He's been offered a position in Eastern Europe that will pay much more than he is earning now and that will have great benefits. There will be the huge responsibility of representing his company across Europe. He is settled in his home, loves his extended family very much and worries about leaving them, missing them. If he takes the offer, he surely will. It's a quality of life issue that may be insurmountable. Though there are tempting facets of the offer, I feel that he might consider turning it down - under normal circumstances.

What's abnormal (besides that this doesn't happen to just anybody just anytime) is twofold. First, he has to make this decision within days and he is wracked with the body-aching, high-fever flu. Second, his current workplace may be shutting down. That changes everything.

Because he is a dear friend, I feel torn for him. Because he is brilliant and wonderful I know he will be successful no matter what he does or where he goes.

I am too frequently paralyzed with indecision, preferring to go with the flow, accepting the status quo for far longer than I should. It's easier to glide through life without making waves. It's easier and more peaceful to accept that everything will happen as it should. I have stayed in situations longer than was healthy job-wise and personally too. But, that's really not earth-shaking. I've always tried to do what I feel is best for those around me, if not always for myself.

Now I am watching my friend make a big, big decision and I know that he will be fine no matter what he does. He isn't sure, but I see him as he can't see himself. He will be fine. And now I see what my friends have seen and know why they have advised me as they have. It is easier to see the greatness in others. It is so easy for me to see that mi amigo will be successful and happy - because that is his way in all things.

I have great confidence in him...and many times should have worked on my own.

Smash Cakes

Apparently I've been living under a rock for the past several years. Although the name is descriptive, I'd never heard of a smash cake before this week. As soon as you associate 'smash cake' with a one year old's birthday, you understand what it is. Though babies have been smashing their hands into their first birthday cakes for decades, there was no separate (for baby only) small cake before 2001. There may have been some smart parents making separate cakes for the occasion, but 2001 is the first reference I've been able to find for the aptly named little baby cakes.

Smash cakes can be decorated to match the larger cake generally served to adults and other children at the baby's birthday party, but they may just as likely be a large cupcake or any small iced cake meant for photo-taking time at the celebration.

I learned about smash cakes from Sandy, my grandson's lovely mama. She ordered a small bakery cake to serve as the hopefully photogenic smash cake that Jace will be allowed to have his way with at his first birthday party, which we are busily planning. (That's another post - just how big these first birthday celebrations have become.)

We have spent the past few nights working on the invitations. Only a few months since I introduced her to card-making, Sandy is now a full-fledged crafter. She has great ideas and skill and, as my friend Diana always says to me, "A good, quick mind." These party invitations are so cute! After the party I will post a photo of the smash cake! Before and after it's been properly smashed.