JARS OF CLAY

oh the chores of the season...

the mister grumbles throughout the house each evening, up the stairs, down the stairs, in and around....unplugging all the lights--

and there are plenty of them as I light every window from the inside--

our yearly conversation goes like this

Mister: "it takes me an hour just to unplug all your lights"

Me: "yes honey, I'm aware how long it takes because I plug them all in"

Mister: smile

Me:  "it's so close to Christmas, why don't we just leave them all on all the time until then?"

so I was thinking about the lights and are they a waste of electricity during the day?

I mean...you can still see them, but of course they don't glow as much as they do during the night

and I'm mostly alone here all day

so...are they a waste to glow during the day?

I 

say

no

because

sometimes

those who have light

are the ones who need light

the

most

sometimes our jars of clay, our light not hidden under a bushel, our fires within

N.E.E.D.

to be tended

and that dear blog friends who I adore

is what you do

 may I please make my Christmas list of 

What.You.Do.For.Me.And.Us.

you

• share your gifts and talents, ideas and good thoughts
• make us laugh or for sure at least smile
• sometimes make us shed a tear
• cause us to say the word, out loud, WOW
• ping the heart and stir the soul
• nudge us to make a space in the day for something new to do
• kindle the fire and light the light
• fill our jars of clay

my stepfather is a vigilante lawyer potter who makes jars of clay each Christmas

 ~last year I began a new tradition~

all through 2014 I filled this jar with answered prayers and dreams that have come true

nothing that big or too spectacular, but with every little tidbit that I added to the jar this year, I was amazed at how often I was able to do it...what a great thing to keep track of

So Merry Christmas to you all...thank you...best wishes...stay warm...have fun...give...get...live...seek...find...go...do...
be blessed...be a blessing!

II Corinthians 4:7

and let your light shine

AND THE STOCKINGS WERE HUNG

 by the chimney with care

may I take you back a few days please?

to let you know that we have added 3 new stockings to our mantel this Christmas

you see...we had a wedding this November...

(this is my mother smudging the ceremony)

Mr. and Mrs. Ashley August Pshigoda

the new family

a new bun in the oven

yep....in early spring....Betty gets the brother

Perrilyn gets the cousin

and

maybe this young lady and her Coach 

will get the bug!

NATURE MANTEL

I would love to enjoy the story of your mantel if you have one

this time of year we love to surround ourselves with tradition and family and stories and history

and we bloggers like to share that

I don't know about you, but I could get lost in everyone's decorations and caught up in the stories 

of why you do what you do

I love it!

In our music/dining room I have 

The Nature Mantel

and this is how it all began

we have owls that hoot in our trees almost every night

a few houses down, a pair of owls have a nest every year...

...in the crook of a huge old elm tree

the baby owl photo is from google but this is exactly what they look like

(it's not smart to take photos of baby owls)

because the parents watch from up above and they just might swoop down and pluck your eyeballs right out of your head...no one likes that!

I tend to break the rules...these babies are past the white fluff ball stage, and I couldn't resist the risk

 Pier 1 has got them down to an irresistible T!

and like your mantel might...mine tells a story...a family story

that begins with

two jeweled cardinals in a sparkly snowy tree

Mr. and Mrs. PV...two birds in a tree

this snowy tree has three cardinals on the icy branches

they signify our three kids

this mantel has changed several times since we've lived in 822...

...due to our sweet additions to our family

this baby owl nest used to represent the three kids but now-- 

the nest, lined with shredded vintage music, are

Grace, Jena and Mattie

we have added a new deer

we now have three deer that are

Charles, Coach Been and new this Christmas 

Ashley August Pshigoda

and it gets even better!

this year we also have three owls that represent

Betty, Perilyn and Jordy (Ashley's daughter and our new granddaughter)

and what do I see here?  

Why yes...that is a gold egg in its own little nest

next year, there will be a new baby owl perched in 

HIS

own little nest

and if we are very lucky

that little gold egg might just make a return next year...although who it might belong to 

is only for God to know right now!

every time I see this mantel 

my heart is filled with 

JOY

and upstairs?

the mantel just brings a tear to my eye

it's a fun one, where we hang our stockings

~each family~

that now includes the newbie Pshigodas

I would love to know the story about your mantel

Linking with

The Little Black Door

PEPPERMINT

Hey Ya'll

Merry Christmas!

I was kinda gettin' bored with all that reno stuff...I think I have just about everything covered except the outside, and I will save that for a snowy day in January when garden photos will help us all look forward to the spring days ahead!

Believe it or not...we still have to reno the ugly brown bathroom and turn the drab old basement into the wine cellar...plans for this this winter while the snow flies!

We found this old Nativity in the garage in a box and have lovingly placed it in this niche every year

I can load up this corner with decorations because it's the baking station that no one bakes at

unless I win that Castle Cake Pan

from Kevin at Garden For The House

we have 10 TREES...TEN!

this one has food related ornaments...how in the world did that happen???

I would love to share with you  a very sweet post from a very sweet blog friend 

that addresses this issue

GOD IS IN MY GLITTER

this year I decided to go with peppermint...it's just so 

pepperminty

I started my old white dish collection a long time ago

but at a recent estate auction we bought a box for $2

that had an interesting white lacy edged bowl sticking out of it

as it turns out, there was an 8 piece place setting of dishes

and other very cool items to add to the collection...enough so, that I cleaned out a drawer 

to make room...well Merry Christmas to us!

Peppermint Schnapps

 is another way to get your daily intake of Peppermint during the holidays

it goes nicely in 

*coffee*

*hot chocolate*

*a shot glass*

come see us!  the plates are dusted!