A Blogland Christmas

I must confess that I am not quite certain what a Blogland Christmas looks like since this is my first one. I am reasonably certain that it would be fairly diverse. Why it might not even be Christmas for some. It could be another holiday or none at all. Even so, I would like to take this opportunity to say Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate and to say thank you to the rest of you. Thanks for reading and thanks for the comments, suggestions, and most of all the grins.

I promised you one more Christmas card yesterday and I am going to stick to my word. I sorted through all the ones I have not yet shared and picked a special one that says something that I think is appropriate for this time of year – the holidays, the end of one year, and the beginning of another and most of all - friendship.

Here is the photo from the card that is dated 2004:

and here is the text:

A thousand words. A thousand words. Isn’t that the going rate for a picture? Where would you start with this one?  Do you see what I see? Do you see big and small? Short and tall? Fluffy and plump? Slim and trim? Do you see what I see? Do you see black and white? And brown and gold?  Do you see snow and trees and falling flakes in the background? Do you see what I see? That shapes and sizes and colors and all these things matter very little. Do you see what I see? Do you see what each bear holds in his paw? Look again. Do you see what I see? That a thousands words can be reduced to only three?  Love one another.

With all the very warmest wishes
from my family and me to you and yours

Time for a couple more . . .

I have been tying up a few loose ends. Loose ends to ribbons and bows! With Christmas day just around the corner, I think I have just enough time to share a couple more cards from the past.

This card is from the year 2001 – the year of 9/11. I thought that I would include the text for this card because even though I wrote it eight years ago, the sentiment is timeless to me.

This is a teddy angel created from the palest of blue mohair. She stands about 11 inches tall and wears a snowflake dress with a sheer snowflake covered overdress. I called this one “Angel Snowflake”.

Here’s the text:

What will you remember about this year? Will you endeavor to remind yourself about the helping hands, the spirited embraces, the heartfelt smiles? Will you be able to recall the warmth of a hug or the feather-light touch of a cool breeze on a summer day? Maybe remembering the punch line to a joke is nearly impossible under the best circumstances, but can you remember how you laughed until your side hurt?

What will you remember about this year? I’ll remember the days when we were so obviously united as a nation. I’ll remember the words of comfort and concern sent to me by my friends overseas. I’ll remember how every conversation started in the middle because everyone already knew how it began. I’ll remember how ordinary people became legendary heroes and how throwing the first pitch in a baseball game took on more significance than ever.

What will you remember about this year? A year when Peace on Earth seems so far away? A year when Goodwill Toward Men was brought about by unimaginable events? A year when Joy to the World seemed only possible in fairy tales? What will you remember? What will I remember? I will remember that freedom isn’t always free. I will remember that liberty is cherished, not only by the people of this nation in which I live, but by all mankind. I will remember that a long, long time ago a baby was born in hopes that all people everywhere would know Peace on Earth, Goodwill Toward Men, and Joy to the World.

May this holiday season bring you a share of all these things with hope for the future when all of us might know

PEACE

Back in Time on Friday

This is what is on my desk at the current time -
TIP (teddy in progress).

 

Earlier today we had lunch

at a friend’s home.

Her whole house was decorated

with teddy bears.

For each of us there, the love of a teddy had done so much.

Because of them, we are all friends of the very best kind.

She even lets us share her dog – if we are good.
And we are all very, very good . . . for the most part . . .

After the big night . . .

It was the year 2000 when I created this Santa bear and took this photo for my Christmas card. I was showing him to my sister and she said, “He’s tuckered out.” It was the perfect description for him. This is Santa after his big night traveling the world delivering gifts. And even Santa keeps the good company of bears. The elves have gone off on a vacation to the Caribbean and Mrs. Claus has put a closed sign on her kitchen. The mail will arrive tomorrow bringing a postcard from his helpers saying, “The weather is here. I wish you were beautiful.” It will also have a bunch of smiley faces at the bottom. Those funny elves must be having a great time. But Santa will be sleeping when the mail is pushed through the slot in his front door. He’s nice and cozy in front of the fire with his two little bears. Life is sweet.

“Tuckered Out”  2000

Santa is supposed to come down the chimney, right?

But then there are all these questions that kids seem to have about that mode of arrival. For instance, if he is delivering a bike, how does he get it down the narrow chimney? Or what if there was a fire earlier in the evening, how does he avoid landing on hot coals? Or what if they have no chimney? I can understand their concern. Really, I do but the obvious thing to me is how does that jolly man get himself down the chimney? I know these burning questions have you stymied like me.

That brings me to this.

Over the weekend, my husband and I sloshed through wet streets and off and on drizzling rain to take a candlelight tour of some historic homes here. It is an annual event that we finally succumbed to last year and had such a great time; we decided to go again this year.

What does this have to do with Santa getting down the chimney?

I’ll tell you.

When he lands in this neighborhood, I think he takes one look at the front door and thinks to himself, “Well, I’ll be! That is such a fine front door – decorated so wonderfully for Christmas, I must let myself in that way and stay out of the flue.”

Now it may not seem obvious to you, since you weren’t there, but the conditions for taking photos were not optimum. Not that I needed an excuse to go back you see, but well, sunlight is so much better at showing details in some instances. So we returned in the sunshine and travelled up and down the streets admiring (and photographing) the decorations. If you want some ideas for next year, there are plenty here to inspire.

I ought to add that if you are ever in the neighborhood this time of year and you like that sort of thing, you know, peeking into people’s living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms . . . (it’s part of the tour – don’t get any strange ideas), you simply must go. I’ll go with you. You might need a guide after all.

Notice that these are double doors.  How will Santa get in?  This wreath is split in the middle and each side moves with the door it is hung on. 

I think the skates hanging on the front door with the sled leaning nearby are a lovely touch.

Most of these homes are from the late 1800’s and have gorgeous porches on the front.  Many have fences around the front too.

This home stood out because of its color.  I have just now noticed the understated message on the banner.  Sweet.

 I think you are going to have to click on this one to see it larger to be able to fully appreciate the greenery.

I liked this one for its simplicity.

On the other hand,I liked this one because it was elaborate. 

They decorated the fence here, which it kind of cool.  We saw several fences decorated.  I like that they are flying two flags – one for the USA and one for NC.

Last one.  See how the roping coordinates with the garland over the door which coordinates with the wreath?  This house is for sale.  It can be yours for the right price.

Two More from the Past

The last Christmas card that I posted here a few days ago was from 1994. I’m going to skip ahead a few years because Christmas day is drawing near and there are several more cards I would like to share.

This first one is from 1997. I called it “Snow Angel” for obvious reasons. The berries on her wreath are jingle bells and she has buttons sewn down her front. This little bear stood about 6 inches tall, if I recall correctly. It made me think of when I was kid and we made snow angels in real snow. Did you, or have you ever, done that? It is a chilly experience if you make too many!

 
This second card is from the next year: 1998. I don’t know how I managed to create this scene. For some time, I have thought I have gotten crazier with my projects as I get older, but thinking back to this one, maybe I was crazier back then! This window is a creation of an alternate reality. In other words, it ain’t real. Well, the window is real but it isn’t in a house. I took this photo in my back yard, in the daytime. Doesn’t it look like it is nighttime? I don’t know how I did that to be honest. This was titled “Friends”.

 
I have some cards that I will include the text as well. Those are coming up soon, I think. In the meantime, this year’s cards were mailed at the first of the month. I just got an email from someone who received theirs and it made me laugh out loud. Here is what it said:

“Every year I look forward to getting a card from you. I hope I'll get one every year until I croak.”

And you know what?  He shall!