Countdown to Christmas - Days 8-10

We continued to do the Countdown to Christmas, although it is not as "formal" as past years with Sophia and Olivia pulling a slip out of the Advent countdown calendar I embroidered for them when they were younger.

We nonetheless are doing activities each day - mostly focused on service and making food with items we have on hand. We also are seeking out things that are free to do which is a bit of a change for us. 

Without a paycheck since early-November, we are learning what it means to take one day at a time and see what we are able to do. It's sobering, yet humbling, to think that many others are in the same boat as we are each day. It has forced me to be significantly more creative with what we do have and try to create memories without creating a sense of panic (which on some days is what I feel). 

This financial challenge - coupled with the fact that this is the first Christmas without both of my parents - makes this a season I'm simply trying to get through as best I can. Many days I think to myself, "The show must go on." And it does. And it should. But, honestly, it's one of the most challenging I've ever been through. 

Below is a recap of what we did for the past few days.  

Tuesday, December 8th

I made croissants for breakfast. Some were plain and other had some almond paste in the inside. They were topped with powdered-sugar frosting and sugar sprinkles. 

The idea came from this pin on Pinterest that led to Catch My Party which had a photo for a "Happy Hanukkah" post.

My goal was to read a bit about Hanukkah to the girls, but that didn't happen. Between classes at the co-op and then onto Sophia's harp lesson to prepare for upcoming performances this month, the day went by all too quickly. Perhaps next year.

Wednesday, December 9th

Wednesday morning we spent homeschooling and getting flu shots. Received a call after lunch from the nursing home. Their harpist didn't show up to perform for the Christmas party that afternoon. The volunteer/activities director wanted to know if there was any way that Sophia could play the harp - in less than an hour.

Sophia quickly got ready while Olivia and I packed her harp. She made it there just in time.

She set up by the Christmas tree to play the harp.

Although this was a performance, it also gave her a chance to practice the songs for Sunday's performance at the Guthrie.

The dining room was packed with seniors and their families.

I'm so happy that she was able to get ready and over there in time for the party.

She even had the volunteer/activities director and a volunteer sing along while she played.

Thursday, December 10th

Today we had a special quilting, sewing, and painting program that we are doing with seniors at the nursing home.

It's the second session and we had quite a few seniors wanting to do activities with us.

This week I made another Christmas stocking for one of the seniors. Another one (a 97-year-old senior) wanted to sew her own pillow just like she did the stocking last week.

This the stocking that I made for Art. He's a Korean War veteran - just like my dad was.

The seniors used games that I made - like this concentration one where images of quilts had to be matched with one another.

We were fortunate to have the help from two members of our 4-H club.

The residents left feeling good with things they created - paintings, Christmas stocking, and a pillow.

Later that afternoon, we made blankets and pillowcases for children and teens going into foster care.

The girls received a grant to buy all the materials - all we have to do is create the bags.

We did this project with the help of members from our 4-H club.

This was a good project that will help children and teens.

It will give them things they can call their own no matter where they live. 

The Artful Parent - Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks - Week 50

This week for thee 50th week of the Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge, I read The Artful Year by Jean Van't Hul.

The idea for the book is that it is a visual treasure trove of creative art ideas and recipes for every season of the year. I enjoyed looking at the pages and reminiscing about many of the same things I did when Sophia and Olivia were younger.

In terms of getting new ideas for where the girls and I are now - this book wasn't so helpful. It is definitely written for parents or grandparents of young children.

I wish there was a book like The Artful Year, except written for parents of tweens and teens. Of course, by this time their interests are so diverse and trying to write an all-encompassing book would be a challenge.

At any rate, there was an activity that I thought might be appropriate for the girls since they are book learning more about photography this year. It's called "Nature's Colors Scavenger Hunt." The point of the activity is to take an opportunity to notice the palette of the season with color-themed scavenger hunts.

In this case, using paint chips in the colors of the season, the girls would match each color with items they find on a nature walk or around the backyard. They photograph the item next to the paint chip. This would be an interesting activity to do in the summer when all the flowers are in full bloom, gardens are filled with vegetables and herbs, and fruit and leaves fill the branches of trees.

There were also instructions for making picnic napkins that are double-sided. You need 1 yard each of 2 lightweight printed cotton fabrics, bias tape (extra-wide double fold in a coordinating color), pins, thread, and a sewing machine.

Basically, you line up the two fabrics, wrong sides together, an cut squares through both layers in the size desired. The author recommends 12"square. With the squares of fabric still layered together, attach the bias tape with pins, Sew along the inner edge o the narrow side of the bias tape, removing pins as you go. Repeat with the rest of the napkins.

There's a book recommendation by the author that I want to follow-up with: A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays by Tasha Tudor.

Nature Photo of the Week - Week 49 - Moon

This week for the 49th week of the Nature Photo of the Week challenge, I chose the theme "Moon" from the list.

The remaining three themes are rather challenging ones given this time of the year. Honestly, I'm not sure yet how I'm going to find examples of them in the winter in Minnesota.

That being said, the weather has been beautifully mild here for most of the month. I have been enjoying it because it makes getting things done outdoors so much easier.

The photo this week was actually taken by Olivia. We were coming home from an activity and the moon was still high in the sky...or, rather, half of it was visible in the sky.

She grabbed her camera and took some photos. Rather than duplicating the same shot, it was easier to use her photograph.

The photo is untouched. That's how brilliantly blue it was that day.

Countdown to Christmas - Days 6 and 7

Sunday, December 6th 

St. Nicholas Day is celebrated by leaving one of our shoes in the mudroom for St. Nicholas to fill on the night on December 5th. St. Nicholas leaves both practical items that we can use as well as a few treats that aren't normally around our home on a regular basis.

Olivia was the first to wake up. She said that when she went out to take care of the horses that she walked right by the shoes and boot. Apparently she was so focused on morning chores that she blocked out everything else.

When she came back inside, she noticed something different about the bench in the mudroom. The shoes were filled!

Shadow wanted to be a part of the experience and checked out what everyone received.

Below is what Olivia received from St. Nicholas: candy, beef sticks, blending pens (for her drawing class), cheese-in-a-can (which she and Sophia really like for some reason), and a magazine about interior decorating (one of Olivia's favorite topics).

You can see that someone (below) is very happy about receiving cheese-in-a-can. Perhaps it is the infrequency of which this is consumed that makes it such a special treat.

Sophia woke up about an hour later to find things she wanted: a lint roller (to get pet hair off her clothes), pens that can be used with touch screens, pretzel sticks, teriyaki beef jerky, candy, and breath strips.

If you look on the chair in the background, Shadow is sitting on it. It seems like he is trying to be in quite a few pictures. That's okay...he's on palliative care/hospice right now. His medication for hyperthyroidism didn't work so his heart is beating very fast, he's losing a lot of weight, and is experiencing several other side effects of hyperthyroidism that are taking a toll on him. He's not in pain. So, we're enjoying this time with him and making his life as comfortable as possible.

At any rate, after Sophia saw what she received, it was time for her to get ready for her first harp performance of many this month.

Later in the morning, we left to go to Mahtomedi for Sophia's harp rehearsal and performance at an assisted living facility.

The girls in her harp ensemble (seven total, including Sophia) all wore the same outfits and their harps were decorated with gold garland (to match their outfits).

They were accompanied by a young man who played the bells.

The music was beautiful and the parents, guests, and residents of the assisted living facility enjoyed listening to it.

The ensemble played five songs - three towards the beginning of the recital and then two more at the end. Other harp and piano students played songs as part of the recital.

Monday, December 7th

Today we focused on homeschooling since it is the only full day this week that we are at home. The girls needed to concentrate on their schoolwork.

For lunch, one of the things we ate was a healthy Christmas tree made from green apples, red raspberries, and pretzels. (This was for everyone - not each person.)

The idea came from this pin on Pinterest which led to Clean and Scentsible. I didn't have the image in front of me, so I was trying to remember how the apples were arranged. They were in two columns laid slightly on top of one another.

In my version, they are layered both vertically and horizontally. Perhaps a bit more chaotic looking than the pin. All trees are different, though. Mine is a different type of pine tree. Yes...that's it.

In the pin, the two columns of apple slices are topped with a strawberry. Strawberries aren't in season in Minnesota in December, and those that are available taste like cardboard. So, I stuck with raspberries. They were a bit on the tart side so I added a bit of sugar to the remaining ones. If the fruit was eaten as presented above it would be healthy. The side of fruit with sugar..not so healthy.

Oh well...at least it tasted good and was a nice treat.

Countdown to Christmas 2015 - Days 1-5

Tuesday, December 1st

Had $20 in Kohl's cash and rewards. Sophia, Olivia, and I decided that we would get a special treat: Ghiradelli chocolates in four different flavors; and a Godiva chocolate bar.  

As we were looking around the store for things we could all enjoy that was under $20, we stopped at two chairs that had massage backs on them. 

So, we spent some time getting free back massages which felt good. We didn't realize how much our backs were hurting until we sat down in those chairs.

Wednesday, December 2nd

Sophia and Olivia are continuing to practice songs on the piano and harp music for upcoming performances at two nursing homes, the Guthrie Theater, and church.

Thursday, December 3rd 

This was our club meeting. The girls received a grant from the Karma for Cara Foundation to make bags for youth entering the foster care system. They worked on two types of bags: one filled with school supplies and the other with art and creative expression items as well as games and activities.

We were asked by the City of Scandia (which shares a space with the community center) if we would decorate the Christmas tree. The tree will be used to decorate the space and for the Scandia-Marine Lions upcoming Breakfast with Santa.

It was a good lesson in teamwork, cooperation, and communication.

By the time the children and teens were done, they had the tree decorated, lights on it, and presents underneath it.

Friday, December 4th

We spent part of the afternoon with the seniors at Christian Community Home in Osceola. Olivia received a grant to do Stories, Stitches, and Painting from YSA. With the funds, we were able to purchase a lot of supplies that the seniors enjoyed working with - especially the different pictures to paint.

Some of the items we made - like the lacing cards. We used calendars that had photographs of quilts and cut the images out. After gluing the images onto cardstock, we laminated them. We cut them out and then punched holes around the perimeter of each lacing card. Using colorful shoelaces, we taped one end on the back side of each card. Then the laces were ready to be used.

The lacing cards seemed to be at the right difficulty level for the seniors. It was challenging enough for them, but not too much so the activity was frustrating. It was good for eye-hand coordination and following a pattern.

The seniors enjoyed painting and were very pleased with how their pictures turned out. All of them were happy that they could take them back to their room.

One of the activities I did was sewing. There were pre-printed panels with different images for pillows, dolls, and Christmas stockings. The seniors picked which item they wanted and helped put straight pins into the fabric (if they were able to do so).

I sewed the item for them on the sewing machine. There was one senior, though, who said that she wanted to sew the stocking by herself. So, we let her try. It had been years - years! - since she sat down at a sewing machine. At 97, we didn't know what to expect.

She surprised us all. We found out that in addition to her many creative talents and teaching skills that she was also a seamstress. She sewed many of her own clothes. Her mother, who was also a seamstress, taught her how to sew.

She was active in 4-H when she was younger, and did many projects - of which sewing was one of them.

When she was done, she was so happy that she was able to make her own Christmas stocking.

She showed her friends who live in the assisted living section with her.

I made a Christmas stocking for John, who we've known now for several years. He picked out which pattern he wanted for his stocking. As I sewed the stocking, I would hand him pins that I took out. 

He would have to use his fine-motor skills to grasp the pin and put it into the pin cushion.

While I was working on his stocking, he could watch the video that we got as part of the grant if he wanted a break from watching me sew or cut.

The video had beautiful images of flowers set to harp and keyboard music.

The third Christmas stocking was for a woman who had just gone on hospice that day. I asked her which stocking pattern she wanted - the one with a green background or red background. She stared at the green background one. So, I picked that one for her.

As she watched me, she noticed the fabric scissors. It  belonged to my mom. She picked it up and was moving it - like she remembered what to do with it (although it had probably been many years since she picked up a scissor and cut anything).

One of the girls from our 4-H club held some felt while she moved the scissors. Although she didn't cut anything, I wondered if it was bringing back some memories for her from a long time ago that were comforting. I hope so.

When I was all done, I gave her the stocking. I heard a quiet "Thank you." She held the Christmas stocking and moved her hands back and forth over the snowman.

She would touch the felt and cotton - two different textures which kept her engaged and content for a long time - much longer than she normally is without anything in her hands.

She helped me clean up the table - pointing to things that I needed to put away. She even folded one of the quilted table runners. Perhaps it brought back memories of folding a tablecloth after a family meal.

This was a meaningful way to spend the afternoon and the seniors all seemed happy with what they created. We are going back again next week to some different activities related to sewing and painting...and we'll see what types of stories and memories that the seniors share in that process.

Saturday, December 5th

The first weekend of December we always go to the St. Croix Falls/Taylors Falls area. On the way there, we stop at Eichtens.

The exterior of the store was nicely decorated.

It was festive with whimsical touches that we've never seen before.

Inside, there was an array of holiday treats. The first stop: cookies and a hot spiced cranberry drink. (The drink we came back for later.)

Even indoors, there were signs of Christmas.

At another table, there were a variety of cubed cheeses and a spread. It's nice to taste the variety of cheeses. Everything we tasted was delicious.

At another table, there were different types of dip. Our favorite was a chili con queso dip. It was a spicy sour cream based dip that we put on tortilla chips.

Outdoors, we headed over to the blue-eyed buffalo. It wouldn't be the Countdown to Christmas if we didn't take an annual picture with the buffalo. We managed to get Olivia up there, but Sophia said that it would be better (and safer) if she stayed on the ground.

Next year: we'll bring a ladder so she can sit on the buffalo. I think we talked about doing that last year, but forgot the ladder this year.

After that, we went to Interstate State Park. We did some exploring for a while, except we went backwards (from our normal hike) this time.

The river was flowing calmly, and we enjoyed watching it.

The cliffs provide a beautiful view of the river and the Wisconsin side of Interstate State Park.

Read a sign that said that the area where we were walking would have been about 200 feet under the water about 10,000 years ago.

What is left are some amazing rock formations. We went down a rock staircase which was interesting. We realized we should have worn more appropriate hiking boots. For some reason Olivia's boots and my clogs were a bit on the slippery side.

The coloration of the rocks was beautiful.

What was surprising was that there were still ferns growing in December. We never see anything like that.

The rocks have such interesting patterns and shapes no matter where you are in the park.

Things sometimes are sitting precariously on top of one another.

Later in the afternoon, Sophia and Olivia went swimming with friends and then to their home for awhile. They had a fun time seeing them again.

Where Women Create: Quilters - Their Quilts, Their Studios, Their Stories - Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks - Week 49

For the 49th week of the Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge, I read Where Women Create: Quilters - Their Quilts, Their Studios, Their Stories by Jo Packham.

Under David Butler's section there was an image of quilt flags. They were made using the patterns of flag, but not in the typical colors that you would associate them with which made them quite intriguing and beautiful.

After doing a quick search, I found that it leads to Amy Butler's PDF pattern that can be purchased for $10. There are seven different applique/quilt patterns that can be made. As the description says:

I designed these flags as an easy project with plenty of creative legroom! We're giving you instructions on how to make them as individual flags using grommets, but you can also simply sew them together to make a great patchwork flag quilt, pillows, wall hanging, or even skirt. Great possibilities might come in the form of your favorite country, sports team, or maybe a nautical theme for a boy's room. At any rate, enjoy! - David Butler (Parson Gray)  FINISHED DIMENSIONS: Each finished flag measures 12" wide x 18" long.

Another design that I liked that several quilters used was circles in various forms and patterns. It seems like the "typical" quilt uses such angular lines and shapes - lots of squares and rectangles. So, it is particularly refreshing for me to see circles used. I'm not sure how to best do that and be able to create such smooth lines. Perhaps sometime in the future I can take a quilting class and learn how to do this.

The  book was visually uplifting and beautiful to look at; and had so many inspiring ideas. It made me realize how much I miss sewing and quilting...even if what I do pales in comparison to what these quilters are able to create. What's important is that the quilts all meant something to me and reflect where I was in my life and my skill level at the time.

Nature Photo of the Week - Week 48 - Pebbles

This week Sophia, Olivia, and I went to Interstate State Park in Minnesota. There were plenty of pebbles and small rocks around the park as well as large rock formations.

It seemed fitting that the prompt for the Nature Photo of the Week challenge that I chose for this week was "Pebbles."

The photo, however, is not of pebbles. Rather, it is of an interesting area of the park that has rock formations withe various colors. The stripes and waves of colors vary from rock to rock. It's beautiful.

According to the DNR information about Interstate State Park, "About 1.1 billion years ago, earthquakes erupted from Taylors Falls to Lake Superior. At least 10 different lava flows were the result. The hardened basalt rock from these lava flows was partly responsible for the formation of the Dalles of the St. Croix and the bottom of the river.

"From 530 million years ago up until 70 million years ago, the state was washed by advancing and retreating seas. Evidence of these ancient seas is revealed in the sedimentary rocks and formations found in the park. These rocks contain fossil remains of ancient animals, evidence of various creatures, and ripple marks left in stone by the now vanished seas.

"Actually, there have been many different St. Croix Valleys down through the ages. The original one was formed about 70 million years ago. The last one, which exists today, was formed about 10,000 years ago."

When I think of the size of the glaciers in relationship to the size of the rocks that were before me, they are pebbles - such small rocks - compared to the massive glaciers moving through this area.