Gratitude: 359

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Today I am grateful for:

Christmas with my family

missing Marcel tho xo

Gratitude: 349

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Today i am grateful for:

Christmas

Gratitude: 325

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Today I am grateful for:

the Christmas season

Merry Christmas!

{Post: 360/365}

good morning

coffee

small breakfast

excitement

opening stockings

and gifts

showers

getting dressed

gathering up more presents

and food

to bring to mom's

family

fellowship

food

and more gifts

good dinner together

laughter and love

Christmas

Christmas Eve

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joy and

contentment

fills my heart

all my children are home

for Christmas

plus one

there is laughter

and music

there is

hope

there is spirit

and joy

and more

there is comfort

and fun

and I am

grateful

to be sharing it

with them

Christmas Cookies

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I just can't help

the visions

of cookies

inside my head

and the 

mouth-watering

taste bud tempting

thoughts 

of

gingersnaps

russian teaballs

shortbread

chocolate hermits

toffee cookie brittle

thumbprint

and sugar cookies

and all the ones

I haven't even tried yet!

My Gift to You

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it is small

and dainty

but made by my hands

crafted with all the love

in my heart

and given

with the spirit

of hope

that

everytime

you see it again

and hang it on your tree

you will be reminded

that you are

cherished

appreciated

and loved

my gift to you

Tree Lights

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how to express

the feeling

the joy

of tree lights

twinkling

red

blue

yellow

green

orange

shine

reflecting

in the glass

baubles

and ornaments

hanging

from the branches

beautiful angel

lit up inside

topping the tree

handmade love

and gifts

included

it brings me joy

and peace

and the willingness

to work harder

be more tired

and give more

LOVE

Colours of Christmas

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breathing in

the colours

and emotions

of Christmas

tree shining

and twinkling

with lights

in blue, red, yellow, orange and green

and shiny

ball ornaments

in purple, silver, red and blue

catching the lights

glass icicles and angels

sparkling in the branches

santas, balls, bells

and cute little critters

in all the vibrant colours

adorn the Christmas tree

and my heart

is full of all the

peace, love and hope

of the season

I LOVE it!

Excited

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excited

and can't wait

to put up my tree

it is almost here

my favourite

time of year

and this year

I'll hug my

baby girl

for the first time

in years

excited

and waiting

to finish

the presents

wrap them

and set them

under the tree

shiny new ornaments

twinkling lights

and a new kitten

experiencing

his first

Christmas tree

excited

Crocheting for Christmas

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I am crocheting

gifts for Christmas

and as I crochet

I remember

the grandmother

who taught me to

crochet flowers

somewhere

locked away in a bin

is the bedspread she made me

crocheted by hand

made with love

all the more special

because I understood the WORK

she put into it

and somewhere a pillow

made by my own hand

to match

but more

the gift...

the GIFT

of not only a skill I could master

but a talent I could cherish

and for you, grandma

I am grateful

then I also remember

the other grandmother

my nanny

who always made us

socks and mittens

for Christmas

even while the arthritis

in her hands

made it difficult

and before she had to stop

she would knit

and I never could figure out how

to knit

but my mother knows

 I am struck

by the passage of time

and the loss 

of so much

and I wish

that my daughter

wanted to learn

to crochet

but maybe

just maybe

I will be the grandma

who teaches her own

grand daughter

to crochet flowers

or toys

or something else

I HOPE

Getting Ready

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isn't it funny

having something

even a small thing

to give to my family

my children

my friends

even if just a beginning

settles my spirit

eases my mind

slows the beating 

of my heart

and brings

my soul peace

i may not be finished yet

but i have definitely

begun!

it may not be perfect

but I will be ready

for Christmas

Handmade Gifts

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the countdown

has begun

I have no time

so TODAY

is making a plan

for Christmas

day!

bust out

the creative bomb

and MAKE

some pretty

and useful

gifts

for my friends

and family

and hope

that it really is true

handmade gifts

are better

because they are

made with love

and a portion of my time

I AM thinking of YOU 

when I choose

a pattern

an idea

a statement

and every time

I also give 

a piece of myself

and the flow of my love

Things That I LOVE

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I LOVE

unicorns

the colour blue

the sound of a baby giggling

the soft fur of a kitten

kittens in general

"the look" you receive from your cat

the colour purple

Papa Yeti

the idea of a yeti

M&Ms

Tigger

Eeyore

potato chips

and french fries

seasoning salt

feeling the "click" of connection with someone new

DRAGONS

magic

fire

teddy bears

colours

rainbows

Old World Santas

Christmas in general

Nutcrackers

elves

fairytales

stories

the BLUES

the colour green

books

photographs of the world

flowers

more specifically

day lilies, crocuses and roses

and too many others to list

I love GREEN

the smell of it

the taste of it

the feel of it

like sugar snap peas

and brussel sprouts

and grass under bare feet

I love wolves

and polar bears

well all bears really

she's a fierce momma you know

I love sea otters

and river otters too

hedgehogs

puppies

candles

a good soak in a bubble bath

charming tails

KISS

writing a good poem

writing a good story

people

life

and still

so much MORE

Christmas

{Post: 225/365}

I am

thinking about it

yes

I AM

racking my brain

to come up with

unique

and special

gifts

sharing

a delicious

traditional

meal plan 

with a friend

planning

to enjoy

the time with

ALL my children

and already

getting excited

waiting for a book

of ideas, recipes and crafts

to begin another season

of

Christmas!

Boxing Day

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Pain again. :(
I don't know if it is what I ate or being dehydrated or not keeping my foot up enough or just the stress of going and doing when I am already not at my best but I HATE relapses!!
I've been drinking, drinking, drinking and drinking as much water as I can, eating blueberries and polished off my second bottle of cherry juice. Finally, the killing pain is done I think but I'm not 100% healed yet and I have decided I will NOT...Go...or...DO...again until the foot is DONE.
I AM however, GRATEFUL for hubby AND Gibby who are both helping me, getting me things, cooking for me, delivering my meals, drinks and snacks, and otherwise being annoyed and irritated (quite lovingly) as I rest and get better!! Thank you boys! LOVE you both MUCH!! xoxo

Christmas Day

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Christmas Day began early. 6:30am to be exact! After stockings and presents and breakfast I had a nap on the couch till around 11:30am and then got dressed and ready to spend the afternoon at Mom & Pop's and have Christmas Dinner. It was a nice, quiet, relaxing Christmas this year and very enjoyable.
Also we got to spend the afternoon with my oldest son, Marcel and it made me very happy.  The only thing that could have made it better for me was if my daughter had come home from Nova Scotia. Hopefully someday I will share Christmas with her again as well. When they grow up and move out and on into their own lives a lot of things change but I am happy and proud that they ARE living their own lives and doing their own things!
I hope everyone else as much peace and happiness on their Christmas celebrations!

Christmas Eve

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We have had a lovely, relaxing day and evening just watching shows and cooking and eating meals and getting excited for tomorrow morning and how Gib will feel about his "box of clothes" that he hasn't poked, prodded or touched because that's what he truly believes is IN IT. (It is NOT!) lol
We are excited to share our gifts with each other as well and have Christmas breakfast and coffee and then after lunch we'll go to my mom & pop's for the afternoon and a nice dinner.
It's another quiet Christmas this year and is quite enjoyable!! :)

Fave Christmas Drink

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I love hot chocolate with a melted candy cane. :) 

You know the little canes that you can buy...minis. They fit perfectly on the side of a mug and melt slowly into the hot chocolate. You can use them to stir it. You can just drop them in and swirl them around till they are fully melted. It is a wonderful part of my Christmas holidays. :)

My Fave Christmas Things!

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I LOVE:

Snowmen

and 

Frosty the Snowman ;)

Gingerbread cookies!

Christmas lights...

a Christmas tree!

Reindeer.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Penguins!

and lots more...but most important of all...

Old World Santa Claus ;)

The MOST important part of Christmas for me is ...LOVE.