I Have No Gift (bought or made...YET)

  ~ Little Drummer Boy ~ 

Our house has been transformed; no longer is it the artsy abode with bold colored walls -- well, the walls still boast daring tones...  But they are now the bedecked backdrop for twinkling lights, merry Santas, jolly elves, peaceful angels, and sparkling orbs in juicy hues.  Johnny Mathis sang the sound track of my childhood holidays, and watching the children bob their heads and sing the choruses as they hung ornaments on the tree had my soul smiling.  I enjoyed the eggnog better this year than most.  (...maybe I've finally figured out the perfect ratio of brandy to nog...)  All in all, our decorating weekend was a blast.

When the last bobble was hung on the tree, we stepped back to survey our work.  I cupped my chin in the groove at the base of my thumb.  "Hmm," I said, "it's missing something..."

"You're right," declared Sidney, my peppy ten-year-old daughter and future party planner extraordinaire. "It needs presents.  I'll go get some."

I snagged her arm as she strode past, headed for her bedroom closet where I know since September she's been making, wrapping and stowing presents for all of us.  I pulled her into a snuggle, her back against my chest and my arms around her, and the smell of her shampoo, mingled with the evergreen and nutmeg, intoxicated my senses.  A moment of pure joy to remember forever.

And something else for me to remember:  I have not been holiday shopping since September...and the kids only have two weeks of school before they're home for the break...so I'd better take a cue from my daughter and get this Christmas bulb rolling!

Hope your Holiday preparations are underway and bringing you much joy!  

Wishing You All A...

Are you dressing up this year?  What as??

Have a blast!

A Mother's Promise

My children are eleven and ten.  We're standing on the threshold of the teenage years, and a part of me is scared to death.  But it will pass quickly.  Too quickly.  Like our first decade together.  One day, soon, they'll be grown and moved on to live their independent lives.  I wonder how they'll look back on their childhoods?


What I want my children to remember about me as a mother:


That my face lit up each time they entered a room.

That putting their own well-being above my own was a natural reaction and not a choice I felt I had to make.

That I believed in my heart they chose me as their mother, and that I honored that choice every day.

That I was only human and made mistakes, but I understood the importance of admitting my errors and asking for forgiveness.

That I encouraged them to live their own lives, not a life I wished for them.

That I appreciated self-expression in any way it manifested itself in my children.

That I needed my own time, not because I was selfish, but because giving that to myself made me a more centered person and a better parent.

That we laughed A LOT.

That it was okay for us to get mad at each other, healthy even.  But that I was never too proud to make the first move toward reconciliation.

That I was always the last to release a hug.

That I looked them in the eye and said "I love you" every single day.

That I believed kindness and generosity toward others were high priorities in life.

That I wasn't afraid they'd stop loving me if I answered "no."  And if my answer was "no," there was a reason behind it.  I never said "no" because I didn't want them to have fun, or to punish them unfairly.

That I recognized their talents and encouraged their interests (even if I didn't find those things interesting).

That school mattered.  If they got a "C" when they worked their hardest, then I applauded their "C."  If they got a "C" when I knew they could have done better, I came down hard on them.

That I demanded success from them, so they would learn to demand success from themselves.

That I thought they were the coolest people on the planet.

And above all else, I want my kids to always remember how much I love them.  From the day I learned I'd conceived, to the day they were born, beyond the day I die.  I will always, always love them.

Here's to being the best mothers we can be.

Happy Mother's Day, everyone! 

Happy Earth Day!

Original Artwork by Alexandra Fomicheva

Honor our Planet and Your Craft Today!

~ REDUCE ~

In Your Home:  Here are small changes you can begin TODAY

1. Turn off lights when you leave the room.

2. Close drapes, blinds or shutters on the side of the house where the sun is shining.

3. Buy an aluminum water bottle and refill it from your water filtering system (on the fridge front, Britta system, etc.)  Don't buy bottled water anymore!

4. Pack your child's lunch in plastic containers.  They come in all sizes now, for sandwiches, the size and shape of juice boxes, small enough for one serving of crackers or cookies, etc.  Include a fabric napkin, too!

5. If your child drinks from a straw, buy her a stainless steel straw!  (Available HERE)

6. Use fabric napkins at mealtime.

7. Use fabric rags when wiping down counter tops or cleaning windows.

Your Writing:

1. Print out your drafts less often.  When you do, reduce the font size, fitting more text on each page.

2. Change the color of your font each time you print, using up colored ink cartridges at the same rate as the black.

3. Shut down your computer at night.

~ REUSE ~

In Your Home:

1. Wipe off barely used aluminum foil, fold it when good and dry, and use it again.

2. Buy the reusable grocery bags and keep them in your car.  Use them EVERY time you shop.

3. Save yogurt and sour cream containers to store your child's small toys and game pieces.

4. Buy molds to make your own Popsicles using organic fruit juices.  You save money, there's less sugar, there's no supermarket packaging to throw away, and the kids will LOVE them!

5. Buy giant gallon sized boxes of hand soap and refill the pump-style containers.

6. Store food in the fridge and freezer in plastic or glass containers, not disposable bags. 

In Your Writing:

1. Save your rough drafts and print newer drafts on the backs.  (Draw a cross with a highlighter on the old side!)

2. Save the colored paper announcements from your child's school and print rough drafts on the blank sides.

3. Don't throw away deleted excerpts from your MS, or examples of practice writing, etc.  You may be inspired to use it in another project!

4. Use a secondary character from one story as the protagonist in another.

5. Expand a short story into a novel.

6. Use a scene from a less successful novel and write a short story or poem.

~ RECYCLE ~

In Your Home:

1. Put everything with the recycle triangle on it in your recycle bin.  Things you can recycle are: plastic, glass, and aluminum, of course, but also empty cereal boxes, aluminum foil, take-out cartons, plastic SOLO cups and plates, disposable silverware, magazines and newspapers, plastic trays that store bought cookies sit in, cardboard pasta boxes, pizza delivery boxes, plastic bottles for shampoo, hand soap, dishwasher and clothes detergents, etc.

2. Save gift bags from birthdays and Christmas for the next event.

3. Donate outgrown clothes to charity organizations in your community.

4. Donate books to your local library or school.

In Your Writing:

1. Refill used printer ink cartridges or recycle them at office supply stores.

2. Shred rough drafts when both sides of the paper have been printed on, and use them when stuffing packages for fragile objects to be shipped by mail.

3. Donate old laptops and other computer hardware to recycle centers.

Mother Earth and your Muse thank you!

Celebrate Earth Day by implementing these small changes!

What other ideas can you share for reducing, reusing and recycling?


[Arg! Blogger won't let me post comments on anyone's blogs today!  I'm frustrated!!!!]