Learn Something, Make Something, Love Someone

I am unspeakably sad. I've been trying to decide whether or not to write this post for several days now.

I have a very good friend who is going through great sorrow this holiday season. Sandy and I have been friends for a very long time. We're about the same age. Her son, Matt, and my daughter, Katy, are the same age. And her daughter, Abby, and my son, Nick, are also the same age. Sandy and I worked together for many years at our local United Way. We actually tried to get our kids to date, but they were friends who hung out together while their moms worked together. When Matt and Katy graduated, our friends had a celebration for Sandy and me, complete with cake and tissues, because we were pretty emotional about our firstborn children graduating.

Sandy and I have a lot in common. We both love coffee and books. We're both still married to our original husbands. And we both love our children and grandchildren to the point of distraction. We can go for months without seeing each other and then just pick up like it was only yesterday. I love her like a sister.

Matt was the first of our children to marry and he and his lovely wife, Amy, had children right away. So Sandy was a grandmother before me. Yes, I was very jealous! You can read about Sandy on her Grilled Grandma feature over at Grandma's Briefs.

Just over a year ago, Sandy's eldest grandchild, Liam, was diagnosed with leukemia. He received a bone marrow transplant from his little sister Mary which put him in remission for a while. When he relapsed last summer, he was moved to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis where he received another transplant. Last week, Liam and his family returned home to Abilene where Liam began hospice care. Liam's parents have taken their six year old home for the last time. They are spending this holiday season making a different kind of preparations. No one should ever have to endure what this lovely and caring family is enduring.

They've asked for friends to respect their privacy and their need to be together as a family. They've been keeping us up to date with a Caring Bridge site since he was first diagnosed. I marvel at their ability to communicate at all during this time. And I know that their friends in Abilene are taking good care of them. I wish I could be there to help.

Liam is a remarkable child who is full of life and love for the whole world. His parents, Matt and Amy, have done such an amazing job with their family. When Liam relapsed several months ago, they decided that every day in the hospital they should "learn something, make something, and love someone."

As part of loving someone, Liam learned about how many people around the world don't have access to clean water. As a result, he launched a project to build wells in Africa. The project is known as Liam's Wells. Liam's friends and family have funded two wells that have already been built in Kenya. But more people want to help, so Liam's Wells is a continuing project.

If you can make a charitable donation during this holiday season, please consider donating to Liam's Wells. Grams and her family have already contributed. We invite you to help Liam "learn something, make something, and love someone," by joining us. Click here to go to the donation page.

And please remember this family in your prayers. Then give your children an extra big hug and remember what is really important. We all need a little help with perspective at this time of year.

Hold your children a little tighter this Christmas and be a little more patient and tolerant. Be gentle with them when they're cranky and overtired or overstimulated. Remember what is important and what is not. So what if you can't get them everything they've asked Santa for. Take a break from wrapping presents and wrap your arms around your children. That's what really matters.

Celebrate everything! Messes and mistakes and good grades and bad grades are part of life and life should be celebrated. Slow down and spend time with them. In the grand scheme of things, it won't matter if you bake one more batch of Christmas cookies or not. Sometimes let go of the chores and read a book with them. Your housework will wait, but your children won't.

Make a commitment to follow in Liam's footsteps this holiday season ... learn something, make something, and love someone ... every day!

Things To Do and Fruit Loops

Grams is feeling the pressure of my Christmas to-do list. I am determined to finish my gift shopping today. That leaves tomorrow for finishing Our Little Princess' Christmas dress and buying groceries. Then on Wednesday, I'll wrap gifts in a marathon session. I'm turning the cleaning over to Grandad for the next few days. I'm lucky that way. He's ready and willing to help. I simply have to direct him.

Now that you know that I really don't have time to blog, I just thought I'd show you my little Fruit Loops.

I can't wait for them to arrive on Friday. Christmas is going to be so much fun!

Scented Memories

Grams rarely wears perfume or cologne. My sense of smell varies greatly. Some days I smell everything much too acutely and some days I can't smell much of anything at all. If I happen to be wearing scent on one of those "hyper smell" days, I smell it all day long and it eventually gives me a headache. So, except for now and then on special occasions, I avoid wearing scent at all.

I also have an issue with those plug-in aroma warmer thingies. While I really like the way some of them smell, some of them trigger an allergic reaction and my head gets so stopped up that it takes weeks to go away. That allergic reaction happens even though I take two allergy medications every day, just to be able to breathe in South Texas. It is really a problem for me when I substitute in a classroom where the teacher has a plug-in scent. I usually unplug them and set them aside while I'm there. I try to remember to plug them back in at the end of the day when I'm leaving, but sometimes I forget. I suspect that it ticks some of them off.

In my experience, the olfactory sense is the quickest way to bring back pleasant memories. The smell of pine and cedar takes me right back to my childhood in the piney woods of Northeast Texas. Eucalyptus reminds me of my sister-in-law Nancy's house which is always cozy and welcoming. Fresh cut grass reminds me of summertime mornings spent lying in the damp grass watching clouds go by. Aqua Velva, Lectric Shave, and Old Spice will always be associated with how my Dad smelled after his afternoon bath. Fresh-baked cornbread has a strong association with my Mom's kitchen. And a whiff of Aramis men's fragrance has me recalling that first boyfriend back in the 1970s.

A couple of weeks ago we attended our community's free performance of Handel's Messiah at First United Methodist Church. It was wonderful. I can't say enough how much I love this annual gift to the community. This is an all volunteer chorus that gets together annually just to do this one performance. I've attended many years.

Grandad and I are in our late fifties. Suffice it to say that we were among the youngsters in the audience at this performance. We were surrounded by a crowd that I would say were mostly in their seventies. There was a definite prevailing scent of "little old lady" cologne. I don't know exactly what that scent is, but it's distinct and consistent. Anywhere there are lots of older ladies, there is that scent. It's not unpleasant, but in large quantities and closed spaces it can be overwhelming.

I use scented candles to add a pleasant aroma to our home. I keep one in each bathroom and one in either the living room or dining room. The living room and dining room are really the same room. Our house was built in the 80s and has a great room. I vary the scent according to the season. Right now I have apricot in one room, acorn and fig in one room, and marshmallow fireside in one room. Before the family arrives for Christmas, I'll switch the one in the living room for fresh balsam. It smells like a Christmas tree and, since we use an artificial tree and garlands, lends the scent of Christmas to the house. I think the marshmallow fireside and fresh balsam will be a great combination in the great room.

Source

Where was I going with this post? Oh yeah, now I remember! Last year for Christmas, the kids gave me a Kindle electronic book reader. I love and adore it. As of today I am carrying 92 books in my purse all the time. I can take it out and read any time and any where. It even marks my place automatically and when I'm at school I can password protect it so teenagers don't read it when I'm distracted. (They've been known to do that.) I've really grown attached to my Kindle. At first I had to adjust to not holding a book and not turning pages. But those adjustments came pretty easily. I got used to the lack of heft and stopped missing the tactile element of books. The only thing I really miss is the smell of a book. The scent of a book carries with it a real sense of anticipation: the joy of meeting new characters, of understanding their lives, of traveling on their life's journeys with them for a while. You just don't get that with a Kindle. I actually noticed that someone is marketing an "areosol e-book enhancer" called The Smell of Books. It comes in several variations including New Book Smell, Classic Musty, Eau You Have Cats, Scent of Sensibility, and Crunchy Bacon Scent. I have to say, some of those fall in the category of disgusting for me, but to each his own. And, no, I won't be buying any aerosol book enhancers.

Source

I recently received a copy of Best Kept Secret by Amy Hatvany. It's the January choice for the Great Books Book Club and they gave away a few copies. I was thrilled to be one of the recipients. When it came in the mail I opened the package and was immediately drawn in by the scent of a freshly printed book. It smelled of paper, ink, and glue. For me, that smell brings with it the hope of an interesting story that promises to transport me to another place or another time when I read it. I found myself sitting and hugging this book to my chest as I inhaled it's essence.

With the exception of a few leather-bound volumes and a couple of autographed copies, I don't save books. The subtropical climate we live in makes them get musty and smell of mold and dust. This is just one more allergen I don't need. Plus, I sell them at Half Price Books and use the money to buy books for Our Little Princess and Her Highness.  It's a good deal for me and a treat for them.

I hope your holiday season is full of pleasant scents and wonderful memories.

Christmas Decor Done

Grams spent yesterday cleaning house and finishing up my Christmas decorating. By the end of the day, both knees and hips were hurting. When it was time to make dinner, all that was left was sweeping and vacuuming. I didn't get those finished so, those, along with laundry, are on today's agenda. I'm also planning to spend some time sewing a Christmas dress for Our Little Princess. That seems like an ambitious to-do list. We'll see how far I get.

Here is a short recap of the Christmas decor. I added a wreath to the front door. I think it was just the right finishing touch. The glittered "joy" was purchased at an after-Christmas sale last year it's just chipboard and glitter. I paid one dollar for it and it also included two glittery Christmas trees.

Our Christmas tree is quite an undertaking. I've collected ornaments for our entire married life so there are hundreds of ornaments. Grandad helped me decorate it this year. We put White Christmas on while we decorate and sang along with all the familiar songs. Decorating the tree has definitely become more of a challenge for me in recent years. At 5'1" decorating the top of the tree requires a stepladder for me. Grandad decorated the top of the tree while I unwrapped the ornaments and decorated the bottom of the tree.

I photographed the tree with three different kinds of lighting and camera settings. I'm such a novice photographer, but the photos are each very different and I think they give you a pretty good idea of the way the tree looks.

Then I tackled the fireplace. I made two big poofy bows with the metallic netting that was leftover from the front door. I covered the top of the mantle with an artificial pine garland that I use every year and added the bows to each end. I used a removable decal on the front and I nestled a wreath upcycled from felted sweaters. The glittery Christmas trees were in the same package as the glittered "joy" that's on the wreath that's on the front door. Right next to the fireplace is our back door which has a window. I replaced its usual curtain with a folded tablecloth in Christmas colors and added another glittered chipboard purchase from last year's after-Christmas sales. It says "Happy Holidays" and also came with the two snowflakes that you'll see in the picture. All the glittered pieces are hung with fishing line so it's invisible.

I feel so much more prepared for Christmas now that I'm done with the decorating. Tomorrow Grandad starts his vacation. He'll be off until the day after Christmas. He and I will do a marathon shopping day tomorrow.

For today, I need to go start my laundry and make my second cup of coffee.

My Pinterest Inspired Christmas Door

Grams is hooked on Pinterest. I know that I'm not alone in this. Katy and I were discussing it today and she said "it's kind of like peeking in on someone else's style." I think she's right. We also agreed that it can be a huge time suck. Probably more than, dare I say it, Facebook. When I start looking around Pinterest, I'll look up and suddenly hours have gone by.

I've seen a few Pinterest Challenge posts around the blogosphere. The one that I can remember was by Sherry over at Young House Love. She made the cutest Christmas ornaments during the Fall Pinterest Challenge.

When I found this door on Pinterest, I knew I wanted to do something similar.

Source: southernfrieddreams.blogspot.com via Vicki on Pinterest

I wanted to replicate it, so I started shopping for the elements. I found the mesh at Hobby Lobby. It was affordable but I couldn't find a print like the one in the picture. Instead I bought a roll of white metallic mesh (which came from the bridal department) and a roll of red metallic mesh. The white mesh is 21 inches wide and 30 feet long and cost $9.99. The red is 5 1/2 inches wide by 30 feet long and cost $4.99. I used one roll of each.

I looked for the oversize ornaments in a lot of places in both Corpus Christi and Houston. Unfortunately, the only oversized ornaments I could find were from $4 to $12 each. I didn't want to spend that much so I started looking for an alternative. I considered several things and had decided on the idea of wiring a group of 5 or 7 ornaments in a cluster to use in place of the oversize ornaments.

Then I went to Dollar Tree where I found these beautiful glittery bells. In case you don't have a Dollar Tree where you live or if you've never been there, everything at Dollar Tree is $1. Seriously! I love Dollar Tree. So I bought three of each color and spent a total of $9 on the bells.

The red ribbon with green glitter polka dots is left over from my Christmas tree garland. I bought it three years ago. It cost me nothing this year.

I also used one value-size package of 3M Command small wire hooks. There are 9 in a package; and I used 7 of them. They cost approximately $8 at Wal-Mart. The Command hooks are awesome. It's the first product I've found that works on our vinyl siding without any damage. I will be buying some larger ones for hanging wreaths and other decor on the exterior of our house.

The only other expense was a package of chenille stems (previously known as pipe cleaners) which cost less than $2 for 100 stems at Wal-Mart.

Here's my finished front door. I'm pretty satisfied with how it looks; not identical to the Pinterest door, but inspired by it.

Total cost ... less than $35. Not too bad.

I was not compensated in any way by any one for this post. I paid for all the materials used in this project.

I'm linking this post the the Pinterest Make Me Challenge Weekly Link Up at Mummy To Five.

The Pop-Pop Effect

Grams and Grandad have had a busy morning. We moved our old entertainment center out of the family room into the garage and put a for sale sign on it. We also finished getting our new television and components set up in our new tv stand. We still need to put a safety strap on the television, but I assure you it will be done before Our Little Princess and Her Highness arrive in a couple of weeks. Neither of use tends to climb on the furniture, so I'm pretty sure it'll be okay for a couple of days.

Anyway, when we sat down the recuperate from moving a very, very heavy piece of furniture, I spent my time browsing through photos. In doing so, I notice what I'm calling "the Pop-Pop effect." We seem to have a large number of pictures of Grandad holding sleeping babies. He's big, he's cuddly, and he's warm. Just kind of makes me want to curl up and sleep too.

Happy Saturday everyone. I hope you have a chance to cuddle up with someone you love for a nap.

A Sweater Dress for Our Little Princess

A few weeks ago Grams was doing what Grams does almost every evening. While Grandad watches television, I keep one eye on the television while I surf the web. On this particular evening, I ran across this tutorial, from Make It and Love It, for upcycling an adult sweater into a child's sweater dress. When I saw this dress, I knew I had to make one for Our Little Princess.

As luck would have it, I had exactly the same sweater in the stack of stuff I had set aside for my garage sale. So I went out to the garage, dug the sweater out, followed the directions, and produced the cutest little sweater dress. The tutorial calls for beautiful little satin flowers. That was the only thing I changed. Instead, I made rolled felt roses which are pinned on and can be removed for washing. Our Little Princess insisted on wearing all three roses at the same time.

The roses are super simple to make and will be for sale soon in my Etsy shop.

If I make another upcycled sweater dress, I'll make it a little wider through the hips. She wasn't nearby for measuring so I had to eyeball it. I think it'll be okay once she gives up her pull-ups for panties, which will hopefully be soon.

While we're on the subject of pull-ups and panties, Katy is looking for any constructive advice you might have about potty training. Our Little Princess will be three years old in February and is not in the least bit interested in using the potty. Please share any advice you might have in the comment section and I'll pass it on.