December Daily

These are two books I made for my sister and sister-in-law, following the December Daily model created by Ali Edwards.  The idea is that you have a place to record the 25 days of December: the ordinary, the decorating, the events, the ordinary, the small special things like a favorite coffee drink only available during the holidays, the excitement, the giving, the wrapping, the ordinary...

Ali says she puts her books away each year with the ornaments, and then they have fun looking at past books when they come out each year.

I used a combination of purchased templates, recyled material and stuff I had on hand.  I will put mine together tonight, and mail theirs today.

I hope that by getting a ready made book to work with, this doesn't feel like yet another task, but a fun chance to capture family traditions and memories. They can take a photo a day and print them at the end, put sticky notes on pages to remind them what the words should be, or do it as they go.  And since they each have children with birthdays in December, I suspect that those days will be easy to fill in and cameras will already be out.

Plus I bet that the oldest children would be willing to take charge of a day that they write about for the family so all the work doesn't fall on mom.

Off to find envelopes!

Happy Thanksgiving to You!

This historic proclamation was issued by George Washington during his first year as President. It sets aside Thursday, November 26 as "A Day of Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer."


Signed by Washington on October 3, 1789 and entitled "General Thanksgiving," the decree appointed the day "to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God."



While there were Thanksgiving observances in America both before and after Washington's proclamation, this represents the first to be so designated by the new national government.



After their first harvest, the colonists of the Plymouth Plantation held a celebration of food and feasting in the fall of 1621. Indian chiefs Massassoit, Squanto and Samoset joined in the celebration with ninety of their men in the three-day event.



The first recorded Thanksgiving observance was held on June 29, 1671 at Charlestown, Massachusetts by proclamation of the town's governing council.



During the 1700s, it was common practice for individual colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout each year. A Thanksgiving Day two hundred years ago was a day set aside for prayer and fasting, not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today's custom. Later in the 18th century each of the states periodically would designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, an adoption of a state constitution or an exceptionally bountiful crop.

Such a Thanksgiving Day celebration celebration was held in December of 1777 by the colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga.



Later, on October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the observance of the fourth Tuesday of November as a national holiday.



In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday to the third Thursday of November (to extend the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy). After a storm of protest, Roosevelt changed the holiday again in 1941 to the fourth Thursday in November, where it stands today.

May we all be mindful of our many blessings.

I wish you all a day of family, friends and peace.

His Majesty

Dishes abound in my family.  Both grandmothers had multiple sets that they pulled out seasonally.

My mother has multiple sets.

Right now I have a set of Royal Orchard in boxed in my attic that I have no room to pull out and use.  I have an everyday set (white) and a fine set (white w/gold trim) that were selected to go with whatever my taste might turn into.  I have a small set of Spode Christmas Tree that I bought in interest free installments from a store in Dothan, Alabama.

But.

Other than a turkey majolica plate, I have no Thanksgiving dishes.

Homegoods, I thought.  Homegoods will have something. They never let me down.

I found two mugs that fit the bill.  And that was it.  Homegoods had literally nothing else left in the Thanksgiving mode.

The gobbler, His Majesty, resides on the inside of the mug.  His Majesty is by Johnson Brothers. 

With my white dishes, I think a full set of mugs or a set of salad plates or perhaps soup bowls would be great.  And much better than a full set of dishes that I have no room to store :)

What's in your cupboard?

Beauty in the Chick-Fil-A Drive Through

The title doesn't have the same literary weight as if it had included a small town institution like Piggly Wiggly, but Piggly Wiggly doesn't sell Chick-Fil-A sandwiches OR have a drive through.

Amen.

For those of you scratching your heads about the title reference, there is a book by Kate DiCamillo entitled Because of Winn Dixie which was made into a movie starring AnnaSophia Robb, Jeff Daniels, Cicely Tyson, Eva Marie Saint, Dave Matthews (yes, that one) and a charming rascal dog, Winn Dixie.  Based on Winn Dixie's behavior, I believe him to be my Gus' forebear, if not in genes, at least in spirit.

It just goes to show, there's good light everywhere, even in the Chick-Fil-A drive through.

Bugged

These photos were drive by shooting photos - photos I take from my car window or sunroof.  See the guy who mugged for the camera in the photo to the left of the tree?  I didn't know he made the photo until I uploaded it. 

In other news - Work!  Expanding to fit outside it's allotment!  Ack!

That is all.

Color Scheme

Aren't these colors wonderful?  They are wonderful color scheme inspiration.

In the Gutter

I spotted these leaves looking like two hearts nestled together this weekend, right before the rain started.

Leaves of Gold

There is a tree that is too close to my house.  I have dragged my feet in having it taken down, and in fact, it's large enough now that I have to get permission from the city treebeards (Lord of the Rings, anyone?) to take it down since it's a hardwood. 

Right now, that tree is covered in gold leaves, and from 2 pm to around 4 pm it glows as if someone plugged it in.

Maybe I'll have it taken down next year.

Veterans Day

To my great (in more ways than one) Uncle Jimmy,

Uncle Dixon whom I never knew,

Grandfather Will,

and all the United States men and women who serve and have served,

Thank you for my freedom and safety.

Random Snaps

I loved the sunlight coming through the golden leaved trees behind my house.

This tree on my street is magnificent.

Fortune cookies should be called Common Sense Cookies, and we should print trillions of this particular one.

My dogs never snuggle closely together.  But while I was recovering from a cold last week I spent a lot of time napping on my sofa.  So did they.

Blue Light Special

Late afternoon light from behind the vines.

Loaner Dog

When we took a long walk down a meandering dirt road in the NC mountains, this sweet black dog came up from her yard and joined us.  She was solid black, but for the white tip of her tail.  And she stayed with us all the way back home.

Fall Sparkle

Here's a bit of gold and blue for Friday.  I've been looking at things to make a kids table for Thanksgiving.  Finger puppets would be fun, wouldn't they?  I love having the family over on Thanksgiving, hope that's what we end up doing. 

And I've already secured a smoked turkey, leaving the fun stuff to make or ask someone to bring.

Perhaps I'll step up my campaign for Thanksgiving at my house this year.

Cotton

No, this is not Cotton.  This is Gus.  Cotton doesn't like to have her photo made.  Her strategy has developed over time.  Originally it was to duck her head and hide from the camera.

Now her strategy is to rush up to me and lick the lens. 

Works every time.

Flat Busted

Normally, Cotton is the dog who tries to get as flat as possible.  She's smaller, and she will lie with her back legs flat.

Lately, Gus has adopted a version of flat as well.  But note the back legs:  the feet are neatly beneath his bottom.  No matter how flat his front might be, he never sprawls his back legs.

By the way, this is the posture he adopts when I get close to leaving for work.  Somewhat melodramatic, isn't it?