Christmas...

The tree was trimmed and gifts wrapped.

The little dogs hovered by the wood stove. The weather?  Very cold, windy and snow. Lots and LOTS of snow. All told, a foot of fresh fluff fell on top of the 5 or so inches that were already on the ground. I don't remember many Christmases that had a big storm, and this one was a really something.

When we looked out the window, the air was white.  Luckily we spent much of yesterday cleaning out all the animal houses and filling them with fresh bedding. It was nice to know that with the coming storm, all the critters had a warm, safe place to settle in for the blow.  This morning we filled all the water containers and topped up their food, handed out Christmas treats, then came inside to watch the storm from where it was cozy and warm.

Breakfast was waffles, sausage and mimosas. The dogs were impatient, wanting us to hurry up so they could open their stockings. 

The little fluffy dog next to Bravo is Millie. She is a grooming customer that needed a place to stay over the holiday and thought this would be more fun than a kennel. She was right. She and Bravo race and romp and play tug o' war and zoom circles through the house.  She loved the toys Santa brought.

Bravo and I got a new "pup" tent!  I can take this with me to competitions for him to hang out in, instead of a heavy metal crate.  It opens and closes as easily as an umbrella, and is light to carry.  

We also got a hand made, needle felted replica of Bravo... 

It was made by a groomer friend of mine, and I love it!  

On Christmas Eve we had Rachel and Evans, along with Evans dad, brother and his girlfriend, and our friends Scott and Marion, here for supper.  Chris cooked a prime rib, perfectly.  I made twice stuffed potatoes, squash, and delicious gingerbread with Haagen das vanilla ice cream and home made caramel sauce.  Evans dad brought Ukrainian poppy seed cake and Toll House Pie.  There was  peach tart, too.  I goofed and didn't get the planned appetizer prepared when I should have, and our pop overs were an epic failure. But no one seemed to care, and we had plenty of food to go around.  It was a pleasant gathering. 

Then today, delicious breakfast and thoughtful, caring, generous, gifts and a peaceful day as the storm raged.  The dogs were delighted with all the toys and treats.  Rachel and Evans headed home around lunch time, and Chris and I were here alone.  There was a nap, animal care, snow removal, delicious left overs for supper, and all of it was simply lovely. 

I've been lucky... I've had a lifetime of happy Christmases.  I know many people who have not, and that makes me sad. But I am grateful to have been blessed with the people in my life who have made the holiday so special.  I don't know what the future holds, but I will always have warm memories of of Christmas. And this one was especially sweet. 

Grace under pressure...

Sometimes there are bumps in the road of life.  No one is immune to them, but it is how one reacts to them that makes all the difference. 

I recently have been privy to glimpsing the reactions of a couple to some fairly routine difficulties they are experiencing in selling a home.  Each setback sends them into whirling maelstroms of upset, tears, gloom and doom.  The term grace under pressure does not apply to them.  Their reactions whip everyone around them into a bit of  frenzy and despair. It is miserable.

I had an appointment in Camden after work today.  Rachel offered to drive me, and we left in time to do a bit of shopping first.  As we were motoring through Rockland her little car hit a sunken manhole cover, hard.  We didn't think too much about it, popped into our favorite jewelry store, and then headed off to my appointment.  Rachel's little car was making a funny noise, and she pulled over to the side of the road, thinking a chunk of ice was in her wheel well.  That would have been nice.  Instead she found...

a very, very flat tire.  "Oh heck," she said. Then she got into the car, drove it carefully into a parking lot right across from where we stopped, and tried to get her spare out of her hatchback.  The hatch door was jammed and wouldn't open, so the spare was unreachable. She tried to climb over the back seat to get it, but that didn't work.  Meanwhile, I didn't want to miss my appointment, so called, explained my plight and asked if I could come a little late.  When I got the OK on that plan, I called a cab and was off.  I also called my husband to see if he could leave work a little early and come pick me up when I was done.  After all our years together, I knew exactly what his reaction would be.  He would be kind and anxious to help.  I was not dissapointed.

Rachel called her brand new husband at work. He left early to rescue her, bringing hot chocolate and a AAA membership with him.  And all of this has me thinking, about bumps in the road, flat tires, displaced plans.  For some couples, the entire episode could have ended in a fight.  "Why didn't you pay attention? What did you hit the pot hole for? Those are brand new tires, we can't afford to replace one." My husband could have complained, "I can't leave work early and come all the way there!" I can imagine any number of scenarios where a bump in the road could end up in all manner of  unpleasantness.  But that didn't happen.  Chris picked me up, offered to buy me dinner, then brought me home. Evans met Rachel and stayed with her, waiting and waiting for AAA. They made an event of it, grabbing a bite to eat while they waited.  And it wasn't fun, but no one got upset or ugly. And both Rachel and I had spouses we could depend on to help us when we needed them.  My elderly aunt used to tell me, "You have a true help mate in Chris." It delights me to see that my daughter has a true help mate in Evans.

Bumps and grace.  The former are inevitable. The latter make life so much sweeter.

Decorating...

Aimee came from New Hampshire, she and Rachel had a plan. 
It involved lots of cinnamon, some cookie cutters and mandatory giggles.

They were making ornaments to decorate for Christmas.

Thick, sticky, fragrant dough, rolled and cut and baked, low and slow, until they were hard as wood.

We hit an antique store, (or 3) while they cooled. 

And brought home a few small treasures. 

Once back home, we broke out the paint and glitter, and went to town. The end result?

A big pile of precious, sweet smelling, ornaments.  We'll tie ribbons to hang them with and have little delights to use or gift.  And a sweet memory to treasure. 

Tick tock...

From my earliest memory, my mother had an antique clock that presided over the living room mantle. The wood was dark, the glass on the door wavy and ancient.  The finish on the metal face was crackly, and each Roman numeral had been painstakingly painted by hand. The decorative bit under the face is reverse paint on glass, in gold and green. A heavy brass pendulum hung behind the door, perfectly still.  Though the original key was tucked inside the case, the clock never worked.

Last summer my sister called.  "I am getting rid of things. You don't want mom's old clock do you?"
You bet I did!  She brought it with her when she came to visit next, and with joy in my heart  I put it in a place of honor.  There was something missing, however. The clock had no voice, it's hands stuck in the same place they had probably been for the last 60 years or more.  It seemed ridiculous to me that though this clock had been a fixture in my life for EVER, it had never once worked.

Recently I hustled it off to my favorite jeweler.  "I have a guy that can fix this," he said.  "It will take about 2 weeks.  Yesterday he messaged me. "Your clock is ready. It keeps perfect time. Stop by when you have a chance, it will be $150."

I was there by noon today.  The jeweler showed me how to carefully wind the clock. To my delight, it has an alarm, too!  Like magic, there in his noisy, busy shop, the pendulum swept back and forth.  I carried the clock home carefully, polished its wood with lemon oil, and set it back in its new rightful place.

I stepped outside for a moment, and when I came in the entry room was not silent. There was a resonant ticking sound, like a welcoming heartbeat in my home.   All day the hands have been tracing across the the crinkled face, keeping flawless account of the minutes. It's slumber over, the voice of time is finally echoing comfortingly through the air.

Special...

Last summer, Rachel and I were at a Fiber Fair, and my phone rang. It was a friend calling, and when I picked up I could hear background noise on her phone that sounded just like the background noise where I was standing.  Sure enough, she was also at the fair, and asked me if I knew what color wedding gown Rachel was planning on. I didn't, but told her I guessed something in the ivory family.  She didn't divulge more, but I had my suspicions.  

A bit later that day, we bumped into her, and she had a basket filled with luscious yarn, in the prettiest ivory tone.  Hand spun Merino wool, fine, yet warm. 

Months passed, the wedding gown was bought, and a few weeks before the wedding my friend stopped in, with a gift.  When Rachel opened it, her eyes filled with happy tears.  Carefully laid on tissue paper, was a beautiful, amazing, hand-knit, shawl. It was intended for a fall bride to have to cover her arms if the day was chilly, and it was beyond lovely. "It must have taken you days and days," my friend replied, "Actually, it took months and months!'  She then added, "You can use it for a receiving blanket for a baby someday, too, and really make it a family heirloom."  More tears ensued.

How could anything be more special?  A gift of creativity, kindness and love.  Something to be treasured for ever.  Thank you, sweet Felicia!

Frosty morn...

This morning dawned clear, the sun spangling on the thick frost that covered everything.

A ruined feather from a Silky chicken caught my eye, each tendril etched against the grass.

Abraham donkey's coat is so thick that frost covers his back, mane, and ear tips.  His fur insulates him so well that his body heat does not melt the crystals. I push my fingers deep under the fluff, and his skin is toasty warm.  Chanel is coated with shavings. We cleaned her pony cozy yesterday, and she clearly enjoyed a snuggle in the deep, fresh, bedding. 

Everyone gets grain for breakfast, and they look forward to the meal.  I let the goats into the yard while they dine, so there is no arguing with the horse and donkey over which food belongs to whom.  I am teaching Bravo how to fetch them back to the pasture when they are done, and he is making progress with the work. Afterwards we come inside and the dogs eat. Then Bravo takes an upside down nap. Apparently herding goats is BIG WORK.

A visit to the local hardware store yesterday showed that Christmas is bustin' out all over.  We bought our Christmas tree and have it up, I will work on decorating it tonight.  

There is a fire dancing in the wood stove, and the sun is melting the ice crystals that gathered during the cold night.  The day is full of plans and possibilities, all beginning at dawn out in the beautiful, frosty, morning.