Merry Merry!

Let there be peace on earth...

may your days be merry and bright.

Merry Merry!

xx DollzandThingZ

Easing into the rest of the holidays...

Christmas, Boxing Day, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa,  New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, Epiphany (Little Christmas) Three Kings Day...all are ahead in the next few weeks.  It is a time of celebration and remembrance for many people throughout the world. 

It can be a time of great joy as well as a time of stress!  We like to keep it as simple as possible.  We have friends and acquaintances that celebrate all of the above holidays. 

The best way to do this is to relax and not have any expectations.  How about you?  At different times of life, there is much planning and shopping, much anticipation.  There can be religious connectivity and well as spiritual meditation and/or celebrating ethnic meals and rituals.  It is a rich and diverse time!  And let's not forget food and gifting!

We have been out and about a lot lately.  That is how we choose to relax. We were pleased that the weather turned warm after a brief snow.  We took advantage... and some road trips.  We grew up going for Sunday rides in the car and continue to enjoy this pastime.  Often there is no destination point.  Music in the car...coffee...an open road in the country...a tiny vacation without going too far.

Here are some recent photos..

Yantic, CT

Coventry CT

Various antiques stores...

The frogs of Willimantic dressed for the holidays!

As you prepare for the coming holidays,

wishing you calm and peace...

...and relaxation!

As always,

enjoy the day! 

Happy Holiday!

Travel safely...


******

and enjoy the day!

Is it Friday again?

Is it Friday again? It seems like this week went by very quickly. Is it possible that is it the first of July? Seems were just talking about snow...spring flowers..and now it is almost the 4th of a July!


In the USA, this is a "long holiday weekend." In Canada, today is Canada Day. There will parades, picnics, barbecues and fireworks to celebrate there. So, best wishes to our neighbors in Canada as they celebrate, too!

It is also the time of lightning bugs in our backyard... they never fail to amaze me...one of nature's wonders.

What will you do this weekend? Is it summer where you are? Do you find yourself remembering celebrations past...when times were simpler and sparklers were the main event of the evening? I always connect lemonade with this holiday...slices of watermelon...strawberry shortcake, too.

Instead of sparklers, we have many days of illegal fireworks going off in our town that shake the house and rattle the windows. They frequently go off all night. (Giving new meaning to the phrase "money to burn...") I would rather hear the sounds of crickets and tree frogs! Poor dogs barking everywhere...

Will you see a parade? Have a cook out? Take a weekend trip? Maybe visit the beach or a lake?

Wishing you a safe and happy weekend, wherever you are, whatever you do...

As always.

enjoy the day!

Warm again...

Another weekend is upon us already. With this weekend some hot and humid weather arrived, too.

Mind you, it has been pretty cold here--in the 50's ad 60's during the day. Right now it is 85 humid degrees. This would more normally be weather we would have in July. But, at least we are not having terrible storms so please don't think I am complaining. It is just a surprise to have such heat so quickly...yesterday I put away my winter clothes and took out the summer clothes as almost everyone I know did, too.



Time to relax...perhaps take in a Memorial Day parade or service... or attend a family picnic since this is a holiday weekend. (Monday is Memorial Day in the USA.)

As always,


enjoy the day...


and happy weekend!

Brrrrr!!!

It was only 8F when I got up this morning. It has risen to a brisk 14F but may get a little warmer. This is weather we hate in January... and has arrived early this year.

Things are buzzing along here. Cards are finished, gifts are ready and/or mailed, and there are just a few small details to attend to. It is a far cry from when my children were small, life was rushed, and there was never enough time, money, or energy to get everything done in time. Still...I miss that.

Since Hank had his teeth cleaned, he is bouncing around like a puppy. He wishes you merry holidays. So do I!

Stay warm if you need to, keep a song in your heart and a smile on your face...no matter what. If you have food, warmth and shelter, you are truly blessed these days.

And as always,

enjoy the day!

Sinterklaas...

Recently I was involved in an online holiday ornament swap. Since I was sending mine to The Netherlands, I decided to make a Sinterklass.


Once again I was reminded that we never really know very much about other cultures except what we learned as kids or on TV.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I had associated the Sinterklass icon with children putting out shoes and other variations. The real story of Sinterklass is FAR more interesting. (I will let you find that out yourself. Click on the link.)

The Sinterklaas is about 7 inches tall and needle felted with curly wool locks added as a beard. It was hard to part with him.

My tendinitis seems to be better so I can start working again. Have lots of things I want to make and do...how about you?

If you are creative, I wish you success with what you make and much
creative joy! In any event, happy weekend and

enjoy the day!

Happy 4th!

It's that time of year again...the 4th of July. Doesn't seem very long ago we were having snow storms...waiting for spring leaves to unfurl...where does the time go?

What are your plans for the holiday weekend?

I cannot help but remember the days of big holiday family picnics and fireworks and fireflies...in what one can only refer to as "the good old days." Strawberry shortcake and blueberry pie were frequently on the menu along with Jello molded salads in red, white and blue! Boy, do I feel old...does anybody make molded salads any more?

Whatever your plans, stay safe. As always,

...enjoy the day


and happy holiday!

Sheep, alpaca and llamas, oh my!

Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft Fair,

Cummington, MA

Before and after

Haircut!

No sunburns allowed!

A friendly ram

Alpaca and llama shorn

Mom and twins

Hannah the Belted Galloway

needle felted cow

visits the wool festival!

One of the joys of summer is visiting fairs and festivals. We love the Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft Fair in Cummington, MA. Sheep, alpacas,and llamas are on display and it is a hands-on, family friendly event. There are competitions, workshops, food booths and so much to see...especially the very sociable sheep.

The fiber artists have dazzling displays of goods for sale and one can purchase every manner of tool required for spinning or knitting.

Weekend memories...so good! As always,

enjoy the day!

Postcards from the weekend

Gillette Castle

Black snake near the pond

Sunbathers

Pretty like Monet's Garden

Still like a statue

It was a lovely weekend and we have many happy memories. Here are some from Gillette Castle. Aside from the abundant wildlife near the pond, a great blue heron flew over when we were taking photos. We took the grands and they both love nature so it was a good day.

More photos to follw in the days to come...for now, back to the work week. Hope you had a lovely weekend. As always,

enjoy the day!

Holiday tribute...

Memorial Day

Poquetanuck, CT

As always,

enjoy the day

and travel safely.