Torizworld

Who are "they"?

2012-01-29T11:06:00.003Z

It's a sunny - but VERY cold - Sunday, and I think I lost my creative muse while out on my walk with Kero; before and during the walk I had all sorts of ideas floating about in my head, but when I got home and sat down in front of the laptop... Nothing! I'm guessing my muse was enjoying it at the park too much to want to leave yet?

They say when you have no ideas you should just write anyway. So, here I am, writing whatever pops in to my head in the hope of luring back those ideas that were fighting to get out of my head earlier. You never know, I may even come up with something that's worth the time you're taking to read it. Stranger things have happened!

Who are "they" anyway? I mean, everyone always says "they say" but does anyone actually know who "they" are? And why do "they" get to decide what's right or wrong? I for one don't remember putting them in charge. In fact, I know I wouldn't have; why would I put a mysterious person or group of persons in charge without even knowing who "they" are? It's all a bit suspicious if you ask me!

OK, I'm going to go and check on any posts people have left since yesterday; maybe by the time I'm done doing the rounds on the blogs my muse will have returned? *Shrugs*

Susan's 2nd bloggerversary giveaway

2012-01-28T13:47:00.003Z

Make your own banner at MyBannerMaker.com!

Grab a Hot Cuppa or your fav cocktail, and head on over to Susan's blog for a fantastic giveaway that she's doing to celebrate her upcoming 2nd bloggerversary. There are three catagories, and loads of prizes for each one, so there's bound to be something you'd love to be entered for. So, what are you waiting for? Click on the banner at the top of this post (or on my sidebar) and go check it out!

Books of fairytales and fantasies

2012-01-27T11:57:00.000Z

I have a couple more reviews for you again today. Here you go:

"The Tales of Beedle the Bard" by J K Rowling
I have no page to link to for this one, since all websites seem to say is, "A collection of wizarding fairytales," which I can tell you just fine myself. Anyway, this is the collection of wizarding fairytales that Hermione Granger is given by Albus Dumbledore in the final Harry Potter book, and which J K Rowling made available to us. It's taken me this long to read it purely because I needed to wait until I was in a position to do so; nobody ever got around to reading it to me, and it's only recently that I discovered it in braille (I'd looked on and off since the book was published more than 4 years ago). It contains stories such as "The 3 Brothers" (the tale you can read in "Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows") and "Babbity Rabbity And Her Cackling Stump" (which Ron Weasley mentions the title of in that same book) among others. As for my personal opinion... I thought it was an amusing take on the kinds of fairytales I grew up with. I especially found the antics of the pot in "The Wizard And The Hopping Pot" amusing, and enjoyed reading the interesting - and sometimes amusing in themselves - notes that Albus Dumbledore wrote on each tale, which were published at the end of the tale they were refering to.

"Snuff" (Book 39 in the Discworld series) by Terry Pratchett:
"According to the writer of the best-selling crime novel ever to have been published in the city of Ankh-Morpork, it is a truth universally acknowledged that a policeman taking a holiday would barely have had time to open his suitcase before he finds his first corpse. And Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is on holiday in the pleasant and innocent countryside, but not for him a mere body in the wardrobe. There are many, many bodies and an ancient crime more terrible than murder. He is out of his jurisdiction, out of his depth, out of bacon sandwiches, and occasionally snookered and out of his mind, but never out of guile. Where there is a crime there must be a finding, there must be a chase and there must be a punishment. They say that in the end all sins are forgiven. But not quite all..."

(Above taken from this page on Fantastic Fiction's website).

I absolutely love Terry Pratchett's books, and this one was no exception. Even while talking of serious things, like murder, Terry Pratchett can make you laugh. Seriously, if you haven't yet read the Discworld books, then you need to do so!

***

I've also recently re-read a book I reviewed only a couple of months ago. The book was "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield, which tells the story of Vida Winter finally telling the truth about her past. There's a lot more to it, obviously, but since I've already reviewed it not even two months ago I don't feel I need to go in to much detail. Anyway, I'm now re-reading the first of the first 5 books (I'll only be re-reading the first 5, because I don't have the 6th) in the "Kingdom Of Landover" series by Terry Brooks, which tell the story of Ben Holiday's adventures in the kingdom of Landover, which he buys after seeing an advert for a kingdom for sale in a catalogue that had arrived for his dead wife. You can tell which are my favourite books; I re-read them over and over again! ;)

Potential new groomer for Kero

2012-01-26T11:48:00.008Z

I found a groomer who comes to the house to groom the dog; she's coming to groom Kero on February 9th. She says she'll be with us some time between 11:45AM and noon.

The woman does also offer pet sitting, but I think before I trust her to take Kero away for a sort of "doggy daycare" type of session I want to meet her a couple of times. After the last time I'm not as eager to leave my baby boy with someone I bearly know. That's why I like the fact she comes to the house to groom him; I get to meet her and see her with him properly.

There are loads of other groomers around - many of whom offer pet sitting or doggy daycare to their customers, but I like the idea of being able to be around as he gets to know her. The thing is, the groomer he had in Wales he'd had since he was a puppy, and we knew what she was like from other dogs being taken there.

I'd like to have somewhere he can go so we can go out together without him. But I think I'd prefer to know that where he goes is with someone he feels comfortable with, and also someone who will treat him right, if you know what I mean.

Keep your fingers crossed this one works out!

4:48PM

2012-01-25T16:48:00.009Z

When I checked my e-mail this morning there was a suspicious lack of lessons for my courses. I'd finished 2 of the classes, but there should have been 10 lessons waiting for me in my inbox. There were none. But when I went to go to the site it said the account had been suspended. I had Kelly go look on his computer, but no matter what link we clicked on (any of the courses I'd linked to the other day, or the link to the main site) we were getting the same message. So we searched Google for free online courses (since I knew it would come up if we did that) and when it did, we clicked on it via the search engine's link. Sure enough we got the same message. So now I'm not sure if it's temporarily suspended or suspended for good. Either way I'm a bit annoyed at the fact I've now got 10 incomplete courses. They shouldn't havve allowed courses to be signed up for if the site would be suspended. I mean, I guess it might not have been their fault, but whoever's fault it was should have considered those of us in the middle of getting lessons (in fact, I think most - if not all - of the courses only had a day or two left to go). *Sigh* Oh well, I guess there's nothing I can do but see what happens over the next few days.

***

Kero seems to be loving having me to himself for our morning walks. In fact, he likes it so much that he was even willing to go for a short walk in the rain with me yesterday. We didn't go far because the rain started to get a bit heavier, and we aren't total idiots - despite how it might seem sometimes, especially in my case, lol - but we went a little way. And most days we've gone to the park.

***

Still no snow here; plenty of frost - especially in the early morning - and a fair amount of wind and rain, but mainly sunny but cold days. *Sigh*

***

I've not done too bad yesterday and today with fitting everything in. Of course, today it was helped by the absence of my lessons, but still.

OK, so my "writing time" is taken up most days with writing the next part of the e-mail stories I'm doing with people; one of them one that's been going for a while with my friend, Tom, the other a recently started one with my brother, Carl. But part of the reason for that is that I hadn't allowed much writing time at the moment, because when I start doing the courses rather than just collecting them - which it looks like will be happening sooner than expected - they mostly involve writing exercises. And when I'm done with them I planned to make my "homework" time extra writing time. Besides, the e-mail story replies don't come every day.

Still, I'm managing to be on top of things a bit more, and have even managed to find time to join in with a play by post roleplaying game that's just starting up on my Dad's forum. It's one of the systems from the "World Of Darkness" system, which is called "Hunter" and involves us being people who end up investigating and - as is usually the case in roleplaying games - defeating the sources of weird disturbances (usually involving things like werewolves and vampires, apparently).

***

I broke one of my teeth a couple of weeks ago. It didn't bother me much at first, but it's starting to bother me more now. We haven't had a chance to get registered at the dentist due to a combination of weather and lack of doggy daycare, but we're going to have to sort it soon, I think.

The thing is, without doggy daycare we have to take Kero with us, which means one of us has to stay outside with him while the other goes in. That would be fine, only we can't do that when it's raining, and - of course - every day we've gone to do it it's been raining. OK, I admit we haven't exactly tried that hard - I've seen so many doctors in my time that getting registered with a doctor and a dentist doesn't fall high on my list of priorities while I'm in a position to allow it not to be a priority - but the rainy days when we need dry ones don't help.

Like I said, I'll have to see about it soon; even I can only ignore pain for so long.

***

OK, I think this will do for today.

Stay safe and warm (or cool, as the case may be). :)

Reviewing 4 recent reads

2012-01-24T12:12:00.000Z

I have a few book reviews for you again today.

Ready? OK!

Twilight - book 1 of the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer:
"About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him----and I didn't know how dominant that part might be----that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him."

(Above quote taken from this page on Fantastic Fiction's website).

I watched the movie ages ago, but it was only recently I read the book. I'd heard it was better than the movie, and since I enjoyed the movie I was all set for a good read. I wasn't disappointed; it was a fantastic book, and is even better than the movie!

The Star Of Kazan by Eva Ibotson:
"In a tiny alpine church, on a June day in 1897, an abandoned baby girl is found by a middle-aged cook from Vienna. So begins the unusual childhood of Annika, brought up in the house of three eccentric professors by their two domestic servants. By the age of seven she can bake and ice a three-tiered cake and polish parquet floors to perfection. Her life in this golden city of music, fabulous food, and the beautiful Lippizana stallions who dance before the Emperor Franz Joseph is greatly blessed - until her unknown mother tracks her down and comes to claim her... Here is another Ibbotson masterpiece of wonderful adventure, packed with dozens of unforgettable characters who weave their way through a faultless, intricate plot of enthralling events - sometimes hilarious, sometimes bleak, but always marvellously entertaining. It offers every reader who loved Journey To The River Sea an enchanting new world of fictional riches. It is a timeless classic, for readers young and old."

(Above taken from here).

This is only my second encounter with an Eva Ibotson book (the first being "which Witch; mentioned in yesterday's post) and I wasn't disappointed. I don't need to say more though... What I grabbed from the page on Fantastic Fiction covered it, I think.

A Small Place in Italy by Eric Newby:
"This book is a lush and beautiful memoir of a very special house and a superb recreation of a bygone era. In 1967, veteran travel writer Eric Newby and his heroic wife Wanda fulfiled their dream of a return to life in the Italian hills where they first met during World War II. But this fulfilment would not come easy. The dream materialised in the form of I Castagni ('The Chestnuts'), a small, decrepit farmhouse with no roof, an abandoned septic tank and its own indigenous wildlife reluctant to give up their home. But in the foothills of the Apuan Alps on the border of Liguria and Northern Tuscany, this ramshackle house would soon become a hub of love, friendship and activity."

"It lovingly recounts the quickly disappearing lifestyle of the idiosyncratic locals, and the enduring friendships they forge, whether sharing in growing their first wine harvest as novices or frying poisonous mushrooms for a feast."
(Above taken from this page on Waterstones' website).

I thought it was a really good - sometimes amusing - book; I didn't realize it was a memoir until afterwards and just thought it was a well written and interesting story at the time. But regardless, it was an enjoyable read, which - as I already mentioned - was amusing in places, and a little emotional in others.

City of Gems by Caroline Harvey:
"1879. Maria Beresford, the selfish and difficult but beautiful daughter of a failed tea-planter in Bombay, devotes herself to pleasure and social advancement. When her father is sent to Burma and she has to accompany him, she becomes embroiled in an exotic world of political intrigue."

(Above taken from here on Fantastic Fiction's website).

It wasn't too bad of a book; I wouldn't count it anywhere near my favourites though. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, especially the way the stories of the people didn't fully tie together until the end so that you were left wondering throughout most of the book. Like I said though, not one of my favourites of the books I've read recently; or at all, come to think of it. Still, it wasn't too bad.

Recently re-read

2012-01-23T12:37:00.000Z

These are some books I've recently re-read, which I know for a fact I've reviewed on here before, but thought I'd give another mention to today, since I love them so much.

So...

Michelle Paver's Chronicles Of Ancient Darkness series:
A series of 6 books that tell the story of Torak who finds himself alone in the forest and bound to complete a quest he'd promised his father he'd do as the man lay dying after being mauled by a demon bear. Only 13 Summers old, Torak is forced to face the fact that he's destined to rid the forest of the evil that has come to it. It's a fantastic series that's officially meant for children, but which most lovers of Fantasy novels will enjoy, I think.

J K Rowling's Harry Potter Series:
For anyone who happens to have been underground for the past 15 years or so - which is the only way you could possibly not know of these books - I'll tell you that this is a series of books about a young wizard named Harry Potter; a wizard who doesn't know he is one until his 11th birthday, despite the fact he's famous, since he - at the age of 15 months - somehow survived a killing curse, leading to the downfall of the darkest wizard of all time. However, having grown up with muggles (non-magic folk) Harry knows nothing of this, and is under the mistaken impression that the death of his parents and the lightning scar on his forehead were caused by a car crash.

Which Witch by Eva Ibotson:
Arriman The Awful is the typical evil wizard, but being the most feared wizard of the North is hard work, and now he wants to retire. After waiting several years for a new wizard whose coming was foretold to him by a fortune teller Arriman decides he'll have to take the only option available to him; he'll have to get marrried and produce an heir. But which witch should he marry? He decides to hold a contest to decide.

Time turners

2012-01-22T12:57:00.003Z

I've come to the conclusion that I could really do with having a time turner like Hermione Granger used in "Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban" to be able to repeat hours so that she was able to attend all of her classes. I don't think I'd need, or want, to use it every day as she did - judging by her exhaustion that's something that should be avoided - but I think there are days when I could do with a bit of extra time. I thought, perhaps, that some days I could simply re-live the day in order to use it to catch up with things. Days like yesterday for example I could do with being able to go back and re-live so as to do the things I neglected doing in order to spend most of the day on the phone with various people catching up on how they were, etc. Don't get me wrong, I don't begrudge a single one of those people the time I took to speak with them. I was just thinking how nice it would be to have the option to catch up with people and still fit everything else in to my day (which - for some unknown reason - seems to be a tricky task in general).

I'm pretty sure that some people must have already managed to get their hands on a time turner. After all, some people seem to be possessed of the ability to put in a full day's work and still achieve all the things that those who don't work struggle to fit in to their day without the loss of the time spent out at work. Not that I'm saying the time spent at work is a waste of time - of course it isn't - just that some people seem to be able to do more in a day with... For the sake of argument, 8 hours... Missing from it than some others manage to do with having access to those 8 hours, if you know what I mean. And, quite frankly, I'm rather jealous of those people!

So... Does anyone know where I can get my hands on a time turner?

The Knight Bus

2012-01-21T12:04:00.000Z

"Just stick out your wand hand, step on board, and we can take you anwhere you want to go."
-- Stan Shunpike

The Knight Bus is a triple-decker, violently purple bus which has The Knight Bus written over it's windshield in gold letters. The Knight Bus provides emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard; all they need to do is hold out their wand hand. It is also possible to book a seat on the Knight Bus for trips around Britain (PA, OP).

The conductor of the Knight Bus is Stan Shunpike. He wears a purple uniform, has large protruding ears, and quite a few pimples. Stan is about 18 years old. The driver is Ernie Prang, an elderly wizard wearing very thick glasses. In the film version, he is aided by a talking shrunken head hanging in the windshield (Brit.: windscreen). This does not occur in the book, however.

The driver and conductor sit in the front of the bus in armchairs. During the night, there are no other seats on board, rather the Knight Bus provides a half a dozen brass bedsteads per level. In daytime, the beds are replaced by armchairs for the passengers. Lighting comes from candles in brackets on the walls. A small wooden staircase leads to the upper floors. The ride is very bumpy as the bus seems to jump erratically from one place to another. If you're not careful, you will find yourself thrown around the interior of the bus during it's travels. One frequent passenger, Madam Marsh, has been known to actually throw up while riding the bus.

The fare from Little Whinging to London is eleven sickles. For an extra two sickles you get hot chocolate and if you pay two more besides, you get a hot water bottle and a toothbrush to boot.

According to Stan, the Knight Bus travels anywhere you want to go, as long as it's on land.

(PA3)

Where does the name "Knight Bus" come from?
by Morag Traynor

"Knight Bus" is a play on "Night Bus" - Night Buses run through the night in London and, after the Tube and trains stop running (around midnight) are the only public transport available. They are a very welcome sight when they (eventually) turn up to take you home, and are the traditional red double-deckers, so it can feel as if a knight in shining armour has come to rescue you. The roads being clearer at that time of night, once you are out of the centre, the bus bounces along at a considerable pace, for a bus, tree-branches rattle along the roof and you're sure the driver's never going to make that corner (but he always does) so the whole experience is not unlike the Knight Bus - apart from the comfortable beds, panelling and chandeliers, of course! I also love the name Ernie Prang - "prang" is old RAF (based on Malay, I think) slang for "crash", extended to road traffic, and is associated with a rather insouciant attitude to crashes, as in "pranged the Jag last week - what a bore!". The Knight Bus is another example of JKR finding the magic in the everyday, or, in this case, every night.

Above taken from http://www.hp-lexicon.org/wizworld/knight_bus.html.

My newly aquired version of the Knight Bus is a little different to how it appears in the books and movies. But then, to make it in to Lego it would be tricky to make it exactly as it appears. It's still cool to be able to say I have a lego Knight Bus though, and I do have one. Here it is:

Right side:

Front:

Left side:

It comes with a lego stan, Ernie, Harry (in muggle clothing) and Headwig. Plus a trunk for Harry, a little version of the shrunken head, and a couple of flat pieces to put in the trunk that have pictures of socks on them. LOL!

This time I put it together properly, and it's staying like it for a bit. But it will end up among my lego collection soon; the Harry in muggle clothing can join the couple of Harry Potters I have in wizard robes. I now have three Harry Potters (2 in robes, 1 in muggle clothing) a Ron Weasley, a Hermione Granger, a Draco Malfoy, two Hedwigs, an Ernie Prang and a Stan Shunpike. As well as two brooms, a sorting hat, a shrunken head, a Hogwarts trunk, and about four wands. I still have a lot of Harry Potter Lego to collect though; there's a Lego set for Hogwarts, another for The burrow, and a few other little ones. And the good thing about Lego is that it doesn't matter if you get doubles of sets; just means you have more pieces to play with. ;)

Magaly tagged me (LBE and FD)

2012-01-20T10:49:00.004Z

In a post she did yesterday, Magaly tagged me. I'm supposed to post 11 random things about me, answer certain questions Magaly set for me in her post, then tag 11 people and set 11 questions for those people to answer. And since I'm usually game for these things, I agreed to play along. So, let's see...

11 random things about me (I've tried to find things most people who read my blog wont know, though some of my long-time readers will probably know at least some of these):

1. I alternate between wanting to live in a gypsy caravan moving about all the time, wanting to own a smallholding with goats and chickens and things, and wanting to live in a huge place (like a castle) where I can have rooms for different things (a library, a craft room, etc) and space to spare. Which I'd prefer depends on my mood, though the caravan thing is my prefered option most of the time.

2. I absolutely love banana milkshake, banana smoothies and banana flavoured yogurts, but I'm not a big fan of bananas in general. I used to be, but after I spent two years having to have one a day on doctors orders because of pills I was on having a side-effect that lowered my patassium level I went off them a bit.

3. The thing I miss most since losing my sight is reading "proper" books, and writing on "proper" paper with a pen.

4. My childhood monster still scares me.

5. I stopped drinking "proper" tea for a while so as to wean myself off it a bit since the caffine in the large quantity of tea I was drinking may have been contributing to my anemia, but now I can't stand the taste of it, as a result the only types of tea I will drink are herbal or fruit teas.

6. I detest coffee after accidentally taking a sip of my Dad's, which he drinks cold. It was my first experience with coffee, and my last!

7. I wish I could have met and been friends with Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter books. I even worked out the dates; I'd have been 2 years behind her in school if I'd been able to go to Hogwarts.

8. I wish I could have a pet owl to deliver my post. I'd call it shadow, because owls move as silently as shadows unless they want to be heard. Or maybe I'd call it Hedwig, in honor of Harry Potter's owl. Either way, I'd like to have my post delivered by owl each day; it would be so cool!

9. I have 2 tattoos; 1 on each of my upper arms. On my right arm is a Welsh dragon, which my brother and I had identical versions done of before I went to Canada when I was 18 and he was 19. On the left arm is a heart with a bone across it that has "Kero" written on it and a few little blue flowers near each end of the bone; I had that one made especially for Kero when he was a little over a year old and I was forced to rehome him (thankfully only temporarily).

10. I was given my very first pet when I was a tiny baby. It was a black cat, and her name was "Third Time Lucky" or "Lucky" for short (my Mam named her, obviously, since I was - as I already said - a baby).

11. I've been writing since I knew how, and won my first competition at the age of 7 (still have the medal I won).

And the questions set for me (plus my answers, of course):

Q: What is your favourite kind of foreign food?
A: Chinese Sweet And Sour Sauce.

Q: What is your favourite movie of all time?
A: Practical Magic.

Q: What weird items would I find if I went through your wardrobe?
A: None; my weird stuff isn't hidden away. ;)

Q: Which God or Goddess annoys you the most?
A: None of them do since I don't give them much thought; I don't feel the need to worry about them, so they don't get a chance to annoy me.

Q: Where is your favourite place?
A: I don't have one, though I suppose home, because it's safe and where all my stuff is.

Q: What is your favourite scent for essential oil?
A: My all time favourite scent for anything is lavender!

Q: What foreign country would you love to visit?
A: America, because I have several friends there who I would like to meet.

Q: Number one song on your ipod/CD player/whatever you use to listen to music?
A: I assume by this you mean favourite? In which case I'll have to pick "Ottawan - Hands Up"... It's been my favourite since I was small.

Q: What is your favourite smell?
A: Lavender, closely followed by the smell of freshly baked bread.

Q: What is your favourite computer game?
A: BG Scrabble; a version of scrabble, which I have on my laptop and play a LOT!

Q: What ingredient do you most love to cook with?
A: if you mean herbs, mint for savoury items, cinnamon for sweet items. Otherwise my answer is potatoes; I love to eat them done just about any way - especially made in to chips and fried, or baked - and there are so many ways to cook them!

Q: Which time period do you feel a calling to? Do you think you could have a past life there?
A: I can't say there's one particular time period, although I do often find myself wishing I could have been around before all the technology came in to being; back in the days of candles for light, fires for cooking, and cosy nights wrapped up in blankets in front of said fire. As for a past life; I think I've had a couple, but since I haven't really tried any past life regretion techniques - and even they aren't guaranteed to be fool-proof anyway - I couldn't possibly know for sure.

Magaly had us answer some of the questions others had put to her, but please don't make me mess about with adding links to everyone who the different questions came from. They are questions 3 and 9 set by each of the people who tagged Magaly, so if you want to know who they came from, check out the people who tagged Magaly, which you can do by checking out the post I linked to on her blog at the start of this post.

Now for the people I'm tagging. Sorry if you're one of those people not keen on being tagged, but the rules say I have to tag 11 people; it's up to you if you play along though... I hope some people do at least, but I wont force you. So, I'm tagging:

1. Intense_Guy.
2. Rita.
3. Celticspirit.
4. LadyStyx.
5. Furrybottoms.
6. Alpha Betsy.
7. Deanna.
8. ChicagoLady.
9. Susan.
10. Call Me Cate.
11. Stephanie At The Co-Exist Cafe.

And these are the questions you need to answer if you're playing along:

1. What was your first pet? And what was its name?

2. What's your earliest memory?

3. If you could live anywhere in the world, in any type of home, where would you live? And what kind of home would you live in?

4. If you had to pick just one meal to have every day for the rest of your life, what would it be? And why?

5. What would your ideal job be?

6. Do you love to read? If so, what are your favourite types of books?

7. Are you a fan of watching movies? If so, what are your favourite types of movies?

8. It's a cold, dark night in the middle of Winter; the snow is falling thick and fast outside the window... What are you doing?

9. It's a beautiful, hot day in the middle of Summer; there's not a cloud in the sky, and bearly a breeze... What are you doing?

10. If you could meet any fictional character, who would it be? And why?

11. If you could have a conversation with any person - alive or dead; just as long as they really exist (or have really existed in the past) - right now, who would it be? Why them? And what would you discuss?

Like I said, none of you who I tagged are obligated to play, though I'm hoping at least a couple of people do since I'd like to read your answers to the questions. I know some of you don't usually do these tag things though (a couple of people got tagged because I needed 11 people who were still around on the blogs who there was at least a slight chance of wanting to join in).

Furkid thoughts: Kero at home

2012-01-19T09:59:00.000Z

Hi humans, it's Kero here.

I have a couple of new photos of me hanging out at home, so I thought that I would share them. First, one of me standing beside Mami's basket of wool in the living room.

That basket of wool is what's left from the huge stack of wool Mami got from Daisy and Poppy's human ages and ages ago; she's knitted so many things that there's nowhere near as big of a pile of wool these days. There's still a good few balls of wool in there though, and I think Mami has plans for at least most of it.

And here I am laying on the floor; keeping alert for any noises I can bark at.

Anyway, I just thought that you would enjoy seeing these photos.

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Almost noon on a Wednesday (kinda FD)

2012-01-18T11:47:00.009Z

For anyone interested in seeing photos of the penguin ornaments Kelly made, you'll need to go to Kelly's blog and check out this post.

***

Thanks to Kelly's help with the word verification,I'm signed up for another batch of courses from E-Mail College. I grabbed a dozen this time - since it seemed like as good a number as any - and they are:

Fairy Tales
Fantasy & Sci Fi Worlds
Fantasy Genre - An Introduction
Fantasy Novel Writing
Fighting Writer's Block
Film Reviewing
Flash Fiction
Freewriting A Book
Getting Creative
Getting Your Non-Fiction Published
Ghost Writing
Gothic Fiction

I'm grabbing all the writing ones - as you probably noticed, especially if you've seen the older posts where I was signing up for courses before - since they're free, and I figure I'll grab them while I can. After all, just because I don't plan on writing a spacific genre now, doesn't mean I never will, right?

Anyway, I got the first lessons today.

***

I'm trying to work out a sort of routine that will allow me to fit a bit of everything that I want to fit in time for in to each day. Of course, this would work better if I'd sleep to a set routine, but there you go.

Anyway, I've long since given up on setting times for things, so I've decided to go with setting aside certain length chunks of time rather than saying I'll be doing something at a certain time, if you know what I mean. Obviously if I've done everything and I have a bit of extra time to spend on one of the things then I can spend some more time on that, but the idea is to get in some time to work on everything (craft projects, courses, writing projects, blogs, etc) and get other things done (housework, any appointments, preporation of and cooking of food, etc), then obviously spend any extra time doing whatever needs my attention most (if I've ended up behind on blogs and need some time to catch up properly, spending a bit of extra time working on craft projects, etc). My plan is that I don't end up too behind on blogs, get all the projects I want to get done finished, and actually get to writing down and trying to make something out of the ideas floating about in my head.

Obviously I've also set aside some time for a bit of Yoga, a daily meditation session, and walks with Kero (which he'd never forgive me if I didn't make sure to get in each day; especially since he now knows I can do them).

***

I only have about three CDs left to listen to of the final Harry Potter book, then I'll be reading and listening to a couple of new books I have, and after that I plan to re-read a couple more of my favourite books. I didn't, for example, listen to the first 5 books of the Earth's Children Series by Jean M Auel when I got the 6th book for my birthday and listened to it, and I think it would be nice to listen to them all one after another. Besides, I love the series!

Plus, it gives me something entertaining to listen to while I work on my craft projects.

***

I re-watched a couple of movies on DVD yesterday too (while working on making a couple of cards). One was "Lilo And Stitch 2: Stitch Has A Glitch" and the other was "How To Train Your Dragon"... Both really good movies. Well, I think they are, anyway!

***

This will do for today... I need some lunch!

Stay safe and warm!

Monday's scary moment

2012-01-17T12:39:00.005Z

I stopped at the edge of the curb and shifted my cane in to the position it belongs in while I wait to cross a road. There was no sign of any traffic, but still I didn't cross; something was holding me back.

A shiver ran down my spine, and I couldn't decide if it was due to the bitter wind that was biting in to my flesh; finding its way through the fabric of the thin jacket the sun had fooled me in to thinking would be enough, and making the fingers of my bare hands sting, or the tight knot of fear that had settled in my stomach; twisting and coiling inside it like a nest of restless vipers.

I took a step backwards, away from the curb. I couldn't do it. I wanted to, but I couldn't.

As I turned to head back home I heard a soft whine from near my feet.

"What?" I asked, looking down at Kero; of course, I couldn't see him, but I always look anyway... It's a habit from when I could see, and besides, it's polite to look.

He whined again, pulling back in the direction of the curb.

"But..." I protested, attempting to take another step in the direction of home.

He whined again, and continued to pull in the direction of the curb.

I stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to do. I'd done the walk to this point a few times, but I'd never gotten up the nerve to cross the road to the park's entrance. I knew if I did Kero would expect to walk around part of it, and I wasn't sure I was ready for that. I could do it; I'd done it three times during mobility lessons while my mobility officer watched from the park's entrance. But still I was reluctant. Still I was afraid. I wanted to go home.

But Kero was still standing by the curb, whining softly and trying to pull across the road, and as I stood there I felt sorry for him; it must be awful, I thought, to see the thing you want so badly and not be able to get to it. So many times in the last couple of weeks we've headed in this direction and turned back instead of crossing the road; sometimes before even reaching the point where we need to cross.

"Alright... Come on then," I said to him, reluctantly turning back to the curb and again positioning myself and my cane ready to cross it.

This time when I was sure the road was clear we crossed; Kero excitedly pulling me across as though worried I'd change my mind and turn back after all. But I didn't change my mind. We kept walking, and within a minute or so were walking through the archway entrence to the park.

***

This was what happened yesterday.

There was more to it, like the neighbour who stopped us so she could admire Kero, the neighbours walking their own dogs who stopped to say hello, and the other neighbour who took a bit of convincing before he'd accept that I was able to cross back across the road by myself (I'm pretty sure he stayed put to watch me across actually).

Not to mention how I managed to take Kero around the grassy area I'd been practicing navigating during my last couple of mobility lessons, back out of the entrence of the park, and home without any issues; even finding our gate by myself without difficulty (I'm getting pretty good at finding the gate).

I was scared; monsters were trying to force themselves out of the dark corners of my mind and in to the front of it, and I was barely keeping them back. And I was cold; my hands - especially the one holding my cane - were aching and going numb by the time I got home (as I said, it was sunny, but a lot colder than I'd thought, so I hadn't dressed as warmly as I should have). But I did it.

I'd managed to get to a point over the holidays where I could walk to the corner of the road and get myself home (I was able to do it by Christmas). I knew the walk beyond that; my mobility officer had left me to do different parts while she watched from a distance for a couple of weeks now. I just couldn't bring myself to do it and would make excuses; always genuine reasons in a way, but ones that wouldn't have stopped me if I hadn't clung to them as reasons not to have to do it. In short, I hadn't done it because I was scared. But Kero knew I could do the walk, and this time he wouldn't let me turn back... I guess he decided it was about time I faced my fear.

A blanket, a card, and a couple of toys

2012-01-16T12:03:00.000Z

I thought I'd show you photos of some recent craft projects.

On November 24th Emma-Jane became a big sister (which you'll know already if you read my Mam's blog; I can't remember if I mentioned it at the time, but I know she did... I think I did, but I'm really not sure). Anyway, Emma's baby brother is called Harrison, and I promised I'd make him his very own blanket. Well, the holidays were approaching, Harri was almost a month old, and I hadn't finished his blanket, so I promised myself I'd finish it before the start of the new year; I thought it would be nice to go in to the new year without a load of unfinished craft projects (which I achieved; I wasn't in the middle of any projects when New Year's Day arrived). Anyway, here's the blanket:

It got posted to my Mam last week, and she'll be delivering it to Harri for me.

Anyway...

Remember how I said on Friday that my Nan recently celebrated her 84th birthday?

Well, here's the card I made her:

I also made a start on some of the handmade presents I plan to give out this year. I had planned to do my things first, but I was done with Harri's blanket before my blue wool arrived, so I figured I'd make a couple of small presents while I waited.

So I made this bear:

Which is to be Emma's birthday present (her birthday is in March).

And then I made this ball:

The blue wool I'd ordered arrived the day I finnished the ball, so that was well timed!

I'm now about a third of the way through the scarf for my scarf, hat and mittens set. But it's currently been put on hold while I work on something else. I can't tell you what I'm working on though, because it's for a swap I'm doing, and I don't want to spoil the surprise. Once it's finished though I'll continue working on my scarf. And, don't worry, you'll get to see what I've put my scarf on hold to make, but not until after it arrives at its destination.

Mid January scribbles

2012-01-15T12:02:00.011Z

We've had several nasty "sea storms" and it's extremely cold, but no snow. There's often a fair amount of frost in the mornings though. Perhaps it's too cold for snow? I'm no weather expert, so I don't know the right sort of temperatures for snow. Not that it would help me much if I did, since I don't know what the temperature has been lately. All I know is that it's really cold, and I don't really need to know more than that. I would like some snow though... Please?

***

For a few minutes this morning I wasn't sure if it was really Sunday. Why? Because we got post. Not special delivery type post, but the normal post. I only remember one other time that happened, and I'm pretty sure that was around this time of the year too. I can only guess that they're doing a couple of Sunday deliveries to get caught up on all the stuff that usually piles up with the holiday deliveries. It threw me for a few minutes though, and I had to check what day it was before I was satisfied I hadn't added or lost a day somewhere, which - I have to admit - would have been a possibility, hence the need to check; it wouldn't have been the first time!

***

I'm almost done with my Harry Potter book marathon. I would have been done before now, but I figure I should do things like sleep too, and I can't listen to it while I use the laptop. I can't remember how many disks it is in all, but I know they range from about 10 disks to 24 disks, and I know I'm about a third of the way through the final book (with plans to listen to a couple more disks later).

***

OK, well, I know this isn't much of a post, but I'm going to let this do for today anyway; I need to spend some time catching up on reading the blog posts I haven't read from the past couple of days.

Thank you Jeannie, Rita and Karma

2012-01-14T17:20:00.006Z

I wanted to post a couple of photos of cards I got recently.

First, the Christmas card I got from Jeannie, which didn't make it in to my holiday posts, since it came the day after Iggy sorted all those photos for me. Here it is:

And now a card from Rita and Karma to say, "thank you," for the presents we sent them:

Thank you both for the beautiful cards! :)

And thank you Iggy for sorting my photos for me yet again! :)

Happy belated start of January birthdays

2012-01-13T12:00:00.003Z

We haven't even made it half way through January, but already there are 5 birthdays I haven't mentioned this year. This post is to wish a happy belated birthday to...

An online friend of mine named Sarah, who celebrated her birthday on January 1st.
Jeannie, who celebrated her birthday on January 4th.
My Nan (Dad's Mother) who celebrated her 84th birthday on January 8th.
Dorkys, who celebrated her birthday on January 11th.
And an online friend of mine named Angela, who celebrated her birthday on January 12th.

I hope you all had wonderful birthdays!

The other 2012 "to do" list

2012-01-12T22:34:00.001Z

I told you earlier about the projects I hope to get done in 2012. Well, now I'm going to tell you about the other things I'd like to achieve this year. So...

* Establish a routine in which I manage to do a bit of each of the things I want to each day (this includes a bit of Yoga and a daily meditation session).
* Finish collecting the courses I want to do from E-Mail College.
* At least make a start on doing the above mentioned courses.
* Start working on the writing projects I keep promising myself I'll do.
* Improve my skills with tarot reading.
* Learn to read runes.
* Improve my knowledge of herbal remedies.
* Get to a point where I can take Kero for a walk to the park by myself.
* Learn the routes to the seaside and town.
* Start checking off things from my "what I want to do before I turn 30" list.

Nothing spectacular or impressive, I'm afraid, but there you go.

Project list as it stands at the start of 2012

2012-01-12T19:33:00.008Z

OK, I said yesterday I'd post my list of projects I'd like to get done this year, so...

* Make a handmade gift for each family member (and a select couple of friends) for Christmas.
* Make a matching hat, scarf and mittens set for myself in blue and gold.
* Make a cardigan/jacket for myself.
* Stitch a few items of clothing for myself.
* Knit a couple of blankets/throws for us.
* Make a clay Dalek.
* Make birthday and holiday cards for everyone I send to.
* Have a go at candle making.

Of course, things may be added throughout the year (in fact, I'd be surprised if they weren't). But those are the things I would like to get done at the moment.

Of fireworks and sleep

2012-01-11T18:52:00.008Z

There was an awesome firework display going on somewhere near here on New Year's Eve. Well, I thought it was awesome, anyway. Apparently not everyone shares my opinion; Kero wasn't as impressed. I forgot to give him his calming treat, so I was up half the night with him still trembling with fright from the fireworks. They were really close, and really big ones, so I'm not surprised he was so scared. Poor little guy! I ended up falling asleep in the early hours of New Year's Day, curled up on the sofa cuddling Kero. I suppose it's just as well we didn't need to be up early to entertain guests for a new year's dinner or something. LOL!

I was going to add my list of projects I hope to get done this year to this post too, but I didn't get to writing them earlier, and now I'm too tired; my sleep schedule is all messed up again. Still, at least I'm sleeping, even if it's not when I would prefer to be sleeping (I could do with it happening a couple of hours later so I get up a couple of hours later, if you know what I mean). Anyway, I'll post the list for you another day, along with a few other things I plan to post. Right now though, I'm too tired; it's just about my current bed time (in fact, I'm only still up due to being determined to get a post of some kind up on my blog for today).

Tales From The New Inn

2012-01-10T12:00:00.006Z

For ages I've been hoping that Owen (a family friend who is a storyteller) would do an audio CD with some of his stories on it. Then, last month, I got this e-mail:

"I have good news,

Just got off the phone and am pleased to announce that my first Audio CD has just gone to press and will be available in just a matter of days. The cd features all the tales from my 2010 Edinburgh fringe show and a bonus story as well. Its called "Tales from the New Inn -stories from the dark heart of the Valley".
This is a real dream come true time for me, all the stories are based out of the New Inn in the Swansea valley as chronicled by the Landlady Rhian harris between 1810-1812 . its a lovely introduction to Welsh folklore and features almost a full hour of Tale telling.

The Cd packaging has been designed by the wonderful Eleanor flaherty (www.eleanorflaherty.co.uk) and the audio was recorded and mixed by Dic Uplands from Swansea so this truly is a fantastic local product.

Although this will not be officially released until the 9th of February 2012 , I have a limited amount available to you NOW."

Naturally I had to get one, and - as it happened - there was one present Kelly had yet to get me. So, we ordered a copy right away. OK, so it meant I knew one of my Yule gifts, but I didn't care; I was going to have a CD of Owen's stories!

Owen managed to get the CD to us just in time; it was to be my fourth present from Kelly, and it arrived the day before I would have been opening it. A couple of days later the three of us - Kelly, Kero and I - listened to it together.

It was a wonderful CD; almost as good as having Owen right there in the room with us telling his stories. Of course, nothing beats the real thing, but it was the next best thing, and - as I said - almost as good as the real thing!

To get your hands on a copy, please go to http://www.owenstaton.com/tales-from-the-new-inn/.

Note: The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own; they are neither influenced by others' opinions, nor by the fact that Owen is a friend.

Celebrating Yule 2011 - Part 4 (FD)

2012-01-09T12:00:00.003Z

The 26th of December (Boxing Day)...

I had a full vegetarian roast dinner; cranberry nut roast, roast potatoes, roast parsnips, sprouts, carrots and peas. I even took a photo of it for you:

Kelly said I was mental for doing that, but whatever. LOL!

I also made a pan of Wassail; didn't manage to get a photo of that though.

Kelly and Kero had a chicken and vegetable pie and a glazed ham. Though I think what actually happened was that Kelly had the pie, and - after some was taken off it for Kero - the ham was just sliced and frozen for them to have another time.

Anyway, we also had crisps (potato chips) peanuts, and still had a decent supply of the cookies and mince pies I'd made (though none of them are left now).

Once everything was over with, I decided to take photos of my cards...

I think I got them all, but I'm not sure.

The only one I know for sure didn't make it in to the photos is the one from Jeannie, because it arrived after Iggy had sorted the photos for me. I'll post a photo of it when I can though.

Among the photos above should be handmade cards from Rita, Deanna and Susan though, as well as cards from most of my family and friends. There was also a card from Iggy, but I don't know if it made it in to the photos. Anyway, sorry if I missed getting your card in the photo (if you sent me one, I mean).

And, speaking of Iggy...

My present from him arrived just before I sent him the photos:

It's a kit to make a keepsake print of your pet's paw. So we can do a proper imprint of Kero's paw and have it to keep long after he's gone.

Anyway...

Since I had the final Harry Potter movie on DVD among my presents, I "had to" then have a Harry Potter movie marathon, so I watched all eight movies back to back... Just because I "had to" and, well, because I could, basically! ;)

And there you go; now you know how we celebrated Yule in 2011! :)

We don't usually bother with New Year's Eve; there were some awesome fireworks on New Year's Eve and the first two days of the new year though!

I've still not had snow thoughh (well, apart from the light dusting we got three weeks ago, but that barely lasted long enough to be noticed)... *Sigh*

Celebrating Yule 2011 - Part 3 (FD)

2012-01-08T12:00:00.003Z

And then it was Christmas Eve.

My presents were an audio CD I'd been dying to get, which Kelly brought for me (review and more information to come soon) and even more glitter stuff from Kero.

And we spent the day watching holiday movies while I worked on getting this hat finished:

It's one Kelly asked me to make; says he needs one now he's had his hair cut shorter. And, yes, the colours were his choice.

Anyway, we watched all my favourite holiday movies:

Terry Pratchett's Hogfather
Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer
Miracle On 34th Street
The Littlest Light On The Christmas Tree
One Magic Christmas
The Polar Express
Santa Claus - The Movie

(That last one is my all time favourite Christmas movie).

I was going to also watch "The Grinch" and "Elf" but I got too tired.

When I was taking Kero out before bed that night I heard the bells from the nearby church ringing (for the start of midnight mass, if I'm not mistaken) so I stood and listened while I drank my mug of hot cocoa and gave Kero time to find the perfect spot to do whatever he might need to do before bed.

Then I went to bed and read "The Bear Father Christmas Forgot" before I settled to sleep. That's another favourite of mine; Carl gave it to me, and I've read it every year since; it's a cute little story. I was going to also read "A Candle In The Forest" but I was too tired; I fell asleep almost as soon as I laid my head on the pillow and snuggled in under my blankets.

Of course, I left the holiday lights on though...

...They always stay on on Christmas Eve!

So... Christmas Day arrived.

We got up and had our stockings, which "Santa" had very kindly filled with treats for us; chocolate coins, nuts, chocolate Santas, then some of our favourite treats, which in my case meant some fudge, some coconut ice, and a selection of dairy free chocolates.

Then we opened the last of the presents under the tree.

My present from "Santa" was some craft stuff; some stickers, more glitter, and some wooden shapes I can stick on things. From Kelly I had three more audiobooks (review and information to come in a later post) and the final Harry Potter movie, and from Kero I had a book about candle making, a book with meditation ideas in it, and another book (again, review and information to come in a later post).

Most of the family gave me money, but my Mam also gave me some presents, and my brother, Carl, wanted to give me presents rather than money, so I let him.

These are what I had from Carl.

Soaps in the shapes of animals:

(A hippo, a turtle, a fish, a bear and a dolphin).

And some moulds for making jelly (jell-o) or chocolate, or whatever:

(A normal jelly mould, a rabbit one, and a car one).

My Mam gave me some scented pillows (sort of like the lavender ones I made at Litha) and some pot puree (will have to get a pot to put it in). Also, I know I have a couple of other things from her that she forgot to send because they were in a different box (the first box wasn't big enough for them too).

Anyway, most of the 25th was spent phoning and texting people to say, "Merry Christmas," and swap details of who had what and from whom.

Then I spent most of the evening doing the prepwork for the holiday feast we planned on making the following day to finish off our celebrations.

Celebrating Yule 2011 - Part 2 (FD)

2012-01-07T12:00:00.013Z

Thursday December 22nd arrived, and it was time for us to start our second full day of holiday celebrations! :)

We exchanged another present; I had an audiobook from Kelly (review and information to come in a later post) and more glitter stuff from Kero.

Then we started having fun with crafts. We wanted to make at least one holiday decoration. In my case this was a couple of glittery baubles:

I used the gold glitter paint I'd had from Kero that morning as the main colour, then decorated one of them with some glitter glue too; only I did it lightly so you only get the hint of the colours. I used amathyst, ruby and aquamarine, but I'm not sure if you can tell from the photos above.

Kelly made some sledding penguins. Well, started to; they're really fiddly, so they weren't done by the time I sent these photos to Iggy to be sorted, and I haven't had a chance to have him sort the photos yet. I'll post photos when I can though.

We finally got to our roast chestnuts after that; turns out Kero likes chestnuts too!

Anyway, that evening I did a meditation I'd planned to do. Well, sort of.

My plan was to take my quartz thumb crystal (which I hold when meditating)...

...Then meditate about the old year, and the new one.

In the back of my mind though was something I'd heard a lot of people saying about recently; a word for the coming year. I had heard someone mention it last year, but this year several people had. Enough, it seems, to have it firmly planted as a suggestion for me in my own mind. I tried several times to stop myself thinking about the word for the coming year - since that wasn't what I planned to meditate on - but my mind kept coming back to it. In the end I got the hint and decided to go with it; if my mind was that determined to pick the word (and it was the same word each time) then what else could I do?

So, I have a word for the coming year... Hope!

Anyway... It was a little after eight in the evening, I was done meditating and had just gone back in to the bedroom to listen to my new audiobook when the doorbell went. Who could it be? I was in my PJs (I usually am by that time if I have no reason not to be) so Kelly answered it. He was in PJs too, but that's not as bad for a man. Sorry, but it isn't.

When he opened the door, someone shouted, "come carol with us!" and disappeared in to the night before he could say or do anything. I wish they'd hung about; if they had then I'd have liked to go with them, but though he saw which way they went, by the time we could have thrown some clothes on and been ready to go they'd have been long gone. If he'd stuck around I'd have asked him to wait a minute and we'd join them, but he just didn't give us time. He seemed to think we'd be ready to drop everything and follow him. I wish we could have! I told Kelly I'd like to find out next year if someone will be doing that again, and if so be ready to follow them. He seems to like the idea too, so hopefully we can find out if or when they'll be doing it and join in next year.

OK, moving on...

On the 23rd we planned to be doing some gaming, but instead ended up doing more work on our craft projects, since we had to keep doing a bit then letting it dry and so on. Plus, we'd planned to do a bit of roleplaying, but my laptop decided it wasn't having any of it; I managed to catch up with blogs, but when we were about to try and do the roleplaying session (which I needed my laptop for since my character sheet and GMA Dice are on it)... Well, the laptop just refused to start. By the time I got it working again it was too late to be playing really.

My presents that day were more glitter stuff and a small pair of craft scissors from Kero, and some candle making supplies from Kelly to bulk up the starter kit I got myself for my planned attempts at candle making; I'm thinking I'll try it on Imbolc (February 2nd, for those who don't know) since that's a good time for candle making.

And I spent the evening reading a book called "A Treasury Of Christmas Tales" which has short versions of stories like "The Little Match Girl" and "A Christmas Carol" and "The Nutcracker" in it, as well as a few cute little Christmas stories I hadn't heard of before like "The Christmas Bear" and "The Wishing Star"... I love the book so much I got my brother a copy so he could read it each year too, if he wants to.

Celebrating Yule 2011 - part 1 (FD)

2012-01-06T12:00:00.011Z

OK, now that Kero's had his turn at posting about the holidays, it's my turn! ;)

On December 20th we kicked things off by making that the first night to have the candles lit for a while. We planned to light the two scented ones we had, but decided we'd also light the plain white one we'd found on the windowsill when we moved in. It didn't look like it had been used, and I did purify it "just in case" because of the fact it was sort of being used for a ritual; the candles, after all, were a symbol of the sun now beginning to strengthen, and warmth and light returning to the Earth. Anyway, here are all three candles lit:

The bits of wax from the edges of the wider ones; which didn't end up melted away as the candles burned, is now in small pieces with the candle making stuff I have, and I plan to melt it down to use to make new candles at some point.

We'd also planned on having roast chestnuts, mince pies and cocoa to kick things off, but we didn't get to the roast chestnuts and mince pies that first evening; we were too full from dinner, and too tired by the time we weren't. LOL!

Anyway, the following morning we had our first present; in my case this was some new cookie cutters and a tub containing some craft supplies (pipecleaners, pom-poms and such) from Kelly, and some glitters and glitter glues from Kero.

Then we made cookies!

First we made some "cinnamon sun cookies"... Cinnamon cookies cut withh a cookie cutter I have that sort of resembles a sun shape.

Then we made some "chocolate walnut trees and bells"... Which are chocolate cookies containing chocolate chips and chopped walnuts, cut in the shapes of bells and trees using a couple of my new cookie cutters; a bell and a tree, as you probably figured out.

Then we made "ginger choc stars and snowflakes"... Ginger cookies with white chocolate chips in them, cut in the shapes of stars and snowflakes (again with a couple of my new cutters... Though I did already have at least one star shape).

We decided to decorate the ginger choc stars and snowflakes; we spread butter icing on them, then sprinkled sugar sprinkles in various shapes all over them. I put a few of them on my penguin plate so you can see them decorated.

We also made some sweet mince pies.

I used my Mam's mince pie recipe, but I made the pastry myself.

I still had a couple left from the last batch, but while I was baking... *Shrugs*... Well, you know; I figured I might as well! ;)

We ate some cookies and mince pies that day, but we still didn't get to the roast chestnuts.

Just after sunset it was time for me to do my planned ritual.

So, I took up my bell and the special candle I'd brought for doing it...

...And went around the house with the candle in one hand and the bell in the other, holding the candle up and ringing my bell while repeating a single phrase:

"Be gone all those who wish us harm; welcome those who don't!"

And when I was done I placed the candle in the kitchen window (which is near the door) and made sure its twin was lit in the living room window (which, because of the positioning, is "sort of" the other side of the door). I left both candles on all night to see off any unwelcome houseguests, and to serve as a welcoming light for those who we would welcome. Plus, as it was the night of the 21st, that's a good night to leave the candles lit all night anyway (and the fact they're battery candles - which I thought was safer since I would be walking around with one of them - meant that there was no fire danger while I went to bed and left them alight).

And that's it for the start of our celebrations; I'll tell you more tomorrow.

Alexis' Story, Part 2: Blessed To Death

2012-01-05T12:00:00.009Z

I'd planned to start doing my own posts about the holidays today, but I'm interrupting myself in order to post this, because I want to post this today.

Do you remember that I posted Alexis' story as my virtual Yule gift as part of a blog party on December 21st? Well, Magaly has written a sequel - with my permission, of course - and I wanted to share the link with anyone who is interested and hasn't yet seen the post for it, which was published on her blog a couple of days ago.

So, I present to you...

Part 2 of Alexis' Story: Blessed To Death!

Enjoy! :)

Furkid thoughts: Kero's holidays 2011 continued (FD)

2012-01-04T12:00:00.000Z

Hi humans, it's Kero again!

OK, so I told you about the first few days, now I want to tell you about the final couple of days of my holidays; the part where Santa Paws came!

As I said at the end of December, despite my best efforts, I didn't catch him. He left me a stocking full of treats though; here I am seeing what he left me with Mami:

There were some yummy treats in that stocking; here I am with one of them:

In my stocking were all my favourite treats... Jumbones, schmacos, rawhide treats, and several other treats. That Santa Paws seems to know exactly what my favourite treats are; he knows me as well as Mami does!

After stockings it was time for the last of the presents from under the tree.

Santa Paws had left me a present under there; the turkey teddy in these photos:

It's a squeaky turkey teddy; I look confused because I was trying to figure out how he snuck the present among the ones under there without me noticing they'd been moved; he must be really sneaky, or very magical!

I also had a big package - which I'd been sniffing at longingly since it appeared - waiting under the tree for me from my humans; there were three things in it.

A polar bear teddy that squeaks...

A selection box (alright; more treats!)...

And a new bed...

Here I am trying out my new bed:

My new bed is now in the living room, and my old beds (which are actually small beds; they're meant to be decent sized cat beds) are in the bedroom; Mami put them side by side with my blankets spread over them so I can stretch out better. They're looking a bit tatty, so Mami planned to throw one away, but I got upset, so she used them to make a big bedroom bed instead. I'm not quite ready to part with them yet!

When my humans had their holiday feast I had some ham; I love ham!

And that's it for my holiday post. I know the holidays are all over with now, because on Monday Mami put away the decorations. She says she'll pull them out again when it's almost time for Santa Paws to come back. I'm already excited about him coming back; especially if we'll be having lots of present days again... I love presents!

Licks and snifss,
Kero

Furkid thoughts: Kero's holidays 2011 (LBE and FD)

2012-01-03T12:00:00.004Z

Hi humans, this is Kero here.

I persuaded Mami to let me do my post first; I have lots of photos to show you and wanted to get to it. I've split my post in two though, so you'll see the second half tomorrow. But, for now, on to the first half!

Note: I might have the photos of me opening presents with Mami in the wrong order, but I've tried to get the presents I had each day around the right way. Just don't worry about it if I say I had one thing in the package, but it looks more like another thing, if you know what I'm trying to say. Anyway...

Mami told me that before Santa Paws comes we'll have a few days where we get a present each; which was just fine with me!

So, the Wednesday before Santa Paws came, we got up and had our first present:

"Treats? YAY!"

"Give me a treat, Mami!"

This is just Mami checking she has all her fingers after I got a bit excited when taking one of my treats... Oops!

"Wait a minute... There's more in this package!"

"Mami, will you play with my new squeaky cracker with me?"

YAY! She played...

Here's a couple of photos of me and Mami playing tuggy with my new squeaky cracker toy:

That first day, I got a squeaky cracker, and a cracker shaped box containing some chewy dog treats in various shapes (snowmen, trees, etc).

The next day, we got another present:

This one had some dog biscuits shaped like snowmen in it; I liked them!

Along with the snowmen biscuits, I also had a squeaky bone; it didn't make it in to the photos. And it no longer squeaks; I'm still enjoying playing with it though!

The day after that we had yet another present... What can it be this time?

A squeaky Christmas pudding!

Mami and I then had a great game of "fetch the pudding"... See:

And what was in the package with the squeaky pudding?

Smells like mince pies...

It was; doggy mince pies!

So my third present was a pack of doggy mince pies and a squeaky Christmas pudding. The mince pies were very tasty, and the Christmas pudding - which no longer squeaks, but is still being played with - was great fun!

Day four, and another present:

WOW! My very own doggy chocolate Santa!

And a rope tuggy toy:

I had fun playing tuggy with the rope with Mami, and the chocolate Santa... Well, it wasn't bad, but was definately not one of my favourite treats. It took me a few days to get around to eating more than a few nibbles, where as the snowman biscuits and mince pies were gobbled up quickly, and they only lasted a few days because there were more than one of them. And - more to the point - Mami wouldn't give me both.

Not a bad pile of stuff though; three squeaky toys, a rope toy, a chocolate Santa, some mince pies, some biscuits and a pack of soft shape treats. And tomorrow you can find out what Santa brought for me, and what was in my final package from my humans.

That's it for today though.

Oh, apart from one more thing...

Thank you to my pal, Iggy, for sorting out all of mine and Mami's photos for us!

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Of cats, dogs, and cups (kinda FD)

2012-01-02T14:13:00.005Z

Kelly heard me talking to my Mam about how I didn't have any Hello Kitty items. So, when he went shopping the Monday before the holidays, he decided to buy me this mug:

It came with a small chocolate bar, and these three tree ornaments:

Mam has loads of Hello Kitty things, but even she doesn't have any Hello Kitty tree ornaments!

:)

Also, when Kelly went to the dog shop in town (the one where we get those calming treats for Kero) to get his bandanna that you got to see photos of on Christmas Eve, they were doing a sort of prize draw thing where you take a piece of paper from a tub, and what it says on it is what you win. And this is what Kelly won:

So I have a new dog mug too, since he gave it to me.

We also ended up winning a free packet of treats for Kero when Kelly went back to get his "Fab Fang" treats a few days later, so he grabbed Kero an extra pack of Fab Fangs.

This will do for today; I'm off to sort out the posts about our holidays and set them up to publish over the next few days, since Iggy very kindly sorted the photos for me on Friday... Thanks Iggy! :)

Welcome to 2012

2012-01-01T19:24:00.004Z

Happy new year, and welcome to 2012!

I was going to start posting about how the holidays went here today, but my laptop is being a pain again, so I'm just going to stay on here long enough to say what I already have, and now I'm going to go back to my Harry Potter audiobook marathon (I'm half way through book 3 right now) and working on some of the things on my "to do" list (I already managed to get one of the small projects done today). I'm working on some of the small projects while I wait for a delivery of a spacific colour of wool, which I've ordered to make the knitted items of clothing I want for myself.

2011 is just about over

2011-12-31T14:19:00.004Z

2011 is just about over; today is New Year's Eve - which you probably already know, I'm sure - and tomorrow starts our attempts at remembering to write "2012" instead of "2011" when we write the date. I don't know about you, but I only just get the hang of writing one year before we change to the next, LOL!

So, how was 2011 for you?

For me it was a busy year that seems to have flown by. A lot happened; the biggest thing being our move in October, which was basically from one side of the UK to the other.

Are you making any new year's resolutions?

I'm not; I don't make them.

My first year staying up for midnight my brother told me my choice of resolution was stupid, so I said I wouldn't make any if I couldn't make the ones I wanted to. I suppose, in a way, that's a resolution in itself; I suppose, in a way, I just promised myself I wouldn't make promises I couldn't keep. Either way, I've kept to it ever since. I'd just turned 9, so I've kept to it now for 18 years.

I do make lists of things I would like to achieve each year though. More than anything those lists are just "to do lists" that I hope to get to before the next year is out; mainly involving projects I want to get done that year.

Most of my projects didn't get done in 2011; I ended up not giving out handmade gifts to everyone as I'd planned, and I still haven't made myself the knitted items I keep promising to make for myself.

Maybe in 2012 I'll do a better job of getting through my list?

First I'm going to make those things I promised myself; starting with a hat, scarf and mittens set. Then I'll start on all those other projects on my list.

Anyway...

Happy New Year to you all; I hope you have a fun - and safe - time celebrating!

Kelly, Kero and I are having a quiet night in... Normal for us; we're not big on parties, and we don't drink, so a quiet night in suits us much better.

Astraea Sapphire's blog

2011-12-30T09:36:00.001Z

For anyone who may be interested...

Astraea Sapphire's blog is moving from http://astraeasapphiresalmanac.blogspot.com to http://www.magicalmom.net.

Just thought I'd let anyone who may be interested know. :)

OK... It's back to catching up with blogs for me; have a good day!

Furkid thoughts: Santa Paws spotting plan

2011-12-29T19:19:00.002Z

Hi there humans, this is Kero.

So, you've all been wondering about my plan to catch Santa Paws, right?

Well, this was my plan:

Where Mami moved my bed when the tree went up I can see the tree and the doorway clearly, plus - if he thinks he's clever enough to try it - I could also see if he came in through the fireplace. I also had a perfect view of the other door to the front room. In short, where my bed is, no matter how Santa Paws entered the living room (where the tree and stockings are) I would be able to see him. My plan was simple; I'd spend the night in the bed in the living room instead of sleeping with the humans. I do that sometimes anyway, so Santa Paws wouldn't have thought it was strange. The added bonus here is that when I sleep in there I tend to sleep lighter; listening harder for sounds made by my humans - especially Mami - in case she slips away in the night or something.

But somehow he still snuck in!

Mami put the stockings on the sofa. I checked them; they were empty. Then we started getting sorted for bed. I spent the night in my living room bed, but still when I got up in the morning the stockings were somehow full of presents.

I don't get it!

The only time I wasn't there was when I went for my before bed pee, but he couldn't have come in then, because my humans were still up, and they'd have said something if the stockings got filled then, wouldn't they?

Plus, how could he have gotten in the house without me hearing him?

This Santa Paws guy is very sneaky!

I'm not giving up though... I'll try again next year!

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Those Darn Squirrels

2011-12-28T15:25:00.004Z

Iggy recently had an amusing little book brought for him. The book was "Those Darn Squirrels!" and it was written by Adam Rubin.

The book tells the story of Old Man Fookwire; he is a grump. The only thing he likes to do is paint pictures of the birds that visit his backyard. In an attempt to stop them flying South for the Winter he sets up bird feeders in his garden. But the squirrels like the bird feeders too. Except that Old Man Fookwire doesn't like the squirrels, and definately doesn't want them eating the things he put out to tempt the birds in to staying in his garden instead of flying South for the Winter.

I wont tell you what happens next, but I will tell you this:

When Iggy mentioned the book I thought it sounded like an amusing little book, and I wanted to read it. So when I recently found audio clips of Iggy reading the book waiting for me in my inbox I was really pleased. And now that I've read it I still think it's an amusing little book. I also think it's a cute story, and a great little book to put a smile on your face.

Killing Time

2011-12-27T16:40:00.002Z

By Caleb Carr

"Meet Dr. Gideon Wolfe, expert criminologist of the new millennium. A professor at New York's John Jay University in the year 2023, he lives in an era that has seen plague, a global economic crash, and the 2018 assassination of President Emily Forrester. In this turbulent new world order, Wolfe's life and everything he knows are turned upside down when the widow of a murdered special-effects wizard enters his office.

The widow hands him a silver disc from her husband's safety deposit box, hoping that Wolfe's expertise in history and criminology will compel him to track down her husband's killers. The disc contains footage of President Forrester's assassination, the same video that has been broadcast countless times on TV and over the internet-with one crucial, shocking difference: This version shows that before the video was released, it was altered with sinister special effects.

This explosive discovery will lead Gideon Wolfe on an electrifying journey from a criminal underworld of New York to the jungles of Africa and on a quest to find the truth in an age when all information can be manipulated. With this novel, Carr has boldly established a new genre - future history - combining the best elements of mystery and thrillers with unique historical insight. Breathtakingly suspenseful, Killing Time unfolds as the work of a master novelist."

(Click here to see the page that the above text was taken from).

I thought that this was a really strange, but really good book; the ending was a little bit disappointing though, since I would have liked to know what - if anything - Malcolm actually did. I wont say more though, because I don't want to spoil it for anyone who might be wanting to read it. After all, like I said, it is a good book, so it is worth a read if you like these kinds of books.

Why the Sea is Salt (LBE and FD)

2011-12-26T10:00:00.001Z

The following story was taken from this site.

Long ago, there were two brothers, one rich and one poor. The Rich Brother was stingy. It was winter. The wind howled down the chimney, and the snow almost covered the hut in which the Poor Brother lived.

"We cannot starve," said the Poor Brother to his wife. "I will ask my brother to help us."

Now it annoyed the Rich Brother to have the Poor Brother ask for help. When the Poor Brother asked for bread, the Rich Brother said angrily, "Here, take this ham and go to the dwarfs. They will boil it for you."

So the Poor Brother started out, with the ham under his arm, to find the home of the dwarfs. He trudged on through the snow until he saw seven queer little dwarfs rolling a huge snowball, at the foot of a hill.

The dwarfs paid no attention to the Poor Brother, but kept on rolling the snowball, which grew larger and larger each moment, as they sang,

"Behind the door
The Mill you'll find,
But snow, the Mill
Will never grind.
We'll gather snow,
And still more snow,
Then roll it down
To cool Below."

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the Chief Dwarf. "We have snow enough here to put out a dozen fires. Come, brothers, let us roll the snowball Below!"

"Heave ho! Heave ho!" cried the other six dwarfs.

In the twinkling of an eye, the seven little dwarfs had rolled the snowball through an entrance in the side of the hill.

Down, down, the snowball rolled, until it reached the place where the fires burned. Then sizzle, sizzle, came the hot steam pouring out of the entrance.

All this time the Poor Brother had stood watching the seven dwarfs, and saying not a word. But suddenly he thought, "If I do not go Below at once, there will be no fire left to boil my ham."

So the Poor Brother groped his way through the steam and the smoke, and at last he found his way into the home of the seven dwarfs.

It certainly was a very queer place! There were great fires burning on every side. Although the huge snowball had cooled the air, it had not quenched the fires.

The Chief Dwarf was stirring some fat that was boiling in a kettle. When he saw the Poor Brother standing before him with the ham under his arm, he cried, "Ho, ho! Who comes here?"

Before the Poor Brother could answer, the seven little dwarfs had crowded around him, teasing for the ham. It was many a day since they had tasted ham, and they were very fond of it.

"What will you give me for the ham?" asked the Poor Brother.

"We have neither silver nor gold," said the dwarfs, "but we will give you the Mill that stands behind the door."

"Of what use would the Mill be to me? I am hungry and have come to boil the ham," said the Poor Brother.

"It is a wonderful Mill," the Chief Dwarf replied. "It will grind anything in the world that you might wish, excepting snow and ham. I will show you how to use it."

The Poor Brother agreed to give the ham in exchange for the Mill, and the Chief Dwarf told him how to use it.

The dwarf said, "When you wish the Mill to grind, use these words: Grind, quickly grind, little Mill, Grind--with a right good will! When you wish the Mill to stop grinding, you must say, Halt, halt, little Mill!
The Mill will obey you."

Taking the little Mill under his arm, the Poor Brother climbed up and up, until he came to the entrance in the side of the hill. Then he trudged home again through the snow.

When he arrived in front of the hut, he put the little Mill down on the snow, and said at once, "Grind, quickly grind, little Mill, Grind a HOUSE--with a right good will!"

The little Mill ground and ground, until there stood, in place of the hut, the finest house in the world. It had fine large windows and broad stairways, and the house was furnished from garret to cellar.

By spring, the Mill had ground out the last article that was needed for the house, and the Poor Brother cried, "Halt, halt, little Mill!" The Mill obeyed him.

Then the Poor Brother placed the Mill in the barnyard and told it to grind horses, cows, woolly sheep, and fat little pigs.

When he told it to halt, the Mill stopped grinding.

The Poor Brother carried the Mill to the fields and commanded it to grind rich crops of wheat, oats, barley, and corn.

Then he took the Mill into the house and asked it to grind fine clothing for his wife and his daughters, and to keep all the cupboards filled with good things to eat.

At last the Poor Brother had everything that he wanted. He placed the Mill behind the kitchen door and sat down, with his wife and daughters, to eat the choicest food he had ever tasted.

The Rich Brother heard about all the strange things that had happened, and he went to visit the Poor Brother.

"How did you manage to become so rich?" he asked in astonishment.

The Poor Brother told about the Mill, and that he need only say,

"Grind, quickly grind, little Mill, Grind--with a right good will!" And the Mill would grind anything he might wish to have.

The Rich Brother did not wait to hear any more but said, "Lend the Mill to me for an hour."

Taking it under his arm, the stingy Rich Brother ran across the fields toward home.

His wife was in the hayfield, spreading the hay after the mowers. He passed her on the way home and told her that he would attend to breakfast that morning.

"I will call you when all is ready," said he.

When the Rich Brother reached home, he placed the Mill on the table, and told it to grind porridge and red herrings.

The Mill began at once to grind oatmeal porridge and fat red herrings.

All the dishes and pans were soon filled. Then the porridge and herrings began to flow over the kitchen floor into the yard.

The Rich Brother tried to stop the Mill. He turned and twisted and screwed the handle, but he could not stop it, for he did not know the magic words.

At last he waded through the porridge across the fields to the mowers, crying, "Help! Help!"

When he told the mowers about the Mill, they said, "Ask your brother to stop the Mill, or we shall be drowned in porridge."

Then the Rich Brother ran to the Poor Brother's house, crying and shouting for help.

The Poor Brother laughed when he found out what had happened. They rowed back to the kitchen in a boat, and the Poor Brother whispered the magic words. The Mill stopped grinding.

In the course of time, the porridge soaked into the ground, but after that nothing would grow there excepting oats, and afterwards the brooks and ponds were always filled with herrings.

The Rich Brother no longer wished to keep the Mill. The Poor Brother carried it home once more and placed it behind the door.

Years afterwards, a rich merchant sailed from a distant land and anchored his ship in the harbor. He visited the home of the Poor Brother and asked about the Mill, for he had heard how wonderful it was.

"Will it grind salt?" the merchant asked.

"Yes, indeed!" said the Poor Brother. "It will grind anything in the whole world excepting snow and ham."

"Let me borrow the Mill for a short time, and great will be your reward," said the merchant.

He thought it would be much easier to fill his ship with salt from the Mill, than to make a long voyage across the ocean to procure his cargo.

The Poor Brother consented gladly. The merchant went away with the Mill. He did not wait to find out how to stop the grinding.

When the merchant went aboard the ship, he said to the captain, "Here is a great treasure. Guard it carefully."

The captain thought that the little Mill did not appear very wonderful, but he placed it upon the deck of the ship. Then he ordered the sailors to their posts of duty, and the ship sailed away.

When they were out at sea, the merchant said, "Captain, we need not go any further upon our voyage. The Mill will grind out salt enough to fill the hold of the ship." So saying he cried, "Grind, quickly grind, little Mill, Grind SALT--with a right good will!" And the Mill ground salt, and more salt, and still more salt. When the hold of the ship was full of salt, the merchant cried, "Now you must stop, little Mill."

But the little Mill did not stop. It kept on grinding salt, and more salt, and still more salt.

The captain shouted, "We shall be lost! The ship will sink!"

One of the sailors called, "Ahoy, captain! Throw the Mill overboard."

So, heave ho! Heave ho! And overboard went the wonderful Mill, down to the bottom of the deep sea.

The captain and his crew sailed home with the merchant's cargo of salt.

But the Mill kept on grinding salt at the bottom of the sea.

AND THAT IS WHY THE SEA IS SALT.

At least, so some people say.

Just a little note from me to you (kinda FD)

2011-12-25T14:15:00.005Z

It's the afternoon of Christmas Day; the presents are opened, the bulk of the phone calls made, and soon I'll start on the preporations for the things I can do today ready for the feast for tomorrow. But I just wanted to take a few minutes to wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy Chanuka, Blessed Yule... Or whatever it happens to be for you! Whatever you've done, are doing, or will be doing to celebrate the holidays this year, I hope your holidays are filled with love and laughter! :)

Furkid thoughts: Kero's 2011 holiday photo shoot

2011-12-24T12:45:00.001Z

Hi humans, it's Kero here.

My humans brought me a new bandana, and we did a photo shoot, since I'm sure you all want to see photos of me wearing it. I mean, how could you not want to see photos of me? It's a "reversable" one, which means it has a different picture on each side.

On one side it's red and green with holly and ivy:

And the other side is green with stars:

I love bandanas!

If you're wondering... I have my plan set for spotting Santa Paws; I don't want to post it thogh in case he reads it. I'll tell you about it - and about if it works - some other day. Mami says it's tonight he comes... I hope I can catch him this year!

I'll also tell you about all the presents I've had lately another day; I've been having a great time the last few days... Wait until you hear about all the great things I've gotten! And Mami says there's more after Santa Paws has been; this is great!

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Glass angel

2011-12-23T12:38:00.002Z

I thought I would show you a photo of the tree ornament we brought this year.

It's a little glass angel.

Isn't she pretty?

I hope you're enjoying your holiday celebrations; or, if they haven't started yet, that you enjoy your holiday celebrations... Stay safe and warm! :)

Story: MEAGAN AND THE YULE SOLSTICE

2011-12-22T12:00:00.000Z

By Kathryn Dyer

Once upon a time there was a little girl named Meagan. She lived in a house that had lots of woods behind it. She lived with her mommy and daddy, her big brother Corwin and her beautiful cat named Starweaver.

Meagan loved to watch Starweaver play with the snow in the winter. He would try to catch the flakes as they came down from the sky. Sometimes he would get mad when the flakes would melt and then his tail would start swishing from side to side. Meagan's parents told her not to mess with Starweaver when his tail was swishing like that.

"When Star swishes his tail back and forth it means that he is mad or frustrated," said her father Michael, "and playing with him would be like someone teasing you when you're mad or don't feel good." Meagan could sure understand that! "What does frustrated mean Daddy?" she asked. "Frustrated is how you feel when you are trying very hard to do something and it won't work right. Like when you were learning how to dress yourself and you couldn't get your head through the neck of a shirt." explained Michael. Meagan knew just how that felt and she promised never to bother the cat when his tail swished.

But today Starweaver wasn't swishing his tail. He was following Meagan and Corwin into the woods and chasing shadows. Meagan and Corwin had gone down the path into the woods to gather green fir branches, mistletoe and holly. It was Christmas time and they were helping to decorate the house. Later they would go with their parents to pick out a live tree to decorate and then plant in the Circle behind the house. Meagan's family were Pagans, but they also celebrated Christmas when Santa Claus came.

Meagan's mother Elizabeth told her that many people would celebrate a God's birthday at the middle of the winter or the Yule Solstice. Meagan knew that the Yule Solstice was the longest night of the year. Of course, many Christians celebrated the birthday of Jesus at Christmas. But before there were Christians some people would celebrate the birthday of Mithras, one of the old Gods, or some of the other Solar Gods. Solar means that the God is in charge of the Sun and Light. Meagan could see how the sun would be very important in the cold of Winter.

Meagan's family celebrated two holidays in the winter. They would celebrate Christmas, which her mother said was Santa Claus's birthday and they would celebrate the beginning of winter which they called the Yule Solstice. Meagan thought that Santa Claus must be a very nice person to give other people presents on his birthday so she and Corwin always left him a piece of cake and some eggnog to drink.

Meagan and Corwin picked lots of branches to decorate the house with. They tried to get fallen branches when they could but when they had to take them off a live plant they would ask the plant first and then thank it when they were done. Meagan had some crystals in her pocket to leave for the plants as a thank-you present. Corwin used the scissors when they had to cut something because he was older and Meagan's safety scissors might hurt the plant more. Corwin was always very careful not to cut more than they needed. They put all their branches into baskets that Elizabeth's mother Nana had made.

"Don't let Starweaver eat anything!" said Corwin, "Many plants can make cats and people sick." Meagan held her basket up higher. She didn't want Star to get sick! Corwin told her that soon she would get to go on walks with their father into the woods to learn about which plants were safe to eat and which were not. "Yes," said Meagan, "and then maybe Cindy's mom will show me how to make medicines!" Cindy was Meagan's best friend and her mother was an herbalist. Cindy's mother Anna made medicine, incense, make-up and lots of other things wit all kinds of plants and flowers. Sometimes Meagan would go with her mother when Elizabeth went to trade herbs with Anna. Then she and Cindy would have fun smelling all the herbs in Anna's workshop.

Soon Meagan's house was full of decorations. They made popcorn and cranberry strings to decorate the tree. Each year Meagan and Corwin would make a special ornament to put on the tree. This year Nana helped them make ornaments out of clay. Nana put the ornaments in her kiln, which is a kind of oven, so that they would get hard. Meagan loved her Nana very much. She always brought Meagan a surprise when she cam to visit. One time she had brought a little black kitten who grew up to be Starweaver!

One time Meagan asked Nana if she was a Pagan too. Nana said, "Oh, I'm half of one and a dozen of the other". Meagan couldn't talk about it to her other grandparents. Her daddy's parents Gramma Lee and Granpa Scott were very Christian and always asked where the children were going to Sunday school. Meagan had been to Sunday school a few times with Cindy because her parents wanted her to know about all religions. But she didn't tell Gramma Lee and Granpa Scott about the time she went to the Jewish temple or talked to her parents' Buddhist friend. She knew that they wouldn't understand and she didn't want to make them feel bad.

It seemed like no time at all before it was the night before Yule Solstice. Meagan's family had found a dead tree in the woods to use for a Yule log. They decorated it with greenery after Michael carved little suns onto it. When it was ready they put it in the fireplace and put the piece of Yule log they had saved from last year on top of it. This year Jeremy, the Coven's High Priest, had to work on the Solstice so the Coven had decided to hold their ritual on the next Saturday. Meagan was excited, they would celebrate three days this year!

That night, Meagan's family had a big dinner and Nana came to stay the night. Elizabeth had talked to Cindy's mother Anna and she let Cindy come to spend the night too! Sonn Elizabeth lit the Yule log and many candles around the room. Cindy and Meagan lay on the rug in front of the fire while Michael played his harp. They sang some songs that people in their Coven had written about the Yule. Cindy didn't know very many of the songs they sang but she tried to sing them anyway. This made Meagan giggle and so Cindy started to tickle her. They had a great tickle fight until Nana said that they were too close to the fire even if it had a screen.

Cindy and Meagan got to stay up past their bedtime and even got to have a cookie before they went to bed. They promised each other to meet after Santa came to play with their new toys. Meagan could hardly wait for Santa to get there! On Christmas Eve she and Corwin left out some coconut cake and eggnog for Santa. They left him a note wishing him a happy birthday and thanking him in advance for anything he might leave for them if he thought that they had been good. Meagan had tried to be good all year but it was very hard for her to go to sleep that night. She kept thinking that she heard raindeer on the roof.

The next morning Meagan got up and brushed her teeth. She could hardly wait to go downstairs but she had to wait until her parents and Nana were ready. Because Corwin was old enough he had gone down to the kitchen to heat water for tea and coffee. Meagan's mother and Nana would only drink herb tea but Michael said he had to jumpstart his mornings which always made Elizabeth laugh and tease him.

Once they got downstairs Corwin and Meagan rushed to see what Santa had left them while their parent's took pictures. After they were done, the whole family exhanged presents. Then it was time to visit Gramma Lee and Granpa Scott. It wasn't until the next day that Meagan had time to play with Cindy.

Since the Coven had chosen to meet on Saturday they decided to have a party all day. People began arriving early in the morning. Some of them had brought gifts for Meagan and her family who also had gifts for them. Meagan had made Jeremy a plate with a pentagram and runes around it spelling out his name with the clay her Nana had brought to make the Christmas decorations with.

"Thank you so much Meagan!" said Jeremy, "I will put this on my altar at home and everytime I see it I will think of you." Meagan felt very happy that Jeremy liked her present. Everyone had a good time. They all played games and sang songs. Michael played his harp. Corwin had gotten a new recorder for Christmas and played it for eveyone. Sometimes people would stop for a little bit and go for a walk in the woods. Not everyone had woods behind their house like Meagan's family did.

It was getting to be time for the Circle to gather. Everyone took turns taking quick showers and baths to purify themselves. Meagan and Corwin helped decorate the Circle with greens and candles before it was their turn. They took their baths and put on their robes. The Coven was starting to gather in the Circle. There was a bonfire ready to light and two unlit candles waiting on the Altar. They would light the bonfire and the candles to help light the Horned Lord's way through the dark months of winter.

Robert blew a Horn and the ceremony started. When it came time for Cakes and Ale they passed out some special cookies that Nana had made for them. "I may not come worship with you," Nana said, "but I respect what you do and I would like to share a little part of it with you."

All too soon the ritual was over. Meagan was going to help clean up the Circle but her mother saw her yawning and sent her to bed. "Don't worry Meagan," said Elizabeth, "the grown-ups are going to stay up until the bonfire goes out and we'll clean up then. Go brush your teeth and get ready for bed and one of us will come tuck you in in a minute, o.k.?" "O.k. momma," yawned Meagan, "it's all been so much fun this week, I just can't stay awake any longer."

When Michael came up to tuck Meagan in she was already sound asleep and dreaming about the wonderful week she had had.

(Click here to see the page that I got the story "Meagan And The Yule Solstice" from).

My gift to you: Alexis' Story (LBE)

2011-12-21T12:38:00.007Z

"I'll see you after class," the teacher said, dropping something on to the desk in front of Alexis. A little confused, Alexis pulled it towards her to see what it was. Examining it carefully she discovered it was her recent essay on the origin of Christmas. She'd never had a teacher want to see her after class in her 12 years of life, why now? Squinting at the page in front of her she realized the front page of her work was covered in a large red F.
"Lexi," said a voice beside her. "That's your homework." It was her support assistant; the person who read things for her when she couldn't. Alexis hated having to have a support assistant, but she hated it more than ever at that moment. Not only was the woman talking to her as if she was an idiot - again - when she was far from an idiot, but having a support assistant made it obvious to everyone how different Alexis was. She didn't mind being different, but she wished it was for something good, not because she had poor eyesight. "Alexis," the woman repeated, breaking in to Alexis' thoughts. "I'm talking to you."
"Yes," Alexis muttered. "I know. It's my homework."
"You got an F," her support assistant told her, as if the large red F on the paper wasn't big enough for Alexis to have noticed it. "Lexi, how did you get an F? Did you not understand the essay? I wrote what she'd put on the board, if you couldn't read it..."
"I understood it just fine," Alexis snapped. "And I could read what you wrote just fine."
"Then..."
"Look, I don't know, OK. I guess I'll find out when I talk to her after class."
"Want me to stay with you?"
"No! I think I can manage to have a conversation without you."
She'd never had an F before in her life, and it bothered her. And she'd put a lot of work in to the Christmas piece; not that she'd minded, those books on Pagan celebrations had been fascinating. She wished she wouldn't have to return them to the library next week.
Soon class ended and the rest of the students filed out of the room. Giving them plenty of time to do so - and attempting to prolong what she was sure would be a far from enjoyable conversation - Alexis took her time gathering her things, and packing them in to her bag. By the time she was finally done, her teacher was sitting at her desk with her arms folded, glaring at her with disapproval.
"Miss?" Alexis said as she approached. "You wanted to speak to me?"
"I did," the teacher said. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Of what?" Alexis asked. "You mean... my essay?"
"What else?"
"I did what you said; I wrote about the origin of Christmas."
"Lies!" her teacher shouted.
Alexis took a step backwards, shaking her head. "But I got the information from several sources," she said. "I quoted them at the end like you're meant to."

"You can't believe everything you read in books child," her teacher announced, and then launched in to a speech in which Alexis only made out the words "devil worshipers" and "the bible says."
"But if I can't believe what I read in books," Alexis said bravely. "Then why should I believe the bible?"
Her teacher glared angrily at her, then quickly wrote a note and stuffed it in an envelope. She then thrust it in to Alexis' hands and told her to give it to her parents and get out.
Alexis ran from the room, fighting tears. She was meant to go to her next class, but she was already late. She wasn't going to walk in to a room full of people when the battle against the tears that was getting harder every second. Instead, she locked herself in a cubical of the girls' toilets and allowed the tears to fall. She was still there when the lunch bell rang, but she didn't care; she wasn't hungry.
After a while she heard voices and a group of girls came in. One of them tried the door to the cubical she was in.
"Someone's in here," Alexis said in a shaky voice. As soon as she said it she wished she hadn't. A moment later she heard the unmistakable sound of someone climbing on to the lid of the toilet in the next cubical, and a head popped over the wall.
"Hey," said a girl. "Alexis is crying, come and see."
The next thing Alexis knew, a head had popped up on the other side too. "She's right," said the second head. "It is Alexis, and she's crying."
The girls then fell about teasing her until she summoned up the courage to open the door and make a dash for it.
"You didn't wash your hands," one of the girls called after her, as she disappeared out of the door. The others laughed.
As she ran she stumbled over feet that were intentionally stuck out to trip her, and tried to ignore calls of, "watch where you're going. Oh, that's right, you can't."
It wasn't long though before one of the feet sent her sprawling. She landed heavily; pain shooting up the arm that had broken her fall, and the contents of her bag spilling over the floor. All the onlookers laughed as she scrambled to find and repack the contents of her bag.
"What's this?" said the boy who had tripped her. With a sinking feeling in her stomach Alexis looked up to see him holding up a book. That was when she remembered; she had the books she'd used for her Christmas essay in her bag still.
"Give it back," she demanded.

The boy examined the book then looked around at his friends. "It's a book about witches," he informed them all. "Are you a witch Alexis?"
"Give the book back to me," Alexis repeated, ignoring his question. Besides, what difference did it make if she was a witch? Witches weren't bad people, were they?

Alexis found her thoughts drifting back to when she was seven years old. In her hands was a bible, and she stood in front of her Sunday School teacher.
"Why though?" asked seven year old Alexis. "I thought God treated everyone the same."
"You're different," her Sunday School teacher replied.
"Why?" Alexis asked her.
"Because you're disabled," came the reply.
Anger burned in the child as she glared at the adult before her, and - without thinking - she began to flick through the pages of the bible she held in her hands.
"What are you looking for?" her Sunday School teacher had asked.
"The right spell," Alexis had replied.
Her Sunday School teacher had then launched in to a fit of ranting and raving in which she had called Alexis, "witch," and "Devil worshiper," and "evil."
Alexis remembered she had been confused. She liked witches, and what was wrong with playing witch anyway?

"I said, are you a witch, Alexis?" the boy asked, jolting her back to the present.
"And I said give me back the book," Alexis responded.
"She didn't deny it," one of the others that had surrounded her said. "She must be a witch."
She was spared what might have come next by the sound of a pair of high-heeled feet coming down the corridor. At the sound the boy thrust the book at Alexis, and all the children scattered; nobody wanted to be caught in the act by a teacher, after all.
By the time the teacher came around the corner Alexis was alone in the corridor. "Are you OK, Alexis?" the teacher asked.
"I..." Alexis hesitated; knowing that telling the teacher would only encourage the bullies. "I tripped, and I landed hard on my arm, and my stuff spilled everywhere," Alexis offered.
"You should be using your cane," the teacher pointed out as she began to help Alexis gather the rest of her things.
Alexis ignored the comment. She hated the thing, and she wasn't going to use it. Her sight wasn't bad enough to need the stupid stick, and she wasn't going to use it. She didn't need it. And, anyway, using the cane would only make them bully her more, and she needed that like a hole in the head.
"What's this?" the teacher said, spotting the book on witchcraft Alexis still held.
"Just a book," Alexis muttered, stuffing it quickly in to her bag.
"What kind of book?" the teacher insisted. But Alexis ignored her, making sure this time that the clasp on her bag was done up, before swinging it across her shoulder and starting to head off down the corridor, barely even remembering to stop and thank the teacher for helping her collect her things.
Alexis’ arm was throbbing, and her music teacher noticed her struggling to use it. The teacher sent her to the nurse, and told her not to bother coming back to class afterwards. She did go to the nurse to have it bandaged, but told the nurse she was meant to go back to class so as to escape from there. She hated to lie; and was rarely good at it, but she didn't want to be stuck in the nurse's room. She needed to think.
She found a spot near the entrance where the taxi that took her home stopped. She pulled the book from her bag. She hadn't planned to read it, but it seemed to call to her, inviting her to read it again and again; that's why she had it in her bag instead of leaving it at home.
She was confused; all she'd read about Pagans and witches seemed to answer the questions she had ever since she was a seven year old playing witches with the bible. The bible never gave her those answers, but this... this felt right.
A bird swooped low overhead, and she looked up, wishing she could see it clearly enough to tell what kind it was. The sky was a brilliant blue, with puffy white clouds in it, and she smiled - for the first time that day - as she looked at them. "If a Pagan or witch - or whatever you want to call it - worships nature," she announced to nobody in particular, "Then I'm one." She looked down at the book still in her hands. "And I'm not evil," she added, "Because witches aren't evil."

***

Today is the last of the three Yule blog parties I've signed up for, and the theme of today's blog party is based around gifts. I wasn't sure what kind of gift I could give at first, but with a little help from Magaly - who is a gift in herself - I was able to come up with a gift to share with you. Therefore, my gift to you this holiday season is the story of how a young witch found her path.

Alexis' story was based on my own story - which you can read here - I'll let you decide for yourself how much of Alexis' story is fact and how much of it is fiction though! ;)

Find out what other wonderful gifts are being shared this holiday season by visiting the other participents; you can do this by clicking on the button below:

Weather, laptops, mobility and daycare

2011-12-20T11:40:00.006Z

It's been really cold here lately; Kero has the right idea...

...I've spent a lot of time curled up in blankets myself, LOL!

We had a little snow Friday, but between the fact the ground was so wet from rain and the day became warm, it didn't stick around even long enough for me to grab photos. It's a start, I guess... I want more though; anyone want to send me some? LOL!

We've had plenty of thick frost though, and - like I said - it's very cold!

***

My laptop has developed a dodgy connection to its power supply, and since the battery no longer holds any kind of charge this means that sometimes my laptop just suddenly turns off without warning; very annoying, since it usually happens when I'm in the middle of something. Avoiding moving it reduces the chances, but that's still no guarantee, since the position it needs seems to change from time to time, and sometimes the slightest movement makes it lose its connection, other times it can be moved just fine. Like I said, it's all very annoying!

***

Mobility lessons are going well; I did part of the walk "technically" by myself yesterday. There was a scary moment where a monster with twig-like arms grabbed me, but it all worked out OK in the end; once the tree was done getting its hug. My Mobility officer was sort of nearby, but acting like just a casual observer, since she knows I know the route already; we both know it's only my monsters that stop me doing it. Well, that and the slight problem of my not being able to find the gate very easily; but I'm even getting better at that... Doorway counting seems to be working reasonably well. Though, I have to admit that it's easier when Kero's at home, because as soon as I get near enough to the gate that he can see me he goes mental, so I just have to follow his barks, LOL!

***

Kero was meant to go to doggy daycare on Saturday; he's not going there again. To cut a long story short, there was nobody around, and when I called I was told we should have walked in the other gate (which we'd been told not to use) and looked for them in the workshop (which I didn't know they had). They also made it perfectly clear that they were too busy to spare me much time, and when I suggested it was easier to cancel then, the reply was a rather sharp, "fine," followed by, "bye," and the line going dead. To say I was annoyed is an understatement.

For one thing, if you make a commitment to a customer, you should keep to it; busy or not. For another, she knew I was blind, and iff I'd taken Kero by myself how could I have gone down there looking for her? For another, she knew we'd have a taxi waiting so no time to mess about. Not to mention the fact my confidence in her took a bit of a battering with how we had to reschedule what was meant to have been my birthday day out because she'd neglected to get someone in to have Kero while she walked her dogs, so she only had him for his grooming (so for a little over an hour) instead of for the whole day. Plus the fact it took us much longer than it should have to get his collar back (while he was trembling with fear and getting upset because he hates not having it on). I tried giving her the benifit of the doubt last time, but after this time... *Shakes head*... Kero's not going back there. I'll find him another groomer, and find someone else who does doggy daycare or something.

She seemed like a nice enough person, which is why I was giving her the benifit of the doubt last time; but you can't just go by if someone is "nice" sometimes. Sometimes you need them to also be professional, and she doesn't seem to be, which means I don't feel comfortable trusting her with Kero.

***

That will do for today; besides, I've already done a post earlier this morning about my actual plans for Yule this year, so you have enough to read for today, I think.

Stay safe and warm!

Plans for Yule 2011 (FD)

2011-12-20T07:19:00.006Z

For those who are interested, here's the plan for our Yule celebrations:

We're kicking things off tonight with roasted chestnuts, mince pies and cocoa.

Tomorrow we'll exchange our first present from each other, we have a present for each other and something from Kero for each of us for each of the five days we're exchanging presents, so for each present exchange where I say "from each other" I mean the present from Kero too; so two presents each for Kelly and I, and a present for Kero. Anyway, we'll be doing some baking (mince pies, and three different types of cookies). I'll also be doing a ritual to banish negative energies from the home (which I'll tell you more about afterwards).

Thursday we'll exchange our second present from each other, and we have a day of crafting planned (that's when we'll make our holiday ornament(s); we'll also do any other crafts we feel like doing). Also, I have a meditation ritual planned for that evening.

Friday we'll exchange our third present from each other, then we have a day of gaming planned; I'll tell you what we play afterwards. We're thinking we'll have a roleplaying session though. In the evening I plan to read a book called "A Treasury Of Christmas Tales" which has a variety of short holiday stories such as "The Nutcracker" and "The Little Match Girl" and a short version of "A Christmas Carol" in it; I brought it a few years ago, and I love it, and think it's a perfect addition to the holidays. I got my brother a copy last year; he loves it too!

Saturday we'll exchange another present from each other, then we're spending the day watching holiday movies. And after the stockings are laid out for "Santa" to fill them, I'll be reading the two short Christmas stories I love to read Christmas Eve; "The Bear Father Christmas Forgot" and "A Candle In The Forest"

Sunday we'll have our stockings and present from "Santa" then exchange the final present we have for each other, plus we'll have any presents we have from family and friends that day. Then we'll be on the phone on and off all day talking to family members; I've scheduled times to call most of them so our phonecalls don't interrupt their holiday plans. Then, in the evening, we'll do the prep work for the holiday feast we'll be cooking the next day.

Monday we'll be cooking and enjoying our holiday feast. Since I'm a vegetarian and Kelly isn't, and we have different food preferences, we'll be making different things for each of us; chicken and vegetable pie and some glazed ham for Kelly, and a cranberry nut roast with roast potatoes, roast parsnips, sprouts, carrots and peas for me. Plus I'm making wassail, and we have some snacks (crisps - as in potato chips - and nuts and things) to pick at. Also, we'll have leftover cookies and mince pies from the baking I'm doing tomorrow, so it should be quite a feast!

Also, every night through the holidays we'll be lighting two holiday candles we have for a little while; one is a "mulled wine" scented one that my Mam got us last year, the other is a "cinnamon" scented one that was among the things I got from Susan recently.

And, of course, there will be lots of cocoa drinking and holiday music playing throughout all the above mentioned activities... Although, no holiday music playing while we watch the movies, of course; though I expect there will be plenty of cocoa drinking! ;)

So, there you go, that's what we'll be up to. What about you?

Happy birthday to my Mam!

2011-12-19T21:12:00.001Z

It's my Mam's birthday today. I don't know if she'll come on here and see this; sometimes she reads the blogs, other times she goes ages and ages without even acknowledging they exist. But I wanted to post this message to wish her a very happy birthday anyway. So... Happy birthday Mam! :)

It's tradition (FD)

2011-12-18T12:54:00.012Z

When I first learned of the blog party I'm writing this post for (see the bottom of this post for information on said blog party) I wasn't sure I'd be able to write anything for it. "My family doesn't have traditions," I said to myself. Then I thought about it for a moment, and that's when I realized; we do!

Each year the decorations go up on or as soon as possible after December 1st. I don't remember a time it was later than the end of the first week in December we put the decorations up, and most years it is actually December 1st that the decorations at least begin to be put up; even if it's the following day before they're finished. This year I was late for us, I didn't get our decorations up until December 5th, but it was still the first week; like it always was when I was growing up.

We still have Christmas stockings, which we still put out after bath time on Christmas Eve ready for "Santa" to fill them. The difference is that these days I know how they get filled, and I don't go to bed almost as soon as I lay out my stocking. We also still get a present under the tree from "Santa" which "somehow" gets muddled in with all the other presents under the tree (that always baffled me when I was a child, LOL!) And, yes, the stockings and "Santa pressie" apply to pets too!

We also have advent calenders, despite the fact we begin our holiday celebrations a couple of days early, and despite the fact that not only are we no longer children (the main audience for advent calenders) but Kelly and I are both Pagan. I've always had an advent calender, and I see no reason to stop now; adults like chocolate too, and so do Pagans! Also, it's fun counting the days with a little chocolate, and wondering each day when you open that little door what you'll find inside!

And, as of this year, we're starting a couple of new traditions.

For one thing, due to wanting to combine our Yule and Christmas celebrations, Kelly and I will be begining our celebrations on December 21st, and continuing them up to and including December 26th; we used to do something on the 21st to acknowledge Yule, but we want to combine the celebrations properly as of this year.

In doing this we're making a slight change in that we're having a "holiday feast" on December 26th instead of having Christmas dinner. For one thing this is because it's customary for Pagan celebrrations to end with feasting, for another this is because we have several people we'd like to call and talk to on Christmas Day - especially with us now living nowhere near any of either of our families - so we figured we'd free up most of the day to spend it talking to family members, leaving the cooking and eating of our holiday feast for the following day instead.

The other new things we're starting this year involve decorations.

I wanted us to start making a holiday decoration each year, so we'll be doing that; I thought it would be a nice activity to do together (even if we make seporate decorations but do it at the same time sat beside each other, if you know what I mean). Plus, it's always nice to take out handmade things and say, "remember when we made this?" And hopefully start remembering happy memories of the year we made it.

Also, on Thursday Kelly came home with a beautiful glass angel tree ornament (photos to come at a later date) and announced that starting this year he wants us to buy a new ornament for our tree as well as making something; which I agreed to.

***

Today I'm participating in another blog party - the second of three I'm participating in this holiday season. The theme of today's blog party is holiday traditions. Click on the button below to read about the traditions of other partiers:

Yuletide stories and carols

2011-12-17T12:40:00.000Z

I posted these on my blog a couple of years ago, but for those who missed them - or those who want to read them again - here they are:

Yuletide stories
Yuletide carols

Enjoy!

Yule Ritual ideas (LBE and FD)

2011-12-16T12:48:00.001Z

I've gathered these ritual ideas together from a couple of sources, which will be linked to at the bottom of this post rather than being put among all the rituals.

Simple Yule Ritual for Beginners
Materials Needed:
Dirt from the land you live on (to represent the Earth)
A candle (bright yellow to represent fire, and the sun)
Water (to represent, of course water. From your tap is fine)
Incense (to represent air. Any scent you feel is appropriate will do)
An evergreen branch (small or large will do)
A small offering to the Reborn God (incense, something handmade by you, a string of beads, ect)
And most important, a quiet ritual space where you will not be disturbed.
Additional materials, such as pinecones, antlers, flowers, ect can be added to the ritual space as desired. I usual have many things around me, that have special meaning to me, but this is meant to be a very simple ritual for the newcomer, so I will forgo adding more than needed.

Place the Earth element in the North, the Air in the East, the Fire in the South, and the Water in the West. Try to place them so that you can reach each of them easily from one position. This can be on a small table, a tree stump, or the ground. If you wish, cover the area with a cloth that you will only use for ritual to help put you in the right frame of mind for it. Light the Fire candle, and meditate on what Yule means to you. If you are still learning, and are not quite sure of what it does mean to you, read this- http://www.angelfire.com/ca5/witchcraftstudies/yule.html. This was written by Mike Nichols, and should help you understand the day even more.

After meditating, pick up the bowl of Dirt, and say (or think), “I am of this Earth, forever linked to the Gods.” Draw a pentacle in the dirt. Replace.

Next pick up the Incense, drawing a pentacle in front of your with it say, “This is the breath of the Gods, which gives me life.” Replace.

Picking up the candle, say, “This is the Flame that warms our heart, just as the love of the Goddess and the God warms our souls.” Replace.

Last, pick the bowl of Water up, and say, “And this the ever-changing waters and nourishes life, without which we would not be.” Replace.

Think on the God’s rebirth, and the lengthening days that follow the Winter Solstice. Say what is in your heart at this time to the Goddess and the God. If you are in a situation that you are not comfortable to speak aloud, then think those words.

Next, take the offering you are giving to the Gods up in your hands, hold it to the sky and say, “This is my gift to you, for you have given many gifts to me. This symbolizes my pledge to you.” Replace. Add why to this why you chose this offering.

Now for the closing of your ritual. Take up the Earth again, saying, “Thank you for watching over my rite.” Pour the dirt back onto the ground if outside, if not, wait till you are completely finished then do it. Say the thank you for each of the elements. Pour the water out onto the ground as well. Take your offering to a favorite tree or plant of yours, and either place it on the branches where it won’t be disturbed, or bury it near the roots. Place the incense under/over the offering, and leave it to burn itself out. Take the candle inside, and place in a window. Let it burn all the way out. (Make sure there aren’t any curtains or other flammable materials nearby that could catch fire. Be safe.) Spend the rest of the day aware of the significance of the day.

If you have any changes that you would like to make for yourself in this ritual, go ahead. Paganism is a living religion, always growing and expanding. To the new person, I would suggest keeping it as simple as possible. This is why you will not see the usual tools, such as the knife or a circle used here. It is not needed. They have their purposes.

Go with the Gods, Blessed Be.

***

Peace for Family Spell
This spell is primarily when you are wanting to restore peace within your family (immediate and/or extended); however, you can alter the words to focus on friends, co-workers, etc. should you wish.

Items you will need:
Family picture of all people included in the focus of your spell (if not all in one picture, separate pictures is fine.)
4 White Candles
2 Blue Candles
Altar or work space for setting up your spell
Incense (use an incense that has properties relating to peace – (see attachment to this spel for list of scents that have peace inducing properties)
Chamomile Tea or Relaxing Blend Tea of some sort

Set Up: Steps:
1. Set up your altar ahead of time.
2. Make yourself a STRONG cup of your relaxing blend tea (whatever works best for you.)
3. You may cast your circle if you wish, according to your path, and invoke your God/Goddess as you choose.
4. Light all 4 candles starting with the candle at the East going clockwise around. As you light each candle, think of the purest white and brightest white light permeating the candle and your space – think of each family member as you are lighting the candles. NOTE: The purpose of the 4 candles is Not indicative of the elements per se, but primarily to infuse your space with white pure light – light that is healing and as pure as possible – basically – we wanted your family pics to be encircled by white light (physically and spiritually)!
5. Light the Blue Candles – There are 2 blue candles for this purpose: Blue is also a healing color. Having a blue candle at the top left and the top right, both, enables you, the spellworker to visually be able to see it covering both sides of the family (both sides of the situation, both sides of the story, of the argument, etc. – this is a psychological method that bypasses our conscious minds and permeates our subconscious where magick is derived. As you light both blue candles, see a flame blue as blue can be infusing with white light into your space.
6. Light your incense. Sit and breathe deeply for a moment or two.
7. Prepare yourself mentally for the work that is to be done, relax, ground, center, shield and enter a trance (as deep as you are able to do.)
8. Hold your hands over the pictures.
9. Gather energy from the ground and envision it surrounding the pictures of your family. Pull energy through your Crown Chakra from the Universe and see the white light infusing with the healing energy from the ground, extending through your hands and into the pictures of your family members (focusing on this energy truly encompassing each family member.) See this white, blue and grounding light forming a rope-like bond between you and each member of the family. See each family member’s face relax and smile and be at ease.
10. Say this prayer 7 times or until you “feel” it is done.

“Great Goddess, Great God, I send you my plea to heal my family. Please mend the bonds between us this day. Bring back love, peace and joy for your children, I pray.” (when you are done saying this and the spell feels complete, end with ~~~ “An harm it none, this spell is done.”

Bring yourself out of the trance, ground yourself by whatever means you have become accustomed to, or you can simply focus on roots growing from your feet into the ground. Touch the carpet, or grass, or ground beneath you and in your mind, describe the texture. These are excellent grounding techniques.

You may leave the candles to burn (please do not leave unattended) and the spell will be complete. Or, you can extinguish the candles when you are done with your spell, and then light each day until the candles burn down, at which time the spell will be complete.

Discard the candle remains off your property or you can bury in the ground on your property or off.

*Peace Inducing Incense that can be used:
Acacia, Althea, Basil, Bay, Benzoin, Calamus, Catnip, Chamomile, Cherry Blossom, enia, Lavender, Lilac, Marjoram, Passion Flower, Pennyroyal, Poppy, Rose,, Rosewood, Varnerian, Verbena, Violet, Yellow Rose, Ylang Ylang

*List of Scents taken from Magical Oils by Moonlight by Maya Heath, Page 193.

***

Yule Celebration Ideas:
Start your celebration well before dawn, so you can be a part of the Sun's birthing process. Kick off the ritual with an apple juice toast to the Holly King, saying: "Winter day of longest night, Step aside now for the light. Thank you for the things you've brought. That only darkness could have wrought."

Then name all the gifts of darkness that you can think of - regeneration, peace, dreams, organization, quietude, and so on - before drinking the juice.

To ensure good luck and prosperity in the coming year, anoint a bayberry candle with vegetable oil and roll it in dried chamomile. Light the candle and allow it to burn down completely.

Make a Yule log from a piece of oak and decorate it with evergreens. Light it, saying: "Old King, we thank You for all You've done. For lessons learned, and victories won, We must, however, bid You adieu. For Your reign is finished - it's over and through. Come forth, Young King of newest light. Be born with ease; grow strong and bright, Gain strength and stature in the sky. Shed you warmth on us now from on high."

Be sure to save an unburned piece to start next year's log. Save some of the ashes, too. They make terrific boosters for every type of magick. End the ritual with an orange juice toast to the Sun, saying: "O Newborn Sun of love and light, Rise quickly now, rise high and bright Gain power in the sky above, We grant you our support and love."

After ritual, collect all the evergreen decorations you used there and put them away. You'll need them at Imbolc.

~from Dorothy Morrison's book The Craft

***

Yule Solitary Ritual
Preparations:
If it's physically feasible, fast and pray for three days beforehand. This allows you to enter the New Year's cycle purified in body and spirit. Also consider a ritual bath with cinnamon, mint and rose petals to improve psychic awareness.

Decorate the sacred space with gold and silver spheres to represent the returning sun, and wreaths to symbolize the turning Wheel. Have oak shavings ready as a base for your incense. Add any other personally meaningful herbs to this mixture and start burning it before the invocation to help prepare the sacred space. Finally, put your sun candle from earlier in the year at the southern point of the circle.

The Altar:
Cover the altar with a pale green cloth - the color of early sprouts, which represents continuance. Add red berries for life's blood; holly; ivy; and pine branches as a symbol of longevity. The pine also welcomes sylvan spirits to your circle.

Have a Yule log at the center point, placing there your God and Goddess candles. Always keep a part of the candles or the log itself for future years; this brings good luck, life, health and providence.

Cast the Circle:
Take up the Athamé and Cast the Circle starting in the West, the region where several cultures believe the afterlife resides, the direction of the Dying Sun.

take a moment to center yourself and begin to cast the Circle. Visualize a white light coming from the tip of the athamé and with arms straight out, turn the blade point out, slowly turning clockwise the light following you.

When you return to the West bring the athamé back to you and say: “As above, so below.”

As you say this, visualize the light going above you and below you forming a perfect sphere.

Invocations:
Light the Goddess candle in the Yule log, then move to the Northern point in your Circle. This is the quarter traditionally ascribed to the season of winter.

North: "Ancient Mother, I look for your opulence, but tonight naught but barren trees decorate the land. In this restful moment, let my spirit find healing."

East: "Ancient Brother, I listen for your winds, but tonight they are still. In this quiet darkness, help me find inspiration."

South: "Ancient Father, I look for your fires, but tonight the embers only begin to glow more brightly. May this gentle warmth temper my spirit."

West: "Ancient Sister, I seek your glistening tears, but tonight they are frozen. Beneath this cool blanket, let my emotions find stability."

Center: "Ancient Ones, I seek Your face, but tonight darkness surrounds. Help me find Your spark within to guide my path."

Meditation and Visualization:
Winter Solstice is an excellent time to undergo a vision quest to find your magical name, a totem animal, a mantra, or other empowering insights. This meditation is meant to accent that quest by opening your awareness to the power within and without all things.

Begin in a standing position. Center yourself and breathe deeply. Slowly take off your mundane clothes, likewise removing the "world" with each. Wrap a blanket around yourself for warmth, but remain naked for the meditation. You need no trappings to discover personal power.

Sit and close your eyes. Let any remaining tension drain away, then begin listening to the sound of silence. Smell the aromas of oak and herb. Feel the latent energy of everything around you and the magic you've placed there. Know it as your own.

Listen to your breath and your heartbeat. Sense the pulse and ebb within as the same energy without. Listen closely; does it whisper a message to you? Does it whisper a name? Do you hear the cry of an animal? Do you hear words that fill you with energy? Linger in this place between Earth and stars until you receive a message. Then return to normal levels of awareness, and write of this experience in your journal.

The Ritual:
Turn toward the northern part of your circle. Think of things that you want to banish, such as bad habits. Say: "I call to the darkness. Come embrace my __________ (fill in with your negative characteristics). Take them to yourself. I release them. As the sun climbs in the sky, take these things with you in retreat, never to return to me again."

Turn to the south of the circle, light the sun candle, and repeat this chant. Let it naturally grow to fill the entire space with positive vibrations: "Strong sun, returning sun; the light burns as the Wheel turns. Strong sun, returning sun; the shadows fade; my magic bade. Strong sun, returning sun; the shadows flee, the magic is free!"

Return to the altar now and light the God candle, using the Goddess candle as a fire source (symbolic of the womb). "Sun Father, Your journey has left you weary. May this light give you strength to reach toward the heavens again with warmth and brilliance."

After saying so, go through your home and light all its candles, lamps, flashlights, or decorative lights to represent the sun's return.

Closing the Circle:
West: "Spirit of the West, thank you for cleansing body, mind, and spirit. As you go from this place, likewise purify Earth."

South: "Spirit of the South, thank you for this warmth of body, mind and spirit. As you go from this place, likewise generate love on Earth."

East: "Spirit of the East, thank you for this stillness of body, mind and spirit. As you go from this place, likewise bring peace to Earth."

North: "Spirit of the North, thank you for healing me in body, mind, and spirit. As you go from this place, likewise heal Earth."

Center: "Ancient Ones, thank you for turning the Wheel that enlightens body, mind, and spirit. As you go from this place, likewise edify Earth."

Release the Circle:
Release the Circle in whatever manner is most familiar to you.

Post-Ritual Foods:
Go with your traditional holiday foods, which for me include many that have solar symbolism. Cookies are round like the sun, eggnog is golden and fertile, gingerbread is hot and spicy, and fruitcake bears red and orange highlights. As a side, try a little flaming brandy to warm you up!

~from Patricia Telesco's book, The Wiccan Book of Ceremonies and Rituals.

***

Yule Chant Solstice Blessing
Brightly burns the Yule log tonight
Magic dances in firelight
Hold my hand and join the song
Raise the Sun King bright and strong
Dark is giving way to light
As brightly burns the Yule log tonight!

***

Create a ritual of re-birth. Let it begin with all in darkness, and, throughout the ritual, light candles until you are surrounded by warmth and brightness. Move from the womb to the full light of a summer's day!

***

Sources:
http://www.angelfire.com/ca5/witchcraftstudies/yuleritual.html
http://www.wiccaspirit.net/vol4is5/page9.html
http://www.wicca.com/celtic/akasha/yulechildren.htm
http://daughtersofearthwisdom.org/sabbats/yule/articles/ideas.html

Activity and craft ideas for Yule/Christmas (LBE and FD)

2011-12-15T12:21:00.006Z

Essentially it's the same holiday, though some of the activities will apply more to some people than others. Just take what you want to use, discard what you don't. Sources will be listed at the end of this post.

~~~

General Activities
*Sing pagan solstice carols
*Ring bells to greet the Solstice Morning
*String popcorn and cranberries and hang them on an outdoor tree for the birds.
*Donate food and clothing to others.
*Decorate the Solstice, or Yule, Tree.
*Perform magic for a peaceful planet
*Hang little bells on the Yule Tree to call the spirits and fairies.
*Gather up the Yule greens after Twelfth Night and save. At Imbolc, burn the greens to banish winter and usher in spring.
*Glue the caps onto acorns and attach red string to hang on the Yule Tree.
*Decorate an oak Yule Log with ribbons, fir, yew, ivy, birch and holly.
*Perform a "Mumming Play" with Traditional characters like the Hobby Horse, the Fool, King George, and the Black Knight to celebrate adversity.

Solitary Activities
*Go to a Church. Before you all kick me and hurt me, hear me out. Christians celebrate the birth of the Son of their god at Christmas. Most pagans celebrate the birth of their Son of God(dess) at Yule. It is mostly the same thing.
*Private Meditation on Traditional associtations of Yule. (ex. Birth, Rebirth and the Return of the Sun)
*Private ritual
*Volunteer at a Homeless Shelter or Soup Kitchen.

Group Activities
*Have a "Yule" Party and exchange gifts with people in your group. Try to keep the cost of things down though, so no one's feelings get hurt.
*Hold a Group Ritual or if your are active in the community host an Open Sabbat celebration.
*Donate things to Homeless shelters or Battered Women's shelters. Give to people who would otherwise have nothing in this season of giving.
*Volunteer at an Animal Shelter.
*Smile. It's free, and it is the best gift of all.

Activities for Kids!!
*Light Candles
*Read stories with a Christmas/Yule theme. Try Meagan and the Winter Solstice by Kat Dyer
*Talk about the history of Yule with your child(ren). Let your child be your guide. Don't just start offering them a lot of information that they may or may not need to know. If they ask questions, give them simple, but honest answers.

***

Pipecleaner Pentacles - Make a Pentacle Ornament
Use chenille stems in your favorite color to create one of these. They're easy, and your kids can do it once you show them how to bend the stems. You'll need three pipe cleaners, or chenille stems, for each pentacle.

Bend the first stem into a circle, and overlap the ends by about an inch, so you can twist them closed.

Take the second stem, and create three arms of the star inside the circle. Be sure to twist it around the circle as you make the points, because this will keep it from sliding apart.

Take the last stem and create the final two arms of the star. Use the remaining length of stem (don't snip it off) to twist into a loop so you can hang your ornament.

***

LIGHT A YULE CANDLE
The festival of Yule is based on the 12-day Roman mid-winter feast, Saturnalia. During these days, we celebrate the rebirth of the Sun Lord and the return of the light. Why not take a few moments each of those 12 days at sunset, or whenever you deem appropriate, to gather together as a family for prayers in observance of the holiday.

Get a pillar candle and decorate it by carving it with sun symbols, or using white craft glue and glitter to make it decorative. Set it on your altar or in a special place. Every evening as the sun goes down, join together for a special prayer and light the candle, saying a few words about the holiday, or singing a song. Do this for the 12 nights of Yule, beginning with the eve of the Solstice.

***

RE-WRITE A SONG
Children love to sing songs during the holiday, and songs can make a season so lively and festive, filling us with excitement and good cheer. However, most of the songs you will hear played during this season are Christmas oriented. In fact, unless you search very carefully, you probably will find few Pagan Yule songs, and fewer that are entertaining to children. Since Christmas is based on older Pagan traditions, why not adapt these lively elements of Christmas celebrations for your own use?

Create new family traditions for your own holiday by taking your favorite old Christmas songs and changing the words around to suit your own beliefs. Young children will probably delight on bellowing, "Hark, the Pagans come to sing, praises to the new Sun King!" or, "Have a holly, jolly Yuletide!"

(You could rewrite songs anyway, just for fun, even if you're not Pagan).

***

MAKE CITRUS POMANDERS
Pomanders are fragrant balls that perfume the air. Creating pomanders from oranges and lemons make a beautifully scented decoration. Citrus fruits are also symbolic of the sun, so they make a great mini-tribute to the Sun God.

To make a pomander, you will need oranges and/or lemons, a jar of cloves, some of your favorite scented spices, and a pair of latex or rubber gloves. The gloves are not necessary, but if the crafter has any minor cuts on their hands or cuticles, they will protect the wearer from stinging citrus juices accidentally running over the wound.

Take a piece of fruit and a bowl of cloves and begin to push the stem of the cloves into the skin of the fruit. Make spirals, stripes, or any kind of patterns you like to decorate the fruit. When you are done, roll the fruit in a bowl of ground spices with rich holiday aromas, such as cinnamon and nutmeg, which will stick to the sweet juices.

Pomanders can be tied with ribbon and hung from the tree, or suspended in a corner or closet to make it smell good. You can also place several in a bowl and leave them out on a table, turning them once or twice a day until they dry out. The fruits will begin to dehydrate, but will retain the wonderful scents.

***

MAKE A NATIVITY SCENE
You don't have to be Christian to have a nativity scene displayed as part of your holiday decor. Remember that long before the birth of Jesus was celebrated in December, Pagan cultures celebrated the birth of the Sun Lord at Solstice time.

You can make your nativity scene by scavenging for small dolls, molding them out of clay, or putting them together from a variety of craft materials (pipe cleaners, fabric scraps, styrofoam spheres, pop sticks, tissue papers, etc.). Of course, you'll probably want to adapt your nativity scene. Instead of a manger in a stable, how about a scene in a forest setting, under the full moon? Replace Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus, with the triple Goddess- Maiden, Mother and Crone surrounding a small Sun God crowned with a golden glitter wreath of stars. Ditch the wise men and substitute fairies and elves, and don't forget to surround the scene with all the animals of the forest looking on at the new baby Sun King.

***

HAVE A BATTLE
Not a real battle, but a re-enactment of the old myth of the Oak King and the Holly King. Legend has it that these two brothers meet twice a year at the solstices for a battle. The Oak King emerges victorious at the Winter Solstice and reins for the waxing half of the year. Think of it as a Pagan Solstice pageant.

If you really want to get into it, let the participants dress up, draping them in gold and silver and rich greens and red fabrics. Crown them with wreaths of plastic oak leaves and holly leaves. Paint and decorate empty wrapping paper tubes for harmless swords. Let onlookers paint their faces like fairies or other forest inhabitants to cheer the Oak King on to victory.

***

Yule Log Hike
Materials: Warm Clothes, Sense of Adventure.

This is an activity that can be done the weekend before Yule. On a bright crisp morning, dress the family warmly and head for the park, mountains, or beach. As you hike along, looking for that special Yule log to place in your hearth, also be looking for decorations to make it personalized by each member of the family. Select a proportionally sized log that will fit easily into your fire place. Ash, oak, or cedar make great Yule logs. Try to find one that has already fallen and is on the ground. On the beach, driftwood can be found and obtained for your log. As you are looking, or on your way back home look for natural decorations to adorn your Yule log with. Traditional adornments are, pine cones, leaves, holly sprigs, mistletoe sprigs, rosebuds, winter flowers, wheat stalks, and corn husks. If you must cut anything from a living plant, remember to ask and thank the plant for its gift. If you don't have a fire place, select a smaller log, slightly flat on one side so that it doesn't roll. Adorning the logs will appear farther along in the activities. (Explain how the Yule log was set ablaze on Solstice night to help vanquish the dark and add strength to the returning sun.)

***

Sun Welcoming Center Pieces:
Materials:
Flat or bowled wicker basket, Evergreen Boughs, Oranges and Apples, Whole Cloves, Walnuts, Hazelnuts, Wheat Stalks, Flour, Red, Green, and Gold Bows or String.

Children of all ages will delight in both making and giving these delightful center pieces. Place the basket in the center of the table. Lay a couple of evergreen boughs (can be found at most Christmas tree lots) in bottom of basket so that the tips flow out from all sides. Spike the oranges all the way around with several whole cloves. Arrange the oranges and apples on top of the boughs. Arrange in a couple of the walnuts and hazel nuts. Place a couple of the wheat stalks standing up amidst the fruit. Lightly dust with flour. Tie bows to the handle and outside the basket. ( Tell children about each special part of the centerpiece. Explain that the baskets were used during the harvests during the season before. The evergreen boughs are symbols of immortality, reminding us that the Sun King is not dead, but reappears at Yule each year to lengthen, brighten and warm the days ahead. The oranges and apples are symbols of the Sun King, The nuts symbolize the seeds as they lay sleeping and awaiting the Sun King's return. The wheat stalks symbolize the yearly harvests and the flour represents the triumph of the forces of light and life.)

***

Sun Bursting Ornaments
Materials:
Ruler or Compass, Scissors, Thin Cardboard, Gold Foil Paper, Glue Stick, Heavy Thread and Needle.

Help child cut out a 4" cardboard circle. With this template, the child can then trace and cut out 14 circles from the foil paper. One by one, fold a circle in half, half, and half again. Unfold the circle and cut along the fold lines, stopping about 1/2 inch from the center. Repeat until all the circles are cut. Form the points of the Sun Burst by wrapping each of the eight segments around the point of a sharpened pencil. Point of pencil should face away from the center of the circle. Secure each point with a dab of glue. Thread a needle with 18" length of thread. Insert the needle through all the centers of the circles from the foil side of the first seven and the plain side of the last seven. Gently pull the circles together, bunching them into a ball. Tie off with a knot, and use the excess thread to form a loop for hanging the ornament. ( Hang up in windows to reflect the sunlight or on tree for decoration, explain to children how the sun gets stronger, climbs higher, and last longer in the sky each day starting at Yule.)

***

Welcome Sunshine Bells
Materials:
Thin Cardboard, Pencil and Scissors, One Light yellow and One Bright Yellow Felt Square (10"x10"), 7 Small Jingle Bells, 12" Gold String or Cord, White Glue, Buttons, Glitter, Sequins.

Help child to draw a circle 7" in diameter, and another circle 7" in diameter with eight 1" triangle rays on the cardboard. Cut out for patterns. Place circle on the light yellow felt square, trace and cut out. Do the same with the "rayed" circle on the bright yellow felt. Using a drinking glass as a guide, trace a circle in the center, on the back side of both felt cut-outs. Carefully fold each circle in half, and make a cut from one side of center circle to the other. Repeat 3 times for a total of 4 cuts per piece. This is how you will get the decoration over the doorknob. Next, line up the circles and the cuts so that the rays extend 1" from behind the light yellow felt circle. Glue together. Allow the child to draw designs on the front of the ornament with glue. Sprinkle with glitter and glue on some sequins and buttons. Cut gold string or cord into three 4" strands. Tie jingle bells (spaced) onto the gold string or cord. Glue string/cord to the bottom of the Sun decoration on the back side. Allow to dry. Place on a doorknob that the bells will jingle as the door is opened and closed. ( Tell children that more than just the sun brightens our lives everyday. Explain the way to welcome the Yule sun back into their lives is to keep the brightness in their hearts all year long. Jingle bells make a warm and inviting sound, and therefore should jingle each time someone enters or leaves a room.)

***

You Are My Sunshine Garland
Materials:
Pencil, Scissors, "Rayed" Circle Pattern (above), Bright Yellow Poster Paper, Glue, Glitter, Gold Garland, Gold Thread and Needle, Photos.

For each frame, trace and cut out 2 rayed circles from the poster board. Cut a 2" circle in the center of one of the cutouts. This will be the front of the frame. Decorate the cutouts with gold glitter. Place photo between the cutouts, with the face peering through the center circle. Trim photo to fit frame, if necessary. Glue the frame together. Allow to dry. Thread needle with gold thread, and poke needle through the top ray of the frame. Pull some thread through and tie frame to gold garland. Make enough Sunshine picture frames for all family members, including pets. Tie each to the garland, and place garland on tree, over a door, on the wall, or other prominent place. (Explain to children that each family member is like a piece of sunshine. Smiles and laughter brighten our spirits and warm our hearts.)

***

Cup O' Sunshine
Materials:
Terra-Cotta Pot, Paints and Paintbrushes, Styrofoam Block, String, Scissors, 1 yd 2" wide Green Ribbon, Yellow, Red, and Orange Lollipops and Sugar Sticks, Jelly Beans.

Clean terra-cotta pot if necessary. Allow to dry. Paint outside and down to first lip of inside with a bright solid color. After this base coat dries, decorate with other colors. When completely dry, place a block of styrofoam in the bottom of the pot. Cut green leaves out of the ribbon and tie to lollipops with string. Push the lollipop sticks into the styrofoam block to anchor them. Add the sugar sticks and fill rest of pot with loose jellybeans. (Explain to children that during the dark part of the year, sometimes we need to make our own sunshine. Let them know that bright colored gardens and flowers will be back in the spring, and this little pot of sunshine will cheer up a sick friend or relative.)

***

Dough Art Decorations
Materials:
4 cups flour, 2 cups water, 1 cup salt, Cookie Cutters, Wire Ornament Hangers, Acrylic Paints.

Combine flour, salt, and water in a large bowl. Dough should kneed easily but not be sticky, if so, add more flour. On a flat surface, lay down some waxed paper. Take a handful of the dough and roll out with a rolling pin. Cut dough into shapes with the cookie cutters. Make a hole in top of "cookie" for wire hanger. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and put in oven at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until *slightly* brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool thoroughly. Paint with acrylic paints. Allow to dry, place hanger in hole and adorn tree, packages, or hang in windows. (Allow children to make-up Yule stories to go along with each decoration they are making.)

***

Adorning the Yule Log
Materials:
Holly, Mistletoe, Rosebuds, Pine Cones, Evergreen Sprigs, Gold String/Cord, Gold Bows, Apple Cider, Flour.

After cleaning off the Yule log, let the children decorate it how ever they chose. Glue, wire, or small holes in the log will help to adhere the decorations. Once the log is decorated, "wassail" (toast and douse) it with a libation of apple cider. Finally, dust the log with white flour, set in grate in fireplace, and (parents only) set ablaze. (Explain to children how Yule logs used to smolder for 12 days before there was another ceremony to put the log out. Then apart of the log was strapped to the plow the next spring to spread the blessings over the land, and another piece was saved to light the next Yule's log, the next year.)

***

Sunny Disposition Wreath (For the older kids)
Materials:
1-2 Large Bundles Evergreen Boughs, 1 Bundle Holly, 1 Wreath Frame (Wire or Styrofoam), Garden Clippers, Spool of Fine Green Wire, 2 Yards Red Ribbon, Adornments.

Cut boughs into 6" to 8" pieces. Same with Holly. Cut about 20- 15" pieces of the wire. Gather a bundle of boughs together, thicker at the back and fanning out in the front. Wrap wire around the bundle about 2/3 from the top. Hold bundle in place and wrap wire around the bundle and the frame. Repeat this step, only adding a sprig of holly in front. Repeat steps 1 and 2, adding holly to bundle every other time. Make sure that all the bundles face the same direction. Where the last bundle meets the bottom of the first bundle is usually barer than the rest of the wreath, so that is where you can attach a large yellow, orange, red, or gold bow to symbolize the Sun King. Now you are ready to wire on all sorts of adornments, candies, pine cones, rosebuds, seashells, small bells, or anything to make it more personal. (Tell kids about how evergreen boughs and holly were hung both inside and outside of the homes to extend and invitation to the nature sprites to join in the Yule celebration.)

***

Miniature Yule Log Ornaments
These are super easy to make, and in addition to being cute ornaments for your holiday tree, they also make great favors to give to guests at a Yule celebration. You'll need the following:

A stick about an inch thick
Red yarn
Small feathers (you can find these in the craft store)
Small pieces of evergreen plants - pine, fir, spruce, etc.
Seed beads in your choice of colors
A hot glue gun

Cut the stick into 2 - 3" lengths. Decorate each small log with the feathers, evergreens and seed beads as you would a full-sized Yule log. Tie a piece of red yarn around the center and knot in a bow, like a ribbon. To hang as a tree ornament, use a bent paperclip or wire hanger. To give as a party favor, you may want to attach your miniature log to a piece of cardstock, on which you can write a note to friends, such as "Wishing you the blessings of Yule."

***

Pinecone Ornaments
If you want to keep an earth-friendly theme to your Yule decorating, one way to do so is to use the elements found in nature as part of your decor. This is a project that you may have made before if you have a Girl Scout -- simple things such as seeds, acorns, feathers, and other found items are easy to make into ornaments and other decorations.

For this simple project, you'll need the following:
Pinecones, of any shape or size
Equal amounts ginger, nutmeg and allspice, blended
A 1:1 mixture of water and craft glue
Glitter
Ribbon
A small paintbrush

To prepare the pinecones, rinse them under running water and then spread them out on a baking sheet. Bake at 250 for about 20 minutes -- this will make them open up, and also get rid of any trace amounts of bacteria that might remain on them. Don't worry if there's sap on them - it will harden into a shiny glaze and look pretty. If you bought your pinecones from a craft store, they're probably open already, so you can skip the rinsing altogether.

Once the pinecones have cooled, use the small paintbrush to apply the glue to the cones (I'd recommend spreading out some newspaper ahead of time). You can either cover the entire cone, or just the outer tips of the petals for a more "frosted" look.

Add the spices and glitter to a zip-loc bag. Drop the pine cones in, and shake until coated with spices and glitter. Allow to dry thoroughly, and then tie a ribbon around the end so you can hang it up. Add a few springs of greenery if you like. Use it on a holiday tree, or place them in a bowl to scent your room.

***

"Handmade" Art
Materials Needed:
Construction Paper or Craft Foam
Pencil
Scissors
Glue
Crayons, Markers, Glitter, Stickers, Etc.

Yule (Christmas) Trees
Steps to Take:
Trace hand 6 times on green construction paper.
Cut out the hand shapes and paste them onto another sheet according to the following instructions:

Start with the 3 on the bottom,
Paste the middle ones so that they overlap the bottom ones.
Have the top one overlap the middle ones.
Trim with stickers, glitter, paper cutouts, small snowflakes, etc

Angel or Fairy
Steps to Take:
From construction paper, cut a triangle about 4" wide and 5" tall for the dress, and then a circle about 2" across for the head.
Color eyes and mouth on the circle for the angel's face. Glue the circle to the top of the triangle. Glue cut paper or curly ribbons for the angel's hair onto the circle.
Make the angel's wings by tracing both hands on white or light blue construction paper and cut them out.
Decorate your angel by gluing stickers, pieces of lace or glitter on her wings and dress.

Reindeer
Steps to Take:
Trace your foot (inside your shoe!) on light brown or white construction paper. Cut out.
Trace around both hands on dark brown, green or red construction paper and cut out.
Use a pom-pom for the nose and wiggle eyes, or cut out a contrasting nose and make eyes from white paper with black pupils.
Punch a hole in the top of the head between the horns. Cut a piece of Christmas ribbon 12" long and form a hanging loop by tying an over-hand knot in the ends of the ribbon.
Hang on your Christmas tree. Make a new reindeer each year to see how much you've grown!

***

*Grains and seeds, and the feeding of creatures have been associated with Yuletide holidays for hundred of years in Europe. To continue this tradition why not feed our feathered friends as a family project? See who comes to visit your little sanctuary and identify them with a field guide. Try stringing peanuts in the shell and popcorn garlands for the trees.
*Hang popcorn balls made with honey on trees for wild birds or string a popcorn chain and drape it around the trees.
*Make a wreath out of pine boughs that the family collects on a family outing. Put the wreath in a visible location, such as on the front door, on an inside wall, or in the center of the dining table. When summer solstice arrives it may be burned in the bonfire.
*Make or decorate a special red candle to light on Yule
*Start making tree decorations for family as gifts
*Make an "Advent" calendar
*Make a Yule log. Drill three holes in it to hold three candles of white, red, and black. (Don't let the candles burn down *into* the wood!) Or go to our craft section where we give even more ideas for the Yule log including types of woods, herbs and flowers to decorate with all their correspondences.
*Bake Sugar Sun Cookies
*Make your very own Yule cards to send to friends and family
*Go out and find a special log to decorate and light on Yule night **see below
*Explain the concept of the holiday to your child. Using crayons or markers ask him or her to draw you a picture of the sun being born, or try other mediums like clay or finger paints
*Let your child stay up with you all night, and watch the Yule log burn. If your child (or you!) can't make it all night long, wake up extra early and plan a dawn picnic in a park, or on a hill, or somewhere where you can watch the sun rise.
*Keep a candle lit throughout the night to encourage the Sun to keep it company. Make sure the candle is in a safe place where it can't accidentally set your home ablaze.
*Volunteer at a soup kitchen, and make a commitment to be there at other times throughout the year; there are those less fortunate than you... share what you can with them.
*Donate to food-banks. Be an anonymous giver.

***

*trim a tree
*hang greenery around the home
*make or hang a wreath
*hang mistletoe
*light a log in the fireplace
*light candles around the house
*make ornaments involving stars, snowflakes, or Suns
*toast with apple cider
*bake cookies in the shapes of stars, Moons, Suns
*bake (or just serve, if time doesn't permit) a Yule Log cake

***

Santa Gift Holder or Ornament

Materials:
Tissue roll
Construction paper in red, white, green, pink (Pieces may be cut from felt or fun foam for a more permanent ornament)
Scissors
Pencil or crayons
Glue
Ruler
Small red pom-pom (optional)
String or ribbon

***** Note: On each step of your crafting, allow the glue to dry completely before proceeding to the next step.*****

If you want to use your Santa to hold a small gift or candy, cut a circle of paper about 3" in diameter and glue to the bottom of the paper roll before proceeding to the next step. Cut small wedge-shaped pieces out of the edges of the paper piece and glue the tabs up around the edges of the paper roll. (The raw edges will be covered in the next step.) If you want to use your Santa as an ornament, you can skip this step.
Cut a piece of white construction paper 6" x Roll it around the tissue roll to cover it and glue in place.
While the glue is drying, cut out a pink face, white mustache, white hat band and red hat from construction paper using the patterns provided.
Glue the face about ½ " down from the top of the paper roll.
Glue the mustaches to the bottom ½ of the face.
If using a pom-pom for a nose, glue it to the center of the mustache. If you are not making a pom-pom nose, color a red circle in the center of the mustache piece for the nose.
Make 2 small dots above mustache for eyes.
Make Santa's hat by rolling red construction paper piece into a cone. Glue edges together. Make sure that the open edge of the hat is slightly larger than the top of the toilet roll.
Glue the white hatband around the edge of Santa's hat
If you want to use your Santa as an ornament, poke 2 holes about ½ " down from the top edge of the toilet roll on either side of the face piece. Cut a piece of string or ribbon 12" long and run through the holes. Tie the ends together in an over-hand knot.
Glue the hat to the top of the roll.

***

Festive Felt Decorations

What You Need:
Felt
Buttons
Contrasting embroidery thread
Ric rac
Ribbon
Fabric glue
Fabric remnants
Stuffing
Directions:

Cut out two felt gingerbread shapes measuring approx 11cm tall x 8½ cm wide (arm to arm).
On one side only, add decorations using buttons and trims.
Stitch both pieces of felt together using a blanket stitch ¾ of the way round leaving a gap.
Fill the gap with stuffing then stitch together to finish.

***

Christmas Paper Stocking Decorations

What You Need:
Decorative papers
Ribbon selection
Embellishments of your choice (e.g. White stick-on felt, Appliqué letters, etc).

Directions:

Draw and cut 2 stocking shapes from your decorative papers.
Sew or glue the stockings together, leaving an opening at the top.
Stick some ribbon around the top of the stocking, and glue a small loop of thinner ribbon to the inside of one corner.
Decorate with embellishments of your choice eg. wooden beads, appliqué letters, red felt hearts.

***

Candy Canes

What You Need:
Chenille stems - 2 colours
Holly picks
Ribbon

Directions:

Twist the different coloured chenille stems together along their entire lengths.
Bind the two stripy chenille lengths together halfway down each to form a cross.
Then bend two arms of the cross into hooks.
Trim the stems off 2 holly picks and tie to the middle of the candy canes with ribbon.

***

Sources:
http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/angelline/yule_activities.htm
http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/yulecrafts/ss/PentacleOrnamnt.htm
http://www.essortment.com/pagan-parenting-winter-solstice-crafts-activities-children-55366.html
http://www.wicca.com/celtic/akasha/yulechildren.htm
http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/yulecrafts/qt/MiniYuleLogs.htm
http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/yulecrafts/ss/Pinecone_Orna.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/angelline/yule_activities_2.htm
http://daughtersofearthwisdom.org/sabbats/yule/articles/ideas.html
http://www.cauldronliving.com/other/3936-covert-yule-activities.html
http://www.fortunecity.com/millenium/sherwood/504/yulecrft2.html
http://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/Pages/Ideas/Idea.aspx?id=1391
http://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/Pages/Ideas/Idea.aspx?id=1371
http://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/Pages/Ideas/Idea.aspx?id=1196

Thank you, thank you, and thank you again Susan!

2011-12-14T04:24:00.000Z

A few months ago, I was picked to be one of the 5 follower winners in the giveaway that Susan did when she did her "fanciful twists mad tea party". There was a moment where I thought she'd have to pick someone else, because for some reason my e-mails weren't getting through to her... we never did figure out why (after a few days though, I got a message saying there were errors and the messages couldn't be delivered, which we'd already figured out by then... Stupid e-mail delivery system). But we got there in the end, and I was able to claim my spot as one of the winners... YAY!

Then, just as she was about to send my package, we got the word we'd be moving soon, so I asked her to wait so I could be sure not to miss the package in the move. Moving took longer than planned, but eventually we were moved, and I was finally able to give Susan the go-ahead to send my package. So, as soon as she was able to do so, she sent it. My "small token gift" arrived last week, but I'm sorry to say that it took me until yesterday to send Iggy the photos to sort out, which is why it's taken me so long to sort this post.

Anyway... How it's grown!

My original prize contained the following:

*Knitting stitch markers
*Card kit
*Candle
*Note cards
*Notepad
*Snow writer

But Susan said she'd put a few extra things in there for me.

A few? OMG! Look at all this stuff...

Susan was beyond generous with this package; I swear she couldn't have gotten more in there if she tried! In fact, how she fit it all in there is beyond me!

There are so many wonderful goodies that I didn't know what to investigate first when I opened the package! And I can't begin to list all the things in there; there are things for all the crafts I told her I do... Things I can use for card making, bits of fabric I can use for sewing projects, and so many more wonderful things that if I listted them all you'd be here for ages reading this post!

There was a beautiful Christmas card and note in there too; I forgot to get a photo of the Christmas card, but it's up with the others I've had so far so I will get a photo of it some time in the next week or so... Ready for the cards to be included in my holiday post that I usually do after the holidays are over each year.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank you again Susan; you're a very generous person, and I'm so glad we met! :)

A birthday, some bad weather, and mobility lessons

2011-12-13T16:21:00.005Z

It's Nikki's birthday today; happy birthday Nikki! :)

***

The weather was very nasty yesterday and last night; extremely bad winds (bad enough that several trees are now minus their branches around here) and a lot of hail. It's calmed down some now - just a bit of rain on and off - but it's meant to start back up again later. We're meant to have this kind of weather on and off all week.

I told my mobility officer when we first started the lessons a few weeks back that I didn't mind going out in bad weather. When she came today she asked if I would have called and cancelled if that weather had continued. She sounded relieved when I said I would have; I think she thought I'd have been happy to go out in that weather for a mobility lesson. I added that, "though I'm happy to go out in any weather, there are limits to the kind of weather I would intentionally spend an hour outside in," and at that point she didn't even bother trying to hide her relief. LOL!

Lessons are going pretty well; she's impressed with my memory for the route, and also with the fact that even with the rather nasty wind we had last week I was able to accurately tell her when the road was or wasn't clear (which wasn't easy, let me tell you). There are a few things I need to do to brushh up on cane skills (like the fact I either don't bring the cane around enough to cover my left side - because of being so used to having Kero or someone on that side - or do it too far, which isn't good for anyone trying to pass me, and is painful for my arm after a bit) but for the most part if we could just get me to the point where I can find my gate then I would be able to do the walk myself; well, in theory... Monsters permitting! I did "sort of" find the gate myself today, but it was with a little bit of prompting from her with landmarks, hence just "sort of" on my own.

***

I'm tired, so this will do for today; stay safe and warm!

My holiday decorations 2011 - trying again

2011-12-12T00:01:00.001Z

Now then, will this work this time?

I didn't redo the text; you'll need to read Saturday's post for that.

Attempts at reposting yesterday's photos

2011-12-11T15:11:00.007Z

I've tried twice to repost the photos that were in yesterday's post. I'm not sure what's wrong with them. The first time I had Kelly check them and they were the same as in the post from yesterday. The second time Blogger wouldn't even add them to the post; just kept giving me error messages. Maybe something happened to the photos while they were travelling through cyberspace after Iggy sorted them for me? *Shrugs*

Local tree lighting ceremony and holiday decorations 2011 (LBE and FD)

2011-12-10T12:45:00.025Z

On Friday December 2nd there was a local tree lighting ceremony.

I was really excited; I always loved holiday lights, and there were to be carolers and a town cryer. Plus, there were to be roast chestnuts and mince pies; I'd never had proper roast chestnuts before (just ones dried out on a tray in the oven).

Anyway...

It was originally meant to happen at 4:00 pm - according to the flyer we had about it - but then we discovered (when trying to find the exact spot it was happening at) that the time had been changed, and it wasn't until 5:00 pm.

We'd already been walking about by the seaside for almost an hour, but we figured we'd hang around and walk around the park it was happening in.

But, then, 5:00 pm was only a few minutes away, and nobody else had appeared. By now we were cold, so we went home. There was a website on the flyer, and we'd check that and see what happened; maybe it was happening later? Or maybe we were in the wrong area and had missed it? We decided we'd check, and if it was happening later then we'd come back later.

While checking the website we discovered we must have just left as people arrived to start setting up for it; they'd changed the time again, and it was happening at 5:30 pm!

There was still time to get back to it, but I wasn't in the mood any more.

Besides, taking the time to calm the very hyper dog that was Kero enough to get him back in his harness and lead would mean we might miss the start, and since it wasn't meant to be very long I didn't want to go if I was going to miss some of it.

So I sent Kelly to it by himself with my camera to get some photos; and I told him to bring me back some roast chestnuts, lol!

There wasn't much light; the only light was the light from the tree lights, but he did his best with getting photos...

The lit tree:

An attempted shot of the carol singers and town cryer:

The photos might have been better, only I forgot to tell him how to work my camera's flash, and it doesn't have an automatic flash (which I think is weird, but there you go).

I think next year we'll check the website before we go. The good thing is though... We know we had the right place; just the wrong time, LOL!

And, if you're wondering... I enjoyed the roast chestnuts!

Now for my own holiday decorations...

I don't have many these days, but those I have are filled with memories, and I can tell you where each came from; in fact, that's just what I'm going to do.

This is my window display in the dark:

Still in the dark, but now from inside:

And here it is in daylight:

And from inside in the daylight:

My tree is now four years old; it's an artificial tree. I'd love a real tree, but it seems so mean to cut the tree down to just use it for decoration. If I could use it for firewood afterwards then it wouldn't be so bad, but since I can't then I feel it would be a shame to cut it down. Anyway, my tree is a fibre optic one; those who have followed my blog for several years may remember when I got it. My sight was really starting to go, and Kelly got it for me because it goes through so many colours when it's going through its colour sequence, and at the time colours were the only thing I could still see (well, colours and lights... And this is both).

I'm not sure if you can see the little bells around the bottom of the tree? They're small plastic ones wrapped around the lowest branches. They're a set from one of the many sets my Mam owns; she has quite a selection of little plastic bells on plastic chains, and she let me have these ones several years ago; I think when I first left home, or maybe a year or two later.

The little blue lights are snowman lights I brought a couple of years ago; I got them because they were shaped like the heads of snowmen.

The Santa with the candle I brought my first Christmas after I left home; I saw it at the post office when I went to post some cards, and I knew I had to have it.

The reindeer in the hat with a steering wheel plays, "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer," when you touch its paw, and I got it a couple of years ago. My Mam has one like it (we got them at the same time when we were out shopping).

The little angel by the wooden ornaments was one I found a couple of years ago. It was brough the same time as the, "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer," reindeer; Mam showed the angel to me, and I immediately put it in the trolley to buy it.

The wooden decorations... The little tree and the other one - which I can't remember if it's meant to be a bird or an angel, and can't make my mind up when I have it in my hands either - came from a place in Canada two years ago. I brought them because they have braille on them. I did have two more of each, but Mam has them now.

The angel in the red dress used to be on our tree when I was really young. She was evicted from her spot when my Dad found a wizard to take her place, but I thought it seemed a shame for her to be shut up in a box, so I asked if I could have her. She's been out on display every year since. And the reason she isn't on top of the tree is simply that I just decided not to put her on the tree; it seemed kind of odd to do so when the tree isn't really decorated properly. She had to be near it though.

The flickering candle is a new addition to my decoration collection; I got two of them, but one is set aside for another use while this one is being used for decoration. They're battery powered, but made to seem like real candles. That's why I got them; I want to do a ritual that involves walking around with a lit candle and a bell (more on that at a later date) and we didn't think it wise for me to be doing this with a proper candle, but I wanted something that would be as close as possible. When I saw these I knew I had to have one for my ritual, and thought I'd grab two so as to have one as a decoration too (since I don't want to use a ritual candle as a general decoration; it doesn't seem right to do so).

OK, on to the rest of my decorations...

This bird is one of four identical birds that Iggy sent me last year. By the time they arrived I was nearly ready to pull down my decorations, so I didn't see any point in adding them to the tree last year, but I knew immediately they'd be added to my tree from this year onwards; they have little bits of wire on their feet that make them perfect to tie to the branches of the tree, and they just seem like they belong.

This small apple decoration that's hanging on one of the hooks for the curtain tie is one from the ones my Mam has had for as long as I can remember; she has loads like it, and this one found its way in to my collection somehow.

This little stocking - which is hanging on the other curtain tie hook - was on a card I had from Iggy a couple of years ago; it came off the card, so I kept it as a decoration.

I brought this snowman wind chime a few years back; I don't remember how many. I had a couple of them - not all snowmen - but I gave the others away. This is the only one that remains. It's atatched to the hook for our washing line outside our door.

My Mam gave me this bauble a couple of years ago; it plays music when you gently shake it (or do something else to make it move... Like clap right by it, knock against it, etc). It's hung on our living room door knob; it would be playing every time I passed it but I have it turned off most of the time. As much as I love the thing, it does get a little annoying when every time you walk through the door it plays a tune. Of course, I have to turn it on sometimes though... Don't I? *Winks*

I did a post about it - complete with a short video clip - when I first got it; it was three years ago. If you want to check it out, go to this post.

This picture of Santa being climbed on by puppies has been on my door since I was a child; it's looking really battered, but I can't bring myself to throw it away.

And that's all of them.

***

Today I'm joining in with the first of the three blog parties I've signed up for this holiday season. Join in the fun by clicking on the button below:

src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iKN82vOWz9Y/TsieBcaZdqI/AAAAAAAAFb8/8N3qAQ9Az0M/s1600/Yuletideball2011witchbutton2eaw.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5676961077944481442" />

Furkid thoughts: Dear Santa

2011-12-09T18:34:00.001Z

Dear Santa Paws,

I've been the very best behaved dog I possibly can be this past year, so I hope you're planning on bringing me a load of great presents like you usually do? You do know that we moved in October, right? We live by the seaside now... I hope you can find where. I also hope you can figure out where Gwydion moved to, since Gwydion moved to a different place that I don't know. Mami says that you're magic so can find anyone no matter where in the world they are; I hope she's right! She also says you have a magic key to open any door; I hope she's right about that too, since our fireplace is very firmly bricked up (even more so than it was in the old place) so there's no way you could possibly get in that way!

I don't have any spacific requests for presents; just bring me plenty of toys and treats, and I'll be happy with that!

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Furkid thoughts: the story of the cat and the squirrel

2011-12-08T12:37:00.002Z

Hi there humans, this is Kero here.

Today I have a story for you of what happened when I was out on walkies recently.

There's a squirrel that hangs out in some trees at the end of the street, my humans want photos of it, but it's really quick and sneaky so they haven't managed to get any photos yet. From what I can tell squirrels are rather tricky to get photos of.

Anyway...

We were just setting out on our walkies when the squirrel came in to view, ran across the road, and disappeared in to the bushes before we could get a photo. But it didn't just run like normal... It was throwing things over its shoulder as it ran.

We were confused, until we saw this...

The squirrel was throwing things at the cat, which was chasing it.

When the cat saw us it sat down right in our path, daring us to come any closer.

The squirrel got away while the cat was busy eyeing me up (and while I was trying desperately to persuade my humans to let me go to it to try and make friends).

After a bit the cat got bored and left, and we continued with our walkies.

And that's the story of the cat and the squirrel.

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

The sea before a storm

2011-12-07T12:25:00.003Z

I said I'd get photos when the sea was rougher still than it was in the last batch of ocean photos I shared. I kept my word, and here are the promised photos:

No, that isn't snow on the beach (unfortunately)... It's the foam from the water.

There was a nasty storm soon after these were taken; not that the weather was all that calm at the time, since the huge wind beast was enthusiastically blowing its icy breath on the land when these were taken, but it got much worse.

Also, this bird was wandering around in the park, so we grabbed a photo:

Iggy's pretty sure it's a "Water Rail" (based on the best match he can find in the bird book I sent him), so that's what I'm calling it.

Furkid thoughts: the Christmas mouse

2011-12-06T12:12:00.004Z

Hi humans, it's Kero here!

What does Mami have there?

WOW! It's a mouse teddy that plays, "we wish you a Merry Christmas," when you squeeze its tummy! I wish I had a mouse like that!

What?

Oh, WOW! It is for me!

Hey, come back mouse... You're mine!

Don't you just love unexpected presents?

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

The eagerly awaited birthday package

2011-12-05T13:16:00.006Z

Ever since my birthday I'd been waiting impatiently for a spacific parcel to arrive in the post. I didn't know exactly what it would contain, but I knew who it was from, which I knew would be enough to identify it when it arrived.

Finally the day came when the parcel was put in to my hands.

Excitedly I began clawing at the tape around the box to try and open it.

My attempts were unsuccessful.

No matter, I have ways of dealing with troublesome tape; I grabbed the nearest pair of our kitchen scissors and carefully cut through the tape, using the gapps between the box flaps as a guide to know where it would be best to cut. Once I was done, I set the scissors aside and lifted the flaps.

Suddenly, something leapt from the box.

I grabbed the thing before it could escape, trying to hold it down long enough to discover what it was. It was small and furry; what could it be?

Ah-ha! I had it!

It was a squirrel, brandishing a nut and dragging some socks behind it:

I stroked the squirrel to calm it, and it is now my newest animal friend; never have I known a squirrel more eager to be friends. I suppose it was the couple of weeks spent in a box with only a couple of pairs of socks for company?

The poor thing is clutching its last nut as though its very life depends on not letting go of it. I've made no attempts to seporate it, and wouldn't dream of doing so, especially not after the possibly traumatic long journey the squirrel has had to endure.

I've never known a squirrel be so easy to photograph before either, LOL!

As for the socks...

My feet very much appreciate the two pairs of socks that the squirrel brought with it; not only are they warm, but - being proper walking socks - they are the perfect socks to wear with my walking boots, making my feet toasty and warm, and much more comfortable when walking than they've felt in some time.

I suppose now you'll be wondering where this package came from? Well, I'll tell you...

This package was my birthday present from Iggy; thanks Iggy! :)

Cards, cooking, beds and birthdays (FD)

2011-12-04T17:45:00.007Z

I made a couple more holiday cards; I was short a couple for how many I wanted to send. Anyway, here are the two most recent cards I've made:

On the subject of cards and such for the holidays...

Last week we got most of the items sent out that I'm sending. There are a few things we haven't yet (which we're hoping to send tomorrow), but for the most part if I send to you then you should be getting post from me soon. How soon will depend on several things, but I'm hoping I've sent things early enough that everyone the other side of the world will get their stuff before the holidays, but late enough that nothing arrives before it's actually time to start holiday celebrations and such.

***

I wanted a pizza yesterday, so I made one:

This was my first time making a pizza completely from scratch. It was a very tasty pizza, if I do say so myself! Also, it was filling enough that I ended up having leftover pizza for today's dinner. So not only was it minus all the greasy oils that cover take-away pizzas, but I only had half of it each of the two days (actually, a little less... Kero had some too).

***

Never underestimate the joys of having a bed!

I'm not even half joking here!

Our old bed wasn't in great shape; we got it second hand about two years ago, and it was looking very battered. So we decided we wouldn't take it when we moved, and when moving looked to be happening soon, we arranged for it to be disposed of, thinking we'd spend a week or so without one at the old place, then maybe a couple of weeks at most without one when we moved. We had blow-up matresses though, so no big deal; we could handle two or three weeks on those.

But first the moving dragged out, and it took a month to sort it out, so we spent about a month without a bed before we moved. By this point sleeping on blow-up matresses was losing its appeal, but the bed was gone, and until we moved there would be no new bed for us, and we would have to continue with the blow-up matresses.

Then we moved, and it took us ages to sort things out because people in high places don't communicate. But, finally, everything was sorted and we ordered our bed.

We ended up spending close to three months with blow-up matresses, so when we finally knew the bed was coming it was as though my birthday was coming all over again!

It arrived on Wednesday; I've never been so glad to see a bed in my entire life!

Here it is:

It's nothing fancy, but it's our bed, and we get to sleep in it!

Oh the joys of having a bed!

My side of the bed is the side with the cone nearby; it's one of the Conas brothers... Iggy sent him to meet me, and he came with us when we moved. He has a thing for hanging around near money boxes; my Charlie And Lola money box is near him (not sure if you'll be able to see it though).

***

November 29th was the birthday of one of my friends named Tom (the one who has Lucy).
November 29th was also Kati and her husband Scott's 14th wedding anniversary.
November 30th was Shireen (one of my Mam's Goddaughter)'s 13th birthday.
December 1st was Betty's little dog, Koda's 7th birthday.
And today (December 4th) is my Grandad's 77th birthday.

So... Happy belated anniversary Kati and Scott, happy belated birthday to Tom, Shireen and Koda, and happy birthday Grandad!

It will most likely only be Betty and Koda who see this though; Kati isn't around the blogs these days (though she's on Facebook; I miss her blog posts though), and Tom, Shireen and Grandad use Facebook but not blogs; there was a time Shireen read my blog, but I don't think she bothers to do so these days.

***

I have just one more thing I want to say today...

Christmas day is exactly three weeks away!

Update for the "Get Off Your Broom" challenge (kinda FD)

2011-12-03T17:09:00.004Z

I'm meant to be writing a proper update for the "Get Off Your Broom" challenge that Serenity is still hosting. I'm meant to weigh and measure myself, then I'm meant to tell you how good - or bad - of a week I've had when it comes to eating right, drinking properly, and exercising regularly. And when I'm done with that I'm meant to decide if I'm participating in this week's mini challenge, and if I am post about it.

But I'm not going to do that.

And now I suppose you want to know why?

Here's the thing...

I joined the challenge to have others standing beside me while I tried to lose weight and get back the healthy habits I used to have. I wanted to blog hop with those people and offer them encouragement while at the same time getting some in return.

At first this was working for me, but then I started thinking too much. It's good to conciously be thinking about adopting healthier habits; everyone knows that. But I started worrying about it and obsessing over it. My mind was filled with thoughts like, "it's Saturday; I need to do my weight and measurements... What if I haven't lost anything? Or, worse, what if I've put weight or inches back on?" and "why are all of those people on the challenge? I wish I was as light as they are; they don't need something like this to lose weight, do they?" The result was that a combination of this and a few other things I've been dealing with made me ill, which caused me to not be in any fit shape to do any exercise anyway, and - as a result - caused me to put back on some of the weight I had managed to lose since the start of the year.

Anyway...

I'm still going to be working on adopting healthier eating habits, trying to drink better, and getting exercise on a more regular basis; even if I didn't need to lose weight, I'm sure my body would thank me for looking after it better, after all. But I wont be doing regular posts about my weight loss attempts any more, because all they're doing is making me feel bad, and causing me to stress over what people will think if I've had a bad week, gained weight or inches, etc. I mean, I'll probably throw the odd post in about weight loss and such, but only if I feel the need or desire to do so. The thing is, I don't see how that stress would benifit me, and I'm sure it would be better to illiminate the stress if at all possible. After all, the challenge was about getting healthier, and stress isn't healthy, is it?

The Thirteenth Tale

2011-12-02T12:00:00.001Z

The huge beast that was the wind blew its icy breath over the land, whipping the branches of the trees in to a frenzy and forcing the cascading waterfall of rain against the windows of my bedroom. I heard it hammering against the glass as though it was knocking frantically on the panes to be allowed to come in, "let us in," the rain drops seemed to beg, "it's so cold out here!" I ignored it though; I wasn't going to let the rain come in and drench the carpet. Besides, I was only half listening to the storm; something else had captured my attention, keeping me sat up on the bed listening intently as though doing so was the most important thing at that moment; as though my very life depended on knowing what would happen next.

If you read yesterday's post then you will know what had me so spellbound. Yes, it was a book. The book was sent to me by Magaly; she thought I'd enjoy it... She was right! And now I'm going to put you out of your misery and tell you what this book was that held me captive as the storm raged outside my window, and as November turned to December.

The book was "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield. And I've even found a little about the book for you ; which I found on this site. So, here you go:

"Margaret Lea works in her father’s antiquarian bookshop where her fascination for the biographies of the long-dead has led her to write them herself. She gets a letter from one of the most famous authors of the day, the mysterious Vida Winter, whose popularity as a writer has been in no way diminished by her reclusiveness. Until now, Vida has toyed with journalists who interview her, creating outlandish life histories for herself --- ;all of them invention. Now she is old and ailing, and at last she wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. Her letter to Margaret is a summons.

Somewhat anxiously, the equally reclusive Margaret travels to Yorkshire to meet her subject. Vida’s strange, gothic tale features the Angelfield family; dark-hearted Charlie and his unbrotherly obsession with his sister, the fascinating, devious, and willful Isabelle, and Isabelle’s daughters, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline. Margaret is captivated by the power of Vida’s storytelling, but she doesn’t entirely trust Vida’s account. She goes to check up on the family, visiting their old home and piecing together their story in her own way. What she discovers on her journey to the truth is for Margaret a chilling and transforming experience."

Thank you, Magaly, for sending me this book; I can see why you love it so, and I am very glad you decided to share it with me!

Mobility, meditation and mutterings

2011-12-01T18:10:00.006Z

OK, how did it get to December already? It shouldn't be December yet... I wasn't done with November, LOL! Seriously though, where has the time been going?

Nobody knows, huh?

Oh well... *Sigh*

***

I met my actual mobility officer on Tuesday; she seems nice. She's alergic to dogs though; she's fine if she doesn't actually touch them, but Kero tends to want to jump up at people who come in to say, "hi," to them. I wish she'd said about that before she came; I'd have clipped his lead on him to keep him back. Mind you, as it turned out Kero was satisfied with her comment of, "you're a beautiful - or is it handsome? - dog, but I wont pet you; a sniffly nose and red, watery eyes just isn't a good look for me," and he stayed calm enough that only when we came back from our actual mobility session did he go to jump up at her, but, thankfully, he was also excited at my return, so when I heard his tags heading in her direction (his tags jingling is often how I tell where he is) I was able to quickly get his attention focussed back on me, and he came running in my direction to jump all over me instead.

Anyway...

The session was pretty good; she's quite pleased with my cane skills, although it's obvious to her that I spend a lot of time with others with me, because I don't bring the cane around to my left as much as I should (because I'm so used to having someone walking that side, which would mean they'd be watching for obsticles that side anyway). And, if you're wondering, the reason she needed to see my cane skills is that for the past couple of years the only time I've been walking just by myself is when I've been walking Kero along that path by the old place, and when you're just following a path it's very different to when you're actually going out and about and needing to avoid posts, people, etc, or navigate around parked cars and such.

We're having a Tuesday afternoon session, and we're going to work on the walk to the park first. She hadn't been in the park before, but when she walked through the archway she immediately knew why I wanted to learn the route so badly. I believe her exact words were, "WOW! And it's Winter and it looks this beautiful; imagine what it will be like in the Spring and Summer!" I smiled and said, "so you see why I want to learn this route first?" And she said she did, and, then continued to exclaim over all the things still blooming in the park, and generally how beautiful it is.

I asked her about the gate thing, and she thinks the best idea will probably be for me to atatch a bit of metal sheeting or something to the bit of concrete that makes the front of the step you step up as you walk in the gate; the idea being that - since it's concrete all the way along - my cane will make a different noise when hitting it. That's probably a good plan, but I'd need to get permission from The Landlord to do that, because to stick it on firmly enough that it doesn't come off too easily it would make it quite difficult to remove at a later date. Not impossible, but difficult. The other option is that I hope I manage to successfully count doorways and gateways as I come down our street, and tie something rust proof to the gate to show myself that I did definately count properly, though she has no idea what I could tie to the gate that would stay put and not get damaged by bad weather.

Also, I explained to her about my "monster issue" and how I learn routes a lot quicker than I manage to do them, because when I try and do them myself monsters appear and I just want to go home, and she's promised to slowly wean me off having her with me for each route (gradually falling further behind each time we walk it, once she knows I know it well) so I can get up my confidence walking out in the big wide world by myself, knowing that someone is there - and since she isn't scared, the chances are the monsters aren't there - rather than how it was done before where I went from having someone with me to having nobody, and as a result was too scared to go more than a short distance from the comfort zone of that little path by the river.

***

I've joined the Chopra Center Free 21 Day Meditation Challenge that Rita mentioned on her blog a couple of days ago. I figure - if nothing else - maybe it will help me to get back in to the habit of more regular meditation sessions, which is something I've been trying to work on getting back in the habit of doing. Anyway, it started today, and by the time I came online this morning the link for today's meditation was waiting in my inbox, so I spent some time on it this morning (which worked out great since I was home by myself this morning... Well, Kero was here, but I'm sure you know what I mean).

***

There was an awesome storm last night; I know because I ended up being up most of the night. I probably would have slept last night, only I was so in to the book I was reading that I couldn't tear myself away from it. So, I was up most of the night listening to the audiobook (which I'll tell you about another day, since I want to do it justice, so want to give it a post of its own) while the storm raged outside. I'm exhausted now though; the result of making myself get up after quite a short sleep (to minimize the chances of a sleepless night tonight; though it doesn't illiminate the possibility I wont sleep tonight). The book was worth it though. Well, I think it's worth it, anyway! You'll have to judge for yourself if you think it would be worth it to you when I post the review of it, which I'll do some time soon.

***

Going to leave it here and go finish the dishes before I get so tired I don't have the energy to do them (which, I have to admit, I'm not far from).

Enjoy whatever's left of your day, stay safe and warm... Oh, and if you have snow, please send some to me, because we got a nasty storm, but no snow, and I want snow! ;)

Chow-pud (FD)

2011-11-30T12:39:00.005Z

First of all, I want to point something out...

It's not true that blind people have extraordinarily enhanced other senses.

The simple fact is that when you don't have your sight to rely on you actually pay proper attention to your other senses. Speaking as someone who's been there I know that when you can see you use your sight to verify what you're hearing, smelling, etc. But when you can't see you learn not to second-guess your other senses, and as a result you can pick up things others can't.

Just saying.

Anyway...

Our living room is at the front of this place, our bathroom is at the back. It's not a huge place, but it's big enough that you need to raise your voice in order to be heard from one end of it by someone at the other end of it. Because I'm used to needing to listen for things I tend to hear Kelly easier than he hears me... Usually!

Kelly and Kero were in the living room, and Kero was barking and yipping like a puppy - we later found out the postman was about - and I was in the bathroom running a bath, and I heard Kelly say what sounded to me like, "I think he's having a second chow-pud."

I wont go in to details, but after getting him to repeat it I figured out he'd actually said, "childhood," not "chow-pud," (funnily enough, LOL!)

I guess my muse is back though, because I then started thinking...

What is a chow-pud? Does it even exist? If it does, what would be in it? I guess it would have to involve meat and/or cheese, otherwise Kero wouldn't love it enough for seconds!

Of course, then I started thinking some more...

Kero's often a picky eater, so... What would be so tempting to Kero that he would eat two helpings faster than I could even run a bath?

I think I've got it!

Bacon covered in melted cheese!

What else could it be?

Now only one question remains...

Why did Kero get a cooked breakfast and I only got cold cereal?

Windy musings

2011-11-29T11:56:00.006Z

Over the past few days we've had storms at night, but they calmed down by the time most people were getting up (so about 8:00am ish). Not today though. Today reminds me of that very blustery day in the Winnie The Pooh books when poor Piglet was blown away! I was just thinking though... The wind in the mountains sounds very different to the way the wind by the sea sounds. In the mountains it sounds like a pack of wolves is closing in, but here... Here it sounds more like something bigger. It makes me think of huge ice beasts blowing their chilly breath over the land (and sea, I guess). I wonder if it sounds like this all the time - since I don't remember from when I lived in this area before - or if this is just how it sounds when Winter storms are near? I mean, the radio did say we might get snow some time soon...

Willow's 7th birthday

2011-11-28T19:26:00.003Z

Today (November 28th) is Willow (my Mam's Black Labrador)'s 7th birthday. Happy birthday Willow! Mam will be doing a post about how Willow's birthday was and what she had for her birthday tomorrow, because she wanted to put her post about baby Harrison up today, since that one's already almost a week late as it is. If you want to read either post, check out my Mam's blog (if you don't already follow it).

Yes, that's right, we celebrate our pets' birthhdays in this family; if you're new to my blog... Just wait until you see all the goodies Kero gets for the holidays! ;)

The Land Of Painted Caves

2011-11-27T06:57:00.000Z

The Land of Painted Caves - Earth's Children Bk. 6
By Jean M. Auel

"THE LAND OF PAINTED CAVES concludes the story of Ayla, her mate Jondalar, and their little daughter, Jonayla, taking readers on a journey of discovery and adventure as Ayla struggles to find a balance between her duties as a new mother and her training to become a Zelandoni - one of the Ninth Cave community's spiritual leaders and healers. Once again, Jean Auel combines her brilliant narrative skills and appealing characters with a remarkable re-creation of the way life was lived thousands of years ago, rendering the terrain, dwelling places, longings, beliefs, creativity and daily lives of Ice Age Europeans as real to the reader as today's news."

(Click here to see the page the above text came from).

This book has received mixed reviews; you can see an example of this on the page linked to above that I got that short synopsis from. But this post is for my opinion, not their opinions, so here's what I thought of the book: I thought it was fantastic; I enjoyed hearing more of Ayla's adventures. It wasn't my favourite from the "Earth's Children" series, but I was as enthusiastic about reading the rest of it - and as eager to learn what happened next in Ayla's life - as I was in the earlier books. Personally, I think the only reason some were disappointed with it is that it was awaited for so long that people had built up expectations that were too high for any book to reach. I started the book with no expectations; the only thing I thought about was that I was going to find out what happened next to Ayla. As a result I was not disappointed, and was able to enjoy a really great book!

storms; inside and out (R/WP and PTMI)

2011-11-27T05:38:00.008Z

I'm laying on the sofa listening to the storm rage outside; it's nasty enough out there that I can't tell what's wind and what's roaring ocean. Kelly said that he noticed earlier the waves are so rough you can see them from the corner of our road; I asked him to get a photo later if it's still the same when it's light enough to try. I haven't been going for walks with Kelly and Kero, and not because of the weather either. I'm so drained of energy lately that I just can't do it. Kero doesn't care as long as he gets to go out; apparently his issue with going for walks with anyone other than me doesn't extend to this new place (which, I guess, is good).

The storm feels kind of appropriate, since it seems like nature is echoing how I'm feeling; although, nature seems to have more energy to express it than I do right now.

I wasn't sure if I should write this post; I tend to avoid this kind of post on my blog, since I'm sure you have better things you could be doing than reading posts like this one, but I need to vent, and I figure if you don't want to read it then you can just skip it. I wont mind; and, quite frankly, I wont blame you. So, this is the point where you might want to go and find a better post to be reading; maybe someone's shared a funny joke, an amusing story about something that happened to them recently, or an interesting article... Like I said, I wouldn't blame you for wanting to go read something else right now. Last chance; I'm about to start venting!

I've been feeling unwell - as you know - and that means I've had a lot of time to think, which is always dangerous with me; my mind usually goes off in a direction I'd rather it didn't, and I end up feeling worse inside because of what I think about.

I'm 27 years old; I got married a little over 8 and a half years ago. Yes, that's right, I was barely old enough. I don't regret it for a moment... I love my hubby, and I know he loves me; he'd give me the moon and stars if he could. But there's one thing that I wish I could change, and those who know me well will know what it is.

I want children.

We've never - even during the time just before we were married - made any attempt at preventing children from happening, and when it wasn't happening we started trying to do something about it. Only nobody can find a problem, so they go back to blaming my weight. Now, I accept that my weight isn't a good thing, but if it was only my weight then why didn't it happen when we were first married? Back then I was about the weight they said they want me to be before they'll consider IVF or anything. If it was my weight then I wouldn't have needed to go to them in the first place. But they see my weight, see the results of the tests they've done, and decide that - since the tests are providing no answers - my weight must be the issue.

Now, since I started putting on weight - which I know is due to comfort eating, and bouts of depression - I've tried everything I can think of to lose weight, but most of those things have only resulted in me gaining even more weight. Of course, all the doctors can do is tell me that if I want a baby that much I'll try harder. But I am trying; I've tried diet after diet, exercised until I'm crying from the pain, tried diet pills, etc. Sometimes I get a chunk of weight off, but then I put it back on with more added to it; I now weigh more than I did when the doctors first started blaming my weight for my fertility issues (after I'd been seeing them for a while and getting nowhere). I've begged them to keep searching for an answer, but they just say the same thing; that they can't help me if I wont help myself by losing weight, and they're sure if I just get the weight off then I wont have any issues.

I'm catching then losing really early; for a while I had them believing me, but then they did an about turn and decided it was all in my head and went back to the weight thing. I know that's what's happening though. I just can't prove it because they wont see you until you get to a certain point in pregnancy because they don't consider it worthwhile, and by the time they'll see me it's too late. But knowing this makes it more difficult; I ache to hold the children I should have by now, and can't help feeling a stab of jealousy when someone I know is blessed with a baby (especially if they already have one, since I can't help feeling it's not fair that they have more than one and I don't even have one). And when I hear of people who don't seem to want their children and/or don't care for them properly I can't help thinking that they should let me take them so I can look after them for them. I know the best place for a child is with its parents- or parent if only one can be with it - but if they don't want it, why don't they give it to someone who does? Or, better yet, take measures to prevent having it to start with.

I thought about adoption, but most adoption agencies seem reluctant to have a blind Mother take in a child; especially an infant, which is what I'd prefer to have the child from. There's private adoption, but unless it was done through someone I know rather than an agency it's quite expensive, and I'm not really in a financial position to afford something like that. Besides, even those kinds of agencies are reluctant to hand over an infant to a blind Mother. They seem to think that if you can't see then you can't care for the child (at least, that's the opinion I encountered when I looked in to it before). Besides, I really would like to have one that's part of me; one that nobody can dispute is mine (and Kelly's, obviously).

I just want to feel the joy of Motherhood; to know how wonderful it feels to have the words, "I love you, Mummy," directed at me, to be the one who can give that all important "Mummy hug" that makes a small child feel better when they're upset or unwell, and to know that feeling of pride when your child achieves important goals that make you stand up - with a smile on your face, and tears in your eyes - and say, "that's my baby; look what he/she did!" Why does it seem like I'm asking too much? I mean, is that really so much to ask?

Saturday 26th November: 3:03 pm

2011-11-26T15:03:00.005Z

I'm sorry for not being around the blogs over the past few days; well, most of this week, actually. I planned to catch up on things Thursday evening or Friday, but I got in to listening to my new Jean M Auel book, and I ended up not really doing much else. And then I spent a large part of yesterday watching episodes of Buffy The Vampire Slayer while laying on the sofa, because I just didn't feel up to doing much else.

I'm supposed to do a "Get Off Your Broom" update post today, but there's little point in me doing one; I've had a rough week, and I didn't even bother weighing or measuring today, because I don't care if I lost weight or inches or whatever this week. Well, no, that's not entirely right. I do care, but... Well, right now my head is too full of other things to consider jumping on the scales or grabbing the measuring tape to be anything worth doing today. So I'm not doing it; simple as that!

Prisoner of the Daleks

2011-11-25T16:30:00.003Z

By Trevor Baxendale

"Prisoner of the Daleks was the twenty-seventh Tenth Doctor novel to be released."

"The Daleks are advancing, their empire constantly expanding in to Earth's space. The Earth forces are resisting the Daleks in every way they can. But the battles rage on across countless solar systems. And now the future of our galaxy hangs in the balance... The Doctor finds himself stranded on board a starship near the front line with a group of ruthless bounty hunters.

Earth Command will pay them for every Dalek they kill, every eye stalk they bring back as proof. With the Doctor's help, the bounty hunters achieve the ultimate prize: a Dalek prisoner - intact, powerless, and ready for interrogation. But where the Daleks are involved, nothing is what it seems, and no one is safe. Before long the tables will be turned, and how will the Doctor survive when he becomes a prisoner of the Daleks?"

(Above text taken from here... WARNING: Link contains spoilers!)

A great book; one I highly recommend... Especially if you're a fan of Doctor Who (in particular the tenth doctor), or if you just enjoy these kinds of books in general.

American Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-24T12:46:00.002Z

A very happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends; or anyone who isn't American but is celebrating Thanksgiving today, for whatever reason that may be.

Wednesday 23rd November

2011-11-23T16:00:00.004Z

I'm not sure what to write; I'm feeling incredibly uninspired for post topics today. I'm not sure why, but that's the way it is. I've been baking, listening to audiobooks, and doing general day to day activities like household chores and such. Usually when I listen to audiobooks - or read books in general - I get all sorts of ideas floating about in my head, but I guess my muse is on strike or something. I don't blame it; I'd want a break from me too from time to time if I could have one, LOL! Oh well, I guess I'll let this do for today so I can finish sorting the dishes. Maybe I'll get to blog posts later, but it depends what time I end up going to sleep; I've been sleeping really well the past few days... And at night too!

Happy birthday to Sherry

2011-11-22T17:45:00.002Z

It's Kelly's sister, Sherry's birthday today... Happy birthday Sherry!

She probably wont see this, but... *Shrugs*... I want to say happy birthday to her anyway!

Mobility and parties

2011-11-21T09:54:00.006Z

I'm finally starting to feel a bit better... YAY!

I miss outside...

We went to lunch at "The Love Cafe" yesterday, and - since we were early - I got to go down by the ocean for a bit, which was nice. I'm looking forward to when I can go whenever I want to though; once I've had my mobility lessons so I can be sure I know the way there and back. The way back is the hard part; the ocean is easier to find than our gate (which I'm sure you're not surprised to hear, LOL!)

I have a mobility officer coming a week tomorrow - so on Tuesday November 29th - apparently around here your "rehabilitation officer" and "mobility officer" are two diffferent people. So on November 29th I meet the actual mobility officer; it's taken this long because she was on holiday... Mobility officers go on a lot of holidays! Mind you, with how I've been feeling it's a good thing in a way, because I wouldn't have been up for having a mobility lesson last week, that's for sure!

I'll be glad when I finally get my mobility lessons and can start learning to take myself out around here; I miss being able to take Kero for a walk by myself, and I'm longing to be able to wander down to the park - or down to the ocean - with just Kero so we can stay there for as long as we want to.

***

I've joined a couple of Yuletide blog parties that are happening next month. If you're interested, click on the buttons below to check them out:

Furkid thoughts: new tags

2011-11-20T12:26:00.004Z

Hi, it's Kero here.

"What Mami?"

Oh... I get it now...

Mami thought you guys would like to see the new tags I had made for me the other day (and I'm just so cute that how could you not want more photos of me in general?)

OK, here are my new tags:

I have three; one with the home phone number on for our new home, one with Mami's mobile phone number on, and one with the phone number for the house where Dadci and Nani live, because Mami thought - since their details are my emergency second contact details on my microchip - it would be a good idea to have their number on my collar too. I did already have a tag with that number on, but Mami figured it would be best to replace all my tags at the same time. I don't understand why, personally, but there you go; you humans really confuse me sometimes, do you know that? Anyway, all three tags have my name on them, so one way or another people will know who I am and be able to get me home safely if I get lost; that's what Mami said anyway.

Right, I have to go now... A dog's life is a busy one!

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Get Off Your Broom Update (FD)

2011-11-19T16:25:00.004Z

Time for my "Get Off Your Broom" update:

So, how has my week been? Well...

I did have two take-aways and food out at the start of the week to celebrate my birthday, but the rest of the week I was eating proper home cooked meals. Yesterday, for example, I had stir fry vegetables with tofu in a lemon and ginger sauce, served with a baked potato; all of it made from scratch by me at home.

My drinking is... Well, it's "OK"... Not great, but OK. I'm probably drinking about 4 to 5 pints of liquid, 2 or 3 pints of which is "technically" water (herbal tea, but that's basically just water with herbs in it for flavouring; I don't even put sugar in it any more). Some days I'll drink more... I think I may have even made it to the 8 pints the other day! Considering how little I was drinking before even an average of 4 to 5 pints a day is pretty good for me though.

Due to still not feeling too great, and being exhausted just doing what I need to for food preparation, etc, I haven't done much in the way of exercise though. Kelly's been walking Kero for me most of the time, and I only managed to get up the energy to get the yoga mat out once. I hate that I feel so lousy and haven't been able to go on the walks. I'm not quite so bothered about the yoga, but I love to be outside, and it's frustrating barely having the energy to make it through the day, so being too exhausted to walk far enough to make it worthwhile me going with Kelly and Kero. It wouldn't be so bad if I could turn back after a bit and take myself home while they carry on, but I can't do that yet, so it's not fair on them for me to go while I'm feeling this drained; it's not fair to make them cut their walk short.

No change to weight and measurements, so I guess things balanced themselves out enough that at least I didn't put anything on, which is the main thing, right?

Anyway, visit Serenity and the rest of the Get Off Your Broom participents to see how they did this past week.

NOTE: Serenity's website has changed from "http://www.thedomesticpagan.com" to "http://www.thedomesticpagan.net" recently, so if you haven't yet changed your links to the "dot net" address then you'll want to do so in order to continue visiting her.

My birthday 2011 (LBE and FD)

2011-11-18T14:27:00.013Z

My Mam made the trip from Wales to see me the day before my birthday. She arrived with us early Saturday evening, stayed with us a bit - bringing with her some free range duck eggs that had been brought for me by Jo (a family friend; the same Jo who Mam was maid of honor too recently) - then we went out for dinner. She'd booked a table for us at the resteraunt for the Royal Victoria Hotel that's down the road. Kelly had asked them and they'd assured him they had, "plenty of vegetarian options" so I agreed we'd go and try it. We wish we hadn't bothered going there now.

Their "vegetarian options" was a pasta meal (how is one thing "options"? unless they meant I could have from the "bar menu" wich would have expanded it to include a baked potato with cheese and beans, and chips - with or without cheese). And even Mam, who does eat meat, wouldn't eat what was on the menu (mostly spicy meats or steak type things). So we weren't impressed. We were just wondering if - and if so, how - we could duck out of our reservation and go eat somewhere else without upsetting people too much (especially since my Mam had to sleep there that night) when someone gave us a perfect oppertunity to slip out and have a reason not to go back.

Now, before I go on I'd like to say one thing; I know fires are dangerous, and I don't like fire alarms going off (especially when the sound is closely followed by the sounds of the sirens on fire engines and police cars), but sometimes fire alarms happen at just the right time. I'm sorry, but that's just the way it was on Saturday.

Yes, that's right, that was what saved us; the fire alarm went off.

At first they thought it was a drill, then they came and said, "ladies and gentlemen, I'm afraid it does look as though there may be a fire, so I'm afraid you're going to have to evacuate the building." And, I'm sorry, but we couldn't help being just a little relieved. I mean, that would mean we wouldn't be allowed back in for some time, so who could blame us then for going elsewhere for food, right?

Like I said, I REALLY don't like hearing fire alarms going off; and, I'm pleased to report, for the benifit of anyone interested, that nobody seems to have been harmed in the fire, and it was caught before it did any serious damage; people were allowed back in the building soon afterwards. But we couldn't help feeling slightly relieved that we had an oppertunity to escape without causing offense (I told Mam to tell anyone who asked that we were sorry, but we needed to eat and weren't sure how long it would be before we could go back in, so since we hadn't ordered we decided to go elsewhere; especially since Mam is diabetic so should eat regularly, really).

Anyway, we ended up going back to my place and ordering pizza, since by this time Mam was starting to feel a bit unwell, and we knew the pizza would come quickly (I'd expected to be out for dinner, so I didn't have anything she could eat that could be made quicker than a pizza could arrive). Kelly and Kero didn't mind; it meant they got pizza too, since how could we order pizza without including them? (Actually, they'd have been invited for dinner if it wasn't for the fact that the hotel allows pets, but they don't allow them in the resteraunt and bar areas).

I know pizza isn't the best thing for a diabetic, but we had to get her something to eat, and with the time of night it was by this time we didn't have many options.

Anyway, we've come to the conclusion that the hotel itself is wonderful; reasonable price, great views from the windows (according to Mam) and she was pretty pleased with the room she used. But the resteraunt... We would never recommend it!

Anyway...

After pizza, Mam insisted I had the little presents she'd brought me on Saturday evening while she was with me. I did give a half-hearted attempt at pointing out my birthday wasn't until the next day, so I should wait, but - as expected - it made no difference, so I had them on Saturrday evening before my Mam left. And here they are...

A bag of love:

A daughter plaque:

I refused to open my birthday cards though, because mostly it was just having my birthday cards that was planned for the actual day of my birthday, and I insisted on making sure they were all left to be opened together when I got up on Sunday morning.

As it turned out I got up really early on Sunday morning; I was up at 5:00 am, LOL!

I had several birthday cards:

These are the ones from my parents and my Nan:

Did you notice the one from my Nan has cartoon characters on it? Angelica Pickles, etc...

These are the ones from my parents:

The one that's very slightly bigger than the other is from my Mam.

These are the cards from my brothers:

The Hello Kitty one is from Wayne (and his girlfriend, Amy) and the dog one is from Carl.

Here's Wayne's card again with another of my cards:

And the rest of my cards:

One of them is from my Grandma and Jayde, one is from Jo (the same Jo who sent the eggs), one is from Rita and Karma, and one is from little Emma.

Here's the inside of Rita's card (taken because of the little picture inside it):

And the inside of the card from my Grandma and Jayde (taken for the same reason):

And the inside of Emma's card, to show the "writings" she did in it for me:

When they were writing the card she held her little hand out for the pen and said, "writings," so they handed her the pen and the card and she did her, "writings," in it. She also made it very easy for me to tell which card was the one from her by scrunching the card up a bit and giving it a little taste. LOL!

I also found an e-card waiting in my inbox from AliceKay when I got up Sunday morning.

I ended up with about £40 birthday money, which I've mostly put aside towards my laptop and Jaws update that I want at the start of next year. I donated £5 of it to Harry's Fund though, after reading about it on a recent post that Owen did on his blog.

I also got these two audiobooks:

The Jean M Auel book that came out at the start of the year (the new one for her "Earth's Children" series), and a "Doctor Who" one. The Jean M Auel book was from my Grandma, and the Doctor Who one was from Kelly. It was Tuesday before I actually got the Doctor Who one, but you'll learn why when you read the rest of this post.

That was it for birthday celebrations on my actual birthday though... Unless you count the VERY LONG - clost to 3 hours, I think - phone conversation with Carl. Well, we don't talk very often, so when we do we usually lose track of time and talk for a couple of hours; costs whoever calls a fortune, since our "free call" time runs out after an hour, but neither of us remember to keep track of time unless we have to be somewhere at a spacific time, LOL! Anyway, enough of that... on to Monday...

Kero needed to be at Doggy Daycare for 9:30am, and we weren't sure how long it would take us to get there, so we'd arranged to leave about 9:00am. Turned out it only took about 5 minutes to get there, so we were really early. Oh well, better early than late, right? That's what I always say, anyway!

Our original plan had been to drop Kero off, go for breakfast, go in to Hastings so Kelly could take me to Waterstones (my favourite book shop, since their selection is fantastic) and to the Blue Reef Aquarium. Then we were going to go for an early dinner before picking up Kero. However, we'd had a bit of a misunderstanding, and - thinking I only wanted him in for a couple of hours in the morning - Sylvia (the doggy daycare woman) hadn't arranged for someone to be there to help her with him when she needed to walk her dogs, and she knew there was no way she could do Kero and her dogs (she has four large dogs, as you'll know if you read Kero's post yesterday). So we changed our plans, and here's what we did instead:

After we dropped Kero off we went straight for breakfast. We went to a cafe Kelly's taken quite a liking to called "Cafe Latte" which does a vegetarian breakfast that I wanted to try. The breakfast consisted of fried eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, baked beans, hash browns, a vegetarian sausage and potato pancakes, but I asked if the potato pancakes could be switched to toast or fried bread (they gave me the fried bread). I had some orange juice with it. Anyway, it was really nice, and - despite pretty much everything in it being fried - wasn't too greasy, so I was pleased with it.

After breakfast we went to run a few errands; we ordered Kero some new tags for his collar (which we'd been meaning to do since we moved over a month ago), fetched something I needed from the pharmacy, checked on the progress of our doorbell order, and - to make up for the fact I wasn't getting to go to town or the aquarium - Kelly took me in the bakery so I could pick something nice. I went with a cherry pie and a little iced cupcake (both of which were really nice, by the way).

We thought we wouldn't be able to go for dinner after all, but - on the off chance - I asked Kelly to ask them if they did anything that could be taken away, since I'd been looking forward to trying the place. They told us they'll do sandwiches to take away, but I'd have more choice if I could eat in. So I explained that we'd not long had breakfast so I wasn't ready for anything right now, but that we'd planned to come in for dinner only to find our doggy sitter couldn't have the dog all day so we couldn't come. He laughed, and I wondered why until he said, "well, then bring the dog with you. We have plenty of dogs who come in here." So - pleased that I could still try the place out, and that they were nice enough to allow dogs - I said we would and that we'd be back, "in the afternoon some time," (since they didn't seem to need an exact time for a booking). And Kelly and I agreed we'd go back, "about 3:00pm ish," since that's when we'd planned to go for our early dinner originally.

So, we went home, and had been in long enough to put away the couple of things we'd grabbed in town when Sylvia called to tell me Kero was done, since we'd arranged for her to call when he was done being groomed and that's when we'd call the taxi to take us to pick him up. So, off we went to get Kero. Then we came home and rested until it was time to go for dinner, since there wasn't really time to go in to Hastings and still make it for dinner when I wanted to go. Not because it's far away, but because by the time we got there we wouldn't be able to do much before we needed to head home. Plus, I think Kero needed a nap, LOL!

Anyway, then we went to the cafe I'd been dying to try. The place is called "The Love Cafe" and I absolutely love it there! Seriously, I could happily spend hours there! It seems to me like it's a sort of new age cafe; new age music playing in the background, so many vegetarian and vegan options I didn't know what to pick first, and they even serve herbal teas! Plus, they were really friendly, and so were the customers in there. It was a wonderful atmosphere. And, yes, the food was great too! I ordered a "vegan breakfast" which was grilled tomatoes, peppers and mushrooms, vegan sausages, beans, grilled potato slices and wholemeal toast. I had it with freshly squeezed orange juice. It was so tasty!

There was a bit of a delay in the arrival of my toast due to them putting butter not soy spread on it (I didn't have the heart to tell them they needn't have worried and that I do eat dairy items; will have to remember to point that out before ordering things with toast next time to save them wasting their toast). I'd enjoyed the vegetarian breakfast that morning, but I enjoyed the vegan one even more! And, as I already said, I could have quite happily stayed there longer; even when my food ran out. LOL!

We'd forgotten to get orange juice when we were running errands, and our plan had been to get it on the way home (I was going to stand outside the shop with Kero) but I managed to persuade Kelly to leave me in the cafe with Kero while he fetched the juice. I made it seem like it would take me a bit to finish my food and juice, though in reality - I'm sure he knew this, but knew what I was doing - I had only a mouthful or two left and a sip of juice; I just wanted to stay there a bit longer. ;)

Anyway, in the end I ran out of excuses to stay there, so we went home. It had been an exhausting day all round, and we all had early nights Monday night; so, on to Tuesday...

Kelly went in to Hastings by himself. I wanted to go, but at that point we weren't sure what was happening with Sylvia returning Kero's collar, plus the fact it was really cold (and threatening rain) and we didn't want to make Kero stand outside shops for too long in that weather. So I told him to go without us. That's when he came home with the "Doctor Who" audiobook for me, and a few things I'd asked him to grab for people for Christmas presents. I also have an audio version of "Twilight" on its way to me from Kelly, which should arrive any day. I do have the books as text files, but scrolling through text files is annoying which means I'm not getting very far with reading it. So, when we saw it was on sale online (down from £25 to a little over £14) I knew I "had to" have it! It will arrive any day now.

So, there you go, that's my birthday this year. And it's not over yet, since I know there's a package on its way to me right now (and I'm not talking about the "Twilight" book either, I'm talking about another package that's on its way to me). No, wait... I have two packages on the way to me. Well, unless one of them comes today between when I'm writing this post and the time I've scheduled it to be posted.

Furkid thoughts: Kero's Monday adventures

2011-11-17T13:31:00.006Z

Hi humans, it's Kero here.

Well, I want to tell you about my eventful day on Monday, but first I have a photo to show you that was taken last week or something; the humans were taking photos of things Mami had been making, and I did my, "hye, look at me... Over here... Cute puppy who wants to be included," act. It worked like a charm, and they took this photo:

So... Monday...

I didn't know what was going on really. The humans said about that doggy daycare place, but I didn't know what it was all about. Anyway, we had an early walkies, then a ride in a taxi, and we went to a place with dogs already there. Mami talked to the human there for a bit, then my humans left me there. Can you believe it? They left me in a place I didn't know! The cheek of it!

As it turned out though it was a nice place; I got to know her dogs - a German Shepherd, a Black Labrador, a Collie, and another large dog, none of whom I can remember the names of - and got groomed. Don't I look super adorable?

Mami had her use something called "evening primrose oil" on me to be on the safe side, if I understand it right then it's because of how Westies can sometimes have skin issues. I don't have any, but Mami and the doggy daycare human agreed it was better safe than sorry. Anyway, it's made my fur so soft and fluffy that Mami can't stop petting me. Not that I mind the extra attention, of course!

We rode in another of those taxi things to go home, and we were almost home when Mami - while petting me - noticed that my collar wasn't on me. The doggy daycare human must have noticed about the same time, because she called Mami and said about it. She was meant to bring it to us that evening, but she couldn't remember where we live, so we went to the park on Tuesday to meet her, which meant I had to wait until then to get it back. I hate not having my collar on, so I was very pleased when we got it back and Mami put it back around my neck! But, back to Monday...

I needed a nap after my busy morning getting groomed and being in doggy daycare....

Then, after nap time, another new experience for me; I went out to dinner.

I've never been inside those food places before, so I wouldn't go in at first, but Mami said, "it's OK, go in," so I did, and nobody got mad at me, so I carried on inside. I did try and sit up on a chair, but the humans said I wasn't to do that, so instead I stayed by Mami's feet (well, mostly). I didn't eat though; I rarely do when a lot of people are around, and a lot is going on. And, believe me, a lot was happening.

I made friends with a large Husky (at least, I think she was a Husky, she might have been a Husky mix, or even something else that looked sort of like a Husky) dog named "Echo" who was at the next table with her humans, and a couple of little human pups kept trying to make friends with me (I mostly just ignored them though). Plus there were a couple of other full grown humans in there who were admiring me.

Mami says we'll probably go back there. I wouldn't mind doing that; the humans in there are nice and think I'm adorable, and I love it when people adore me!

Anyway, after that we went home, and all slept... I needed a good sleep after my day. The nap I'd had on the sofa between doggy daycare and dinner out just wasn't enough!

That day was almost as exhausting as the trip on the trains when we moved here!

OK, I need to go for a nap so I'm refreshed and ready to go walkies later. Bye for now.

Licks and sniffs,
Kero

Thanks and thoughts

2011-11-16T15:28:00.004Z

I wanted to say, "thank you," to everyone who sent me birthday cards (either online or in the post), posted birthday messages for me (either on your own blog, in the comments of this one, or both), etc. So... Thank you! :)

I'll post about my birthday another day; the past couple of days have been rather busy and hectic, so they've kind of gotten away from me, which means I haven't even had a chance to take the photos of my cards and such, and I'd like to wait to do the post until I have the photos. No real reason; that's just what I want to do.

Before I go, I'd also like to send out some positive thoughts - and offer hugs - to those in need of them right now!

Some of the books I've read/listened to lately (LBE)

2011-11-15T14:00:00.004Z

I'm combining some of the book reviews I'm behind on in this one post to save time; no sense starting new posts for each when I'm doing them all at once, is there?

So...

Some of the books I've read/listened to lately are as follows:

The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy
Series The Border Trilogy

"Like its predecessor, All the Pretty Horses, it is a coming-of-age novel set on the border between the southwest United States and Mexico. The plot takes place before and during the Second World War, and focuses on the life of Billy Parham, the protagonist, a teenage cowboy, his family and his younger brother Boyd. The story tells of three journeys taken from New Mexico to Mexico. It is noted for being a more melancholic novel than the first of the trilogy, without returning to the hellish bleakness of McCarthy's early novels.

Although the novel is neither satirical nor humorous, its realistic portrayal of an often destitute hero taking part in a series of loosely connected quests in a brutal, corrupt world gives it many of the qualities of a picaro."

"The first sojourn details a series of hunting expeditions conducted by Billy, his father and to a lesser extent, Boyd. They are attempting to locate and trap a pregnant female wolf which has been preying on cattle in the area of the family homestead."

"When Billy finally catches the animal, he harnesses it and, instead of killing it, determines to return it to the mountains of Mexico where he believes its original home is located. He develops a deep affection for and bond with the wolf, risking his life to save it on more than one occasion."

(Curious? Click here to read more... WARNING: Link contains spoilers!).

First Among Equals by Jeffrey Archer
"First Among Equals is a 1984 novel by British author Jeffrey Archer, which follows the careers and personal lives of four fictional British politicians (Simon Kerslake, MP for Coventry Central and later Pucklebridge; Charles Seymour, MP for Sussex Downs; Raymond Gould, MP for Leeds North; and Andrew Fraser, MP for Edinburgh Carlton) from 1964 to 1991, with each vying to become Prime Minister. Several situations in the novel are drawn from the author's own early political career in the British House of Commons, and the fictional characters interact with actual political figures from the UK and elsewhere including Winston Churchill, Alec Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson, Edward Heath, Margaret Thatcher, Douglas Hurd, Colonel Gadaffi, Gary Hart and Queen Elizabeth II.

The title is a literal translation of the Latin term Primus inter pares, a term used to refer to either the most senior member of a group of equals (peers) or to refer to someone who claims to be just one member of a group of equals when in reality he or she completely dominates said group. This phrase is used to describe the official constitutional status of the British Prime Minister within his Cabinet."

(Click here to see where I got the above text from and read more about the book).

The Sanctuary Sparrow by Ellis Peters
Series Brother Cadfael

"Brother Cadfael must prove the innocence of Liliwin, a young Jongleur, accused of the murder and robbery of a goldsmith, who has claimed right of sanctuary in the Abbey. In truth the "murder" victim is not dead, merely stunned, even so the crime would still warrant a hanging. When the neighbor of the goldsmith is found dead, the townsfolk jump to the conclusion that Liliwin must have murdered him in an effort to conceal a witness."

(Click here to see the page that text came from).

The Daughters of Cain by Colin Dexter
Series Inspector Morse series, #11

"The body of Dr. Felix McClure, Ancient History don of Wolsey College, Oxford, is found in his flat. A brutal murder - a single stab to the stomach with a broad knife. The police have no weapon, no suspect and no motive. The case leads Morse into the path of Edward Brooks, who himself disappears following a museum theft. Then the weapon is found and there are suddenly too many suspects."

(Click here to see where that piece of text came from).

Who on Earth is Tom Baker? by Tom Baker
"Tom Baker's autobiography covers his childhood in the poor, spirited Irish community in Liverpool; his six years as a monk; his struggling times as an out-of-work actor; and onto appearances alongside Olivier at the National Theatre, work with Pasolino and his time as Doctor Who."

(Click here to find this book on Amazon, which is where that bit of text came from... WARNING: Link may contain spoilers in reviews by other readers).

My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier
"My Cousin Rachel is a novel by British author Daphne du Maurier, published in 1951. Like the earlier Rebecca, it is a mystery-romance, largely set on a large estate in Cornwall."

"Philip Ashley, the protagonist, has been brought up by his cousin Ambrose, to whom he is devoted, on Ambrose's Cornish estate. While travelling in Italy for his health, Ambrose falls in love with and marries Rachel, a distant cousin and penniless widow of an Italian count."

(Click here to visit the page that bit of text came from... WARNING: Link contains spoilers!)

I enjoyed all of the books.

Although, I have to admit that I did find parts of "First Among Equals" to be a bit dull, but that's mainly due to my limited interest in anything to do with politics. OK, fine, I admit it... It's because I don't give a hoot about politics. It was good enough that I read the whole book though, so I guess that's something.

I thoroughly enjoyed the others though. Especially "My Cousin Rachel".

And there was another book... Which I recently re-read, but I'm sure I reviewed on here before; it's "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and it's one I read often; it's among the ones I'd consider my favourites.

And, of course, how could I not have enjoyed "Who On Earth Is Tom Baker?" Especially since my copy is actually read by Tom himself.

More book reviews will be coming soon.

Yes, really.

There are more I've read that didn't make it in to this post, and I just got a couple of new ones.

Did I mention I was behind on book reviews? LOL!