I LOVE FAST EDDY!!!

My great friend Ed sent me one of my most favorite boxes in the world... Schweppes!!

I love the Schewppes box so much, because inside that one is a shoe box... and inside the shoe box is a twleve pack-- of coffee beans!!! When Hiin brings up the coffee in the morning, we get a real treat for a few months around the darkest days... the flavours that Eddy sent this year range from Celebes Kalossi to Southside Blend. This morning, we shared a cup of Rainforest Blend. Did I mention I love you, Ed?! Oh Happy Christmas!!

Narwhal Nature Lesson

Did you know? I sure didn't... the following is quite an informative sysnopsis about narwhals... fascinating, in fact!

Oh yes, keep on reading!! It only gets better!!

And this is the front of the package... Emily sent it to me as a delightful surprise... I got to know her a little bit over the time that she spent at my studio working on her leaded glass panel, and we had lots of good chats... but obviously I have not even come close to plumbing the depths of her personality... what a laugh!!
So now you know... the Avenging Narhwal rides again!

Longest Night of the Year... But Get Ready for the Brights!!

So it's the shortest day of the year today... and the darkest... I was looking for winter boots 'out there' and got distracted, can you believe it, when I espied these beauties!! Earth-inspired, vegan (yes, that's what they say, VEGAN) boots that make you burn calories like crazy while wearing them due to the special sole or something... how great!! Not to mention bright!! And electric!!

Practising...

On the way home from the wedding last night--what a fun time, great band alternating between funk and Johnny Cash, what a laugh, we danced!!-- the stars were bright against that deep night sky, and I could swear that Santa was doing a few dry runs with his team of reindeer in the sky. Here is Prancer, at the ready. Can't wait to see them all!

Goin' to the Chapel...

There's a wedding happening tomorrow evening!!Hiin is going to get dressed up, I am going to get dressed up, and we are going to Marble Mountain for a celebration!! I made a cake topper-- I had no idea about cake toppers until Janice emailed and asked me to do this... she had to send me a link with examples... I didn't have a cake topper at our wedding, didn't realise I was missing out- but am looking forward to seeing this in action. After the festivities and cake business are all over, I will take the R back, and fuse a small panel with it, so that the Rousseau family can have a nice memory hanging in a window of their home.

Cake toppers and weddings... who knew?!

Pink Poinsetta, Pink Girl

This year, I happened to see this variegated pink poinsetta as I was standing in the check-out line at the grocery store (they really know what they're doing with all the stuff they 'just happen' to put out along those areas of the store!)- so of course I brought it home. Usually I tend to go for the deep, rich reds... but this is quite beautiful-- not to mention timely...!
...Dave's little daughter visited us for the first time, and at three, seems to be in complete control of any situation. This little Pink Girl knows all about eye shadow and lipstick and make-up, and asked me where mine was. When I told her I didn't really have any, she looked me right in the eye and said, "Get some!"
'Maybe if you're good, Santa will bring you some,' she suggested.
And she was so convinced about this, and so adamant, that I became somewhat hesitant to tell her that I had already asked Santa for a compressor.
Perhaps the compressor will be pink. I think I've been good this year.

Getting Our Tree!!

Getting a Christmas tree is one of my favorite things to do... each year, we find a pretty good Charlie Brown tree to bring home-- all of the 30 feet from the house! This year, we spent about 10 minutes contemplating tall trees, looking at their tops, agreeing that we could use the rest of the tree for firewood, regardless of its size, but then we spied the perfect tree!
It was growing sideways out of the bank, the butt-end of it no thicker than my wrist, scruffy on one side, thick-ish near the top where it had started to curve upwards towrads the light (obviously, it had been pushed over in a wind storm or a big rain fall, and the roots had slid off the rock it was clinging onto)... so lickety split, we chose that one and brought it home!

And now, it is adorned with my birds... beautiful, festive, wonderful tree!

New bird for this year!