Twelve Nights

In all the hubbub that surrounds preparing for Christmas - and, at times, adjusting to our first winter snow - our family is usually late putting up our Christmas tree... and late taking it down.

This year, Jericho helped me decorate our tree on the 23rd... the day before Christmas Eve. 

In my working days, I usually put it up when our Christmas holidays began and took it down before New Year's Eve  - so as to start the new year with a "tidy" house.

But a few years ago, I discovered the concept of the "12 days of Christmas" - an Anglican Church tradition... (Remember the song, "On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree"? On the second day of Christmas..." and so on...)

So now - with so many hours of darkness outdoors - I enjoy the tree's colorful glow for 12 nights. Then it comes down.

There are, of course, no rigid rules about any of this! But having a "traditional reason" for what I do makes me feel less disorganized!

Planned Reading

Every year in September, I wonder if Alexander McCall Smith has published a new No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency novel - and, if so, what the title is. The books come out in October.

Then I go online to our public library and put a hold on both the ebook and the large print versions. The books are listed in the library catalog, though they're only on order by then.

I don't expect to get the book for a while - there are usually a lot of holds. But the work is done and I can forget about it!

So I was surprised, a few days ago, to get an email notice from the library that the large print version of his latest was mine to pick up! Already?! 

So I have it - a delightful diversion! I read a few pages in the evening before I go to bed. It starts out slow - but after a few chapters, I usually find it hard to put down. It's become part of my winter tradition... (though it’s a great series to read any time of the year).

Every time I start to read one, I feel as if I'm visiting old friends.

Christmas Cactus Update

Christmas has come and gone... and I've almost given up on my Christmas cactus...

The little nubby buds have gotten a little larger - but not much...

Then I saw a friend's cactus... Is that what it's supposed to look like?!

At the rate mine is growing, I don't ever expect it to look like that - but I'm hoping to be surprised. 

In the meantime, I'd really like to know what I'm doing wrong.

The Year That Was

I remember once seeing a blog post - where the author/photographer posted the same view as it appeared at various times of the year.

I haven't purposely taken photos to show this - but I hunted for pictures in my collection that would give the same sense of change. The earliest I could find was this February 2024 sunset (above). There's snow on the ground - but it's hard to tell how much in the early dark.

The next picture I found was taken in March, 2024. It looks as if the snow is gone.

Spring is coming... This was April - no snow and the kids are playing outdoors. Winter jackets are on but NO WINTER HATS. It must be getting warm!

May! Spring is here! The winter dome next door is down! Grass is green.

Here's a June sunset. Leaves are on the trees.

July flowers...

In August, back to yard work: Terry and our grandson picking up pine cones. (They are our most abundant "crop"!)

October - trees changing colour ... and lots of pine needles on the ground.

Late November 2024 above. It looks so peaceful. I'm not sure why - like the calm before the storm.

Terry has tidied the yard for winter. Shadows are long in the low-lying sunlight.

On December 1, the first snow arrived - a light dusting.

Four days later, a bigger snowstorm.

Winter is here!

Exciting First Visit

I love children's spontaneous reactions. Here are a few from my grandkids' first visit to our daughter's Toronto apartment.

This house is bigger than our house!

Look!! A train!! (And it looks as tiny as the toy trains at home...)

The cats! Where are the cats?!

The whole visit was quite an adventure for them - if not for the cats!

Late December Weather

Nothing stays the same - especially the weather!

I recently came across this photo (above) that I took a year ago on Boxing Day 2023. No snow yet - and the weather looks amazing!

Compare that to the weather THIS year. Our first snow arrived on December 1, 2024 - and we've been adding to it regularly ever since.

Here's our front yard the day AFTER Boxing Day this year!

Now, the best we can hope for is an early spring!

Noting Nature

A friend recently shared a beautiful way she uses to be attentive to the world around her. 

She sketches something she sees in nature every day. The graph she uses is a monthly circle.

Her daily observation can be as simple to sketch as a seed, leaf or pinecone - or as challenging as a bird! But the goal, I think, it to pay attention, note, and remember. 

When she sent me this, we were midway through November.

She was noting the temperature and the weather, too. Sunny, cloudy, rainy or snowing... 

Everything is inter-connected!

I love it!

I'm hoping to start my own monthly circles in the new year. (As with many things, the hardest part is to prepare - so that doing it will be easy!)