Happy Birthday, David! Your charm, wit, intelligence, humor, and fun-loving ways have been winning my heart for ten years now. Such a delight to watch you grow up and mature! I can’t wait to see what amazing things you will say and do in the years to come! Love, Mom.

When I was finished, the result was cleaner lines and more fun with a twist of whimsy. And, as my mother said to me, it’s so…well…ME!

Here is the fireplace mantle before (bedecked for Christmas):

And here is the after:

I love the pictures that I took during our stay in the Lake District on our trip to England, but I so rarely got to enjoy them as they were hung over our bed and I didn’t really pause to appreciate them as I stumbled in exhausted each night or extracted my bleary-eyed self out of bed in the morning. Now my eyes alight upon them often throughout the day! The apothecary jars were a thrilling find at a modest cost (I have long been desiring apothecary jars and these were the perfect size and price!). One holds pink and green polka dot cupcake liners and the other vintage buttons. Both say something about me and my tastes and pastimes. The lovely teapot was picked up at the same discount store years ago and though I was disappointed to discover it didn’t pour tea without serious dribbling and mess, I held on to it for the sake of beauty alone. It’s graceful spout appears ready at any moment to pour a steaming cuppa into the delicate neighboring teacup with it’s masses of vintage roses. And just for kicks there’s a trendy little metal frame holding a scrapbook flower against a fun paper background, given dimension with the aid of foam squares.

And as for over the couch…here’s the (blurry) uninspiring before:

And the playful, more colorful after photos:

The awesome galvanized letter is a surprisingly affordable Pottery Barn Kids item. The @ symbol (how fun is that?) is from the housewares section of the discount store and the arrow is made from adhering scrapbook paper to thin cardboard (mat board style, not from a shipping box) and cut out, then simply mounting to the wall with foam squares. I plan to brush on some satin Modge Podge to preserve the color and add some shine, but it’s fine as it is for the present.

So now I sit in My Chair of a morning, sipping my coffee and gazing admiringly (rather than glaring) at the opposite wall. And my soul is stirred to creative thought and bold action. I walk through my living room and see my mantle treasures that remind me of my rambles in England or my love of vintage finds and paper crafting. And frosting. I might not eat it very often anymore, but yes…frosting!

PDF file: Education1 , use highest quality print setting.

I would post links to each of these fonts, etc., but honestly I gathered them all and the backgrounds to boot during a 40 minute TV episode and even managed to follow the plot line (mostly)…so just google chalkboard printables and fonts, etc. and you will be on your way to making your own! After all, your favorites might be quite different from mine! Don’t believe the hype about needing Photoshop…you don’t! I did this in minutes on Keynote, and Power Point works just as well.

So, here it is! Sized for an 8×10 print. Choose “high quality” on your printer options. Trim off margins. Continue trimming a little at a time to fit your 8×10 frame.

Chalkboard Printables

I updated this post and included these images as well (because that’s how my computer assembled the PDF, and I’m not going to fight with it!):

Every year you grow in loveliness and grace. Every year you surprise me with new growth, maturity, strength of character, humor and wit.

You are good company…

I am so very thankful for the gift you are to me and to our family. Thank you for your helpful ways, your nurture and care of others, for being such an awesome big sister, for watching my movies with me and shopping with me and for whipping up deliciousness in the kitchen.

You are amazing! Happy birthday, Sweet Elisabeth!

We really don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Our culture is always on the lookout for new and better, but contentment can almost always be found in what we already have…who we are already blessed to know and love…in the rich experiences we have already enjoyed. And inspiration might already have been written down before!

Although I’m not the most consistent when it comes to keeping a journal, I do find that revisiting old entries is a delight, and often a surprise. As I have continued to seek vision and focus for the new year at hand, I came across this page from my journal and thought it would be fun to share my random, pell-mell thoughts on the atmosphere of home:

December 3, 2011

A lovely and nurturing home environment. A home that is neat and orderly, clean and organized. Filled with beauty, books, comfort and familiarity. Not overwhelmed with clutter, chintzy items of any sort, dirt or cobwebs. Smells fresh and sweet. Nutritious, home-cooked meals on the table. Schedule and routine yet with room for creativity, spontaneity and fun. Beautiful, soul-stirring music played throughout the day. Sink-in seating and cozy corners. Comfortable beds with clean, fresh-smelling linens. Most of our time spent “unplugged”. A vibrant learning environment. Color. Texture. Inspiration and encouragement. Words of love and instruction on our lips. Clean, neat, modest clothing. A healthy, green lawn to run around in. Flowers and plants well-kept and thriving. Outdoor seating with flexibility for meals out in the fresh air. Talents and gifts flourishing. Conversation abundant, interesting, intelligent and life-giving. An open air of hospitality, eager to bless others and offer refreshment and fellowship.
——————————
Does any of this characterize my home right now? Some of it. Some days. But for me this run-on list of disjointed thoughts, dreams and hopes is more of a North Star of ideal home life. A battle plan. A call to action.

What does your ideal home environment look like?

I have loved every one of Sally’s books, they have been a guide and encouragement for me for over a decade of mothering in the trenches. Reading Desperate was a balm to my mommy-soul and I just know that you will love it too! Curling up with this book is the next best thing to pouring my heart out to Sally over a cup of tea and having her counsel and encourage me with words of wisdom and hope and inspiration. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

There are a few giveaways connected with the book’s release, here’s a link to an entry form to win a spa weekend with Sally and Sarah Mae…hey, a mommy can dream, right?

The book can be found just about everywhere, but check to see if Dayspring is still offering it with a free, super-cute journal!

Now…off to enter that giveaway for myself!

I find myself a few days behind writing a New Year’s post, but to be honest, I am glad about it. My thoughts and dreams and aspirations for this year, my resolve concerning what I wish to accomplish…it’s all so very different from years past…as if my die-hard, list-making, controlling, OCD, check-off-all-the-boxes self has moved over and made room for agents of real change: grace, self-control, humility, service, love.

So my inaugural post of 2013 is a Sabbath Reflections post. It is Sunday morning. And though I give myself a hearty pat on the back for flossing my teeth and making my bed this morning (items straight off The List, don’t you know), on this first Sunday of a new year I seek something deeper. To worship intentionally…to love deeply…to serve sacrificially…to open my eyes to the beauty and wonder around me every day.

You see, I have worked hard to reach goals in the past (paying off debt, losing 40 pounds, being better prepared for a school year, waking up early each morning) only to find my heart still in the lurch, my patience still wearing thin, and my soul still parched. Not that goal-setting and accomplishment should ever be looked upon as a bad thing…by no means! But I think I finally grasp, just a little teensy bit after all these years, why it’s not about checklists and schedules and ducks in a row. Because even if, by some miracle, all the boxes were checked and every task completed on time and those ducks were perfectly aligned…it would not satisfy the deepest longings in me. This thirst for perfection cannot be sated this side of eternity.

So where does that leave me? Tasks still await my attention…and a life well-lived does require planning and care.

But these last few days I find my heart warmed by grace, drawn to Beauty, guarded by faith, encouraged by love…and it makes me want to press on. To work a little harder. Another meal served, another shirt ironed, another pile of dishes washed. Not as a task to check off a list. Do you know why? Because it will just have to be done again tomorrow. It will never be “done”…but if such acts of work and service become a part of the Art of Life, done with grace from a heart overflowing with thanks to the One who served us, sacrificed for us, loved us when we were unlovable…then maybe they become easier. Maybe they fill us with joy and delight rather than dread and exhaustion. Maybe this is a year where true change can occur!

My foray into making “authentic” English Christmas Pudding came about quite by accident. The children and I were wracking our brains, trying to figure out a menu for our Unit Celebration for this current school term. We have been studying the early 1800′s, focusing on Westward Expansion. We had a few ideas, but we have been reading A Christmas Carol in preparation to see a stage production the week before Christmas, and the the notion to recreate the Cratchits’ Christmas Dinner struck us with sudden brilliance.

So we, of course, needed a recipe for traditional Christmas Pudding!

The best recipes out there on the internet had to be converted from the metric system (being British of course!), but that was easy enough. I was so impressed with the result (thus far…to be honest, our pudding has not aged yet and will be served a few weeks from now), I thought I would break the long blog silence with my take on this time-honored tradition…great fun to make, so be sure to include the kids!

Christmas Pudding

6 T butter, soft, plus extra for greasing
1 c light brown sugar
1 orange, juice and zest
1 lemon, juice (1/2 of) and zest
3/4 c golden raisins
3/4 c chopped dried apricots
1 small cooking apple, peeled and grated
French brandy (you can also use rum)
2 eggs
1 c all purpose flour
1/2 c breadcrumbs
Spices (I used a light dusting of each of the following: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and cloves, but you could use up to 1/2 t of each, or to taste)
1/2 c almonds, chopped

Traditionally this dessert is steamed in a special mold. Most American cooks (like myself) don’t have one of these kicking about their kitchen. I used a stainless steel bowl that had a similar shape to a pudding mold, but my bowl turned out to be a bit on the large side. I double checked with my sister-in-law in Ireland to see if a dessert plate pressed down into the bowl would work, and got the go-ahead, as long as I kept the bowl water-tight on the outside. So use what you can find in your kitchen!

Place dried fruits, zests, juices and grated apple in a mixing bowl. Splash with brandy, about 1/2 of a cup or so. Mix and set aside to marinate for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Grease your mold with butter and place a small square of foil in the bottom. Place a stock pot half-filled with water on the stove to boil, with a large steamer insert.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and mix well. Combine dry ingredients, add to egg mixture, then fold in fruit and almonds. Press into mold. Place a layer of wax paper and a layer of foil over the bowl (wax paper first), pleating to allow for expansion. Tie off with twine and trim excess. Place mold in steamer and put lid on pot. Steam for 8 hours, topping off with water as needed.

Cool pudding, then remove outer paper and foil. Poke holes in pudding and “feed” pudding with another 1/2 c or so of brandy. Seal up again and store until the day you will serve it (about four weeks later is “traditional”), when you will steam for another hour to reheat.

Serve heated pudding with a traditional custard, brandy butter or rum sauce, and for extra fun you can google how to serve it flambé style! Recipes for the sauces abound online, I haven’t gotten that far yet, but will post an update when I do. My current plan is for rum sauce and (shhhhhh!) whipped cream.

A Happy Christmas to you all!