New Year Wishes....

TreeSisters

I want to wish everyone a Very Happy New Year..I am so blessed to have such a beautiful family & friends.....I have met so many more wonderful people through this blog & always look forward to the beautiful comments left...I appreciate everyone who follows me.....I  always get such an uplift after reading your blog posts as well & always learning something new !  I also have to admit that many of you have changed my mind for the better about a belief, philosophy or religion just by who you are as a person & the sincere honesty that is evident in your posts........Sometimes I let one or two people deter me from enjoying something because I associate them with it...I have to be reminded that some use & manipulate things for their own agenda but it does not mean the religion or philosophy should be dismissed because of their behavior...  I lose out when I allow them that much power......So Thank You everyone for those reminders  as well as your thoughts, sharing your feelings, your ideas, creativeness & artistry but more importantly your friendships...It has truly enriched my life.... 

Hopefully this will be a new year for change..I pray for the end of war ...all war...& the creation of a much more peaceful existence but along with that the hope many will begin to have a closer connection to Mother Earth ... to understand the importance of taking care of her.....our lives literally depend on this change...not to dismiss Nature as a pool of  unending resources....We need to practice sustainability....I have heard so many talk about letting go of things to embrace a much more healthier life whether it is mentally, spiritually or physically..something I have been doing myself..... well, I believe a good place to start that process is in Nature...our greatest lessons, healing & rest from the stresses in life reside in our amazing environment......our obligation comes in taking care of how we treat  Mother Earth & her residents.... how we give back now....
So that is my wish for the coming year...

Thanks for listening to me & no matter what you plan for the coming year, 

I wish all of you much Peace & Happiness.... 

See you in 2013!!

La Lune

  

 The last Full Moon  of this year is called the Cold Moon as winter takes hold... & also called the Long Night moon because it is the closest one to the Winter Solstice... It will also be in the sky for the longest time...14 hrs & 55 minutes... These are photos I took....the first two tonight & the last at 5:30 this morning through our bedroom window...

It really is beautiful out tonight...Be sure to go out and soak up the moon rays...

Mother Moon

Oh mother moon

you are a full moon tonight bring me much spiritual delight.

I stand outside to catch your rays

for they bring me peace and tranquity of body and soul.

I mark your date on my calendar

and wish that your beauty will shine ever so bright 

and bit be covered by clouds in the night.

I need your full moon light to enhance my being,

for your moon rays are my soul's delight. 

Rainemoon

Peace on Earth....

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May the magic of the season guide us to greater understanding & much needed peace...

Prayers to all the families who have lost loved ones to violence this month....especially to the families of the firefighters who died tonight in New York by another gunman....

Will it ever stop.....

Winter Solstice

As Solstice is the return of increased sunlight bringing about rebirth, regeneration & renewal .....that speaks to my heart as a gardener .... the seed buried within the earth ready to regenerate in the spring is something I look forward to... so this aspect of it is very appealing to me... 

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One thing I am going to do today is making evergreen smudges (courtesy of Marissa Moondaughter) to have ready for New Years....They have purifying properties so I can't think of a better way to start the new year... The Hubby & are hoping it will be clear enough to have a fire but if not we will light some candles... tomorrow we spend with family....I am returning to a more simpler way of celebrating....much more nature-based.....I think many people are....

It seems more subdued to me this year, things have become unbelievable commercialized to the point where it seems obscene.....so many people are very stressed out & unhappy....it should not be this way....but now because of the deaths of the little ones & their teachers in Connecticut,  it is too hard right now to be very jovial in light of the grief & sadness, not only here but around the world for any parent who has lost a child this year in a violent way.... so this seems to be a more profound & quieter way of marking the season...

So I wish everyone a Peaceful Solstice 

The Heart of Homemade

It is the artisan... the craftspeople.....Items that are lovingly handcrafted by those who want to provide a quality product to consumers... In a society deluged with mass production of cheaply made goods, it is time to return to consuming less clutter while obtaining well made handmade products.... So here are a few that I think you will find very appealing... 

I am posting my favorite photos from each shop....Just click on the links to access the shops, websites & Facebook fan pages.... Enjoy!

Mustang's Place

Family first on this one...Sally creates beautiful hand knitted wire silver cuffs jewelry, quilts  & arm warmers...  I have a necklace & two pairs of the warmers & I love them....

For her Esty shop go here....

Peace by Peace Jewelry

Deanna is the artist... She creates earrings, many of them adorable little angels, as well as necklaces, ear cuffs and bottle lights..

Her Esty store is here

For her Facebook fan page go here

Ophelia's Adornments

Barbara makes beautiful pieces of jewelry...when I see some of her creations
 I think vintage... literary... Olde England... very elegant...

For her Facebook fan page go here

Her blog is here

Altered Alchemy
Luthien creates some amazing pieces of jewelry......she makes earrings, necklaces & cuffs....usually with a theme ranging from Harry Potter to  Books to the Forests & Fantasy...

*reserved piece

Guess where I got my Christmas gift this year!!!! Isn't the packaging a delight...
Thanks to the Hubby for his good taste   ;)
The earrings are amazing...Thanks Luthien!

She takes a much better picture of the earrings called "Faelights"....& they truly are..

For her Esty store go here

For her Facebook fan page go here

Babylon Sisters
They makes the most beautiful handmade gypsy curtains...made from different types of vintage scarves.. They also sell many vintage items ....this is where I purchased my Scorpio plaque as well as a 70's astrology candle holder... A great shop for those who adore anything vintage ..

For her Esty store go here

For her Facebook fan page go here

Small businesses are becoming the driving force again for economies around the world... The quality of what you buy will be higher, made with care & love...Those that sell vintage offer treasures have stood the test of time.... This helps women, families & communities... So no matter what time of the year, think about buying from a small business..

Buy Local, Buy Global, Buy Handmade, Buy from a Small Business...

In Memory...

For the victims of the shooting in Connecticut today....

Our prayers & thoughts are with the families during this heartbreaking time..

The Hobbit

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. 

Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: 

it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

  It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, 

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painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. 

The door opened on to a tube-shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with panelled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished 

and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats—

the hobbit was fond of visitors. 

The tunnel wound on and on, 

going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill

The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it—

and many little round doors opened out of it, 

first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining-rooms, 

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all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. 

The best rooms were all on the left-hand side (going in), 

for these were the only ones to have windows,

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deep-set round windows looking over his garden, 

and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river...."   JRR Tolkien

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien

If you have never read this book ,please put it on your reading list...you will not be disappointed...The movie opens today....the Hubby  & I are going Christmas afternoon.... we are so excited to see it...The best part is this is only the first of THREE movies...so there will be more to look forward to....

For  all Hobbit fans, check out In a Hole in the Ground ..

( Photo credits: Unless otherwise noted  photos were taken from Tumblr & Pinterest)

Ravi & the New Moon

This is the New Moon.....Time to write our intentions....what do you want to create in your life over the next month.....I take this time to journal what I wish to create in my life &  also to write the blessings in my life...each month that I have done this something positive happens to us...

It could be something big like someone giving us something that we have needed around the homestead.....or as simple as your husband telling you how happy & content he feels in our home...That to me is a precious gift....Karma....especially in the New Moon..

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I love this painting..... 

There are more days now when I feel how this looks...

peaceful & content..... 

Something that comes easier when you have been able to eliminate chaos in your life... 

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Also tonight there will be a Geminids Meteor Shower  

so be sure to look to the heavens & enjoy......

This week Ravi Shankar died at the age of 92.... 

Such an amazing Sitar musician....He will be missed...

I will bet these two are playing their sitars right now...

Have a peaceful evening...

Healthy Eggnog

I spotted this on Facebook the other day & thought others might be interested in this...especially if you are vegan or lactose intolerant... we have a little one who is LI..... so I am making this for our family party this Holiday... 

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You can buy Silk Almond Milk at the store  or make it yourself & it is very easy....The instructions are here.....I make my own & prefer it that way as you can make only what you need which prevents any waste.. & you eliminate additives.... 

Enjoy!!

The Making of the Wreaths.....

The rain finally cleared out so I spent today roaming around the woods forging for things for my wreaths..For the first wreath,  I used an antique cart wheel that I picked up a few years ago...

 I added a Buffalo plaid bow, some Fir boughs & pine cones, a piece of Velvet holly & an antique silver spoon ( an idea I got from Mrs Obama's White House decorating this year)....  I took the picture outside on the shed but this is staying inside...

 This one will stay on the shed...

the base is what was left of a twig wreath that lost most of the twigs...

I filled in the bare spot with Fir & Pine boughs...added  a Burlap Ribbon, Pine Cones, Birch bark & some rusty Bells...

  Simple & Natural ...   

  

This is the Acorn Wreath I made last year...This takes a bit more time...

The Hubby cut out a base from plywood...I added a Moss base all over...then glued the acorns on... some pine cones, grapevine & berries finished it...

 Hope this inspires you to try something different for your wreaths this year...