Christmas Letters Over the Years

Christmas 1954

Once again it is time to send our Christmas greetings. With time at a premium, we are trying an experiment with some sort of a copying machine, which first requires typing...

...when we went to New Hampshire for the summer, the livestock was carried as follows: all baby chicks in one cage, roosters in another, and the hens in a third, all cages piled carefully on the back seat of the car: the 2 rabbits in a basket on the floor; the ten turkeys in a cage in the trunk...

...the highlight of the summer was a visit to the Ginger and Pickles Store and Doll Museum run by Tasha Tudor and her husband. The kids and their dolls were invited back for a doll teaparty...


...I think these are the highlights of the year except for the skunk who ate one of our bantams, and whose tail is still tacked to our shed up country...

...and so the stories about pets, broken arms, children, teas with Tasha Tudor, hanging with Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, and then stories of grandchildren and great grandchildren go all the way until 2001 when the letters end and my dear Grandmother passed away.

I know that some people find Christmas letters impersonal, but I have a deep love of them because of this collection from my Grandmother Missy. My family history is right in this notebook of Christmas letters and it is one of my most treasured possessions. N and I began writing Christmas letters the first year we were married. While Missy was a little verbose, we've tried to keep our letter down to a page. I wonder if Missy's approach is better in the long run. Perhaps this year, we'll get into a few more details. While my old college friends might groan, I think our children and grandchildren will thank us.

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Living Crafts

I picked up a copy of Living Crafts magazine last week. I had heard about this magazine months ago and have been waiting to get a copy. I love the magazine and particularly like the children's crafts that are simple and beautiful. Both my girls enjoyed looking through the magazine and were inspired a wet-felting in cookie cutters idea. This afternoon, we set out to make our own. We ended up making these shooting stars and moon which I intend to attach to a birch sapling as a mobile for solstice.

As we sat around the table after school today, sipping tea and swirling our fingers in soapy wool, there was a certain peacefulness that spread among us. Little songs from the day were sung under breath and I felt like we were "gathered." This is what I think of when I think of "Living Crafts." Some crafts just pull us in--the act of the crafting is nourishing and is just as important as the final product.

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Knitting for the World....

Here's the latest in our Knitting for the World and our Families project. I knit this tote bag using a pattern from the book Oneskein by Leigh Radford. I was expecting it to felt to a much smaller size than this. No worries, though. I'm going to line it with a soft flannel and give it to my SIL for Christmas. Next up--some cotton washcloths in a basketweave stitch.

p.s. See the little bowl of felt nut-people? My girls made them for this weekend's Winter Fair. A favorite guest at the Winter Fair is the Pocket Lady who wears an apron full of little pockets. Children can reach in and take a treasure.

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If they See it, They will Want it

One of my favorite activities as a child was pouring through the Sears Wish Book and making long lists of toys for Santa. While it is a fond memory, the not-so-fond memory is the nagging disappointment I recall from not getting everything on the list.

The catalogs have been pouring into our house lately. It seems that every day Pottery Barn sends us a different version of their catalog. I have learned over the years that if my children see it, they will want it. If an American Girl catalog comes in the house, suddenly E's heart's desire is a new doll (even though she never plays with the one she has). I've now taken to recycling catalogs the minute they come in the house. The toy catalogs go first.

The other day a Magic Cabin catalog arrived and E got to it. She circled and starred many things. While it was fun, and she knows she won't get everything she has circled, she's still going to secretly hope it all arrives and be secretly disappointed.

We don't take our children to the mall. We don't let them watch television. And now, we don't let them see the catalogs. The result has been wish lists that are shorter and reflect what they really love to do, rather than what the catalogs say they might love to do.

I think it makes for a happier Christmas.

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Happy Thanksgiving

Sledding and Bonfires

Woodland Crafting

A Thanksgiving Puzzle

Feasting and Family

There were twelve around the table at my house this year. This was the first time in a few years all of us were able to gather. The older generation is gone now....and the younger generation no longer ends up under the table. Thanksgiving is always a poignant time.

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Progress on Knitting for the World and our Families

We've decided that Knitting for the World and our Families really needs to be "Wool for the World and our Families" as it has become quite clear that knitting is not the favorite wool art of every family member. When we changed the rules, H immediately finished up this project for her Grandmother. It is a wool scarf on which she needle-felted these beautiful flowers. Next she's going to make one for her Grandfather with a Celtic knot. My "Irish Hiking Scarf" for my Dad is almost done--Mary, the link to the pattern is in the sidebar of the blog. I've also completed a knitted totebag that is ready to be felted. I have my fingers crossed that it will work! So, progress is being made!

ps--it's a winter wonderland here today with already 4" of snow!

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A Deep Clean

The past two weekends have been filled with cleaning and organizing--windows washed, cupboards cleaned out, woodwork washed, silver polished. All of this in preparation for the weeks ahead. I really can't relax and enjoy the holidays unless the house is clean down to its bones. I know that I'm the only one who will know that the bathroom cupboards have been wiped and that the windowsill behind the couch has been dusted, but I still have to do it.





Much to everybody's joy, it has gotten colder and snowed! We've been trying on the snowboots, moving rocks and wood out of the way of the plow, and generally cleaning up outside as well.





...all in preparation for this most special time of year. I'm feeling very satisfied and ready for the fires, the puzzles, the pies, and the good cheer!

H drew this today as a welcome for all the family who begins to arrive on Wednesday.

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Her World

I just cleaned off H's camera so she could take it on a field trip. It's pretty cheap, so the images aren't the greatest....but I thought it would be fun to see our home through her eyes.







Her Sister


Her Dog


Her Mother


Her Homework


Her Room (ACK what a mess!)

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Scenes from Martinmas

The Arrival of the Lanterns


A Martinmas Serenade


A Glowing Evening

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From a Gesture of Taking to a Gesture of Giving

After thinking so much about Halloween and the gesture of taking that it seems to bring out in my children, the upcoming celebration of Martinmas feels almost healing. While Martinmas is a European tradition celebrating the story of St. Martin--a Roman soldier who shared half is cloak with a cold beggar and later, reluctantly, became a Bishop--we have been celebrating it with our Waldorf school since the children were young.

When they were young, we celebrated with a Lantern Walk. The children made beautiful lanterns and gathered in the dark to sing and walk through the woods. It was a quiet, glowing, beautiful evening where I like to think their hearts were renewed with a little bit of light and spark for the coming darkness of winter. I know mine was--I always left the walk just glowing inside.

Now, that they are older and don't go on a school lantern walk, I want to bring a deeper understanding of St. Martin's message of giving and caring. This year, we are organizing with H's class a clothing drive for our nearby shelter. We'll go and help organize the clothing room and learn a bit about the services the shelter provides.

We're also going to have a Martinmas dinner. We'll have all our lanterns lit, perhaps a goose, some Nouveau Beaujolais,, and definitely a bonfire and songs. I'll post photos next week!

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Making Lanterns for Martinmas

St. Martin, St. Martin,
St. Martin road through wind and snow
on his strong horse his heart aglow
He rode so boldly through the storm,
his large cloak kept him well and warm.

By the road side, by the roadside,
by the roadside a poor man arose
out of the snow in tattered clothes
"I beg you help me in my plight
or else I'll die of cold tonight."

St. Martin, St. Martin,
St. Martin stopped his horse and drew
his sword and cut his cloak in two
one half to the beggar man he gave
and by this deed his life did save.

Martinmas is one of my children's most favorite festivals. We celebrate in many ways--singing, crafting, feasting, giving, and filling the dark with light. We've made many kinds of lanterns over the years.



My favorite lanterns are balloon lanterns which are made by simply glueing tissue paper onto balloons, letting them dry, and then popping them.

Materials: balloons, big brushes, lots of white glue, soup bowls, colored tissue paper, string or wire, a paper punch, and a candle.

Here we've begun to put glue onto our balloons. We use a watered-down glue (50% glue, 50% water). We use the soup bowls to steady the balloons so they don't go dancing away.



Here, H is applying the tissue paper over her glue. She is using large pieces of tissue. I like to use smaller ripped pieces.


Once the first layer is on, we hung them to dry. We aren't so sure this is necessary because the girls became impatient and ended up not drying between the rest of the 3 - 4 layers. It still seemed to work fine.


Here are the balloons hanging after the final layers were applied. A few tips--It looks nice to go from dark layers to light. While the green and blue are beautiful, I like to restrict the colors to the glowing oranges, yellows and reds. They feel more seasonal. I added pressed leaves after my first layer of tissue.




Here's the final product. I punch a hole and add either wire or finger-knitted yarn in order to carry it. There is a little tealight in the bottom which I stuck down with a bit of melted wax. These lanterns just absolutely glow in the dark. I can't wait to use them on Sunday when we are having a neighborhood walk.



ps: I have a PDF of the Martinmas songs and some of the music. If you'd like it, leave me a comment with an email address. I've just posted the songs.

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Knitting for the World and our Families

Each year, N and I have a little struggle over the STUFF at Christmas. In the past, rather than buying lots of stuff, we've given to charities in our families' names. Somehow when it comes time to open the cards, these gifts have fallen a little flat. It has felt only slightly better than giving gift cards. How to cut down on the STUFF and give a gift that is personal and charitable all at the same time?

We have decided to buy a knitting basket from Heifer International in our families' names. Accompanied by this gift will be something knitted for everyone. In addition, we are going to take the kids to Overlook Farm so they can learn a bit for themselves why we are trying this.

This is a big commitment for each of the four of us. It's time to pull out the stash, find the patterns, and come up with a manageable plan so we can knit just the right thing for everybody. It means setting aside time in the evenings to just knit.

I've started my first project -- this Irish Hiking Scarf for my father.

The four of us have a cherished tradition of making each other a special gift which we open on Christmas Eve. We realize we need to get knitting now so we have time for all our other Santa's Workshop activities!

I'm looking forward to our project. I think it will make our giving more meaningful than ever.

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Handmade Christmas

This is my last "Handmade Christmas" post about Christmas past. I made this needle felted wizard for H a couple of years ago when she was heavily into all things wizard. One evening, N and I were watching a movie on a laptop while I was needle felting this. Suddenly we heard H come downstairs. I quickly threw a blanket over my lap and then N dropped the laptop on top of the blanket. Just as H entered the room, the needles burrowed into my thigh. N hustled her away while I just sucked in the pain!

I've made other things for the girls--fabric covered bulletin boards, wand and potion bags out of gold satin and velvet, bathrobes, etc.

This year, however, I'm feeling a little stumped. I may make them each one of these. However, our entire family is about to enter into a huge knitting production (which I'll post about soon), so I'm not sure I want to knit for the girls as well. There are only so many evenings before Christmas!

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Darkness and Light

Here are my girls dressed and ready to go to the neighborhood Halloween party. I discovered them on the porch making a lot of noise with stomping sticks. I asked what they were doing and they said they were having a debate about who was better--darkness or light. It's so interesting--their costumes really do reflect their personalities.

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