Meanwhile, Back in Nod...

It's a rainy, gloomy, day here in Nod with areal flood warnings posted...and extended.  But I am not complaining...we do need the rain and, while I have more outdoor work to do than I will ever accomplish, the rain gives me a guilt-less excuse.

I thought it would be a perfect time to squeeze in a post and then saw my half-hearted, half-started, post from last week.

So, I thought I would just trash the words and dump the photos...

A look around Nod, if you will.

This photo is a bit dated, obviously...last month's full "Flower Moon."

It was truly dazzling.

Like most full moon nights, I did not sleep well.

I gave up around 5:15 a.m., and the moon was just going down.

Guess it's a night owl like me.

The magnolia's fragrant blooms:

The flowering crabapple trees: 

{Pretty even at night...}

My very favorite:

The rabbits are, once again, more than plentiful...

...Wait...there are more....

(...and actually, 2 more out of range of the above photo.)

...of all colors and sizes....

{This guy looks like he needs a smoke... Hmmm, wonder what he was doing.}

{The fawn was still wobbly on this day...}

{Nothing special to most of you, I'm sure, but, around Nod, black squirrels are rarer than white deer...}

And because someone asked....

Blizzards, Bindings, and Birthdays

 

Another week three days, another blizzard in Nod.

The 8" of snow we received last week (Wednesday) had just begun to properly melt...and then yesterday happened.

Another 8+" of s**w.

For some reason, snow is prettier in December.

That's all I have to say about that.

On to binding....

A few weeks ago, Saundra (of Woodland Junction fame) and I had virtual, long-distance, "dates" for an hour each day dedicated to binding our rugs.  

Saundra, of course, finished hers and I, well...didn't.

I attempted to work on mine again during yesterday's storm, but I've come to the conclusion that I have a definite handicap.

Oh well...I'm sure there'll be another blizzard and another chance to bind.

The bright spot in the whiteness (and the most-welcome distraction to binding) is little Miss Mia. 

She celebrated her second birthday this month with all things kitty.

She has grown so much in one short year but one thing that hasn't changed is her now-trademark "skunk eye."

{Mia at one on the right and at two on the left}

Some things are irrefutably genetic.

Hope your blizzards are few and far between....

Happy Christmastide

Not only two posts within a week of each other, but three posts in a month.

Shocking, I know.

It is, however, Christmastide after all .... something that is rarely observed in recent decades and all but forgotten.

Recent generations rush to get Christmas decorations up before Thanksgiving and, in many cases, rush to pack them up the day after Christmas.

But, in my world, Christmas Day is just the beginning...the beginning of Christmastide.

Christmastide (also known as Christide or Twelvetide) is the 12-day period beginning December 25th and ending January 5th.  (Start singing - in your head please - The Twelve Days of Christmas.) 

While it is, technically, a season of the liturgical year in most Christian churches, it was also, historically, a period of hospitality and celebration with Christmas Day being Day One.

There were religious services, yes, but it was also a secular matter as well with parties and feasts, gift-giving and general merry-making.

Perhaps due to my father's strong evangelical Lutheran background, our family followed the old ways growing up.

Our tree was not put up until Christmas Eve (or Christmas "Adam" - the day before Christmas Eve) and gifts were opened on Christmas Eve after the evening Christmas Eve service.

Christmas Day was a morning church service and then a more formal dinner.

And then...then the round robins began.

We would visit my great grandmother and great aunts on my father's side, then all the aunts and uncles on my mother's side, and a few close family friends - and they, in turn, would come to visit us. 

Each day saw a new visit or new visitors.

Those days are long gone, but I still think of Christmas as a season rather than a day and I (stubbornly) refuse to give in to the notion that Christmas is over and done with on the 25th. 

My decorations and lights will stay up for several weeks yet and, yes, on occasion, I will listen to Christmas music or indulge in a favorite Christmas movie.

I also continue with a few Christmas projects.

This year, I finally pinned and laced "Merry Olde Christmas," a design by Lori Brechlin of Notforgotten Farm which I stitched two years ago.

I finished it in this metal ornament frame because it was on hand.

Jury's still out on whether it will stay there but, for now, I'm calling it done.

I also stitched and finished a new seasonal insert for my hanging clock:

This is called "November Ornament" (I think?) and is a free design from Birgit Tolman of The Wishing Thorn.

I had wanted to do a Santa for it but haven't settled on a design that will work well with the dimensions of the clock case.

I also finished hooking my Stag rug - a pattern by Lori Rippey of Primitives by Lori.

It took me a ridiculous amount of time to finish hooking it, and I am not thrilled with my color plan/wool choices.  I suspect Mummy D. was expecting a photo of the completely finished rug but it has been commandeered by Liza Bean and has not even made it through the steaming process.

I also treated myself to a Christmas read.

This book was outside of my typical genres but a fellow blogger (who no longer blogs unfortunately) recommended it to me. 

Her recommendation turned out to be a beautiful gift.

Ms. Silva imaginatively recreates the inspiration behind Dickens' beloved A Christmas Carol.  Although fiction, Silva seems to channel Dickens himself and uncannily recreates 19th-century London and the streets Dickens perambulated during the six-week period of the writing of his famous tale. (Well, not that I would actually know what 19th-century London or the streets of London looked like but, in my head I think I do. 😉).

Whimsical and charming - and utterly believable...I definitely recommend for a heart-warming holiday read.

And, finally, for "Sissy"...because you asked.

I hope 2025 brings renewal, sees your hopes fulfilled, and makes your heart glad.

Extending the Branches....

 Many Several A few of you have asked for photos of "the wedding," and I am finally obliging.

. 

But a little backstory first as I know at least one person was a bit confused about the "order of things."

Well, the "order of things" went a bit wonky.

My son, "Little Crow," had proposed to his love and she accepted.

A date for the wedding was set and they were just about to proceed with the serious planning when they discovered they were expecting an "unexpected" blessing.

The wedding was accordingly postponed...and then postponed again when the little blessing arrived earlier than she was supposed to, and complications ensued.

A year later than planned, though, the wedding happened.

Now...on to the pictures.

{I was honored to have Miss Mia walk me down the aisle...}

{They had a cupcake bar so the actual "cake" was quite small. They already had the cake topper before they adopted their dog, so Mrs. Little Crow added the dog figurine on the bottom.}

A precious gift from Mrs. Little Crow.

Though I have lost much the past couple of years, I have also gained much and my heart is full.

(PS....Happy Belated Halloween...)

Teaching an Old Crow New Tricks...

 I've not much to say...but I finally got the new pc set up and wanted to see if I could actually manage a blogpost.

Fingers crossed.

I know some were expecting wedding photos and I promise I will share some...if I somehow manage to figure out how to transfer what is salvageable data from my old hard drive here...and figure out where, exactly, my photos go when I try to upload them.

Change doesn't come easily to me and I get very attached to old ways.

And, frankly, I haven't had time to experiment.

The lightning damage is worse than I initially realized.  I have managed to get the backup generator and the pool system repaired and, obviously, replaced my pc. This next week will be spent trying to get my wells up and running.

No small task given that replacing the pump for the main house involves cutting down my tree (Lauren...I feel your pain intensely), removing plantings and landscaping and trying to relocate a very large...and very heavy...concrete birdbath.

I sometimes feel as though I just can't handle anything more...then I think of those who lost everything in the wake of Helene...and I feel ashamed.

Anyways....

What you get today is just some random photos that somehow managed to migrate to a place I can find them.

Halloween decorating has been put mostly on hold for yet another year.

I have pulled out a few favorites or easily accessible pieces and will call it good.

One piece that somehow didn't find its way back to where it was supposed to be is this piece I stitched last year.  I don't think I've posted it...if I have, my apologies.

 "Pumpkins Three" by La-D-Da. (Sorry for the glare.)

The frame should have been larger, but it was a premade frame that didn't come larger...and I liked it, so I forced it.

Seeing it here, I may decide to reframe it....

Or not.

On the fun side of things, my daughter-in-law and I took little Mia for her first visit to the pumpkin patch at the orchard.

It was a picture-perfect day and I'm glad to say Mia found a pumpkin she loved enough to bring home.

We are under a frost advisory for tonight and I should move a few plants that are still thriving indoors.

But I won't. 

I'm truly tired of watering.

Hoping your Sunday was good to you.