Christmas thoughts

Sunday school time....

Here are 2 great sermons on Jesus's birth.





Hope you are encouraged and humbled by the miracle of Jesus' birth like I was.

Friday Finds

There were so many great things this week that I just had to share....

1,000 Houses. It's easy to get lost here for a good hour...or two. I'm kinda obsessed with abandoned houses. For instance, there was a whole entire military base that was shut down a while ago in one of my favorite beach towns in the South. It was heart breaking to drive by those huge chain-linked fences that surrounded dozens of houses boarded up and left to crumble. I've learned that a few years ago it was bought and refurbished and now used for housing again. There is just something magical about old abandoned houses. ps...I like how Mary explains it here.

I found this a while ago and just can't stop window shopping for it. So fun and different. Love.

Elsie had such fun posts this week. She is always inspiring me.

This scarf/cowl is so beautiful.

The Tim Walker/Tim Burton collaboration in Harper's Bazaar. Pure magic and weirdness.

The movie lists are up. And the plane tickets are bought. Oh, I think I may faint from excitement!!!

Tara's post on San Fransisco. What places feel like home to you? Some of mine are Seattle, Prince Edward Island, Hawaii and Vancouver. They just fit.

It was so hard not to buy something for me today in Kelly's shop update. Those cable bangles...oh, they were calling my name. SO beautiful!

I love the December Photo Project on Walk Slowly. Have you seen their new home?!

SO MANY good things on Flickr. Inspiration overload!

Current addiction: Grey's Anatomy on Netflix Instant and Lifetime. Plus, The OC on my lunchbreak on Soap Net. Why, oh why am I addicted to bad TV? It's like a drug.

Friday Night Lights. I just don't understand how this amazing show isn't the most award-winning and most watched show on television. This season has been so beautifully, heartbreakingly wonderful. If you've never watched, it should be on your Christmas wish list. This week, it was so moving and almost too close to my own life.

My favorite find this week was this. I can't tell you enough how much I adore this idea. And that video...incredible.


I'm sure there is more that I've forgotten, but that enough for now. Did you find anything great this week? If so, please share!!

wants

I want (but in no way need) a white christmas tree with vintage glass bulbs just like this one (click photo for info). Kinda reminds me of Edward Scissorhands.

fog + sunset = amazing

The other night.
Photos don't even begin to do it justice.
It was like walking into Brigadoon.

more cookies, please

Off to a birthday party for my sweet friend.

We get to make (and eat) Christmas cookies all night.

YUM!

cutest advent calendar I've seen in a while

Such a sweet idea! Love how the little gifts and cards are so beautifully wrapped and displayed.

Mornin'

Good day to you, my friends and family!

I'm making a choice to see JOY and happiness today.

What are you doing?

proof

Proof that one can both equally LOVE (Kate Winslet/Jack Black) and HATE (Cameron Diaz/Jude Law) the exact same movie....sigh....Christmas season movie-time is the bestest. You get to watch all those ones that you wait all year for. Here's my tops list from a few years ago.

Christmas tunes for you

Some of my Christmas favorites. Enjoy!

the factory is in full swing

My little craft factory has been in high gear these last few weeks/months. I haven't been able to share the projects though because they are mostly gifts. Didn't want to give anything away! Finally, some are in their rightful owners hands...

This (photo above) was for my mom. I wrapped a foam wreath form in fabric (from a thrifted skirt). Then I crocheted a bunch of different type of flowers and pom-poms. It was one of my favorite projects this year. Think I might make one for myself because I just loved the idea (from my RVA class) so much. Sorry for such a yucky photo. The sun seems to rarely shine lately.

I forgot to take a photo of the mittens that I made my sis for her birthday. They were so beautiful. I had to make a "practice" pair first, so I even got a pair for me! Maybe she'll take a photo so you can all see them. hint..hint...

There are several more things coming off the assembly line that I'll share soon. It's been so fun to MAKE most of my birthday presents for friends/family this year. Makes it feel more special!

Coming tomorrow...a mix of my favorite Christmas songs. Look for it in the morning!

someone's birthday is today...

...and she's left her 20's behind forever. Hmmm...which one could it be?


Love you, Sis. See you SOON!

happy memories are....

(found on Etsy)

....Fisher Price tape players. I had one exactly like this when I was kid. And we (The Bro and my Sis) used it ALL THE TIME. Well, at least all the time until I got a lavender tape player/radio combo with fuzzy speakers.

For some odd reason, recording yourself on audio tape was like the coolest thing ever. We told stories. We sang songs. We had conversations with each other. One person would record the other when they didn't know it, like when they were singing in the shower. It was one of our favorite toys.

Plus, we had about 25 different children's Christian tapes like Music Machine or Bullfrogs and Butterflies or Antshillvania. Those things got worn out. Oh and Cabbage Patch kids. That one... I can still sing those songs.

Anyway, I saw this on Etsy today when I was looking at vintage record players and it immediately brought back great childhood memoiries. And right now, in my life, I need things that make me happy. Make me smile. I'm forcing myself to see the good. Sometimes that force is a HARD shove instead of a gentle push, but hey, that's life, right?

I made this little hat for my niece.

She turned one this past weekend. SO wish I could have been there to give her a big hug. I'll see her soon, though! Very soon!

Can you see the owls? I'm LOVING cable knitting at the moment. It's quite addicting.

I'm back....

I needed a smile today.

Just looking at Janie's face makes that happen immediately.

Janie is the little one that I support through An Orphans Wish. She makes me feel all warm and gooey inside. And she reminds me that Jesus loves the orphan and He COMMANDS us to take care of them, even if they are on the other side of the world. I just want to run to China and scoop her up and tell her that someone loves her dearly!

Janie is fully sponsored, but there are still many others at An Orphan's Wish that still need your help.

I miss days like this...

Ponytail. Hot sun. Yucky shorts. Favorite old (OLD!) tee shirt. Sleeves rolled up cause it's just so humid and hot. Camera in hand. (a camper took this 2 years ago during my photography class)

These last few days have been just a little on the crazy side. And not really "good" crazy either. God has continually brought Psalms 34:8 to my mind.

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good,
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him."

The Lord IS good no matter what the circumstances around me may be. GOOD and PERFECT and LOVING. My circumstances may not be happy or good, but He is.

I'm still in and out this week. And my internet has been down, too. I'll pop in when I can.

I miss you!

real quick

After a pretty crappy Thanksgiving for reasons that are too much to go into here, I needed something to cheer me up. This little clip seemed to fit the bill perfectly. I can't help but cry and laugh all at the same time.



...sigh....

I won't tell you how many times I watched it. In a row.

I feel much better now.

A day of Thanksgiving

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

I'll be gone for a few days. See you soon.


ps....Me love Norman Rockwell. Big time.

uhhh.....hmmmm.......

My brain won't let me write tonight because I've been creating/crafting all day. Oh, and cooking. And a little cleaning.

It's quite wonderful really....

high school....shudder...blech...

The other day I was on Facebook. I came across this batch of photos that I hadn't seen before. Photos like this. (yes, my eyes are closed. laugh all you want.)

After about 5 photos, I realized that was completely tense. My breathing had almost all but stopped. My brain seemed to shut down. It wasn't because I was re-living the glory days as some people say. No, I was panicked because it was almost like being forced to go back and re-live a stage in my life that I did NOT enjoy. Truthfully, it kinda freaked me out that just looking at those old photos could still stir up those emotions.

High school was not the happiest of times for me. I don't think I could ever be payed enough to go back and do it again. It just wasn't the experience that some people had in school.

I escaped as often as I could to my friends in youth group at my church. With them, I was happy. With them, I felt connected and loved. With them, I grew in my relationship with God and went to camp and had Bible studies.

I'm sure most of those bad feelings were because I was so insecure. I was incredibly, ridiculously shy. And that was in a school that only had 50 kids in the jr/high school. This photo was of my ENTIRE graduating class. Seriously. You would think being insecure would be a non-issue in a school where I had known my everyone in my class since the 6th grade.

But as I look back (and shudder), I see why I was so happy on graduation night. I didn't have all those sad, wistful moments with long hugs goodbye. I was giddy excited about college. It was a fresh start. It was a whole new batch of friends. I couldn't wait to head off to the next phase of life.

I know God had a reason for that time of my life. Maybe it was to show me the poison of legalistic religion. Maybe it was to have me lean on Him.

I do know that I am thankful that that time of my life is over. I'm thankful it's all a distant memory. I'm thankful for the safe haven my church was. My youth pastor. My friends there. It wasn't perfect by any means, but it was happy. Now, those memories, I would go back and re-live in a heartbeat.

So much scope for the imagination

haven't cried this much since UP

I pretty much had big fat tears either rolling down my cheeks or pooled in my eyes for the entire movie. It's fantastic. It's emotional. It's such a beautiful story.

I love adoption stories. They warm my heart in a way that no other story can. The Blind Side is definitely one you should see. Oh, and Sandra Bullock is wonderful in this. She steals the show.



I want to see it again. and again. and again.

As my mom used to say...books are your friends

"To read a book for the first time is to make an aquaintance with a new friend; to read it for a second time is to meet an old one." -Chinese saying

I'm a "re-read it 15 times" type of girl. By that many go-a-rounds, we are pretty much family. Plus I have to be reading about 10 books at once, at all times. This makes traveling with "a" book quite problematic. I can never just chose one...or two.

Please tell me I'm not the only one!

(Kaley, I can hear you agreeing with all the way across the country! I know we are kindred spirits when it comes to books.)

Friday Finds

(photo found here)

I found quite a few fun, fantastic things this week, so I decided to share....


Modern Family gets better every week. This week it was hysterical. Saw it on Hulu.

There were some amazing crafty ideas on Smile and Wave this week (and last). I've already made one of these and have worn it about 10 times.

Scrubs is back in just a few short weeks! This promo made me laugh out loud. As perfectly, perfect the "series" finale was last season and as much as I don't want to ruin the magic that it was, there's no way I'm missing this! ps....Photos like this one (posted on his Facebook page) don't do anything to help my TV crush. So adorable.

Was reminded how much I love this blog this week. Had to put in my reader. This post was adorable!

Katie's (Amazima) post this week about loving others is going to be one of those thoughts I remember forever. So profound. So humbling.

I really want to go see this movie this weekend. (No, it's not New Moon.)

There's a pretty good chance I'll be taking a spur of the moment trip to NYC next month to go see the Tim Burton exhibit at the MoMA.

Just LOVE this adorable garland by Rachel. She always picks the best color combos.

I'm almost caught up on Lost (thanks once again, Hulu) season 5. Watching it all at once is SO much better. The final few episodes were posted this week. Knitting/crafting TV for sure.

Look at this cutey who just came home forever from Uganda. Her story will melt your heart.

I'm loving these stockings, this cowl and these mittens. Darn knitting habit is taking over my life. I'm not even showing you the ones that I want to make as gifts.

And finally, meet Janie. God placed her on my heart when I read about her about a week ago through another blog. Yesterday, God put one more big reminder in my path, and I realized that it was time to stop fooling around and do something for this little one that was constantly on the forefront of my mind. I'm so excited to be able to help her even in this very small way. ps...she still needs one more sponsor!


Have a great weekend, dear readers! I'm working this weekend, but then I'm off ALL next week (using up those vacation days!) I'll hopefully be crafting the days away (Christmas presents finished in Nov?!!!).

xoxo,

Cottage Girl

I like this photo

(from the Commons)

And globe lights. I really want a globe light.

(photo found here)

Off to another hip hop exhibition for my friend. Can't wait! The last time it was A-mazing. Plus, it's always great to give her a hug!

Has camp really been over for almost 4 months?!!

.....sigh.....

pondering this...

"Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter." -Tim Kizziar


Much thought is going into what my purpose is. Much thought on what I am called to do. Much thought on making sure my life is counting for eternity. All good things. All right things. All things that are tough and uncomfortable.

Growing is never easy, no matter how old you are.

i like this CD

Be forewarned.....I was feeling very wordy when I wrote this. Skip to the bottom to hear the CD if you don't want to read my ramblings. Don't say I didn't warn you...

I'm terrible with music. It isn't really my "thing." I don't discover bands. I have no idea what is new or really cool. I have a small handful of bands/artist I like and tend to stick with them and that's about it. I don't listen to the radio mostly because I can't stand what they play. (don't get me started on the Christian radio stations around here....let's just say the world horrible comes to mind).

So this is where I stand when I suggest music to you. I have weird taste. I like instrumental soundtracks more than anything. But sometimes...sometimes I WANT to listen to some good music, but I have no idea where to start. I've gotten great suggestions from Zach Braff on more than one occasion (Joshua Radin, Cary Brothers, Garden State Soundtrack). I've found good stuff from blogs I read. But the one place I always go when I need something new is The Bro.

He is just good with that type of thing. Now, let me state this...he likes certain types of music that I hate. Hard core metal. Screaming non-sense that I can only stand for about 30 seconds before wanting to pop my own eardrums. So we definitely don't always mesh on certain things.

However, he has given me more things to love than anyone else. He discovers all those cool bands and then tells me about them. About a year ago, he gave me a huge list of bands and some CD's to try. Bands he thought I would like. I'm still going through that list.

On my flights to Seattle last month, I had still had a few bands on my Zune that I hadn't tried. I decided to give Future of Forestry a spin. It's been playing pretty consistently since then. The more I listen to it, the more I like it. I even want to get their new stuff.

Twilight, the CD I have, is a few years old, but it's good stuff. And wouldn't you know it, it's Christian, too. Haven't heard a good Christian band in quite a while.

So once again, I'm forced to concede that my little brother is cooler than I am.


Here's a taste of the goods

happy things on a Sunday

He's (^) coming home for Christmas. My sis and her fam are coming home for Christmas. We'll all be together for the first time since....I don't know when.

Motorcycles with sidecars passing me on the road home.

Japanese Maples in Autumn.

Driving with the windows down, music blaring, enjoying the moment.

Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving.

Sunshine after 3 days of rain and wind.

70 degree days in November.

Remembering how good this song is...


Jesus speaking to my heart at church this morning.

Knitting project completed (first of many).

Cheaper by the Dozen for the 134th time.



What are your Sunday happy things?

on my list for 2010

(the 10 cent designer)

Learn to make granola.

yarn is so addicting

I learned to crochet when I was in jr/high school. My mom taught me. I didn't do it again until my 20's. Then my friends learned to knit, so I decided to give it a try. It always looked so disjointed to me, so I learned the continental method. Much less wrapping and dropping of the yarn. Even after learning my stitches, I realized that it just wasn't something I really loved doing. After making easy things like scarves and hats, I put my needles down and didn't really pick them up again for a while.

Once winter rolls around and the cold weather forces me inside, that yarn over in my knitting basket seems to look much more appealing. This year I decided to pull it out and try something a little more challenging. Cableknitting. Knitting on circular needles. Things that looked impossible when you see them written out in pattern form.

Shock of shocks, I realized that I really enjoy the challenge. I look forward to my needles and dream about yarn colors and projects. The local yarn store is so dangerous now because I see mittens and cableknit sweaters when I look at those bundles of colorful delight. And let's face it, no one needs an excuse to purchase MORE crafts supplies! My supplies are over taking my room! And then I went against my better judgement and joined Raverly. Just what I need...more projects to add to my list of "things to make."

Thank goodness it's winter or I would be drowning in inspiration and projects with no time to do any of them. Since it's dark by the time I get home from work each day, I can now give myself an excuse to craft away and get those Christmas presents done before Christmas Eve. It's a handmade Christmas in Cottage Girl world!