Jerusalem Jackson Greer's Blog, page 13

Words for the New Year

The other day, between Christmas Day and the new year’s arrival, I took a walk around our property. Not for any real reason, other than to get out of the house a little bit, and to inspect what was new, breathe in the (finally!) cold and crisp air.

There is so much to see on our eight acres and I haven’t learned it all by half yet. I don’t know the lay of this land, the bend of the little hill or the rhythms of the trees yet. That will all take time. It will all take years and years of noticing and caring for and inspecting and tending before I can say “soon the Pine trees will drop their needles,” or “we need to cut back the peach trees before such and such…” And we haven’t even gotten to the animals yet!

And after one year here we have only just begun.

But even though I cannot tell you if the pine trees produced more pinecones this year over last year, or if the soil has been affected by all this rain,  I can tell you that I have never, ever, in my life, actually seen a red topped mushroom before.

Until this day.

And I almost missed them, because I was looking up and away, down the row, and at the sky, and I almost stepped on these beautiful little fairyland fungi. Their bright red tops must have caught my eye, because I looked down and there they were! Like something out of a Beatrix Potter or Tasha Tudor book. If anyone had been observing me they would have thought I had struck gold the way I danced around gleefully, and crouched down to take their pictures, and tried to brush the pine needles away gentle so as not to break their stems ( I struck out only once.)

 

Maybe you think it is funny, getting all excited over tiny mushrooms. And maybe it is.

But there is something about discovering things here in this rural life, that up until now I have only read about or seen in movies,

They’re real! I wanted to shout to no one in particular when I found those mushrooms. They really do exist!

This is how I feel almost every time I walk around Preservation Acres, or down our country road. I just cannot believe that I live here. And that all these things – things I have only read about in books, or seen in movies really exist.

The other night Sweet Man and I were watching television in the living room when we heard a huge thud. There had been a lot of rain and wind, and so we popped our heads outside to see what it was. But from our porch, in the pitch blackness of a country moonless night, we couldn’t see anything out-of-place. The barn and lean-to buildings were still in place, the trampoline and animal pens still standing.

So we went to bed wondering what it was, and where it happened. “Must have been something at a neighbors place,” we said as we drifted to sleep.

The next morning I noticed that our decorative windmill was lying on the ground and thought perhaps that was what had made the sound, though it has fallen countless times and we have never heard it.

I didn’t think about the odd, loud, booming again. That is until we found the source.  While out hunting for a Christmas tree we found the culprit. A fallen tree in a back corner where we don’t often trod. And there it was. A huge massive tree, rotten and splayed out on the ground.

And you would have thought we had won the lottery when we found it. What a discovery!

 

This is what it is like. All the little discoveries, day after day. Childhood storybooks coming to life right before my eyes.

I saw this little hole and immediately thought “Oh, I wonder if Owl lives there, or if he is out building a new house for Eeyore..”

I see bunnies and I think of Peter Rabbit. I see a bee and I think “oh you are making honey for Pooh. I won’t bother you then.”

Ask anyone who knew me as a kid and you will find out that I was not an outdoorsy type. I was a book-reading-craft-making-movie-watching-cookie-baking kind of kid.

And to anyone who is truly an outdoors type I would still look like that girl. I don’t like to hike, or run, or bike, or climb, or kayak.

But I love to stroll. And meander. And look. I love to paddle around in my little boat in my pond, and I like to mingle among the trees in our dying orchard and dream of a day when each tree has been resurrected. I like to walk down our country road and see the cows in our neighbors pastures, the old rusty mailboxes hanging on by a thread, and the wildflowers growing by the road.

And I love to gather. Pinecones, wildflowers, wheat stalks, chestnuts, herbs… Being able to walk out my door and gather beautiful bits of nature to bring indoors just makes my heart so happy.

But I don’t do any of these nearly enough. I am still that indoorsy girl by habit.

 

So imagine my surprise  when on this day – between Christmas and New Year’s,  walking around and gazing at the miracle of pinecones on pine tree branches on my very own property, that this years words found me, (they always find me these pesky words,) when the Holy Spirit spoke loud and clear.

“Go Outside”  the Spirit said. ‘Go outside and see.”

The directions could not have been more clear.

 

Recently, Anne Lamott told me (and okay, a bunch of other people,) that one of the secrets to life is to go on a walk every single day.

I think she may be on to something, because I have not been able shake her words for months.

So when I heard the words of the year, I also knew immediately once of the ways I was to act on them.

I need to walk. Everyday. Outside. For my health – mental and physical – and for reasons I won’t understand until the year is done.

And so this year, my words for 2016 are Go Outside and my resolution is Walk Outside Every Day. 

And that is it.  There are no other goals, no miles to reach, no speeds to make, no scales to measure. The walk may be around the property line, down a country road, or across a pasture.

Just go outside, take a walk, see what there is to discover and be. Just be.

That is all.

What about you? Any words make their appearance? Any walks in your future? I would love to hear. We learn so much from each other.

Much Love and Happy New Year!

Filed under: Blog, Faith, Farm Tagged: featured, Preservation Acres

All the Christmas 2015

 

 

 

Christmas.

All the feelings.

Advent Wreath. Star Wars. The Waffle House. Dirty Santa. Silent Night. Nativity Pageant. Candle Light. Carol Singing. O’ Christmas Tree, O’ Christmas Tree! Favorite Creche. Meme and Obi’s House. Christmas Cards. Dirty Santa. Exhaustion. GranMary, GranPat, Jenni Jo. Almost-Cousins. Blue Christmas.  No Room. All the Food. Shopping. Baking. Decorations. Old Friends. Advent Countdown. Gifts. Tears. Amy Grant’s First Christmas Album. More Gifts. More Food. 4 Wheelers. Miracles. Meals on Wheels. Weary World Rejoicing.

So very weary.

So much rejoicing.

So grateful for this life and all the work it requires to make it happen.

Merry Christmas dear friends,

 

Filed under: Blog, Family, Fluff Tagged: Christmas, featured

A funny thing happened on the way to the Symphony…

You probably know this already, but the Advent season is a bit busy for a preacher lady. Especially one in a liturgical tradition. Especially one who loves her job. And who loves to make merry at home as well. And who is trying her best to carry on traditions started long ago, when she was on a break from the preacher lady business and things were a bit more simple.

So since you know all of this, it probably won’t come as a shock that she (me) would do something as funny as get her family all dressed up in their fancy clothes, find the baby-dog a babysitter, load everyone in the car, and be well on their way to the Symphonies holiday concert before she realized that yep, they were indeed a week early. A whole stinkin week.

What did this preacher-lady-momma do? Well, first she shed a tear. (Because crying is what she does in Advent,) and then she and her Sweet Man (who was wonderfully cheery about the whole thing,) decided to embrace the Christmas-Crazy and instead of going on one annual Christmas Outing Day, they would go on two this year.

Now, let’s be honest. Did they have time for two trips to the city to jolly things up? Nope.

Did that really matter? Nope.

When you are counting down the Christmas’ left with both kids at home on one hand, you stop worrying so much about what you have time for, and instead, do what must be done.

And so, this year, there were two Christmas Outing Days for The Greers, and this is the record, for all time, of that those days.

 

Outing One: Our first stop was lunch at Star of India for the best buffet ever. We were all so hungry and ate until we couldn’t feel our toes. After that we decided we needed to walk it off, so we went shopping at the new Outlet Mall Extravaganza. We have never taken our boys into the typical Christmas shopping crazy before, so this was a fun experience for all of us, but by the end, they were looking for comfy chairs in every store. By the end Wylie had caught on to my picture-taking and got into the spirit of the thing.

After shopping we drove across town to visit The Inflatable House. This is one of our MOST favorite traditions from our old town and as long as the lovely man who does this each year continues to fill his yard, and trees, and garage, with his crazy collection of new and vintage Christmas (and the occasional Valentines Day or Halloween) decorations, I will find a way to visit every year.

I could have stood under this tree for hours.  As it was, I stood there as long as I could, tears (Advent!) streaming down my face.  I was missing my friend Alison, and all my friends from our playgroup from the kids were little. We discovered this little hometown treat because of them, and so every time I visit the Inflatable House I can’t help but feel nostalgic for those years when we all lived in a five-mile radius of each other, when the kids were little, and when Advent meant a little extra time in each other’s houses and lives.

After I dried my tears, we loaded up and went to see Home Alone on the big screen! What fun it was to see it in the theatre again (I saw it 25 years ago when it first came out.) The little theatre was packed with parents and kids, and it was so much fun to roar with laughter along with all the little ones seeing the movie for the first time. During the show we enjoyed a dinner of popcorn, pretzels, and hot chocolate, before loading up and heading home -full of happy – at last.

Annual Christmas Outing One was done and done wonderfully!

 

In the middle of the week Miles and I had our own extra little Christmas Outing – for YEARS he has been begging to go see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and this year, thanks to a very sweet friend I had the honor of taking him! TSO might not be my most favorite thing, but I loved seeing how happy it made him, and truly, who can resist their version of Carol of the Bells? So. Much. Fun.

Finally, December 19 came – the CORRECT- date for the symphony, and it was time to done our fancy clothes again, and head back to the city for Christmas Outing Part Deux.

We began by going to the Capital. This is tradition we accidentally stumbled onto six years ago, when went one night to just look at the outside lights and let the kids run around. While we were climbing the steps, we realized that there were people coming and going in and out of the building, despite it being way past business hours. So, having nothing better to do, we followed the crowd inside and discovered that the whole place was decorated for the holidays and open to the public for touring.

And we loved it so much that we now return each and every year (except for the year I had a broken foot.) As the boys get older they find new things to love about the experience. This year we spent a lot of time in some of the halls that have historic maps and info sheets, comparing statistics from the 1800s with statistics of the 2000’s.  It is so interesting to see what has stayed the same and what has changed.

Speaking of things that stay the same and things that change, the picture on the left popped up on my timehop while we were at the Capital. Five years seems like such a small amount of time, and yet so much has happened since then.

Those boys are the same and different, and so am I. Times like this I am so grateful for social media and the record it is keeping for me.

After we finished up at the State Capital, we headed to dinner (German food this time,) before heading to the concert.

And then at last,  it was time! Time for the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s Holiday POPS Concert!

(HUGE thanks to our friends who gave us the tickets, our budding orchestra player was completely inspired!)

The concert was absolutely wonderful, and they closed the night with a crowd-particpation sing-a-long.

It was the perfect icing on top of our Christmas OutingS of 2015 cookie!

 

And now I have to go clean my house because the in-laws are coming and I have been having too much fun to get to it before now..

Happy Advent dear friends!

Christmas is coming….

Filed under: Blog, Family Tagged: Christmas, feautred, Raising Greers

He knows our need, our weakness is no stranger,

This Advent season has been both wonderful and brutal.

The state of the world and my Facebook feed bring so much fear and hurt to my heart, but I also see so much good happening around me. So many people doing all they can to love on anyone and everyone at every turn.

My first little sister and her sweet little family moved across the country, but my second little sister and her husband are moving back home in January.

One of my kids is having a rough go of it at school, but the other is doing great.

My work at the church is an amazing gift, but I am having so much self-doubt about writing my second book.

This is the first Christmas at Preservation Acres where we have all our things and a finished kitchen, but I have found myself missing our house and holiday traditions back in North Little Rock. It was always best at Christmas, and we haven’t lived here long enough to have established new traditions yet.

I am so grateful for new dear friends, but I am also missing friends who are far away.

And so this Advent, like so many before, is bittersweet.

Every year there is one song that becomes THE song for the whole season for me.  One song that sums up everything I am feeling about the season, one song that breaks through all the doubt and fear and sadness with a ray of hope and light.

This year that song is O’ Holy Night.

It’s one of those songs that I have heard for years, but whose message seems more needed and more true this year than ever before.

And just in case this Advent is a bit of a bittersweet experience for you as well, if the birthing pains are more than you can handle, and you need a few rays of hope and light, I thought I would share a the lyrics here.

O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining.

Till He appeared and the Spirit felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

O night divine, the night when Christ was born;

O night, O Holy Night , O night divine!

O night, O Holy Night , O night divine!

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,

With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.

O’er the world a star is sweetly gleaming,

Now come the wisemen from out of the Orient land.

The King of kings lay thus lowly manger;

In all our trials born to be our friends.

He knows our need, our weakness is no stranger,

Behold your King! Before him lowly bend!

Behold your King! Before him lowly bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another,

His law is love and His gospel is peace.

Chains he shall break, for the slave is our brother.

And in his name all oppression shall cease.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

With all our hearts we praise His holy name.

Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,

His power and glory ever more proclaim!

His power and glory ever more proclaim!

Wishing you Hope and Peace,

Filed under: Blog, Fluff Tagged: Christmas, featured, My Home

Thoughts on Observing a #SlowHoliday

Can you believe that the start of Advent is only 18 days away HERE?

Me either! But this year I am so ready for Advent and for Christmas, so ready in fact that I might be a tad giddy.

This time last year we were in our new home but sleeping on the floor and ripping out our kitchen. While it was a sweet time of new beginnings, it was also a stressful time of living in a work-zone.

We have made a lot of progress in the past twelve months, but we still have miles to go before all our changes and updates are complete. But instead of stressing out about what isn’t done, I am resolved to spend this season celebrating what is. Like our wonderful kitchen and our beds off the floor!

In order to really savor all that is good this Advent and Christmas, I am going to be practicing the holiday version of #SlowHome, which I have dubbed #SlowHoliday.

In his book, God is in the Manger, Dietrick Bonhoeffer wrote “Advent creates people, new people.”  It is my hope that by practicing a slower holiday season, Advent will have the room to create a newness in me. That by recalibrating my pace to one that goes slower, does less, and enjoys more I will be changed in ways I can’t even imagine.

What is #SlowHoliday? Well, it is the practice of going slow, enjoying the holiday season one little morsel at a time instead of trying to Do All The Things All At Once (which is my usual tactic.)

How will I celebrate #SlowHoliday? By simplifying my expectations for what I can accomplish, and leaning into the few things that I am intentionally choosing to focus on.

Giving – This year for #SlowHoliday, I am only giving gifts from four categories: Something to read (a book, a magazine subscription,) something to make (a cookie mix, a craft kit,) something I made (baked goods, crafty item) or something to share (a board game, tickets for a show for two, baked goods.) Also I will be giving vintage and reclaimed items when possible. After all, a used book reads just as good as a new one and puts a much smaller strain on my pocketbook.

Baking  – One of the things that I really want to do this year is spend less time shopping and more time making. Additionally I want to spend more time with the people who matter most to me. So for my #SlowHoliday my main mode of “making” will be baking. And even better it will be baking in community. This means having friends over to bake cookies needed for school parties and teacher gifts, it means baking treats with the boys (letting them take the lead of course,) and baking yummy gifts with Sweet Man. It means not taking on the huge task of baking for All The Things all alone.

Decorating – This year, to honor the #SlowHoliday code,  I am only using what I already have to decorate, and I will not feel compelled to use all of what I do have (heaven knows I have more than enough.)  We will have an Advent Wreath and a countdown garland, a Tree, a Nativity, and our stockings. Beyond that I am not making any promises or making any plans I may do more, I may not. But regardless I am letting go of the pressure to Do It All

*Instant Update: It has been raining non-stop for days, so no tree yet. But we did find Christmas bins we haven’t seen or unpacked for two years, so that has been fun! Even thought I have already sprinkled some Christmas around the kitchen and front porch, I am still sticking to the rules – Using What I Have, and No Pressure! I am only putting out what we use/love!

Being- This year for Advent I am going to practice the spiritual discipline of Waiting. I am going to do things that force me to slow down and take notice of my life as it is happening. I am taking most Social Media apps off my phone (not sure I can give up Instagram.)  I plan on getting in the long lines at the store and wait patiently with a happy heart. And, believe it or not, I am going to drive the speed limit. I wonder what I will see and hear while I wait.

*Instant Update – I took off FB but not FB groups or messenger or pages, so far I am loving it! I also took off Twitter. Instagram still remains in large part because I am participating in #AdventWord.

Serving – There is a lot of good being done in our community during the holiday season, and our family – in part because of the nature of my career choice – does a lot of serving and giving through our church during the holidays. But I still long for our little family to find something else – something apart from the church – that we can do later in the year – in March or July –  to love on our fellow neighbors in need. This Advent I am hoping that we can have some good intentional conversations about what our service might look like in the coming year, and where each of us feel our great joy might meet the worlds great need.

So there you have it, my little plan to live a slower holiday this year. Will this way of doing Advent work a change in me? There is only one way to find out…

 

Want to know more about how you can make an Advent Wreath? Check out my post from last year on how we made ours, or listen to my podcast on Megan Tietz‘ show!

Happy Advent!

Filed under: Blog, Fluff Tagged: Advent, featured, Holiday

(More than) Surviving Thanksgiving with Teens and Pre-Teens

Do you have teens and pre-teens coming to your Thanksgiving celebration?  Wondering how to engage them in the festivities without treating them like babies?  Wondering how to survive their surly attitudes and lack of enthusiasm without putting them in the blockades? Wondering what you can do to encourage them to put their devices down?  Wondering how you can do more than just survive the day?

I am right there with you.

So I am doing the only thing I know to do. I am planning ahead. I am getting down and dirty with intentional parenting. I am stocking up on ideas to keep my two boys involved and busy come Thanksgiving.

Here are some ideas that I plan to implement… If you have any that have worked for you in the past, I would love to hear them!

 

Edible Crafts.

My boys are pretty artistic  and still enjoy Legos and building, so I think making a mini-first Thanksgiving village might suit them.  I like these Teepee cupcakes and the log cabin idea from Martha Stewart. I can already see them arranged with Lego figures all around.

Making the Place Cards. 

Again, I have boys and they like things like history and ships and battles. So I think for our place cards this year I am going to ask them if they will make these super cute Mod Mayflower. They coud write each family members name on the ship or the flag.  For my fellas the key will be me having all the parts pre-cut and ready to go. All they have to do is assemble and label. If you have a pre-teen who really loves to bedazzle this craft could be an all day crafting extravaganza.

 

Cooking Part of the Meal

Our boys like to cook. In fact Miles has decided he wants to own a food truck when he grows up, so having them help prepare the meal makes sense. I have found that for older kids, the Pioneer Woman’s cookbooks are the very best. She gives very clear step-by-step directions along with pages of pictures. If you don’t have her cookbooks no worries – her blog post are the same way. This year Wylie is making her Creamy Mashed Potatoes and Miles is making baguettes.

 

Lawn Games

One of my goals this year is for the boys to stay off the media for the majority of the day (with the exception of the Macy’s Day Parade and the Cowboy’s football game of course.)  In preparation I have assembled a variety of lawn games that can be played – Washers, Horseshoes, Croquet. If the weather is too cold or wet then we will break out the Monopoly, but I think we a good hat and a sturdy coat, I think a lot of fun can still be had outdoors on Thursday.

 

Mocktail Bar Tender

What kid doesn’t love being a mixologist? One fun activity to help keep teens engaged is to put them in charge of keeping guest hydrated. If your kitchen is like mine on Thanksgiving (well-organized chaos) having too many extra people rummaging through the fridge for beverages can be the straw that breaks a patient hostesses back. Try having a variety of beverages and a drink recipe list of tasty “mocktails”  (I love this list from Today’s Mama) that the big kids can mix and serve to guest.

 

Harness the Media for Good

So the kids won’t get off their devices? Well, harness this habit for good. If you have a Chromecast stick, or another device (just ask the kids they will tell you if you do,) that will allow you to stream YouTube on the main television, give the kids the task of finding and playing the best Thanksgiving videos they can find. Funny videos, historical videos, satires, songs, whatever they want to share…  The reality is that online life is normal life for our teens, and we will do much better to figure out how to join them in it, rather than fighting it all the time. So this Thanksgiving, show your teens that you care about their world, and ask them to share their expertise with the family – setting the visual playlist for the whole gang!

 

And finally remember  – teens may or may not act as if they enjoy any of the activities they plan for them- but that doesn’t mean they aren’t indeed having a fun. Teen’s have a great way of acting extremely underwhelmed even when they are having a really lovely time. And they will appreciate (even though it might not show for six months,) you taking the time to be intentional about creating a space for them in the celebrations. Feeling  wanted and seen is a huge part of how teens feel loved. So go ahead, plan a few teen-specific activities, and don’t be discouraged if they don’t act overly enthused. The good stuff is still getting in there :)

Much Love and Good Luck!

Filed under: Blog, Family, Fete Tagged: featured, Holiday, Raising Greers

From the Blessing of Preservation Acres

God of all blessings,

source of all life,

giver of all grace:

We thank you for the gift of life:

for the breath

that sustains life,

for the food of this earth

that nurtures life,

for the love of family and friends

without which there would be no life.

 

We thank you for the mystery of creation:

for the beauty

that the eye can see,

for the joy

that the ear may hear,

for the unknown

that we cannot behold filling the universe with wonder,

 

for the expanse of space

that draws us beyond the definitions of our selves.

We thank you for setting us in communities:

for families

who nurture our becoming,

for friends

who love us by choice,

for companions at work,

who share our burdens and daily tasks,

for strangers

who welcome us into their midst,

for people from other lands

who call us to grow in understanding,

for children

who lighten our moments with delight,

for the unborn,

who offer us hope for the future.

We thank you for this day:

for life

and one more day to love,

for opportunity

and one more day to work for justice and peace,

for neighbors

and one more person to love

and by whom be loved,

for your grace

and one more experience of your presence,

for your promise:

to be with us,

to be our God,

and to give salvation.

For these, and all blessings,

we give you thanks, eternal, loving God,

through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

–By Vienna Cobb Anderson

 

On November 1, 2015, All Saint’s Day, we gathered with friends from every era of our life as a family and stood with our feet on the earth to dedicated and bless our home, our land, our life together.

No amount of pictures or words can capture what this day meant to me. It will forever be one of the most sacred and holy moments of my life, and I am so very, very, grateful for each person who joined as we broke bread, spilled wine, and sang our song of thanksgiving, praising God from whom all blessings flow.

Amen and Selah.

Filed under: Blog, Faith, Family, Farm, Fete Tagged: featured

Greers Take Over the Internet

Just a quick hello and a bunch of fun links and updates for your Monday!

Here at Preservation Acres we are knee-deep in wedding preparations as my baby sister is getting hitched here in just a few weeks! EEK!

This is both incredibly fun and exciting and overwhelming, as you can imagine, and I will probably be scarce around these parts until we have all recovered!

In the meantime, here are some other fun and exciting projects of ours coming to life online at last!

 

 

First Up – I am so thrilled to announce my online craft class over at BIG PICTURE CLASSES! 

Join me as we make an embellished and interactive Advent Countdown Calendar AND a Faux Chalkboard.  I am so honored to be a BPC teacher and to be able to share this craft – one of my all time favorites – in plenty of time for you to get it made before the first Sunday in Advent.

 

 

Another fun project is this article in Savvy magazine. The boys and I had big fun shooting the pics for this article as part of the Creative Mom’s issue.  We got to work with some of our favorite creatives and even though the weather was SO HOT they made us look pretty cool.

This publication is a local one, but you can see the pics and read the interview in the online copy: October 2015 Savvy.

 

If haven’t had the chance to listen to my interview with the amazingly productive Tsh Oxenreider on her podcast, The Simple Show, just follow this link. Somehow Tsh managed to get me to confess that I love TV and my forks. Ha!

I just loved, loved, loved, doing this show. Podcasting is fun y’all!

 

And finally, in this episode of our friends P. Allen Smith’s show Garden Style, you will see the boys and I talking about our little Worm Farm. This segment was filmed months ago and the boys have grown SO much since then!

 

Every now and then I think about quitting blogging and public life cold turkey, I look back at all the wonderful ways our family life has been documented and captured over the years, and all of the experiences and people we have met because of them, and I just can’t pull the plug. I love the history that is held in this little online space and I know that we will all be even more grateful for it once the boys are grown and raising their own families.

Thanks for sharing this space with me!

Filed under: Blog, Family Tagged: featured, Raising Greers, Writings Elsewhere

Archangels, My Birthday, and a Bunting

Tuesday is my birthday (it’s on your calendar, right?)

Tuesday is also Michaelmas which is the feast day on the Christian calendar that pays tribute to St. Michael and all the archangels.

Discovering that I shared my birthday with Michaelmas was one of those things that just made my heart so happy. Up until now, the most exciting celebrity I could claim as a birthday twin was Bryant Gumbel. (Exactly.)

So imagine my #churchnerd delight when I realized that I shared September 29 with  Michael the defender, Gabriel the messenger, and Raphael the healer. Mind blown.

When I was writing A Homemade Year, I wanted to throw a party for my own little group of angels whom I wrote about in the Michaelmas chapter.  For the menu I drew on inspiration from the European Michaelmas celebrations, a date that traditionally was used as a way to mark the end of the summer harvest. These feasts often included a mixture of dishes that leaned heavily on late summer and early autumn produce, with roasted chicken being the main course. Four our dinner we served Rotiserie Chickens, a fall salad, and my favorite side dish EVER  – Farmer’s Market Bread Pudding (recipe here.)   I chose the theme of doilies for the table settings and the decor, envisioning the doilies, new and old, as something like angels’ wings, which also inspired my Vintage Hankie and Dollie Bunting. 

This year my birthday is on a Tuesday. No grand parties are planned, no big milestones are being reached.  This year, 9/29 is just a regular school and work night. But I am thinking that we may just have to eat some chicken and savory bread pudding, and I may just have to string up at least one row of my “angel wings” bunting.  To celebrate Michaelmas, the gift of another year, and all the angels in my life.  And if by chance there is one small piece of pie with a candle stuck in, I may just wish for another year to live a life inspired by Michael and his friends, to start another year of living than defending the helpless, sharing tidings of great joy, and providing healing however I can.

 

 

 

All photos in this post are by Omnivore Creative and are featured in A Homemade Year

 

How to make your own Vintage Hankie Bunting

I have a weakness for decorative buntings and banners. I love to string them up everywhere for no particular reason, all year-long. For years I have collected vintage handkerchiefs and doilies, and occasionally I pull them out and find a way to display them for a week or maybe a month, but the majority of the time they have just lived stuffed in drawers, hidden from view. For this party I decided the time had come to use my hankies and doilies to create a party bunting, fluttering with my most favorite hankies.

Materials Needed

Quantity of vintage or new doilies and ladies’ handkerchiefs, approximately 24

Sufficient grosgrain ribbon (¾ inches wide) to stretch across your bunting area

Sewing needle and thread

Directions

Measure the area you want to hang your buntings on (I made 2, each 8 yards long because I wanted them to make a big impact in the outdoor space. )

Cut your ribbon to the length (or lengths) of the area you just measured.

Next, gather your hankies and doilies. Cut medium and large doilies in half. (I have not found that the edges of mine fray. I don’t wash them, but you could always use a product such as Fray-Chek on the edges if you are concerned about the unraveling.)

Next, stretch your ribbon out across a long flat surface. (I used my living room floor.)

Alternating colors, patterns, and styles, arrange your hankies and doilies along your ribbon, leaving about 1 inch in between each item.

Once you have placed your hankies and doilies and you are happy with your pattern, pin each one to your ribbon. Finish by sewing your hankies to your ribbon with a simple topstitch.

Filed under: Blog, Faith, Fete Tagged: featured

Some Homespun Happy

Embroidery hoop display behind the television (inspired by Alicia Paulson’s display in her stairwell years ago. )

Annual Autumn Gilmore Girls viewing.

Wildflowers in the chicken feeder and open windows (such a luxury after 11 years of painted shut windows.)

Pumpkin art on the chalkboard.

Miles’ new venture: Preservation Chestnuts.

PomPom flowers in a mason jar and fluffy pink pumpkins.

Our new old critter, Albus.

Slow start to my Monday morning.

Homespun happiness in spades.

Selah.

Filed under: Blog, Fluff Tagged: featured, Homespun Happy, My Home