Let's Do Christmas Like They Do It In Texas

In Burnet, Texas they remember the real reason for the season. Come on ya'll. Come with me to Main Street Bethlehem.

As you approach the walls of the city of Bethlehem, you notice families huddled around campfires cooking their evening meals and trying to stay warm. They have not been able to find room in the city, because it is so crowded. They've all come to be counted by Caesar Augustus and to pay their taxes.

Once inside the gates there is much to see. You will have to move slowly through the streets. They are filled with bustling crowds of people from the countryside. You can peek in the windows of the local tavern, have a sample of tasty hot Bethlehem bread, see the local citizens, Roman soldiers and more.


The shops and bazaars are open late into the night to accommodate visitors. People line up to pay the tax collector. To help him determine how much your tax will be he will ask you questions like, "how many children and animals do you have?" If you are poor and not able to give Caesar his portion of your livelihood a Roman soldier will come and take you to jail.

Once your taxes are taken care of, you can shop at the many stalls in the bazaar. Perhaps you need some fine camel thread or maybe a woven reed mat on which to place your lambswool rug for sleeping.

Maybe you would like to buy some fine jewelry made from Roman coins or perhaps a few freshly dipped candles would suit your needs tonight. The blacksmith is hard at work in the square. Do you need some new tools for farming? People push and jostle one another. A friendly woman explains that she is grinding meal as her mother and her mother's mother before her have done.

A family calls out to you from their home. They offer you a drink of water and a bit of cheese and bread. "Please join us stranger, you look tired and hungry." They are happy to share supper with you but their house is already overcrowded, you will have to keep looking for a place to sleep. All of the Inns are full tonight.

After you have spent a few moments of respite in the home of your kind new friends you wish them shalom and once again continue on your way still searching for a room to spend the night in. Along the way, you see camels, many goats and sheep as well as a Roman chariot.

You hear the shofar calling you to worship and slip into the synagogue to say a prayer asking God for His help in finding room in one of the local Inns.

As you come back out into the street you overhear a shepherd telling a shopkeeper that he has seen a host of angels telling of the birth of the Messiah. He has come to Bethlehem to see the baby they told him of.

You decide to go see for yourself. On the way you pass the local carpenter's shop.

It is then that you notice the star in the sky. It is big and even brighter than the moon tonight.

You walk around the corner, behind the Inn. It is here that you see more shepherds and then in a stable you see him. You see a swaddling babe, the Light of the World, Immanuel, God with us, the Prince of Peace.

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2: 10-12

As you leave Bethlehem, you are invited to have some hot chocolate and cookies.

My son and his family have made a visit to Bethlehem one of their Christmas traditions every year since they moved to Texas. They invited me out last week so that I could make the trip with them. If you are ever in the area, Main Street Bethlehem is not to be missed.

A Short Intermission

I will be with my family in Texas for the remainder of the week. While I am away please enjoy this musical intermission with Celtic Woman.


Be back soon!

A Family Tradition

My sister's grandaughter Morgan and Aubrey working on their messy masterpieces

This year's gingerbread/graham cracker house making tradition was kind of a bust. The kids had lots of fun, but the grownups just weren't into it. The royal icing didn't want to get stiff enough, which resulted in a couple of houses imploding. Finally, on the third try we got a good batch and the girls were able to finish their houses.

Avery with her finished house. Her's turned out the best this year. The roof is covered with Smarties.

For those of you who would like to give this a try here are the ingredients and instructions.

graham crackers
eggs
powdered sugar
cardboard squares covered with foil for sturdy bases
assorted candy such as twizzlers, tiny size chiclets for walkways and christmas lights along roof lines, fruit stripe gum for window shutters, peppermints, kisses, m&ms, Hershey bars for doors, yellow fruit roll-ups for windows and blue ones for ponds
zip-lock baggies
We use leftover Halloween candy, coconut for snow, marshmellows for snowmen, anything you can think of.

Morgan's first house collapsed, but after we got the icing recipe right she built another one. It is quite cute.

Aubrey was mostly interested in getting hers as tall as possible.

Martha Stewart's Stiff Royal Icing:
Makes 3 cups
3 large egg whites
5 cups of confectioner's sugar

In mixer beat egg whites on low until frothy. Beat in 1/4 cup of sugar. Add remaining sugar and beat on high until mixture holds a peak and is very thick. 5-10 minutes. (if the icing is not very very thick and dry add more sugar and beat well)

The little dude climbed up on a chair and got in on the fun.

Daddy wasn't so sure about a dinner of candy.

Mmmmm, good!

Using a cake knife cover each base with 1/4 inch of icing. Next, spoon more mixture into zip-lock bags and snip off a tiny edge on a corner forming a piping bag for each person to use. Pipe a thick line of icing and begin to build your house. Be sure to glue every edge together with ample amounts of icing. Then add candy and decorate until you have the best candy house ever!

I Love Books

Trish from Nana's Living the Dream challenged me a while back to post 7 interesting/quirky things about myself. I think I will write about my favorite fictional books since I spilled the beans about everything else of interest about myself here previously.

My night table

Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns (1984) is loosely based on the life of Ms. Burns grandfather, who was a Civil War veteran. If you read this Southern classic, you will feel as though you are right there in turn of 20th century Cold Sassy along with all of the Blakeslee family mourning the death of Granny Blakeslee and feeling the shame of Grandpa's remarriage three weeks later. (true story...on the way home from the Smokies 15 or so years ago ex husband and I were tired and stopped to spend the night in a motel right off the freeway in northern GA. Some vague thought nagged at me all night long. In the morning it came to me. We were in Commerce, the actual town that was the basis of Cold Sassy Tree. I was so excited. We drove all over town,which wasn't very large, so I could see the home of my favorite book close up)

The hall bookcase

Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton (1948) is set in South Africa and juxtapositions a humble black tribal pastor with a powerful rich white landowner. They are drawn together by a common tragedy. It is a powerful story of love and redemption and while apartheid is not a theme of the book, it does go far to explain the reasons and structures behind the practice. Recently, Robyn of Art Propelled mentioned that her paternal grandmother and the author were first cousins. I wonder how that figures into the six degrees of separation for me?

One of the downstairs bookcases

East Wind, West Wind by Pearl Buck (1930) is the story of a western educated Chinese doctor who is matched with a traditional Chinese woman in an arranged marriage. It's the story of east meet west told from the viewpoint of Kwei-lan, the wife. It is a simple and sweet story that I have loved since I first read it in the 70s or early 80s. I have read most of Ms. Buck's books and have enjoyed all of her tales of the east

Some of my art books and magazines

The Pull of the Moon by Elizabeth Berg (1996) is the story of a middle aged woman who runs away from husband and home to find herself. The reader sees the progression of her thoughts in the things she records in her diary and in her letters to her husband. (I generally like all of Berg's books

Some more how-to books

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry is hands down the best western ever written in my humble opinion. And McMurtry is a genius at the art of writing dialogue. I loved this novel from start to finish. If you've never read it you owe it to yourself

Just a few of my Little Golden books

Papa's Daughter, Dear Papa, Papa's Wife, and This is My Life by Thyra Ferre Bjorn circa early 60s. These sweet books are a mixture of fact and fiction about a Swedish pastor who comes to America with his family. I found these books one by one at the thrift store. Everytime I chanced upon a new one I was delighted to be able to read more about this little family.

The bookcase in the den

Sorry Trish, I can't make it through all seven. I've got tons to do tonight and so I've got to cut my post short. Sufice it to say, I love books. Almost every room has either a bookcase or a pile of books or magazines in it. I have collected over 350 Little Golden books (bought 3 new ones today) and I still have all of my girlhood collection of mystery books too. I enjoy mystery, spy thrillers (Robert Ludlum was my favorite author in this genre), biography, self-help, chick lit, almost any type of non-fiction...you name it, I probably like some of it. I also collect old grammar and high school literature and history text books. Any type of art book calls my name. I am a danger to my checking account if loosed in a bookstore.

Bookcase in my computer room

Reading is my favorite hobby.

Tis The Season

Friday night Rachel and I went with friends to the annual Christmas ornament swap at our former church. It is always fun to talk to friends we haven't seen in a long time. There was food, music and an inspirational devotion. Round tables were decorated by volunteers who brought their own table settings, dishes, and centerpieces. Every table was unique and beautiful.

This is the table where we sat. Cute huh?

This is the centerpiece.

Then there was the ornament swapping. Everyone grabbed a gift from the table at the door where we had left them. "If you've received a Christmas card already, swap your ornament with someone. Find someone with the same birth month as yourself and swap. If all of your Christmas shopping is done swap......" Finally, we were told we could open our gifts. Lastly, there was a lot of showing what we received. It was a good way to kick off the season.

Saturday night I was the guest of a dear friend. She had tickets to a concert at the fabulous Alabama Theater sponsored by Opera Birmingham. Soprano, Angela Brown was the featured singer. She was accompanied by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. Two local children's choirs also made appearances, The Magic City Concert Choir and The Birmingham Children's Choir. Both groups gave stand out performances. Mary, Did You Know and O Holy Night were my favorites. We had a great time.

The Chinese inspired Ladies Room-Vanity Tables in the Anteroom.

Fab Art-Deco lights in the second floor hallway.

The more than fabulously fab chandelier in the lobby of the theater.
Look closely and you can see the choir singing a pre-performance concert.

Third floor lighting in the hallway.

The Symphony warming on stage up before the show began.

Even the exit signs are beautiful!

Sunday I will attend a 1st birthday party for my great nephew and then all of my children (except the ones who live in Texas) are coming over for our annual Gingerbread House party. We will make houses out of graham crackers, royal icing and decorate them with tons of candy. We've been doing this every year for almost 10 years. There is usually some heated competion to see who can build the best house. There have been modernist designs, Pennsylvannia Dutch styles, churches and even a trailer park. In the interest of frugality, I began saving all of the leftover candy from year to year to reuse it. When we've finished our houses, we bag all the candy up and store it in the bottom of my freezer until next time. We are carefully point out the fresh candy to the kids and tell them to only eat it....they never listen....uck! We make a huge mess and have the time of our lives.

Making Royal icing is a messy job, but someone has to do it!

Next Wednesday I will be leaving after work to spend a few days in Texas with the rest of my family. They have some fun stuff planned to take me to. And I plan on teaching my TX girls how to make graham cracker houses. I'll be back Sunday evening, so it will be just a short trip, but lots of fun I'm sure.

Why is it most of the year I have nothing to do? It must be because it is all saved up for December!

They May Be Wiser, But They Sure Aren't Happier

Horrible true story....sad, but true. Today my daughter, who teaches Special Ed to 1st through 3rd grades, was trying to help some students understand their writing assignment a little better. Their teacher wanted them to write a paragraph about a fictional character. But these third graders couldn't quite grasp the concept of fictional. Attempting to make the meaning clear she said, "Fictional means someone who isn't real, like Santa."

Immediately she realized she had made a huge mistake when all four little boys cried out "What? What do you mean Santa isn't real?" Rachel tried to backpedal, but once a child begins to doubt...well we've all been there. She said they were really distraught. It seems their teacher had made the same mistake. It's hard not to question who Santa really is after two adults have made the same slip.

She feels bad. She says she never thought that they would still believe, they seem so old in other ways. Maybe they will make it through this Christmas with their illusions of magical things still intact. I hope so. Children grow up so fast. No need to rush it.

Courtesy of Google Images

What Child Is This?

Today I decided that it was about time for me to get my Christmas spirit going on. While working, I listened to Christmas music and drew. I drew the Madonna and Child. My inspiration was the Virgin and Child with the Young John the Baptist by Sandro Botticelli stamp.

At first I drew a quasi-copy of the stamp. You can see where I used the white-out snail to erase lines I didn't like.

With my next attempt, I tried to simplify the mother and child design.

On the left side of today's calendar entry you can see my third attempt to reduce the lines further. And on the right side I tried a new approach to the same topic.


Speaking of my calendar.....I've filled quite a lot of pages with doodles now.

Usually, I am the person who puts up and decorated the office tree. This year I just didn't want to do it. So I folded 6 strips of paper with one of two messages on each: 1. you get to play or 2. you don't get to play this time. I put them in a cup and everyone picked a slip. Turns out the lucky winners were our two newest employees. They were good sports and did a great job, although I would be willing to bet they haven't put decorations on a tree in many years. The best part was I didn't have to do it.

This tree in our parking lot looks like it is in the Christmas spirit with its bright red leaves, doesn't it?
It was so pretty, I had to stop and take a picture.

What have you been doing to get in the mood for the Holidays?

My Not So Secret Secret Addiction

Magazines.....Scrapbook paper....greeting cards....novels....self-help books....art books.....journals....postcards....patterned napkins....tissue paper....wrapping paper....if it is made of paper, then I love it. I collect it. I store it away like a rat! If my house ever catches on fire it will go up like a tinder box. Poof....

I recently read that Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion is looking for a new publisher. Without one, the December/January issue will be the last. This publication was launched in the fall of 1996 and I have been a subscriber since 1997. I've eagerly awaited every issue, wistfully scanned all the Artist's Life sections and avidly read every article. I'll miss this magazine sorely.

I admit, I am one of those folks who subscribe to magazines when I get a good deal, but if renewal is too costly I might let the subscription lapse the next year (Home Companion was the exception) while waiting on the publisher to send me another offer that is too good to refuse. Smithsonian, Traditional Home, Coastal Living, Cloth Paper Scissors and Time are a few of my favorites.

While I actually salivate over all of the Stampington publications, I have never subscribed to one of their many magazines. Frankly, they cost a lot and a year subscription costs as much as it cost to have my first child. Well, maybe not quite as much...but close! So instead I go to the bookstore every other month and allow myself to buy one...or two magazines. Over a year's time I probably spend more than the subscription price, but the sticker shock isn't as great.

My favorite, Somerset Studio, is dedicated to the paper arts. They announce upcoming topics on their website and put out the call for submissions of art. For a long time now, it has been a dream of mine to get published in their magazine. My big problem is that I don't have the time to sit and dream and then make great original stuff within the given time constraints.

Last year I had an epiphany! The magazine always prints mail art in the Letters to the Editor section. Hmmm, no time constraint issue, no specific category.....eureka, I can do this! My mission will be to decorate an envelope so cute...so fantastic...so special they will receive it and yell "Eureka! Just the thing for our next issue!"

I got straight to work....first the original idea....hmmm....then the execution....add the perfect stamp and send my masterpiece on its way. I used scans of vintage advertisement from my granddaddy's newspaper and combined it with scraps of more modern advertising for botox. I put most of the pieces together in Photoshop and printed it out. But I wasn't able to get it to print correctly on the whole envelope. So I used oil pastels and and black pens to draw and color the portion not printed. Voila!

Somerset Studio is a bi-monthly publication, so when it was due out next I ran over to the closest bookstore on my lunch hour and picked one up as usual. On the way back to work I remembered my submission and flipped to the Letters section for a quick look...imagine my surprise when I saw it! My artwork published in all of its postage stamp sized glory! I skipped and hopped into the office and declared my good news! I called my daughter! I showed my whole family!

I've had a taste of glory, now I want more! I want to get a piece published that is at least the size of a index card! Dream big, that's my motto! I'll do it too...one day...as soon as I have time to dream up that great original idea.