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It was about 25 degrees F when I got up this morning, cold enough to freeze the birdbath water SOLID. Yes, I know, I'm supposed to empty it when it may freeze but I'm just not that forward thinking and it usually doesn't really freeze. It does sometimes get a thin film of ice but this is SOLID.
One of the coziest things about living in a strawbale house is you never really know how cold it is outside until you, a. look at the thermometer or, b. open the door. It was a nice 70 degrees inside and that's without any heat source. We did have the woodstove going last night, along with the oven while I was fixing dinner; I had to open a window. It gets too dang hot!
Hopefully, this will be the end of our bitter winter-about 3 days is all I can take!
A Solstice Bonfire
On a paper I wrote: Fear, Guilt, Worry. I threw them into the fire and watched the flames reduce them to ash and smoke.
For the new year my focus will be Releasing.
I....Love....Small....Houses! There, I've said it! Not that big houses don't do it for me, too. I remember visiting Biltmore in Asheville when I was about 13 and swooning. In my fantasy I wanted to pull a Claudia Kincaid (From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler) and just live there quietly in some corner and come out at night to play.
But for me in reality, small houses are it. It all started with my neighbor friends 5'x7' play house. It was so cute and I could imagine sewing curtains and painting little furniture pieces-I guess I've always been a nester. I so wanted that little house.
Our current home is small by 2008 standards at just 1200+/- sq feet. But it's not a cramped 1200, it's a just right 1200, at least for us because I designed it for the way we live. However, I could go smaller and everytime I see a well-done tiny house, I want it!
Maybe I'm still searching for that playhouse. One of my favorite reads is the Tiny House Blog The homes featured there aren't playhouses, they're houses in which real people can live. How can you not fall in love with this?
One of these days I'm gonna build me one of those!
tradition: the handing down of information, beliefs, and customs by word of mouth or by example from one generation to another without written instruction (from Merriam-Webster)
Do you have holiday traditions in your home? Are they traditions that you created or did they "just happen"?
This tradition is a bit of both, I guess. The last decoration to go on the tree is the tree-top star (a tradition from my family). The star was found at an after-Christmas clearance in the first couple of years of our marriage. From the time the boys were little they have taken turns, year by year, placing the star. This year was no different.
Burritos made by Dad on tree-trimming night is another tradition. I'm not quite sure how that happened but, I'm glad it did.
What holiday traditions does your family have? I'd love to hear them.
No, not ours but we were involved in this one from start to finish. It's a great house with lots of custom touches in a beautiful setting just outside of Tucson. I did the walls in the great room/kitchen except for the bar. The house is being sold because the owners' jobs were keeping them too close to Tucson. Have fun looking!
StrawBale House for Sale
I've debated whether to post this here but will, as I know the message is an important one.
I've worked in healthcare as an RN for 30 years (wow)-95% of that time at the bedside. As you move up the hierarchy in healthcare facilities there is generally little to be inspired to greatness by. However, I found a blog (Running a Hospital) by a guy a few years ago who I think really gets it. Paul Levy is the President and CEO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and has at his core a burning desire for what is best for the patient! I am continually inspired by his blog and know others are too.
Running a Hospital is where I found out about Engage With Grace. Click on the slide above for a more in-depth discussion of this simple, but oh so important, project.
New job=less time, but that will get better. Here the ottoman is and I love it. It actually looks better than the photos and I took many photos trying to find THE one. This was an easy project and took about 2-3 hours to sew and fit. Once again, the real time is in the demo.
It's finished and pictures are coming!
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