{ Our Holiday Card, Made by Us }

on the road

I can't wait to get on the road to see family, give lots of hugs, go sledding, eat lots of good food and cookies, open Christmas Crackers and wear the crowns and hand out a few gifts.

Have a great holiday!

Free Snow(Bloomington)

This ad on Craigslist made me laugh out loud!

Free pristine snow - no yellow snow showing. Could be used for fort, dumped in driveway to test snow blower or melted for water. About two and a half feet worth in front yard. All organic and made in the USA. Trees in picture not included. Ad will run until snow is gone. Thanks for looking.

Collapse

Collapse is a grueling peek at a doomsday prophet's rigorous mind but in a sly way also a compassionate look at the strain Ruppert endures from knowing he has only ever been right.

Robert Adele, Los Angeles Times

Falling Whistles

1,500 people die each day in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
6 million people have died in the past 10 years.
Boys too small to carry guns are sent to the front lines with whistles to warn of the enemy.
Falling Whistles is dedicated to making a difference for these war-torn children.
100% of the proceeds from the sale of these necklaces are used to rehabilitate and advocate for war-affected children.
Find out more here.

Mongolian Dyptychs Tell of Profound Change

A Yin has made it his mission to document the last of the Nomads in Inner Mongolia. The diptychs show immense change. It is frightening to me how fast cultures are being washed away. The time difference in the photos above is only 2 years. See more diptychs and read the article on the Lens Blog.

trimmings

twenty-four brand-new hours

Every morning when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand-new hours to live. What a precious gift!

Thich Nhat Hanh

long-lasting Scrabble

Thankfully, when the blizzard hit MN last week(the Metrodome collapsed!) we were tucked away warm and cozy with friends and games. Saul got very comfortable during our long-lasting Scrabble game. Ha!

Anchor

Craig and I had a fish 'n' chips date at Anchor the other night. mmmmm. mmmmmmm.

aloe blacc

found a gem on the take away shows tonight

Snow-bound

Announced by all the trumpets of the sky,
Arrives the snow; and, driving o'er the fields,
Seems nowhere to alight; the whited air
Hides hills and woods, the river and the heaven,
And veils the farm-house at the garden's end.
The sled and traveller stopped, the courier's feet
Delayed, all friends shut out, the housemates sit
Around the radiant fireplace, inclosed
In a tumultuous privacy of storm.

The Snow-Storm by Emerson

MN is having a blizzard, maybe the biggest since '91! This morning we went on a snow-hike. We stopped for coffee and rested in snow-recliners in a snow bank. We shoveled and shoveled and shoveled. We gazed through icy eyelashes at everything made beautiful with a fresh blanket of snow. Tonight we'll sit by the radiant fire.

we love toasty fires

National Geographic Goodness

The Big Picture is featuring a sampling of photos for National Geographic's 2010 Photography Contest. See them BIG, in all their splendidness, over at The Big Picture.

28 Secrets to Happiness

1 live beneath your means and within your seams
2 return everything you borrow
3 donate blood
4 stop blaming other people
5 admit it when you make a mistake
6 give all the clothes you haven't worn in the last 3 years to charity
7 every day do something nice and try not to get caught
8 listen more; talk less
9 every day take a 30 minute walk around your neighborhood
10 skip 2 meals a week and donate the money to a good cause
11 strive for excellence, not perfection
12 be on time
13 don't make excuses
14 don't argue
15 get organized
16 be kind to people
17 be even kinder to unkind people
18 let someone cut ahead of you in line
19 take time to be alone
20 reread a favorite book
21 cultivate good manners
22 be humble
23 understand and accept that life isn't always fair
24 know when to say something
25 know when to keep your mouth shut
26 don't criticize anyone for 24 hours
27 learn from the past, plan for the future, and live in the present
28 don't sweat the small stuff

-excerpt from The Simple Living Guide

I am going to focus on one thing each day this month.