I can hardly believe it myself, but ...

I'm not quite sure what possessed me, but I've committed myself to Blog 365 this morning. It had a lot to do with all those follow-up comments from Sandy's post at Momisodes announcing her decision to go for it.

NaBloPoMo got me started in November and then Holidailies kept me going for December. I resisted, then wavered (trying twice unsuccessfully to log on to the Ning site). In the end, I left it up to the Universe to decide for me. This morning I tried for the 3rd time, telling myself that if I couldn't log on at Ning today ... I'd pass on the project.

When I found myself connected, it seemed inevitable. I'm NOT committing to blog on BOTH sites every day (although I may do so, just as I have for my 1st two months in the "virtual" world) ... however this "incentive" may keep me blogging when I'm tempted to slack off, and (as with NaBloPoMo and Holidailies) I'll continue to meet new Bloggers who pass this way. If anyone wishes to join the fun, just click on the link below and/or at the top of my sidebar for additional information and/or read on for the rules.

The Rules

1. Blog everyday for 365 days.

2. Feb.29th is a Free Day and will be the Blog365 day of rest!
(Thanks Leap Year)

3. You do not HAVE to post to the same blog as long as you post everyday.

4. No internet? Write your post locally and post it once you are back on the grid.

5. Computer Broken? Grab some paper and do some old school blogging.

6. A post is a post, not everything has to be in writing. Photos, YouTube videos, and the like are all considered content.

7. Have fun, because that’s the whole point!

Any takers?

Rerun "Snow Fun" and Inspiration All in One

In my wanderings around the Blogosphere at the beginning of December, I happened upon this at Melissa's ... and was very glad she found it several years ago, bookmarked it, and shared it again this year.
I shared it at Sacred Ruminations back then, but think this might be worth posting again here for whoever might not have seen it. Click on the Snowglobe graphic and follow the directions. Warning: It's still addictive, but it will make you laugh!

Earlier today, I shared a couple of personal memories on my other blog along with the inspirational video that triggered them. If you haven't visited there and have a bit of time, you might find these links worth checking out.

Happy Day After Christmas to All

I'm told it's Boxing Day in England, Canada, Australia (and possibly other places) ... a day to clean up and/or "re-gift" things. Melissa at Part of Everything shared about her experiences with this holiday, causing me to check Wickipedia, however I neither cleaned nor re-gifted anything today because I've been catching up with comments on my two blogs and devoting quality time to Molly who spent more time alone the past couple of days than she's used to. I hope your Christmas was merry and bright. Mine was anything but "white" with Santa Ana winds gusting again. They've calmed down today, but yesterday the palms fronds were flying everywhere.

I expected to spend more time here in “this virtual world” (with no family in town with whom to celebrate), but surprisingly I’ve created new traditions of my own this year as I experienced the kindness of friends who knew of my situation. After decades of including “strays” in our family gatherings, I’ve become one … and realize (perhaps for the 1st time while being on the "receiving" end) what a lovely gift such fellowship is.

While responding to Eve at Adamswife's Blog, I noticed that Zazzy left a link to an unique version of the 12 days of Christmas I'd never seen or heard before ... performed by the Indiana University's all male A'capella choir known as "Straight No Chaser". If you've not experienced them, I hope you'll check this out. Their version was most unusual and entertaining.

I hope 2007 has been a good one for you. According to this Blog-thing mine was FANTASTIC, and I'm grateful! If you decide to take this quiz yourself click the link below my results. I hope your prove as good or better than mine. If you'd rather, you can try the second one to see which movie your Christmas was most like here. Mine was like the Charlie Brown's ... but I have no idea what the other options were.

You Had a Fantastic Year!

Compared to most years, last year was definitely great. Overall, you're living a much better life than you were twelve months ago. And nothing is a better mark of a good year. Here's to hoping next year is even better!

How Did Your Year Rate?

I don't know how many of you know that NORAD tracks Santa's progress each year. We used to check their website when my nieces and nephew were little, but I've not done so for years. I was reminded this morning at Melissa's and have added a note for NEXT year in my Palm LifeDrive along with the reminder to participate in Operations Christmas.

For Your Christmas Viewing Pleasure

I'm just kidding ... seriously kids! Didn't Santa visit your house? At Spiritdoll, Kara listed John Denver and the Muppets singing "The 12Days of Christmas"
as one of her favorite things and Endment left this link in a comment there. Since I'd never seen
this video clip before, I assume there could be others in the Blogosphere who might enjoy it today. So, on this WINDY day in Southern California (as I go peel Satsuma tangerines to bring & share at Christmas dinner), sit back and enjoy if time permits ... or invite the whole family to watch with you.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Christmas Spirit in Action

Browsing a bunch of blogs brought to my attention these stories of the season to warm the heart and inspire Christmas "miracles" of the memorable kind. Reaching out to do for others enriches us all.

Melissa at Part of Everything tells of her active participation in Operation Santa in three parts ... here, here, and here. This is something I plan to do next year.

Talking Bear, at Sleepy Bear Hollow, shares a story of a co-worker's efforts to enlist assistance in transforming Christmas for 7 families this year, and Endlessly Restless left this link to a 2nd blogger's personal memory of being on the receiving end of a holiday miracle in a comment a SBH in response to TB's post.

At zena musings, Carla writes of her poignant experience working with her mother at the Hearth providing Christmas for women in need.

At her writing nook, Mary reveals her memory of meeting and providing assistance to an angel in disguise at Christmas time years ago.

May Christmas Spirit fill your hearts & minds
with peace, love, compassion, and joy
today, tomorrow, and throughout
the 12 days of Christmas
and into 2008

Hugs and Blessings to All!

It's another rainy day and I've got places to go ...

but if you're housebound with time on your hands, here are a few more links of interest:

1. Try this weird number game from the creative spirit that can also be found here.

2. At Minivan Diaries learn about the 2 Million Minute Documentary.

3. Consider this Christmas meditation at Prosperos books.

4. For 5 different types of Christmas Carol Quizzes go here, here, here, here, and here. (Aside to all of you, but especially Sherck who found mine too easy, I suspect you'll find these more challenging!) For you moms out there, this page also contains links to Christmas games you might find of use, but no fair peeking at the quiz answers until you've given them a whirl on your own.

5. If you need a chuckle ... read Is Santa a Woman? ... find out if you're a Grinch ... think about these Christmas riddles and/or check out these (politically incorrect) Carols for the Psychiatrically Challenged.

I'm off to run errands, get my hair cut, and engage in "Santa Stuph" for most of the day even if it's raining out and I'd rather cozy up to a cracking fire with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate ... or (more productively) to settle in to create something I can use for my Christmas Cards this year. Sigh ... such is life. "It's always something!" as Gilda Radner used to say.

Links of Interest You Might Enjoy

For today, Molly and I decided to share some Holiday links and other items of interest on a variety of topics encountered recently in the Blogosphere. Enjoy (or not) as time permits:

1. Read this "real-life" story about a unique holiday gift: I Know This Much is True

2. Try this latest Blogthing ... Do You Have the Christmas Spirit?

3. Laugh at this bit of dry wit in a cartoon about Rudolph and name-calling.

4. Discover an amazing bit of the universe and night sky at Quasar9.

5. For other "newbies" like myself, here's the introduction to Smiler's Blogging 101 class followed by the 1st session explaining acronyms and 2nd session on making text links with Blogger and HTML code.

Twelve Random Christmasy Things About Me

No "M" word here ... just some Hoopla!

I've been "tagged" by Mama Zen for a little Hoopla, and although I'm sorely tempted to hold onto this for my Thursday Thirteen activity (making it a baker's dozen rather than 12) ... as Mama Zen sez ... time is short for others to play so here I go.

The rules
(though by now you realize
I have difficulty being told what to do):

1. List 12 random things about yourself that have to do with Christmas
2. Please refer to it as a 'hoopla' and not the dreaded 'm'-word (which, for you bloggy newbies, is meme)
3. You have to specifically tag people when you're done. None of this "if you're reading this, consider yourself tagged" stuff is allowed...then nobody ends up actually doing it. The number of people who you tag is really up to you -- but the more, the merrier to get this 'hoopla' circulating through the Blogosphere.
4. Please try and do it as quickly as possible. The Christmas season will be over before we know it and I'd like to get as many people involved as possible.

In no particular order ...

1. For the first 4 years in our very first home, we purchased live Monterey pine trees to display indoors and decorate. After Christmas we planted these in our yard. When we sold the place after living there 10 years (to move here to the beach), these were HUGE trees with lots of memories attached! Leaving them behind was difficult.

2. I'll be celebrating the holidays this year with friends rather than family because my sister and her husband are on the East Coast (in Georgia) while I'm at home in Southern California. They'll move on to Florida for the winter on the 26th and plan to continue their 2 year trip across the USA.

3. Here are some of the Christmas mugs hanging in my kitchen. If you stop by, I'll be happy to serve you Starbuck's Christmas Blend coffee in the morning and/or make you tea (or hot chocolate) in the afternoon.




4. I haven't put up a tree for several years, but I do decorate with a few special things each year. I shared one such display yesterday at Sacred Ruminations here and intend to share other holiday decorations and traditions between now and Christmas.

5. I create original holiday cards each year to send to friends and family. I'm usually rushing at the last minute to get these in the mail before Christmas comes so they usually arrive between Christmas and New Year's Day. This year I'm worried they might not get out at all because I'm spending so much time blogging. Sigh!

6. Like Mama Zen, I watch "It's a Wonderful Life!" every holiday season, though not always on Christmas Eve.

7. When growing up, we didn't have much money and often gave "gifts of our time & service" to one another ... a tradition I continued throughout my 34 years in the classroom by providing a variety of holiday "coupons" my students could fill in, decorate, and/or assemble into books for friends and family members ... offering services like back rubs, hugs, a variety of specific chores (without reminding), etc. Everyone seemed to enjoy giving and receiving such gifts to one another.

8. When we bought THIS house in 1980 (it was well beyond our means at the time and necessitated serious spending cutbacks) we created and gave as gifts "Invitations" for an evening at our "Dinner Theater and Playhouse" ... complete with official "tickets" (containing instructions for making "reservations" ... along with a variety of menu, film, and video-game choices. Many of our friends had never played video-games at the time and enjoyed "reserving" games & videos as they selected from Chinese, Italian, English, & Mexican cuisine for their special evening at the beach with us. Doing this permitted us to spread holiday expenses throughout the year and spend quality time with friends and family. Interestingly, once we could afford to purchase and give gifts again, everyone missed these yearly invitations even though we continued to entertain regularly.

9. I'll miss my sister's Christmas cookies this year. She always makes the best chocolate chip cookies, but my favorites are the buttery sugar cookies using my mom's recipe.

10. And that reminds me that I'll miss making tamales with her for New Year's ... a tradition we've practiced for a decade or more.

11. Like Mama Zen ... I believe in Santa and one of my favorite Christmas books is THE POLAR EXPRESS. Since I didn't see the Tom Hanks version when the movie was released, perhaps I'll rent and watch it this year.

12. Attending candlelight services on Christmas Eve is a tradition in my family I still enjoy.

(I couldn't resist the bakers dozen idea) so ...
13. Although I don't have a tree, I do hang ornaments and angels throughout the house. Most of these were gifts from students throughout the years ... many hand made by them with loving care ... all bring back lovely memories.

If there are new visitors to my blog today, you can see how I used to decorate for the holidays here.

Happy Holidays to everyone!

Now ... I'm tagging
Annie, Kikipotamus, Sandy, and Ladybug!

Kara
and Karen,
you can do this only if
you promise
not to stress yourselves out!
As Mama Zen says
the more the merrier so
if anyone else
feels the urge to participate
leave a link here so I can read your answers.
So
how
about
YOU?

Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Answers

As promised, here are the answers to the 1st Annual Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz. Thanks to everyone who played, hummed, and sang along. I'm told #1 & 9 were doozies! I guess we all have our favorite carols, and these are two of mine. I didn't realize they were obscure when I created the Quiz, but now I do.

1. There’s a Song in the Air

2. What Child is this Who Lay to Rest

3. Angels From the Realm of Glory

4. Joy to the World the Lord Has Come

5. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

6. O Come All Ye Faithful

7. The First Noel, the Angels Did Say

8. We Three Kings of Orient Are

9. In the Bleak Midwinter, Frosty Wind Made Moan

10.Good Christian Men Rejoice

Be sure to watch for this lovely award created by Mary (with snow added by me) as you wander the Blogosphere.

FeedBurner Links, Photos, and Christmas Stuph

My Head is Pounding,
but I've got a FeedBurner Link
and a picture by my name
so ...

After beginning early this morning with good intentions, I find it's well into the afternoon before I've return to write and publish this. Once again, Kara saved the day by helping me clean up the mess I made and finish the installation. Thanks my friend! :)

I've jumped on the RSS FeedBurner band-wagon. After finding links like this on other blogs useful to me as I've wandered the Blogosphere, I decided to experiment here. I'm not sure exactly how all this works, but since I've used a "reader" for a while now (thanks to Annie), if linking up like this makes it easier for others to keep track of things, I'm willing to give it a go. So ... you'll notice the RSS "Subscribe" logo in my Sidebar. Hopefully this makes it simpler if you use a "reader" and wish to subscribe. If you encounter problems, please let me know so I can make modifications as necessary.

While I had Kara on the phone, I asked her to help me add a picture to my profile (something I've been trying to do for a couple of weeks now without success because I couldn't figure out WHERE to add it) but she directed me to the Bloggers Dashboard. Yes, it was there all along in the upper right hand corner ... clear as day! EDIT PROFILE (duh). I've searched every menu in Settings and Layout multiple times on numerous occasions, but it never occurred to me to check the Dashboard. Sigh! I don't think I've looked at that page since late October when I created my blogs. Doesn't the holiday wreath Mary made for me look festive? I'm happy to add that I've already passed this information on to another blogger seeking help a little while ago, and share it here for anyone else struggling with this challenge.

I'm pleased to report that I've been keeping things under control finally with Google Reader by choosing the "Mark all as read" option every time I add a new blog ... something I could have done all along, but for some reason couldn't make myself do until "rambling" about this dilemma recently at Sacred Ruminations and deciding to take action. MSN is another matter.

And finally (as promised previously) here are the "now you see them, now you don't ... oh there they are again" holiday decorations in my neighbor's yard. It seems these little Christmas Critters scurry to take cover when the rains come, but return to their places when the sun comes out again. Only in Southern California, right?

Last Call!

Christmas Carol lyrics will be posted tomorrow morning, so if you haven't done so already, be sure to email your Christmas Carol Quiz answers to me before you turn off your computer tonight. Remember, it's not necessary to have all ten. Send what you've figured out and celebrate the fun! My e-address is: smallreflections@gmail.com

T-13 thanks, Friday Hugs, Christmas Carol Quiz info, Windy California Weather, & Problems Leaving Comments on either Blog

First off ... thanks for all the heartfelt comments left about yesterday's T-13 here! I'm overwhelmed by the supportive encouragement from everyone, and I've added a series of personal responses to your feedback (within the comments section) yesterday and this morning ... some of which are longer than my average daily post. LOL

I gave some thought to using the one I wrote and left this morning as a post for today's offering, but figured I'd simply reference it here and move on to other things. I do encourage others to consider the question of what you might do if you knew you couldn't fail, and invite you to leave a link here if you decided to do so. I'd love to read (and comment on) your lists!

Regarding the Christmas Carol Quiz. Several of you have indicated (with creatively colorful language) that a couple are giving you fits. May I suggest you email me the answers you have today and relax. Absolute accuracy isn't necessary to have a good time, and (as others discovered previously) ... sending the list removed stress allowing answers to arrive unbidden. You can always send another email with additional answers as they show up. Google gives me LOTS of free storage! I'm currently using 0% of the available space there. You have until midnight on Saturday, December 15th, to send me your list. I'll end the suspense and post the answers on Sunday, the 16th ... and will email the HTLM code for the award to participants then as well.

A little more than a week ago, we had stormy weather in Southern California (no snow or ice, just wind and rain). Interestingly, the palm fronds all landed in a pile in the middle of the street (see the 3rd row in this collage for those first pictures) ... something we've never seen happen before. After taking a few photos, I went on about the day's activities without giving it any more thought ... although all of us in the neighborhood assumed someone from the City would send a crews to gather them up at some point.


This morning, the pile remains ... though someone has moved them from the middle of the street to a pile near the curb (see photos on left side of collage). One can only guess how long they'll remain ... but the street sweeper does come next Monday (on MY side of the street where the pile currently resides) ... so we'll see what happens in a few days. Does anyone know how to change the sequence of pictures when creating a collage with Picasa? I've got no clue how the program decides to arrange the pictures in a collage, but it clearly has nothing to do with the order in which I take the snapshot. Sigh! So much to learn ... still.

If any of you need to feel warmer today, I hope my photos help. Certainly, I've enjoyed YOUR winter weather vicariously without having to shovel sideways or bundle up to go outdoors ... so thanks for sharing and I look forward to more wintry pictures as I wander the Blogosphere.

Finally, I've received email from a few folks who have found it difficult (if not impossible) to leave comments on one or both of my blogs. If you experience problems, please let me know so I can look into the problem and figure out how to solve it. I like reading and responding to comments, so I wouldn't want anyone to feel frustrated or discouraged.

Thursday Thirteen #2

Thirteen Things I’d Do If I Knew I Couldn’t Fail (in no particular order)

1. Submit a manuscript for publication
2. Participate in a Poetry Slam
3. Create educational environments to empower kids and inspire them to explore whatever interests them (for however long it does) … allowing & encouraging them to follow their dreams and desires rather than “contain themselves”
4. Become a “motivational speaker” and/or storyteller in the oral tradition
5. Fix my leaky faucets myself
6. End world hunger
7. Rid the world of violence, war, aggression & hostility
8. Learn to draw and/or paint to illustrate my writing colorfully
9. Teach Molly & Ms. Kitty to be friends
10. Calm myself and overcome self-doubt
11. Clear clutter from my home and distractions from my mind … learning to focus on one thing at a time and make decisions easily
12. Set up a foundation, a scholarship, and/or create a legacy for the future
13. Learn to speak and understand other languages.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

For
easy
access,
I’ve listed
more T-13 links
along with
the Thursday Thirteen
Blogroll to my
sidebar

Reminder: You've got 2 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Did you notice the "snowy" effects in the award Mary created that's now displayed in the sidebar here? As previously announced: Peajay, Joy, John and Carrie were the first 4 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs.

Who's going to be next?

My Luck Quotient and other Random Musings

This Blog-thing came up as a "random choice" while I was doing the "inner child" quiz from Lucy's today. I used a different Quiz at Sacred Ruminations earlier and found myself pondering a variety of issues there for quite some time this morning. It's all saved as a "draft" as I go about the day's activities ... but here I am generating a similar (but different) post. If you take this quiz, I hope you'll share YOUR results in a comment (or a link to your Blog if you'd rather share there).

Your Luck Quotient: 84%

You have an extremely high luck quotient. Not only do you consider yourself lucky, probably everyone you know does too. But you're smart enough to know that you've mostly made your own luck. By being positive, open, and flexible, a lot of luck has come your way!

How Lucky Are You?

I'm reminded that over the past week or so, Bloggers have discussed a "Reading-level Analysis" tool that apparently analyzes URLs and assigns a "rating" from Elementary School to "Genius" levels. If you want to give it a try, it's here. When I've tried it, this Blog comes up College Undergrad Level, but Sacred Ruminations comes up "Genius Level" ... but since I write them both, I can't help but wonder what criteria is used. The one thing I am relieved about is that they neither comes up "Junior High" where I know from experience, hormones are raging and the brain is "on hold" for the most part. If you'd care to share ... feel free to add to your Quiz results.

For the "public service" part of this post, I offer the following link to a one at Living on Purpose that asks the question ... "What would you do if you knew you could not fail?" If you decide to consider the question on your Blog, be sure to leave a link here. I'll do likewise. That way we can share our answers with other another.

In case you
missed yesterday's
winner ...

Congratulations
to Carrie of
Earthmovers and Sandcastles
who is the 4th person
to correctly identify all ten of
the Christmas Carols
in the Quiz.

Reminder: You've got 3 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Did you notice the "snowy" effects in the award Mary created that's now displayed in the sidebar here? As previously announced: Peajay, Joy and John were the first 3 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs.

Who's going to be next?

Happy 9th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Decorating for the Holidays -- Christmas Past

Once upon a time, a few years back a friend helped me decorate for the holidays each year on the day after Thanksgiving. Making my home festive encouraged others on the block to do likewise. This collage is composed of photos from 2003 and 2004 mixed together, and illustrates Christmas Past.

In the last few years, I've decorated less ... but I have neighbors who have taken up the challenge. I'll show THOSE pictures another day. I've walked out into the garage a few times in the past week and considered taking some of these decorations out of storage and putting them on display, but thus far MY only decorating has taken place on both of my Blogs ... and inside my house. Watch for those pictures in the days to come.

Congratulations
to Carrie of
Earthmovers and Sandcastles
who is the 4th person
to correctly identify all ten of
the Christmas Carols
in the Quiz.

Reminder: You've got 4 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Did you notice the "snowy" effects in the award Mary created that's now displayed in the sidebar here? As previously announced: Peajay, Joy and John were the first 3 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs.

Who's going to be next?

Happy 8th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Yard Reclamation Project -- Part 4 or Coming to my Senses and Gratefully Accepting Help

This continues the saga of the Spring and Summer of 2006 when I decided to make some changes. If you missed earlier installments (and want to catch up) you can look here for Part 3, here for Part 2 and here for Part 1.

After 27 years,
the individual Tam Junipers
on the parkway
had grown together to look like this,
and the Korean grass clippings from years of edging
had taken root underneath
and strugged for
dominance.

I might be trying to dig this up even now
had I not allowed these men
to help.

Watching these guys work made me grateful
for the good sense to allow myself
some rest and assistance.

As I shared in a previous post, it took three workers more than 4 hours (using power tools) to make the lawn area level. Even better, they hauled away the debris so I didn't have make multiple trips dragging heavy trash cans filled to capacity the 120 feet from my front yard to the alley behind my house :)

The "parkway" task took 4 workers almost 5 hours to accomplish!

Next comes some additional ROOT removal
followed by the replanting that
I did myself :)

Reminder: You've got 5 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. As previously announced: Peajay, Joy and John were the first 3 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs. Who's going to be next?

Happy 7th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

How Much Do You Know About Christmas?

I'm not sure what possessed me today, but I clicked on "What's new" at Blogthings and found this Holiday Quiz (and another I've posted at Sacred Ruminations). Perhaps you'll do better than I did ... and perhaps even want to gloat in comments?

I
guess
I don't know
as much as I thought I did
but I'm going with
the data as presented to me
just because.
Sigh
7/10?

You Know a Lot About Christmas

You got 7/10 correct You know tons about the history and traditions surrounding Christmas. When you celebrate the holidays, you never forget their true meaning - or all the little fun details. Random Christmas fact: Thomas Edison has the first Christmas lights, three years after he invented the electric lightbulb.

How Much Do You Know About Christmas?

(I suspect everyone may know more than me.)

Reminder: You've got 6 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. In fairness (and for full disclosure), Karen asked for "hints" in a comment on yesterday's post and I responded as follows (though I don't know whether or not there are hints here):

Karen said... Seeing this reclamation project is making me think about taking on my own yard. And by the way--argh, woman!! The quiz is driving me crazy! There are two that I can't figure out (TASITA & ITBMFWMM)--will there be hints as we get closer to deadline?

I responded: Karen - LOL ... those are the same two that gave all three of the, previous winners "fits" as well! I believe Joy used the phrase "holy guacamole" in HER email to me regarding ITBMFWMM. Interestingly, that one ended up on the list because (while I was creating the list) I was listening to a Barbra Streisand CD on which she sings this song. The 1st, TASITA, was MY favorite as a teenager. Hmmm ... I wonder if those qualify as "clues" and if I need to "post" this information for everyone?

As previously announced: Peajay, Joy and John were the first 3 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs. Who's going to be next?

Happy 6th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Yard Reclamation Project - Part 3 (Pulling the Korean grass from between the rocks by hand)

In order to avoid yesterday's "time issues" ... I've opted to make today's post my first priority today and will do the post at Sacred Ruminations later.

As promised (some time ago I'll admit, but better late than never ... right?) here are close up photos of the "clearing the grass from between the rocks by hand" process. If you missed earlier installments (and want to catch up) you can look here for Part 2 and here for Part 1.

Originally, I intended this to be a 3-part series, but as things so often happen ... it's going to have at least 2 more parts ... and possibly more (some projects take on a life of their own). So stay tuned (or not) as you choose.

Reminder: You've got 7 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Peajay, Joy and John were the first 3 Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs. Who's going to be next?

Happy 5th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Where did this day go?

I started writing this post HOURS ago, but LIFE has intervened keeping me busier than I like to be. At the moment, I find myself ready to turn off the computer, fix dinner, and cuddle with Molly a while. Of course, I need to finish this post and publish it before logging off. I promise to do better tomorrow, but for tonight ... I'm taking the "easy" route by suggesting that if you've not checked out the post I left this morning at Sacred Ruminations, you might find it fun to do so now :)

FYI - I've updated both my sites to Blogger's Draft Mode so hopefully everyone will be able to leave "links" to their URLs again. If you use a platform other than Blogger, click to the right of the Blogger/Google sign-in area to reveal a list of platforms. Choose one then enter your information, including your URL.

The last couple of days have been frustrating at best because we received no email notifications of posts, but this morning things seemed back to normal. Today emails have arrived the way they used to and it's been a challenge to keep up.

CONGRATULATIONS to John
for being the 3rd person
to answer the Christmas Carol Quiz correctly!

Reminder: You've got 8 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Peajay & Joy were the first two Bloggers to get all 10 correct and have the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award to post on their Blogs. Who's going to be next?

Happy 4th night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Thursday Thirteen #1



Thirteen Things about ...
Authors and Books worth Sharing with Young Children.
1. Anything by Eric Carle ... but start with THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR and proceed from there.
2. Everything by Robert Munsch ... but don't miss THE PAPERBAG PRINCESS and I'LL LOVE YOU FOREVER. I found his website here: http://robertmunsch.com/booklist.cfm
3. STELLA LUNA (methinks by Richard Scarry who's written many others also)--Uh oh ... Mea Culpa! This one is by Janell Cannon, and I'm grateful to Alida for setting me straight. Guess I could have "Googled" these, but (alas) I relied on my memory. Sigh
4. CLOUDY WITH a CHANCE of MEATBALLS by Judi Barrett
5. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE by Maurice Sendak
6. HAROLD AND THE PURPLE CRAYON by Crockett Johnson
7. ASK MR BEAR by Marjorie Flack
8. GOODNIGHT MOON and RUNAWAY BUNNY by Margaret Wise Brown
9. GOODNIGHT GORILLA by Peggy Rathman
10. IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIE (and all the spinoffs) by Laura Joffe Numeroff
11. THE PINKISH BLUISH PURPLISH EGG by Steven Kellogg who also has many others if memory serves
12. BROWN BEAR BROWN BEAR WHAT DO YOU HEAR and CHICKA CHICKA BOOM BOOM by Bill Martin
13. anything by Judith Viorst, Bill Peet, & Dr. Seuss ... and of course I loved THE POLAR EXPRESS at this time of year. I confess I read it aloud every Christmas, even to my 8th graders when teaching Middle School, and was always surprised to find a few kids who had never heard the story.

A few additional comments for the parents of young children who want to give their kids a good start in school. As a kindergarten teacher, my sister ...
--highly recommends including all the nursery rhymes (3 pigs,
3 bears, gingerbread boy, etc) because knowing them gives kids a running start at school.
--says to skip the "cartoon strip books" based on TV shows that kids seem drawn to because of television exposure. She says they're mundane & boring and not worth the time or expense.
--suggests walking into a public library and/or a good book store and asking whoever works in the children’s department what’s new and wonderful because that’s what she did as a young mom to find all these treasures.

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CONGRATULATIONS to Joy
for being the 2nd person
to answer the Christmas Carol Quiz correctly!

Reminder: You've got 9 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Peajay was the first to get all 10 correct and has the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award posted on her Blog. Who's going to be next?

Happy 3rd night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.

Holidailies -- Introduction (just a little late)

Whilst perusing the "virtual world" this morning, I came perchance upon a site with THIS:

I thought to myself ... do I need some time off from Blogging for other things?

It's true December is a busier than normal month ... with holiday parties ... shopping ... gift wrapping ... Christmas cards (Ohmygosh - Reminder to self: I need to get crackin' on making those!) ... decorating ... baking ... (you get the idea), but I'm on a roll with NaBloPoMo and don't want to lose momentum. Participating in the 30 posts in 30 days activity led me to meet even more interesting folk and brought visitors to both my Blogs. Even now, I'm following up on those "leads" and may eventually find it overwhelming to keep up, but so far ... so good.

Fortunately, I discovered these as well:
You'll notice
I have added one
here at Small Reflections
and the other
at Sacred Ruminations
because

I've decided to

continue posting daily on both Blogs.

As some of you know, I began Blogging here on October 22nd of this year and at Sacred Ruminations on October 23rd. My "story" is in my Sidebar ... and additional info in my Profile ... so I won't repeat myself here. I will add that I wish I'd listened to friends and family sooner. They knew what I didn't ... that this is my element! It helps that I'm "happily retired" and have more time than most to "play" in this "virtual" universe. Often, I feel as if I've died and gone to heaven.

I've wandered through the "Blogosphere" visiting other Bloggers, reading & leaving comments, looking to see what's possible, returned to experiment and teach myself what I need to know to be creative here. I've posted something just about every day on each site, and had fun doing so ... figuring things out as I go. I appreciate those of you who have followed me back (who knew that would happen?) and left comments in return. Knowing there's an "audience" out there keeps me honest :)

So ... it's a good thing I continued to post daily because I'm not behind ... yet. Hopefully I won't let myself fall behind. I fully intend to meet the goal of 31 posts in 31 days from December 1st through January 1st! In addition, I plan to venture out and read what other Hollidailies bloggers are writing. I've added links in the Sidebar of both sites to relevant pages so that any of you who wish to enjoy these posts can do so with ease.

Now ... for my regular public service announcements :)
--If you need a laugh this evening, check out the video clip at Karyn's blog. (You know how important laughter is to me).
--Reminder: You've got 11 more days to figure out the Christmas Carol Quiz answers and email them to me. Peajay is the first to get all 10 correct and has the Small Reflections Christmas Carol Quiz Award posted on her Blog. Who's going to be next?

Happy 1st night of Hannukah
to all those who celebrate
this holiday.