July flies by

I stared at my computer screen for the longest time this morning, searching for an answer, but still simply lost.

July 29.

That's the date that popped up on my Outlook calendar when I booted up. My old-school paper calendar, dangling off a crooked nail, confirmed it: yep, it's July 29.

Still, I was overwhelmed with confusion and denial. How could it actually be July 29th already?

This month has flown by.

It's been such a great July; I've really loved it. Yes, love ... even though it was in the summer.

I've made it pretty clear in the past that I am not a summer girl; I'm an autumn girl. Yet, this past month has been a delight, right up there with the best of Septembers. Even though I spent most of it sick. Even though it rained too much. Even though it was swamp-level humid. Even though my hair was shaggy and unruly.

Even with all that, it was full of good stuff.

We started the month with a beach vacation in Michigan, my favorite vacation destination.

27 years and counting ...

And then we celebrated the Fourth at home.

The garden gave.

Not to brag, but I'm pretty good at growing cukes. Just sayin' ...

The days were long and ended in glorious swirls of melted crayons.

We played games and feasted like kings on fried chicken and donated desserts at our church picnic.

We had some Christmas in July treats here at home, plus a double feature of Elf and Christmas Vacation.

Choc-dipped pretzels, fudge and mint choc chip cookies.

And school started today.

Maybe - just maybe - summer is finally winning me over.

Actually, that's not it.

It's so humid right now, when I step outside it feels like I just dressed myself in a warm, wet wool sweater that's been soaked in a sticky, flat Pepsi and locked in a plastic storage tote that's been stored in the hellish, fiery sun.

So, um, no. It's definitely not a love affair between summer and me.

But July 2015 ... it's been one heck of a fling.

Cash gift idea

So, here you are on Christmas Eve and you have that last gift to snag for a young person on your list ... hmmm ... what to do?

Money, my friends.

Cash = freedom, especially for young people. Freedom to save, spend or just blow it. From the pre-teen years on up through their 20s (and beyond, if we're being honest), kids want cash. They just do.

As a gift giver, though, cash is ... eh, boring. It's no fun to give.

... hands a 20 to nephew ... "Here, go buy yourself something real nice."

Blah.

Recently, I was faced with this conundrum myself. My son was participating in a gift exchange among his cousins. He drew his awesome, wonderful 15-year-old male cousin's name. There was a $20 limit on the gift.

"What do you want to get him?" I asked my son.

"Cash. He's going to want cash, Mom."

Boring.

Not liking that answer, we consulted with the parents to really gauge his heart's desire (at the $20 level) and they said the same thing: he wants cash. He will be 16 soon and he is saving for a car and all the things to go with it - like gasoline and fountain drinks from fast food drive-thrus that you actually do the driving through.

Not satisfied with just having one 15-year-old boy hand another 15-year-old boy a crisp 20 (though both 15-year-olds would have been cool with that), I sought help from the highest authority on how to package said 20 with flair: Pinterest.

Pinterest was too hard.

For example, a simple money tree, you know, where you hang singles from the branches? I'd have to hand craft a tree - a freaking tree of sorts - and then you know, hang the money.

Um, no.

There are a lot of people who are far more creative than I with much more time than I. I love, admire and respect you people. But I am not one of you people.

But there was inspiration.

Here's what I came up with. It can be used for any gift-giving occasion: birthdays, holidays, graduation, new home, new job, etc.

It involved the following: A wooden rolling pin ($3 at Walmart), a small cookie sheet ($1 at Dollar Tree), clear packing tape and a 20 dollar bill. And the thought: rolling the dough.

I taped the rolling pin to the cookie sheet with the packing tape so it would not shift or move, typed up a little note and then lightly taped the money using regular Scotch tape.

Here it is:

It fit in a shirt box so I could even wrap it up and he would have something to open.

Detail showing where I used the clear tape to adhere the rolling pin and note. Don't use packing tape to adhere the money; it is lightly taped with regular tape rolled on the back.

"I hope you're rolling in the dough so you can save up for a sweet ride." Get it? ;)

What will a 15-year-old boy do with a wooden rolling pin? No idea. But it made him smile and got him $20 closer to whatever his heart desires this Christmas.

And that is what it's all about, my friends.

Merry Christmas!

PS - The photo at the top of this post is of my son's stocking, so, spoiler alert if you read this, Son: there's $20 in your stocking. You're welcome.

It's ok

Thanksgiving is gone. Was it ever really here? Seems it was just Halloween and then magically - commercially, at least - Christmas.

Still, there is much for which to be thankful. In fact, I always feel thankful, no matter what the season. When asked to describe myself in one word, I always respond with, "grateful." Thanksgiving is the official holiday of gratitude, but for me, my level of appreciation soars at Christmas.

So, as we make that transition from autumn toward winter, harvest to Advent, Thanksgiving to Christmas - I find myself feeling ... eh, kind of meh about it all.

That's not like me.

I love Christmas. It tickles my heart: the music, the cheery decor and the long, cozy nights. I like the challenge of finding gifts and treats for the special people in my life, and the thrill of making it happen within a reasonable budget. I feel good about sharing with others; reaching out to those who could use a hand.

I anticipate the Christmas season just like a child, counting down the days, savoring the wait. To me, Christmas is all the superficial things like twinkle lights and beautifully wrapped presents and 4,000 versions of Jingle Bell Rock on the radio - and it's also so much more. It becomes a manifestation of my grateful heart, truly a season of renewal and hope.

And as I get ready to flip the calendar to its last page, I find myself feeling ... empty.

Is it ok to not feel excited about the Christmas season yet?

Is it ok to feel that way and not understand why?

Is it ok to go through the motions - decorating, treat making, shopping - in hopes that joy will eventually bubble up and gush forth like it usually does much sooner than now?

Is it ok to be like this?

Yes. It's ok.

No matter what the calendar says, or how many poorly executed Hallmark Channel movies are on constant rotation, or how many tired standards the radio stations play ad nauseam, or how many better-than-Black-Friday sales the retailers push, the truth, for me at least, is that Christmas is a matter of heart.

And it's ok if my heart isn't feeling it yet.

At first, I felt a little worried - what's wrong with me? - that perhaps my lack of Christmas spirit meant a lack of gratitude. It's a slippery slope once we start taking the blessings in our lives for granted. Truth is, there's so much pressure from all around to love, love, love Christmas at the very first available moment. It's the freaking most wonderful time of the year, and that time of the year begins earlier and earlier ... and the weight of getting on board with that can leave a soul feeling hollow.

So I've decided it's ok. It's ok to not have the spirit yet. It's ok to be just be how I am in the moment because I know moments like these will pass.

And there's still time for the spirit to arrive, and it's ok to wait for it to come to me instead of me grasping for it.

Heck, it's not even December yet.

... and then it was November

It's been well over a week since Halloween swept in and out in the whisk of a broom.

There were plenty of treats.

Oreo truffle eyeballs

Choc-dipped pretzel monster fingers

And tricks.

The weather proved to be the biggest trickster of all. There was rain. Then came the cold. Like, I-can't-feel-my-ass cold. Then blow-the-hat-off-a-witch's-head wind.

Then it snowed.

Snowed. In October. For the first time in 21 years.

And then it was November.

And apparently Christmas.

While we're not celebrating Christmas just yet at our house, it's on the radio, on TV and in all the stores already, well ensconced since Halloween or even before. Holiday lights twinkle from neighborhood homes.

Already.

Our garage is full of Halloween décor yet to be processed and put away. We are not even thinking about Christmas yet.

I don't want Christmas to totally slap me in the face the day after Thanksgiving, but this autumn has been fun, hectic and lovely and I am not ready to hand it over to jingling bells just yet.

Besides, it's still November. And we will do November-y things like mulch fallen leaves, put the gardens to bed, buy new long-sleeved shirts for an ever-growing teen, attend all sorts of band and church events, spend time with friends, enjoy the fleeting fall temps ...

And panic.

It's already November ... and Christmas is just a month away.

Christmas ... even in July

"Christmas isn't a season. It's a feeling." - Edna Ferber

Yesterday, we celebrated Christmas in July by hosting a little cookout at our house.

Before you start with the whole, it's-too-soon blah blah blah negativity, please understand:
1. I don't care
2. I agree

I don't care if you don't like my party theme. It's okay to stop reading this post right now. We can still be friends.

I agree Christmas is over commercialized and retailers try to get in our pockets way too early and Thanksgiving gets completely overlooked. I've talked about this before.

I've also shared that my family and I have a longstanding tradition of celebrating Christmas in July. This year, we decided to open the doors and invite friends to share in the celebrations with us.

It was definitely July. A cranky thunderstorm Saturday had strewn leaves about, tossed our patio chairs and left the yard soaked. It rained and rumbled Sunday morning too, making it a sweaty-wool-blanket kind of horrible humidity. And when the summer sun shone in the afternoon just before guests arrived, temps crept up toward 90 and a wind kicked up.

Stupid thunderstorm tried to kill my tomato plants. Stupid storm.

Not a cooling wind. It was the kind of wind that pushes the thick air directly into your lungs in order to better scorch them.

It was perfect cookout weather ... if you like to barbecue in a freaking oven.

That was the July part of Christmas in July. Despite the heat - which eventually gave way to cool temps by nightfall - there were also some of the better aspects of July: the long summer evening, teens playing capture the flag and lawn Twister, eating hot dogs off paper plates while sitting on a blanket in the grass.

The Christmas part included twinkle lights adorning the deck rails and festive holiday music playing. Inside, we had a small white tree in the kitchen sporting small stockings filled with school supplies and candy (school starts here Thursday) and glittery star ornaments for the kids to take home.

Sweet treats normally savored in December.

A little tree in the living room and a few homemade hostess gifts to send home with guests.

I'll tell you how to make these fun, easy vinyl letter canvases in another post. Promise.

In the spirit of giving, guests brought dog and cat treats to be donated to the local animal shelter.

It wasn't the biggest party we've ever had. Nor was it the most elaborate endeavor. But it was fun and festive and good to share with friends.

Christmas in July has never ruined "real" Christmas for us. This little sneak of festivity in no way detracts from the big one in December.

It was the easy, obligation-free version of Christmas: simple gratitude for the good people in our lives; the blissful tickle of tastes, sounds and aromas that trigger happy sense memories; sharing and caring for no other reason than the simple desire to do so; a reminder that God's love shines all year and in every season.

That's why we celebrate a little bit of Christmas in July.

"Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas." - Dale Evans

Spring scenes

"No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn." - Hal Borland

Did you think it would never end? You know, winter? Oh sure, it's officially been spring for like a month now, but even last week here in our little corner of Indiana, there were snow flurries and frosted windshields a couple of mornings. 

Yet, despite our impatience and fears that winter may actually last, gosh,  forever, spring arrived - not just in name, but in action. Temps stretched into the 70s and the sun shined all weekend here, ushering in a gorgeous Easter Sunday.

It was the perfect day to grab the camera and capture the moment.

Baskets line a tree outside an art shop in downtown New Albany, Ind.

Sculpture in downtown New Albany, Ind.

Stations of the Cross.

To you it may be a nuisance, but to a bee, it is life giving.

The real gift of this weekend was not just the warm weather and sunshine, it was also the reminder - at Easter, no less - to remain steady in our faith.

When it seems our sorrows, tribulations ... our long, cold, dark winter ... will outlast us, we are granted a reprieve; a promise kept of better days and of light; of life reborn beside us, all around us, and even underneath our feet.

"He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay." - Matthew 28:6 

 

Happy Easter!

A little love

Love.

It's a thing, ya know. Pop culture is full of it and we let it shape our behavior beyond our own amorous feelings. We sing about it. Delight at its depiction in art and poetry.  Watch dumb comedies about it. Weep at the end of tragic dramas when its all gone horribly wrong. Fill bookshelf after bookshelf with it in paperback form.

And then there's Valentine's Day.

Its roots go way, way back as a fertility rite, then saint day, then general day celebrating love. And by celebrating, I mean submitting couples and singles alike to tortuous commercial-generated pressure to buy this, go here, do that ... all in the name of love.

It's a thing, all right.

It's such a thing that a lot of single people tend to get down about Valentine's Day. Even married or otherwise coupled people feel the pressure to have the perfect V-Day and less-than-stellar efforts come across as hurtful or thoughtless.

I saw this article the other day on HuffingtonPost.com, The 5 Healthiest Ways to Spend a Single Valentine's Day.  Basically, the article's message is to avoid Valentine's Day and stay busy doing other, though certainly positive, things. That is one way to cope - is cope even the right word here? - with a holiday (real or Hallmark) you may not wish to participate in.

May I offer some insight? Even though I have been married forever?

Love's about a lot of things. Yes, there is romantic love ranging from sweet, simple expressions of affection to hot, sweaty passion.

But love is also about how we connect to one another. Take out the romantic aspect and love can be about appreciation, admiration, (non-lusty) affection, attention, friendship, kinship. In that light, I feel a lot of love for a lot of people.

I've told you how I feel about the truest romantic love here. My husband and I have our wedding anniversary to be all swoony about our life together as a couple. I like to treat Valentine's Day, not as a day for lovers, so much as a day for love - all kinds of love.


 

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. - John 13:34.

If Feb. 14 gets you down, don't shun it. Embrace it and make it about being a blessing to others. Whether you are married, single, coupled ... use the holiday to share simple kindnesses - a smile or compliment - to a stranger, a special treat for a friend, lunch with a co-worker, a grocery store-bought bouquet to a neighbor.

God's love: it's right there in how we treat one another.

And you don't have to buy it dinner. Or shave your legs for it.

"God loves each of us as if there were only one of us." - Saint Augustine.

A new year

I finally bought a 2014 calendar today. Two days in and the pickin's were slim, but I found one for 50% off and the small size I like for its designated spot in the kitchen, so it worked out.

Plus, it has inspirational sayings each month.

Which means I kind of already want to punch it.

Having a mood?

Yep. I am.

It's just the winter blahs. I'll get over it soon enough. Each day, the light will stretch a little longer, reminding us the darkness is fleeting. Until then, we slather on lotion and lip balm, sport soft socks, and slip into flannel PJs at 6 p.m. while binge watching season one of Arrow on Netflix.

See? Life ain't so bad in the wintertime.

After all, there's a brand new year upon us and while I'm late to the party as far as marking off the days with a calendar, I am glad to welcome 2014.

The new year holds so much promise. I like watching it unfold in front of me.

[... like season one of Arrow ...]

I don't make resolutions in January. I tend to reflect on my life and its meaning in the world more so around my birthday in the spring than this time of year.

I don't set goals because of a date on the calendar. Instead, I am generally more task centered, conquering what needs to be when/as it needs to be done. December 31 can roll around and I'm not one to be very sentimental or thoughtful about it all.

It usually just marks the need to buy a new calendar.

But, that said, there are some things I have tried to do with more purpose the last few months and want to continue. As I mentioned earlier, the winter blahs have set in and I don't want to lose momentum, allowing temporary meh to distract me and pull me into a full-on wallow.

This is what I am talking about:

Kindness. I can be a real ass sometimes; unintentionally thoughtless. I would find myself thinking, "I really should ..." and then leave it at that. I've been able to ask, "God, what do I need to do?" and then have the courage to do it. Sometimes, it's just a kind word - a compliment - or a gesture, a smile; other times it is more sacrificial. But it is done with an intention of being a help.

Appreciation. I am over being shy about this and now I just say how I feel to whomever, whenever. Thank you. Love you. Accept you. Appreciate you. You rock. My life is better because of you.

[Yes, it can sometimes be awkward for the recipient, but that becomes his or her thing to work on; not mine.]

Asking. Gah. This one is tough. Sometimes, I need help and asking for it comes with great difficulty. I will do better.

Forgiveness. It's the super power we share with God. Letting go of past hurts is a gift we grant to others, but is is also one we give ourselves. And it can be a struggle.

So perhaps I do have a resolution - a goal - after all: to live a life with purpose. It's not just a 2014 thing that began yesterday and will end later this year. It's my life, my gift.

And I want to make it worthy of sharing.

Today is Going to be a Great Day calendar published by Workman Publishing Company. Art by Emily McDowell.