Friday, December 16, 2016

Snowflakes, and no football, please

I'm sitting in front of the blazing woodstove, all alone in my house (except for the softly snoring and intermittently farting dog). Having the house to myself is rare, and I am relishing this time. The rest of my family is watching football, which, I'm sorry to say, I don't give a hoot about. I didn't grow up with this sport in Germany, and I don't understand it.

So here I am listening to calm, meditative music, my back warmed by the fire, while the temperatures outside hover around 7 degrees F. I should be doing the dishes, but I'd rather procrastinate and talk with you.

My mouth hurts because I had a tooth pulled. The dentist wanted me to have a root canal, but after extensive research, I decided not to do that and saw a holistic dentist instead. So now I will sport a hillbilly look for a while until I get a retainer.

Am I self-conscious about the gap in my mouth? Sure I am. I haven't been able to assess the visual impact too much, since my mouth is too sore to pull into a smile.

For now, let me show you my still-unblemished smile from the day before I got the tooth pulled, when Steve and I did a little photo shoot for my most recent knitting project, called "Foliage Cowl". I love this beautiful cowl, and since I know you'll ask, it's a pattern you can buy on Ravelry right here.



As you can see in these pictures, there's still snow.  It's been unbelievably pretty with all the white stuff around.  Beautiful, but also creating more work, when we have to carry water from the house to the barn and pasture to keep our animals well hydrated.  

Also, if you look closely, you can see paper snowflakes in the background.  We've been addicted to cutting different snowflake patterns ever since our librarian demonstrated how to do this.  All our windows are decorated with them (the snowflakes, not the librarians), and we are having competitions who can outdo the other in the paper-cutting department.



I took my camera with me when I did chores the other morning, and everywhere I looked was beauty.  Icicles, snow-covered trees and berries, my kids and their friends playing outside, the goat barn and greenhouses covered with a white blanket, the girls finding hiding places under bamboo bent with snow...








We've been sledding, of course.  There's a hill a couple of minutes from our house, joyfully used by our kids.  It's a magical world, hushed and lined by huge trees.

When we've had enough, or just before our noses freeze off, we come inside.  Sometimes, the kids talk me into baking cookies.  Although I don't eat any refined sugar, I feel it's my duty to make Christmas cookies for my family and our friends.  One afternoon, when my daughter's friend came over, we made Russian Teaballs, one of their favorites.

You can see that the dog likes to help.






What is your holiday season looking like?


8 comments:

  1. Sure is beautiful! I remember when not too long ago everything was impossibly green!

    Why did they want you to have a root canal? And why did you choose not to have one? I have to look into what a root canal actually is.

    For us, we have been getting good rain. The place looks like a veritable swimming pool. The Sierras are covered in snow way off in the distance. I wish we had an unimpeded view. I would stay there an gaze at them for hours.

    I also wish there was some way to make time slow down during the holidays. It's such a pleasant time because even though we are not rich by a long shot we still have each other and that makes us wealthy beyond compare.

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    1. Renee, google root canal and weston price. They will tell you.
      I'm so glad you guys are finally getting rain!!!
      I love your last paragraph. You are a wise woman!

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  2. Beautiful up your way! Years ago when I was a child my dad helped us kids to make a ice skate rink. It was only about 3 inches thick but we had so much fun on it! Even skating at night with a full moon. I remember the boys making their own hockey sticks and I got a pair of ice skates for Christmas and dreamed of going to the Olympics! Don't worry about your missing tooth, just tell how you play hockey by the light of the moon and it got knocked out by a hockey puck! Quite natural really! Cheers!

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    1. Ha! My husband and I have been joking about what kind of story we could make up about my missing tooth. I like your story about playing hockey in moonlight!

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  3. I enjoy looking at your home very much! It really is beautiful and magical with all that snow. I live in Southern California and it's a very different landscape down here. We hope to move to the Pacific Northwest one day and enjoy all that beauty too! So for now I will live vicariously through you!

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    1. Oh yes, I bet it's very different in Southern CA. I tell ya, though, I'm envious of all the sunshine you get!

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  4. I love seeing all the winter wonderland photos from your homestead - so beautiful! We had a bit of an ice storm on Sunday here in Maine, with -10 degree weather and bitter cold winds lately, but despite the freeze, the sun shown brightly on the ice covered trees while I drove to work this morning. It was magical, all glittery like they were encrusted with diamonds. During the storm, I opted to bake my grandmother's bread and it was delicious...unfortunately, our helper dog got a little too excited for bread, too and nibble the whole edge of a loaf! Good thing she's cute and sweet.

    I hope your tooth issues are over and you are healing up well!

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    1. Minus 10 degrees! Yikes! Wear your hat, otherwise your ears will freeze off!

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