Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Wily Wednesday - Yule Crafts 2011

It's time to reveal what was keeping me madly busy during the last two weeks of December (and part of 2012). I wanted to wait until I gave away most of the gifts before writing this post, which is why it's late. I had big plans for Yule, but I procrastinated too much, and technically I'm not even finished. Anyway, here's a sampling of the 2011 Yule crafts:
  • New clothes for Bender!
  • Head scarves for Kai (in the background)
  • Paw stockings
  • Catnip fishies
  • Plush Angry Bird (Kai's obsessed with these guys)
  • Winter-themed FSMs (I only had the tree on hand, but I think the Santa hat is my favorite.)
  • Polymer clay tree ornaments
  • Jars of homemade blackberry, raspberry, and blueberry jams (I'm most proud of the blackberries -- we picked them in our own neighborhood. Doesn't get much more local than that!)
  • Homemade soaps, lip balm, and lotions.
  • Geeky Perler Bead magnets (I never did these as a kid, so I had to try them out.)
  • Oatmeal fudge (a recipe from Kai's mother)


Tuesday, January 3, 2012

What will 2012 bring?

Happy New Year, everyone. Besides being too cliché to stomach, we all know laundry lists of overblown New Year's resolutions usually fail by February, and that's not what I've popped online to spout. But it is another stop on the ol' timeline, and I can't resist forming a few ideas about what I'd like to see happening in my life.

It comes down to personal development, and this is just a reaffirmation of an ongoing goal to live more mindfully. I've let that endeavor slide a bit, and I suspect that's why I've felt a little stuck lately. I want to continue my efforts to change the fundamental ways I view the world, to keep raising my level of consciousness, to live in the present, and to resist the temptation of falling into judgment and cynicism. The art portfolio, word count, weight loss, debt reduction, school and learning goals, etc., will follow from that (provided they're all reasonably set).

Wishing you a peaceful year of heightened awareness!