hump day nuggets :: a week's worth of thanks

hump day nuggets :: little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week

So many wonderful times were had over this past week and I have hundreds of images to remind me of all the merriment.  This post will be an homage to my gratefulness and thankfulness, as we end this month of November with dozens of photos and a few words.

:: Wednesday, November 23rd (Thanksgiving Eve)

:: Starting the day with the amber glow of an amazing sunrise and watching it wash over my boy's sleepy face.

:: Appreciation for the barista that helped me start the day with a little bit of beauty in my cup.

:: Grateful for the opportunity to teach our son about giving to others in need on this day before an abundant, food-focused holiday.

:: Toasting our friends who helped bring the spirit up to our house on the Eve of Thanksgiving with the prettiest platters of nibbles and nosh.

:: Loving the fact that we were all about playing Twister and, later, a more sedated & convivial Trivial Pursuit match.  Who knew Hitler was the answer to most questions in that game?

:: Thursday, November 24th (Thanksgiving)

:: Handing over a lot of the duties in the kitchen this holiday, as Steve roasts the most succulent & picture-perfect Willie Bird Turkey we've ever had.

:: Watching the father-son duo prepare the secret ingredient cranberries is a yearly tradition and sweet reminder of just how silly those two are together.  Psst!  The secret ingredient changes every year.

 :: A bounty of foraged persimmons decorated our holiday table this year and, yes, I'm grateful for them, too.

:: I'm glad Grady didn't "stain" his eyeball this year when his father squirted him with juice from a pomegranate seed.  Minor kid meltdown and then the boy bounced back after he realized that literal interpretations can sometimes be misleading.  A lesson for life.

:: I'm more than grateful that I found a chore that Grady actually wants to do every day.  He kept exclaiming how much he loved it (all the while sporting his awesome new, handmade duct tape wrist band).

:: Thankful for a rare family photo before we begin our feast.

:: Friday, November 25th (Craft Day on Johns Street)

:: Appreciative of my limb-trimming friend (not as sadistic as it sounds) who personally delivered the greenery for our wreath and swag making adventures the day after Thanksgiving, along with an amazing pot of delicious wassail.

:: Gathering California Bay from a fellow community member proved worthwhile, as I slapped this swag together & tied it with a red satin ribbon.  Easy.  Peasy.

:: Super pleased that Grady pulled himself away from the movie Elf long enough to get inspired to make his own holiday swag.  He used a bit of greenery from all of the piles and made his very own creation.  Then he went back in to watch Elf, again...and again...and again.

:: Thrilled that we made advent calendars, a few pots of turkey soup, labels for my canned goods, as well as got outside to fashion garland, wreaths & swags.  It was the perfect antidote to Black Friday and hopefully a new yearly tradition for us.

:: Saturday, November 26th (Santa Visit)

 

:: Keeping the magic alive for a little bit longer with our yearly visit to Santa Claus at the Bodega Christmas Craft Fair.  Santa can be a bit iffy at this small town affair, but he was on his A-game this year.  Grady wrote & illustrated his letter - just in case Santa was confused or questioned his choices.  Smart boy.  Top of the list - night vision goggles.  Really?  Yes, really.

:: Saturday, November 26th (Open House @ West County Design)

:: In awe of the very talented Jerry Kermode, master wood turner, and his ability to take a beautiful piece of wood and turn it into an amazing small work of art for Grady.

:: Saturday, November 26th (Annual Chili & Tree Trimming Party in Bodega Bay)

:: The Saturday after Thanksgiving is the annual tree-trimming party at our friends' home in Bodega Bay. They make us dinner and we trim their tree with hundreds of beautiful, white shell ornaments that their family painstakingly collected & glued glittery gold ribbon onto years and years ago.  I look forward to this event every single year.  It never disappoints and the tree looks amazing when we're done.  I'm so very grateful for the traditions my friends have extended to me and my family.

:: Sunday, November 27th (San Francisco Day)

::  Still thankful after this long post?  You betcha.  We spent about five hours at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on Sunday and enjoyed every bit of it.  Grady has a new found appreciation for Jasper Johns, Rufina Tamayo & Richard Serra.  I enjoy hearing what he finds interesting in a painting and what his favorites of the day were on the ride home.

:: Monday, November 28th

:: Relieved that our local commercial fisherman have agreed upon a set price for crab and that the season is now officially underway.  This brings a lot of people and commerce to the tiny fishing village of Bodega Bay.  Let the crab feeds begin!

:: Tuesday, November 29th

:: I'm enjoying watching my long-haired boy on the basketball court during practice.  First game is this coming weekend.

:: Wednesday, November 30th

:: Our local nursery closes for the winter months and today they set out about 50 native plants in front of their gates with a small sign that said free.  I gathered what I thought I could use and then a few extra for friends.  I'm grateful to the owners of this nursery and their kindness and generosity.  I purchase from them all year long, but this is like an added bonus!

This was a long, visual post.  The last week pulled me out of my funk and I feel ready to jump into December.  I'm so thankful for my life, my family, my community and my home. I like that Thanksgiving happens just before we all move into the season of giving.

Happy hump day.  What are you grateful for?

hump day nuggets :: the thrill of the eve

hump day nuggets :: little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week

Melancholy has shown up and hit me like a brick.  I'm trying to get revved up for the season, but it's been in fits and starts.  Perusing magazines and Pinterest for inspiration and talking it up with friends has only left me feeling empty.  I love me a good eve of anything and I can't believe how lame I feel this week on the eve of Thanksgiving.

Hopefully, jotting down a few words and visually jarring myself with photos from the last week will help to snap me out of this funk.  So, here we go...

nuggets.

Last week was the Fisherman's Festival Art Contest Judging & Art Reception.  Grady entered four paintings this year and there were 51 entries overall.  Jill D., our friend and neighbor, is this year's Art Contest Chairperson.  She hosted a lovely soiree at West County Design and we narrowed down 51 entries to select a winner (featured above - bottom right).

There was an amazing outreach to the students within our school district and we were truly impressed by their submissions.  Grady was okay losing out to his art teacher, Kai, and the festival will benefit from an amazing piece of work in its poster, t-shirt and print campaign for 2012.

A visit to the bookmobile always leaves me satisfied.  A few favorites for the little man, an epic novel, Moby Dick, for the husband and poetry, projects & food research for moi.

Kiki Larue is my muse.  She is such a funny and beautiful bird.  She never lets me pet or hold her, but she will stand and listen to me for quite some time.  We talk about the weather, the other crazy birds and how wise she is.  She waits until all of the other birds have their first shot at kitchen scraps and then slyly finds her place among them.  She's confident and smart.  I really like her spunk.

I had a date with my little man last Friday night.  We got dressed up and went out on the town with friends.  I put on my sassy, red boots and he sported his sweet lightning bolt necklace.  Win-win.

Grady and the Rangel girls (and the mothers) were treated to an evening of theatre from their Fairy Godmother, Cheryl.  It was a Friday night showing of A Christmas Story that started at the late hour of 8 pm, but they rallied and took it all in.  When I asked G was his favorite part was, he answered every part of it.  He followed that up the next morning with watching the movie version and then asking for a Red Ryder BB gun for xmas.  Just lovely.

Desk art & $2 flea market rug

A good majority of the last weekend was spent in the newly renovated art studio.  We rearranged, busted out some art supplies and got busy creating.

I took some leftover coffee out to the studio and decided to paint with it.  Seeing my little man create inspired me, too.  He wanted me to work alongside him and I tried.  I'm inhibited, but he is super confident and chided me into drawing, painting and sharing ideas side-by-side.

The above photo is taken from inside the studio and looking out the picture window onto our property.  The chickens are milling about in the background and then when I focused on the foreground, our art supplies took center-stage.

Vintage suitcases are one of my vices.  They hold so much, are beautiful and are easy to move around.  G loved experimenting with a new set of paints gifted from Jill D.  He set about painting worlds, dogs, guns and frogs.  Overall, he spent about six hours in the studio this weekend listening to books on tape and drawing + painting.

The little studio is filled with pretty little boxes, jars and suitcases full of supplies.  Ribbons, stamps, saved pretty paper and sewing supplies are only an arm's length away from our thrifted desks.  Grady earnestly thanked me for creating the studio space for him last weekend.  It was my pleasure.  Absolutely, my pleasure.

I love watching my little man make stuff.  He's so uninhibited and free with his art.  He confidently puts it out there and is unafraid to make something new.  I have so much to learn from him.  He also loves to encourage me (or anyone else for that matter) he feels can do what he does.  I love that about him.  

"What are you waiting for?  Retirement?" - Grady goading his father on during chess match

The little man challenged his father to a chess match at the end of the weekend.  Guess what?  He beat his father and boy did that feel good to him.  I guess he's been playing chess on the computer at school and learned a thing or two.  Steve warned him against a few moves and chided him about his strategy, but G was not going down without a fight.  He won.  He was elated and floated down the hall to his bedroom with the smell of victory still hanging in the air.

Usually, I'm in a pre-thanksgiving panic this time of year.  Tables to set, foliage to pluck from random roadside saplings for the table centerpiece and moving furniture about the house to create room for everyone.  Not this year.  When our plans changed for Thanksgiving this year, I kind of lost my get up and go about the whole thing.  We are having a low-key day with a menu Grady specifically requested:  turkey, smashed potatoes and secret recipe cranberries.  It will be sweet and simple.  The stress has been removed and the focus will definitely be on our family - but it still feels a bit deflated.  I like the part where you take in strays and the more-the-merrier-type of attitude elevates the day to a wistful high.  We'll get there...somehow.

As a lovely consolation, we will be celebrating with our friends and neighbors to create a new kind of tradition - Thanksgiving Eve.  We have been hustling for crab, ordered the sparkling wine and plan on having a Plan B in the event the crab hunt falls through.  I think I'm more excited about the eve of Turkey Day than the Turkey Day itself!  See, my spirits are already lifting.

I love traditions (new and old) and I'm thankful for friends who are like family to us.

Happy hump day.  Hope you have the happiest of holidays with your loved ones.