snowflake bentley: a spectacular gift

This simple picturebook book tells the true story of a man who was so enamored by Nature's intricate details that he couldn't stop sketching, photographing, sharing, and journaling his observations of snowflakes, dew, grasshoppers, and other fine details.

Wilson A. Bentley is the man who photographed the first image of a magnified snowflake.

This book-- seemingly written for children-- tells his story of success. It is a unique story of success, since it doesn't involve the acquisition of a perfect romance or grand fortune. The success is one of heart and mind-- of tenaciously pursuing the most natural thing in life: the thing that rivets and fulfills you most, no matter the cost. For Bentley, it just happened to be snowflakes.

Snowflake Bentley's story would be an ideal gift for anyone.

In fact, it was recently given to me by a dear friend and mentor in honor of finishing my Fall semester of graduate school, and it has left an impression on me which I cannot convey in mere words on a blog...

Plus, the illustrations are by the very talented Mary Azarian.

cooking for adoption

This isn't just any ole' cookbook...

ALL proceeds from the sales go to the adoption of two boys from Uganda.

Read more and/or purchase one here.

Think birthday, baby shower, and Christmas presents!

the "cupcake" as big as my head

It doesn't really look like a cupcake.
But it's called a cupcake on a stick, and it does in fact come on a stick. Don't let the picture fool you.

We had to removed the stick and bring in a forklift

(or rather, a large serving fork)

to transfer it from the cellophane to this plate.

The apple is a large Honeycrisp Apple, so you get the idea of its actual size.

Turned sideways, it really is as big as my head. And bigger than Khan's head.

Together, this was all the damage we could muster. We'll be taking it with us into the Blue Ridge Mountains this weekend so we can hunker down and finish it off.

Speaking of Khan, he'd like to display his latest shenanigan:

 The little rogue decided it was time for my summer zinnias to GO. They were still producing a petal here and there, so I was patiently awaiting their demise. Obviously Khan had different plans; he seems to be ready for some Fall blooms :)

I have two drop-dead-in-your-tracks-and-savor recipes to share in the next week...



:: we had a gathering...

We had a dessert-and-wine gathering with several other couples, which I was SO happy to hostess! Moving around the way we do, I don't end up hostessing a lot of gatherings with more than 2-6 people, but for some reason we have just really "clicked" with many wonderful people here. Which is one reason you haven't "seen" me in a week. The other reasons are:

-My Atlas Shrugged essay scholarship submission is due today. Ready or not, turn it in!

-I won a recipe contest I entered :) I'll be posting a link as soon as it's published.

-School has started full-force.

-I'm still volunteering with children and one of them has become a mystery I'm struggling to decode and thus help.

-I'm getting ready to re-launch (and officially this time) my Literacy blog.

Back to the subject of gatherings, isn't it funny what people end up raving over? I spent two days deciding on dessert wines. I finally went with a Moscato, and most people just wanted to drink the Hazelnut coffee Husband decided to brew 5 minutes before the first couple arrived. Go figure. I kept saying, "Most people aren't going to want caffeine this late, you know..." He won.

Something else Husband decided to do (earlier in the day, but right before our friends from Jacksonville stopped by to say hello as they were passing through Greenville) was rearrange our furniture. I was fuming, but I have to admit, he did a good job. In the process he decided to officially COVER the slipcover I've been working on for months and will (according to him) not be finishing any time soon. In case you can't tell, it's the blue chair. He used a bed sheet to disguise it.

What do you think? I was rather impressed with his skills, and I might get HIM to finish the real slipcover! I wonder if he would consider sewing lessons for home decor...

Last but not least, do you ever receive something from the hands of friends that you just can't stop looking at? Something about these amber and golden jars of honey with the little wooden spoon sitting in the windowsill is so charming and cozy. We're planning on enjoying the Orange Blossom with our breakfast this weekend. Any ideas? I'm thinking about drizzling it over toasted English muffins... (thank you, Kate!).

A P.S. for you: The Savannah Honey Shop has a website where they offer lots of honey recipes, which I will be perusing this weekend and I thought you might enjoy as well.

how i feel:

I think I almost forgot how to blog.

Things have been busy. And I mean biiiiizzzzzy. So busy I'm typing this right now with my hair half-way up and my toothbrush in my mouth! (Seriously!)

I haven't blogged. I haven't read other blogs. Husband has been doing all the cooking. No one has been doing the cleaning... but life is great! I have still been taking photos here and there to share with you when I get a prolonged spare moment to upload and edit; I've obtained an amazing strawberry ice cream recipe from a new friend, which I will also share with you; we've joined a Bible Study/Supper Club; and I have a whopping 4.0 so far in graduate school.

So, I get home at 5 every day and immediately buckle down reading and writing about children's literature and education theory. I can't complain; I enjoy every minute of it. I get home at 5 because the last 4 weeks have been packed with reading intervention trainings. The first 2 weeks was the second round of my Orton-Gillingham certification training, which is about a 3-year process to become a certified reading intervention specialist for children with dyslexia. This week and last week I have been helping coach the new trainees for the Greenville Augustine Project, a non-profit that provides reading intervention tutors for children from low-income families. I'm learning so much.

Khan has been going to Doggy Day Camp at the Pet Hotel of a nice man we now call "Uncle Gary." Khan has successfully unlearned everything we've taught him, which has given me some insight into how parents must feel when they send their children to junior high school :)

But that's okay. He's well taken care of, 'Uncle Gary' adores him, and he gets to play all day with other dogs.

And in the midst of it all, Yiota sent me a wonderful little package of sheer delights all the way from Greece... so I will have to share that with you soon as well. Whew! It seems I have a lot of posting to do!

(Thank you, Yiota! It came on the perfect day, right when I needed some light cheer from the other side of the world!)

giveaway!!!!!

I almost kept this one to myself, but since the giveaway is based on "Random Acts of Kindness," I figured I should sacrifice some of the probability that I will win and pass on the knowledge in hopes that someone else will be as excited about this artist's work as I am.

It's a very generous giveaway by the lovely, talented Kendall Boggs for one of her mesmerizing angel paintings!

I just think her art is wonderful. I feel such an intriguing combination of calm and dazzlement when I look at her paintings.

I also think this painting would look ideal in my dining room :)

Go here to enter and good luck!!!!!

The drawing will be on Sunday night.

thank you, thank you, thank you

Our wonderful EfM Bible Study Group

(with some of the most brilliant, talented folks of all ages, shapes and walks of life)

Gave us the sweetest, most thoughtful


Going Away


Surprise Party.


And they presented us with a huge bag full of indigenous North Carolina foods.

And a notebook of recipes to go with the food along with an NC history of each company that produced it and instructions to add to the book for each state we live in.

It never ceases to amaze us how thoughtful people can be. We've known this group less than a year, yet they have made us feel so welcome and so loved.

Thoughtfulness is one thing that I think it's safe to say never goes completely unfelt, unnoticed, or unappreciated.

It certainly makes me want to strive to be more thoughtful

and immensely brighten other people's days.

gifts from abroad

Recently, I almost broke my neck on my way out the front door.

An unexpected package with a strange stamp was on the porch, and I should have known it could only have been from one person:

My friend Merm!

(Actually, it's Miriam. But somehow it became Merm over the 15+ years I have known her.)

Merm is a rare sort of friend. She was my study abroad companion in Italy and has been my "book-and-words friend" since high school. She's been abroad in the UK for the last four years working on a Masters in Creative Writing, a Masters in Publishing, and now a PhD in Creative Writing. She's good stuff. Very generous, frank, reflective, creative, funny, adventurous and ever-striving in an inspiring way.


She's still traveling the word on weekends, living the life of academia continually...
and I must admit I am a bit envious. In the photo above, she's in Dubai with a Camel Crossing sign.

However, there's one thing I have that she doesn't: a better sense of GRAMMAR and PUNCTUATION. (NOTE: I didn't say perfect; just better by comparison!) She knows she's bad, so she sends her work (including a novel I'm in the process of proofreading) to me. It's such an honor that after all those fancy degrees she still sends her work to lil' ole me for critique!

So, what was in the package?


An old book.



But not just any old book.

A book from 1864 that smells of dust, time, ink, human hands, cozy homes and crisp, yellowed pages.



I love the marbleized cover pages. I bet it was considered very elegant in 1864.
It's such a work of art and such a fascinating, enigmatic emblem of an era and will sit on my shelf as just that: Art and History.



The stained pages, dotted and smudged with years far before me,

The cracked binding, separating from a century-and-a-half of being in existence,

The lovely, bent and torn corners,

Thank you, Merm! I consider this gift a rare treasure.

(And I will be stopping by its new nook periodically to smell the pages!)

words: meaning: life

I found this shell on the beach when we lived in Ponte Vedra, Florida in 2008.

The Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me a channel of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

valentine mailboxes

I've always loved checking the mail.

I found these little tin mailboxes a few months ago and bought enough to fill with Valentine treats for each of my little students.

A silver Sharpie,

a little box of chocolate truffles, some funky erasers, neon mechanical pencils (so cool in their opinion.... and mine :) with glittery rubber grips (also great for assisting their developing fine motor skills), stamps, notepads, a little douse of magic*, and some lip gloss for girls and globe-shaped pencil sharpeners for boys.

I think they'll enjoy getting the mail today.

*The little yellow "pill" you see inside the box is NOT an illegal or mind-altering object. It's a foam-filled capsule that swells into the shape of a jungle animal when you drop it in hot water.

read your favorite magazine for charity

(Photo from Real Simple)

This website lets you buy your magazine subscriptions and support education. 40% of every dollar spent on the subscription goes to the school of your choice! (As long as the school is signed up for this fundraiser.)

I subscribed to Food and Wine through this service (actually, a gift from my mother through this service!) and am thinking about ordering another. Maybe The London Review of Books, Garden and Gun, Elle Decor, Southern Living, Harper's or The Saturday Evening Post... they have so many!

If your local schools aren't doing this, you could either suggest it to them

or order your subscriptions through New Mountain Hill Elementary in Georgia. That's my little cousins' school! You met them in this post.

eggnog logs and christmas tree bark anyone?

For

the Christmas Tree Bark

you will need:

Well, okay, realistically you will need:



About 1 package of Mint Oreo Cookies and three boxes of semi-sweet baker's chocolate.

Melt the chocolate,



Crush the Oreos,






Mix the two together and spread the mixture evenly in a large wax-paper-covered cookie sheet. Then refrigerate until it can come out like this:

Then break it into jagged pieces of bark. Is that easy enough or what?

Now,

the eggnog logs

are a little more complicated.

The recipe I use can be found here. I add more rum and nutmeg to the batter to give it a good, strong adult flavor.

After you bake the cookies and let them cool, ice them

"Dip" them in pecans like Husband is doing here,

Lick the bowl,

And let the icing and pecans set.

(And don't forget to have a trusted advisor give it a taste test.)

There's your edible gift set and/or Christmas party favors!