The house is extremely quiet at the moment. It seems a bit unusual for Christmas Eve morning, but that is what happens when you have teenagers, I suppose. Yesterday, on the first week day of their holiday break, both girls slept until I woke them at 10. A small part of me was a bit jealous of their ability to just sleep and then sleep some more. The other part of me was over-joyed. By that point in the morning, I had gotten all the grocery shopping completed along with some other errands accomplished. I took them to choir practice at 11 and then wrapped all the gifts. Those two plus hours of alone time to get things finished was such a blessing.

Not that I am completely finished with the holiday prep, though. There is brioche and a poppyseed cake to bake this morning. And, in typical Erin style, one last gift to make. Funnily enough, this is the one gift that I had planned on making for months and here I am, leaving it to the wire. It's all good, though. I have the time and I plan on enjoying it.

As things are down to the wire, I just wanted to pop in and wish you all the happiest of holidays. I constantly count this blog and my readers among my greatest blessings even if I don't say it often enough. Thank you for your continued support in my endeavors and interest in my anecdotes. I appreciate the time you take to follow along and, especially, your understanding when it gets a little quiet here. For those of you that take the time to comment, please know that I read and value every single word. I look forward to what 2014 may bring. Thank you.

From my house to yours, wishing you Merry Everything, Happy Always!

A friend of mine recently emailed Fatty with a link to this video about moms and their kids (go watch - it's amazing). She then asked his help to make a video of my girls telling me why they are thankful for me and why they love me.

People, this is quite possibly the best gift I have ever received.

Not only was it incredibly thoughtful, but it's a great reminder that even though I sometimes doubt my success as a mother (who doesn't?), my kids don't see me that way. It was something I needed to hear and the bonus is that I will always have it to look back at. I am so thankful for this.

Why don't you do this for someone you love? Your spouse, the grandparents, a friend, teachers....the list goes on. All it takes is a little time, a little technology (iphone, ipod touch, ipad, computer, video camera) and you can send it via email Christmas morning or put it on a CD/DVD to send in the mail. If you have technologically savvy kids, like mine, they can probably do it all on their own with a little direction from you. Heck, if you have extra time, you could even make a movie out of it. No matter how you do it, it will be treasured.

Like I said, possibly the best gift I have ever received. Well, besides the kids themselves. They are pretty damn great.

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My children gave me their permission to post this video on the blog. Please respect our wishes that it not be uploaded anywhere else. Do not pin this video to pinterest, share it on facebook or the like. I appreciate your understanding - thank you.

Scout has claimed the tree as her own. I find her under it most days. And if she is not under it, she's close by, in the chair or on the couch, watching it as if the ornaments might come to life. I should take note and claim the other chair. It's cozy by the tree.

We are mostly decorated now. The painters have been here for the last week and a half, working on our front hall. Ceilings, walls, trim, banister - the works. I admit not entirely thinking about the fact that they would be here while I wanted everything to be decorated for the holidays. Am I crazy or what? Still, it's beautiful now and I couldn't be happier.

We've had two snow days in the last three days of school. I've embraced it. The girls have loved it. I am so looking forward to Christmas break, during which we can stay in our pj's until noon and not do much of anything if we don't want to. It's been a busy fall and I can see the constant activity slowing down after the school play this week. Also, Jane takes her high school placement test on Saturday. When I started this blog, she was starting first grade. Where does the time go?

There has been some sewing happening, but it's of the top secret variety so no details or photos yet. I am not making many gifts this year - just a few smaller ones. I find that although I love the making, it does add to the stress of the season. I do have a backlog of projects to photograph and share - mostly clothes, really. I've had some good success in the garment sewing department, but I have a hard time getting photos of myself. I should probably enlist some help, but with the short days, it's rare that anyone else is home during daylight hours. Maybe this weekend. (Marcia, if you are reading, I'm looking at you.)

I finished reading The Book Thief last week in anticipation of seeing the movie with the girls. It is such a lovely, sad and happy story. I highly recommend it. Before that, I spent many hours reading the latest Elizabeth George novel, Just One Evil Act. I loved it. I remember the first time that I read one of her books. We were in Kenya with my parents, one year after we had been married. My mom introduced me to the Inspector Lynley series and I quickly devoured each one I could get my hands on. Now, when a new one is released, I am quick to jump in, but slow enough to savor every word. I'm without a book right now, but I think that reading would help ease the busy-ness of the moment. Time to find something new.

I'm still painting most Fridays. I started in January and it's been a good year of growth for me. I like looking back and seeing what I've done. I actually took 5 paintings in to be framed yesterday. This is huge. They have all been sitting in my living room, waiting for homes. Right now I am working on these peonies based on this photo I took way back in 2007. This one is stretching me in good ways.

If you've stuck with me this far, thank you. I know this is a little rambling and full of a lot of random information, but I was recently told (Hi Rob!) that I had stopped putting bits of life on the blog. When the words went, so did the everyday moments. Finding the right balance between the craft and the living is tricky, but I'm working towards finding it again.

My mantra for the season this year is the same as last: All is calm, all is bright.

So far, so good.

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I lost my words.

I am not sure how it happened, but it did. And when they disappeared, I barely noticed. But now, sitting a greater distance away, it's clear that they are missing. I'm not sure if after pouring so much into a book, I just didn't feel the need to say anything else. Maybe. More likely, it was not sharing much of anything while I intently focused on those 208 pages that made me clam up a bit. Regardless, the words stopped.

I find it curious, though, that while I am doing a dismal job of documenting my daily life (a photo a day is often a chore and there are no words on the 365 any longer, either) and a mediocre job at sharing my creative work (garments that have been sewn- and worn!-  and not blogged as well as the weekly oil painting), I still form the sentences in my head. The words are floating around in there, looking for a place to land. And that backlog of sentences and paragraphs that need writing down are cramping my creative muscles. Because, let's face it, the majority of my thinking is focused on my kids, my husband, our household, feeding everyone, cleaning up after everyone, procuring and doing the things that make up daily life. When there is space and time for creative thinking, it is best for me if that little sliver of mental bandwidth I have leftover is clear and ready for use. I need to shake out what is in there and move forward.

All of this is a very long-winded way of saying that the words are coming. They may be jumbled and messy or short and sweet, but I plan on letting them out as they come. Lucky for me, I have been asked to join the party that is habit in December. One photo, 30 words or less. And, for me, a jump start - a way to let the words out, just a little at a time. I'd love it if you'd visit me and the other guests over there this month. I think the sum of all those daily bits of all those women's lives is powerful and a bit magical, too.

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Just a tiny bit of housekeeping today. I hope to be back tomorrow with something a little more interesting. Hope all celebrating Thanksgiving had a lovely holiday.