The Miracle of Christmas
A few short weeks ago I didn't have a thing ready for the holidays. No cards made. No cookies baked. The house was a mess. I didn't even have a turkey.
Then it snowed just a bit and it happened. I was struck with the Spirit of Christmas.
I hand made and mailed cards.
I baked.
I shopped. I wrapped.
I shampooed the carpet.
I shampooed the oven.
I shampooed the dog.
I got the turkey and all the other groceries.
I decorated.
Amazingly, I think I am ready for Christmas.
Yep, it's a Miracle alright.
Wanna know more?
Click the "About Me" tab above.
Wanna read more?
Click below for the Archives.
Subscribe in a Reader
MY ART BLOG:
Popular Posts
-
So..... what have YOU been up to lately? Oh me? Well let's see. Since I last wrote, I have been uber-busy. Yesiree... busy, busy, busy... -
I was reading my Yahoo mail the other day and came across an email that really made my day. "I just love your blog!" Aw, shucks, t... -
I had a sneaking suspicion it would happen sooner or later, but today I realised it without a doubt it's true. Hubby and I have become...
105 People would rather be commenting:
Everything looks amazing! And I LOVE the hedgehog cards. :) Plus your wet puppy looks precious. Can I come to your house for Christmas? :)
Just as long as you didn't use the same shampoo for everything, well done.
Your cards are very nice. You sure got into shampooing this year, love the pictures, especially of the dog! Congratulations on getting everything ready before Christmas. Enjoy the holiday!
looks lovely...I'm envious :)
Have a wonderful Christmas ♥
Aww! Love the pic of your pup!
Nothing is better than a handmade card!
Now that you have done all the hard stuff, you can relax and enjoy the holidays! Merry Christmas!
And what beautiful, detailed cards they are! :-) Have a lovely holiday, Maureen!
Vegas Princess: Aw, thanks! And yes! My door is always open for my bloggy friends. Happy Holidays VP!
Kevin: Ha! Well, the dog still has hair, the oven is clean and the carpet too, so I guess I lucked out and didn't mix them up! Seasons Greetings to you and yours!
Karen: Thank you! I am posting how I made them on my art blog. And yes, shampoo is the best type of poo... Happy Holidays to you and your family Karen!
Twain12: Thank you, and a Very Merry Christmas to you too!!!
Thanks Heather! She was NOT impressed, but if family is coming over, she needed a bath. I just couldn't resist taking a photo when she put on that puppy pout! Happy Holidays Heather!
Thank you Daisy! Happy Holidays to you and Harley and your mom and dad too! I hope you have a wonderful time and that Santa brings you all many many wonderful treats!!!!
Janet: Aw, thank you so much! Merry Christmas to you and yours as well... including Lily and Tinsel!
Hand-made cards? All I can say is WOW! A suggestion: next year, put that photo of the wet dog on your cards. It's a wonderful photo!
Oh, you're so good! I hope by reading this post, some of your X-mas spirit will rub off on me, because I badly need it.
(You didn't shampoo the turkey, did you?)
Hey, I recognize those cards! I'm just glad you didn't send me a wet dog.
Merry Christmas Maureen! :-)
Nice job! I love the cards.
The dog looks so confused. ;-)
Snow? I'm on my way up, grabbing my passport and the cat.
I have one of those cards!! And it's truly wonderful. Such a pretty card, beautifully made with a delightfully old-fashioned feel to it. Thanks, sweetie!
I'm impressed at how ready you are. And envious. :P
Ugh...to much work....I think I am going to Mexico, call me when the Holidays are over.
Wow, a bit of snow brought all that on?!
Where, oh where, is that pretty white stuff?
Merry Christmas.
...and you didn't shampoo the turkey;-) I want your dog. What a sweetie! Funny what a little snow can do!
Sorry Maureen, that was my deletion above. I forgot that I hadn't signed in so I'm re-posting.
Isn't it funny how it gets done one way or another every year! :)
Love your greeting cards, btw! Adorable! And love the wet dog too, so cute!
Good Lord! You get all of that done on a snow day! All I get is sore from head to toe because the kids want to go sledding.
Merry Christmas!
Wow, you DID finally get into it, didn't you? I love those cards... and the doggie bath, too cute (will you come and give my oven a bath too ;)?
Wishing you and your family a great Christmas, Maureen!
Wow! You have been busy, and the card was beautiful ;) I didn't get around to handmade cards this year, but hope to get back in the swing of things next year.
Have a wonderful Christmas.
Um, OK.....can I ask, when did you SLEEP??????? Your cards are freakin AMAZING. I was just admiring them on your craft blog. But the picture of your dog elicited a very loud, 'AWWWWWWWWW!!!!!" when I saw it.
Have a great day tomorrow!!
First of all, A Merry Christmas to you and all your dear ones. I loved your Puppy. He looks so cute. I understand though, its a hard job to shampoo a dog. I used to face it once a week!
I'm glad you didn't shampoo the turkey. Yesterday I got a taste of soap in my mouth which wasn't good at all. Those cards are adorable. And the puppy is too.
The very nice post =´)
WOW when you kick it into gear, you are a force to be reckoned with!! You went from zero to sixty in record time (I stuck with a solid 30).
Love the blog, love the dog, not so sure about your oven...that's a visual that won't go away.
Congrats on being named a "blog of note." Just like Sherman, I shall return.
Hey there,
My name is José and just want to say CONGRATULATIONS for a couple of things.
The first one,
You have the more original blog template than I have seen in my whole life.
The second one,
For being Blog of Note.
I know, Google loves you.
Cheers and best regards from Canada.
*Merry Christmas and God bless you.
Sincerely,
www.BANCODEIMAGENESGRATUITAS.com
Merry Xmas to you! Congratulations!
I love your way of doing Christmas. Great! Please keep up the good work.
Congrats on blog of the month...you deserve it. Merry Christmas
I love your blog...it looks so much...well, not like a blog! I own a scrapbook store and for the 10 months that i have been open i have hoped from one internet option to another in order to advertise and promote my biz. While they have all worked very well, I am about to go into internet insanity. I love blogger best because it is so darn easy but need my web presence to look like more than a blog...not a lot more because I really just need to keep communicating with my people so why am i telling you all of this? Well, I am wondering if you created all of this in blogger...for free with your own code or blogger help stuff....
Merry Christmas and Happy Boxing Day! PS...sorry I wrote all this here but the email you link thingy isn't cooperating!
nice pic friend.... exchange link... I was add ur link at my blog+folow u, Add my link at ur blog n' Folow me back
I'm so envious! I never managed to get enough energy going to accomplish the things you did!
(but Christmas still turned out ok, lol)
When my daughter was (alot) younger we made hand made cards, I think that's a great Christmas touch. I love your cute dog pic.
Happy Christmas
Christmas spirit can come in the strangest of places. :) Happy Christmas to you. Hope it was spent well! :D
I really love the way your blog is setup!!
Congrats on Blog of Note! I can quickly see that you are worthy of the recognition.
Unfortunately, we did not get snow in our part of the Pacific Northwest this year (last year it was so great) - so I did not send cards, I did not bake, I did not shop or wrap (well, a teeny bit), the carpet cleaners shampooed our carpets and the groomers washed/clipped our two large dogs. I did decorate our tree and we did have outside lighting. Um...it was a pretty good semi-Christmas after all!
Congrats on being a blog of note!
Haha, a short but good post! I wish we also have snow in here so I'll get a chance to experience that kind of Spirit!
Much Love,
whatever you made but the images you published here are great.
What a cute post. I love that you shampooed...especially the oven! Merry Christmas!
I enjoyed the read. Yeah, miracles need not be mindblowing. Thanks for sharing :D
great blog! ill be checking back for updates!! check out my blog
I'm surprised you didn't shampoo the turkey as well!
Congratulations on making the blog of the day - that is how I foudn you!
Your cards are very nice.
Good on YOU!!! X:-)
nice cards
CONGRATULATIONS! MY FIRST TIME ON YOUR BLOG; WHEN I SAW YOURS AS ONE OF THE 'BLOGS OF NOTE' I WAS CURIOUS.... AND I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED! SHAMPOO THE OVEN|?...GOSH! HOW WOULD THE TURKEY TASTE LIKE? XMAS SPIRIT CAN BE VERY INTOXICATING EHN? COMPLIMENTS OF THE SEASON
cngrts on becoming the BLOG OF NOTE>..nice pics
Your dog is lovely - how on earth did you manage to get it to stay still? Mine would've been out in a flash!
Enjoy the rest of the break x
Cool header, and even though representative of a surprisingly eclectic personality, still, an equally cool About Me section.
As you have brought up the whole idea of befriending polar bears in the about me section, had polar bears not been the ferocious carnivores that they are depicted to be in the media, I would have, had I been in a position to, befriended one.
Merry Christmas.
wow, what great way to prepare for christmas!
LOVE the blog. It had a very humorous edge to it, which I loved. Keep up the good work! :)
Congratulation for achieving 'blog of note' status. Visit my blog please and leave comment: www.kwenaboss.blogspot.com
I loved that blog. It is total me and my family. It put a smile on my face to know there are more people like that.
Thanks,
~C.K.
A little snow is a powerful thing, isn't it? Merry Christmas!
I am SO JEALOUS of the layout of your blog. How did you get the template? I really want something
3 dimensional like you have!
Also, your photography is very good. Perhaps you'd be interested in submitting something :)
www.outsidemywindow.tk
is very nice things =)
Спасибо, очень приятные сбрпризы на Рождество.
Great blog, great dog, great sense of humor. Very creative. Oh, and you like science fiction. You're definitely a keeper. Best to you.
Greetings from Italy
see my blogs: http://tjenepengerpainternett.blogg.no
Haha, I'd love for you to check out my blog, I know you'd love it!
http://noimactuallyfromouterspace.blogspot.com/
Wow...that is a LOT of Christmas spirit. Love the handmade cards! So cute! Happy Holidays!
Great cards and you really did a lot. I love the doggie in the bathtub, awesome. Congrats on being selected as blogs of note. You've got a great blog going here and I will be back.
thank goodness you washed the dog and baked the cookies
other way round could have been nasty
have a merry Puddingfest!
Excellent blog !
Delightfully colourful blogging.
Brilliant photos, poor dog! Hope you had a wonderful xmas and that 2010 is perfect for you. xo
Well, the good news is it's all over until next year! Don't you resent it when the wrapping you took an hour to do takes half a second to destroy? lol
Hope your Christmas was a lovely as the preparations. Happy New Year.
I adored the cookie-toon and am hoping to read more :)
:D May this New Year bring many opportunities your way, to explore every joy of life and may your resolutions for the days ahead stay firm, turning all your dreams into reality and all your efforts into great achievements. “MERRY CHRISMAST & HAPPY NEW YEAR”
music downloads
Hi ~ That was me too!!! I get inpsired to create gifts and shop and make cards ... a week or so before Christmas. Every yerar I say I'm gonna start earlier. Yet, it gets done doesn't it?!? I love that photo of your dog. Found you in "blogs of note" Merry Christmas Season ~ Violet
Love the sad wet puppy look. Great cards too.
nice fluent blogging!
quite worthy to be reckon as "blog of Note"
Congrats!
Holy cow, 76 comments! Well deserved Maureen! *clappity clappity*
Wonderful pictures. Nice oven.
Reminds me of the look my dogs give me when I shower them...
Nice cards..
Very creative..
Nice to visit your blog..
Nice post.
Such good pictures! :D Aww, I hope you had a great Christmas! You sure did look ready!
Great blog! You have a new fan. :) ~Ann
some great posting, cheerio, just arrived from the cattlepost and was great. cheerio
Would like to join blogging community. Sounds like you and I are of compatible minds. Please read my blog Writings of an Unpublished Writer and leave a comment so I won't feel so alone.
The picture of your dog in the bath is adorable! I recommend you submit it to an animal photo contest of some sort- his eyes are the ideal "puppy eyes"
Ha! Pinklea! Yes, nothing says Merry Christmas more than a soggy doggy.
JD: Nah, I didn't shampoo the turkey... it only got a light rinse of cold water ;) Hope you had a great Christmas JD!
Merry Christmas Jeff! Yeah, sending you the dog would've cost too much in postage... so you'll have to be happy with the card.
Reforming Geek: Well, as the Christmas Capitol of Canada, we HAD to have snow. A day before Christmas Eve we barely had a dusting of the white stuff. Then on the 24th the blizzard began. For two days straight. Great timing!
Aw, thanks Jay. But I could never do it without taking two weeks off of work. One week beforehand to panic, the second week afterwards to relax. Otherwise, I fear I couldn't pull it off. Merry Christmas!
Bah Humbug eh Bruce? Well, hopefully Mexico was fun...
Merry Christmas Violet Sky! Yes, it is true; I could never live in the Southern Hemisphere I guess; I NEED snow at Christmas!
Perpetual Chocoholic: Luckily, the turkey wasn't as dirty as the dog, so shampooing wasn't necessary ;) Happy Christmas to you!
Thank you Marsha! Compliments coming from a decor diva like yourself is high praise indeed! Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas Ed! Well, the snow brought it on, but heavens no, I didn't do it all in one day! Gak I think I would have had a heart attack!
Karen Meg: Merry Christmas to you and yours as well! Sure, the dog looks cute THERE, but she sure yelped and was a big baby when I brushed her out....
I loved your card Babs, thank YOU too! Hope your holiday was wonderful as well.
Aw, Jo-Jo you are too kind! Thank you so much. Coming from a fellow card-maker, that is so nice to hear.
Dear Mr Stupid (okay, that is an AWESOME name): Thank you so much, and Merry Christmas to you as well! And you are right; shampooing a dog is NOT fun. I get as wet as her, and stand back when the post-bath shaking begins! One of our cats got too close and ended up with a shower of her own! Ha!
Barbara: Ick! Soapy mouths are NOT good! Every time I hear that I think of A Christmas Story when Ralphie firmly believes he has soap poisoning!
Thank you Estefan211!
Aw, how sweet of you Kim, thank you and welcome! Holy crap, I can't believe the influx of new visitors with this whole Blog of Note thingy!
Jose, thank you so much... you are too kind! Merry Christmas to you too!
Merry Christmas to you too Sophie, and thank you!
Thanks Jerome, and welcome!
Hi again Cherokeefox, and thank you so much.
Stacie: Thank you for writing and yes, I did do all of this in Blogger. I do my own images, but I started out with a template called Notepad Chaos, and tweaked it from there, using my own images and learned the hard way; hit and miss... sometimes my changes worked, sometimes they didn't, but I did learn a lot. Best of luck with yours! I will try to pop by to everyone's blogs here, if they have one.
Risky2009: I will be spending this week visiting all my new bloggy friends for sure! Thank you for stopping by and commenting.
Thank you Bea Boomer. Yes, somehow it all gets done no matter how panicked I seem to get... that is true. Hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas as well!
Jennifer: Thank you! We DID have a great Christmas, hope you did as well. Thanks for visiting and welcome!
Androo: How kind of you to say, thank you so much and welcome!
Lydia: You are far smarter than I... dog groomers and carpet shampooers ARE the way to go. Note to self: Do what Lydia did next year. ;)
Thank you Rebekah! I can't wait to start visiting you all as well!
Half Crazy: Well, being a Canuck, I guess I am wired for the cold and snow. It just doesn't seem like Christmas without it. I guess I'd better never move!
Thanks Shri Krishna! You are too kind.
Merry Christmas Alicia! Thank you! And yes, both the oven AND the dog needed shampooing badly. I guess I should do them both more than once a year ;)
Thanks Menggay... you are right. Sometimes the smallest Miracles are the best ones. Now I am enjoying the Miracle of the Christmas Day Blog of Note! It has brought me so many new places and people to visit online! Woot!
I will Richard! Thank you for stopping in and commenting!
It ain't so: (Ha! Love the name) Thank you and yay for Google... I will definitely visit back!
Why thank you แทงบอลออนไลน์!
Thanks Nollyposh and welcome!
Thank you รับทำ seo !
The nitty-gritty tales of a housewife: Ha! Thanks! Luckily, I rinsed the oven enough so the turkey didn't taste like soap ;) Welcome!
Thank you rohini!
Jaye: Ha! Yes, she was good and stayed, which was amazing especially when I decided her pitiful look had to be photographed. I told her to "stay" whilst I ran for the camera. Luckily, she was still there, still pitiful and perfectly posed. What a good girl ;)
Awake Spectator: You and me both. Even though I "adopted" a polar bear with the WWF, I will only hug the toy stuffed one they sent me though... Thank you for your very kind comments!
Merry Christmas to you too Rhett!
Thank you Winer01!
Molly: Well, thank you so much, and welcome! Glad you popped by and commented.
Kwena: I shall! Half the fun of getting new visitors is the chance to return the favor! Whoo Hoo!
Wow, that's a lot of extra stuff considering christmas came around.. impressive
Thanks shail2chouhan, but I do this purely for fun; I don't care about money, so no adverts here!
Hi Christoan Kale! I am so glad to hear I am not the only crazy, er, "unique" person out there too! ;) Welcome and thank you for coming by!
Lynn from For Love or Funny: Ha! Okay, now I HAVE to visit your blog with a name like that... Thank you!
The OutsideMyWindow Team: Oh cool! I shall check it out, thank you. And thanks too, for coming by and such nice compliments!
CineClube: Thank you!
LikeNature: Okay, I wish I could read your comment; I shall assume it was something nice and say Thank You!
Aw, you are too sweet Sci-Fi Fanatic! You would especially like my Star Wars posts, I would venture to guess! Welcome!
Graphicemotions: Thank you and Greetings from Canada too!
Sindre: Can't wait to visit everyone who comments here!
I shall HailET! Especially with that name; you have me intrigued!
Oh Happy Holidays to you too ~The Muses~ ! Thank you!
Thank you Glorv1, you are too kind. Welcome and thanks for your comment!
Ahahahaha INdi@! That would NOT have been a thing to mix up!
Thank you so much A Good Moroccan!
The villager: Thanks, I love that term "colourful"!
To you too, DJ Kirby! Hope you had a great Christmas and that 2010 is even better than 09!
We did Lady Banana, did you? Hope Mabel got something fun from Santa too ;)
Thank you Elaine 'still writing' Smith! (Ha!) Yes, it all gets done, as Christmas doesn't wait for anyone does it? Good thing I guess, since it may never come if it did. Happy New Year to you and yours too!
Duong: Aw how sweet and kind of you. Thank you. Welcome and Happy New Year to you as well!
Merry Christmas Season to you too Violet! Welcome and thank you! Yes, I used to be organized. I used to have my shopping and wrapping done months ahead of time. Each year I got further and further behind. I'd better be careful; one year I just may miss the whole thing completely!
Thank you Jill of All Trades! Love the name BTW!
Aw, thanks Shamood. You are too kind. So glad you stopped by and commented.
I know Jo-Jo, KERAZY no??? Thanks so much...
Thanks Montag: But the oven is only nice when it is clean... it was a horror before. I mean, where the heck does all that crap come from???? And how the heck does it get on the roof of the oven??? Geez.
Ahahahaha Lonely Teapot! Shower? My poor little one can only tolerate a few inches of water scooped up on her back and rubbed in... I think she'd freak if I turned on the showerhead....
Hendra: And it's so nice of you to visit and comment! Thank you so much for your very kind compliments!
Indian2009: Thank you!
We had a terrific Christmas, thank you The Future Mrs Silva! Hope you and yours did as well.
Aw, Ann thank you and welcome!!!
And cheerio to you too, wwkwatacom!
Writings of an unpublished writer: I shall come by; the best part of this wonderful experience is all the new places I can now visit!
Ha Ha K.00k! Well, she sure turned on the puppy-dog eyes, didn't she? Welcome and thank you!
Thanks Paul Wynn! Yes, I guess it doesn't really matter how much or what you do, Christmas still comes and everything eventually turns out. Welcome!
Thanks a lot for sharing valuable information. Happy New Year. Everyone is welcome to visit Online News Portal at http://www.onlinenewsportal.co.cc Online News Portal contains stories, articles and online news from all over the world. A resource to get online news to remain updated with what is going on around us all.
hey, your blog looks great! how did you make your layout?!
And Happy New Year to you too, Visionary!
Sammy: Thank you! I started with a template called Notepad Chaos and tweaked it (a lot) from there, using my own images. Thanks for stopping by!
You blogging page is one to idolize, Very well put together, and Very interesting.
Trying OpenID
I love your dog!!!! what kind is he?
Everything looks great! I envy your blog! i have to say its one of the greatest !
Why thank you so much Davedrk! Welcome!
Magesnika: Did it work? Looks like it did, welcome!
Hotcrossbuns: Casey is a terrier cross. Crossed with what, I have no idea. I fostered her from the Humane Society in 1997 when she was just 4 four weeks old. Back then she fit into my hand! She'll be 13 in May!
Aw you are too kind Davedrk! Thank you for reading!
omg your dog is gorgeous.. is it a girl or a boy?
I love your wonderfully wrapped presents! ^-^ I've always had difficulty making presents look so pretty!
2416966: She is a girl, nearly 13 years old terrier mix... a real lap dog!
:) Thank you Nano! It looks weird to see them now, opened and all that work crumpled up in the trash.
Post a Comment