Freshest Christmas tree ever

We had a volunteer cedar growing too close to the house, and this weekend we decided it finally needed to come down. And voila! Christmas tree!

It’s a little too tall, but the top is very bendy. So we just curled it over. Somewhat Charlie Brown-esque. As is usual every year, Monster Girl is baffled by the sudden growth of a tree in her spot, but she’ll get in the spirit eventually. Probably that would happen faster if I stopped trying to put bows on her head. But she’s so cute!

Hope everybody’s holiday season is fresh and pleasantly scented!

Volunteer cedar, too close to the house

Now our Christmas tree!

Monster Girl uncertain of the tree on the porch

Slightly too tall…

Luckily, it’s bendy at the top

Monster Girl unappreciative of her bed being moved; yes, I’m using Irish Spring soap boxes to wrap gifts

Happy Holidays!

Icy touch of winter

Portland doesn’t do much official winter, but we had a little bit last night and this morning, just enough to frost and quiet our world.

Happy winter!

 

Red berries on heavenly bamboo; icicles under lichens; dogwood buds slumbering; crystal droplets on last year’s asparagus; mugo pines snow cup; frosted Monster Girl!

New Year, New Goals: A Story Told in Ice

(Crosspost from See Jane Publish.)

My long holiday weekend got a little bit longer thanks to a lovely White Just-Missed-Christmas topped with an icing of, uh, ice. But since I was stuck at my computer, I figured there was no excuse not to sketch out my plans for the new year.

At first I wasn’t too excited about it…

Goal-setting is a little intimidating. I have to think ahead for a whole year?! It’s hard to see that far ahead, sometimes, and the path is slippery.

But ’tis the season for new year’s resolutions…

I know my big plans can only be achieved through drip-by-drip word counts and daily goals…

And so I start planning. At first it seems like a wild tangle, my brain is just a chaos of ideas and wishes and wannabes. These are my synapses on goal-setting:

But then the pieces start to come together and smooth out. Everything starts to move in the same direction. I can see a way forward through the wilderness of A. what I want to accomplish and B. what is possible. (Since I don’t have a stop-time machine.)

Eventually, my twelve-month to-do list starts to look — dare I say — rather impressive and stately…

I actually feel even inspired! I see potential brilliance hidden inside these small beginnings!

It’s early days, I know — very early days! — but I see the shape of what is to come.

With attention to my deadlines, I’ll be mowing down my goals!

If you have suggestions for launching with enthusiasm into the new year, please share in comments. And Happy New Year!

Decking the hall

Mostly, decorating for the holidays is about torturing the dog. But she DOES keep coming back to sit in the middle of my gift wrapping, so it can’t be too bad. When she gives me that long-suffering stare, she kinda looks like she has LED eyes. 😀 My poor borg dog! Hope your howlidays are coming along festively too.

Happy Halloween! Here’s some sweet deals for you

The holidays are upon us like ravening wolves!!!

Wait, okay, I’m probably over-reacting. But as soon as the Halloween candy comes out, I feel like the holiday season really kicks into high gear. (Um, maybe I’m eating too much of that candy?) But I’m delighted to offer a few sweet deals that won’t hit the pocketbook or the hips. If you’re like me and need to slip away for a few minutes to recharge, I hope these box sets — one of spicy sensual scenes and one of shorter holiday-themed stories from my alter-ego Elsa Jade — will taste just right.

But first, a picture of the terrifying ghost dog haunting my backyard. Yikes!

A Very Alpha Christmas
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Warm a cold night with these sexy samplings 
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Enjoy the stories! Happy Halloween!

Now here’s an even more terrifying image of the ghost dog expecting a treat for her trick. 🙂