Conversation – 15

Hi ya Sheba … Kids going GAGA over your cartoons and stories … Thanks so much for making nights easy for Cherie. Kids are eager to go to bed and tell tales for the pictures and reading your fun stories. So funny you mention you tell a great tale … My husband is about imaginative as a rock … I’m the tale spinner …. He is like the kids, My talking puts him to sleep …. Your Awesome .. Night-Nite Sheba♥ … Night ALL

Peace Out Peeps! Enjoy your evening. Taci, Cheri and Mcpoopoo thanks for being
here and being so kind to me you have no idea how much that means to me. 🙂
Bassetbabe you too. ♥

Making Life Work for You

Running your life and your household is a bit like running a business for which some things can easily be delegated.

Sometimes we have so many varying responsibilities in our lives, ranging from work obligations to caring for children to running a household, we feel we cannot possibly make it all work. We may feel overwhelmed in the face of it all, ending each day feeling hopelessly behind schedule. However, regardless of how frustrating this can be, these are the parameters that make up our lives, and we owe it to ourselves to find a way to make it work. Rather than buckling under the pressure of an impossible to-do list, we might take a moment to view the larger perspective.

Like the president of a large organization, we must first realize that we cannot do every job ourselves. The first step to sanity is learning how to delegate some of the responsibility to other people, whether by paying someone to clean our house or trading childcare duties with another parent. In addition, we might find places where we can shift our expectations in ways that make our lives easier. For example, expecting ourselves to create a healthy home-cooked meal every night after a full day of work, errands, or caring for an infant or toddler may be a bit excessive. We might allow ourselves to order in food once in a while without any guilt. Accepting the adjustments needed to make our lives work is an essential ingredient to being at peace with our situation.

At the end of the day, we must come to terms with changing what we can and accepting what we cannot change. Sometimes the laundry piles up, a sick child demands more of our attention than usual, and we temporarily get behind with our schedule. Accepting this momentary state of affairs and trusting in our ability to get back on track when the time is right, we gracefully accept our life as it is, letting go of perfectionism and embracing life as it stands.

Bobby Helms – Jingle Bell Rock

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin’ and blowin’ up bushels of fun
Now the jingle hop has begun

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin’ and prancin’ in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air

What a bright time, it’s the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin’ in a one-horse sleigh

Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin’ feet
That’s the jingle bell rock

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bell chime in jingle bell time
Dancin’ and prancin’ in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air

What a bright time, it’s the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin’ in a one-horse sleigh

Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin’ feet
That’s the jingle bell
That’s the jingle bell
That’s the jingle bell rock

O Holy Night

O holy night the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new glorious morn
Fall on your knees
O hear the angels’ voices
O night divine
O night when Christ was born
O night divine o night
O night divine
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new glorious morn
Fall on your knees
O hear the angels’ voices
O night divine
O night when Christ was born
O night divine o night
O night divine
Ooh yes it was
Ooh it is the night of our dear Savior’s birth
Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, yeah
It was a holy holy holy, oh oh oh

Someday at Christmas – Stevie Wonder

Someday at Christmas men won’t be boys
Playing with bombs like kids play with toys
One warm December our hearts will see
A world where men are free
Someday at Christmas there’ll be no wars
When we have learned what Christmas is for
When we have found what life’s really worth
There’ll be peace on earth
Someday all our dreams will come to be
Someday in a world where men are free
Maybe not in time for you and me
But someday at Christmastime
Someday at Christmas we’ll see a Man
No hungry children, no empty hand
One happy morning people will share
Our world where people care
Someday at Christmas there’ll be no tears
All men are equal and no men have fears
One shinning moment my heart ran away
From our world today
Someday all our dreams will come to be
Someday in a world where men are free
Maybe not in time for you and me
But someday at Christmastime
Someday at Christmas man will not fail
Hate will be gone love will prevail
Someday a new world that we can start
With hope in every heart
(Someday all our dreams will come to be)
(Someday in a world where men are free)
Maybe not in time for you and me
But someday at Christmastime
Someday at Christmastime

Nick Jonas
“Joy To The World (A Christmas Prayer)”

Every year at Christmas
All I can see
Are pictures of the things I want
Around the tree
But this year’s a little different
I’m not thinking of myself
So my prayer for this Christmas
Is for somebody else

[Chorus:]
So I pray…
Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl
Hope when life is hard
Light when everything seems dark

God I know you’re listening
And you can hear
The need of every broken heart
And all their tears
I don’t have a lot to offer
Just this one simple prayer
That this Christmas everyone would know
Somebody cares…

[Chorus:]
So I pray…
Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl
Hope when life is hard
Light when everything seems dark

I pray that every hungry soul
Will be fed and will be warm
That not a single, solitary child
Would suffer harm

And Lord we find their ending
As we take another view
My hope is that this Christmas prayer
Would somehow come true

I pray…
Humanity would rise
And join with me
And together we’ll sing

Joy To the World (To all the world)
Peace (Peace) for every boy and girl (for every boy and girl)
(Talking bout hope) Hope when life is hard (when life is hard)
Light when everything seems dark

I pray that (I pray) every hungry soul
Will be fed and will be warm
(Not a single child) That not a single, solitary child
Would suffer harm

And Lord we find their ending
As we take another view
My hope is that this Christmas prayer
Would somehow come true…

Joy To the World
Peace for every boy and girl

Happy Holidays to those that read and enjoy this thread. ♥

SECOND STORY

There was once a poor servant-girl, who was industrious and cleanly, and swept the house every day, and emptied her sweepings on the great heap in front of the door. One morning when she was just going back to her work, she found a letter on this heap, and as she could not read, she put her broom in the corner, and took the letter to her master and mistress, and behold it was an invitation from the elves, who asked the girl to hold a child for them at its christening. The girl did not know what to do, but at length, after much persuasion, and as they told her that it was not right to refuse an invitation of this kind, she consented. Then three elves came and conducted her to a hollow mountain, where the little folks lived. Everything there was small, but more elegant and beautiful than can be described. The baby’s mother lay in a bed of black ebony ornamented with pearls, the coverlids were embroidered with gold, the cradle was of ivory, the bath of gold. The girl stood as godmother, and then wanted to go home again, but the little elves urgently entreated her to stay three days with them. So she stayed, and passed the time in pleasure and gaiety, and the little folks did all they could to make her happy. At last she set out on her way home. Then first they filled her pockets quite full of money, and after that they led her out of the mountain again. When she got home, she wanted to begin her work, and took the broom, which was still standing in the corner, in her hand and began to sweep. Then some strangers came out of the house, who asked her who she was, and what business she had there? And she had not, as she thought, been three days with the little men in the mountains, but seven years, and in the meantime her former masters had died.

THIRD STORY

A certain mother’s child had been taken away out of its cradle by the elves, and a changeling with a large head and staring eyes, which would do nothing but eat and drink, laid in its place. In her trouble she went to her neighbour, and asked her advice. The neighbour said that she was to carry the changeling into the kitchen, set it down on the hearth, light a fire, and boil some water in two egg-shells, which would make the changeling laugh, and if he laughed, all would be over with him. The woman did everything that her neighbour bade her. When she put the egg-shells with water on the fire, the imp said, “I am as old now as the Wester forest, but never yet have I seen any one boil anything in an egg-shell!” And he began to laugh at it. Whilst he was laughing, suddenly came a host of little elves, who brought the right child, set it down on the hearth, and took the changeling away with them.

The Elves and The Shoemaker
by The Brothers Grimm

FIRST STORY

A shoemaker, by no fault of his own, had become so poor that at last he had nothing left but leather for one pair of shoes. So in the evening, he cut out the shoes which he wished to begin to make the next morning, and as he had a good conscience, he lay down quietly in his bed, commended himself to God, and fell asleep. In the morning, after he had said his prayers, and was just going to sit down to work, the two shoes stood quite finished on his table. He was astounded, and knew not what to say to it. He took the shoes in his hands to observe them closer, and they were so neatly made that there was not one bad stitch in them, just as if they were intended as a masterpiece. Soon after, a buyer came in, and as the shoes pleased him so well, he paid more for them than was customary, and, with the money, the shoemaker was able to purchase leather for two pairs of shoes. He cut them out at night, and next morning was about to set to work with fresh courage; but he had no need to do so, for, when he got up, they were already made, and buyers also were not wanting, who gave him money enough to buy leather for four pairs of shoes. The following morning, too, he found the four pairs made; and so it went on constantly, what he cut out in the evening was finished by the morning, so that he soon had his honest independence again, and at last became a wealthy man. Now it befell that one evening not long before Christmas, when the man had been cutting out, he said to his wife, before going to bed, “What think you if we were to stay up to-night to see who it is that lends us this helping hand?” The woman liked the idea, and lighted a candle, and then they hid themselves in a corner of the room, behind some clothes which were hanging up there, and watched. When it was midnight, two pretty little naked men came, sat down by the shoemaker’s table, took all the work which was cut out before them and began to stitch, and sew, and hammer so skilfully and so quickly with their little fingers that the shoemaker could not turn away his eyes for astonishment. They did not stop until all was done, and stood finished on the table, and they ran quickly away.

Next morning the woman said, “The little men have made us rich, and we really must show that we are grateful for it. They run about so, and have nothing on, and must be cold. I’ll tell thee what I’ll do: I will make them little shirts, and coats, and vests, and trousers, and knit both of them a pair of stockings, and do thou, too, make them two little pairs of shoes.” The man said, “I shall be very glad to do it;” and one night, when everything was ready, they laid their presents all together on the table instead of the cut-out work, and then concealed themselves to see how the little men would behave. At midnight they came bounding in, and wanted to get to work at once, but as they did not find any leather cut out, but only the pretty little articles of clothing, they were at first astonished, and then they showed intense delight. They dressed themselves with the greatest rapidity, putting the pretty clothes on, and singing,

“Now we are boys so fine to see,
Why should we longer cobblers be?”

Then they danced and skipped and leapt over chairs and benches. At last they danced out of doors. From that time forth they came no more, but as long as the shoemaker lived all went well with him, and all his undertakings prospered.

The Snowflake Tree Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

THE hawthorn is dead, the rose-leaves have fled
On the north wind over the sea:
Now the petals will fall that are rarest of all,
Sweetheart, from the Snowflake Tree.

The Tree, it doth stand in that marvellous land
Whose shore like a sapphire gleams,
Where a crown hangs high in the northern sky,
Forth raying its golden beams.

It tosses its boughs with their crystalling blows;
They crackle and tinkle for glee
When the north wind shrieks round the awful peaks,
On the shores of the polar sea.

And never a bird its blossoms has stirred,
Or built on its branches a nest;
For the perfume which floats from the blossoms’ throats
Would freeze the song in its breast.

And my own little bird, were her goldilocks stirred
By the wind thro’ its branches which blows,
With her songs silenced all, forever would fall
Asleep on the silver snows.

But our hearth burns bright, little sweetheart,
to-night,
And we’re far from the Snowflake Tree;
Thou canst nestle in bed thy little gold head,
And thy songs shall awaken with thee.

@taci

One of my kids got those for me. ♥ I sure did use that coupon. I was playing
in the Arcade and it popped up. I wrote the numbers down. I could use another
too. 🙂

Look under something in the garage or basement for the lights. They are there it
just takes a little time to find them. Good Luck! 🙂 Here is a little something until
you do find them…

Oh another pair of shoes just in case you need another pair. 🙂

Sheba, the Marla Wynn velvet topper you posted is just about sold out. It is gorgeous!
And did you get the Sporto Slippers you posted? That was my favorite color.

Love those Charlie Brown pictures. Still cant find my lights, oh no….

You asked what I meant by enjoy your coupon, well that was the day there was a 20% off one item coupon. Hope you all saw it on the home page. I could sure use another.

Hope you all are having a wonderful day.

Heidi Daus Brooch. ♥