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2008 hangs above us waiting to surprise and inspire. Wishing you and your loved ones happiness hanging from every corner. Be back soon! xo, Anna

What a full year. Do I dare sound too typical and ask where its gone? Here we are nearing the end of December and I still can't find November. Looking over my shoulder, I am in awe really at what 2007 has been. Fruitful. Sweet. Challenging. Exhausting. Just full. And blessed, every last day of it. Thank you for being part of it. You're the sweet part. I'll be breaking for a bit, friends. There are sweets to bake. Gifts to wrap. Children to cuddle. Handsome eyes to look into. Couches to be slumbered upon. Oh and theres a book due in four weeks too. All these souls and blessings need some nurturing to carry them into the new year, including mine. I'm wishing days of peace for you. I'm praying for peace everywhere. I'm hoping for our awareness of the good around us. And I'll see you here again very soon. With my very best, Merry Christmas, xoox, AnnaMaria

Every weekday for two weeks now the weirdest thing has been happening. Little Eleni, yea, I said little...teeny tiny Eleni is up and dressed at the crack of dawn. What could possibly be so important? Shoes too? Really? As in you're leaving the house? Certainly not. Neh-nuh neh-nuh no. Just days ago she was flitting her sparkley self around the house barefoot from one adventure to another. Some with me, some without me. All of them near me. I could hear the adventures, and would look up from my work sometimes to see them. It was good. I was happy. She was happy. But now. Well. Eleni started a new adventure. Pre-school. Sigh. In fact I haven't even been able to write about this until now. I have been a bit reflective though, huh? I thought I would feel like 16 years of waiting would make me happy to have all the children cared for during the day. Happy would not describe this feeling. It's an ache of sorts. I can't explain it. My nose starts to st...

Merry 8 days away! xoAM

My little shop is open for business at 11am CST today. Whew. I'm gonna go clean house now. Hope you're having a good Saturday. Love love love, Anna Maria

Last year I wondered why it was called a Christmas cactus. This year I 'm wondering what I did to deserve this little bloom of progress. A small but welcome joy. Wishing you such. xoA

Well its not exactly popcorn, but snowflakey thingies came more easily somehow. The cheer shown in the tree day post was unfortunately not felt so much by me because I was too busy coming down with something. I felt so guilty for not feeling good and not being peppy for everyone, but just going through the motions. Fancy festivities. Not fancy feelings. So I spent 6 hours on the couch with that garland, ibuprofen and tea on Sunday morning so it actually got finished. But I'm better now, thank you. And I am happy with the garland, but maybe the stringy parts between are too belt-like and thick. Dunno. There could be lots of posts coming that are more photos than words, because thats the easier, faster part for me. I have to tell you. I have to. I never want to work as hard as I'm working right now ever again. In one way I love the amount of things that are getting accomplished but some days feel like I'm dragging a pile of boulders for miles before I can see som...

Killing time with crafts. Setting the stage. Nativity play. Let's do this thing people. Wait for me! Captives Nope. He just works there. Seriously. Just a coincidence. Up on the rooftop and heading home. Good Night. xo,AM

The spirits are lifted here a bit after a trying week or two and I could almost say jolly to describe it. Guess who's back? Now to restore my faith in technology. Is that even a real thing? I think not. I have other sorts of faith so technology can do what it wants. (Obviously it already does) Trimming time here.....unboxing stuff tonight! My mind instantly goes from that to all the sticky candy cane wrappers stuck between couch cushions that I'll come across in a few days and how the candy canes on the top of the tree will be among the only that survive for more than a week or two. I do love the family life. Have a sweet weekend! xoAM xo,AM

Before I forget, I wanted to share this inspiring book by Jeanne Williamson that I recently came across. It would make an ideal gift for someone who loves to quilt, collage, paint or all of the above. The concept behind the book in itself is a very inspiring thing for a designer. Jeanne set out to make a quilt every week for one year. 52 quilts! That dedication alone is so inspiring. And she continued this from 1999 to 2005 until she had 365 quilts . Not quilts in the sense that most people think of them, but smaller scale "art" quilts, for lack of a better description. The materials she uses in many of them are uncommon to say the least...cupcake wrappers, potato bags, newspaper .... along with more traditional things like paint, fabric, stitching. I love her choice of consistently making them about the same size of about 8x10" so that the resulting collection has a stunning flow but such variety. In the end they seem to be a mental landscape of sorts and rec...

Hey did seven days just pass since my last post ? Is time moving faster or am I moving slower? I am certain that I'm not moving slower. I really appreciate the shoulders that nuzzled under the crying from my last post. Boy howdy. I had actually gotten my camera back the very next day after that, quite surprisingly. I was so overjoyed and snapping pictures of stupid anythings. But then the playback button wouldn't work. I don't need to describe all the emotions, etc. after that. You know, if you can't say something nice. But I will say that while I feel I received a lemon, that the Canon people have been extremely helpful, and, umm, human . Do you ever feel like no matter what you say that the person on the other end of the line is going to repeat the same phrase?? They really seemed to listen to me when I calmly suggested that instead of me shipping it back again, that if perhaps one of their repair technicians in New Jersey could just step outside and open ...