Edie Wadsworth

Things I learned while Christmas Crafting

December 22, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 20 Comments

1. There’s hardly anything more endearing than pictures of little ones crafting. The actual real life crafting is a little more stressful than the photos reveal.

2. When 75% of your crafts involve straight pins, there will very likely be screams of pain…..and 8,765 straight pins on your floor.

3. There’s hardly anything more endearing than pictures of little ones crafting.

4. When 50% of your crafts involve gum drops, there’s a good chance you will find gum drops in odd places for the next 5 days.

but it will most definitely be worth it!

5. When you plan too many crafts in one day……

the children will leave you for dead in a pile of straight pins, gum drops, fabric scraps and felt birds to……..

make some fun of their own.

6. Those of your children who are very diligent and slightly perfectionistic will continue the ‘creating’ and complain that the “snow” is very runny this year.

7. Everyone works better if the projects are edible.

Check out the crafts we attempted here at my tumblr site (the place where I store links/things I don’t want to forget).

Update on photo: Thanks a million for all your funny and thoughtful responses to my Christmas card dilemma. I think I have a win/win solution. I got an email today from Vista for 50% off New Year’s cards so I think I’ll take that option. I also plan to use some of the funhouse photo cards to give to people at church and to some other folks whom we see often (who know that our real life faces are not quite that wide). How’s that for compromise?! Hope your week is merry.

And thank you Cindy for the PS tutorial. Now I need 4 or 5 good undisturbed hours (or weeks) to play!

Lots of love to you all!

Decking, Wrapping, and Christmas Card Woes

December 19, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 51 Comments

I’m still decking the halls in preparation for Christmas Eve Brunch (I’m hosting my extended family), which includes a little cleaning, a little table setting, and a lot of snipping from my magnolia, holly and pine trees. It took all morning to clean the gum drops and toothpicks off my kitchen floor from crafting day (yesterday). You can visit here to see the crafts we made and I’ll post about it soon. I’m collecting recipes for the brunch (which shall include the lightest fluffiest angel wing biscuits and my blueberry coffee cake among others yummies) and wondering if I should add homeade waffles to the already bulging menu?! I’m gathering my hodge podge of dishes and adding festive touches with Christmas napkins and mugs.

And then there’s the wrapping. Did I mention we have eight kids? And every year, we purpose to scale down the commercialism and focus our attention on the blessed work of Christ on our behalf. But we also want to use this opportunity to give with a cheerful heart to our kids and to our family. So, there’s a certain amount of commercialism that creeps in, despite our best efforts. If all goes well, most of the ‘work’ will be done this weekend, which will leave plenty of time for movies and board games and ‘rocking around the Christmas tree’. We’re looking forward to ‘time off’, Christmas and Advent services, time to knit and read and enjoying the company of those we love most.

I’ll likely be about as scarce around here as I have been at the gym lately. I’m sure I’ll miss you more though. Actually, I already have a couple posts ready for next week so I take that back—I’ll definitely be more scarce at the gym! Hope you are enjoying your weekend.

P.S. I need your help. I ordered Christmas cards from Vista Print and they arrived 2 days ago, in perfect time to quickly mail them out. However, the picture on the card is very distorted and makes us look like we’re standing in front of a fun house mirror. The cards themselves are so perfect and I really wanna send ’em anyway. Vista refunded my money but couldn’t get any new cards to me before Wed. Dec 23rd. So here’s my question. Do I?

1. Send the fun house picture and hope the recipients enjoy the wee bit of Christmas entertainment they provide.

2. Upload a picture to Walgreens and pick one the their photocards that can be printed in an hour.

3. Don’t send anything at all and use the cards we have to make paper airplanes to throw at each other on Christmas morning.

4. When the family is together for Christmas, take a picture and do New Year’s cards instead. (I’ve done this before and it’s not so bad)

Please advise.

The Bridegroom

December 17, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 29 Comments

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” C.S. Lewis

Yesterday, he:

Went to work, just like every other day, and tried to make a difference in someone’s life–if in no other way than to relieve suffering.
With great interest and love, made sure that our girls know that their daddy is on their side, that he is their biggest fan, their protector and their provider.
Came home early, gave out smooches and hugs galore, read most of the afternoon from Paradise Lost by Milton and commenced to draw parallels between C.S. Lewis, George McDonald and John Milton.
Discussed Issues like this and this and lamented the large gaps in our education.
Decided to take us to dinner out and then to our churches’ third Advent service.

And walking out from church, that’s when I felt the weight of it—-a glimpse of true joy, of complete contentment, a transcendent and yet very physical reassurance that this moment is a foreshadowing of the fullness we have in Christ. And this man, this husband and father is a picture of Christ—the very means God uses to nurture wives and children. A tangible, wonderful taste of what Christ ultimately gives us in Himself.

I receive it all with gratitude, take mental note of how handsome he looks in the white shirt (and the well- fitting jeans) and close my eyes to bask in the light.

Because we love air smooches at our house!

December 16, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 14 Comments

and real smooches too.

Now that I think about it, we’re a smooch-y bunch.

Hope you get lots of smooches today.

It’ll ease the stress of all those things you need to do before Christmas!

Mu-waaaaaah!

And I’m sending a smooch out to my ‘in real life’ friend Patty, whom I love dearly, who’s hosting a 12 Days of Christmas party. Just leave a comment on any of her Christmas posts to join the party.

Patty is probably my friend with whom I share the most in common. When we get together, we talk a mile a minute about photography and lens and lighting and blogging and reading and children and ‘Edward’ and stay-at-home-momming, and cooking and organizing….and, and , and.

You’ll love her. She’ll make you laugh. And cry.

And you’ll thank me for introducing you.

Go ahead and send your air smooches of thanks now.

A Sparkly Christmas Tour

December 13, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 56 Comments

Welcome to my warm and cozy and very sparkly Christmas tour. This year I have simplified my festive decor and hope you’ll enjoy the lights, fresh greens and the smell of wassail on the stove! Come on in y’all.

Saturday Ramblings

December 12, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 19 Comments

I started a bookclub two years ago in an attempt to continue my own education as I simultaneously teach my little ones. We loosely follow the reading list laid out by Susan Wise Bauer in her book The Well-Educated Mind. The reading list is divided into genres and is composed of a sampling of the Great Books of Western Civilization. This is not a bookclub for the faint of heart. The reading lists are demanding and this semester alone, our group has whittled itself down to a faithful few. I have a love/hate relationship with bookclub. I’m so thankful for the very smart group of friends that shares my passion for reading classic literature. If you have a friend who’ll read Plato’s Republic with you and not call you names or throw things at you, then you have a friend indeed. But because the books are tougher reads than say, Twilight, which I also enjoyed, I find myself feeling so relieved when bookclub is over. Similar to the way I felt when I finished a Microbiology exam in medical school.

“Whew, glad that’s over. I think I’m gonna bake all weekend!” (my classmates loved me)

With that sense of relief is also a very palpable sense of accomplishment. And since we moms live in a world of neverending/never completed tasks like laundry, dishes, and meals, actually ticking something off a list that is finished—is well……… just a dandy thing to do. I keep my list on my blog and though I won’t make my goal of 52 books this year, I’m so grateful for the books I’ve read. And grateful for the friends who’ve read them along with me.

We just finished All the Presidents’ Men on Friday—and yes I finished. I downloaded the 12 hours of audio on Monday and listened to the ‘the end’ 2 minutes before I needed to leave the house. It was a fascinating story but never EVER a book I would have read without the pressure of bookclub. And some things that are important—like to me, reading classics works I never read in school, or ‘read’ but don’t remember—-are not urgent. So they easily get laid aside for things that are more pressing, like laundry and dinner and mindlessly surfing the internet. I guess I’ve always functioned better with structure and guidelines. Our genre for the spring is ‘plays’—-so January’s read is Medea by Euripides. If I know myself, I’ll read 2 or 3 books before I start Medea and then get the ‘eye of the tiger’ in the last two weeks and read and study for Medea like I’m gonna have to take a test on it. And then I’ll search the net and you tube and see if I can find some brilliant Yale professor giving a lecture on greek plays. I like the way the bookclub forces at least some sense of urgency and structure to my reading life. Though my decorating schedule and my nightly menu may have suffered slightly.

In non-literary news, I love this cheese and I love those cute little bowls (from Walmart). I can’t help it if this really yummy cheese that’s been marinated in wine is called the Drunken Goat. I blame my neighbor Sue.

And I’m slowly adding lights…

….and other festive sparkles to my still slightly Thanksgiving-ish house. I’ll show the rest on Monday at The Nester’s Christmas Tour. I think.

In non-sparkling news, my laundry became the ace-in-the-whole hiding place for the afternoon hide and seek.

The pony tail gave it away. The laundry was at least clean.

And I must quickly consult my fairy godmother to work some magic for me because I’m going on a date tonight. With an honest to goodness babysitter and reservations. And lipstick and high heeled boots. And other adults. If there’s an awkward lull in the conversation, I can always bring up the Drunken Goat.