Cool Sights to See in Portland, Oregon

Here are a few sights to see, if you're in Portland, during December:

This is the Pioneer Place Christmas Tree.
Here are some cool old buildings:

A church in downtown Portland.

This building on 39th and Hawthorne has actual flames shooting up out of the sconces on either side of the front door of Arista. Creepy but cool, in a hot way.

Everything seems prettier during the holiday season.

O Christmas Tree(s) - Sunday-Getting Ready for the Holidays

We spent the day visiting family: we went to my brother's house and then my uncle's house.


After that we decorated our trees and I baked a bunch of cookies to take to the neighbors.


It's Luke and Kara's finals week. Good Luck!!!

Meg, The Christmas Chicken

The holidays are busy.

I spent the day at a Christmas Cookie Exchange/Party. We met at Diane’s house, decorated her tree, enjoyed a potluck lunch, and sat by the fire for a chat. We all had our picture taken with Meg, the Christmas Chicken. (BTW: Meg is a pet, not going to be a meal - just thought I should clarify that point).

When the party was over, we all headed home with four dozen cookies. What a sweet party.

Diane has a cool library too, check out one wall of books, but there are three walls like this - all stuffed with great books to read.

I Had Christmas Down in Africa

Don't assume: you have to listen to the entire song:

ANSWER to Thought for Thursday - and EARTH FRIENDLY FRIDAY

ANSWER TO THOUGHT FOR THURSDAY: A Nisse is a little gnome-like creature. Read more about it here.

At Christmas, these elf-like creatures help Kris Kringle but in Norwegian folklore one actually became Santa Claus. God Jul is Merry Christmas.

AND NOW FOR EARTH-FRIENDLY FRIDAY:

Lights, Camera…Christmas!

Okay, I want to set a green holiday scene but this is the one time of the year I splurge a little – at least when it comes to lights. I can’t help it. I love the holidays – always have. The rest of the year I am so watt-wise. But don’t worry, there are other ways we can go green without looking like we’ve turned into the Grinch who Stole Christmas.

Here are a few tips that I’ve been using for years.

1) Collect flower seeds all summer and then dry them in the basement or another cool dry place, package them in pretty envelopes, and make hand-printed labels to give the Seeds of Friendship.

2) I use old fabrics and cut them down and sew them into dishtowels, then I wrap my gifts in this recycled fabric. It’s easy to add ribbons and/or other embellishments to make them picture perfect.

3) Mix up your favorite cookie dough or hot spiced drink and then package it in a clean, glass container to give to a hurried mom. You can add a nice cookie sheet or mug to make the present even more practical. It’s easy to have home-baked cookies when the batters already mixed up and waiting in the refrigerator. Or, how about a nice cup of spiced cocoa? Just add some peppermint shavings to create a peppermint cocoa mix.

4) I also save scrap fabrics and sew them into beautiful Christmas scarves. If you don’t have scrap material sitting around, buy a yard or two of pretty fabric and you can sew plenty of projects for co-workers, friends or family.

5) If you can’t sew, you can buy a nice fleece material and merely cut the edges to make it into a pretty scarf.

6) There are also plenty of free-patterns on-line. Print out an easy knitting project, buy a pair of knitting needles and a ball of yarn to give to a young lady on your list. Knitting is cool again, so is crocheting. These are inexpensive presents that will stretch your budget and keep packaging to a minimum. Plus the result will be something useful, like a scarf, sweater, or hat.

Hand-Writing Analysis

Okay, Kelly Polark has shared this fun link and I thought I would too. Of course there are some free writing analysis sites on the web, but who wouldn't want a more personalized approach? If you're interested in having your handwriting analyzed check out Shelby's blogsite here.

THOUGHT FOR THURSDAY

QUESTIONS: What is a Nisse?