Warm Wishes

As snow was falling this morning and the house was filled with the busy sounds of my children, I found myself so grateful for this time of year. Even though I'm always a bit sad when Christmas is over, I treasure these few days when life is slow, game playing runs into the wee hours of the morning and lazy mornings are the rule. Really, really treasure them.

Sending you warm wishes,
and hoping you are treasuring these post-Christmas days too.
I'll be back to post about my "word" for 2010 on
Monday, the 4th.
Cheerio!

The stockings were hung...

and then the basement flooded...

We're right in the thick of the Christmas hustle and bustle, all the while dealing with a messy, stinky, torn up flooded basement! What timing, huh? It could be worse though, and at least I get to pick out new carpet.

Hope all is well with you lovely people,
and I hope you have a Merry [and DRY] Christmas!

Dear friend,

[ photo lifted from her blog]

+ Thank you for being the kind of woman/wife/mother/friend that inspires me.

+ Thank you for listening when I am frustrated, and for offering really wise words in return.

+ Thank you for marrying my cousin so that I can call you family.

+ Thank you for being so crafty and organized because I need guidance in those areas.

+ Thank you for introducing me to Kelly's lemon bars.

+ Thank you for loving music as much as I do.

+ Thank you for your friendship.

Happy Birthday, Danyelle!

My Family.

I actually get a little emotional as I look at these pictures of my family. The thing I love the most about these shots is that Ryan [super-star photgrapher] captured each of our personalities so well in these photos. The shoot was casual and comfortable, there was laughter and love and really great lighting... that's what Ryan kept saying anyways!

I highly recommend that if you or anyone you know needs family pictures, and you live in the Portland, OR or Tri-Cities, WA area, contact him. You Look Nice Today Photography seriously ROCKS!

Here are a few of my favorites, but you can check out the entire shoot here.



Now, for the impossible.
To choose which photos to order for my home...

P.S. That is our bunny, Flop, making an appearance in our shots. Isn't he cute?
P.P.S. These shots were taken on our blueberry and apple farm.

Super.

** photo taken by You Look Nice Today Photography

Besides the sore, itchy throat I have right now, today is a super day. I am sewing my Christmas cards, christmas tunes are playing, and I got to see our recent family pictures [more on those later, but be sure that I. love. them.] Oh, and then I got an e-mail from Lyndsay letting me know that she posted some answers I gave her for her Supermom Series. I am not a super mom, but it was a great opportunity for me to ponder what inspires me. Go check it out.

I hope you are having a Super day!

Flocked.

Ever since I was a little girl admiring my aunt Denise's flocked Christmas tree, I've dreamed of my own snowy tree. Well, here's a glimpse of my first tree bathed in white,
isn't it pretty?

Very fitting for a weekend forecasted to have snow!
I'm crossing my fingers that we get some decent snowfall.
Have a Merry weekend!

Magic.

I've got a hot date with my sewing machine and I am so excited. I've never used this machine before (I'm ashamed to say.) It was a gift from my husband two Christmases ago and I've yet to learn how to even thread the machine. But it will all change tomorrow.

Madeline has been using my machine for some time now, but somehow she lost the power cord. I've searched high and low for that cord and it. is. gone! Nowhere to be found. But I just ordered a new cord and it will be here tomorrow. And me and that machine are gonna make some magic happen.

(Dramatic? Nah!)

me + sewing machine + polka dot fabric + robin's egg blue paper = Christmas card magic

Wish Me Luck!

P.S. I am over-the-moon happy to be hearing music again on my blog!!

The day the music died.

I am so sad. My beloved imeem is gone. Without warning, it up and closed doors and now I am being redirected to MySpace. No thanks. My playlists are gone. There is no music here at the Passionista for the first time in over two years. I am sad.

I am in the process of finding an alternative, but I loved imeem and they had the best system I've found for creating and sharing playlists.

I am so sad.

*** Post edit: I found an alternative for now. It's still not as great as imeem because I can't upload my own music, and some music that I post is practically impossible to find. But at least there's music!

New Albums.

It's been a really looooong time since I've done a new music post. But I've been taking little breaks from my Christmas playlists to listen to some of the new music that's recently released. Here are my thoughts...

Battle Studies - John Mayer. I have long been a fan of Mayer and have really enjoyed hearing his sound evolve into this more bluesy-less rock sound. A really solid album, my favorite track is #2, "All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye." Hmmmm, that song is gorgeous and is exactly where I love to hear his voice. Listen here.

The Road to Gavle - Tina Dico. I still have a lot of listening to do on this album but already it has captivated me. It's a really beautiful album categorized as rock, but really quite undefinable. It's a little bit country, a little bit blues, a little bit alternative, a little bit folk. I love it all! Check it out.

I and Love and You - The Avett Brothers. I have been hearing so much about The Avett Brothers these last couple of months, and although I don't love everything that I've listened to, there are a few songs from this newest album that I really like a lot. The title track is brilliant, and I also really like "And It Spread", "The Perfect Space", and "Ill With Want." Listen here.

The Fall - Norah Jones. This album has me so confused. Her first two albums were mellow and jazzy, piano driven folky tunes. Then her third album expanded a bit to sound more like a pop album but still clung to that mellow jazz sound. Now this album sounds so different to me. More rock. More electric guitar. More percussion. I think it's going to take more time to understand it. One thing remains though, her voice is perfection. Listen here.

Have you checked these albums out and what did you think?
Any new music that you are loving right now?

Snow White.

We had a wonderful weekend, of which the highlight was Lily's baptism. Surrounded by family and friends, she took an important step into the waters of baptism and came out as pure and as white as snow. Following the baptism ordinance she was confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and was given the gift of The Holy Ghost.

In her journal that evening she wrote, "Today at my baptism I got the Holy Ghost. I felt like I was the sun." That was her way of saying she felt good and warm and happy. She is a ray of sunshine.

We bought her a special dress for this event and when I saw it the first time, I swooned because it is so beautiful. The smocking, the pearls, the gold details. It's gorgeous.

Awesome.

The coolest thing I've seen on Etsy EVER!
Would make the perfect Christmas gift for the iPhone/iPod lover on your list.
Seriously.
Look here.

Real vs. Fake

We've been selling fresh-cut Christmas trees for the past 7 years and over the years there has been a steady decline in the number of trees we sell. We know that it is because of the ease and perhaps the price of purchasing a fake tree. I have been trying to convince Brandon the last couple of years that we should try to entice our possible customers to go with a real tree using some persuasive advertising. So this year we ordered some signs with these phrases:

• Real trees are environmentally friendly!
• Support an American Farmer
• Support a Local Business
• A real tree is Christmas!
• Nothing Can Replace the Smell of a Real Tree!
  

and my personal favorite:

• Real Trees Aren't Made in China!

The bottom line is that fake trees end up in a landfill where they rest forever. Real trees do not contribute to deforestation rather they are grown by American farmers who re-plant each year making fresh trees a very "green" choice!

If you are local and still searching for the perfect tree, please feel free to print off the above coupon for you and your friends and come by to visit our lot at

845 N. Columbia Center Blvd.
Kennewick, WA

Have a lovely weekend!

December Mix Winners

This month the mix winners are:

19 - Heidi D.
22 - Kadi
6 - Kelly McCaleb
13 - Melanie
8 - Amy

Congrats Ladies, please e-mail me [lomaril at aol dot com] your address so I can get these mixes in the mail to you! [except you Mel, I will see you tonight!]

Family Photos.

The day before Thanksgiving we had the opportunity to have some family photos taken. We hired Ryan Wilcox of You Look Nice Today Photography and it was a great experience for our family. Ryan and his gorgeous wife Tiffany were so laid back and easy to work with and although we haven't seen the results yet of that shoot, I am confident that we will be thrilled. Ryan is a "mostly film" photographer, and used color film for our shoot and I can NOT wait to see how they turn out. There is something so satisfying to me about hearing the film advance with the click of each shot and I love the warm, soft look of film photography.

If you are from the Portland, OR or Tri-Cities, WA areas and are looking for a photographer I highly recommend You Look Nice Today Photography. I've added Ryan's site to my sidebar, so go check it out. I'll be sure to share our photos when they become available.

Rewind.

The day before we left for vacation we threw Lily a birthday party. Believe it or not, it was her first ever "friends" birthday party. She shares her birthday week with three other cousins so we always focus on a big family birthday party, but with 8 being a very special year [she'll be baptized on Saturday] we planned a fun birthday bash. Lily loves shoes, so we ran with a shoe themed party and it was really fun.

The details:

The invites were so simple, just a picture transformed into a polaroid and then placed on cardstock with the party details inside. Super easy.

At the party I took a picture of each of the guests with Lily, including their shoes and we will make these into postcards and use them as thank you notes. Lily's friend Ryah gifted her matching converse, pretty cute.

The girls made felt shoe clips like the ones pictured in Lily's invites and they played a version of hot potato which we called "hot heels" as they passed around red shoes! The gift boxes were filled with gum balls and girly things like nail polish and lip gloss.

More Vintage Christmas

Three years ago I made a playlist filled with all of my favorite Christmas songs. The best of the best of vintage Christmas music, and each year I have looked forward to listening to that mix. Because there is a never ending supply of amazing Christmas music, and because this era of music reminds me of my childhood, I made a new mix for this 2009 Christmas season... and I love it. Here are my favorites from the mix...

• Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Ella Fitzgerald. I love Ella. She's my all-time favorite.
• White Christmas - Peggy Lee. Ever since I heard Peggy Lee's voice sing "La la lu" on Lady and The Tramp, I've been a fan.
• By The Fireside - Jo Stafford. I love this song so much, it makes me want to turn up the fire and snuggle with my husband.
• The Christmas Song - Wayne Newton. Wayne's voice in this song reminds me of my childhood Christmases more than any other song.
• Silent Night - Bing Crosby. The master of Christmas music.
• Winter Weather - Benny Goodman & Peggy Lee. A few days ago my mom called me and told me I HAD to find this song, and she was so right, who doesn't love the big band sound of this one.
• The Christmas Blues - Dean Martin. For me Dean Martin and Christmas music go together like pumpkin pie and whipped cream.
  
• Winter Wonderland - Rosemary Clooney. She didn't get the recognition she deserved, she was a gem and I love her.
• Ave Maria - Andy Williams. They called him Mr. Christmas for a reason. I love his voice.
• I'll Be Home For Christmas - Al Martino. My grandma, who helped create so many wonderful Christmas memories for me, loved Martino and his voice reminds me of her.

Last month's November winners will also get a copy of this December mix [as a sort of "I'm sorry" for the major delay in your package.] If you didn't win in November then comment once [with your e-mail address] on this post by Friday, December 4th @ 8am, when I will pick 5 names to receive this December mix. Good Luck!