Tis the Season of Giving!

            Today I woke up thinking how thankful and grateful I am for my life!  I have a husband who loves me, a beautiful family and friends, and of course Dante’ who never leaves my side when I am at home!

            We had a wonderful night last night. Shank’s staff came over for a Christmas get together. I spent most of the day cooking and everything was gluten and cow dairy free! There was very little food left and everyone seemed to like it! They were very impressed with my gluten free pecan pie! The thing that really stays in my mind though is how much better I feel with my new lifestyle! I would not have been physically able to do all of this before Vanessa and Q helped me make the lifestyle change in August!

            Christmas is almost here! Can you believe it? I still have so much to do.  The good news though is that the gifts that I had a deadline in finishing are here and ready to be wrapped. The storybooks are back from the publisher! The Year in Pictures Album should be here on Monday. Now I only have the handmade gifts to finish!

            I have always loved handmade gifts and making things for other people. It makes me sad to think of all of the people who don’t know that joy. While I enjoy walking through the mall during the Christmas season, I have never understood the need to equate money with giving.  As a child, my mother would help us make gifts for others. One year we made key holders for the men out of paint stirrers that we spray painted and attached cup hooks. We made sewing kits for the women out of (and I am dating myself here) Bayer aspirin tins.  For those of you too young to remember these, they were about the size of a small matchbook, and made of metal. To open them, you pressed on the back corners. We spray painted them gold, took the little piece of cardboard that separated the rows of aspirin, wrapped different colors of thread around them, added needles, straight pins, safety pins, and a couple of buttons.

            I have since inherited these back. I have two. My great grandmother who I called Ma had used hers until the paint was worn off. She just kept refilling the thread. My Granny, who died at the age of 51(I was 12 and heart broken) had hers saved with her jewelry! Needless to say, I keep these inherited items with my good jewelry also; they are more precious than all of the other jewelry pieces combined!

            In high school, I made a counted cross work pillow and cook book cover with a blank cookbook inside for my other grandmother. When my grandmother died, my aunt sent them back to me. Grandmother had handwritten recipes in the book. So I got a priceless present in return!

            I think what I am trying to say in all of this rambling is that as humans we need to remember the saying “It is better to give than to receive”. Give from the heart! You always end up the winner. And remember, we all make our own Karma!

I told you last week that I would show you pictures of what I am doing for Christmas. I am not as far along as I thought I would be, but here are pictures of my finished books! Also, a picture of Dante’ who loves me even when I am not at my best.

Until next week!