Yuletide and bringing back the light.....

Looks like we've started the Yuletide season in a most beautiful way!

The gazebo is enchanting in the snow. It stays hidden all through the summer months until the trees that surround it drop their leaves. I like it that way. I have lights strung in and about the gazebo and a cafe set for dining. Just right for two people to enjoy a romantic night.

We have perennial beds surrounding the area, all shade plants. We also have mountain laurel, rhododendron, and azaleas, too.

The perennial bed along the fence is asleep, but, since I don't cut anything back until spring, the birds feed off of the dead flower heads, enjoying the seeds and berries.

Looks like some small repairs are due for one of the wren houses! I started out painting bird houses for nothing more than decorations to put around the yard and porch. Little did I know that they would be used every year for the birds to start new families. House wrens, chickadees, and house finches have all started new families within these houses. Such a treat to watch as the little ones grow.

A goldfinch and a junco dining on some thistle. I wanted to make sure the feeders had seed because most of the plants are buried under the snow.

After getting the shoveling under control and access to all the necessary spots, yesterday was the perfect day for baking and crafting. Here I made cinnamon ornaments for our Yule bush. (We decided on a holly bush to be our tree this year. We plant them after the holidays so they always are there to remind us of that special holiday year.) The ornaments are easy to make and when the kids were small, we used to love making these. All it takes is equal parts cinnamon and applesauce. To get these six stars, I used 1/2 C. cinnamon and 1/2 C. applesauce. Roll out on wax paper, cut with cookie cutter, poke hole in ornament so when they are dry you can put a ribbon through to hang. They will take several days to dry and make sure you flip them over to dry out the other side. The perk is your kitchen smells fabulous and then so will the room with your tree!

So, as we hustle about trying to finish up our errands and whatnot for the holiday season, just remember, the days now will get longer a little bit everyday. It makes me happy knowing this. It makes the sun happy, too! Ya' have to smile when you look at this fella. It's like he has a secret and is dying to tell you all about it.

But, more importantly, I wish you all peace. Peace and happiness for this holiday season and upcoming year. I think the world could use a bit of both. It all starts with what's inside our own hearts.

Have a Happy Yule!