Christmas Eve

Our tree is decorated... ready and waiting for the grandsons to arrive

(and their Mom & Dad too... wink!)

We've always had candles on our tree (that German heritage), 

and this year added red wooden beads and curly raffia.

Like many of your homes...

Every ornament on our tree has "a story"...

Above... ornaments our grandsons made.

The snowman is from our Vermont

"Kingdom Kraft" business days...

The pewter lamb from Danforth Pewters.

This snowman ornie was from our oldest daughter

and has become a favorite...

We made this wedding couple for our first tree...

Up in Amherst, Wisconsin... forty two years ago.

A Vermont handcrafter created this...

(it hangs next to a red bag full of coal!)

Another from our first Christmas...

filled with dried wildflowers we found

along the roadside in Amherst...

Our German "Putz" collection... now fills a wooden cabinet

during Christmas.  When we lived in Vermont, we would

visit the homes of others friends who also put up a putz...

The figures tell the "life of Christ" story... not just the Nativity.

Out fireplace mantle this year... (fake greens... Tsk! Tsk!)

Found this St. Nick at a thrift shop ($3.) in Vermont a few years ago...

He's  a little "grumpy"... but we love him!

Love, love, love the over-sized ears on this folk art angel!

And then our "sepia photo finish" tree...

Four generations of family photos that I processed

years ago with a "sepia" finish...

Grandma Cook (Koch)... our parents, our siblings, our children.

(Yup... that's our wedding photo and our daughter's above it!)

Three generations of "Fischer" girls... 

Grandma Lucille, Katie and our daughter, Naomi.

A flood of memories... 

And then there are the hand-carved wooden Saint Nicks...

made by Vermont artisans, the McAlister family

We're wishing you a Merry Christmas... Daryle & Katie

Thanksgiving Day...Just Enough Snow!

We spent four days over Thanksgiving in Vermont 

with Em and Chad... and their wonder-dog: Stella!

Along with our grandsons (Jon and Ryan pictured here), 

our daughter Naomi and son-in-law Steve... 

In a word: WONDERFUL!

Yup... just enough snow to spend Thanksgiving morning 

making a snowman and having snowball fights...

Jon and his "lying down" snowman... that he made in

one of uncle Chad and auntie Em's raised bed gardens. 

Pop-Pop just had to do an "oil painting" rendition

of this delightful creation... (a snowman-doll is next!

Blessings... 

One of South Jersey's Best Kept Secrets!

This is why I love taking a load of garden cuttings for mulching,

 to our local landfill on an early Saturday morning!

Our backroads here in South Jersey remain one of our 

best keep secrets...  Shhhhh, Don't tell!

Neglected Beauty... Found in Our Gardens Today

From the Solomon's Seal, 

with its leaves translucent in the sunlight...

...to an invasive Carrotwood cousin 

that loves to climb...

...to our decorative grasses, 

showing off their plumage...

...to the unassuming Butterfly Milkweed 

that has finally gone to seed...

...to our stone turtle who seems ready to hibernate

'neath the leaves found in the birdbath...

Ah, glorious Fall!

Two Companions Have Left Home!

I finally... finished these three guys: "Companions Along the Journey"

They are, in part, based upon these two quotes:

“I am a companion of all those who revere You.” 
(Psalm 119:63 NASB)

"Some carried their burdens well, some did not.  And some
carried very heavy burdens with gallentry and grace."
(Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert A. Heilein)

This guy is part of the "Artful Giving" show and sale

down in Millville this month and next.

This guy is also part of the Riverfront Renaissance show!

And this guy? 

Well, he stayed home and now stands on my office desk!

I did an "oil painting" rendition of him using PhotoFunia...

Check out their website... it has some fun, funky finishes and formats.

(how's that for some alliteration!) 

Here's the link: http://photofunia.com/categories/all_effects

Life is... Bitter-Sweet!

So many of us enjoy this time of the year:

the cooler temps, changing colors, putting our gardens to rest

in anticipation of winter (even here in South Jersey!)

One of my favorite annual "adventures" is combing the backroads 

for a stand of bitter-sweet!  I found these just east of the

Delaware Memorial Bridge...  just waiting to be snipped off

and brought home to be enjoyed for a season!

Upcycle Show...

Well... how much fun it that!?!

I took the new birdcage reliquary shrine dolls 

to the gallery this afternoon for the "Artful Giving"

show coming up in a few weeks...

And found my "Guardian of Hope" entry in the Upcycle, Repurpose 

and Reuse Show had won 3rd place in the gallery!

This incredible repurposed bronze bust won first place!

In a word: extraordinary!

What a variety of work, most pieces are mixed-media.

Here he is... standing so proud; 

next to a very handsome guitar ensemble!

Off We Go... to the Gallery Show!

These three reliquary shrine dolls are headed to Millville...

for the annual "Artful Giving" show and sale at

Riverfront Renaissance Center for the Arts.

Here's a link to the website: http://www.rrcarts.com

This guy is my favorite... just because!

And this guy wears the years of walking in wisdom well...

And this little guy? Well, he's is just along for the ride!

I ended up adding small, painted metal stars to the top of each 

of the hand-dyed wool felt hats... and vintage sheet music 

inside two of the reliquary shrine birdcage bases.

You've Gotta Have Heart...

Each birdcage angel has a heart...

Rusted tin painted and sprayed with a bit of walnut stain.

You don't suppose I could just pass them off as simply: 

"birdcages with a little bit o' heart?" (wink!)

Giving Me a Little Lip!

So... these "Messengers of Hope" finally have a little lower lip!

(Actually... not such "little" lower lips!)

And their birdcage bodies are just about complete...

The wings need some walnut stain and a soft sanding!

Each of these guys will have a rusty metal heart hanging inside 

his birdcage; visible through the wire bars.

I also added heavy eyelids so give them a little empathy...

Next... the heads need a base-coat with raw umber or soft black.

Their hats are made from hand-dyed wool felt that we found

in Lancaster County last summer... stamped with some of Katie's

favorite rubber stamp images (mine too!)

Thank you for stopping by... enjoy the remains of the day!

Daryle