I have not had the best start to 2014. I will spare you all the gory details, but starting NYE, I was hit with a bad case influenza. Fast forward 3 days, and I am still sick, but sleeping as much as possible. Needless to say, I have not been able to get any work done, nor have I been able to start the New Years full force with the enthusiasm and gusto I had intended. But for now, I can only sit here, in bed, drinking tea, and trying not to worry.
Well played 2014. Well played.
Cheers.
https://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.png00Jessica Swagmanhttps://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.pngJessica Swagman2014-01-06 19:29:132014-01-06 19:29:13Well played 2014. Well played.
I hope you all had a great Christmas. It was certainly a wintry week, but a very pretty one. The ice covered world, uh, gorgeous! Then add the dusting of powdery snow atop that glittering crystal, ah-ma-zing. I know all my photog friends were outside snapping up a storm. This Christmas I was not able to travel to Alberta to visit Jas and my family, so I snuggled in at my parents for a very, very quiet Christmas. With my siblings living in other States and Countries (and Jas living in Alberta), it means that holiday’s usually are just my parents and I. This December, my mom and I put up the Christmas tree, with a few hilarious hiccups along the way, decorated the house in enough pine boughs to make you think you were walking through a forest, and had Peter, Paul and Mary’s Christmas Album playing loud enough for even the smallest creature outside the house to hear.
With December drawing to a close and Christmas Decorations being taken down, and a New Year just within reach, I am reminded that each moment is special, no matter how quiet and small, as long as I spend it with those I love.
This Christmas season, my mom and I dragged in our massive Christmas tree from outside and in the process, we lost a few branches. Instead of throwing them away, I decided to take the 4 branches and multiply them into enough boughs to cover our entire house (and presents) in fresh, lovely smelling pine. Below, you will see the simple directions to make boughs that you can hang anywhere from your front door to the back of chairs, and many places in between.
1. Select your branches: I chose 3 different types of evergreens for a total of 8 branches.
2. Arrange your branches: I chose the biggest branch and placed the smaller branches on top of it, trimming away excess.
3. Wrap your branches: I wrapped the ends of the branches where they are gathered together with florist wire and then florist tape. Wrap enough of both so that the branches are secure.
4. Tie a bow: I chose to wrap a red satin ribbon around the ends, but you can use anything you want.
5. Place your bough: Depending on the size of your bough, you can hang it on your front door, on the back of chairs, on the wall, on Christmas presents.
https://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.png00Jessica Swagmanhttps://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.pngJessica Swagman2013-12-15 19:33:192014-01-01 19:34:22Take A Bough
I feel like December snuck up on me, completely out of nowhere and hit me over the head. Bam. Last night I was frantically researching easy Christmas cookie recipes, wrapping presents (yes, I have almost all my Christmas shopping done, with gifts en route to Denver and Reno as we speak), and looking over my notes for my final wedding of 2013. A few days ago I finally had time to try my hand at decorating a mug with a sharpie (I’ve only seen a million tutorials on Pinterest). The perfectionist in me probably made it a hundred times harder than it should have been, but two hours later I had my decorated mug. Will I ever use it? Never. Can you imagine if the gold started to wear off? I would probably cry.
This past weekend I was gifted a lovely bouquet of flowers from a very dear family. When I got home, as I was unwrapping the cellophane, I noticed a few stems didn’t have blooms, while others were a little smushed. The not-so-lovely side of buying flowers that are all pre-picked at the store for you. So, I tromped outside into my snowy yard and cut a few branches of leaves and greenery, and rescued this sweet little bouquet. See, you can make a grocery store bouquet look lovely!
With that said, I hope you all enjoy this beautiful, wintery week. And may all your days be merry and bright.
https://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.png00Jessica Swagmanhttps://jsevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/logo-pink-1030x925.pngJessica Swagman2013-12-10 20:55:062013-12-20 22:58:01It’s the Most Wonderful Time
I stumbled upon this quote today and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The road to comparison is never a good road to go down and it never ends well. It is a slippery slope and once you are on it, it is very hard to get off it. You would think at some point we would learn to be content with who we are and what we have. You would hope that at some point we would grow up and get over it. If only it were that easy. At 28, I still have not learned my lesson. This past week has been hard; I think I have beaten myself up about a million times by comparing myself to other people and their perfect lives.
With Facebook, Instagram, blogs, etc, sometimes we look at everyone else’s life and think they have it all. After all, it’s really easy for people to make their lives look and sound perfect. Plus, there are those little numbers constantly reminding us that we are still far from 1,000 Facebook Likes or 10,000 Instagram followers. Why do we use those numbers as a gauge for our self-worth? See, not a good road at all.
Ironically, Thanksgiving is just a few short days away, reminding me that I have so much to be thankful and joyful for. I am truly blessed. We are all truly blessed.
