Winter solstice

Happy Winter Solstice to all! And to my one blog friend in the Southern Hemisphere, happy Summer Solstice! It seems crazy to think of having Christmas in summer, but honestly, this is South Carolina and our temperatures are often close to summer-like this time of year. Last week we had a morning so cold the temperature was 18 degrees (-7 Celsius) with a wind chill of 10 (-12C). But our forecast high for Christmas Day? 70 degrees! We have crazy weather here and you never know what you're going to get. *

Check out our Christmas tree alternative. When we bring in our huge Ficus from the porch in the fall, it doesn't leave much room in the house for a traditional Christmas tree. I strung some lights on this baby and called it a day. Hey, at least it's a tree, right?

I finally finished sending out this year's Christmas cards. I swore I was going to cut down on the number I send out but still ended up sending about three dozen. It's one of my only holiday traditions and I love doing it, despite the rising cost of postage. So far, we've gotten four. They're all pretty, but I noticed this morning that the sun was shining in and illuminating one of them from the inside. Isn't it pretty?

And speaking of pretty...look at this beautiful cake one our book club members made for our holiday meeting last week! Not only is it gorgeous to look at, but the woman who sent this wasn't able to come herself. She was having back surgery the next day, and her husband has just been diagnosed with brain cancer. I can't believe she took the time to make something so lovely for us to enjoy in her absence. (We're discussing ways to support her at a time like this).

It was red velvet cake on the inside. 

We're on an extra-long holiday break this year, just shy of three weeks! This past Tuesday was our last day, and we go back on January 5th. I'm taking things so easy this year, and I love it. Tomorrow after an early appointment with my allergist, I'm going to prepare three large batches of cookie dough (I've already shopped for the ingredients). On Tuesday, I'll bake it all up and prepare trays of cookies to give to our friends and neighbors for Christmas. I'm trying to keep things simple and mindful and as non-consumerist as possible this year.

*Except in summer. You always know what you're going to get then!

Decorations

 I finished the wreath for the front door. It now has more greenery, a bow, and lights. I'm happy with it!

Yesterday I started another wreath made with clove-studded dried orange slices, cinnamon sticks, tiny pinecones, and sprigs of fir and rosemary. It's not done yet, but here's a picture of a small bit of it to give you the general idea.

And here are some photos of my neighbors' houses, all lit up for Christmas. The t-rex with antlers is my favorite! 

Cozy weekend

First, an update on the Cherub: after a rough start and two bad days, Friday was much better. His foster mom picked him up from school and when she heard what a good day he'd had, she told him they'd go get ice cream to celebrate. Then this morning his foster dad brought him to school a few minutes late, and when I gave him a breakfast bag, he said, "Thank you!" and gave me a hug. How nice is that? Maybe he's getting some stability in his life and will continue to do better. I hope so.

The weekend was cold and rainy. I went out on Saturday and bought some live materials to make a wreath for our front door, and I spent the early afternoon yesterday working on it. It still needs a bow, and better lights, and I wouldn't mind picking up some extra fir branches to fluff it up a bit more, but this is what I have so far.

I also spent the afternoon cooking vegetable soup in the crock pot and drying apple and orange slices in the dehydrator. The house smelled amazing while I worked on the wreath!

Christmas will be here in no time.

The Cherub

Yesterday a new student registered for school with us. Kindergarten. Five years old. The most adorable little boy you ever saw: beautiful olive skin, springy, tawny curls, big bright eyes. A little cherub. He's in foster care, and this is the first time he's been in school in his life. 

His teacher, my favorite from the kindergarten hall (experienced, kind, fun, and with a real gift for teaching little ones), was out sick yesterday, so the classroom aide was by herself. Up in the front office, by midmorning we started to hear rumblings that the Cherub was turning out to be a real live wire. The library assistant reported that when the class came to check out books, she started asking him questions about himself. He stared at her, answered her questions for a minute, and then said, "I punch people who annoy me." She said, "Am I annoying you?" to which he replied, "No, but I'm just letting you know..." We all chuckled. Okay. 

At lunch, he informed one of the lunch ladies that he "knew lots of gangsters at his last home" and "I punch people who annoy me!" Whew, we said. What a little firecracker! Haha! Okay.

Then about an hour after lunch the classroom aide called up to the front office and said, "I need help! (Cherub) is trying to escape!" When the principal went down there, he was angrily trying to exit the class and refusing to sit down and cooperate. She walked him up to the office and sat him on the bench outside the nurse's office, to cool down. After a little while she went to talk to him and said, "You'll get to go home soon. You're riding the brown bus home." (For the littles our buses are named Pink, Brown, Orange, and Blue to help them remember which one they ride). Cherub looked at her like she was an idiot and said, "I ride a YELLOW bus home!" She briefly explained that while the bus IS yellow, the one he rides is called Brown. He continued to look skeptical, so she asked him if he'd rather stay at school with her after everyone else leaves. He shouted, "HELL NO!!!!"

Today when his teacher returned, I saw her first thing and said, "You've a got new student!" She gave me a wry look and said, "Yes, I've already heard." This is a veteran teacher and nothing much fazes her. * Later in the morning, during her break, she reported that they had given Cherub the kindergarten readiness assessment, and he scored really high. High enough that he could almost skip kindergarten and go right into first grade without a problem (at least academically). She also acknowledged that she'll have her hands full with him.

Right before I left for the day, I looked up and saw the teacher in the main office, so I called her over and asked her how the day had gone. 

Y'all...

She told me that about an hour after lunch, the Cherub had demanded she let him go to the cafeteria to "get a hotdog". She told him the cafeteria was closed. He wasn't having it; he demanded that he get to get down there and get a hotdog. She repeated, "Cherub, you can't. The cafeteria closed an hour ago."

And this adorable little boy, the sweetest looking little child you ever saw in your life, raised both his fists, gave her two middle fingers at the same time, and yelled, "Well, FUCK YOU, BITCH!"

Life in a modern-day American school. God help us.

*Thank goodness this child was assigned to her class. If anyone can help him, she can.