a little bit of silly joy
+ mini embroidery hoop ornaments
After years of research, planning, and saving, my husband’s dream of owning an old well-used Kei truck was realized this week. It was imported from Japan and made a long journey by cargo ship across the ocean. This has been a topic of conversation in our home for months.
According to our extended family group chat it will be used for shenanigans, tomfoolery, and such. The bed is actually the same size as a regular pick-up truck so while it can’t go very fast it will be useful in addition to a little bit silly. He’s looking forward to fixing it up over time.
We went on a little drive around the neighborhood the other day and I’m not exaggerating when I say that everyone smiled at us when we passed by.
Watching Jason work toward this goal has been a great reminder to go all in on the things that bring me joy, even if they might seem a little silly.
Time are hard and most of the people we know are going through heavy things. Find a little joy and share it.
Whether it’s playing a board game (we’ve recently fallen in love with this one and have played it constantly for the last week), baking cookies, collecting stickers, fitting in a bit of time for your art practice, reading a chapter of a book, snuggling in for a favorite Christmas movie, taking a walk with a loved one or making a purchase you’ve been planning and saving for, I’m wishing you a little extra measure of joy this week.
On YouTube:
Christmas Redwork Stick and Stitch
How to finish embroidered ornaments in a mini hoop:
On My Desk:
I set up for my final market of the year on Monday and now I get to jump into all the ideas I’ve had in the last few weeks! I tend to have LOTS of new ideas for designs and art I want to make when I don’t have the time to implement them (you too?).
Beehive Bazaar runs through Saturday at 8pm in Springville, UT. Check it out if you’re close by!
Around Here
Reading:
My current Slow But Steady read is Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset. At 1168 pages, it’s a huge undertaking. It’s actually three books bound together in one volume and I’m definitely counting each individual book! I finished the first one, The Wreath, this week. I’m reading one chapter a day (usually) while I knit a little bit on a mindless project I don’t need to look at very often.
I have such mixed feelings about this book! I loved the writing and the character development and the setting. However, I have MAJOR issues with the treatment of and expectations toward the female characters. This includes multiple cases of lack of consent combined with blaming/shaming the woman for her "sin".
I recognize this is probably on purpose, and the book is almost 100 years old so it's "a product of it's time" but I was still left feeling icky about it and very conflicted because I loved other aspects of the book so much.
I'm immediately moving on to book two, so that says something.
I also finished An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir this week. It kept me company on a couple of long drives. It’s an excellent young adult fantasy, and I’m not typically a fan of YA books. Too much angst for me! While this did have a bit of that, I felt like the character development and storytelling shone bright enough that I didn’t mind the young adultness of it all.
Watching:
I’ve been really into Vlogmas this year. I’ve never watched any of it before, but I’ve been enjoying watching Knitty Natty , A Homespun House and Laura Penrose.
Dabbling in:
I’m joining in with the December Pause journaling course this year and it’s been such a perfect little advent gift to myself.
In the House/Yard:
It’s snowing as I type! This week I plan to help each of my kids deep clean their rooms as well as a few other spaces in our home (my storage area for markets needs a refresh after all the shows I’ve done in the last few months).
Here’s to making the time for the things we love to do!
Heidi