a moment to be still.

Lena is sleeping.  The kitty is lounging.

The menu for tomorrow's Thanksgiving meal is looming.  The kitchen is dirty.  The floors are dirty.  The laundry is clean, at least, but needs folding.

But for just a moment... let me sit still.

I like doing a travel series and sharing photos with you, but in the middle of that it's hard to share what's going on right here, right now, this week.  So here's a bit about life around here, and why it feels so good to sit, and why I would like to curl up with a book until the end of nap time.

This holiday season is a busy season.  I think I didn't quite realize it until all at once the deadlines were approaching and the holidays were upon us.  I also recently decided to get much more involved in my community by joining or taking positions in my women's Bible study and the All Officers' Spouses' Club, and with these commitments comes a lot of (joyful!) responsibility.  While most of the year these two organizations have minimal commitments, around this time of year there are holiday parties, book club meetings, Thanksgiving potlucks, and party planning committees galore, not to mention creating all the sweets and treats that are fun to bake, cook, and prepare to share at all these events.

The biggest upcoming event is Night of Noel, a beautiful evening of food and fellowship for the women of our community, and I am responsible for all the decorating for the event (yikes) as well as hostessing a table and making a dessert.  I'm thinking multiple Christmas trees and twinkle lights, gold spray painted pine cones, and fondue, in that order.  Thoughts?

I also somewhat randomly decided to sell my handiwork at my first craft fair ever.  (Double yikes!)  The craft fair will take place on December 1... a little over a week away!  I spent most of last Saturday at my sewing machine and spend every evening with my knitting needles between my fingers.  (Why is it that I only get crafty in the fall and winter?  I need to stay crafty all year so that I have a good inventory!)  Honestly, I'm somewhat ridiculously excited about actually attending and selling at a craft fair, even though it's only three hours long and I fully expect to sell nothing.  It's the anticipation... the camaraderie... the officialness of it!  I'm a real craftswoman. 

Anyway, that's a little bit of what is constantly running through my mind these days.  "Knit gloves... finish book for book club... email about decorations... run over shopping list again for Thanksgiving... sew fabric beach balls... etc. etc. etc."  Not to mention playing with Lena, cooking meals, keeping the house clean, dealing with our chimney repairs (still not finished!), and all the other sweet trifles of life.

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the holidays or just caught up in the joyful busyness of it all?