FOR TODAY, December 16th, 2025
OUTSIDE MY WINDOW ...
All is calm and all is very cold. Brrr . . . it will be partly cloudy today, but it is not expected to get much warmer than -3*C/26.6*F. And it will probably feel even colder than that.
I AM THINKING ...
Grocery prices are expected to increase by 6% or even more in 2026. I am wondering how people are going to cope. It seems outrageous when the heads of the grocery store corporations are taking home millions in bonuses, etc. I feel badly for families that are already struggling.
I AM ALSO THINKING ...
The temperatures are predicted to go up into the double digits by Friday with rain. Will we or won't we have a white Christmas? We will just have to wait and see.
I AM GRATEFUL FOR ...
Enough. I have enough of everything I am in need of. If you have enough, you don't need anything else.
IN THE KITCHEN ...
A delicious Sheet Pan Pork Chop Dinner for two. Red meat is not something I eat very often. Pork is probably the cheapest meat protein out there at the moment. And I paid over $6 for each pork chop, probably closer to $7. I walk down the meat aisle at the grocery store looking at everything and Iask myself, "Who is buying all this meat?" The prices are ridiculous.
ON MY "TO COOK" LIST ...
This Gingerbread Loaf Cake from Cloudy Kitchen. When I see something touted a being the best, I just have to try it. It looks delicious!
THIS I BELIEVE ...
What you put out comes back to you.
SOMETHING THAT IS NICE ...
Prayer. When you pray for someone else you are giving them a wonderful gift. To know that other's pray for you is a wonderfully uplifting thought.
SOMETHING ELSE THAT IS NICE ...
All natural decorations. I love them. Popcorn. Cranberries. Orange slices. And you can put them out for the birds after the holidays.
I AM WANTING TO CREATE ...
Pretty paper crafts . . .
Happy Boxes . . .
Button books . . .
Felt messages . . .
Pretty fabric coasters . . .
SOMETHING I ENJOY ...
Every Sunday afternoon without fail. On YouTube. Its so beautiful to listen to and so uplifting. The world's longest running radio show.
SOMETHING ELSE I ENJOY ...
Journaling. Art journaling. Writing Journaling. Sketch journaling. You name it. I love journaling.
OH MY GOODNESS ...
I could go for a plate of that right now!
I AM READING ...
THE REED OF GOD, by Caryll Houselander
The Reed of God by Caryll Houselander, British Catholic writer and artist, has been cherished by Catholics worldwide since its first publication in 1944. This spiritual classic invites readers to encounter Mary, the Mother of God, not as a distant, untouchable figure but as deeply human―one whose openness to God made divine love visible in the world.
Caryll Houselander portrays Mary as a reed, hollow and open, through which God’s song could be played. With this powerful image, Houselander reveals how Mary gave her whole being to God’s plan and shows how we, too, can become instruments of divine love.
Years before the Second Vatican Council inspired renewed devotion to Mary, Houselander offered her own profound and approachable vision of the Mother of God―warm, intuitive, and accessible. She counters the stiff, idealized “Madonna of the Christmas card” with a portrait of Mary that is alive, intimate, and profoundly relevant for Christians seeking closeness with Christ. Drawing from centuries of theological tradition yet enriched by her keen understanding of the human condition and the modern hunger for meaning, Houselander gives flesh and spirit to the Church’s affirmations about Mary and presents her as a figure designed for contemplation and imitation.
Through essays and poems, divided into four parts, Houselander reflects on the mysteries of Mary’s life―her fiat, the finding of Jesus in the Temple, her assumption―and on themes of emptiness, fruitfulness, and the soul’s longing for union with God. In Mary’s humanity, Houselander finds the model for every believer: to carry Christ into the world.
As Houselander writes, “The one thing that she did and does is the one thing that we all have to do, namely, to bear Christ into the world. To this need, the imitation of Our Lady is the answer; in contemplating her we find intimacy with God, the law which is the lovely yoke of the one irresistible love.” Mary was the reed through which Eternal Love was piped as a shepherd’s song.
The question remains for us: Are we reed pipes? Is God waiting to live lyrically through us?
I am reading this for Advent.
THINGS THAT CATCH MY FANCY ...
Pretty pillowcases . . .
Cute mugs . . .
Pretty cardigans . . .
Pretty soaps . . .
Pretty stoneware . . .
A Christmas village . . .
I AM GRATEFUL FOR ...
Christmas carols . . . they warm my heart.
MAKES ME SMILE ...
She's helping me fold my laundry. I was folding laundry yesterday afternoon and Cinnamon decided to crawl into the basket and lay down. She wasn't much help, but she was pretty cute.
SOMETHING TO WATCH ...
Little Women. The one with Winona Ryder. It's my favorite.
A THOUGHT TO CARRY WITH YOU ...
☾ ° ★° * 。
• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★*We are better throughout the year
for having, in spirit, become
a child again at Christmastime.
~Laura Ingalls Wilder • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。
• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。
And that is my daybook for this week! Thanks always for being here!
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⋯ ◯ ⋯ Take time to enjoy the small *´¯`.¸¸.☆
⋰ ⋮ ⋱ blessings in life.*´¯`.¸¸.☆
✿¸.•*¨`*•..✿✿¸.•*¨`*•..✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•..¸✿ ✿¸.•*¨`*•. ╬♥═╬╬═♥=╬╬═♥╬╬═♥╬╬═♥=╬╬♥═╬♥╬╬═♥╬╬═♥=╬╬♥╬
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Have a beautiful day! Don't forget!
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And I do too!
Lots of lovelies in today’s day book. Thanks for sharing and have a warm, cozy day. Sending cheer to you, Virginia
ReplyDeleteLove the button books, will be looking into those. Awww Cinnamon, so cute. Snow/sleet/rain combination today, temperatures rising, so more wet than snow. Grocery prices are terrible, grateful I can afford what I need, but goodness those with families and low income must find it so hard. I buy on sale and stock up, it is the only way to shop. Enjoy the day.
ReplyDeleteYou are so correct in how food has gone up in cost!! Here too. I notice on youtube there are several videos on there sharing the ways our kin managed to survive during the Great Depression. Whatever can be learned of their ways might be useful to us too. Certainly not being wasteful. When in high school, our teacher who had grown up rather poor, told what she and her sister did each week. They were in college and lived in a small apt. They saved every bit of leftovers they had in a quart jar and at the end of the week they made soup of it. She said some of it tasted pretty weird but sometimes it was purely awesome too.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth, xoxo