David, "Phone Home..."

All bloggers understand that when we put ourselves out there on social media, we give up a certain amount of anonymity. All we have to do is Google our own names and we can see ourselves, our photos and our stuff plastered all over cyberspace. It can be somewhat disquieting but it's part of the game in which we have chosen to play.

So, David, on the off chance that you have succumbed to perusing the invasive social media jungle and one day happened upon my blog, today I wanted to invite you home - we're celebrating Mom's 90th birthday next month at Fat's Asian Bistro in Roseville at 6:00pm.

So grab a flight to Sacramento, rent a car, bring your appetite and share some Chinese with us! 

We're saving a place at the table for you. 

Love, Lo

Laurel. Sister Woman.

The Gentle Art of Writing

Polyvore Art, Laurel Dismukes 2015

I read an article in Victoria Magazine's latest issue about a woman who writes letters as a hobby.  Her recipients may be a family member or a friend, but she also writes to people that she doesn't even know.  The article itself was written in Victoria's serene style, with soft photos and ambient text.  It made me want to settle in with a calligraphy pen, some fine linen paper and a cup of coffee.

I don't write letters. We have a whole bundle of letters that my husband's father wrote to his Mom during the war, and when I read them, it was touching. Letter writing is personal, unselfish. I'm certainly a by-product from that generation, but I must not have gotten the "communication" gene. (I don't remember my Mom writing either.) I text, I blog...I write with a keyboard.  I dream of writing a book. But the whole picture of this woman sitting by her warm fireplace surrounded by her writing tools and pretty papers was mildly appealing. 

I should write more. It sounds calming...and it is. I have at least 4 calligraphy pens in various states of disrepair and dried-up inkwells.  I lost my pretty Cross pen with the rollerball somewhere in my sewing room - now there was an instrument that was a joy to set to paper! I didn't send out holiday cards this year, unlike last year when I hand addressed over 40 cards. I haven't been journaling either, even though there's a certain peace and satisfaction that accompanies writing your deepest thoughts in a pretty little book - it's almost meditative.

I wrote (via keyboard) in my New Year's List post about having more quiet time, being more in the present, but it's difficult when you're running around 90 miles an hour "doing" to stop and rest. To sit and be still and embrace a quiet sport like reading or writing takes perseverance and discipline for those of us who are driven to overachieve. But since I memorialized that desire on my 2015 list, I should at least give it the college try.

All that being said, it's Sunday, and I need to sew. It sound like more "doing" than resting, but there is a beautiful rhythm to making a garment...especially if you are able to share the whole process "writing" in FabricLady's blog to inspire others.

There's that keyboard thing again.  I'll try to be still this evening...maybe I'll read. Oh whoops, the Golden Globes are on tonight - does that count as resting? (I watch it for the fashion.)

By the way, did you know that they don't even teach cursive writing in school today?  What's up with that?

"Catching up on Her Reading" - Polyvore Art, Laurel Dismukes, 2015

Laurel. Show me your pens!

Sewing with Our Hearts

This past weekend, Dress a Girl Around the World - No. CA had our monthly sewfest. Though we had a lower than usual turnout Saturday, everyone who came put their hearts into making little dresses.  There are some blessed little girls someplace in this world who are about to get one of these creations!

 If you're in the Greater Sacramento region, consider joining us - we usually meet on the first Saturday of the month...and though we adore the ladies who come with their machines to turn out these adorable little dresses, we appreciate the ones who can't sew but show up to iron, cut bias tape, make pockets, assemble kits, etc. Everyone is welcome!

And even thought we don't always know what part of the world our dresses will "land", we are just as blessed making it as they will be getting it.

Visit us on Facebook to find out more information!

Laurel. Sew Happy Thoughts!

"Carpe Diem..."

I'm rather an anti-New Year's resolution kind girl. When January comes along, there is a sense of new beginnings, but most of those feelings just spring from clearing out the Christmas decorations and putting them away.  For me, January is not much different than other months that signal some sort of change. September, for instance, was the month that school started -  a new wardrobe plus anticipation of seeing old friends again and the arrival of Fall, my favorite season. The month of May meant that summer was just around the corner. Each season had a beginning and provided the backdrop for some sort of personal rebirth or change.

Three days into January 2015, the decorations haven't been returned to their storage containers, I'm 5 pounds over my goal, my house is a fright and I haven't "exercised" in 6 months. You didn't get a holiday card or letter from me, as I didn't send any...not one. 

In short, there are a lot of things that come to mind if I were a New Year's resolution kinda girl, but I'm  not.  However, I am the queen of list makers. I'm sure it has a lot to do with advancing age...forget the fact that I've been making to-do lists my whole life. I make lists whenever I'm having a dinner party, whenever I go shopping or whenever my brain goes into overload thinking about all the things I "need" to accomplish.

So leaving the whole New Year's resolution thing behind, I'd rather just "memorialize" my list of things that I want to do this year...things that I want to be better at...things that might make my life more meaningful.

• I want to be a better friend - the kind that actually makes a lunch date rather than a "hug,hug, kiss kiss, let's do lunch" non-committal kind of friend.  (Hey if you really don't intend to follow through, Laurel,  then don't say it.)

• I want to "let go" more - I want to stop worrying about things I can't control and creating mountains out of molehills, if only in my overly analytical brain. (Just because you don't say it out loud doesn't mean you should be thinking it, girl!)

• I want to be more about others and less about me - that doesn't even require an explanation.

• I want to to procrastinate less - it's not enough to just MAKE a list of things to do, you have to get down and get it done. (Otherwise don't put it on the list, Laurel, if you don't intend to follow through)

• I want to learn to be still - take time to sit quietly a little more, to perhaps meditate or pray more...or even actually READ during the day, instead of falling asleep with the book still in my hands. (Maybe even finish a chapter, Laurel?) 

• I want to be stronger - if I don't start walking or something I'm going to fall down and break a hip, go into a nursing home and then die.  Just kidding - I'm not that old...but I am weaker than I should be.

• I want to need less - less impulsive buying, less comfort food, less spending, less stuff. (Do you even know the meaning of sacrifice, Laurel??)

• I want to be more present - I have spent the last 30 years of my life perfecting multitasking. Even in retirement, I can't seem to shake the need to be efficient. I want to live more in the moment and focus and ENJOY what's happening around me or what I'm doing at that moment.

• I want to finish well - we all have a time clock on our lives, and though my genes tell me that I have years to go, I want them to be meaningful....giving back, sharing, making a difference in the lives of the people around me.

So, no resolutions. No promises. No commitments.  No accountability. Just a list of "dreams" whilst I sit hit sipping coffee and thinking about how I can repack all that Christmas stuff away this weekend. The morning is chilly, the decaffeinated (a real resolution!) coffee is warming my heart and I am feeling blessed.

Laurel. Carpe diem.