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Friday 17 December 2010

Friday Favourites

I set out to do a Friday favourites post and to show you the new camera which I bought at the weekend as being my favourite thing but it's not!! The camera is fine but the program for uploading the photos to the computer doesn't seem to like Blogger and I have been all ****y afternoon messing with it and was all for giving up blogging and chucking the camera in the bin! My husband who has more patience with things which don't work than I do has managed to get the photos into the old program and now I can do it but I deleted the photo of the camera as being my Friday favourite!!

Maybe I will choose MEMORIES as a Friday Favourite instead:

aHave decorated our very small tree today as it was too snowy to go out - not for us a tastefully themed tree all in shades of one colour but a hotchpotch of many different colours and sorts all of which bring with them memories of friends and times past.

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There are those which I have received over the years as gifts from my American pen pal of 55 years - thank you Kathy! Each one brings memories of happy times we have spent with our friends across the pond.

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Some which were made for me by a friend who sadly died a while ago but who lives on in her beautiful beadwork - many happy hours we spent with our Textile Group and again many memories of our friendship.

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Some bought at a German Christmas market many years ago - boy was it cold at the market in Stuttgart but the hot mulled wine and the freshly cooked mackerel in a Kaiser roll live on in the memory!
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Some which were chosen by my daughter when she was little - each year we added a new decoration or two and her choice was for the bright and cheerful such as the little snowman here - what fun Christmas was back then.
On to other things:-
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More white stuff today!
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Have you noticed how so many trees still have leaves - perhaps we didn't finish with autumn before the winter arrived. Just look at this one still with lots of leaves and covered with snow in this morning's sunshine.
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Look - here is a snapdragon still bravely in flower even in the snow! Isn't Nature wonderful and perhaps I could learn a bit about fortitude and patience if only I stopped and took more notice?!
Hope you are keeping warm and cosy and to those of you on the other side of the world I hope you are keeping dry and cool!!
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Better get this posted or it will be Saturday not Friday Favourites!




27 comments:

  1. Certainly the best way to decorate a tree in my opinion. Even as a child it was the decorations that provided the memories as opposed to all matching... That theme is continued today and our tree also holds decorations made or given, or bought by us or friends.

    I still have/had a foxglove in flower! Amazing really.

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  2. Daughter has become custodian of all our decorations but I try to add something hand made each year - I'm quite happy for the pine needles to be in her house! Husband won't have an artificial tree so we don't have one.

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  3. I think that's what Christmas trees should be about - memories!!
    We have so much snow, at least 8 inches, I'm a bit sick of it now!
    Good luck with the camera, I'm sure it will all fall into place and you'll wonder what you did without it.
    Have a lovely weekend!
    Vivienne x

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  4. I love your tree....ours is about that size, we have a wee house and owt bigger would be like being in a forest!
    Have a lovely weekend!xxx

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  5. There is a huge oak tree in a garden/field next door to my daughter's garden, that still has all its leaves. And 80% of them are still green! Apparently it does it every year - I reckon they're freeze-dried!

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  6. i love it when there's a story behind Chrismas tree ornaments! And Christmas trees with stories to tell like yours are the best!

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  7. Ahh those memories that come out of the Christmas boxes each year! Even now I feel the same when I see some of our childhood ornaments on my mother's tree! And I hope that my children and grandchildren will have that remembering feeling too (that's if my homemade ones stand the test of time!) Lovely to hear about some of yours - and glad the new camera is working so well! Have a wonderful weekend. Helen x

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  8. I think it is great to have all those memories. I really like the bead angel! Hope you keep warm and cosy this weekend!
    Lucy xxxxxxx

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  9. What a lovely post, and I love the tree, my sort of tree
    Julie xxxxxxxxxx

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  10. Such a lovely festive post! Our tree is also full of decorations with memories attached. Sometimes I look at those elegant versions in magazines with colour schemes and bows and I think... should I try that?

    Nah!!!!

    Merry Christmas to you and your family.
    XX

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  11. Oh, this brings back lots of memories of the little paper angels we had. I used to make up stories of them living in a magic Christmas tree. I still have a lot of memories in my tree. I love your little snowman.
    Another lovely post Jane, and I hope you have a fantastic Christmas!
    Dan
    -x-
    PS.I hope that the camera software sorts itself out too.

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  12. I love your tree - I much prefer the mix of styles & colours. When mine eventually gets up it will be a random eclectic mix of things.

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  13. Love your Christmas tree, I really like the variety of ornaments that mean something, rather than colour themed, shop bought ones! Lovely snowy photos too! :) x

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  14. Love those little angels, very cute! I am so wishing it snowed here, its been 33 and sooo humid, we have the aircon blasting! Isnt nature incredible, snapdragons in the snow! Amazing!

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  15. What a lovely array of ornaments from all around the world and such lovely memories... I particularly liked the beaded one. Glad to hear you have a new camera, as I learnt this time last year, being without a camera is awful. Hope you get it all "sussed" soon.

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  16. Dear Jane,
    if you're sending your letter to my new address then you don't need to go to the post office any time soon; I'm going home (old address) on the 23rd and will be back here on the 9th of January. I've arranged with the lady at the post office to keep my mail there until I'm back. So you needn't worry.
    xo

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  17. Your tree is wonderful, and I so know what you mean about the memories. Our trees have been the same ever since the boys were very small, so each year, when I get the decorations out again, I remember all the times before, when we decorated the trees together, where the ornaments came from etc.

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  18. What a grat post (as always) and your tree looks gorgeous, got mine down from the loft last night, and it is tiny too. I still have the decorations my sisiter and I made for my first married Christmas (I think my sister was living with us briefly) I will have to photograph it too. But It was my classroom decorations which held many memories - and they were really very tatty, made by or donated by children from my classes over 35years, but there were enough for each child in even the largest class to put a something on the class tree.

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  19. I used to buy a decoration for my parents every year but once I got my own family I had other priorities but I love it when I see 'my' stuff on their tree. I'm very impressed you have a tree actually, I'm not so sure I could have predicted that. Perhaps you're softening up a bit Jane?! x

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  20. Jane,
    A tree full of memories sounds absolutely the best thing to have. We have not bought ours yet this year, hoping to do so tomorrow, snow willing. I used to make lots of decorations and my Mum always gave them pride of place on her tree. My brother has kept them all and has hung them this year on his. He says I have improved over the years! The early stuff though has more sentiment attached to them and it's nice to know the memories linger on. Lesley xx

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  21. thats a very cute tree! It makes me think I should have one, but have never had a tree ever! only at my parent's house and since then, I can't be bothered, but seeing all of these lovely trees around makes me think I should get on with it!
    XXXXX

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  22. Beautiful post. Totally agree that a tree is best full of very personal memories. Makes it very special. Your tree is lovely and I am sure it will bring you joy when you see the little treasures on it.Glad your DH sorted out your techie problems, we would miss your lovely posts! Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.
    Penny

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  23. Very cute tree! I love it. We've had some of the white stuff too, I'm hoping it sticks around for Christmas :-)

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  24. It's lovely to hear that your tree decorations bring back such happy memories Jane. They are all really pretty and their provenance must mean a lot to you.

    We've had no snow here for over a week now, and yet not that far away in Ipswich they had inches yesterday! We've had the most amazing frost though and its absolutely bitter!!

    Hope your new camera behaves itself from now on!!

    Jeanne
    x

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  25. Christmas trees should be about memories - I love getting out some of the boys nursery decorations although their saltdough turned to mush in the loft this year!
    Have a lovely Christmas.
    x

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  26. I love all your bits and bobs Jane... and they are all special to you which is wonderful. Thanks for commenting on the 'Sea Tree', you can probably tell it was done when the sun was in the sky.... seems like a long, long time ago, lol! Happy Christmas to you :) x

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  27. I have still barely used my new camera-- the thing that is giving me the fits is the program that came along with it... I hate it! So, I know where you are coming from. The camera has been difficult to learn how to use also. Mostly, I use my old, 4 megapixel Kodak. The snapdragons are still pretty!

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