she who blogs

HOWL-IDAY POSERS

 

 

we interrupt this nap...to bring you some holiday cheer!!...how does one motivate us to wear the ridiculous head gear that appears so festive to those not actually wearing it?...why, biscuits, of course!!...new biscuits...extra-special **holiday** biscuits!!...we'll do most any crazy thing for one (or two or three...) of them...but L., well, fashion diva that she is, remains unconvinced about the chicness of our holiday headgear...mom's "all the dogs are doing it" was met with a full blown hound howl!!...who can argue with *that*?!?!?

may all of you have a very merry Christmas from all of us here at dogblog!...
 

http://www.ognipiacere.blogspot.com/

 

"The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page."

-St. Augustine

This Greeting has Been Cleared by my Attorney

From me ("the wishor") to you ("the wishee") please accept without obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, politically correct, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I wish you a financially successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2006, but with due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures or sects, and having regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform or sexual preference of the wishee.

By accepting this greeting you are bound by these terms that:- This greeting is subject to further clarification or withdrawal. This greeting is freely transferable provided that no alteration shall be made to the original greeting and that the proprietary rights of the wishor are acknowledged. This greeting implies no promise by the wishor to actually implement any of the wishes. This greeting may not be enforceable in certain jurisdictions and/or the restrictions herein may not be binding upon certain wishees in certain jurisdictions and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wishor.

This greeting is warranted to perform as reasonably may be expected within the usual application of good tidings, for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first.

The wishor warrants this greeting only for the limited replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wishor. Any references in this greeting to "The Lord", "Father Christmas", "Our Savior", "Rudolph the red nosed reindeer" or any other festive figures, whether actual or fictitious, dead or alive, shall not imply any endorsement by or from them in respect of this greeting, and all proprietary rights in any referenced third party names and images are hereby acknowledged.

This greeting is made under United States Law. Dated this 24th day of December two thousand and eight.

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gingerbread house decorating fun–online!

I’ve noticed in my blog stats that quite a few people have come looking for a gingerbread house to decorate. How do they end up here, you ask? Well it’s all because of the “Decorate Your Own Virtual Gingerbread House” post from last December.

In light of this, I thought hey, the template is still up at Jenny B. Harris‘ Home Sweet Home, so why not make it a tradition to decorate a gingerbread house every year (so long as Jenny keeps up the cottage)?

It’s highly unlikely to happen offline even though I’ve *always* wanted to make a gingerbread house. I even bought a kit one year, but it was during law school and by the time exams were over, so was my attention span.

Anyway, here’s the Official 2008 Bleeding Espresso Gingerbread House:

Go here to decorate your own!

And talk about a great holiday activity for kids–no clean-up necessary!

Have you ever made a real live gingerbread house?

Please share your secrets and tips!

***Remember you still have until midnight tomorrow to enter to win a copy of The Feast of the Seven Fishes!

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holiday gift ideas: from soap to books

If you’re still looking for special, unique holiday gift ideas, here are some suggestions, sold by some of my uber-talented blogging buddies:

*NATURAL HANDMADE SOAPS*

Saponissimo by Charlie of Figs and Lemons has gorgeous handmade natural soaps from the Amalfi Coast for sale at ridiculously affordable prices. You’ll find ingredients like olive oil, honey and beeswax blended with the plants, fruits, and flowers of Positano. Pictured at left is Arancia e Limone (orange and lemon) soap. Can’t you just smell that gorgeous citrus?

*JEWELRY*

Sara of Moving Right Along has some really gorgeous handmade pieces of jewelry at her Sara Arts Etsy shop. You may remember Sara from when I featured her here? One of my favorites in her collection is the one pictured at right, The Romantic Wrist, Hand-Knotted Bracelet of Peach Aventurine, Garnet, and Sterling on Silk. Too bad P doesn’t read my blog….

*JEWELRY, BAGS, AND MORE*

Diana of Adventuring through Life also runs an Etsy shop, hers with her sister, called Sorelle (sisters in Italian). They have a great collection of unique gifts from pendants to earrings to cute purses like the one here on the left, the Pretty in Pink Fairy Godmother Purse. And sales! Be sure to check out the store for discounts on earrings and pendants.

*BOOKS*

I just finished My Cousin the Saint: A Search for Faith, Family and Miracles by Justin Catanoso. Yes, you’ve heard about this book before here, but now that I’ve read it, I can tell you how much I *love* this book. I could relate to so many of Justin’s experiences (not the saint in the family part though); I hope to write a fuller book review soon, but for now, just know that I highly, highly recommend it.

And staying in southern Italy, a book that I haven’t yet seen in person but can’t wait to read is In Etna’s Shadow: Culinary Adventures from Eastern Sicily by Karen Landes, who also authors South of Rome. Eastern Sicily is just a ferry ride away from me, so I’ll be interested to see how our cuisine compares and contrasts. Plus I love Italian cookbooks in general, don’t you?

Anyone else out there selling their creations online this year?

Do share links in the comments!

***Be sure to check out Cherrye’s Texas Mud at My Bella Vita for this week’s La Buona Cucina Americana recipe. I promise it tastes *much* better than it sounds! And remember you can still enter to win a copy of The Feast of the Seven Fishes!

about the author

Michelle Fabio, an American writer and attorney leaves the Anthracite Coal Region of Pennsylvania for her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy, falls in love, gets two dogs, writes to her heart's content and begins bleeding espresso. No, really.

 

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