Monday, January 2, 2012

Trendy New Scarf Organizer!!!

 I love scarves! Colorful scarves.... subtle scarves.... bold scarves.... happy scarves..... dash-of-color scarves! What's not to love? Here are my scarves.  I displayed them all on the floor so that I could get a good photo of all of them. I wear them all (one at a time, of course!). But, I had trouble keeping them
 organized.  Until now!  Todd bought me this fabulous scarf hanger from IKEA.  I begged him for it!  I love it!  It keeps everything scarf -related so neat and tidy.  What did I ever do without it!  If you love scarves, like I do, you NEED one of these!  Run to the nearest IKEA and buy  
one!  You won't be sorry!  You can keep all your scarves in your closet.  Enjoy!   

The value of a letter.....

Letters from my friend Christin from my UWP year of travel
Christmas break is a great time to reminice.  Last evening I went through a plastic bin full of memories!  One of the things I found was a huge pile of letters.  There were letters from my mom and my grandparents and my siblings and a few friends.  I sat in my rocking chair and read letters until I could hardly see straight.  I laughed out loud at some of the "inside jokes" people mentioned in the letters.  I felt warm and fuzzy as I recalled the special bond between grandchild and grandparent.  I imagined my mom agonizing over what to write to me while I was at camp.  I felt touched that my brother who was three years younger than me and NOT a fan of penmanship would sit down and hand write a letter to his sister so far away in Europe in 1996.  I laughed when I found the letter cousin Kia had written that was her "first letter using Appleworks on the computer!"  Wow, are we old or what?  Back before email and Skype, my family and I would keep up with Patty in Japan through letters.  How exciting it was to receive a letter from her!  There is nothing like the feeling of opening your mailbox and finding a letter from a loved-one!  If any faithful letter writers are out there reading this - THANK YOU for writing!  The photo I've included in this blog shows all the letters I got during my Up With People year of travel from my friend Christin.  Not only did I hear from her often, but she wrote around 8 pages in each letter!  They were novels.... and I loved every word!  I carried them with me all year.  I reread and reread and reread them.  I thanked God for my friend Christin and her faithful friendship to me.  In Up With People, we only received mail about once a month and there was almost always a letter from Christin and Mom.  I felt soooo loved!  I was quite homesick for much of my Up With People year.  There were times I read my letters with tears streaming down my face as I yearned to be with friends and family who loved and appreciated me.  My eyes still sting when I think about it.  Yes, there were wonderful things about my UWP experience, but my "heart" stayed "home" in Minnesota.  Letters helped me stay connected.  I appreciate the time it took my family and friends to write to me.  Handwriting letters has gone way out of date now, so as I look at these ancient artifacts, I am reminded how a letter is an act of love.  It makes me want to go write to someone!  Maybe I will!  Maybe you should too!