Do You See What I See?

Look what I found on my morning stroll. Nature has everything under control. The daffodils are on their way. Doesn't that make you happy?

And the Christmas camellia is blooming once again. She loves freezing rain, snow, icicles, anything you can throw at her. She is an ice princess.

While inside the snug little cottage mama bear bakes up a nice batch of toffee graham crackers. These are so easy even I could pull off a win.

Graham Cracker Toffee

Ingredients:

• About 12 whole (24 squares), (honey) graham crackers (perforated) broken into quarter sections
• 1/2 lb  butter (2 sticks)
• 3/4 C light brown sugar
• 3/4 C chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)
• 3/4 C Chocolate chips
• 1T milk

Line up the 44 pieces in a jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet with low sides), sides touching. Over low heat melt butter. Stir in the sugar – simmer (not boil) about 10 minutes – until it melts.  Occasionally stir. Pour mix over crackers – spread evenly. Sprinkle w/nuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. Cool & separate onto aluminum foil.

Over low heat melt chocolate chips and stir in milk. Top crackers with ribbons of melted chocolate by dribbling off a spoon. Add more milk if chocolate is too thick to form a ribbon. Package and give away to friends!

Not much going on for the past few days beside keeping up with the season and doing my morning pages. Everything waits for winter and then winter is very busy.

It's a time of making out the teaching schedule for 2011 and dreaming of travel, friends and looking back on the last year's journey. That long journey that took so many dives and turns, darknesses and light, loss and redemption. I was lost and then I was found. Amazing grace.

This is a good time to remind you again that I'll be teaching at Malibu in March; a deep, thorough class in art journalling where we will share in sacred play, stare dreamily at the ocean and explore our love of writing and painting. All experience levels welcome; join me for a journey into self discovery.

I've been making sample boards for the wax classes. So many ways to play in wax. To experiment with a fascinating medium. Sometimes it's fun just to wax on the colors and blow the molten wax around to see what happens.

And one thing I forgot to mention when I showed you this piece of Kay's - the stencil used to make the Greek key design is from a set given to me by Mary Beth Shaw. She designed the stencils and has them on offer here: thank you Mary Beth for such useful and inspiring stencils and especially for giving me a second set after I misplaced the first set. (Duh!)

Okay, time to put on my dancing shoes and head into the last days of 2010. I'll try to post at least one more time before the year turns. Sending out love to each of you; stay warm and share yourselves with each other. I wish you all moments of magic and safety.