Merry Christmas to One and to All

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14

Little Free Libraries in my neighborhood

Do you love libraries and books and free, like I do? Well, the Little Free Libraries trend embraces all three of these delightful things.
There are three that I know of in my neighborhood. All you need to do to have one is to build a container with glass doors to protect the books and put up words on it that say "take one, give one".
The photo above is a very cute Little Free Library, don't you agree?

Here is the second one in my neighborhood, just a short walk from my home.

I wonder if every country has these little free libraries. My blog friends can tell me, do people in Indonesia, Germany, Kuwait, Australia and more have them? I hope so, they are fun and encourage folks to read.
This photo was taken on a dark wet morning as you can tell, and the books are safe from the rain in their snug library with glass doors that close securely.

To the left is a second Free Library for children. Isn't that thoughtful? They built it a lower height so children can reach it.
These libraries are all about giving and seem like a Christmas themed post to me.

Gigantic Hedge Near Our House and Book Winner

The winner from the 21 people who commented for a chance to win a hardcover copy of "Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts" is Pat at Mille Fiori Favoriti
I used random.org to choose the winner.
Cathy will announce the winner of the second copy on our other blog at Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts.

Here is a gigantic and monumental hedge growing on a street near our house. You can not see what is behind it, but once in a while they leave the gate tantalizingly open. I think the hedge is 3 stories tall, and across the street are 6 houses, so it is about 600 feet long. Maybe 20 feet thick.
It is so mysterious to imagine living there in privacy.

The owners must make a huge effort to keep it so nicely trimmed. I imagine it is very quiet and country like sheltered behind the handsome hedge.

Giveaway of My Christmas book "Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts" giveaway

Cathy Messecar and I are giving away two copies of our co-authored Christmas book "Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts: Stories to Warm Your Heart and Tips to Simplify Your Holiday". To enter to win just leave a comment here and for a chance to win a second copy leave a comment on
Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts blog
Here is what one kind reviewer wrote:

"This book took my breath away. Truly beautiful, unique, heartwarming. It's one of those books I'll treasure from year to year, reading and re-reading the stories within until I know them by heart. It has a hodgepodge of everything - recipes, inspirational stories, Christmas tips, poetry, projects. I'm not sure how they packed so much into 160 pages, but it's an overflowing chest full of treasures!"

We will select the two winners Dec. 6 using random.org and will mail it quickly so you will get it before Christmas. There are lots of easy, fun and cheap tips in our book to make celebrating Christmas a joy, and we put Jesus at the center of this holiday.

Here is what another reviewer wrote:

This book celebrates the birth of Christ, includes Scripture and plenty of ideas for family activities, craft projects, recipes including Baklava and A Dunkin’ Cookie, easy gifts to make, green Christmas tips, poems and lots more. Stories include a 1^st Christmas with adopted children, a reunion with a prodigal son at Waffle House, and camping in the Florida Everglades swamp for the holiday.

Leave your comment here and on our shared blog full of Christmas tips or visit 
Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts  to read reviews and see more about our book.