My Christmas Tree

What would Christmas be like without a fully decorated Christmas tree? Lights, ornaments, the angel and the star, and, of course, loads of presents under the Christmas tree!

These memories bring back such wonderful childhood moments for me. Sneaking into our family's living room late at night to lie under the tree and inhale the fresh fragrant scent of the pine branches. Inspecting the presents under the Christmas tree while making sure not to disturb the decorations. And, oh yes, take time to gently touch the branches and decorations!

Such wonderful times for me with my beloved Christmas tree! So many expectations, hopes, dreams, and joyous moments. Christmas, for me, would never be the same without a Christmas tree!

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give a gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

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A New Doll House

Yes! I admit it! One of my cherished childhood dreams was to have had a doll house and after so many years of wishing and dreaming, I now have one in my living room. It is my way of returning to my happy childhood days.

The days when I played with dolls, tea sets, and improvised doll houses, oh how I loved those days! My overactive imagination used to conjure up all kinds of adventures with my dolls.

They attended school! They went on outings to the beach, to the park, and they even went shopping and got into all kinds of mischief! Then they would come home to Mom and she would cook them a delicious meal after which they would simply crash into bed and enter dreamland!

Those were the times when I could create my own world, a world just for me! A world where I could do whatever I wanted! My world!

So now that my doll house is finally here, I am going to have some new fun. The furniture is just great and all I need now is to buy the dolls to fill my new home!

I thank Stephanie and Sandra for having helped to assemble this masterpiece for me. It was quite a chore but their patience and perseverance overcame everything.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

The Little Church

Ah, yes! It's Christmas Day and time for me to cherish my little church once more. My precious little church with the Nativity scene. Mary and Joseph holding the new born Baby Jesus in their arms.

Christmas would never be the same without my little church close to me. My little church! Special and precious! This is where it all began so many years ago and where it will continue for eternity.

The little church! Memories of going with my parents, brothers, cousins, and Granny to church on Christmas morning!  To listen to the story of Jesus's birth. To visit the manger after mass, and to greet friends outside the doors of the church! Memories for me to savour for the rest of my life!

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all! A 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to gift the accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Holiday Baking

I can still drum up those cherished and marvelous memories of being in the family's kitchen with Granny at Christmas time. Those wonderful and loving moments when I spent time in the kitchen helping Granny to bake her Christmas cakes, breads, and those wonderful delicacies called pastels.

These were all day affairs. Granny would be up early in the morning preparing the ingredients and setting them aside in neat piles. By the time I entered the kitchen she would be well on her way to start mixing, sifting, peeling, and getting the pans floured, greased and ready to receive the various mixtures of ingredients.

Granny was so very patient with me; painstakingly directing me in her gentle voice. She would give me a small task to do while she concentrated on the more important things to carry out. She showed me how to chop the cherries. How to flour and grease the baking pans. How to do so many things, and I never got tired of listening to her telling me what to do.

The kitchen was always filled with those warm and inviting smells of Granny's baking and while we worked we chatted about all kinds of things. Granny was so gentle-natured. She never raised her voice and never scolded me. She was always making sure that I did what she wanted me to do.

I always relished spending time with my granny and by the time it was all said and done, it was mid afternoon and time for Granny and me to have a nap.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give a gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Christmas Marshmallow Snowman

Ah yes! Christmas is definitely for me! All of those wonderful smells, sights, sounds, yummy and delicious goodies and oh so much more! I feel like a kid in a candy shop and not even Covid is going to dampen my spirits this year!

There is so much to give to others. So much to wish for, especially for those who are less fortunate, and oh yes! So many hopes, dreams, and desires to put on my list for Santa Claus! Above all! So much for me to be thankful for!

I am so very lucky that at least I can enjoy a mug of delicious hot chocolate! I can still put food on my table, and I can still enjoy many things in spite of these uncertain times. 

This is what I wish for those who are struggling! For those who will be sad. For those who will be lonely. For those who will be far from home because they are unable to see their families. For those who are across the miles from loved ones. 

As one of the favourite Christmas songs goes:"I'll be home for Christmas. If only in my dreams."

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Christmas Holiday Thoughts

What would Christmas be without those warm welcoming thoughts to keep me company? My sight may have deserted me but I can still visualize the decorations!

The images of Christmas trees all decked out with colourful winking lights, presents piled high under the tree, and oh yes! The star sitting proudly at the top.

The little manger in the corner of my living room with all of the figures standing at attention and Mary cradling the Baby Jesus in her arms and Joseph close by.

Images of malls all decorated with store fronts showing off toys, clothes for the holiday season, and baked goods. People rushing around with arms filled with all sorts of shapes and sizes of parcels. Kids running around everywhere.

Then let's not forget the smells and sounds of the Christmas season. All good everywhere. These are my cherished thoughts as I welcome Christmas 2020 and not even this cursed Covid is going to spoil my mood!

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all! A 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to gift the accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Drinks: Hot Cinnamon Orange Star Anise

Boy oh boy! I always look forward to being able to enjoy any of my favourite hot drinks on a cold winter's night. Especially so at Christmas time. Just to either sit quietly in my living room by myself; just me and my hot drink! My hands wrapped tightly around a tall mug filled with my favourite hot drink.

Or it could be with friends around my dining room table, sipping our hot drinks and engaging in playful banter and idle chat. However, for this year it is not going to be the same, thanks to Covid!

No, I'll have to enjoy my hot drinks by myself because of the lockdown restrictions. That's okay; I'll just enjoy the taste and smell of my favourite hot drink and as I am sipping quietly I'll allow my imagination to take me back to Christmas times gone by.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give a gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/a

Gift exchange

So, what would Christmas be without the gift exchange portion? Just to think about the excitement and expectation is not nearly enough for me.

I still feel like a kid in a candy shop: hoping, expecting, planning, conspiring, and so much more!

I always look forward to buying a gift for either my mom or one of my friends. One that will totally take them by surprise!  Something that I am sure that they have been hoping to get for a while now.

I also just love to pick up a wrapped package and shake it gently to see if I can figure out what's in the box or what's between the gift paper.

Too bad I cannot wrap such things as hope, joy, friendship, love, best wishes, and so much more of these intangibles in a nice neat box!

The joy of gift exchange, especially the giving part of it, is so very precious to me. I can barely contain my excitement at this time of the year.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with

children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Ice Skating

One of my favourite holiday season and Christmas activities is being on the ice to enjoy moments of refreshing and wonderful ice skating activities. However, due to the Covid restrictions, this will not be possible for me this year.  

Yes, I am surely going to miss my ice skating! Just to think of being able to skate so freely around the rink with friends and to feel the ice cold wind blowing across my frozen cheeks and through my hair.  

However, enter my trusty imagination and memory bank to fill the gap for me! Memories of skating on outdoor rinks and enjoying the many colours of Christmas lights winking back at me as I skated around! Drinking cups of hot chocolate after my skating adventures! Enjoying the sounds of kids and parents laughing, singing, and skaters whizzing by! The sounds of skate blades rubbing against the ice, and so much more!

Oh, how I long to be there once more and to remember those years when my functional vision enabled me to see the festive lights in the background. Well! Here comes my memory to help me out for this year!

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all! A 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to gift the accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Gift-Expectations: Christmas

I know that for Christmas 2020 and for this holiday season, when it comes to gift giving many of us are going to do our best to be as creative as we can. In addition, we are going to depend on the online method for the most part to help us choose and send our gifts.

We'll be okay! We'll get through it! And for me, as a vision-impaired person, it is not going to stop my imagination from being a kid at heart at this time of the year.

I simply love to sit and imagine what could be in those brightly coloured and neatly wrapped boxes! Gifts piled high on a table in the corner of my dining room? Or gifts packed neatly under my Christmas tree in my living room?

What may I expect to get? Tea sets, dolls, or maybe some kind of talking gadget? Or maybe CDs or even a Braille book?

Whatever the shape or size, length or height of the package or whether or not the contents of the package is shakeable, I will still be excited! Just like a kid in a candy shop!

For this year I'll use my imagination to take me back to those wonderful years as a child. While at the same time I am going to hope and pray that the tables and under the Christmas tree will be filled with wonderful gifts for others, especially for the less fortunate.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give a gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

Debra's Wreath

Well! Christmas 2020 is here but for this year things are going to be very different because of the Covid virus. I know that many will be severely challenged to be cheerful and to fill their homes and hearts with cheer but I am going to do whatever I can to bring joy and cheer to those around me.

One of my favourite memories of this holiday season is that of a wreath. A wreath means so much to me and although I can no longer appreciate its beauty it does not stop me from still enjoying it. So, how do I do this?

I patiently and painstakingly use my sense of touch to feel each part of my beloved wreaths. The soft delicate leaves and the petals of the poinsettia. The tiny berries. The candles and the greenery.

I allow my fingers to do the walking and this is followed by my imagination; all in the name of the holiday season and I thank my dear friend Debra for having provided the accompanying photo.

I'd like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas! Happy holidays! But most of all, a 2021 that will bring us lots of blessings, good things, and hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Joyeux Noèl!

Feliz Navidad!

Buon Natale!

Happy Hanukkah!

Please take a moment to give the gift of accessibility to families with children with a disability!

Visit https://donorbox.org/author-donna-jodhan

A huge shock: When I discovered...

And it was quite a discovery. I was dusting my dining table and chairs soon after I had a visitor and I happened to place my hands below the seat of the chair where my visitor had been sitting and, oh no! To my chagrin it was broken!

I checked a few times to reassure myself that I was correct and alas! My poor chair was broken. The seat was split. Now I had to find someone to fix it.

Thank goodness for Nick who gave me the name of a wonderful furniture man who fixed it for me. I guess that it never ends but all's well that ends well.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

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A summertime activity: Continuing to visit my plants

They are so very special to me and almost every morning, at around 5 a.m., I venture onto my balcony to have a short visit with them.

I talk with them, fondle their leaves and flowers, and make sure that they have enough water. I stay with them for a few minutes and then I leave them for the day.

This is how I started almost every day and a visit to my plants is a must for me. I knew that come the end of October or early November they will start to wither because of the oncoming cold weather. But this is how it is going to be and all I can do is to be grateful for the joy that they have brought me for spring and summer, 2020.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

A huge disappointment: When the Hawaiian globe broke

This poor old globe had traveled with me all the way from Hawaii back to Toronto. I had purchased it on my Hawaiian trip in February, 2020, but now I am afraid that it is history.

I had no idea that it would break so very easily. I had picked it up from my table, held it gently in my hands, and then had put it back down on the table. About a minute later and voila! I realized that it was broken.

First I smelled something different and next there was sticky stuff forming into a tiny puddle at the end of my table.

I am just grateful that Shane was nearby to help me clean up and he made very sure that there were no stains left. What a disappointment! My only memento of that wonderful trip.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

 

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

Give the gift of accessibility to disabled children and their families today.

A soulful moment. Forehead to forehead, a mother and her beloved son with a disability at a rehabilitation center.

The world today is not what it was yesterday and it will not be the same tomorrow. We are presently living in very challenging and troubled times but rest assured, with our high propensity to create, innovate, and overcome, we will get through this together!

Author Donna Jodhan is committed to doing her part to ensure that persons with disabilities, especially our kids with disabilities, are not left out and that they are given every opportunity to be a part of our growing virtual world.

Author Donna invites you to support one of her many ongoing initiatives by making a small donation today. To say thank you, all supporters are granted unlimited access to all 3 of Author Donna’s Subscription Libraries. These include her Audio Mystery Library, her Recipe Library and her Home & Garden Library. Review them today at:

http://www.donnajodhan.com/subscription-libraries.html

All donations, including anonymous donations, are also acknowledged on both the Author Donna Jodhan Supporters Page and the Author Donna Jodhan Donor Wall for the duration of their support.

Please consider giving the gift of accessibility to disabled children and their families today. Your support makes the difference in keeping our children connected, healthy and part of our community.  Visit https://www.donnajodhan.com/donate.html

Continued frustrations: My Apple exam

There are exams and then there are exams. If I were to categorize my Apple certification exam, which I wrote on August 4, 2020, I would say that it was probably one of the most stressful but at the same time interesting of all!

From the start, this exam was never meant to be a smooth one but Shane was absolutely superb in ensuring that I had the best chance to succeed and succeed I did!

This exam was not accessible for a vision-impaired person. The developers of Apple's exams are still very much behind when it comes to accessibility and they do not seem to fully understand.

My first interaction with Apple exams was two years ago in 2018 and nothing much has changed since then. Several questions are difficult to understand for someone who is vision-impaired and requires sighted assistance to navigate and describe.

Additional time for a person with a disability to write is offered, but alas! At the end of regular time one is kicked out of the exam and is unable to re-enter to complete the exam.

Hopefully these glitches will be rectified in the near future and I look forward to working with Apple and the administrators of their exams to make things more accessible.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day!

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan