It was like this:
you were happy, then you were sad,
then happy again, then not.

It went on.
You were innocent or you were guilty.
Actions were taken, or not.

At times you spoke, at other times you were silent.
Mostly, it seems you were silent — what could you say?

Now it is almost over.

Like a lover, your life bends down and kisses your life.

It does this not in forgiveness –
between you, there is nothing to forgive –
but with the simple nod of a baker at the moment
he sees the bread is finished with transformation.

Eating, too, is now a thing only for others.

It doesn’t matter what they will make of you
or your days: they will be wrong,
they will miss the wrong woman, miss the wrong man,
all the stories they tell will be tales of their own invention.

Your story was this: you were happy, then you were sad,
you slept, you awakened.
Sometimes you ate roasted chestnuts, sometimes persimmons.

– Jane Hirshfield

I’ve always wanted to do a 12 Days of Christmas gift package, this is my slightly less literal take on the idea.

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Hand Turned Wooden Pear, $16 from Urban Turn
Here’s the pear.

Slingshot , $25 from General Store
The partridge they can take care of themselves.

Two Turtle Doves

Moderato Mugs, $26 each from General Store

Three French Hens

Pebble Vases, $8-$15 from Paxton Gate

Four Calling Birds

Bird Call Set, $160 from Curiosity Shoppe

Five Golden Rings

Vintage Target, $5 from Brookfarm General Store

Six Geese A-Laying

Espresso Set, $55 from MoMA

Seven Swans A-Swimming

Airline Routes Print of the Seven Continents, $44 from lx97.com
Flying gets the swans there so much faster.

Eight Maids A-Milking

Aluminum Wood Milking Stool, $179 from West Elm

Nine Ladies Dancing

Rannoch Merino Socks in Sea Green, from Really Wild Clothing
Have you ever seen nine ladies dancing? None of them are wearing shoes.

Ten Lords A-leaping

Ten Japanese Wooden Tops, $60 from The Curiosity Shoppe

Eleven Pipers Piping

Hand Carved Pear-Root Wood Tobacco Smoking Pipe, $20 from For Pipe Smokers

Twelve Drummers Drumming

12 Colored Pencils, $29 from Brookfarm General Store

Have you ever wanted to do this too? Leave your suggestions for alternative ideas in comments.

This Captured Series post is brought to you by Best Buy. Get unbeatable prices on all digital cameras to capture your family memories this holiday season!

When Hank was tiny and did something cute, kidless friends used to say “Oh! My dog does that. Not to compare your baby to my dog.” And then I’d say, “My child’s attachment object is a chew toy. We’re cool.”

This is Hank with Beebo, a rubber chicken we got one day when Hank insisted on stopping in to the neighborhood pet shop because he thought it was a toy store. Beebo squeaks when you squeeze him, and the squeak sounds remarkably like, Beeeeebooooow! or BEE-BOW!, depending on how forceful your affection. Beebo was the first toy Hank loved like a person. He refused to go anywhere without the rubber chicken, and I would occasionally look in the rearview mirror to find Hank gazing soulfully into Beebo’s eye nubbins, or rubbing Beebo’s plucked rubber body softly against his cheek.

Of course, Hank also slept with Beebo. I’d put him to bed, and then read in the quiet of the living room. Every half hour or so, I’d hear a sharp BEE! when Hank rolled over, and then a corresponding “Boooow” when he flipped back. Best baby monitor on record.

Your family photos are awesome, team. I’ve been checking in to see what you look like and read your stories. Next week, I’ll features some of my favorites here. If you haven’t entered yet, I’m partnering with Federated Media to host a merit-based contest on Flickr where you could win a $500 gift certificate to Best Buy. Just upload a photo to Flickr that captures a family memory (up to five photos, actually). Double check that your photos are tagged public so everyone can see them, and then add the tag: #CapturedPhotoContest_MightyGirl. We’ll judge on originality, photo quality, and best display of a family memory, and then we’ll contact the winner via Flickr mail. The official contest rules are over here, and the contest ends December 24th. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you.

If you haven’t spent much time dancing alone in your room, you should know it’s better without pants. But then, that’s true of so many things.

The whole Dancing Alone in Your Underwear Mix is available on Spotify. Otherwise, links to individual songs are below. Let’s do this.

Afterparty at Jimmy’s from Anya Maria
Howlin’ for You from The Black Keys
Rill Rill from Sleigh Bells
How You Like Me Now from The Heavy
We Run This from Missy Elliot
Groove Me from King Floyd
Fix Up, Look Sharp from Dizzee Rascal
I Got You, I Feel Good from James Brown
I Know What I Am from Band of Skulls
Seven Nation Army from Ben L’Oncle Soul

Leave your own Risky Business soundtrack in comments. No judgement.

Oh, remember this? If my life were a movie scene, this one would be a front runner.

You? Leave your clip in comments.