Tick-tock...

"another fresh new year is here...

another year to live!

to banish worry, doubt, and fear,

to love, and laugh, and give!

this bright new year is given me

to live each day with zest...

to daily grow and try to be

my highest and my best!

I have the opportunity

once more to right some wrongs,

to pray for peace, to plant a tree,

and sing more joyful songs."

william arthur ward


...amist a flurry of unexpected, particularly annoying unusual circumstances we were unable to 'celebrate' Christmas together, as a family, unitl Monday evening.   While it was well worth waiting  for to spend the day/evening with our children and their spouses it just did not hold the same Christmas Eve/Christmas morning excitement.  I've always been the one to say it doesn't matter what day we choose as long as we are together and in the past that was true.  This year, however, it was odd.  I think it's that we have always celebrated before the actual day so everyone was still wearing their Christmas cheer and anticipation.  Waiting until after just didn't feel as festive.  Everyone else having already packed up their decorations, lights, gifts etc., and getting ready to celebrate the New Year.

I am pleased to see that so many of you have had a wonderful Christmas with your families, celebrated with much love, food and gifts (whatever they may be).  Ours was tempered this year with yet another loss in our areas Police Department.  Six officers in six weeks has taken a heavy toll on our surrounding communities.  The sadness runs deep and the anger deeper.  I pray the New Year will keep us all safe.

I am excited for the New Year and to see what you all have planned to keep me entertained and motivated!  I am so grateful that you have come into my life in such a wonderful and generous  way.  Your kind hearts and warm-spirits are a balm to my spirit and a Blessing to my soul.  Happy New Year friends!

what are your New Year's Eve plans?  Resolutions?

And the Heavens and the Angels sang...

 "for unto you is born this day...a Saviour, who is Christ our Lord."
Luke 2:11



Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart...filled it, too, with melody that would last forever."

~ Bess Streeter Aldrich (1881-1954), American author, 'Song of Years'.


Blessings to you my friends who celebrate the Birth of our Lord.  May he hold you in his hands, be gentle with your heart, and strengthen and comfort you with his Grace.  Remember, no matter how difficult the times...that you are never alone.   Merry Christmas.  And to those of you who do not celebrate please take my friendship and thanks as my gift to you.... Joanne  jojo

The man with the most cookies wins...

son-in-law...Craig

hubs

I think it was a tie!  How was your weekend??

Heartfelt Friday...

"what an enormous magnifier is tradition!

how a thing grows in the human memory

and the human imagination

when love,

worship,

and all that lies in the human heart

is there to encourage it..."

Thomas Carlyle

A welcoming spirit...

 What a wonderful blessing Christmas in blog-land is for me.  I so enjoy visiting all your beautiful sites and being welcomed into your homes.  Not only are you generous and creative but beautiful in spirit as well.   So, in this same spirit...Welcome to a little peek of my home:

I am usually a SOOC girl, except for the occasional crop, so what you see is what you get and in the last picture you get me---dropping the camera.   More to come when I get myself together and finish decorating.   Are you ready?

Poinsettia parade...

...more from my visit to Watson's.

 this one came home with me!

Happy Hanukkah, friends...

where are you Christmas...

..."why can't i find you,
why have you gone away?
where is the laughter
you used to bring me?
why can't i hear the music play?
my world is changing
i'm rearranging...
does that mean Christmas changes too?"
faith hill

i have to admit that i seem to have lost my 'cheer' lately.  i also have to admit that i am determined to figure out where it went and retrieve it post haste.  onward with some late tuesday tids...

*i got my cast off today, had a few x-rays, and promptly had the cast put back on again.

*bad x-rays, stubborn bone, four more weeks.

*should i have my tree up by now? baking? decorating? shopping?  YIKES.

*i would not be opposed to having the temps rise at least ten degrees...11 degrees at  bedtime is a little frosty for me.  and the poor hubs who gets up at 3am for work.

*i watched 'white Christmas' (the movie) and remembered why i love that era so much.  what is your favorite Christmas movie?

*and the tuesday/thursday topper?  I won a contest over at "just between me and you" last week and it arrived on monday.  Fantastic, chocolatey, smooth, sweet, super-sugar fudge.  at least that is what all my favorite foodies have told me...as of yet i have only indulged in one teeny-tiny bite.  YUM!  Thank you Maggie!

Gone in 60 seconds...

...just over a week ago our small community lost four police officers.  They were not in an accident, hostage situation, a riot, or any other of the many, many, things they do to protect our community.

it was early morning and the four of them stopped at a local coffee shop, a shop known to many of us, a shop that is an outstanding member of our community. They were there to finish up some paper work after having just come from the local hospital to escort victims of a drunk driver.  About 8:14 evil came through the door, walked up to the counter as if to order, turned around and executed four policeman.  Less than sixty seconds passed before the carnage occurred and evil walked out the door to live another day.

today our community comes together to mourn and say good-bye to these courageous citizens.  thousands of fellow officers have arrived in our city, the procession expected to be ten miles long and include over three thousand men and women in uniform.  today we bow our heads, hand to heart, tears in eyes, and we pray...with graditute we pray.

I see...

...Christmas Trees!
If you are unable to attend the Tree of Lights Festival then the next best, and free, thing is to find your local nursery center.  You will be amazed and delighted at all the decorated tree displays, it's inside and, if you really like what you see, it's all for sale.

After a quick stop here (it was 25degrees here today)

we were off to our local nursery to check out the trees, and oh my...

here's the entrance to Watson's

 as ~Peach~ says, just click on any photo and it will 'embiggin.  These trees were quite tall and it was very crowded to I was trying to catch the upper half...I was also trying to get a shot of the tree toppers as I am looking to change mine out this year.

Have a great Monday y'all.  

p.s. as of yet we have no tree up at our house......arghh...living with a Grinch!

Which one doesn't belong...

...in six days this lovely, frustrating-torture device,   cast-boot will become history.  After nine long weeks since my "frankentoe" surgery I will be free to roam the hallways of my home, drive, roam the isles of the grocery, hobby, thrift stores...without having to have the hubs chaeuffer me.

There was a time, several years ago, when I wore one of these purdy boots for months and months at a time.  In fact the months turned into years and all for naught.  This time will be different though and once that sweet thing is off...it is OFF baby.    So...Ness, my sweet.  I wasn't trying to compete with you, I just didn't want you to feel alone and dejected with that air cast you are wearing!

And just in case you thought I was just hanging around here without accomplishing a single thing, I present to you the extent of my holiday decorating.  (which at this point would be a single thing)

how is your decorating going?

I'm my own follower...a.k.a...Tuesdays' tids...

...wow, look at all the ... I used there!  Here is a, it's still Tuesday (somewhere), tids post, and trust me, this is SO random you'll ask me to change my name!

*try as hard as I might, I can not stop the rapid progression of days leading up to Christmas.  I tried, I asked, I begged, but NOOOOpe.


*now that I have accepted the fact, I am throwing myself completely into the festiveness, getting out the decorations, pleading with my husband to go up to the attic, cleaning, purging the overflow...you get the idea.

*I noticed that my follower count is up and immediately got all excited and  on my high-horse.  I decided to look and see who's new...me, I'm new.  How did I become my own follower...twice!  



*what does that say about me?  (something rather tragic I would think)

*I cannot think straight due to my tryptophan induced coma, which I just read has nothing to do with turkey but with the amount of carbs consumed.


*what does that say about me if I'm still sleepy...FIVE days later? (mmmmm, pie)

*the hubs fixed the staple gun last week so now it doesn't work, thus, no $5 chair.  I am going to Michaels tomorrow for a new one.  Does anyone really care about the $5 chair anymore?


*questions, questions, I'm full of questions, but, I'll leave you with this one:  Still on the color kick...what is your favorite color to use in holiday decorating?  I am loving the new aqua/silver combo that I've been seeing everywhere.  (everywhere being Target)