My Christmas Gift

The presence is so much greater than the presents!

My Babies Grew Up!

YES, they did!

Traditions

We've had a tradition in our family for more than 10 years that started as a way to have a little "calm" before Christmas, dress up "our" little girl (first grandchild/girl), & teach her some of the "finer ways" at a table...  So began the now annual Christmas Eve Day Tea.
We started with the three of us, then added another little girl, & this year added another "girl"...

The two little girls have turned into young ladies and the new young lady is my daughter-in-love...

Pretty cool to have another "blonde" in the family.... Except hers really is a beautiful blonde! But we are both natural...
 We had to take two separate pictures because this is a girls-only time and all males have to be out of the house!
What a blessing to have all my family together this year and to welcome another "girl" to our Christmas Tea!

An "Infamous Day"

Thirty nine years ago today I took on a new title... one of the most important titles a woman can have:


MOM!

What a day of rejoicing!  That beautiful little girl has brought so much joy into our lives!  We thank God for the many wonderful memories we have that all began on this "infamous day."

Easy Yum

For the first time in many years I made pumpkin pies from real pumpkins this fall.  I tried it years ago, but after cutting, boiling, & peeling I didn't think it was worth it.  Then a few weeks ago a friend told me about cutting a pumpkin in half (using small pumpkins) & baking them skin side up.  When they're done, the peel comes right off!  The difference in the taste (& texture) of the pie was amazing!

Tonight I came up with a new recipe that doesn't have to use fresh pumpkin.  I had most of a pumpkin pie left over, so I scooped out the filling, added several ginger snaps (crushed), & most of a 1/2 gallon of vanilla bean ice cream & mixed it all together.  Then I put it in a graham cracker crust & put it in the freezer.  YUM!!!

Nostalgia!

Do you remember what it was like when you got your very first new car?  I'm not a "car buff" like other members of my family and don't usually know what anyone drives.  But after getting behind the wheel of my uncle's VW Beetle one time right after high school, that was my dream car.  So after driving old clunkers in early marriage (& my growing up family never had a new car!), when we both were gainfully employed (back in the days of one car per family) we bought our first new car: a tan VW Beetle.  I loved that car!  It was cold in the winter because the heater never did put out enough heat (I had to pour hot water over the lock in the winter to thaw it enough to get the key in to unlock the car...)  It didn't have AC, but I still loved it.

And it looked exactly like this, minus the stripes and numbers!  And yes, "Herbie" is sitting in my garage!!!  This is the original paint, original seats (which are in excellent condition!), and it has all the paperwork from the original purchase.  It is a 1968... just like mine!

But "Herbie" is only on loan....  I feel SO honored to be entrusted with him!  "He" belongs to a fellow volunteer at the USO and they needed someone to drive "him" tomorrow in a Veteran's Day parade.  The caveat was that "he" is a stick shift.... Hey, I've had several cars that were stick shift and made sure both of my kids learned to drive on a stick shift!! You better believe I jumped on that opportunity!  My dear hubby is going to ride with me, so we can experience the nostalgia together...

I have admired "Herbie's" owner since I met him at the USO (he's retired from the military) because he not only served our country, but he is a gracious, fun-loving, really nice, extremely giving man.  He picks up bread from one of the bread stores at least twice a week & delivers it to the USO, the Raleigh Rescue Mission, & who knows where else.  He always has a ready smile, doesn't meet a stranger, and is willing to help out at a moment's notice.

Scripture tells us to hold things loosely (contrary to our culture of mine, mine, mine!)  And I'd say that Hiram certainly does that, to entrust this antique to "whoever could drive a stick shift..."  Just glad it was me!

Let's do all we can to honor our veterans and be especially thankful tomorrow, Nov.11, Veterans' Day!

A Lifetime of Love

This is my hero... the man I gave my life to 44 years ago today.

He was my heart-throb then and he is my heart-throb today.  We've had many peaks together....

and a few valleys...  But through all these years God has blessed us in so many ways.  And He has blessed me with a man of integrity, deep convictions, strong commitment to God, family, and friends, and a man of many "facets."

Although he is known as "Safety Man" and is always the first to say, "be careful".... he has a bit of wild side too...

He never rides without full gear though: Kevalar in his pants & jacket (the jacket is SO heavy!), boots, gloves, etc.  But he travels long distances on his quarterly rides with his buddies.

His interests are varied....

But he has one or two that are his favorites....

Spending time with his grandchildren ranks right up there at the top!  He is a fantastic Papa & loves to do things with these children.

He is tender hearted...

And though he is a manly-man, he isn't afraid to shed tears in front of others.

He dearly loves his children....

ALL of them....

He's not afraid to be goofy...

He makes us laugh...

He's tough when he needs to be... like getting rid of a 5 ft. long snake!

He does things he doesn't want to do (like pick blueberries) just because I want him to he loves me...

(and like working MY garden soil because I love to garden)

(and like going to the fireworks display on July 4th because I love them...)

He likes to read (Christian fiction)....

And "research" things on the internet (all I have to do is say, "I wonder about..." and he is ON it!)

He loves sports (and the "roar" of a golf tournament or a baseball game has been the background for my Sunday afternoon naps for many years...)

He shows me he loves me....

and he tells me he loves me...

And I believe him!  I loved him when we each said, "I do" 44 years ago today.  But I love him SO much more now!

This man has given me a lifetime of love and he really is the love of my life!

Girls' Surprise

I love surprises!  I love to be surprised and I love to surprise others.  So I "hatched" a plan to surprise my two granddaughters...
And when I told them what it was, the looks on their faces were priceless...

I had told them that my friend was coming over one morning while we were in the mountains.  They asked a few questions about her, but I was rather vague in my answers.  When she arrived I explained why she came...

We became friends through her business... she is a wonderful massage therapist!  Over the last few years we have gotten to know each other better and she has become a dear friend.  I recently learned that she can "bring" the massage to a home, so the idea was planted...

They had heard their mom and me talk about what a wonderful massage she gives and had said many times how much they would love to have a real massage.

 She is really a professional and they came out of it sharing our wonder of how relaxing and therapeutic it is.

But she went a step further, so they would have something special to do while the other one was getting her massage...

She brought a foot bath (that made bubbles while it gurgled) and a paraffin dip for hands.
After they both had a massage, their mom had a massage, and we all had a foot soak and a paraffin dip, we had a girls' lunch together with my friend.  What a special day it was!

Rest for Some

Today I decided to take a long walk instead of taking a nap.  I love a Sunday afternoon nap, but it was so beautiful outside that I had to get out.  And the sights weren't bad either...

Our confused little cherry tree... it has lost its leaves, but is blooming again.  Even in the midst of winter, if there is a little warm spell it starts blooming again, yet it still  blooms in the spring when it is supposed to.

Losing the top....

A neighbor's flowers nodding off to winter...

A walk down the street....

But "somebody" was taking an afternoon nap... well, he was (with his head lying on the doggie bed) until I held my camera up.
I only took 92 pictures on my walk...

More "Critters"

I'm not a fan of spiders nor am I really afraid of them, but lately I seem to be seeing bigger, more unusual spiders than I've ever seen before.

This one sat on the "arm" of the Polaris (pool cleaner) for days and I think was already dead, but because of the size, I didn't get very close to take this picture so glad for a zoom lens!

This piece of equipment is about the size of my hand, so you have an idea of the size of the "critter"...  Yes, frost can be a good thing.

Random Summer Snippets

 It was a wonderful summer!!!  And for me, went way too fast...

How is it that we can go to the same place every summer at pretty much the same time, do the same things, and yet always have SO much fun?!  Making memories is something that I am so thankful for!

Whether it's mountains or sea, we are so blessed to live where we can experience both quite easily...

and we have lots of pool fun...

and see "growth" every year (what happened to those babies???!!!!)

But all good things must come to an end.....

So out come the sweatshirts, raincoats, gloves, etc. for another round of making fall memories...