A new START... 2009

To think its actually going to be 2009... amazing!

2008 was such a FAST and eventful year... where did it go? 

Now a new year awaits... another chance to do it RIGHT! 

What will you do RIGHT in 2009? Will you spread a little joy and happiness and merriness? 

(A merry heart doeth good like a medicine! Prov 17:22). 

Will you be a dose of "good medicine" to those you interact with?

Don't be a grumbling, mumbling critic! Don't rain on everyone's parade... SMILE! It's contagious! Spread JOY like there is no time to waste!

Ah... space, the best frontier!

The post-Christmas clean is refreshing, isn't it? The tree is down, boxed and gone! The ornaments and decor are packed away... I can't wait to vacuum up the debris! I LOVE that "SPACE" created in the void! The next project is the kitchen with cookie crumbs, candy wrappers and other stuff to clear away! 

AND the family room's view today is LESS SNOW...YAY! Like the wicked witch of the west, it's "melting"! It's almost gone...  I can feel spring around the corner, well... perhaps a month or two off, but I am getting cabin fever... flowers are developing in the process... in my computer designing, if not in my garden!

The fence blew down in the wind storm and the neighbor's sweet yellow lab , Abby, as expanded her territory to include our yard! Our noisy dogs object loudly! We will have to rebuild the fence and install at least one fence post, as two 8 foot sections blew over. [We may need to leave air space between the cedar boards this time. This is the second or third time this section has fallen in wind storms. Maybe we should have bought cyclone fencing at the beginning!]

Winter will pass... sometime! Hopefully soon! BLOOM, flowers, BLOOM!

New dress on!

We found this darling photo of Charity, our firstborn, when looking for another photo the other day! Wasn't she a cutie patootie!? (I think this was actually taken around Christmas and developed in the spring when money was available.) She loved that dress almost as much as we did!

Turn OFF the snow machine! (OK, its OFF!)

Okay, the snow has stopped (for now!) We did not get pix before the storms, but this table was bare on Wed AM 12/17, before the first 8 inches fell. It shrunk to six inches before the Sat night storm hit our house. Two or three inches fell before the first photo here. The second was taken this morning when we awoke to our power off (and no heat, of course, regardless of new furnace!)

Enough is enough, you know? These days give me deja vu' from Vermont days!

UPDATE:Finally found the pavement under the snow after lunch today! YAY!

David Cool-Shoes

Recently David's shoes wore out and mom bought him new Vans! He got the new sweat jacket too! What a sweet smile on that boy... is he COOL or what?!

MORE Snow!

Al is shoveling his second pass on the driveway! When he finished the first pass, he found two more inches where he had shoveled. The pile reminds me of Vermont on a light snow day.

Its only 9 PM and they expect it to snow all night. This current storm has already dumped 4 inches on top of the 6-8 inches from Wednesday's storm. Our tables are deep with the stuff!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ... somewhere else, thank you!

Snow...

We have WAY too much snow! We took our Toyota (with snow tires) into the shop for regular maintenance on Wednesday. Then it snowed! LOTS of snow for us! Like 8+ inches in our yard and street. They don't plow these streets.

 Now we have the spare car without snow tires and snow too deep for cars that do have snow tires... Somehow we need to get into town and get the Toyota back! We need snow tires, and probably chains too!

10 Cookie rules...

1. If you eat a Christmas cookie fresh out of the oven, it has no calories 
because everyone knows that the first cookie is the test and thus calorie free.

2. If you drink a diet soda after eating your second cookie, it also has no calories because the diet soda cancels out the cookie calories.

3. If a friend comes over while you're making your Christmas cookies and needs to sample, you must sample with your friend. Because your friend's first cookie is calories free, rule #1 is yours also. It would be rude to let your friend sample alone and, being the friend that you are, that makes your cookie calorie free.

4. Any cookie calories consumed while walking around will fall to your feet and eventually fall off as you move. This is due to gravity and the density of the caloric mass.

5. Any calories consumed during the frosting of the Christmas cookies will be used up because it takes many calories to lick excess frosting from a knife without cutting your tongue.

6. Cookies colored red or green have very few calories. Red ones have three and green ones have five - one calorie for each letter. Make more red ones! 

7. Cookies eaten while watching "Miracle on 34th Street" have no calories because they are part of the entertainment package and not part of one's personal fuel.

8. As always, cookie pieces contain no calories because the process of breaking causes calorie leakage.

9. Any cookies consumed from someone else's plate have no calories since the calories rightfully belong to the other person and will cling to their plate. We all know how calories like to CLING!

10. Any cookies consumed while feeling stressed have no calories because cookies used for medicinal purposes NEVER have calories. It's a rule!

Tagged again... running in circles, I think

1. I AM... too far behind to catch up by Christmas!
2. I WANT... NOT MUCH MORE than I have already... no room for it!
3. I HAVE… too many blessings to store... want some?
4. I KEEP... relocating the storage piles.
5. I WISH I COULD... sing on key
6. I HATE… growing old in body while my heart is still so young.
7. I FEAR... not finding my loved ones in Heaven
8. I HEAR... Hubby's computer music
9. I DON'T THINK... I should answer this.
10. I REGRET... some things said
11. I LOVE... so many things
12. I AM NOT... sleepy tonight
13. I DANCE... but not too often lately
14. I SING... along with my ipod at the gym (oops!)
15. I NEVER... get far from home anymore.
16. I RARELY... talk on the phone
17. I CRY WHEN I WATCH... old family movies
18. I AM NOT ALWAYS... right (thank God!)
19. I HATE THAT... I can't see my siblings more often
20. I'M CONFUSED ABOUT...  why I can't remember so much anymore.
21. I NEED... to get caught up some day

I tag Joy... just because I can! (nanner, nanner)

Merry Christmas, Mary!

Today let's consider Mary, the mother of Jesus… the ONLY WOMAN present that first Christmas night!  I want you to imagine what AWE she must have experienced!

The shepherds related to Joseph and Mary how the angels had told them the wonderful NEWS of a Savior’s coming to their little village of Bethlehem! They wanted to SEE and WORSHIP Him!

 Luke 2:10-15  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.               

And what WAS Mary’s response that night?

Luke 2:19  But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

We get more insight to Mary's thoughtfulness later in the same chapter:

• Luke 2:33  And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.
  
• Luke 2:51  And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
  

That night of Jesus' birth Mary might have pondered:

The conception of her firstborn son when an ANGEL announced His soon arrival thru her!
The amazing 9 months carrying the Savior of the world
The exciting participation in Elizabeth’s delivery of John

• What will YOU ponder during the season of our Saviors’ birth?
  
• Will you reflect on His first visit to YOUR HEART?
  
• Will you remember to tell others how wonderful He has been to your life?
  

Devotion prepared for Ladies Christmas Fellowship at Bible Baptist Church, Port Orchard.

Elves for FUN

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

New Signature (Siggie)

I was aching to Scrap, but not enough time to do a full page, so I did a SIGGIE for the holiday...

Want one?