Christmas Letter 2014

Merry CHRISTmas!

It has been several years since I have sent out a Christmas letter. 

I usually enjoy handcrafting Christmas cards, but this year I simply ran out of time.   I had time to only make a small handful of cards.  If you were one of the few

(and I do mean few) 

 who received a Christmas card from our house, 

count yourself as lucky! 

 And so that no one should feel forgotten, I decided this evening that it might be nice to take the evening  to reflect on the year 2014, 

and of course share my thoughts with all of you.  

So grab a  cup of coffee or perhaps some tea

 and get settled into your favorite chair......

Internet picture

This year has been filled with adventure, blessings and anticipation,

kind of  like the very first Christmas!

As I sit here, 

it's quiet

it's cold

and an icy rain is falling from the sky. 

And in the words of Clement C Moore..

Not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse.

I can however hear the 

fire crackling in the wood stove. 

So there's no 

Jack Frost nipping at my nose!

Internet picture

Anticipation

Earlier this year,

 we learned we were getting a new grandbaby!! 

So we have been waiting with

  expectancy for this new little blessing. 

He or she is due to make his or her

 arrival the day after Christmas. 

 As you can imagine, I'm growing impatient! 

 I just can't wait to get my hands

 on that baby and shower kisses

 all over its little cheekies!

Internet picture

We spent most of 2014 anticipating the wedding 

of Andrew to his bride, Ashley.

But before the wedding,

we enjoyed showering Ashley with love and presents! 

Blessing

Andrew and Ashley were married on a glorious day in September. 

The wedding went off without a "HITCH"

He got a wife; we got another daughter!

Here are a few of my favorite pics from that day!

Adventure

Much of 2014, has been quite an adventure. 

 I don't think either of us would call it a 

FUN adventure.

Nonetheless, it has been an adventure in the sense that we have been doing something different-

by breaking up the monotony of life. 

We have been trying to make the best of a less than

 ideal situation.

Many of you already know that we have been living out of two homes.  Since July, we have spent most of our time living in Rockville, Md where  Dave's current project has taken him.  We are blessed that I can go along and stay with him at what we refer to as, 

"the villa"

We have been experiencing a little culture shock.....

just a little.... 

City people

WE ARE NOT!

We are definitely country folk!

deer huntin'

diggin' in the dirt

peace and quiet lovin'

Country Folk!

And speaking of deer huntin'...

Here is one blessed fellow...

Dave that is, not the deer!  

He recently bagged a buck on a hunting trip to Canada.

AND he's also blessed to be grandpa to these two little deers!

Did I mention another is on the way??

This year, Dave and I celebrated....

10 years of being leukemia free

and

35 years of  doing the 

dance known as marriage!

It's been quite a ride!

So we decided to celebrate by taking

 a trip to Tennessee  with some special friends.

We had a great time and look forward to taking another trip!

SOON!

I hope you all have enjoyed sharing the highlights of this last year with us.  

I also hope you have some highlights of your own to reflect on. 

 Life can be brutal sometimes.

But if we focus on the moments that bring us joy

they have the ability to overshadow the difficult times. 

It is our hope that you will not 

only take time to reflect on 

the joyful moments of life, 

but that you would also

 take time to ponder the giver of 

ALL JOY.

FOR HE IS CHRIST THE LORD....

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

For both of us,

Tammy

Gratitude Journal Entry#8-Friendship

In these hectic and busy days, it's hard to juggle all of our responsibilities, obligations and family relationships, giving each the attention due them.

It seems that there is always something vying for our attention.  I know myself, it seems I'm so busy following through with the things on my

Must do list

that it doesn't leave much room for the things on the 

Want to do list

(including keeping up with this blog)

Despite all of this, I've added

Friendship 

to my 

Gratitude Journal.  


I may not have a lot of time for friends, but I'm thankful for the few friends I do have.

This is my friend Barb and I a few years ago while on a 

Pennsylvania Wine Tour

Though neither Barb or myself are drinkers,
 we do enjoy a little wine from time to time.

We had a great time that day.  It was a bus trip, so we were able to chat and catch up in between stops.  

Barb and I don't get to spend near enough time together.  But when we are able to clear our calendars and get together, it's as if time hasn't passed.  We just pick up where we left off. 

Recently, we had a chance to catch up.  Barb had invited me to her house so she could share the
fruits 
of  what she referred to as her new toy.

She had just gotten a new Vitamix and was anxious to share with me her latest love.....

SMOOTHIES..Yumm!

We enjoyed our smoothies and a little snack over some
catch- up -conversation
in her lovely sunroom.
(on a sunny day I might add)

Barb and Belle

I love the times we are able to share together and catch up on our busy lives.
And I especially love that no matter how much time passes in between visits,
we just pick up where we left off!

In case you're wondering, our next get together is a cooking class at our favorite
Kitchen Shoppe.

Should be a good time...I'll keep ya posted!

Do you have a Barb in your life?
I hope so!
I'd love to hear about her!


Grateful for a great friend,
Tammy


Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply....

Romans 12:10 The Message

ANTICIPATING SPRING

It's  been a while since my last post.  Life is so busy.... even for a "simple" girl like me.  My little man keeps me very busy.  He is in my care while his mommy works in the afternoons.








And Miss Josie keeps me hoppin'!  To be honest, there isn't a whole lot of difference between Jack and Josie!

Trash cans are so much fun!

Jack has discovered Josie's water dish, oh my!

You have to watch them like a HAWK, because they are always up to NO-GOOD!

Around these parts, we are eagerly looking forward to spring.  Hubs and I are planning our garden with great anticipation.  The seeds have been ordered and delivered, and I will soon begin starting seeds, transforming our dining room table into a plant nursery.  

My seeds and planting supplies, ready to go!

Over the weekend, I was able to begin cleanup of the flower beds.  (Begin is the key word!)  We had a VERY rainy Sunday, that ended with some unwanted sleet and snow.   I awoke to this ...............
YUK! (Notice the bird feeders are totally decimated.) This is wearing very old!





When I walked outside, I saw this....

All the chicken netting (to keep the hawks out) has been damaged from the ice. Guess I'll have to put on my handy-woman hat  today!

But alas, there are some signs of SPRING.

And check this out.  My wagon filled with the debris from cleaning out the flower bed on Saturday.

.

On the Homestead front....we have added 2 wild  turkeys  to our menagerie of animals.  I have to say, I wasn't too happy about this, since I'm the one who carries the 5 gallon buckets of water to the chicken yard everyday.  I've declared these creatures are not mine, therefore not my responsibility!  The goal is to keep them well fed for a while and then release them back into the wild with hopes they will stay around.  We'll see how that all plays out.

My girlfriend, Barb.

The title of this post is Anticipating Spring. I'm really trying to wait patiently for its arrival.  In the meantime, I have been trying to do some fun, yet simple things that will help with the winter doldrums.  So last weekend, I spent Saturday morning with a good friend.


We went for breakfast at the local Cracker Barrel and then headed out to do some "JUNKIN"!

I came across this find, just minutes into it.  Its a perfect addition to my collection of (Hall's) red poppy glassware. It gave me a little high to hold me over until spring officially arrives in just 15 days.

They say, time flies when you're having fun, so hang in there and go have some fun today!!  Spring will be here soon...... REALLY!

 May God bless you richly on this brisk Monday morning!!