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......

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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!

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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!

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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

Grab a "fall treat" and a cup of coffee or tea

and get ready to enjoy this loooong post,

with lots of photos.

It's been 2 weeks since the start of my favorite season.

So I thought it was the perfect time to reflect on the past few months

because they have passed me by at a frenetic pace.

I think pausing to reflect on the past is a good thing.

It's when we take time to be still

that we can see our mistakes....

our successes...

and how God has been working things out for good

for us..

in us..

and through us.
It's a good time to count our blessings.

It's been a busy summer.....

So let's begin with an awesome vacation!

Me and Hubs

We took a trip to the Smoky Mountains with some friends.

Friends Barb and Kevin

On our trip, we stretched ourselves as we partook in many firsts.

We went to Dollywood.

We saw several very entertaining shows inside the park.

But Miss Lillian's pre-show was worth the price of admission!

She picked Hubs out of the audience to help her get the audience warmed up. I laughed until my face hurt! My little chicken man was a good sport.

We rode some terrifying rides...including this one.

Some other firsts included a horse back ride at Cade's Cove.
I'm a country girl, but I don't have much experience with horses.
I have to admit it was a little intimidating
but it was fun.
I'm sure glad the horses knew where to go!

I snapped this photo from
my horse. That's hubs up
ahead. Kevin and Barb
brought up the rear.

We went to Gatlinburg one day.
What an enjoyable place to visit...
and so clean.

I did something very new in Gatlinburg....
I sampled some flavored moonshine.
Not the pure grain stuff....
the sugar laden kind.
I have to admit...
It was good.
But NO, I didn't bring any home with me!

Moonshine. Wall to Wall. Every flavor you can imagine.

While we were there, we took time to go to the aquarium as well.
This was my favorite under water critter.

I'd say this stingray is happy happy happy!

Everyday, we went out and about and explored Pigeon Forge.
And everyday we came back to our little cabin nestled on top of the beautiful Smoky Mountains