Making A Change

Here it is, the last day of November. I read many blogs the last few days, hearing about the wonderful Thanksgiving each had, with the focus of all being on their gratitude. I had a wonderful meal, with wonderful people. My family...except for my daughter, son in law, and grandbabies...were all their. I also got to share the wonderful meal with the dear family of my daughter in law, Cameo. Both her parents, and her sister and husband are such good, kind, wonderful people. I was blessed to be there and be with them all. However, I did not take any time to spend just feeling the good things the day brings. I was so busy getting food ready...roasting the turkey, peeling the potatoes, making the salads, getting all the stuff ready to load and transport, that I didn't stop to be thankful. Now, this was all my fault, but it really left me feeling empty after the day was finished.
So, I decided that Christmas would be a little different, at least for me. I am an "ahead" kind of guy...my ornaments are ready to mail, I am almost ready to get the Christmas card ordered (next year, my photo request will go out in June!), almost all the gifts are finished (those of my children who do not let me know this week what they want are getting money!), stockings are almost all wrapped (Nathan is always the toughest one to shop for! He and Ethan!!) I try to get all done ahead so there is little last minute and more time to enjoy. But, to make sure I do get todo this, starting tonight, at 9:45 P.M. we are having a Christmas devotional. Each night, at that time, one person is assigned to share a Christmas story or a scripture about the birth of the Savior. We will see if this keeps going. Hopefully, it will help me feel the good things of Christmas and enjoy what we are celebrating.

All I Wanted For Christmas Was...

You know, every year I have included a picture of our family with our Christmas card. We would take a pic when we were traveling, or many times, when we were up cutting down our Christmas tree. When that had to end, I tried to get all to stop what they were doing on July 4th, stand next to one another, wherever they were,wear the Old Navy shirts I got as my birthday gift and sent to them, and take a picture. That worked for a few years, but the results became less that easy as people were far apart and traveling. Then I just tried to take a pic when we were all at the family campout. Again, worked for a couple, then kids got bigger and more separated and ... well, I tried one this year...Instructions: wear jeans, any shirt your family has and take a pic together. Seemed like not a problem. I even took Allison's family, and it looked really good, even with Grace having fun while we were doing it.

Came out pretty good, I think. So, things were going okay. Then, when Allison and family were in town we tried again...family dinner, and then it poured rain! Trying to schedule time for Doran to take it, Kayty to not be at work or at school, and ...well. And then there was "What color shirt to wear?" With Kayty, the ONLY color she would even consider was black. So, we agreed. We thought to try on Thanksgiving again. Again, rain! I was crazy, so I pulled my immediate family, not the married ones, and put them in Ethan and Cameo's front yard and hoped for the best. Here is what I got:




The only way Doran got us all to look decent was to switch Nathan's head (sounds really crazy, I know, but Nate just isn't the most cooperative photo subject!) Well, I wanted green grass and a beautiful pose, but this will suffice.
Now, I need one from Doran and Danyel and Ethan and Cameo. I was about to give up, but Danyel assured me that they would do their part and Cameo was trying to take one while they are visiting some of her relatives today. Hopefully...
Now, I just wanted a Christmas card picture. I said "jeans"...a relatively painless article of clothing. I said casual...no ties or stiff poses. So what am I doing wrong?

The Trees Are Up (and have been for over two weeks!!)

My aunt in Arkansas mentioned to my mom in an email that she had not seen any pictures of our Christmas decorations. So, here you go...Aunt Paula!

This is our "big" Christmas tree in our living room. We used to always go up near Flagstaff and chop down a huge tree the day after Thanksgiving, but that was before the bark beetle and drought conditions changed all that. It does not hold all my ornaments, but it does hold all our special ones.

This is my red, white and blue tree. I got it at a huge discount awhile back. It has all my patriotic ornaments on it. (me being born on the 4th of July gives me lots of gifts to hang on it.)

This is my hubby's hunting/fishing tree. He had been given so many ornaments as gifts that were various incarnations of hunters, fishermen, ducks, hunting dogs, etc. That I got him a small tree, again on sale, to fill with his special treasures. (Now, mind you, he does not participate in any decorating, though he did put one ornament on the hunting tree this year.)

These are all the stockings hung on the fireplace. I bought a few kits to make the denim embroidered stockings for Allison, Ethan and Doran. Then I made copies of the kits for Morgan, Katelyn, Nathan, Mike, Cameo, Danyel, Adam, and Grace. The small pure white one is for sweet little Charles.

Mom and I choose a theme every year, and we create our ornaments according to that theme. This year, it is nutcrackers/soldiers/drummer boys (I painted a drummer boy ornament) and I celebrate the theme here in the entryway.

I also have been blessed with a treasured collection of nativities, but they don't look as good in pics as the do in reality. Plus, I have many wonderful things I have accumulated over the years at 75% off sales as well as yard sales. I love to decorate and enjoy the wonderful memories they bring.

Turkey Trek

I tried to run this morning, but everytime I went out the door, it began to rain...and not just sprinkle, it just poured! So, when the sun was up, I wanted a hike, and so I drug my sweet hubby up that mountain. We used to all hike on Thanksgiving morning, but then kids and Dad got busy and it turned into me hiking alone. I was even going to get commemorative tshirts, calling it the "Thunderbird Hills Turkey Trek". (So much for ideas...the minute I come up with something cute, it just scares everyone away.) Anyway, Dee was such a good sport and we had fun hiking in the moist air. We even stayed long enough on top of the mountain to be "in a cloud" which was just great. Thanks, Dee, for coming with me. I had so much fun!

Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday...and on Thanksgiving, no less. I am so thankful to live in a country that has so many dedicated to keeping us safe and protected. We have been watching events unfold in India, and, though it is far away from Bangalore - where Dee has traveled - it is very frightening. I am so thankful that we have many who spend days and nights keeping us safe.

I have just finished washing five crock pots, dishes, counters, stove, and put away the left overs from our bounteous Thanksgiving feast at Cameo and Ethan's house, and I am so thankful that, though all have struggled financially through the past year, we had a plentiful meal, with good food and wonderful friends and family to share it with.

I am so thankful for refrigerators, stoves, crock pots, ovens, bread machines, food processors, and all the other wonderful conveniences that we have, that the pilgrims did not have. I don't know how they did it!!!

And, most of all, I am thankful for a Heavenly Father who loves all of us, and who wants only the best for us. I am thankful He has blessed me with so very much: with the most wonderful husband in the world, with an amazing famiy, with dear friends, with good health, with happiness, with peace, with things to work for, with a wonderful church to be a member of, and with His never ending love that helps me get through anything and everything. I am truly, truly blessed!

Thankful Tuesday, or What A Blessing He Is!

I am married to the most amazing man! He is off work...has to "use up" vacation days before the year ends...days that they would not let him take earlier in the year. (Didn't matter anyway-we are missing both real estate and disc jockey incomes, so we could not go anywhere). So, he wakes up, turns on his computer and does a morning meeting (happens every day at 7 am.) Then he goes outside to work on the many projects we have going. We began a yard remodel and upkeep a few years ago, and, had we hired others to complete the work, we would have run out of money many moons and many projects ago. However, due to his willingness and resourcefullness (plus the able assistance of young Doran and Danyel collecting rocks, Ethan loaning valuable tools and hooking us up with his wonderful father in law, and Nathan just being the go to guy to lift, pull, push, mix, tote, install, remove, shovel...well, you get the picture)we have many, many things we would not have ever had, for very little money, but many many hours of time. He has built us an outdoor fireplace and is now working on river rocking the top of the wall around that courtyard area. We will stucco between now and Christmas. He has built me an outdoor kitchen, complete with sink, running water, and lovely grill and an oven...just needs some electrical work and he is going to finish the granite countertops that he made out of some junk granite from Master Marble Co. He paid someone else to put in the pool, but he has poured and cool decked cement borders, pads, and sidewalks, mixing over 500 bags of cement by hand in a wheelbarrow. He has made my grandbabies the most tremendous playground, for little money. He copied the design of a Rainbow Playground Set, adding his own special touches, and poured a sandbox with a racetrack border. He has made the kids a sand volleyball court, finding the nets and poles on Craigslist for little money. He even today wired an old light fixture and made it so the outside old fridge can be plugged in right by it, not via extension cord.(That thing was always coming unplugged and we wouldn't notice until the freezer ice was melting...not a good situation for Kayty's insulin!) Now, some would call this guy "handy" and that may be part, but I feel so blessed to be married to a man who never lets things stop him. When others wanted to charge us 1500 dollars for a small block wall out in the front yard, he said he could do it...he bought the block, poured the footings, and we did it. He is willing to try and do anything...he can put down stone floors and polish granite. He can pour concrete and stucco walls. And, during all this, he has worked on a 1960 panel truck restoration...again, saving money by doing it himself: grit blasting, sanding, bondo-ing, polishing, painting (We started this about five years ago, and he has dreamed of this for so long. So, our small savings account is being used to make his dream vehicle come true.) He is just the most amazing blessing, and I am truly, truly thankful for him!

A Beautiful Sight!

I was out running early, in the dark, and what do you think that I saw? A beautiful Christmas Tree lit in the front window of someone's house! Now, I am not odd...just a trend setter!