Christmas Memories

Hello, Dear Friends, I hope you all had 

a lovely Christmas! 

It always seems to go by too fast! 

I caught a bad cold in the week before, 

so many of my plans were put by the wayside.....

Christmas baking, last minute shopping.....

But I did manage to put together some gift baskets. 

We draw names every year and I picked 

my daughter-in-law, Jen, and Ramblin' Man

picked daughter, Heather. 

We had fun putting together gift baskets for them both.

The sweet 'winter scenes' gift boxes were part of
their gifts and I filled them with red wooden bead garlands
instead of the cookies I intended to bake :(

I found these darling gift boxes at Celestina Marie Designs,
one of my favorite Etsy shops.
Celestina has a wonderful blog called
Southern DayDreams
where you can find a link to her shop. 

She also makes darling tags. 

I found some wonderful things at her shop to help

fill the baskets - a wall urn, a small shelf, a painted sign......

I will take photos of them hung in my two girl's homes

next time I visit. 

Another Etsy shop I love is Stephanie's shop,
Rose Petal Blessings,  

from The Enchanting Rose blog.
You can find her shop-link there. 

She sews the most delightful little things and 

I found these darling little sewing baskets 

and set of coasters at her shop.

I also gifted myself with this sweet little basket :)

Both of these ladies go the extra mile with their
beautiful packaging, thoughtful notes and extra gifts
included in their shipments.

We had fun stuffing the baskets so full that they couldn't

hold another thing and some things had to travel separately. 

Both daughter's are wonderful homemakers and love 

to decorate their beautiful homes. 

DIL, Jen just remodeled her whole house
(which I will show you in my next post)

and Daughter, Heather is moving into a new home

in just a couple of weeks. 

Of course we have two little Grandsons, now,

and couldn't resist a few things for them! 

I even managed to bake a gingerbread cake (from a mix)
 Christmas morning to bring to the festivities.
Do you like my impromptu 'Poinsettias' ?

We were invited to my son, Gabe and wife, Erica's
home for Christmas dinner with our's and Erica's
family.

I wore my late Mother-in-law's Christmas pin.
xxxx

It was a beautiful, sunny day and the ride over
was lovely.
Can you see the fresh snow in the foothills?

We had the wonderful treat of seeing Mt. Rainier, too.

During the winter months, 'The Mountain' as we
call it, here in Western Washington State,
is usually hidden behind thick clouds.

Once we leave the open farmland, we travel through
thick forest skirting the foothills on our 90 min. drive.

We pass a few Christmas Tree farms on our way :)

After many miles we come to a beautiful, historic
town all decorated for the season.

We're almost there.....

It's a 'Grinchy' Christmas!
A favorite Christmas movie icon :)

Can you see my Grandson, Ethan's new Tee-Pee?
I made the Santa years ago.

A gift from Santa.....

His favorite trick - coming out from behind
the flaps to a round of applause!

Another gift from Santa - his own little table and chairs.

Sitting on Granpa's lap while opening gifts.

It was wonderful to see his reactions.

Look what Santa left behind!
 A little elf!
Our new Grandson, Gavin is
already 2 mos. old and you can tell
he doesn't like to eat much. Lol!
Check out those cheeks!
Just right for Gramma kisses xx

Time for us to eat!

Pita guacamole Christmas trees with pretzel trunks
and red pepper ornaments.

Baked ham, scalloped cheese potatoes, stuffed mushrooms,
salad, green-beans and rolls.

Apple, pumpkin, and pecan pies
along with gingerbread, for dessert.

(Diet plans are definitely in my New Year's resolutions!)

Then a rousing game of 'Pie in the Face'
with the final stand-off between the two Grandpa's.

Guess who lost........

All 'the girls' wisely declined to play......

There was one very special gift
from the family.

A Noble Fir tree to plant
in commemoration of their Nana,
that we can decorate each year
in her honor.

xxxx

All too soon it was time to leave.

Kisses and hugs all around,
'Merry Christmas and Happy New Year' wishes, too.

Then the long drive home,
happy and filled with good food
and wonderful memories of
another Christmas,
 too soon come and gone.
xoxo


Thank you, Dear Friends for all of your sweet visits
and kind comments on my last few posts.
You are all such wonderful, thoughtful friends.

I know I have been neglecting you lately,
but I will be catching up with all of you this week.
I've missed visiting you!

xoxo

Christmas Wishes

To all my beloved friends

and family - many heartfelt 

wishes for a joyful Christmas 

full of love, beautiful memories,

 and many blessings. 

xoxo

With Heartfelt Gratitude

Hello, my dear friends, I want to thank you

from the bottom of my heart for your sweet 

condolences and prayers for our family's 

recent loss. 

Those cherished words of kindness 

and comfort mean so very much

to me and to my whole family. 

xoxo

We are back home now and trying to 

get back to a normal routine, 

minus our Bright Angel, but she 

is with us in spirit and always in our hearts. 

This time of year is filled with Angels

and it is a sweet reminder of the love 

we shared. 

This little one is from our first year of marriage,

so many years ago, and sits atop our tree <3 

I do love Angels....

Always watching over us.....

Now, more than ever, this troubled world truly 

needs these divine beings to guide us. 

Even if you don't believe in them, 

they are there to assist. 

My favorite movie of all time is

'It's a Wonderful Life.' 

Especially the last line.......

"Every time a bell rings, 

an Angel gets its wings." 

I truly love this time of year

when goodwill and kindness 

help to overcome the sadness in the world. 

Like ripples in a pond, kindness grows 

ever larger the further it gets from the source. 

We can never know the impact that loving

acts of kindness can truly have. 

It's worth remembering......

This time of year and always. 

Sometimes the true impact is never really known 

until all is said and done. 

When love transcends all.....

It truly was a wonderful life. 

xoxo

I think I hear a bell ringing! 

xoxo 

Heaven's New Angel

She was movie star beautiful, 

with a heart to match, 

and we lost her this week; 

called to Heaven by our sweet Lord. 

I met her on a beautiful sunny day

in the summer of '69

when I was 13 years old and 

attending my first 'boy-girl' party

at her home. 

It was the day that I met her son, 

the man I was to marry, 

but on that lovely summer day, 

I had no idea that I would 

one day call this beautiful lady, Mom. 

With her first-born, whom I would eventually marry. 

She was as devoted a Mother as one could be, 

this lovely lady with the golden heart. 

Mother of four, as I would one day be, 

she was so easy to admire. 

She was just like Carol Brady of 'The Brady Bunch', 

but after 18 years of marital devotion, she found 

herself  divorced through no fault 

of her own. I can't imagine how difficult 

it was for a woman of her era, raised 

in the depression and WWll,
then a traditional 50's housewife, 

suddenly finding herself single with 

4 school-age children and no job skills of her own. 

Hard work was in her DNA, though, 

 and she joined the work-force

with the same enthusiasm she put towards 

everything in her life, eventually 

meeting a wonderful Navy man and 

embarking on the second chapter of her life.

They had many wonderful years together until she
found herself a widow the last years of her life.

Daughter's Donna and Terry helping out in the kitchen of the restaurant 

At the sink in her restaurant

The interior, completely remodeled by 2nd husband, Dick and family members

She opened and ran a successful restaurant, 

and was a devoted volunteer for the 

Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), 

earning awards for her many years of service.

Her loving and giving spirit made her
many life-long friends, and she was beloved
in the small town she called her home,

When I married her eldest son and 1 year later

 left for distant shores, 3000 miles away, 

 I know it left a hole in her heart, 

but she made it her mission to always 

keep us close in heart, exchanging cards and letters,
 phone calls, and visits as often as possible. 

Nana with daughter, Heather

Her visits were precious and always filled with 

 plenty of love and laughter. 

Nana with son, Gabe

She was eventually a proud Grandmother of 8, 

and Great Grandmother of 3, and one on the way. 

Nana with granddaughters, Jennie and Heather

Dustin, Jennie, Nana and Gabe, along with dog, Petey. 

When she came to visit, she was 'Nana'

and stayed as long as she was able, 

giving my children her full attention and love. 

She even brought her only brother, Sonny, twice, 

and my children had the joy of meeting and learning 

from their Great Uncle who was a proud veteran 

of the Korean War. 

Most often she traveled with her daughters

and here they are with Ramblin' Man and nephew

Clayton in a halo of sunshine, 

back when they were young and golden, 

and full of life's promise. 

Oh, my heart breaks for how quickly time goes by..........

Nothing made her happier than being with her family

especially when she could get her children all together. 

She was always full of fun and laughter

and never had an unkind word to say - 

full of encouragement and support. 

Don't you just love Ramblin' Man's pink cumberbund?
This was his brother's wedding, back in the 80's. 

Her daughters lived close by, but not her sons, 

and she enjoyed every moment she had to spend with them. 

, Whenever they were together, 

the laughter would flow. 

Mom, Ramblin' Man, and I at daughter Jennie's wedding. 

Eldest grandson, Gabe as escort at daughter Heather's wedding. 

Eldest granddaughter, Heather, pinning corsage. 

She loved weddings and loved to dance

and I saved this note after she attended my daughter, Jennie's wedding,

telling us how she enjoyed dancing with her grandsons

and 'my son', and thanking me for saving the corsage for her. 

She was never one to sit still, and whenever she would visit, 

she set to work, doing whatever needed to be done. 

Here she is painting the front of our house when it was first built, 

and cooking her signature spaghetti sauce on her last visit here.

We're going to miss her wonderful spaghetti sauce :(

Our diminutive Nana - with two of her grandsons;
 Gabe and Clayton. 

After the kids grew up, I could travel to visit her

and here I am on my first trip 'back east' in many years,

with Mom, my sister-in-law's, Terry and Donna
 and niece Amanda - now all grown and a married woman. 

The last 10 years, she was unable to travel and we 

 tried to make yearly trips to see her. 

Our last trip was with 3 of our children and their spouses. 

By then she was mostly house-bound and on oxygen. 

Ramblin' Man made his final trip just a few weeks ago, 

in early October and he was so very glad that he did.

xoxo

We leave on Thursday for our long and sad journey

to say our final goodbye's. 

We've lost our family's bright light, 

but Heaven has gained another Angel. 

Please watch over us, Dear One, until we meet again. 

You'll be missed forever, but always in our hearts. 

xoxo