Thanksgiving Greetings

Happy Thanksgiving!  This is my dear little cat, Toez.  She sends her Thanksgiving Greetings along with mine.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I had a houseful, siblings, nieces, nephew, Grandma and friends.  It was a blast!  I watched the five cousins get re-acquainted.  They helped to decorate the Christmas tree the day before.

Thanksgiving itself was a blessed wonderful warm event.  The cousins ranging from age 11-33 played Hide and go Seek for over four hours.  They had a blast.  Mumsie and I had great fun watching their antics. 

They are all musical, so there was music everywhere.  Uke, guitar, piano, drums, base recorder, flutes--all were in use.  We sang together--and Oh, it sounded beautiful.

I love my family and am grateful to God for all of them.  I can hardly wait for next year.  If a person could have a favorite holiday--Thanksgiving is it for me!

May blessing and peace be yours this Holiday season.  

Winter is Coming, yet There is Hope

Today is the fourth anniversary of my sweet husband's heaven day.  Since last January I have made great strides in my healing.  I am so grateful for GriefShare and my wonderful church, Morning Star.

I don't know how I would have made it through the past ten months without them.  I have learned SO much truth--and now, instead of hiding from my grief, I am walking through the pain and I'm almost to the other side.

I will always miss my Beloved.  We were married for 31 years and shared a wonderful adventure together.

But it is time to move forward now.

Blessings and peace to you, dear ones.  God is good--He is near--He is always near to the brokenhearted.   And there is always Hope in Him. 

Colors of Fall

Fall is here!  It has been what my Grandfather called an "Indian Summer."  I love that name--it brings back so many wonderful memories.

I remember collecting beautiful fall leaves and pressing them flat in old phone books.  Nowdays people don't use phone books because they have everything on computer and in their phones. 

It is silly--but I still have some of those old phone books--and the leaves are still there as colorful and bright as the day I pressed them.

Despite our warm Fall, it is beginning to get crispy cold at night and the colors are beginning to show in the leaves of the trees around my home.

Have a wonderful Fall season, sweet Friends. 

Beautiful Angel Clouds

August is the best time of the year for amazing clouds!  It has been a long hot summer, but I've enjoyed this summer more than I have in years.  I love the sunshine, long days and the hot weather.

There was a time when Fall and Winter were my favorite times of year.  Back then I could cozy up to my husband in front of a beautiful crackling fire.  Today it is my cat and me!  I'm not looking forward to the shorter, darker days of winter.

In the meantime, I can look at the clouds--they are so beautiful.  These clouds look like angels to me.  What do you think?

Happy Fourth of July!

Every year I look forward to the Fourth of July.  This year the fireworks were more spectacular than ever.  Maybe it is because I forget how beautiful they are!

We had a houseful of guests again this year--and it was a rollicking good time.  Lots of wonderful company and a ton of good food.

Have a wonderful summer my Friends!

Roses of June

Today is my birthday.  I am spending it by myself--and so have chosen to enjoy the beautiful roses in my garden.  I love their scent, variety and the way they look.  Roses always have a happy face.

God bless you, sweet Friends.  My heart and prayers are with you today--you know who you are.

Spring has Sprung!

Today would have been our 35th anniversary.  I miss my Beloved SO much. 

However, today I choose to see what is beautiful.  Spring is here--heralded by this delightful pink weed.  I am of a mind that some flowers which are considered weeds are the most beautiful.

Have a lovely day, sweet Friends.  God is good--for Spring has Sprung!

Sky Reflection

I snapped this photo through the mesh of my window.  It is of the windshield of my car.  I love the way this turned out...

It looks rather mysterious, don't you think? 

Icy Shamrocks

I have always loved clover.  This curl of leaves is bedecked with ice crystals, smiling and sparkling in the morning sun.  Some call this sweet little plant a shamrock--a name from our Irish heritage.  The shamrock is firmly established as the most instantly recognizable emblem of Ireland. It is said to bring good luck, and is usually included in the bouquet of an Irish bride. St. Patrick was said to use the three leaves as a way to explain God.

I adore these lovely little leaves--they grow in my yard and the bees feast on their blossoms throughout Spring and Summer.

I am a friend of the bees and always endeavor to plant flowers they love.

Happy St. Patrick's Day--I know this is a bit early, as that holiday is celebrated on March 17th, still--with Spring's arrival, with its joyous sunshine and bursting of everything green--I am celebrating a little early!

Blessings and joy to you!

Happy Valentine's Day!

This is a Queen Anne's Lace heart.  When summer is done, the flowers dry and curl into little nests.  This one was embellished by winter's touch.  I took this picture last year.  December and January have been unseasonably warm here in the valley--the warmest on record.

The tiny daffodils are flowering and my Rhodies are trying to bloom.  I kept telling them it was too soon--but with the springlike weather--they weren't listening.

And I was right!  This coming week arctic air is dipping into the valley and we might even see some snow.  My Grandfather called unseasonably early warm weather a "False Spring."  I love his take on the weather.  He would call an ice storm a "Silver thaw."  So much more descriptive than just an "ice storm!"  I miss him--he was my best friend growing up.

Today is bittersweet.  This is my third Valentine's Day without my Beloved husband.  This year has been the hardest in some ways.  My heart and mind are finally realizing he won't be coming back and I am truly alone.

However, instead of moping around, I have decided to celebrate friendship.  I have some of the most amazing, beautiful, wonderful friends in the world.  What a blessing they are!

May God bring unexpected joy and beauty into YOUR lives, this day, dear ones.  You know who you are, and you are ever in my prayers.

Happy New Year!

One never knows what the future holds.  Every moment is a gift of immeasurable worth.  Life has been full of changes these past three years.

At times I am melancholy, but there is also great joy.  I intend upon living every moment to the maximum.  I don't want to waste the gift of time.

Happy New Year dear Friends.  God is good.