READY...SET...

I have been busy 

making a few Christmas crafts and 

perfecting my game plan 

for the coming days

 up to Christmas.

The pictures shown in this post

 are all from previous years. 

 Things may or may not be 

the same come this Christmas. 

 We are in the midst of 

preparing for Thanksgiving now and

 it will be a few more days before

 the Christmas magic begins.

I have a plan in mind 

that I think will convey

 all the happy spirit of Christmas and 

will leave you with 

a song in your heart.

As Thanksgiving is later than usual this year, 

it seems that only a short amount of time

 is allotted for planning

 so,  for that reason, 

I will probably be putting out more than

 just one post per week.  

I'm not sure

 how it will play out so,
 if interested, 
sign up to receive my blog posts by e-mail 
if you haven't already and 

 keep your eyes turned 

to your inboxes 

in the coming weeks.

There is a story to be told and 

 you all know that,

 in my opinion, more is more, 

especially at Christmastime.

 The whole month

 of December is

 a GO!

 for Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

...Judy...

This is the table setting 

I have come up with for our Thanksgiving dinner.  

I am so thankful and grateful 

that all the kids and the grand fur babies 

will be here to

 celebrate with us.

Sharing today at:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

and

Keep In Touch at Let's Add Sprinkles

RANDOM RAMBLINGS...

I want to thank 
each and everyone of you 
who sent me birthday greetings - 
and I did not get one condolence,
 so I really appreciate that! 

As I mentioned to some of you,
 a philosophy that I have taken on 
is that all birthdays,
 no matter what the number, 
are to be celebrated.
  
There are a lot 
that weren't lucky enough 
to reach this number 
as I can attest to from 
our high school graduating class.
  So, I thank you all,
 for making me feel like
 a Spring Chicken!

I read a blog post recently 
that says these ceramic Christmas trees 
are making a come back and 
fetching pretty high prices on EBay 
for the vintage ones. 
 I just so happen 
to have one that the Captain bought
 from a lady he worked with 
back in the 70's.
Truth be told, 
I really never thought 
it was my most favorite decoration 
but I appreciated his thoughtfulness.  
After using it a couple of times,
 I put it away and kind of forgot about it.
  For some reason though, 
I hung on to it and found it again, 
back in a dark corner,
 where I had left it. 
 This particular one
 looks just like one on EBay 
for around $200. 
 He can't remember what he paid for it 
but it wasn't nearly that price.
  Mine wouldn't bring that price, however, 
as it is missing the star on top
 and two of the colored bulbs. 
 I know I've seem that star 
laying around somewhere 
so hope I can find it. 
 I will display it again this year
 whether I find 
the missing pieces or not. 
 It is just kind of fun
 to have something that is
 making a come back 
(and you find that you were 
smart enough to keep it).

I found this 
pretty little frosted wreath
 at Hobby Lobby 
and am trying to remember
 what two other small ones
 that I got last year 
looked like so I can tweak it to match. 
 They are still packed 
so I will go through my photos.

Two more santas 
and 
that's all!

When I was downtown today, 
I picked up these sweet little deer.
 They come on a stick of three and 
look just like a cute gingerbread 
at a distance.
 They were only $6 for the stick.
  When you pull them apart 
they look just like 
they are prancing
 through the air.

I am still in the planning stages 
for Thanksgiving and 
one plan is to clean house
 so I best get to it.

 Word has it 
that our power is
 going to be shut off again 
tomorrow 
so fingers crossed 
that the generator
 does its job.


See you next week!


...Judy...

A naughty and noisy 
red head 
hanging out
 by the Cottage.



Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

and

Keep In Touch at Let's Add Sprinkles

IT'S MY PARTY...

Christmas carols

 are playing in the background...

Hallmark Christmas movies

 are showing on the TV.  

By the looks of the 

dining room table, 

covered in paints and brushes,

 you would think that

 Grandma Moses was in attendance...

the only thing missing 

are chestnuts roasting 

on an open fire.

The "lights" of my life 

are again lighting up my life 

with the gift of these 

beautiful festive bottles 

which are entwined with 

the tiniest of lights.

  What a thoughtful and pretty addition 

to the party, 

now and always.

Some pretty "extras" 

that caught my fancy 

on the annual Home Goods trip.

What is the party? you ask...

Well, it's my birthday party and 

I'll cry if I want to...

but after surviving 80 years,

 I would say that 

I have a lot to be happy about. 

 Some hard tears

 have been shed along the journey, 

that is a fact, 

but the present looks bright and 

my eyes are focused on 

the future which, for now,

 is Christmas.

I am so dang excited 

about all the beauty 

that is to come.  

Having my family here 

for Thanksgiving is

 a large part of 

that joy.

Age is only a number

 but, 

I won't lie and say 

this particular number

 would be at the 

top of my list 

but,

 even though you've heard it before,

 repeat after me...

"It's better than the alternative".

So 

here's to my party and 

to all my friends 

that have joined in...

...I won't be crying,

 thank you,

 but - 

maybe chestnuts roasting

 on an open fire 

would be 

a bit much!

Have a great week.

...Judy...

Nobody

 will be crying 

the next time the power goes out...

We are prepared!

Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

and

Keep In Touch at Let's Add Sprinkles

ALL IS RIGHT WITH THE WORLD...

I can't tell you 
how good it is 
to be normal again.
  For a few days now 
we have had our power on and 
no calls from PG&E.

 Life feels right again.

It is a jarring reminder 
that there is always 
light at the end of the tunnel 
if we will only allow ourselves 
the luxury of patience.

 It isn't always 
an easy thing to do and 
there are so many
 different degrees of circumstances 
but, in the end,
 we can only hope 
that it will make us stronger and wiser - 
and better prepare us 
for the next round of life.

This is a tree 
that came down 
across from a neighbor's house, 
almost hitting it. 
I was just letting Robin out 
and I heard the crack and 
then the loud thud.

 A very scary sound.

Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween. 
 We had lots of
 polite, sweet and cute children
 knocking at our door. 
 It seems a good time 
was had by all and
 a few pieces of good candy 
left over for snacking!

When the lights came back on,
 I had the cutest Santa 
in my possession.

 How did that happen? 
 No matter,
 he was at Rite Aid for half price and 
he just makes me smile. 
 Don't you just love the "sales"
 that happen before 
the event even gets here?

We took a ride 
around our town and neighboring Nevada City 
and saw some pretty fall colors and 
I just wanted to share them with you.

Have a great week.

Just heard 
the kids are coming 
to the Cottage for Thanksgiving.
 I can't wait and 
just playing around
 with table settings.


...Judy...

I'm pretty sure 
these ARE the last of the zinnias.
 There still are a few more buds and
 I haven't cut them back yet. 
We have had two frosts so far and 
yet they still survive.

A life lesson 
to be learned here
 somewhere.



Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda

and

Keep In Touch at Let's Add Sprinkles