Christmas Card 2013

Giving Thanks...

Thanksgiving Day was great this year.  California didn't disappoint with the 70 degree weather and sunshine.  And yet, as I set the dinner table (that I put out on the deck to enjoy the weather), soaking in the warm rays of sun, my thoughts lingered on those stuck in storms and snow on the other side of the country and my heart went out to them.

I haven't quite figured out how to be grateful for what I have, without feeling bad, or guilty, that everyone else doesn't enjoy the same blessings.  For instance, I can't sit in first class on an airplane (on the rare occasion that I get bumped up) without thinking the whole time about the poor people squished back in steerage, er, I mean, coach. 

I guess I'm supposed to alleviate some of those feelings by giving service, and helping out those in greater need.  But being honest - usually I don't feel better after helping others, I feel worse.  That I have so much, and am so exceedingly blessed - and how the heck does giving a few bucks or an hour of my time make up for the gap?

Someday, maybe, I will figure it out, but until that day - I'm just trying to find a guilt-free attitude of gratitude.  Even for the nasty, horrible, no good parts of life.  Because as bad as they are, they could always be worse.  Lol, I just had an epiphany, maybe pondering the idea that others don't have to deal with my same problems will make me feel better about my blessings. ;o)

Anyway, Happy Turkey Day to all!  Today I am grateful.  I don't always remember to acknowledge it, but the Lord has been very good to me, and I am truly exceedingly blessed!

Dinner al fresco

Beastly helper, she knows she isn't allowed on the table...

My new fun dish this year...

Below are some shots of the nieces goofing off on the pumpkins I still had leftover that we hadn't carved at Halloween.  Later they stuck Mr. Potato Head like pieces in them for a princess & a witch (my mom got 'em on a clearance sale), it kept the kiddos busy while waiting for dinner - maybe my sister got some pics of  the finished products...

So patient, waiting for food time!

:o) - lol, she ate all of dinner standing up like that (minus the scowl)

After dinner all of us pilgrims headed over to the park for play time, then back to my house for dessert and movie/games.  All in all, a very fun day with the family!

All grown up - she's FIVE!

Well, it happened.  Years have passed, and that sweet little tiny niece Bubba turned five!  Pretty soon (I keep thinking) she's going to balk at that nickname, but it hasn't happened yet.  In anticipation of that day, I'm trying to come up with new names for the kiddos on my blog.  My favorite so far is niece in Spanish: sobrina - definitely cute, but long, especially if I attach a number identifier, Sobrina-1 & 2, or maybe Sobrina-uno & Sobrina-dos... :)

Anyway, here's some of the official photo shoot.  We went to the same park we did Tiny's 2yr pics...

Monster-face!

Super smile

picking flowers...

I'm five!

Big eyes

Cross-eyes

Model shot

Stiff smiles

Goofy face to loosen her up

Melt-down when she thought...

she wasn't allowed to be goofy anymore...

Goofy again

and again

Real smiles!

Posing

more posing

Close ups

Fun with mamma!

It's official - she's five!!

The cat got my blog posts...

Why haven't I been blogging?  Well, to be honest, I sorta fell ... off the wagon.

My addiction?  The written word.

At about the age of four, I figured out that the words/sounds my parents spoke as they read to me corresponded to letters on the page.  Jackpot.  That was the point to no return.  Pure bliss - to be able to enter the magical realms of vicarious adventuring on my own.

A few years ago I decided that maybe I should live more of my life, and read less.  And so I've tried.  My report?  I have now learned firsthand that life experience is sometimes, well ... overrated.  There are some memories lodged in my brain forever that I'd be quite happy to do without, and there are some adventures that even after expending all my efforts to obtain, repeatedly, still elude my grasp.  So, off the wagon I've gone again, back to the euphoria that a stack of books and a library card can afford me!!  Ahh, the sweet indulgence - and I don't even feel guilty about it. ;o)

But to be sure, I haven't spent the entire time being book-ish...

There was Bubba's birthday party in my backyard which gave me the opportunity to do some long overdue yardwork, and granted me a 9pm face to face encounter with a very large raccoon (which explains the raccoon poop I have to keep picking up off the lawn every time I mow) ...

Birthday girl with princess cake & flower cupcakes

Me & Captain!

Later in September, after barely surviving a terrible-no-good-very-bad-day, I did actually make it via miracle to the ward Lake Tahoe trip, in which I FINALLY went horseback riding, an activity I have been craving for years!

 My horse was named Captain, and he was perfect.  They told me he would try to eat the plants, and not to let him, also not to let him get too near the other horses, or he might bite them... Later the trail guide kept having me pull him back, because Captain apparently thinks he is the boss man, and should be leading the rides, and would bite/fight the lead horse if I let him get close enough.  Lol, I've always thought that horses and cats had similar personalities, except horses can be broken and cats can't.  And here I was on a horse with the exact personality of my cats.  Haha, just how I like 'em, with lots of spunk!

View of Lake Tahoe

Sun through the rain clouds

I also went on a hike by the lake, with some light rain showers through the warm sunlit afternoon.  Love rain in the sunshine!  Then some kayaking to finish a great day.  Got home after the weekend to discover I had been correct about an impression I'd had for months.  Interesting.  Nice for the affirmation that I'm not entirely crazy.

New record again!!

New record!

Went with the whole family to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, where I beat my record at Ghostblasters not once, but twice in one day!!  Go ahead, mock me for being so competitive about a silly ride - I enjoy a challenge & seek for constant improvement. :)

Pumpkin cake!

For my birthday I tried a new cake idea - gingerbread with vanilla creme filling and whipped cream frosting.  But I couldn't go without my traditional pumpkin bread cake & berries also (all honey whole-wheat).  Yep, two delicious cakes.  Invited some friends over to help eat them, and then had a week of the best leftover cake breakfasts ever.





October brought a trip to Utah for Jenny and Clueless Boy's wedding (aka the most surprising thing to happen in my year!).  At least someone got some action out of that comic!  I was also able visit some other long time friends in Utah.  So glad that the Lord blesses us with good people, and great friends in our lives.  And thankful for the many people who welcome me into their families!
My homes away from home.

Finally!!

The happy couple...

Decorations

 The cake

The getaway car...

But when I got back from Utah I wasn't quite ready to face life again, so I hopped on a plane for a last minute trip to Texas the next weekend, on a long overdue visit to my old college roommate and her family.  Talking 'till 4am, discussing new ideas, having new adventures (when in Texas, go to the Texas State Fair!), receiving answers to prayers, and other blessings that were exactly what I needed to restore me to my happy place...

Me on the super long slide!

Big Tex!

Texas State Fair!

My new equine friend

Pig racing

Crazy big Ferris wheel

Ostrich racing

Lol.  What?!

Only in Texas does a picture of a toddler playing with guns win a blue ribbon!

And then there was Halloween with the cutest nieces ever...

And a backyard full of leaves led to an afternoon of helpers - with short attention spans, but we eventually did get them all raked up and in the bin!  That is, after they whacked the leaves to pieces with the rakes, "making a couch" out of them ... no clue where she got the idea couches are made out of leaves!

Bubba stood on a chair to stir the leaves I was dumping in the bin and said she was doing all the hard work.  I said (only slightly out of breath), oh, so does that mean I'm doing the easy work?  And she said well, maybe she was doing the easy work and I was doing all the hard work. :)

And that, is that.  Where I've been.  And now, my stack of books are calling me - I'm sure I'll be back to blogging again, eventually...