Christmas Week....One of Joy, Beauty and Peace

Before I begin my blog....GG finally got to meet Elijah. 

 You can't see it in these pictures, but momma let me take his socks off to see his tiny feet. Actually he has very long toes....think he will be tall like his daddy. I love little hands, little toes.

His cousin Callie was born two weeks before he was. Eleven great grandbabies now. What a blessing.

Monday morning I woke up to a very cold, clear crisp day. My neighbor grabbed her Nikon camera with a great telescopic lense, and took a lot of beautiful pictures.

I had covered my car earlier in the week, so I wasn't going anywhere.

As a surprise Christmas gift to son Mike and his family, I asked his son and wife, visiting here from Colorado, to please come get me and take me with them to the candlelight service at Mike's church Christmas eve..... That didn't happen because practically all of Clackamas County was snow bound.. I had a very nice, peaceful Christmas eve and Christmas morning.  Mike called me and asked if I would like his family to come visit me for a few hours.....I was delighted.  Grandma couldn't come to them so they came to grandma! This family has been blessed with talent, talent, talent.They play multiple instruments, they sing, they are artists........

There was so much laughter, begining with this...
POEMS FOR TWO book that Jess and Brandon read to us.

I enjoyed visiting with my grandson Jordan. He and his friend Stephen had just returned a couple of days earlier from a 26 hour train trip to Minot, North Dakota 

to visit his girlfriend Kaylee and her family. I'm looking forward to meeting her when she comes to visit here in Oregon in the Spring.

I knew Heather played the Ukulele and she also sings, so I asked her to tune mine up and sing for us.She is a young lady with many talents. Including Swing Dancing.

I knew a few months ago Mike was making his mom a replica of a covered bridge.....to scale. Here is the completed project. If you remember, He won a blue ribbon at the Oregon State Fair for  a "to scale" replica of his church. After I put the Christmas tree away my bridge will have a permanent stand of it's own.

And these are the newly weds. I love to watch them dance. They were showing us a few moments of ballroom dance. So graceful.

The rest of the pictures are of my favorite Christmas gift....A winter wonderland. 

 
A Glass Tree

It was too cold to go outside to take these  pictures.... thus the chain link fence.

Check out the icicles on the momma racoon. 

What the birds didn't want on the feeder they ate off the ground. It's all thistle for the finches but it looks like the blackcap chickadees and the wrens enjoyed them also.

Waiting for the thaw......
~~~~~~~~~~
This was actually my first Christmas alone. Last year I was with my sister.There were hard moments this Christmas, reminders of the joy Joe and I shared.Those moments didn't linger. The Lord was right there with the comfort and peace He promised. I opened my gifts Christmas eve....because I could. (smile) Each one useful and meaningful.I climbed into bed, and  before I closed my eyes I asked the Lord to fill me full of joy. His joy. And that's what He did.One of my gifts is a new CD by three friends. Amy Sky, Olivia Newton-John and Beth Nielsen Chapman, entitled LIV ON. I set the player on repeat. Oh how it ministered, encouraged and brought joy to my heart. 
A White Christmas, friends and family ( and the family I didn't get to see I talked to on the phone), meaningful gifts. Yep He answered my prayer. A little song I sang as a child came to my mind as I finished writing this....
I've Got The Joy, Joy, Joy
See you later
Happy New Year

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Before I start my blog I want to let everyone know #11

great grandchild has arrived. He positioned himself in momma's womb so no matter how hard the Dr. tried, baby liked the way he was and the only way out was via a C Section. )

A couple of months earlier I had planned a trip to Puyallup, Washington for the Victorian Country Christmas. Something I've done for several years. And the scheduled date was November 29.  Wouldn't you know. So about an hour into our train ride I got a text from my son, proud grandpa announcing he was a first time grandpa.

I love this picture of 🎝Mother and Child🎝.

My sister picked us up at the Tacoma train Station and we headed for Watson's Nursery in Puyallup for a nice lunch at Anton's

The reindeer taking a rest are regular's at the nursery during the Christmas Season. Provides a lot of "Kodak moments.

I "borrowed" the next three pictures from Watson's website. I have to tell you, yes, the restaurant was empty for this photo, but in real time, we waited about 15 minutes before being seated; every seat was taken but it was well worth the wait.

The decorations are beautiful, and live music was being played on a large grand piano

Friday we spent from 10:00 A.M. until 8:00P.M. at the Washington State Fairgrounds, In Puyallup enjoying the Victorian Country Christmas Festival. We hopped the tram  just because we could and headed for the first of three huge buildings filled with hundreds of vendors. Both men and women were dressed Victorian style.

There were also free horse and buggy rides. We enjoyed a buggy for four. My daughter, Gloria, joined us for the day. We were also fortunate, even though it was just for a few minutes to give daughter in law Kelly and her friend Tracy hugs. 

"Do I NEED this or do I WANT THIS?"

This adorable snowman, without saying a word sided up to me, pointed my iPhone to a lady across from me, letting her know would she take our picture. She was delighted and I returned the favor for her.

One of my favorites at the Victorian Country Christmas in Puyallup  is  The Stardust Follies. The dancers are all over 55, the oldest being 81. Before they closed in 2014 we got to see the Palm Springs Follies. So much glitz and glamour.

But what keeps me coming back year after year is the The Singing Nativity

If you are ever in the Puyallup, Washington the first week of December, It is an Experience!!

Webster's Definition of choice: the act of choosing : the act of picking or deciding between two or more possibilities. : the opportunity or power to choose between two or more possibilities : the opportunity or power to make a decision. : a range of things that can be chosen. 

As I move along on my Journey I find I have to make choices. Sometimes I make the wrong choice even when I thought I was making the right choices. But at this moment I want to talk about the choice of  decorating  or not this year.  Just thinking about decorating made me sad. But I love all that goes with the Christmas Season. Decorating, Giving, Baking, the music. So ..... another step forward. I chose to get out all my decorations and go for it. Problem being practically every thing "Christmasy" I have is very tiny. Because Christmas, except for the few years we were home to care for Joe's mom, Our Christmas tree was about a foot tall and sat on the dash of the Class C Motorhome.  My daughter Kelly gave me a 4 1/2 ft. tree last year and it stayed in the box. This year I got it out. It was pre lit with multi colored lights. Good thing.  That was Joe's "job". Every little ornament we collected had meaning . I took my time. It took me three days, a little at a time. There were lots of silent tears. But I chose to celebrate the wonderful memories. 

The antique cardboard  nativity was a replica of the one my brother, sister and I  grew up with. 

I found this trombone (and sheet music) in Oregon City at the Christmas Tree Store..(open year around)

This was a gift from Joe's daughter. He loved flying.

If you enlarge this as big as you can, and look real close, the name is Joe is hand printed  on the angel on the right. A dear friend and her husband attend  GriefShare Classes I facilitated after their son was killed. Last Christmas, a package arrived at my house and this was in it. It is all hand made. It has its special place here at home. I didn't pack it away with the rest of the ornaments. 

The rest of the ornaments are large special ones that I wanted to display but are to large for my little tree....

This is a beautiful music box

These cherished singers  are from a very dear couple. They  placed them on my mantle last year welcoming me to my new home.

Those of you who know me know my love for finding treasures at Goodwill.... everything on this shelf came from there this year.

And this little guy too...

This is my reading,Knitting, writing, praying Chair..Can you tell how much I love it?

And this last but not least picture is not about the bed with all the pillows and animals, but about the wreath. Look closely in the middle of it.  It's the horseshoe decoration I bought at the Victorian Country Christmas Festival. Another choice..... I chose to celebrate Joe's love for horseshoes... ( don't put it past me to find an old pickle ball paddle and decorate it for Christmas next year. ) So I end my blog for now. I chose to celebrate the birth of my Savior, I choose to give if I see a need, even if it's just my time, to listen to them, I choose to sing our favorite Christmas songs, even if it brings a moment of tears, Because I'm choosing to celebrate, it brings me joy....and the Joy of the Lord is my strength.
Bye for now,