AFTER THE HOLIDAYS!!!

I'

 I'm sure each of you were able to appreciate the wonderful sights and sounds of this holiday season.  I am really fortunate to have a sister who loves to look at the beautiful lights strung in front of various homes, businesses and churches.  Christmas eve we left home, Jenny, Larry and I, to drive to the downtown area of Warren, Ohio.  There is a particular neighborhood that lines their streets with luminarias and we headed in that direction.

I wasn't able to get a very good picture of the luminarias, but I did get some shots of various houses decorated to the max. 
The one to the left was an amazing display of lights.  Not only was the front of the house decorated, but also the sides and the back.  Completely covered with lights!  So beautiful!!!

 

 This particular display was especially lovely.  The trunks were wrapped in green lights and the tops were covered in red lights.  I was so happy to see many houses decorated with lights.  We may be living in hard times, but you couldn't tell it by the number of people who put up something to make their Christmas brighter.

The holiday has now passed and we have settled into eating, watching television and scratching ourselves periodically. It's nice not to have to bake something, whip something up, or put something together for a fancy feast.  Life has resumed to simplicity and I, for one, am enjoying the ease and comfort of being in my sister's home.

Just like most of the country, we had a huge snowfall yesterday.  The wind blew, making it look like a blizzard outside.  It appears we might have gotten about 6-7 inches.  Everything is covered in white.  Today, all is calm, all is bright!  Sounds like a song doesn't it.   

I took this picture while the snows were falling and the wind was blowing.  Just the day before, the ground had turned into a slushy mess, and now, look how pristine it looks.

I'm not really a winter person, but I do love how the world looks after a snowfall.  Like everything is brand new, no mistakes, no hardness, only bright and beautiful.  So peaceful!!!

Even though I'm really enjoying being here with my sister, it's just about time for me to leave for Memphis.  I think I'll head back about the second week of January.  It all depends on the weather, but I'm ready to reconnect with friends and my book club women. 

It will soon be 2013.  For all of us I see a bright and prosperous New Year, filled with all our hopes and dreams coming true.  Feliz Navidad!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!

i
 
 I've been in Ohio for a month now.  I am so fortunate to have sisters I get along with really well.  Jenny and I have so enjoyed being together, at least she and Larry haven't kicked me out yet. 

A couple of times we've been out looking at Christmas lights.  Just a few nights ago, Jenny and I drove about 45 minutes to get to Chagrin Falls to see their display.  This little town is very artsy, with little shops and boutiques lining the town square.  In the middle of the square is a small park completely lit up with Christmas trees and lights decorating the fencing surrounding the park.  This picture of Jenny was taken on the main roadway coming into the center of town.  There's a median that divides the road so you can park in front of the stores and in that median is the gazebo you see lit up with red and white lights.  Just to the right of that was the beautiful tree you see with the blue and white lights.

Jenny and I got a chuckle out of the fact that we were both really glad Larry had decided to stay home.  Never in a million years would Larry have driven around the median several times looking for just the right shot.  Never would he have been thrilled to wait while I got out to take several pictures from various angles and with different lenses to see which one looked better.  There's just some things men don't understand, and taking pictures of Christmas lights is one of them.

Jenny and I have been very busy baking for the holidays.  I've made a list of all the different items we've put together thusfar, so her it is:  Hot sausage balls, Sage sausage balls, cornbread  balls (a new recipe we both like), yum yums (date balls), black walnut cookies, peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies, peanut blossoms, snicker doodles (love this one), Swedish creme cookies, pecan tarts, cheese snacks, lemon squares, lemon bars (actually threw this recipe in the garbage), olive relish, chipped beef dip, dill dip, cheese spread, and, last but not least, chocolate peppermint candy.  Keep in  mind this doesn't include any of the turkeys, hams, roasts, etc. that have also been cooked for the big dinners.

For Christmas, Jenny's son, Jody and his family, got her a Kenmore countertop mixer.  We are both thrilled to have it and are already trying to figure out what to make with it.

We have several inches of snow on the ground for our white Christmas.  For all of you I wish you hours of enjoyment in celebration of this holy-day and a year filled with all of your hearts' desires!!! May peace fill each of our lives and may we remember this simple truth: to love and be loved is the greatest gift of all!!!

GETTING IN THE SPIRIT OF THE SEASON!!!

 This morning I downloaded pictures from my sister's camera.  I found this picture of her, my brother-in-law and my nephew.  It was taken last July at her retirement celebration.  Naturally, you'd expect to see a big grin on her face.  What struck me as unusual is the big grin on Larry's face.  Now, I'm not saying he never smiles, but he rarely smiles for pictures.  So, imagine my amazement when I saw this picture and he actually appears to be grinning naturally, rather than the frozen, half-heated attempt we normally get.  This is the best picture I've seen of the three of them, taken in their back yard.

 Several days ago, Larry went into the attic and began the process of toting down the Christmas paraphenalia.  After 45 years of marriage, Jenny has quite the collection.  For the past three days we have been in the throes of getting them all up and in their respective places.  The tree in the living room; the Nativity scene, still waiting to go under the tree; the wooden reindeer in the hallway; the bells on the kitchen door; the small tree hanging on the front door; and multiple salt and pepper shakers, of various Christmas characters, on the dining room table.  We still have the garland to hang, but for the most part we are ready for the jolly old man to make his appearance.

 Having begun the process of getting into the spirit of the season, we decided to drive up to Alum Creek Park to view their "Fantasy of Lights".  Over the next few postings, I'll be subjecting you to various pictures of the lights we viewed.  It's truly amazing how much work they put into creating this dazzling display of lights.  It took about 30 minutes to drive the entire route, but, though it was short, it certainly didn't lack for delight.  Jenny and I struggled to get pictures, all the while encouraging Larry to stop the car for us to snap the pictures.  He, of course, was worried about being plowed into by the cars behind us.  Go figure!!! Guys really don't understand the fascination with having to get pictures of things we've already seen.

The really cool part of the display is how many of the pieces move in various ways.  From the boy and girl tossing a snow ball across to each other, to the reindeer pulling a fish out of a stream, to Santa giving instructions to Rudolph on how to land on a roof, and an elf running up a ladder to put the star on the top of the tree.  Sadly, you don't get to see the full effect of the lights in these non-moving pictures, but I hope you enjoy them just the same.

REJOICE!!! The season is upon us!!! Much love to all!!

ENJOYING OHIO!!!

 I arrived in Ohio the Sunday before Thanksgiving.  I figured it would be at least December before I had to deal with any snow...WRONG!!! The Friday after Thanksgiving, the weather turned really cold and by late that afternoon it had begun to snow.  Here's my truck and as you can see the snow has powdered the ground.  I have to say, even though I'm not fond of cold weather, it was beautiful watching the snow fall.

All night it snowed, not heavy, but enough to really cover the ground by the next morning.  The middle picture I took just as I got out of bed out my bedroom window.  It kind of reminds me of an Ansel Adams print, the beautiful white snow against the dark of the trees.  Unfortunately the snow didn't last through the weekend.  By Sunday night the ground was completely free of any of the white stuff.  Oh well!  I'm sure I will be experiencing plenty of the ghastly/beautiful effects of more snowfalls.

I've been to see several of the new releases the past 10 days or so.  Jenny, Larry and I went to see in 3d The Life of Pi yesterday.  Since I had read the book, I knew what was going to happen, however, when the Bengal tiger lunged out from beneath the canvas cover on the boat, it came right out of the screen at us.  Jenny and I both jumped out of our seats!  Pretty funny!!!

The movie was really good but, I must confess, my favorite of all the movies I've seen so far has been the remake of the Patrick Swayze movie, Red Dawn.  It's the story of a town in Michigan invaded by, in this case the North Koreans, the Russians in the original movie.

A group of teens, led by a recently returned from Afghanistan soldier, the brother of one of the teens.  He leads this motley crew into becoming some serious resistance fighters.  One of the interesting things about this movie is that Tom Cruise's adopted son, Connor, is one of the teens in the movie.  He actually does a really good job in his portrayal.

As we were driving home, I noticed the sun setting.  It looked as if the horizon was on fire.  Not a great picture, but you get the idea.

My days and nights flow one into the other.  We aren't real active, however we have played numerous games of Rummikub.  We've even gotten Larry to play several times.  You know me, any time I get a chance to play games, I'm all for that.

Signing of for now.  Remember to let yourself play every time you get a chance...keeps the mind sharp and the body young!!! Love to all!!!