Soooooo Long 2010 !!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!!!!

Mr R and I would like to wish you all a very Happy New Year !

We've been invited to my Brother and Sister in laws tonight...and we're even thinking about going...Since my brother has promised to dress up as Baby New Year..
It should be fun...Health ...
Wealth...
and
Prosperity to you all !!!

Our Christmas..SOMEONE was watching us like a Hawk!

Thought I would give those of you mildly interested a little run down of our great Christmas..

Notice the very first thing I post is a picture of a Hawk right outside our door wall...

Remember this..

it will be important to the story of our day.Since our family alternates between having Christmas Eve ... and Christmas day ... I have started what I believe is becoming a tradition .

On the year that I host Christmas Eve ... we have a Sit down Dinner.

Usually with a ginormous slab of Meat as guest of honor...followed by many side dishes and of course Pasta.

(*Sorry to be a disappointment to those die hard Italians and all 7 of the fishes they serve.)

Hey..... we like to mix it up..

Christmas Day.. has been Brunch.

I will not post the amount of food served only because it is a bit ridiculous.

What can I say.. for at least six days prior... as I laid y my head down at night and fretted about having enough .... I would inevitably add one more item..

Suffice to say we had enough.

The kids sat at the usual card table set up in my foyer.. Which works fine for now...I don't know what i am going to do when they start getting bigger.
The rest of the crew were at the Big People table ...

With our elders at each end.
( I am SO in trouble for posting this one...ugh)

Some were floaters..
Some were Hams..... Eating bacon.
Some were just Hams.
I don't know what's funnier.. Nancy and Mike's bonding pose..

or Maria's sideways glance at them.

Here....Matt gives me the Hidy Ho..Once the breakfast part of brunch was over.. it was time to let the kids open up their gifts

I think

they were pretty happy With their gifts The rest of us
Were pretty happy
Just watching them Open them up
and wondering where did all the time go?
When our "Babies" really were babies.After Part II of the Food extravaganza.... the kids all piled together to watch one of their new movies.

It was cute to see them all in their new pajamas.... using the blankets Nana made them "All " the kids got into the movie...Let me rephrase that.. "Some" of the kids watched the movie..

and for some the movie was

Watching them...

The afternoon became very quiet as everyone was pretty much just vegging out..

Some were napping ...

Some were off checking out their new ( Fill in the blank______)

My lovely sister in lawand I chit chatted in the kitchen...

When I suddenly caught sight of a large Hawk that landed on the branch of a tree right outside the door wall.

It just sat there for the longest time.. I motioned for Nancy to quick hand me my camera up on the frig.. for fear that it would fly away if I moved.. but it sat there perched on the branch unmoving almost like it was keeping watch over the kids watching the movie.
It was only after I tried to get a closer shot that it flew away..

Now Here's the part that is so unreal about the whole thing...

( And forgive me if I wrote about this before and am repeating myself)

The thing is that after my father passed away seven years ago..

My brother usually while driving would see a Hawk flying out in front of him.. and joked that it was probably Pa keeping an eye on him.

None us thought too much about it.. until we all started to notice how often this happen to us as well.

One time on the way to the cemetery to visit his crypt and that of my mother in law .. Mamma and I saw not one but two hawks circling above us... they were around us almost the entire length of the way..

When my brother and sister in law were purchasing their home a hawk almost clipped him in the head as it flew between he and Nancy.. landing on a branch in what is now their back yard.

They figured it was a sign from Pa to just buy this house already.

Maybe it's all a coincedence that we keep seeing hawks.. Maybe because we miss him so much even after all these years that we want to think he has found a way to keep a watchful eye over us..

It wasn't until sleeping beauty... ( My Sister ) woke up and we told her about what had just happened..said that she forgot to tell us that on the way to the house that morning.... her family saw four hawks circling above their car on the freeway..
We all just kinda looked at each other like...Hmmmm.

Yes I would venture a guess that if my son and daughter in law ( who could not be with us this year ...boo!) had looked out thier window down in North Carolina they too may have seen a stray hawk perched on a branch..

Just checking in..

I love the idea that it wasn't just the "Christmas Spirit" that surrounded us.

I hope your Christmas was a warm and wonderful as mine...

Merry Christmas !!!

Christmas 2010... WONDERFUL!!!

It's A Wonderful Life... In so many ways.


I feel blessed.
I hope and pray that your Christmas was as Wonderful as mine.

The Day Before the Day Before... or...Christmas Countdown....

It's the day before the day before..
I don't know why but I just love that thought...
(Well most of the time I love that thought.)

In spite of having been done for a while now.. it is the last minute things that I cannot do until ...
well...... the last minute that drive me crazy.. (A.K.A. The Cooking )

I like to have everything D.O.N.E.

It's OK though because I have a great system..

All in all ...

I'm still hanging in there.. and hope you are too..

This is such a busy time of the year that it is kind of hard to sit down and write all that is going on.. or all that is floating around here in the old medulla oblongota.

Sufficed to say I am busy with some of the last minute holiday preparations...
I am hoping that in the coming days I can summon the energy to fill you in on our Christmas and any and all other happenings..
In the meantime.. I hope you enjoy the coming days with loved ones.. and keep the holiday spirit!

Christmas Rush...or.... Change is a coming

I can feel the rush coming on..

(or maybe it's another pesky Hot Flash?)

No it's the rush...

The Christmas rush.

I have been pretty much ready for a bit now.. but there always seems to be that last minute push to purchase things you forgot.. or .. to fret about the things you cannot get until it is closer to the day..

That's where I find myself right about now...Ready.. Set... WAIT.

At this time of the year I also find myself trying to prepare for the coming year.

Incidentally ...There are alot of changes that will be taking place in the coming year that I can not talk about right now ....

( Good for the most part... no need to freak out ) but suffice to say there will be change.

Oh...it's a coming.

I find however...as I get older there is something so sweet ...

So comforting about doing things the same old way.. day after day after day.. after day.

That's why when suddenly out of the blue you are presented with other options of how things can be ... frankly you are kinda taken aback.

Everything is ok.. and I plan on trying a little experiment with myself.

I am going to try to really and truly stay in the moment..

That... and try not letting my often weird and wacky thoughts get the better of me..

You know Thoughts about the Past

Thoughts about the Present

Thoughts about the Future

It's not so easy I must say.

I know that thoughts about the past can sometimes be heartwarming..

Even so... they are often better off saved for days that you don't have alot going on.. I mean the past... is ... the past.
Not too much anyone can do about something that is in the past.. good or bad.

If it is bad..

Regret is a waste so the past is better left there.

Lets face it..The future can be as just as much of a time suck as the past.

With the past you have the known.. but are at a loss because there is nothing you can do about it.

With the future you have the unknown.. and the same applies.. with all of life's variables there's often you little you can do about it.

You often feel alot of the same anxiety only about things that might... or .. might not happen, thus it all equals out to a big waste of time.

Which leaves us with the present "It's a gift... that's why they call it the present" for the two of you out there that have never heard that saying.

I would have to agree.. it IS a gift... but as is with many a gift we don't always recognize the value until it's too late.

So I am going to make a concerted effort to fully appreciate the moment... and more importantly try not to STRESS about the "Woulda Shoulda Coulda " of the past... or ... the How can this possibly work out?.. or..What ifs of the future.

MY GOSH ... So much easier said than done.

I am looking forward to Christmas.

I am looking forward to the New Year

I am looking forward to not being afraid of change

I am looking forward to learning new things

I am looking forward to figuring out what I can do

I am also looking forward to that handful of Peanut M&M's hidden away from everyone in this house.

Amen..

That is all.

Photo:

Dream Weaver... or... My Jaunty little Cap

Que Peter Frampton with that title...

Speaking of ridiculous... Look what I made the other day ....For those of you out there that don't know what THAT is..

it is a Baret... or a Barret..You know those cute little hats that french people wear.

At least it is my first attempt at a baret..

THIS is my second.

The first hat was made from some kinky yarn.

( Kinky as in it has kinks in it... dirty minds)

and was a little hard to work with..

That coupled with the fact that I didn't know what the heck I was doing made it turn out a bit..ummm shall we say unique.

The red on was made last night with some left over yarn.

I found that the yarn and the needle size really do make a difference on how it turns out.

Because it was made from left over yarn it came out a wee bit teeny tiny....

I would have to say however... it came out much closer to what it is supposed to look like.

You might be tempted to say..

"Marcy.. what the heck can you do with a teeny tiny little baret like that?"

Well how about a little somin somin to keep Buddha's head warm?

Or perhaps if he is feeling a little more jaunty.. off to the side.
It's a look..
One might argue to say... Really?... why are you making barets... DAYS before Christmas?

Not to worry.. No one is getting these things as a gift..
I figure if I can't weave dreams in my sleep.. I may as well weave a baret in the night.


Cest la vie'