A Holiday Party

Last night a good friend from work had a Christmas tree decorating party.  There was plenty of good food, warm beverages, and great conversation.  I got to meet a few of her friends from outside of work -- which was nice because I don't get a chance to meet new people very often.

Oh, the beverages were amazing!

This is a photo of her mulled wine (shot outdoors to show off the steam).  It is from a German recipe and was quite delightful.  After I sampled the wine, I also tried the buttered rum.  I had never had buttered rum before, but I'm pretty sure she nailed that recipe.  I have found a new favorite holiday drink.  It was like Christmas in a glass.

With 7 of us there, it didn't take long to decorate her tree.  She had already done the hard part by getting the tree up and lit (she shared the saga all week at work -- it gave her a fairly hard time).  After all the glass ornaments were on, my friend did the honors of putting the star on top.  I think her tree turned out lovely.

Dad is getting better and should be going home tomorrow from what Mom tells me.  I'm still coughing and dealing with chest congestion, so I didn't go to visit today like I had originally planned.

I must get going on some Christmas shopping.  I haven't done anything at all yet.  Usually I am almost done with buying or making gifts by now.  I am finally feeling the festive spirit so I'll have to kick it into high gear to get everything done in time.

Crazy fat cat

Sassafras is running around the house this morning -- I think she has lost her mind!  She starts running in the kitchen on the linoleum flooring and can't get any traction.  She looks like a cat from the cartoons... just running in place with a wild look on her face.  It took her a while to feel comfortable in our house (she is scared of everything and everybody) but now she seems extremely happy to have more room.  She also enjoys the windows.  There is a large bay window in the living room that has a ledge she can sit on.  In the back we have a glass sliding door that gives her a perfect view of everything out back.

She isn't quite sure what to think of the turkeys that frequent the back yard, but she likes to watch them.  In the photo below, I was trying to get her to look at the turkeys (you can see them as little grey out of focus blobs at the top) but she just wanted to roll over on her back and look cute.  Although this photo really shows off how fat she is, I thought it was adorable.  Silly cat!

On a more serious note, I spoke with my Dad last night.  He was very tired but said he wasn't in any pain.  He understood that I couldn't be there (I have a very bad cold right now and can't chance infecting him).  It was good to talk to him.  Thank you for keeping him in your prayers.  There is a long road ahead toward recovery and good health.

First snow

We finally had our first snow last night. It seems late this year -- it is already December. We only have a little here. I spoke with my Mom today and she says they have 10 inches in Grand Rapids. We are fairly safe from the "lake effect" snow over here. I'm grateful for that because we don't have a snow blower or plow yet and our driveway is long and steep.

Please send some prayers out for my Dad. He has been having some health issues lately and last night he ended up in the hospital. Mom says he is going to be there a couple of days. He had a heart attack and had to have some stents put in. Dad, I know you won't see this until later, but I love you and am praying for good health for you.

Ahhh....

We finally got internet installed at our new home.  It has been close to torture being without it.  What in the world did we do with all our time before they invented the internet?

So, I will be posting more frequently -- at least I hope to.  The holidays are always a busy time, but it is a good kind of busy.  Thanks for anyone who still looks at my blog.  I know there hasn't been much going on here lately, but I intend for that to change.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The turkeys in our back woods have made it out alive.  I made a green bean casserole to bring to Thanksgiving dinner this year instead.
Oops, dinner is about to start.  I gotta make this quick.  Just wanted to show the huge oak tree in the woods behind the house.  Mom is in the picture to show the size of the tree.  Awesome, isn't it?

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Slumber Party

Last night I had visitors.  Two of my nieces came over to spend the night and watch movies.  We popped popcorn and watched 'Annie' and 'Ice Age - Dawn of the Dinosaurs'.  It was a good time.  This morning we made pancakes for breakfast.  With full bellies we headed outside for a photo shoot.  Here are a couple of my favorite photos.

Their Uncle Charlie came home shortly after we shot these and we all hung out for a bit and watched another movie - 'Up'.  It was nice to be able to have people over and to have a spare bedroom for the slumber party.

We are getting dish t.v. hooked up this week and hopefully internet service as well.  We are looking forward to that.  Things are all coming together at the house -- slowly but surely.

I'm back

Finally, I'm able to post a blog again.  We've been busy moving and getting settled in to the new place.  We are having trouble finding internet service also... currently I'm at Charlie's folks' home borrowing their internet connection.

Things are going very well at the new place though.  It is a really nice feeling waking up in your own home.  We worked hard today, raking leaves and building up a compost pile.  I'm hoping to do a raised bed garden in the future and will need lots of compost/mulch.

I'm absolutely in love with the property we are on.  We have deer and turkeys frequently.  They are entertaining.  We have almost 3 acres now and I've been exploring the wooded part when the weather is nice.  There are so many magical little places on the property -- there is a HUGE old oak tree out back, little clearings where the deer hang out, fallen logs with fungi growing all over, etc.

Here are a few photos of the yard...

So, we are hoping to get internet service soon so I will be able to post more often.  Be looking forward to some good recipes this winter as my new kitchen inspires me to cook.  It may be a while before my craft room is put together, but there will be projects coming out of there soon too.