Merrirment, Day 4

This is day 4 of Merriment with Robyn and Misi. I have never joined in on anything like this before and must admit I am having fun.I love visiting the blogs of those taking part and joining in their Christmas Merriment, now and past. I almost forgot, would you prefer coffee or hot chocolate this morning? I am having coffee, just plain old DD, but it sure is good on a cold morning. I hope you are enjoying reading all the posts on Merriment.

Christmas makes you think of friends, cookie making, baking, as well as all the other things. Cookies made, ready to swap. Hot mulled cider to drink, carols playing softly. Ahhh, the wonderful days before Christmas.

I am so happy you came Through My Back Door where life is good.

betty

Merriment, Day 3

Merriment Days sponsored by Misi and Robyn have been so much fun and this is day three. I have enjoyed participating in this and day 3 takes me to one of my favorite Christmas traditions. Making Christmas ornaments with my friend Carol.  We both have one tree filled with gingerbread and applesauce cinnamon ones we have made over the years. We have been friends for over 30 years and have our traditions!

Can you imagine how good this tree smells?  It makes me happy to look at it. Just like it makes me happy for you to come Through My Back Door, where life is good.
betty

Merriment Day 2

Today is day 2 of Merriment with Robyn and Misi. Several bloggers are doing this, so check them out and enjoy.Get your mug and lets have coffee this morning, okay?

One of the traditions in my family is the Manger scene being displayed at Debs. It has always been a big deal, even when their children were small. Now that Andrew is taking Curts place, it is even bigger.lol

This is my Andrew placing Baby Jesus in the manger. I have always been touched by how tenderly he places him. He always kisses him too. This is one of my favorite Christmas Merries.

Thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.

betty

Merriment Days

I am joining Misi,http://1890gablehousemusings.blogspot.com/

and Robyn,http://primlish.blogspot.com/

for Merriment Days.I hope you will check out other blogs and see who else is on board. This morning instead of coffee, we will have hot chocolate with peppermint.Okay?

 I have never done anything like this before and thought it might be fun.

Peppermint candy makes me think Christmas. My Dad always bought me a 5lb  peppermint stick when I was growing up. This stitchery was a gift from my friend Toni Dunn. I love it.

Thanks for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.

betty

PS: Don't you love my Christmas header? Yes, my blog fairy has been at it again!

A Missionary, Is She or Isn't She

Good morning and it sure is good to see you on this cold, frosty morning. Dasko got me up so early, (he went to bed early and I KNEW he needed to go out, when he awoke me) So the coffee is good, plain old DD, help yourself,(you should feel right at home, here, by now) and I just wanted to share one more Thanksgiving thought with you. I have done two post on Thanksgiving thankfulness, and I am sure you all are aware of the thing I am most thankful for this year. I have eight grandchildren and I love them all very much. It has just been Amanda has been the core of our families thoughts and prayers this past year. You all have prayed hard for her and for us. Gina sent her a hat, we love all of you for those prayers and thoughts. I just wanted to share this Amanda thankfulness.
When she was a little girl she was always concerned for those hungry and lost.She and Beth did a Bible school one year for those less fortunate.(I baked a lot of cookies for that) I always had the fear she would be called to be a missionary into some war torn country and be in imminent danger. I truly did. She was always bringing someone to church, especially during revivals. (One who she was responsible for  getting there, is now a youth pastor). Anway, I just KNEW she would grow up to be a missionary.
Fast forward 17-18 years and a cancer diagnosis at 29 years old. She vowed she would use it for God's glory and she did. She NEVER once complained, she was always "alright", even when she wasn't. But the world became her mission field. She witnessed every where she went, about God's working in her life. She bought a lot of copies of, Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young, and gave them to every nurse, her oncologist, her surgeon, lab technicians, and even gave one to Guliana, when she met her. You can see the book in the corner here. I use it myself every morning.

So I guess I have answered my own question. Yes she is a missionary. She was indeed on a battlefield, fighting the fight of a lifetime. She was witnessing to everyone, the cashier at Target, the person in front of her at Walmart, church and most of all to her family. What a missionary she was and continues to be. So I end my Thanksgiving Thankfuls, with a thank you to my granddaughter, for being the person she is. I also say Thank You to God for getting us all through this previous year. Again thank you to you for coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
Happy Thanksgiving
betty
PS: I want to share a picture from yesterday, putting up the Nativity at Deb and Michaels. This was always Michael and Curts project, but since Curt has been away at school, Andrew has stepped in.

PSS: Christmas pictures next post!!
PSSS: I am thankful for each  and everyone of you I have met in blogland. You have made my life richer by every e-mail and every comment. Happiest of Thanksgivings

A Few More Thanksgiving Thankfuls

Hi everyone, and come right in. Of course the coffee is on,plain old DD today, but there are Christmas Oreos! I love those things. I hope you aren't put off by my Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving, but you know I have them up.I just have to have the lights on and the Christmas music playing. I just have too! It is so good to have you come by again. You know I love drop in company. Since it will get busy next week I wanted to add a few more Thankfuls. Life is full of uncertainties and things are going to happen we don't like, but we can always find things to be thankful for. I love life. I love living the best life I can because it is a gift from God. One not to be taken lightly, nor for granted, so here are a few more of my Thankfuls.

I am thankful for a home, and thankful I can fly my flag.
I am thankful for the memories this old dinner bell reflects, plus I am thankful for a busy son, who will take his time to put it up for me. You know a gift of your time is something you can never get back.

I am thankful for a bed to sleep in every night. For clean sheets and a warm house. Not everyone has those luxuries.Yes they are luxuries. Ask any homeless person who hasn't slept in a bed in a long time, they will confirm it. Ask a soldier who has been on along deployment. We are blessed.

For food on my table and family and friends to share it with.

For a car to drive and gas to run it. Thankful for a grandson in law, who will wash and wax it for me. Bring it home and say,"This is a 200.00 detail job. Free!" lol  Love him.

Friends to ride with me. Friendship and laughter are something to be thankful for.
These are the everyday things we take for granted. Things that are so important to our everyday lives.
 I am thankful for so many friends my card group and domino group.

I am thankful for doctors, for chemo, for researchers, who are working tirelessly for cures for illnesses.
I am thankful for all of my friends and families. It has been a hard year for a lot of you. Some of you have lost loved ones, others have experienced miracles in your lives. I am thankful for the privilege of praying for you and your families. I am thankful that so many of you have prayed for me and my family. So as Thanksgiving draws near, I wanted to share my Thanksgiving Thankfulness. Also, for many of us, people we love won't be sharing Thanksgiving dinner with us. I am going to be Thankful for the Thanksgivings we have had, rather than dwell on the sadness of their not being here this year.
One of my Thanksgiving Thankfuls, is YOU coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
Happy Thanksgiving to each of you

Thanksgiving Thankfuls

Good afternoon and come in for a cup of Pumpkin Spice coffee. This is Door County coffee, my favorite, Pumpkin Spice, and it is so good. You see I have my favorites of coffee. I love Kona and DD regular, but I love Door County Pumpkin Spice. I also love their White Christmas. As you can tell, coffee is important to me.lol Grab a red ware mug,(it is that time of year.Redware time.lol) and fill it. I know you will enjoy it. My friend Sharon,(The Speckled Hen, owner) brought this to me and I sure am enjoying it. I will cut you a piece of peach cake too, if you like. I love it. Don't know why I was thinking peach today, instead of pumpkin. Yes, I do, my domino group comes tomorrow and one of the girls don't like pumpkin. Anyway I  am so happy, as usual, to see you. Yes, I am decorated for Christmas, but won't show pictures today. I want to talk about Thanksgiving Thankfuls. What are we thankful for? Of course I can't list everything, or we would be here for weeks. I just want to share a few things I am really Thankful for. First of all, that God lives in my house. That I am forgiven and cared for. I am thankful for my church. I love my church and all of my friends there. I am thankful for my family, as we all are. I am thankful for friends who have loved and cared about me forever. I am thankful my family included me on so many vacations this past summer.

To the beach not once, but twice.

Disney for our celebration.
Thankful for no more chemo, that Amanda could walk in this.

Thankful for a wedding.A new granddaughter in law.

I am thankful for a granddaughter finishing her residency after many years of hard work. I am thankful she invited her Grandmother to be there.(Yep, I was the only Grandmother at their banquet)

I am thankful for the rest of my family. I am thankful Seth is in Chicago, pursuing his dream of acting. I miss him, but am happy for him. I am thankful Olivia is pursuing her dream of studying abroad next semester. Canterbury,England will never be the same when she hits it.lol I am thankful Douglas and Anastasia are doing well in Chattanooga. Although they took this little fellow away.

I am thankful for Christmas and family get togethers. I am thankful for get aways with friends.

This group. The group from last weekend. These two.

For going to visit my friend Sandi in W. Va. and meeting up with these girls.

I am thankful for this mirror. you know the story.

I am thankful for this fellow.

For Boo

And I am thankful for each of you who read and follow along with me. Who takes time to visit and puts up with my ramblings. I can't end this post without being thankful for Nursing Homes and caregivers who care for your loved ones, that you can no longer care for.
I am thankful for a  daughter in law, who will take her m-i-l with her when she is up for a big award.(Teacher of the Year.)

I am thankful for these two, who light up my life.

This little girl, loves "ju-ree"

I am thankful you come Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS:I put my decorations up and have about one third, what I normally, have and it still looks like a lot. lol
PSS: I cannot end this Thankful post without mentioning my blog fairy.(Who will fuss at me) She is an awesome person and we have talked on the phone, but she is always trying to keep me classy. I am so thankful for her.
PSSS: I have Christmas Pictures from the Speckled Hen to share.If you are in Clinton you need to stop in. Find some friends, have a day out and enjoy the small town atmosphere of  Clinton. If you'll call me, I would like to meet you for lunch.

The Quiet Before the Mess

Good Monday morning to you all and it sure is good to have you drop by. Of course the coffee is on, but there is nothing sweet. We will try to bake something today. I am in the mood. It is a dreary looking day here outside, but not inside. It is seldom dreary here. I try extra hard to keep an up beat mood here in my little space. Always have and always will. I am a little sad because this is what it looks like in here right now.

Guess what I am going to do today? You got it. NOT laundry.lol  (Again if my Mother and Grandmother knew I was not following the family rules)lol I am putting fall away and starting on Christmas. As you who have been with me for a while know, my house is up for sale and this means decorations will be minimal this year. As those of you who know me, know, I am not a minimalist at Christmas. I like Christmas cheer everywhere. This should be interesting.lol  Right now I am just drinking my coffee and enjoying our visit.
I just got back yesterday from a girl trip, to Pigeon Forge. I have played cards with this group for 29 years and this is our 27th year get away. We all worked at the same school at the time. Since then, some of us have retired, moved, or changed professions. We had 8 originally but 2 moved and only one returns for our get away.

We gathered on Wednesday night and came home yesterday. We just hung out, watched football, Christmas movies, ate, played cards and some did a little shopping. These friends were there for me during my difficult year when Curtis had to go into a nursing home. We have seen one another through marriages,(both theirs and children's) births, divorce, death and have shared so many happy times. I love this group.
No, they don't mind me plastering them on my blog.lol

Two days were pajama days.lol Regina and Linda enjoying themselves.

This is Linda. We call her our fashionista. lol (She helps Deb and the girls make sure my blush isn't too red, or my lipstick isn't above my lip)lol
I actually posted this to let you see our beautiful cabin. It is very convenient and tastefully decorated. We aren't stumbling over one another either. TV's in every room if you want your own space for a while. I read 3 books while we were there.It is hard to believe it is over another year.
The 2nd of November was Mollie's birthday. She was a hoot, as usual. That little girl just makes my day. She and Andrew light up my life, when it is a little dark. Here are a couple of pictures from her night.

She was busy and I wanted to take her picture. NO smile.lol

Michael always has a knife, so everything that had to be opened she would take to him and say,"Open it." (That Friday had been pajama day at school, thus Andrew is wearing his pajama's)

She and Emmy at their special table. Emmy is Clay's sister's little girl and I claim them all as my grands. They are special people.

Let the gift opening begin!lol
Today Dasko and Boo are happy to be home. We are home until spring. I am hoping if my house sells it will sell before Christmas. If not I will settle in here for the winter and be happy. I just don't do well in Limbo! I like to fly by the seat of my pants, but not in this situation..lol
Well I guess I better get into my decorating. Will be back later with Christmas pictures, until then I am so glad you came Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
ps: Yesterday was Veterans Day, and most places are commemorating it today. I am thankful for each and every person who serves or has served in our military. I still have a niece in the Army.I had 2 uncles, who served, one in the Army and one in the Marines, a sister in law who served in the Navy, and a brother in law and  son who served in the Marines, and a cousin's son who died in Irag, who was a Marine.Never thought of us as a military family, but I think we are. I am proud that  my brother in law Bruce, who was a decorated Vietnam veteran is buried in Arlington,as well as my Marine Uncle JN.
PSS: have learned a lot of our bloggers are going through some tough times.Lets remember them as we start this wonderful season.
PSSS: Come back and see how "minimalistic" I can be.lol Suggestions will be appreciated.

Ready or Not, Here They Come

Don't you love the first couple of days after the time change? You get up early and have so much time? You don't want to go to bed but your body says go?lol Time change just wears me out for a few days, then of course I adjust. Come on in and get your cup, pour your coffee and lets visit. It is cold here this morning,35, but the coffee is hot and the house is warm, and we can just talk about the coming holidays. Ready or not, they are here. I love this time of the year. I have to admit it, I have been listening to Christmas music since Friday. Holly had to remind me it was playing.Holly's Hobbies and Darbee Days. 

Thought I would share some of my favorite fall this year as
I am getting ready to take the fall down and put the Christmas up. I will only do minimal decorations this year with the house being on the market. It will be fun seeing how minimal I can go, because I LOVE decorating for Christmas. Deb said I did it long before it became the thing to do. My Dad loved Christmas, more than my Mother, so I guess I got that from him. Anyway, I am starting this week. Today, after you leave I will store away my fall. As I put them away I will wonder, where they will come out next year. I have never had to think about that before, but I am for sure not going to worry about it. Yes, I know and believe with all of my heart, God has a plan, and it will be fulfilled in His time. If my house doesn't sell, I will be right here.lol These were some of my fall favorites this year.

One thing for sure. Where ever I move, I will have a red door.

I really like this old box with the pumpkins. These pumpkins were made by Linda Stinson, who makes the best things. I just love what ever she has crafted. I want to use something in this old box for Christmas and I am open to suggestions. I was thinking bottle brush trees if I can find 3 more the size I have. As I said, I am open to suggestions. What would you use? Remember I am going for minimal.lol
I always have 7 trees up. Not counting smaller feather trees. This year that isn't happening. This one for sure won't be put up, until next year. Yes, I will miss it, but will put it up again next year.

It goes in the bedroom and I am not putting one in there. This one won't go up either.

Don't think this one will either. I may put the big tree here.

I am only going to do one tree and the kitchen tree. I do enjoy having my little tree in the kitchen.

Well I am in for a lot of decisions when I start the Christmas this year.(this week)lol You can just bet I will miss a lot of things I normally put out. It won't matter so much about the decorations will it? It is the friends and family who come Through My back Door that make the holidays. The music, good food, laughter, you can't beat any of that. Decorations are important to we prim lovers, but we know the real meaning of the Christmas and Thanksgiving Holidays. Now that is the important things.
A couple of things I will put out for sure.

My Daddy's worn out bible and the Byers Carolers

This handmade nativity was made by my friend Linda, who is not
 prim. I love this. It will go out for sure.
Anyway, I won't whine about what I can't do I am just going to enjoy what I can. Hope you do too and through the upcoming holidays I am going to enjoy everything that goes along with them. I will certainly enjoy each of you coming Through My Back Door where life is good.
betty
PS: I am getting ready for a girl trip soon. My card group of 27 years is going on our annual trip to Pigeon Forge. It will be a long weekend of good food, good conversation, and lots of laughter.
PSS:Mollie had her 2nd birthday Friday. Pictures later.lol
PSSS: Please continue to pray for the Sandy victims as well as all of our blogging friends. We in blogland can and do make a difference with our prayers.