Oh, my bloggy friends......Merry Christmas to you!

I wish I had that time and the energy to visit each and every 

blog that I cherish....

there are so many of you!

I am honored to have found many women 

who seem to see the world in ways 

that I admire and concur....

So many of you take wonderful images....

I have to admit,

by the time I get around to 

posting or reading blogs

I am weary of my camera.

I have found the iPhone to be the most wonderful of tools.....

This image quickly snapped with said iPhone....

as well as this one.....

When you go to a party and find the food is worth the 

trouble of taking a photo!

don't you love these cute little ornament place card holders?

you simply cannot allow me to sit this close to the cheese.....as you can plainly see....

Oh yes, 

I have friends.....

friends that cook!

and I mean COOK!

I am stuffed better than the turkey this year.

Gratitude.

much gratitude.....

I celebrated a 20 year anniversary this year that reminds me

I am fortunate beyond words....

Thank you all for your words...

I feel privileged to have shared your moments of joy

of fear....

of angst...

of creativity...

of concern...

of patriotism...

and 

most 

importantly,

Love.

of course the greatest of these is love....

thank you.

smiles.

a review of the holidays....

I discovered that a dear friend is actually 

"Mrs. Claus"

Hence, Christmas-towne in her living room....

Then, to IKEA

my sweetie & I went..

Then home to decorate...

Another dear friend supplied us with a 

Charlie Brown tree...

one of my favorite ornaments....

the only time of the year in which my office is slightly presentable...

Another day, preparations for dinner for 10....

then a visit from

the daughter, who was single, blonde and pet-less last year...

who brought her new husband, dog

and....

RED hair this year!

An ornament to remind us of the V&A in London..

Lovely cards from all over...

These photos were all taken on the run...

mostly with my new iPhone....

I am still in the learning stage with it.

Hope your holidays have been 

interesting, calm and joyous...

smiles

This Christmas Card? or.....

We Believe Christmas Card

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View the entire collection of cards.

Holiday observations...

Do things seem slightly strange around your house?

Sounds that creep in from outside....Getting to you?

Maybe there are strange smells emanating from your kitchen.....

or even your fireplace...

What's it all about Alfie?

It is the Holidays....

it started way back in the early fall....

no more waiting until after Thanksgiving to think about 

the HOLIDAYS!

And so it is...

hurried shopping-check

crowds-check

snarled traffic-check

crazed parents-check

excited squealing children-check

satisfied smiling grandparents-check

Here are some things I have noticed;

neighbors, who normally don't speak - talking and laughing

children, who would normally leave the table in a flash - doing the dishes

smiles from people who wear a frown 11 1/2  months of the year

strange sitings in the neighborhood...

One of those strange sightings was a 

partially "dressed" Christmas tree, lying on the curb,

Apparently thrown out in haste.

Now, that's odd....it appeared nearly a week ago....

it is a fresh green tree, with a string or two of

colored lights. 

And yet, there it is,

waiting for the dump truck.

Well, for a person with an enquiring mind....

this is food for fodder.....

what brought on this fit of 

Tree tossing?

Where is the culprit?

Why?

Was he/she mad at the difficulty with which lights are strung?

Was there a fight?

Someone wanted white lights, and the stringer wanted colored?

Who won?

What are they doing about Christmas now?

Why weren't we all informed, so that we didn't have to guess?

As you can see.... the person with the enquiring mind is in a dilemma

Well,

I was sitting with my sweetie at the coffee shop when a neighbor

stopped by for a chat.

Seems the person who owned the tree in question, had 

brought it home, set it up in a stand,watered it, let the limbs relax,

and then,

started to string the lights....when all of a sudden

they noticed 

SPIDERS!

everywhere....coming out of the tree!

apparently, some spider momma had laid her eggs

earlier in the year, and went off to die,

leaving her eggs to incubate for the winter,

hoping to hatch in the spring.

But NO@!

Mr. Tree Farmer came along in the fall and 

chopped that tree down,

wrapped it up,

and took it to town 

for sale.....

Ever hear of such a thing?

not me....smiles...

Very popular in the 70's....

Remember Kahil Gibran?

He wrote The Prophet

which was particularly popular in the late 1970's.

He was a Lebanese-American 

who had a rather interesting life.

This is one of my favorite quotes...

Wake at dawn with a winged heart 

and give thanks for another day of loving

.- Kahlil Gibran

Doesn't that just paint the finest of all possible 

scenarios for you?

Is that the way you would always like to awaken?

me too...

Fortunately,... I did this morning.

Re-freshed and well rested

(don't hate me)

because my annual Christmas party is 

behind me now....

We had lots of fun..

we always do,

but as with most things

holiday, it required preparation 

weeks in advance.

We are blessed though...

friends that truly appreciate us,

and the effort we put into 

our holiday events.

I hope that your 

holidays are worth every bit of effort 

that you put into them.

and more.....

smiles!

I'm dreaming of....

well,

you can probably guess...

It simply does not happen here too often.

I have lived in the same city for most of my 53 years.

I can remember only one 

White Christmas.

So theses photos are from a snow that we had in January of 2010.

Still

dreaming....

smiles