The New Years Eve Birthday Boy!

It may be 2020 and he may be 41 yrs old today, but I can remember like it was yesterday, trying to birth that baby before midnight so we could get that tax deduction!!!!  HaHaHaHa.....he was born at 6:57 pm on 12/31/1979!!!!   And my father in law trying to buy the flowers from the hospital designated to the first baby born of the new year, because no flower shops were open on New Years Day!!!!!!!   What fun memories!

I could not be more proud of that boy who is our first born.  He has excelled in everything he's ever wanted to do.....Especially in the role of husband and father!  I remember writing him a note the night before his high school graduation...telling him we had given him wings, now it was time for him to use them to fly on his own.  And he did. And he continues to do so!!

From:  

To:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHAD!!

(you're still that babyboy above to me!)

A CARING COVID CHRISTMAS...2020!!

 What made us think that Christmas 2020 would be just like it always has been???  Like every other Christmas I've had since I can remember ... and that would be a whole lotta years!!!!  Of course not..it's the year of the pandemic and everything in all of our lives has changed dramatically. Some good.  Some not so good.

But this family is strong and we accept our challenges and do our best to hold each other up, thru thick and thin.  This Christmas included!!!   Because we have two in our group with underlying conditions, it is of the utmost importance to be careful.  The virus is rampant in our area and if staying home, away from large crowds and masking up and distancing is what it will take to keep all 14 of us safe and healthy...then that's what we do.

The night before Christmas Eve!

We always gather on Christmas eve so that my children can visit their other families on Christmas day.  It really wasn't until two days before Eve that our plans finalized.  We knew we'd have to be outside and here in the south, in December, it can be 75 degrees or it can be 32.  Sunny or rainy.  So, once the weather man gave us the forecast of clear, sunny but cold and windy.....we went into action!  Cap'n completely cleaned out the WW (long story for another day) which is a huge building in our pasture away from the house that Cap'n stores stuff in......as in alot of his collection of army trucks and cars and our RV.  It's usually piled high with "man stuff" but he completely cleaned it up for our Christmas eve celebration!  And if you wanna call what we had a 'redneck xmas'....we're just fine with that....for we loaded up the back of a 4wheeler with all the food and hauled all the presents down there on a trailer behind the 4wheeler in "sleigh" fashion!!!!!!  And it was SO much fun!!

Instead of a sit down meal, we just snacked all day.....Beef tenderloin sandwiches, marinated crab claws, shrimp/artichoke/olive salad, stuffed mushrooms, shrimp butter, tomato/mozzarella tray, chicken salad croissants, meatballs and a huge pot of Cap'n's gumbo....with a whole table full of sweet treats!!

With Cap'n in his kerchief and I in my Christmas apron, we drove the "sleigh" down to the children with a 

HO-HO-HO-HO!!!

The kids played under a sunny, azure blue sky and their laughter with each other and finally being together just tickled my heart.  I couldn't have asked for a better day together!

Only took the kids a short time to open a trailer load of presents!!

Soon, it was time to bid them all farewell, so they could hurry to bed and let those sugarplums dance in their heads!!

 Ms. PoppyPearl and I enjoyed a very cozy night by the fire, with more warmth from our family's Covid Christmas Celebration together, than warmth from the fire!

To wrap up another fun holiday experience, the last night of our Wine Advent Calendar ended with a bottle of the bubbly on Christmas eve!!

We had 24 nights of popping the tops on different types of wine...and calling each other to share thoughts and pics of our nights together!

IT WAS FUN!!!!

Can't end this post without saying Happy Birthday to our little girl.....PoppyPearl!  She's one yr old today and I can't imagine what this year would have been like without her.  I got her exactly 2 weeks before lockdown began.  She's been my best friend at a time when I couldn't see my real life friends and family....

ALL IS CALM.....ALL IS RIGHT!

 

The lists are made and the menu items are bought and checked!

The candies and desserts are made!  Including the pig candy!

The snacks are planned and will be made on Wednesday!

The house is clean!

The books are stacked with grandbabies names all in order!

And ms. PoppyPearl is ready for some commotion and Santa Clause!!!

Now, we wait....for you see, our plans are not really planned yet.  We will celebrate outside with distancing being remembered.  We'll just snack all day and even enjoy some of Cap'n's gumbo. We'll let the grandchildren open their gifts early in the day.  And I pray and then pray some more that the sun will shine and the weather will not rain on our day!   There will only be our immediate family, 14 of us, spending time together.....OUTSIDE and 10 feet apart...which is ALL that matters.

The laughter of my family is all I want for Christmas in any way I can hear it!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIENDS...

may the love of Christmas find you healthy and safe and your hearts find peace in our world!

(a toast of eggnog in my mom's crystal brandy glass which is about 80 yrs old!!)

A Little Stroll thru a Twinkle of Lights!

 2 weeks until Christmas 2020...WOW!!  Time really does go by quickly, even when enduring the days of Covid.  9 months is a long time to be restrained from the rest of the world, yet; it actually has passed quickly.  As all the days of my life seem to be doing.  I like my alone time tho and when you live in the country where there are not alot of people around you all the time, not much has changed.  Except for family times.  Gathering all together for weekends at a time, or having my grandchildren come to spend time with their ol' YaYa.  And travel.  Jaunting off for weekends with girlfriends at the drop of a hat!  But we do what we have to do to stay safe and to keep those around us safe.  We will continue to follow the rules until this demon has been driven away!!

I have found that beauty in nature is more recognized and appreciated during this period of solitude.  I've always taken time to "smell the roses" in my surroundings but lately, those roses are blooming prettier and the sunsets are more vibrant.  My middle boy sent me a beautiful image of the sunrise this morning from the duck blind...

My Christmas lights seem to be brighter and more vivid this year too!

A shot thru my Advent calendar wine glass one night with the Blue Hour shining behind it...another piece of God's handiwork!

need to re-shoot this when I have a roaring fire in the fireplace like I had earlier tonight...note to self!

(back to add fire!)

It's even a happier place during daylight hours when Christmas cheer is evident!

re-purposed pumpkins!!

So, yeah...it was a little out of character for me to decorate so early, but like the rest of the world...we all just needed a little glitter and glory to bring some happy into our homes!

And if a little light and happy elf faces can do that??? I say plug 'em in and let the elves do their thang!!

Stay safe everybody during the holiday season and Be Jolly!!!!

MY FAMILY.....THANKSGIVING 2020!

 So,  for those who follow me, you know that this time of year becomes a time of hunting for all the boys.  They love gathering together to hunt, watch football, eat and well....just be guys!!  But in true 2020 style, this year has been a bit different.  They haven't been able to have the friend weekends where their college and even high school buds come for a weekend and because of the distancing, it's even been hard for our family.  When you have one son who is a heart patient and a daughter in law with some immune problems, we just have to be so careful......not to mention 2 pretty old grandparents, who would be Cap'n and YaYa.  Thank goodness for our deer camp where there are acres upon acres for the kids to play on and for the grownups to be comfortable outside visiting...

This year a few more family members have joined the ranks of the hunting team...

this was Austin's first time to duck hunt!

The next day, Lilli joined her dad and also joined in the fun!

this is my all time favorite pose of my boys hunting...lined up in the duck blind doing a selfie of everyone hunting with them.  Add two of my grandchildren to the mix?????  WHA????

OK......now, it's really my fave of all time!!!

two proud Papas right here!!!

duck hunting cousins!

add the grandfather to that mix?????   Oh yeah.....proud!!

and where did some of those ducks go????  right into mama's pot on top of some fresh garden mustard greens!!!!  Yum-Yum!!!!

well rounded hunters!!!

Case and Lane got a lil time in the hunting fields with their dad too!!!!

As I mentioned earlier, this year we celebrated Thanksgiving outside.  No fancy table settings or foods....just all the traditional holiday dishes,  just the way we like 'em!

Our oldest boy and his family decided to play it safe and just stay home this year...but look at the holiday table that Mom styled and cooked for her family!!!  And they ate theirs at exactly the same time as we had ours.....how cool is that?????!!!!!!

kids watching Macy's Thanksgiving parade on the outside TV!

This year may have been a bit different, but to me, it was still the most wonderful day EVER!

When you have (most of) your family gathered around you, what else do you really need???!!!!!

Now, back to reality.....my PoppyPearl has to have surgery in the morning to repair her patella with a 6wk recovery IN her kennel every day....GASP!!!!  Not sure who it's going to affect the most...her or me!!  Wish us luck!!