Oh Christmas Tree

Christmas is such a nostalgic time of year, at least for me. The children have grown and left their home to establish their own homes and families and the Christmas tree is evidence of the years gone by. I wrote this poem 2 years ago when we bought a new self-lit Christmas tree that had white lights instead of our forever multiple colored lights.

This year the Christmas Tree
Sparkled with white lights,
The ornaments seemed to shimmer
Throughout the December nights.

You tell our Christmas stories
Of all the years gone by,
The child filled years and friendships
And joys of Christmas ties.

The rocking horse and baby
From the year that Mike was born,
Chirs' kindergarten picture
A child's gift adorns.

"Baby's First Christmas"
When Danny was nine months old,
Ornaments from the school sales,
Oh, the memories unfold.

A stack of wood and tractor,
Tom's remembered here,
Rubber gloves and a little nurse
Fran's gifts from friends, so dear.

Homemade ornaments made with love
Frequent around the tree,
Santa and his Mrs.
Front and center, you can see.

The Gilmore Christmas Santas
And angels from a friend,
Ornaments from shopping trips
A beautiful Christmas blend.

A golden leaf from Colorado
And skiers on a lift
Crystal kiss from Hershey
And ornaments made by Chris.

The tree so full of memories
Of blessings from above
The tree is wrapped with golden beads
From my mother who was loved.

This home holds the memories
Of the family who lives here
And the Christmas tree celebrates
The joys of all the years.

So take pictures of your Christmas trees and as the tree begins to fill with ornaments over the years, it too will tell your family stories.

Christmas is Coming

Today is the perfect day to consider Christmas as a snow storm is approaching Michigan. Here in Michigan most of us like a traditional White Christmas. We are preparing for that special day of the year in many ways. The tree is up, outdoor arrangements are finished, presents are being purchased,the Christmas cards ordered and the Christmas letter is written. We have visited the nativity in the park and have attended Christmas concerts, Avalon was here last week!



In all this busyness and frustration with the long lines,computers and printers not working, we can lose sight of the reason we are celebrating. It's time to slow down and read Luke 2 from the Bible or a wonderful book that relays the Christmas events. There are many out there but two I have enjoyed is "Unafraid" by Francine Rivers, an account of Mary, the mother or Christ and "One Incredible Moment" by Max Lucado. So find some time to spend with the Lord of Life and enjoy some peaceful moments.

Random Thoughts

I loved having the whole family here in October.

It was a very busy time and now that the house is so quiet, I look at the chalk drawings on the front porch and the finger prints on the windows and long for the little voices and cute sayings. I couldn't help but smile after they left when I would open a cupboard to find a toy or a measuring cup.

If I think on this long enough I even long for the years of being a young mother. So young mothers who read this, cherish this sweet time in your life.

It is ironic that as I write this, Conley is staying over night. She has a blow up bed and after her prayers and a few songs, a kiss good night and all tucked in with her blankey bear and favorite blanket she has been up twice within 5 minutes. The night is young and I'll report in the morning how restful our night is.

We were warned how to handle the little night walker, "take her back to bed and no laying with her until she falls asleep." I was a little restless knowing she might wake up but didn't hear a sound even though I was up twice. In the morning she told me she was up once and went in the office and went back to bed. She proudly said, "I stayed in my bed all night!" Love that girl!

Party On

It's fun to have family visit so you can enjoy what the hometown has to offer. That would include visiting the Children's Museum, the fish hatchery, the cider mill, the library and Jungle Joe's. So here are a few pictures of hometown fun.











Oh, I forgot I didn't take my camera to Jungle Joe's, big mistake! It was so fun and the pictures are so colorful and lots of smiles. It's also when Jack and Chris came to town to join in the fun.

We just had fun at home going over the fields to see the reindeer and ride all of grandpa's vehicles.




I've got to say, Conley is sure missing her cousins!

And by the end of a busy day its story time and what is more appropriate than, I love your nose and "I Love You Through and Through"?

Color Tour and Pumpkins

While up north we drove along Lake Michigan on a road covered with golden trees. Although the three year olds didn't appreciate it as much as the adults, Cooper and Tucker had a little nap. We stopped at a restaurant with outdoor seating with a wonderful view of the lake and a freighter in the distance.


Conley checked out a painted bear and read the sign to us and the others who gathered around.

Our next stop was an animal and pumpkin farm. I have never seen so many varieties. The children loved picking them up, sitting on them and also feeding the chickens and petting a goat.



I love this picture that really expresses the ages and attention span of the children as we try to get them to all look at the camera at the same time. It is what it is.

October Fest

Dan and Angie came to Michigan with Hudson Claire, Tucker and Cooper for a 10 day visit! We had so much fun that I am going to have to write at least three postings about their time here. After a trains, planes and automobile trip they arrived Thursday evening, October 15. We went up to northern Michigan for the weekend so Dan and Angie and Hudson and Claire could attend a wedding.



We stayed at this great little cottage just a few feet from a sandy beach. The colors were beautiful and the sunsets wonderful.





Tucker and Cooper are great little explorers and climbers. We kept a close eye on their wanderings.



Sometimes Hudson likes to check things out on his own while Conley and Claire became fast friends.

Conley is 3

October 2, Conley turned 3 or as Conley likes to say, "3 in October." She went with her mommy and Grandma Dolly and Grandma Fran to Build a Bear Workshop. We all tried to persuade her to pick out one of our favorites but she had her own idea and picked a black and white panda bear. She enjoyed helping make the bear, named it (Pandy), helped pick out clothes that made the boyish looking bear look girlish and carried it home in a box that looked like a room. I don't have a picture of the bear.

On Sunday, October 4 she had a birthday party at her house with grandparents, aunts and uncles and cousins. She opened lots of presents and then we all enjoyed a "Stephanie" cake.





After the party, Conley jumped into the tub to play with soap paint that was one of her gifts.

Fall Fun

A few weeks ago we drove again to Wheaton to give Kim and Chris some alone time and Tom and I some Jack time. In the month since we had seen him, Jack has become a much steadier walker and added a few words to his vocabulary. I love to hear him say Hi and ba-bye. He is all about climbing, walking and having fun. Here are a few pictures of our happy explorer.





We also had a day away with Conley. We took her to the county fair. She wanted to go into all the animal barns and especially loved the baby animals. We saw and touched fury sheep, rabbits, and goats. She thought the chickens were pretty loud and the horses and cows were pretty big for her liking. She really surprised us when she wanted to ride the pony. Last year she was terrified of the carousel and wasn't interested in riding it this year, so when she wanted to ride the pony, we could hardly believe it. We reluctantly set her on Suzy-q and she loved it. As she rode around she shouted out, "look at me."

Harvest

This is the time of year that we enjoy the harvest. Really since early spring we have fresh asparagus then strawberries, in July blueberries but August and September the fresh fruits and vegetables are in abundance. Sweet corn, peppers, tomatoes, peaches, apples and the list goes on.

I have been thinking of the harvest of my life. The years in growing up in a family, school, work, and raising my own family have yielded a wonderful crop of fruit.

My harvest is not the accumulation of material blessings that as the Bible says, "where moth corrupts and thieves break through to steal." It is the people who have listened, advised, helped, prayed, visited, celebrated and been there through all of life's joys and sorrows. It is also the time I have to spend with these cherished ones.

Here are some harvest pictures, mostly excluding the scrumptious harvest of children and grandchildren:

My sister-in-law Laurelei, sister Kathy and niece Nancy and I enjoying a girl's weekend and a day in Dorr County.




My sister Kathy has taken up playing her violin after almost 50 years.


A day at the beach with Joy and Conley. Such a sweet reward! What I didn't get a picture of is the seagull taking a sandwich from Joy's hand!






Nursing school friends, Kathy Smuk and Mary Rebert and I cooked this awesome meal for our husbands. We re-created the meal from our French cooking class.




Long time friends, Don and Andrea Halstead with Tom and I at Torch Lake in Northern Michigan. We enjoyed a day driving through vineyards and to Lelaneau Peninsula.