Project 365 - Day 365

Wow! Final picture! Hard to believe, really! This morning we took a long, fast walk along the river starting at Chickamauga Dam and when we got back I took my new camera and went on the fishing pier near the dam. There wasn't hardly a blue heron in sight and then all of a sudden this one came swooping down and perched on the edge of the railing. All morning I was thinking about what my last picture of the year would be and I was hoping it would be something special. Abba heard that - He actually knew it before I expressed it - and He sent one of my very favorite things! Isn't that just like Him?

I really want to take some time and reflect on all that Project 365 has taught me but I really need to finish the laundry, make the soup, and put away Christmas right now so more later on that! For now, enjoy the last picture of the year, and for those who have held me accountable and encouraged me to keep snapping.....thank you and Happy New Year!

Project 365 - Day 364

Here is my new 365 Day Challenge for 2011 ~ to write a thank you note to someone every day of the year. Tara was the first one to tell me about John Kralik's book and I couldn't get the idea out of my mind ever since we had that conversation. Today I went to Barnes and Noble and bought his book which is hot off the presses - just released this week!

Here is a funny part of this decision.....to buy the book I used a gift card that I received in the mail just before Christmas from a girl who had stayed at our house in early November - the gift card was enclosed in a thank you note :-) It was such an unexpected surprise when it came in the mail - her words of appreciation were so sweet. It seemed very appropriate to use it to buy this book.

365 thank you notes is alot and I've already started thinking of who I might send one to - people who I often take for granted. Today when I ran into Bi Lo I saw the cashier who's always working on Tuesday mornings when I run in before work for staff meeting goodies. From past conversations I know she has a hard home life but she's always cheerful and chatty and gets me in and out of there in a hurry. How fun will it be to hand Mary a thank you note some day this year?!

I hope to read the book this weekend! The author thought of this idea at the beginning of one of the roughest years of his life - he was inspired after receiving a thank you note and he decided to focus on what he did have instead of what he didn't have.

As I peek over the edge into a new year I don't know what it will hold but I do know that gratefulness needs to be a part of it! I'm excited - want to take the challenge with me?!

Project 365 - Day 360

Oh, gracious! I just realized that I had broken one of my cardinal rules for Project 365 and posted a picture for Day 360 that I hadn't taken! Yikes! All fixed now - the Merle picture is a generic post and this fun picture of Nancy opening up her "Pee Wee the Piccolo" CD - vintage 1947 is picture # 360!

Project 365 - Day 363

A very fun ending to our long Christmas weekend was having the Edwards greeting us when we came home! They stayed in our house Monday and Tuesday as they visited friends in Chatt before heading back to Indy. Love this family so much! Love it that they live in Indy and go to Mark & Tara's church! We said goodbye to them after having breakfast together.

Project 365 - Day 362

Home safe and sound! Heavy traffic with a couple of slow downs - lots of snowbirds on the road and folks heading home from Christmas celebrations. We stopped in Indy on the way - just a quick stop for a few more hugs from the adorables and we arrived just in time to help Mark set up his new T.V.!! This is a picture of the Nashville skyline - traffic was so slow going through there and I still needed to take a picture :-)

Project 365 - Day 361

It's only fitting that my most faithful blog reader should be included in Project 365 - Adriann always holds me accountable to get the picture of the day on here! She and Earl were at a party at Carolann's on Monday night - great time with several of our Caledonia friends!!

Reunion

We went to Caledonia CRC Sunday morning and we were so glad to find out that Merle Buwalda was preaching! He is back at Caledonia as an associate pastor after being in Lake City for several years. He was our pastor when we were newly married and he had such an impact on our lives with his passion for evangelism. He is such an example of living full force for Christ! His sermon was great - spoke about our unchanging God in a changing world. He recently lost his 99 year old mom and testified of her impact on his life and the lives of others. Lots of tears all over the congregation as we thought of loved ones we've lost and God's faithfulness!

Stayed after church a long time talking to old friends - very emotional morning - but hardly any time to process as we had two wonderful family parties to attend later in the day. Whenever I'm here I'm overwhelmed, in a good way, by the love and memories of this great place to be from!

Project 365 - Day 359

So thankful to spend another Christmas at mom and dad's house. They are looking pretty snazzy here in their Christmas sweaters!

Project 365 - Day 358

You might be in West Michigan for Christmas.......saw this cute sign in a yard on the way to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at Josh & Susan's church :-) So thankful for a fun night overnight at Mark & Tara's last night and safe travel to MI today!

Project 365 - Day 357

A Merry Little Christmas

We had a fun time celebrating Christmas with Corey and Sherry and family last night at their house! We love this family a bunch and are so thankful for their friendship!

Project 365 - Day 356

Guess who was named Employee of the Year?!?!

Project 365 - Day 355

We said our goodbyes to the beach this afternoon - went for one last walk this morning and saw this guy hopping along on one foot - he did pretty well for himself in spite of his disability!

D.A. fed the ducks some leftover rolls we needed to get rid of.

One last picture of Hilton Head Island as we cross the bridge to Beaufort. Such a beautiful place! And we get to go back in 3 months! We've made a list of things we want to do on our next visit! So thankful for this restful, wonderful vacation!

Project 365 - Day 354

Really like the angle of this picture I took on River Street in Savannah today! We had a great day there! The weather was cool but sunny and we were fine. Walked around a ton, had lunch at the Shrimp Factory, walked some more - beautiful historic city! Time to go home tomorrow - this has been a wonderful vacation!

Project 365 - Day 353

This has been one of the best vacations ever! We went to First Pres this morning - a PCA church about 5 minutes away - great service! After a roast beef lunch (sometimes I think I'm becoming my mom) we bundled up and went for an 11 mile bike ride - first on the bike trail and then on the beach. Then we drove to Harbor Town and hung out there until sunset. Home for soup and now we're watching "A Christmas Story" with homemade ice cream. Delight - Full Day!

Project 365 - Day 352

We went for a long walk on the beach this morning during low tide and found lots of treasures! The weather was cloudy, cool, and a little rainy but we dressed for the weather and had such a fun time in God's amazing creation! There's so much we don't know about the sea but we are excited to become informed! In the afternoon we went thrift store hopping and hoped to find a book about shells, tides, fish, etc., but to no avail! We broke down and went to Barnes and Noble and found a really great one! Now we can match our discoveries to the facts!



D.A. noticed this brown bunny munching on foliage right along the walk going out to the beach - so cute!

Look at the variety of all this cool stuff! Love it! We walked down to a less populated area of the beach and there was tons of debris.


We saw this pattern in the sand - looking closely it looks like something's under there burrowing out!

The basket was a thrift store find - our new shell collecting basket because our hands and pockets get too full too fast! And this is the book we found at B & N!

Project 365 - Day 351

I think that today has been the hardest day of the whole year to pick the picture of the day! Really love the pictures I was able to take today at Folly Field Beach on Hilton Head Island - I just really love the sea and all its creatures!


We had a great uneventful drive down here - arrived around 2 pm this afternoon. The temperature kept rising the nearer we got to HHI and it was 70 wonderful degrees when we arrived. After unpacking we took a long walk along the beach. There were soooo many creatures washed up! Horseshoe crabs, starfish, jellyfish and more....so cool! We're staying in the place that we bought into with several other couples and it is amazing - very comfortable! All we had to bring was our clothes and some food - everything is here - nothing fancy but everything we need.

Time away in this beautiful, quiet place after a busy, people filled fall is a huge gift to my harried heart. I have all of my Christmas shopping done and wrapped back home so I can really relax knowing that's finished. So thankful for all of life - the craziness and the calm!

This cute little guy could run so fast!

Several horseshoe crabs were on the beach! Saw these when I was in Delaware in October! They're huge and just amazing!

Love this perspective!

Our unit is on the far right - the 2nd and 3rd floors. This pond is what our decks overlook - beautiful!

Project 365 - Day 350

It was so ICY this morning! Tons of schools cancelled or delayed! D.A. couldn't get the Hullcomobile out of the driveway until I suggested throwing kitty litter under the tires :-) Oh, and that would be the kitty litter he grumbled about putting in the luminaries this past Saturday night - now who's thankful for it?! Ice is sooooo dangerous but sooooo pretty!



Rudolph's antlers were frozen! I'm going to miss those antlers when I have to take them off. Now I know why my great aunt Betty had a tennis ball on her antenna - us old folks have a hard time remembering where we parked at Walmart!

Fresh Start

I love getting my new calendars for the year! I buy them early and I can hardly wait to get them out! Today I caved and put my new work one on my desk and I just had to take a picture of it all clean and uncluttered! So soon it will be filled with not only my jottings but others too who can't resist a doodle when they're using my desk.

I have loved December with all its unique busyness and traditions and I'm not rushing through it but I love the anticipation of a brand new year. I love Fresh Starts.....mornings......Mondays....empty journals....babies....and January is such huge fresh start!

"I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning." (J.B. Priestly )These are the words that greet me every morning on my kitchen windowsill.

And I love this from Steven James.... ~

"all the syllables of my story were covered with dust and dead tears until you began to whisper the words."

What will this year's story hold? No doubt, chapters of trial and triumph, sadness and celebration ~ through it all I rest in the Storytellers deep love and affection.

Project 365 - Day 349

Just got home a bit ago after working, getting my hair cut, McKays, and a little shopping. Pulled onto the Court in the late afternoon winter darkening and a bright package leaning against the front door caught my eye! Don't you just love moments like that? So unexpected and filled with possibility?! Walking up to the door and wondering who and what?! Ahhhh.....from Carolann! My heart sings at the sight of her double name on the return address label. Bring it in....taking my time.....savoring the mystery of the contents but trusting the giver because she knows my heart so well.....sifting through the tissue paper and Grand Rapids Press....and finally uncovering the sweet snowman above!


I love to capture these moments.....these theophanies....nothing is insignificant!

Such a fun box!!

He takes his place and fits just right in a long row of snowmen after I inscribe...."from Carolann - 12 -15-10".....

Project 365 - Day 348

So glad that some folks still send real Christmas cards :-) Makes going to the mailbox so much more fun when there's a few of them nestled between the junk mail and bills! I definitely send out less than I used to since the arrival of email, blogging and Facebook. I was planning on blogging about this and right before I got on here I checked FB and Tara had written something similar on her status. It is a wonderful tradition and I'm savoring each one that arrives!

Project 365 - Day 347

This is one of my very favorite loved objects to get out at Christmas. This nativity set was a gift from my friend, Adriann, and I just love it! I think there might be a few more pieces available and I'd love to add to it! This year it rests on one of the last doilies my mom crocheted so every time I see this in the GTCA it makes my heart really happy!

Project 365 - Day 346

Busy but great Sunday! Church/nursery duty, quick lunch of leftovers from Saturday's party, Christmas concert featuring the Ball Brothers in Chickamauga, adult choir concert at New City, home to watch the finale of the Amazing Race! The snow really started coming down while we were at the concert in the afternoon. Alot of schools were already called off by Sunday morning and today (Monday) hardly anyone has school! Snowy, by TN standards, and icy, by anyone's standards...... keeping me on the Court at least until noon! (Boy, those antlers really make it easy to find your sleigh in a parking lot :-)



We saw the Ball Brothers at Dollywood last month and really enjoyed them. Their home church is Liberty Baptist which is just about 20 minutes from our house. Reminds me alot of the groups Go Fish and GLAD - great, close harmony. The concert at New City was wonderful too! Loving the Christmas celebrations!

Project 365 - Day 345

Fun Christmas party with our Red Bank small group! Eddie and Mari came along with 11 other folks. So thankful for a dining room and living room that can hold a big group so comfortably! I had fun getting ready for the party and wound up putting out alot of my Christmas decorations after all - one thing just led to another! Everyone brought lots of good food to share, then we opened our white elephant gifts, and then had dessert - great night! Really thankful for these folks! And on Wednesday we'll see each other again when we go caroling!

Yay for a big square living room where we can fit a bunch of folks!!

This bird is a frequent flyer at our Christmas party!


Phil and Emily with their highly unusual Santa Clauses - compliments of Shirley!

A last minute idea was to put luminaries along the sidewalk. D.A. was not a happy camper when hearing about the idea but it was quick and painless and inexpensive - the perfect storm! I just love the glow of them! This is how we roll - I think of harebrained schemes and D.A. helps me implement them - not without a bit of grumbling sometimes :-) Tired but thankful tonight!

Project 365 - Day 344

For the past 6 years Victoria and I have gone to "The Nutcracker" together - it's a tradition we both love! When she was younger her tradition was to fall asleep right after intermission and snore her way through the second half but now she stays awake the entire time :-) Lots of memories from past performances! And it's fun to talk about our favorite parts! She still giggles at the first sight of "men in tights" - some things one never outgrows!



Anne with an E came along too and V's cousin, Porsche - fun times! We went out to eat at Amigos, a Mexican restaurant, where Victoria finally met her match in hot and spicy!

So thankful that sometimes love is enough!