The Pole Santas

I haven't made these guys in years..

Ohhh the memories..

Many a nights spent in the garage

with Jeff as he cut out the

patterns for me.

He'd work all day.. then come

home and work late into the

night just for me and my lil hobby.

I made the first one for Ashley's

day care as a gift...

They put him at the front desk and

BOOM!

Over the next few years

that one sold me over 150 of 'em!

Black Friday

The Day-After Thanksgiving...

4:00 am.

We found our spot in front of Target at 4:00 am.

We were 14th & 15th in line.. a lil further back

than last year.. but we got the goods.

This year was a breeze compared to past

years. No gloves, blankets or heavy coats needed.

We managed to get in line behind the same man from

last year. He remembered us and also

remembered Ashley getting to

the electronics department way

ahead of everyone else too.

"She's A Champ"

Those lil legs can move!

I could never clear my list without her.

This is only my 5th year getting to shop on

Black Friday.. and the last

3 years I've made it a

"Just Me & Her" deal.

For 22 years I was a Jeweler and

worked retail.. So you know I

really hated this day lol.

The holidays were always a blur.. and I

was always to tired to enjoy them.

Soooooooo ..

The November that Matthew died I decided I'd had

enough of all that and I took that season off..

and ain't been back since.

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day

Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans, Cranberries,

Turkey, Ham, Gravy, Cornbread Dressing, Yams, Potato Salad

Squash Casserole, Mac & Cheese

and Boo-Koo's of pies...

But nothing could compare to these

Lil GUYS!

Isn't He Just The Cutest Thing!

Made By a 5 ... Yes FIVE year old

Cody Bell !

With a lil help from Mom Susan

he made a dozen of these lil turkeys.

They were the HIT of the day!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jeff's Famous Deep Fried Turkey

Rare Sight

This was sucha rare sight I had to get

pictures.
Course .. Ya can't have work without
a lil play.

And when she was finished ...

You guessed it..

All that hard work was followed up

by:

Mom Can I Have...

Church Bake Sale

Everything turned out great..

All of my Goodies for the

Church Bake Sale

White Chocolate Chip

Macadamia Nut Cookies

Oatmeal Cranberry Walnut Cookies

Vanilla Creme Pound Cake

Came home with an

empty basket.

Distraction of the mind...

Trying to keep my mind busy

Not looking forward to this evening..

the funeral.

Been doing lil mindless things around the house to

keep my mind distracted.

My favorite photo frame.. with my favorite picture.

I repotted a couple of plants ...
Believe it or not.. This IS my
poinsettia from last Christmas.
It survived the hot Georgia summer heat..
crazy chipmunks & my neighbors dog who
was constantly watering it.
Now.. if I can only get it to turn red before
Christmas!

This lil Peace Lily is very special to me.
It was part of an arrangement from
Matthews funeral.

Bake Sale at Church this weekend.
Chocolate, chocolate chunk brownie cookies!

You know I had to sample them..

Can you Say Chocolate Coma!

Fireplace a roaring and the smell of

chocolate cookies filled the house.

Gizzy found himself a nice

cozy lil spot this morning.

Goodbye My Sweet Friend

Tomorrow we say goodbye to a friend...

Kerry was a part of our lives for almost 20 years

our daughters grew up diaper buddies

and are both now in high school together.

Even though we didn't agree

with the choices he'd made in his life

these last few years..

We Still Loved Him

and was always glad to see him.

God granted Jeff and I the gift of seeing

Kerry just days before he passed...

I can't help but think of that song

"If I Had Only Known"

"If I had only known it would

be the last time I heard you laugh,

I would have tried to make you laugh longer"

You will be missed!

Goodbye My Sweet Friend!

Silent Auction

Couple of the baskets I made

for the Silent Auction at Church

Veterans Day

Thank You Veterans

"Title Unknown"

Please let me hear the quiet I hope you understand

Silence is truly golden

Like the touch of a lovers hand

So many days and nights I cried

"Will I ever again, share the silent moonlight?"

"Am I still her man?"

Please let me finish my dream

I had many sleepless nights

The bombs were falling way too near

Yes, some dreams are filled with fright

But if I awaken way too soon

Perhaps I never will know

If I am meant to have wonderful dreams

Or only the ones war has sown

You see at 7 I dreamed I would grow into a soldier

Tall and strong

With a rifle on my shoulder

At 17 I dreamed I would be a hero

Fight for country and honor

For you to all be free

18 brought another dream

To come home alive and well

And relay the stories to families

Their children can now never tell

Now I pray for the chance to dream

Not lay awake with sweat and fear

Just take me away to a blissful place

Where the only noise maybe a cheer

For those of us who made it

And those that lost their life

You can help make a dream come true

Keep our memory alive.

*Author Unknown

A Tribute in Honor of:

My Father, My Husband, and both my Grandfathers

all went to war because they believed that what

they were doing was important to both

their Country and their families...

My Grandfathers both served in WWI,

my Father in WWII and my Husband in Operation JustCause.

All went into war, with their hearts fighting for freedom,

and fighting to protect the rights of those left at home.

I understand that these soldiers, these four men

who were so important in my life,

and so many others fought for many

freedoms that I and my family enjoy now.

I applaud them for what they gave of themselves to do that...

Although my Father, Grandfathers and Husband

all returned home safely ... many of their friends did not.

It is in their memory and for all those

men and women who have served in ALL

the wars that I say THANK YOU

for keeping our country free ...

My appreciation and heartfelt gratitude

goes out to Them an all Veterans of this Country

and to those who dare to stand up

and be proud of their beliefs and their dreams,

and those brave enough to fight for others.

My Father and both of my Grandfathers

have all passed away in recent years.

My daughter and I will honor each of them

all on Veterans Day an each day after.

As always I will cherish all of their tales

and stories and hold dear each memory they left behind ...

Daddy, Granddaddy and PawPa ...

I miss you all the time and love you all immensely.
"Sweat Pea" Debbie

Battle scars from Sunday's drama!

Despite the look .. she loves it

lol she's getting all kinna

attention from it.

Yesterday was a rare treat..
we got to spend the afternoon
visiting at my Mom's.

Beautiful Angels















My Sister Kristi was there
with my niece
and nephew.
It was an awesome day ..
the weather was amazing
and we got some beautiful
pictures.

This was Gracie's first time
playing in the grass... Boy
did she enjoy it! Ashley was
having a time keeping up with her.

Gracie had a taste for the leaves..
and the grass... Just as fast as
Ashley would get one out of her mouth
she had more in the other hand
ready to go.
Brought back memories of Ashley..
mercy how the years have gone by.

Soon as I get pictures with Chase
in them I'll get em posted here.

The Day After...

Took a few pictures of Ashley today ...
as usual she got a lil moody and aggravated
with me so I didn't get in as many as I wanted ..
The leaves are soooooooo awesome

right now .. I can't help it.

I just wanna go out there and snap snap snap

with my favorite subject... Oh well tomorrow

is another day. *crossing fingers*

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Not much to smile about today...

But as always I'll put my trust in

God..

" The will of God will never take you

where the Grace of God will not protect you!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~