Friday Foto Friends "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"

It's Friday night, and it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around our house...

Well, the tree is standing, and it has lights on it! Thanks to the kids coming over yesterday and bringing in the many boxes from the sheds, and they even set up the tree for us and then left the rest for us to finish...

Oh, I want you to see just what a wonderful daughter in law we have...while the guys were in the shed doing "something", who knows what, she loaded up all those boxes in the truck all by herself! Then they drove them over to our steps (no pictures of that) and yes, Benton and John did help unload them and bring them into the house.  But I just wanted you to see our super woman Rose at work!!!

Yes! She's definitely a "keeper".  

If' you've known me very long, you know I have this euphemistic dream of living in a log cabin, and since I don't think it's ever going to happen in real life, I can dream...and that becomes my "theme" for some of the Christmas decor...

Skating on the pond in front of the cabin...(at least that pond has some water/ice in it! LOL)

Sitting by the fire enjoying the view...

Oh, maybe my "real cabin" would look something like this...

Or this...

Or this...

But right now it's more like this...

Click HERE for more on the history of this little log cabin.

Complete with a tree house, another one of my childhood dreams...I always told my daddy I wanted a tree house, but he was never able to build one in our tall skinny pine trees in our back yard, so one year for Christmas after I was an adult and married with my own family, he gave me this tree house for Christmas!  I will always treasure it!

I think that little snowman needs some sled driving lessons!  Or maybe the deer ran out in front of him and caused him to run into the cabin!  Maybe the owl can tell us "whoooooo" did what!! LOL.

Speaking of water in the pond...the weather forecast says we are supposed to start getting some rain tonight around 9:00 p.m., and then we are supposed to have rain for the next three days!  Please pray that this forecast is correct!! That could help break the dry spell and begin the restoration of Still Waters Pond.

This is how is looked tonight when the Sand Hill Cranes and White Egret were out there hunting for some supper...

The clouds were building up in the western sky at sunset...

Although they say "red skies at night, sailor's delight"....I'm hoping these clouds mean sailors should take warning...

Time will tell...and you know I'm praying for that rain to come and stay around for a while...

I know these guys would sure appreciate it too!

Blackie was following me around while I was taking pictures of the clouds.  He's doing fine, but I know he's lonely since Sunshine left us.  He stays close to home and tries to get inside every chance he gets...

And today I received this very nice pet carrier for him from our neighbor's daughter across the street. This is from the home where Blackie and Sunshine were originally being fed, but the lady has since been moved to a Rehab/nursing home, and it's looking more and more like she will not be able to come back home to her house to live. I met her daughter there today, and she gave me this carrier so I will have it when/if I need to take Blackie to the vet. I am very appreciative of this!! Blackie probably won't like it, but still it's wonderful to have this available if needed.

Okay, back to the Christmas decorations...I finally was able to get to the box with the Nativity inside...

I always look forward to setting this up first, but I had to take things as I could get to them in the stacks.  This is the whole reason we celebrate Christmas, and without Jesus at the center of our home, there would be no reason to celebrate at all...

Hark the Herald Angels sing, "Glory to the newborn King"...

Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled...

Joyful, all ye nations, rise,

join the triumph of the skies;

with th'angelic hosts proclaim,

"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"

Hark! The herald angels sing! Glory to the newborn King!"

Christ, by highest heaven adored,

Christ, the everlasting Lord,

late in time behold him come,

offspring of the Virgin's womb:

veiled in flesh the Godhead see;

hail th'incarnate Deity,

pleased with us in flesh to dwell,

Jesus, our Immanuel. 

[Refrain]

Hark the Herald Angels sing, Glory to the newborn King!

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!

Hail the Sun of Righteousness!

Light and life to all he brings,

risen with healing in his wings.

Mild he lays his glory by,

born that we no more may die,

born to raise us from the earth,

born to give us second birth. 

"Hark the Herald angels sing! Glory to the Newborn King!"

(Last night's full moon. Tonight it's too cloudy, praise God!)

Well, friends, I think I will leave it here for tonight. There's more to show, but I'll save that for another day.  I've been working a little bit at a time, and still resting in between. Today I have felt better than I have in over a week, so I am very very thankful that the medicine is doing its job and God is doing His work of healing in my body day by day.   Thank you for your kind words and prayers on my behalf.

I will close with these verses from our Advent readings from yesterday morning: (12/4/2025)

Jeremiah 33:14-16  NKJV

14 ‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘that I will perform that good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah:

15 ‘In those days and at that time

I will cause to grow up to David

A Branch of righteousness;

He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

16 In those days Judah will be saved,

And Jerusalem will dwell safely.

And this is the name by which she will be called:

THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’

Our blogging friend Mary at Visits With Mary posted this wonderful list of Advent Readings for the 24 days of Christmas on her blog on December 1st.  You can click on that link to go to her page and see the list and perhaps you may want to follow it for your own Advent devotional readings each day. It's not too late to catch up!

However you may choose to celebrate the Christmas season, my prayer is that you and yours will celebrate the true "reason for the season"....the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord and Coming King! Amen.

Christmas Day Filled With Joy

 This will be a quick post, mostly pictures, as it is getting late already and I am ready to head for bed soon. It's been a LONG, but very lovely day!  

I know many of you were aware that one of our blogging friends and her hubby were going to have Christmas dinner with our family today...our dear friend Linda and her hubby Dave, from Just Simply Linda.  Well, in spite of a rainy day, they did make the one hour drive to our home as planned, and brought a big pan full of delicious lasagna as also planned (at their request), and added it to our pan of lasagna and salad and garlic toast and desserts...and we had a marvelous feast and a wonderful time together with our family and dear friends.  So here are the pictures from our day, and I will let them speak for themselves:

I'm glad our son Scott has figured out the time delay photo app on my cell phone so we can get a picture of all of us together at the table!

Linda, Dave, our son Scott, yours truly, hubby John, friend Pamela,our DIL Rose and our son Benton.

Here we are again after dinner and dessert, Pamela, Dave, Linda, Me with Lily Grace, John, Rose, Benton and Scott.  One of the highlights of the day was when we all gathered in the living room together, and Linda's hubby Dave shared a special Christmas story from the Bible...the miracles surrounding the birth of John the Baptist as well as the Angel Gabriel coming to talk to Zechariah and also to Joseph and especially Mary, regarding the birth of Jesus, The Son of God. It was a very beautiful time together as we pondered the amazing story of  how all things are possible with God!

And this is just our family.  Yes, Lily Grace wanted to be in all the pictures today. She had on a new dress, sent to her from her "Auntie Debbi" from South Carolina, along with some fun little toys, so of course she needed to be in the pictures.  As a matter of fact, here she is again:

My friend Pamela had fun putting Lily's new dress on her as I was busy with dessert and other hostess activities:

Sometimes big girls just wanna be a little girl again...

I am working backwards in time now...this was the scene in our living room earlier this morning, before the family arrived and all the activities began for the day:

The table was set and ready, and all the gifts were in place, awaiting our kids to come and begin the "grand opening"...

That smaller brown sign says

"Christmas at the Cabin,

Where Memories are Made".

I know our house isn't really a "cabin", but at Christmas time it kind of feels like it, and we certainly do make a lot of happy memories here.

There's the "little cabin" where many memories were made years ago, and all these pictures on these shelves are silent witnesses to our celebrations...some of these dear ones have gone on to glory and are celebrating Christmas in heaven with Jesus right there with them!

Here's our son Scott, having his morning cup of coffee while we await the festivities to begin:

Oh, Rose and Benton have arrived, and they are also ready to begin...

Here's hubby John, smiling and bright eyed and bushy tailed...LOL.

And there I am, ready to get things going...

Toys for the boys, and lots of fun gifts for the family...We have a lot of fun on Christmas morning with our family.  It looks like a mountain of gifts, but in reality  a lot of things are just little things...candy, nuts, cookies, socks, underwear, shirts, not a lot of "big stuff", mostly little things that look  like a lot, and that makes it more fun. (but a lot of work wrapping little gifts).  

However, this was one gift son Scott loved...a tee shirt with a picture of his current car on it...(not his exact car, but the same model, year, etc.  He does love his old Camaro!)

Now lets back up another day to Christmas Eve day...the kids came over with our grandpups Sugar and Spice. We decided to give them their gifts then because they weren't going to bring the pups back over on Christmas day as there would be just too much confusion with so many people, etc.  So we got them new beds and a couple of toys to keep at our house...

Sugar looks happy in her bed with the toys...

And now Spice looks happy in the same bed with the toys...they finally figured it out, but they were funny.

Also, the boys went out and cut some low hanging tree limbs in our front yard. That was a big job and much appreciated.

When we came home from the Christmas Eve service Scott had baked a wonderful batch of my mother's Orange Cookies...

It's a family tradition, and they smelled and tasted so good! I'm so thankful that he loves to bake them as his gift to the family each year! (or when he has time...)

Speaking of Christmas Eve, when we got home from our church's Candlelight Service,  I wanted to have our picture taken, but hubby went and took off his "Sunday go to meeting clothes" as soon as we walked in the door, so we still managed a picture in his comfy clothes and I am wearing a dress that I've had for probably close to 30 years. I "lost" it in the back of my closet for a while, and rediscovered it, and was thankful that it still fits and is still in good condition! Of course, I would only wear it once a year...so that's probably why! LOL.

Here's the dress...

Well, it's time to call it a night. It's been a lovely lovely Christmas Eve and Day...we are truly thankful and blessed.  And most of all, let us remember why we have been celebrating...Jesus is the heart of the holiday...Jesus, our "Emmanuel", God in the flesh, is with us, now and always...and that is certainly something to celebrate!

So good night my friends in blogland!

I pray that your Christmas was also blessed and filled with the grace and love of Christ!

Amen.

(And good night and thank you to Linda and her hubby Dave for coming to visit with us today and for making our Christmas even more special! May God bless you both with His peace and Joy and love in the New Year!)