Thankfulness Tea Party

Welcome, welcome!

Sorry for no pictures. my camera broke and has not been replaced yet.
(We can't have everything, so I won't sweat it.)

Come on in and join the fun.

The table is set with my best china, linens, and lace.

There are pretty papers, and pens for your lists in the basket with the purple bow on the handle.

We are having cucumber sandwiches, cheeses and fruit, and egg salad.

High end cookies, raspberry tarts, and spice cake.

Hot tea, herb tea, lemonade, or apple juice to drink.

I am thankful for good friends, near and far.
Good food, good health, house and home.
Sunny days, rainy days, cloudy days, all days.
Loved ones, friends, neighbors, and friends I've yet to meet.
Crafting fun, Ukulele playing, singing, dancing, walking in the woods.
Sitting with a good book, dreaming out the window, pleasant dreams.
Childrens laughter, funny jokes, happy memories, music that makes you want to dance.
Computer games, blogging, others blogs, communication.
And ever so much more.

Feel free to leave a comment with some of the things you are thankful for.

Enjoy your day.  I'm very happy you came to share your day with me.

Cold, Cold, Go Away!

Well if you live in the North Western Hemisphere you know about the deep cold we are experiencing in the East.

The icicles hanging from the house are not growing but being sanded away by the blowing dry sandy grains of icy snow in the wind.

The birds eat at the bird feeder in desperation.  Being knocked about by the high winds.  The warm water put out for them freezes before they all can get a drink.

I am warm and well.  Woodstoves work whether the lights are on or not.  As was proven when a tree came down on the power lines cutting us off.  The men took longer than they would have in warmer weather to fix it.  Because they needed to go into the truck and warm themselves in frequent bouts of time.

I didn't mind the time.  And I told them so.  I had warmth and candles.  They were working in the dark and wind on one of the most bitter cold nights in years.

I did have to give up wearing my Gothy clothing.  Layers of clothing whatever fits over the others to stay warm even in the house.  Stepping away from the wood stove you can feel the drop in temperature.  And you come back as quickly as you can to warm up again.

Warmer weather will come again.  I feel and grieve for those who have it worse than I do.  I hope that the mittens and hats I have made and given to the needy are still out there and helping in this cold.

I wish I could do so much more.

Next Sunday is the Thankfulness Tea Party.  I am thankful now for the good things I have right now keeping me warm and safe from the cold outside my door.

Even if you like winter sports, there is a point when it is just too cold.
Keep safe and warm all of you.

Upcoming Thankfulness Tea Party

Slow and steady wins the race.

Still moving slow but getting around more.

Things getting easier to do also.

I can see that I will be back to normal shortly.

I will be holding my yearly Thankfulness Tea Party again the last Sunday of the month.
February 22, 2015.
I hope you will join me.

Sorry for the short notice but it couldn't be helped.

You will need:
Paper, writing implement (Pen, pencil or the like), Some party foods of your choice, and a beverage (Tea is nice but not everyone likes it.)
Friends are optional and nice to have along.  As is soft music.

The goal is to have a good time writing down what you are thankful for in your life.  I also look back at past years after I am done with this years list and reflect.  Nice to see the movement in my life.  Goals, needs, desires, they change in time.

Remember what your life is about.  Who you are inside without the world telling you what you want to have around you.

Be thankful of the things that make your life good, easier, nicer, kinder, happier.

If you have friends and or loved ones as part of your tea party talk about the things that make you feel good together.

Feel free to post or host your own party and share your thankful thoughts with others here.

Life has its bad moments that we can't escape but we can offset them by being thankful for the better parts.

Hope you can all join me this year.

Getting Better All the Time

I am sorry things got to that point but sometimes you just can't predicted the future.

I got sick.  Put off going to the doctor.  I'd get better on my own like I've done before.

A week or two went by.

Then sicker.  Just a flu?  A virus maybe?  Just a few more days and I'll have this thing beat.

Another week or two more.

And sicker still.

Everything seemed to be going bad at once.

Gallbladder got involved, pancreas jumped on board.  Infections.  Complications.

Ambulance!  Hospital!  Medications.  Watching.  Waiting.

No food by mouth.  Weight loss.  Weakness.

Surgery!

Slow recovery.

Home.

Recover some more.

I lost 25 pounds the worse way.

Still a bit weak.  But home and happy to be alive.

I will try to post as often as I feel up to it.

I do hope that all is well with everyone out there.

Have a good day!  And be happy!  Life is good!  And getting better all the time!

One More Down

Because I've been troubled of late with broken family issues I did feel a small sigh of "Glad that is over." blues a bit by the end of the day.

My memory harkened back to large family gatherings at Grandma's house.  Good food!  Good conversation!  Good times!

Grandma was a wonder of diplomacy, strong but in a loving kind way, the kind of person you just wanted to be good for.  We all were better people at grandma's house, and we thanked her for it.  She was a good cook too.  (And she loved me for who I was.)

By the time she died, there were no less than 27 at her table(s) in her small little house for Thanksgiving.

Those lovely crammed holidays were wonderful.  We played together, laughed together, enjoyed each other.

I will always miss it...  Or maybe just miss her.

I am moving forward.  I know that I will get use to the fact that those days have been gone from my life for a long time now.  And that they are not coming back.

Mountain Man and I had a lovely time of our own yesterday.  We shared our little feast with the dog and cat.  We sat and watched the parade and football together.  We played a game.  We looked over the snowy landscape out the window and snuggled by the woodstove.

It wasn't a Grandma Thanksgiving, but it was wonderful in its own right.

I'm gonna' get the hang of this new life I have.  And I think I'll be a lot better for it.

Happy Thanksgiving Day to all

Have a Happy Thanksgiving all who are celebrating today.

And Then It Snowed Charlie Brown

Still sick but feeling some what better.

Snow for today 4 to 8 inches.  More, less?  I'm still staying inside this time around.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.

Today I'll rest.  Do a little decorating for tomorrow.

And dream up replacements, for the things I didn't shop for because I was sick, that were suppose to grace the table.

Let me see...

Apple Crumble for the Pumpkin Pie.

Cranberry Tea instead of Cranberry Sauce (Gotta have those Cranberries in there.)

Bread Pudding instead of Dressing.  (Grandma always made her bread pudding out of stale cake.  And I'm still too tired to bake bread from scratch.  I don't have one of those bread machine things.  And we're out of bread.)

And the rest I still have to figure out.

Thankful anyway.  We're gonna' have a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving around here this year.