Reindeer surgery

Goodness gracious, y'all, the Christmas decorating has been going on for weeks now! I was not-so-patiently waiting on a second set of champagne gold picks to deliver so I could finish the tree. Then there was the front porch to wrangle. After a lot of back and forth, I decided it just didn't look complete even though it's not a large space. So I ordered one of those fancy garland tension rods that practically requires an engineering degree to assemble and install. Next was the purchase of three garland swags, because I wanted a few different types of greenery to make it look realistic. And let's not forget the lights plus several different ribbon options to make layered bows. Now I recall why I've never bothered with a front porch garland in the past!

The last item to check off my Christmas decorating list was the fireplace mantel. Way back in October I ordered pretty velvet stockings in jewel tones with our names. But after leaving them hanging up for over a week, I decided it just wasn't the look I wanted. Maybe another year, or in a different space; and so they went into storage. Thankfully, I ran across these fuzzy, cream-colored stockings below, and they had the six I needed. So I snatched them up at 60% off, and then ordered custom name tags from an Etsy shop to hang on them. 

All that left was the mantel top. I was already armed with cedar and Norfolk pine garlands. A couple weeks ago I picked up some interesting looking champagne colored balls that appear as if they're covered in ice. Gotta have different textures, right. I also bought some fern-shaped picks that were flocked to give a snowy look. But what about a larger focal piece for either side of the oryx mount above the mantel? 

My sister-in-law sent me the pic above of some Christmas deer she saw in Michael's. Thinking it might be just the magic needed for that space, I ordered two of them since our local store was sold out. Unfortunately, one of the deer was poorly wrapped and arrived with both of its rear feet broken. I hauled it back to the store for a refund and placed another online order for a new one. The replacement deer arrived with a big dent in the side of the box, which had me worried. And sure enough, one of the antlers had snapped off in transit. Which was so disappointing because I wanted that mantel done yesterday. Since it was a clean break, I decided to whip out my Gorilla Glue and reattach the antler. After it cured overnight, I got the mantel completed with the help of my neighbor friend since she was already planning to come over to assist me with putting icicle lights on the boathouse. We ended up having to recruit her husband to come help us with the icicle lights, which was such a blessing since I couldn't have done it on my own. 

At this point, if it hasn't been put out or hung up somewhere, then it didn't make the cut for Christmas 2025. Put a fork in me, y'all, because I'm done with thinking about and wrestling with holiday decorations. The halls have been decked with as much time and money as I'm willing to invest in creating seasonal ambiance for family and friends. Plus the 120ish folks from the women's club roaming through my house as part of our holiday fundraiser. Stay tuned for some pics of my house now that it is FINALLY ready for the women's club Christmas showcase tour debut in a few days.

Santa's little helper

Every year, the benevolence foundation in our community hosts a big fundraiser and then uses the proceeds to lend a hand to those who are unable to care for themselves - children, individuals with disabilities, and the elderly. This plays out in a variety of ways. 

For Christmas, the foundation taps volunteers for shopping in order to provide gifts for parents to present to their children. I was asked to help this year since I've gotten involved in the women's club, and was assigned seven-year-old Oliviah. With no grandchildren to spoil yet, I had a fun time rounding up clothes and toys for her. I got it all wrapped so I could deliver my bag of gifts to the coordinator in advance of them being dropped off with the mother. Oh what fun, y'all.

Then a week later, I picked a 7 and 8-year-old girl from our church's angel tree. I once again enjoyed the opportunity to play Santa Claus for the younger set. So I made a trip into town to do some more shopping, including the purchase of a couple extra rolls of wrapping paper, to get these little ladies all set with gifts for Christmas. After wrangling rolls of decorative paper, ribbon and tape to wrap 40 boxes, I THOUGHT I had finished my seasonal volunteer projects. 

Lo and behold, I got a call to ask if I'd be able to donate new tennis shoes for two local kiddos in need. So I toodled into town once again to a sporting goods store to buy some sweet kicks I think they'll like. I got their shoe boxes looking festive as you can see below. All that leaves is for me to drop them off with my friend spearheading the shoe drive through our women's Bible study group. And that, folks, wraps up my Christmas philanthropy. I praise God for His reminder that it's always better to give than receive this holiday season when we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I hope you're all finding ways to be the hands and feet of Jesus this Christmas in your community, to bless others as God has blessed you!

In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: "It is more blessed to give than to receive."  Acts 20:35 (NIV)

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.  Hebrews 13:16 (ESV)

Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his deed.  Proverbs 19:17 (ESV)

Dog gone cold lately

After months of sweating my you-know-what off, it seems that winter weather has finally arrived in Texas. Don't get me wrong. I'm sure our temps may well creep back up into that gray area where we, in theory, could wear shorts even though the calendar says it's December. And yet I really hope we stay on the cooler side as we creep closer to Christmas.

With colder temps kicking in, I decided to put fleece jackets on the dogs. Finn got red, while Pepper sported pink. They looked so stinkin' cute. And honestly didn't seem to mind. The material is pretty stretchy, so I didn't have to make them do any crazy contortions to get the fleece on or off. 

Bible study presentation

I recently had the opportunity to present a lesson on Sapphira from Acts 5 to my Monday Bible study ladies group. We've been working our way through "Bad Girls of the Bible" this fall, and I've really enjoyed it. This book has been a great reminder that we've all got some bad girl in us. We may not be bad to the bone like Jezebel. But we have all weathered either bad for a season or bad for a moment times in our lives. Times when we've drifted from the Lord and gone our own way instead of walking with Him.

Fortunately, I had almost two months to prepare my 45 minute presentation. And so I felt more excited than nervous when I miked-up and got rolling with it. I continue to be amazed at what our Almighty God shows me when I slow down and really dig into His word. Honestly, I attribute this to participating in Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) for years now. When you progress through the Bible line-by-line, you uncover layers of truth that are always applicable to your particular circumstances since scripture equips us to know God and understand His ways. 

God's word is eternal, and His truths are evident throughout the pages of the Bible. If you're looking for an easily understood and relatable translation, I highly recommend the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. You can find lots of NIV options on Amazon. And if you'd like to really prepare for the wonder of Christmas this year, I encourage you to commit to reading one chapter of Luke per day in December since there are 24 chapters that will get you to Christmas Eve. I've done this for several years, and I love revisiting the story of Jesus' life from Dec 1-24. 

For the word of God is alive and active.  Hebrews 4:12

The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.  Isaiah 40:8

Thanksgiving in the hill country

The dogs and I made the trek back to our hill country house for Thanksgiving week. We were greeted by gaggles of the usual deer, and this fellow below was ambling along the perimeter fence on our five acres. While I was back at our old stomping ground, I had to get some "maintenance" work done. You know, things like an eye exam and a trip to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. Plus I finally needed to pack up some of the winter clothes and shoes in my hill country closet. So I'll be hauling back a trunk full of that stuff to the lake house.

The holiday lighting company we've used for the past seven years doesn't provide service at the lake house since we're just a bit too far from the DFW metroplex where they do work. Therefore, I asked a few of my lake neighbors who they recommend and settled on a new company to make the exterior treetops glisten. I'm happy to report that our house and trees are all bedecked in my preferred red and white candy cane scheme for the holiday season. And I especially love how the lights on the tree down near the retaining wall are even more impressive since they reflect off the water.

As you can see above, I'm now left with three boxes full of the lights used on our hill country trees and fencing that were delivered by the old lighting company recently. I'm trying to farm them out to a friend who has daughters with new homes that would like to do some exterior lighting this Christmas. I love that I'm enabling others to deck their halls (and trees), too!

We spent Thanksgiving day at my husband's brother and his wife's beautiful home over in San Marcos. She's a talented hostess, and the feast she prepares is always amazing. Honestly, she could give Martha Stewart a run for her money with the holiday decor and food presentation. It's always a treat to get an invitation for any holidays she hosts for the family.

I hope this Thanksgiving finds all of you happily enjoying the holiday with those who mean the most to you. I pray you are able to gather and celebrate all of the many blessings the Lord has bestowed on you in the past year. Praise God that He is faithful, even when I am not, that His love and mercy shine down on me and guide my path for His glory. That's what I'm most grateful for in this season of thankfulness.

Happy one year anniversary!

We're creeping up on the CPA daughter's one year wedding anniversary. I recently decided to have her wedding dress and veil cleaned and then preserved. It has been living in the closet of an upstairs bedroom at our hill country house since last year's ceremony. With us slowly purging and then moving the contents of our hill country house to the lake, or storage, it was past time to get this taken care of so she'd have it as a keepsake for any daughters they might have. 

I've also got their wedding cake's top layer stored in my guest house freezer. Curious about where the tradition of saving the top tier started, I looked it up. Per my internet search, it originated in Great Britain during the 18th and 19th centuries where couples would save the fruitcake tier to be eaten at the christening of their first child, believed to occur within the first year of marriage. Today the tradition has evolved to a celebration for the couple's first anniversary, with the saved cake enjoyed by the couple as a way to commemorate their wedding day. Our daughter chose the rich flavors of espresso, chocolate and ganache for that top tier, so hopefully when it thaws the cake will have retained its original flavor. Because seriously, what's better than some wedding cake from one of the best Austin bakeries?!

Santa Claus is lake bound

It's mid-November, so you know what that means, right? It's time for me to start decking the halls for Christmas. And I've enjoyed a lot of decorating in the past week even though it's a more time consuming task at the lake house since it's our first holiday here. Fortunately, unpacking boxes to reveal all of my holiday treasures always puts a smile on my face. 

Thus far the only real thorn in my side has been the tree. I swear I spent a solid 5-6 hours working on my brand new nine foot slim spruce and it STILL looked as if it was only about half done. But thankfully, 45 royal blue velvet sphere picks later and it's looking a bit closer to finished. I'm HO-HO-HOping the glitter pine tree picks I ordered will be the finishing touch that closes out the tree saga I've got going. 

If you're an oldie like me, you'll understand my reference to Norm from the "Cheers" sitcom that ran through the 80s. The folks at Hobby Lobby, Michael's, Home Goods and At Home should be calling out my name and rolling out the red carpet since I've frequented their stores more times than I care to recall in the past week. And I'd swear the gold glitter strewn across so much of the holiday decor available is mocking me because every time I try wiping up some of the shiny little tidbits, I turn around and find more. It's like that stuff multiplies before your eyes. 'Tis the season, y'all!