Favorite Pictures of 2021

I spent part of my free time on Christmas working on (read: catching up) our 2021 scrapbook. In the wee hours of the morning, Ryan and I sat and looked at it, page by page, reliving everything we've done. (And it was a LOT!!!!)

Along the way, we giggled over a few pictures, so as we head into this week of recapping a year, I thought I'd spend today sharing some of our favorite pictures. Some are funny, some are meaningful...but all of them caused us to stop and point! I'm sure I've shared some of them in this space this year, but I don't think I've shared all of them!

* He always makes me laugh. Even when he's "warming his hands by the fire."

* This picture, though not the clearest quality, is easily one of my most favorite picture from my work at WillowBridge. I was reading a Bible study to our tenant and her little one, and they both cuddled up on me.

* Our town is lovely. Adorable in all the right ways. I snapped this one evening as I walked to the post office after a snow:

* Goodbyes are so hard. I took this picture of us on the last Sunday he lived in our building. I knew that getting to see him every single day was drawing to a close, and my heart ached.

* We had a going-away party for our tenant and her son, and we wanted to get a cake for them. Unfortunately, Justine couldn't find a cake with writing on it, so she tried to add a message. All of us (including Justine) have laughed and laughed over this!

* The first time he came back after he moved out, and he saw Ryan's face...ahhhhhhhhh!!! My heart!!! He loves Ryan SO MUCH.

* At Tim and Justine's going-away party, Rob and Tim had a face-off with a spicy food eating challenge. Rob was confident that he had this contest in the bag, and Tim was nervous. Hilarious part? Tim handled the thing without even turning red, and Rob? Well...

* How in the world do I even pick photos from our trip out west this summer? There were too many favorites to count! But one of the things Ryan looked forward to most on this trip was learning to drive the oxen, and he did just that! Watching him live out a dream was so fun!

* My sweet little great-niece and nephew live a thousand miles from us. Getting to see them (meet him for the first time) and interact with them made for a handful of my favorite pictures!

* Just makes me laugh.

* Long days, short nights...I fell asleep in the community room!

* From our visit to the zoo. Yeah. I feel ya, buddy:

* Phoebe takes the wheel...

* One of my favorite pictures of Abby, taken by Ryan:

* This girl. She's my buddy, and though I thought about choosing a picture to share, I'm actually going to share a video. Ryan took this one night after I went out the door to go pick up a tenant at work. Apparently she missed me. I watch this ALL THE TIME when I need a pick-me-up.

* Pretty much EVERY picture of Lexi is my favorite!

It's been a good year with fun pictures. I'm grateful!

Sunday Sentiments

 

Did yesterday NOT seem like Saturday to anyone else? One of the perils of our job is that we rarely know what day it is, because our weekends fall all over the week. I'm not sure if it was because we went to church Friday night or because we worked Christmas, but between the two (or maybe from something else entirely), I'm really going to have to remind myself that today is Sunday!!

I hope you had a good Christmas yesterday! I'll be very transparent with you and tell you that working Christmas was hard. It just sort of hit me out of nowhere. I thought I was prepared and then I wasn't! It wasn't so much that we were alone; I thoroughly enjoy my time with Ryan, so that's never an issue. But it was just strange to be working on my most favorite holiday. And because we are getting a dog, we elected not to get each other gifts this year. (All our Lexi gear = our gifts.) Unfortunately I discovered yesterday that it made me incredibly sad to give him nothing. 

Nothing might be an exaggeration. I did scrounge up a thrifted coffee mug a couple of days ago and tucked it in the bottom of his stocking. That did bring me some comfort. 

We made a meal for the tenant who was in and out throughout the day, and we spent the rest of the day going back and forth between work and rest. 

But it was just a strange, strange Christmas. 

It's probably how Mary and Joseph felt that first Christmas. No amount of heart-preparation for the birth of the Child could have prepared them for the actual event. I'm sure Mary wasn't fully prepared for that long trip, no matter how much she told herself she was. And no place to stay? And a baby in a manger? Shepherds for visitors? 

You can't prepare for any of that. 

Perhaps some of the things we can't prepare ourselves for (no matter how hard we try) are the very things that most mold, shape, and define us. 

Because of our strange day yesterday, Ryan and I were able to have some great conversations about issues that matter deeply to us right now.

Maybe yesterday wasn't the Christmas you expected either. Maybe it wasn't the one you hoped for. But maybe it wasn't a totally lost cause. Maybe it was the day you needed, even if you couldn't see it. (Maybe you still can't see it.)

Sending much love to all of you...and may today be beautiful. 

A Christmas Saturday Six!

 

One.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, MY FRIENDS!!! I am going to guess that most of you are knee deep in celebrations today and I don't expect you to be here reading! But if you are, I wanted you to have something to see! To kick off today's list...I found this idea for fun ideas for a kids' table at Christmas. They're printables, and I'm guessing you probably have most of the supplies on hand if you have kids at home. Thought it might be a fun last minute idea for today's Christmas table - or something for celebrations coming in the next week or so, if you're celebrating after Christmas!

Two.

Callie made a great list of Christmas books for kids. Since today IS Christmas, it might be a little too late for this year, but if you want to start a tradition for next year, this might spark some ideas. Great gift idea, too, if you have friends with kids! (And if you aren't opposed to such a thing, you might be able to find some of these second-hand!) 

Three.

If you're looking ahead to organize your January, because it starts in a week, you know, here are some ideas to help you with that!! I really do love a new year and a fresh start, so this post made my heart sing!!

Four.

There are some great hacks in here for storing Christmas decor! Since some of you might be starting your UN-decorating adventure in the next few days, I thought I'd share them!

Five.

It hasn't been super cold here yet, but I have no doubt it's coming. I think these ideas for a hygge January are GREAT. Let's do them all!!!

Six.

And to leave you with the merriest kind of Christmas I know how to share, enjoy my favorite rendition of O Holy Night - by David Phelps, of course. The piano is as amazing as his singing. 

What's in Your Phone??

 

Before I get to today's post, I have a disclaimer on one of my "this or that" stories from yesterday. Mom wanted you all to know that our family room was in our basement. She feared you might think she made me watch TV next to a furnace in a scary, spider-infested unfinished basement and that was not the case. I knew that, of course, but if you've not been in their home, you don't know that, so I wanted to clarify so as not to besmirch their good names. :) 

And now...to today.

I had so much fun with Christmas This or That yesterday (and I had fun hearing your replies in comments and via texts) that I thought I'd play one more Christmas game today! You can play along too, if you want, and tell me your score! Today's game is a Christmas version of What's on Your Phone?

So...pull out your phone and let's play! (I'll show you some of my picture answers along the way.)

Give yourself ONE POINT for each of the following things if you have them on your phone.

* A photo from your camera roll as your lock screen. (Here's the photo I have on my lock screen.)

* You have a video saved. (I do, and here is the most recent one! Ryan was taking it for our one-second-per-day video clip and I didn't know why he was filming so long, so I started making funny faces.)

* A selfie. (I do, and here is the most recent one. Can you tell we had a visitor yesterday?)

* More than ten contacts. (Trust me. I do.)

* A protective case. (It's a must for me, and here is one that is very similar to the one I have! Ryan gifted it to me for our anniversary in 2019, so it's officially two years old now!) 

* Facebook app. (Nope! I deleted it many months ago and have not missed it a bit. I still have Facebook, but it's a very toxic space for me anymore, so I don't interact on there much.)

* Instagram app. (Yep!) 

* Picture of your kids. (These are going to have to count, because these are my kids!)

* Family Photo. (Check!)

* Give yourself one point for each person you texted today. Well, today I texted Sarah (my co-worker), Justine (my former co-worker), Mom, Ryan, my friend Amber, both my sisters, and my friend Kari, so that makes eight!

* Game app. (Check! I have had Solitaire on my phone for a while and recently downloaded Wordscapes, too.) 

Total points in this category? For me: 18.

Give yourself TWO POINTS for each of the following things if you have them on your phone.

* Text from today with the word Christmas in it. (YES!!!! My mom saved me on this one. She texted me earlier to ask about a Christmas game.)

* Pinterest app. (Of course.)

* Battery is more than 50%. (I had to giggle at this. I panic if my battery goes below 90%. Ryan laughs at me about it. I'm currently at 74% and charging.)

* Saved Christmas gift list. (I'm going to give myself just one point for this. I do have a picture of a list saved, but it's just a general gift list, not a specific Christmas gift list. I did use it to buy a Christmas gift, though!) 

* Photo of someone in the snow. (I do! I have a picture from last winter when Ryan was teaching one of our tenants to use a snow blower. She was SO EXCITED!)

* Zero unread text messages. (Check! I try really hard not to have that little red notification, but sometimes I do get behind!)

* Pandora or a music app. (I am probably the only person in the world who does not have a music app or playlist of any kind. I don't use my phone for music.)

* Two or more kid apps. (Nope. Zero.)

* Current to-do lists. (Nope. I write mine on paper.)

* Photo of outside Christmas decor. (I do! My most recent picture of this was from our trip to the Opryland Hotel during our anniversary trip.)

* Photo of baby not related to you. (Are you ready for another picture of yesterday's visitor??)

* Etsy app. (Nope. I love Etsy, but I don't have the app.)

Total points in this category: For me: 15. (It should be an even number, but remember I gave myself just one point on that one answer.)

Give yourself FIVE POINTS for each of the following things if you have them on your phone.

* Photo of your pet. (Well, obviously. See above! But since you probably need to see them again...)

* Zero unread emails. (Sigh. I have sixteen.)

* Ringtone is a Christmas song. (I actually have no idea what my ringtone is - other than to know it is not a song at all. My volume is never on, so I don't use a ringtone.)

* 5 or more saved voicemails. (I actually have 21 of them. And I have no idea why ANY of them are saved.)

* Cracked screen or case. (YES! I do have a small crack on my screen protector. Ryan offered to replace it, but it's just one small crack and I hated to waste a whole new one when this is fine.)

* Alarm is set. (Three of them, actually. One for weekdays, one for Saturdays, and one for Sundays!)

* Christmas app. (Sadly, no.)

* An event for today in your calendar. (I don't use my phone for a calendar, so nope.)

* Photo of Christmas decor. (Yes! I took a picture of the WillowBridge tree on Saturday before our Christmas party!)

* Made a call before 7 a.m. today. (Are you KIDDING ME? First of all, I wasn't up then. I wasn't even up before 8 today. And I don't do calls before 9.)

* Christmas photo background. (Nope.) 

Total points for this category. For me? 25.

And finally, give yourself TEN POINTS for each of the following things if you have them in your phone.

* Over 1000 photos. (I have 2962.)

* Contact starting with a Z. (Apparently I do! I have a phone number for a sweet lady I used to go to church with - and her last name starts with Z!)

* Don't have an iPhone. (But I do.)

* Unopened voicemail. (Nope.)

* More than 200 contacts. (I was today years old when I learned I have 513 contacts.)

* Red or green phone case. (Nope.)

Total points for this category. For me? 30.

TOTAL POINTS FOR THE WHOLE GAME? For me? 88.

Any of you beat me????

Christmas This or That

Yesterday we had one SOLID day of meetings. S.O.L.I.D. My brain was mush by the end of the day, and it was our first day back after our weekend. That can't bode well, can it? ;) 

So in light of my inability to craft deep thoughts, let's have some Christmas fun today with...Christmas This or That!

1. Star or Angel?

I used to have angels on top of my tree, but I found two things to be problematic. One, my trees were tall enough that I was basically looking up their robe/nose, which is really not ideal. Two, they tended to be wing heavy and always looked like they were fainting off the back of the tree. So we use stars around here! They tend to stand up better. (And in full disclosure, one of our trees has a giant glittery red "S" on top.)

2. Egg Nog or Hot Cocoa?

We are a house divided on this one. I'm team hot cocoa and Ryan is team egg nog. I have tried egg nog before (the non-alcoholic variety) and just don't care for the flavor or the texture. He usually gets one carton of it each year, but I don't think he has this year! But give me all the hot cocoa - with whipped cream. Mmmmmm.

3. Candy Canes or Chocolates?

Do I really need to answer this? Chocolates, please!!! Mint gives me a headache, so it's definitely a chocolate answer for me. 

4. Christmas Day or Christmas Eve?

I am a Christmas Day girl all the way. I am a firm believer in holidays being celebrated on the actual day. Now, to be fair, if you want to add extra days and extra celebration, that's certainly fine. Just don't ask me to ignore the day. Ryan and I are working Christmas Day this year, which will be SO WEIRD. I've never done that before. But even though all our family celebrations are done, we will still enjoy our day together - with tenants!

5. Bake Cookies or Sing Carols?

Oh my. Cookies! I do love Christmas carols, but I can't sing! Baking? I can do that, and I did do it this year! I made cut out Christmas tree sugar cookies, and they were so yummy. I used to do a whole huge baking day every single year. I'd take a vacation day from work and load my kitchen counters with bags and bags of ingredients and bake from 8 am until midnight. I would generally hate food and not be able to feel my feet by the end of it, but it was so fun. One of these years I'm gonna do that again.

6. Wrap Gifts or Open Gifts?

I actually love both! In the string of this being a weird year in a lot of ways, I will tell you that I actually wrapped all our gifts in bags this year. I have never done that in my adult life. I always buy themed wrapping paper and do a big matchy-match thing. I had all the paper, but I had all these bags that were just gathering dust. I also had no time to wrap, so I decided to just bag them this year and save my pretty paper for next year. Also in fun trivia: Ryan is actually a MUCH better gift wrapper than I am. Like astonishingly so. I'm not bad. He's just that good! So around here, I think I'd rather open what he wrapped! ;)

7. Real Tree or Fake Tree?

Again...both. I love the fake trees for their sturdiness. (They can hold heavy ornaments like a champ!) But I do love the nostalgia of a real tree and it's been an annual tradition for us since our first year of marriage. I do think, lo these many years into marriage, that I have concluded a small live tree works best for us. We'll use artificial trees for our larger trees. But I do love my little Charlie Brown tree in the corner. 

8. The Grinch or Charlie Brown?

Speaking of Charlie Brown! :) I grew up watching both cartoons every year, and I have super fond memories of both. They usually aired on a weeknight, as I recall, and it was not typical for me to get to watch TV close to bedtime on a school night. But on those nights I would take a bath and get ready for bed and then curl up in the basement (where the only TV in our house was located) and watch while the wood burning stove kept me warm! All that to say...I loved them both, but I would pick Charlie Brown.

9. Sugar Cookies or Gingerbread?

I don't dislike gingerbread, but I grew up on sugar cookies, and they really are my favorite. For as much as I love chocolate, I admit that if presented with a choice between a chocolate chip cookie and a frosted sugar cookie, I'm absolutely taking the sugar cookie.

10. Go Ice Skating or Go Sledding?

Well until a couple of years ago, I hadn't done either! Ryan and I went ice skating on our anniversary trip in 2019 when we went to WinterFest at King's Island. I was terrified of it and though I held my own and did NOT fall down, I was also quite terrible at it. Last winter we went sledding on the hill here in town, and THAT was more fun for me. I still was a granny about it, but it was fun!

11. Pajamas or Sweater?

PAJAMAS!!! Sweaters make me so warm and itchy. Jammies are just like a hug in clothing. I'll pick the jammies every time. (I may or may not have appeared in front of a coworker in Christmas jammies the other day. I figured it was okay since people actually purposely go out in them around Christmas time.)

12. Ham or Turkey?

HAM!!!! We had it at both meals on Sunday and it's on the menu for Christmas day, too! I just can't with the turkey. 

So how about you? Any faves here?

Candles in Windows

At my family Christmas gathering on Sunday, my parents gifted me a set of battery-operated candles for our apartment windows.

Years ago, when Ryan's mom was cleaning out her stash of stuff in her house, she gave me two candles for my windows. I loved how they looked and wished I had enough to fill all the windows. I guess candles just fell into the category of things I never got around to buying, but this year I found a set online and put them on my list. And now...I own them!

Ryan's mom always had candles in the windows at the cabin, and I think those added to my fondness for them. I remember all those long, cold winter nights when we stayed with her during her illness. She'd go to bed, and the house would fall dark and quiet as we tried to allow her to rest. She usually called for Ryan many times after he tucked her in, but we still kept the place as still as we could, hoping she'd feel comfortable enough to sleep for a while.

I'd walk through the living room and kitchen, watching down the lane for Allen's truck lights to swing around the corner. My own eyelids would be heavy from the log day and late night, but as I walked around, I'd pause to appreciate the soft flickering of those window candles.

They brought about a comfort I couldn't explain. 

Maybe it's because we're hovering in the week of the winter solstice when the nights are especially dark especially early. Maybe it's because we're in the thick of working through hard things with tenants. Maybe it's because I need a special dose of heart-comfort. Whatever the reason, I find myself drawn to homes that have these sweet welcoming lights in the windows. Homes that draw my eye with a reminder of homes I've known.

Whatever the reason, I'm excited to be able to add this same soft glow to our own home here at WillowBridge. I want to come home in the evenings, see the lights, and know that I'm home. 

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for our little candles. A homemaker is always making home, and now ours is a little sweeter. 

Christmas with Lexi

We had all our Christmas celebrations over the weekend, but we just couldn't call it a year without one important Christmas visit!

LEXI!!!!!

We traveled to see her yesterday, and oh my, how she's grown in the last week and a half or so! Her little eyes are open now, and she is such a little snuggle muffin! 

Think you can handle some pictures??

We spent about an hour with her, snuggling and getting little puppy baths from her. And before we left, they were so kind to get our first picture with her!!

Oh my heart!!!

We just cannot WAIT to have Lexi home with us, and seeing her this week completed our Christmas!

Different, But Sweet

We had all of our Christmas celebrations this weekend. 

Ryan and I are scheduled to work Christmas Eve and Day, so our celebrations came early this year. There were three small gatherings - one with our WillowBridge family, one with my family, and one with Ryan's family.

Last year was our first year to celebrate Christmas with WillowBridge, and the evening was full of pictures, giggles, and loud exclamations of joy. That's what happens when you have a building of girls who love glitter, unicorns, and tearing into gifts. 

This year, our tenants are all guys, and it was a bit harder to figure out how to make the evening special for them. We hoped they'd like their gifts, but we just met some of them, so we're still learning their likes and dislikes. (And we learned that guys make much shorter wish lists than girls!) We organized some games, but we didn't know how excited they'd be about playing them. (Turns out that Minute to Win It games are good choices for the all-guy crowd.)

But you know what? It was a good night. They devoured the breakfast food, they had fun with the games, and they seemed to like their gifts, even though they didn't squeal and pose for pictures with each opened bag. The night still felt like a success, though. I hope somewhere in the fellowship, the reading of Luke 2, the prayer, and the gifts shared, they felt loved. I hope they felt for a moment that they were part of a family celebration, even though we aren't related by blood. 

My family celebration was small this year, but it was a good day. My mom worked hard to prepare the meal - and even though my sister and I offered to help pitch in with food, she wanted to do it all! Everything was delicious, and we sat around after, sharing the gifts we bought for each other. We came home with a stack of memories and pictures to accompany them.

It's been years now since my grandparents were alive and our family Christmases extended to that generation and to my aunt, uncle, and cousins. We've been a small gathering for the last several years, but I'm grateful we can still get together and carry on our traditions! 

And then we gathered with Ryan's siblings for the first time without either Allen or Nita leading the way. Ryan's sisters planned the evening with the traditional breakfast foods. Ryan's brother-in-law took over cooking the pancakes that Allen always made. Ryan led the prayer and a couple of the grandsons read Luke 2. And Allen's mom joined us, which was as good for her as it was for all the kids, I think!

So it was a different kind of year. But even with all the different, it was a good and memorable year. I love tradition as much as the next person, but I think there's always a danger that we get so caught up in duplicating each year from the one before that we miss the beauty of the different. 

Maybe you have some different-looking days ahead of you this year too. Maybe some difficult ones. It's certainly okay to grieve the losses and hurts, but I still encourage you to look for the moments of beauty in there. I'm grateful for the ones we found this weekend!