Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to MARCH!!!! My header picture this month is a photo I took of the pretty Crocus blooms in our yard... The Crocuses and Daffodils are the first signs of spring here in Tennessee. I am definitely ready for SPRING...

Monday, December 22, 2014

Merry Christmas to YOU


My hope and my prayer for each of you is that you have a fantastic and blessed Christmas this year.  I will close with this interesting poem about Christmas.

Let Me Not Keep Christmas  
by Linda Felver

Let me not wrap, stack, box, bag, tie, tag, bundle, seal, keep Christmas.

Christmas kept is liable to mold.
 

Let me give Christmas away, unwrapped, by exuberant armfuls.
 

Let me share, dance, live Christmas unpretentiously, merrily, responsibly with overflowing hands, tireless steps and sparkling eyes.
 

Christmas given away will stay fresh—even until it comes again.

+++++++++
Many Blessings to you and yours...

 Big Hugs,

Monday, December 15, 2014

Christmas at our Home

Our Nativity --what Christmas is all about!
Since I haven't been able to get around and take many pictures this year,  I will share some of the pictures from past years showing Christmas in and around our Home. Hope you enjoy the pictures and hope you are having a wonderful December in your home.


Our Treetop Angel on our tree



Part of my big Angel Collection



Some of my WILLOW ANGELS



Some of my Bird Ornaments



You can see the entire front of our home in my Header Photo at the top--but this is a close-up of the front of the house.



Our Front Porch



Our Deck --looking toward the Arbor (Bird Kitchen)



Our home at Christmas from the Back Yard



Our Tree at Night



The bottom of our Tree ... 



Our Tree on Christmas Morning,  2013



Some pictures of us on  Christmas Morning,  2012



Christmas Pictures of Us on Christmas Morning,  2013

Hope you enjoyed seeing some of our Christmas Photos today.  Even though 2014 will be remembered as a 'different' year for sure,  I'm still positive that we will enjoy Christmas just as much as in past years...

About the Word Verification,  I truly do NOT want to change to the Embedded option (which I despise).  Of the three options,  I still like the Pop-Up Window the best.  It is so much simpler when scrolling back and forth in someone's blog while commenting. Hopefully,  Blogger will fix this problem.  I cannot stand Word Verification and I'm sure most of you agree.  In the meantime,  you do NOT have to type in the numbers on Word Verification.  Just scroll down and hit PUBLISH... That will work!!!!  Thanks.

I should get results from last week's MRI sometime this week,  so I will keep you posted.  I'm still in pain --but I'm sure there will be a light at the end of this tunnel,  if I only can be patient!!!!  God Bless ALL of you and thanks for your prayers.

We Wish You a Merry♪♫•*¨*•.¸¸♥ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪ Christmas♪♫•*¨*•.¸¸♥ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪We Wish You a Merry ♪♫•*¨*•.¸¸♥ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪Christmas ♥ ♥ ♥We Wish You A Merry ♪♫•*¨*•.¸¸♥ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪Christmas ♪♫•*¨*•.¸¸♥ ¸¸.•*¨*•♫♪ And a Happy New Year!!! Seasons Greetings to everyone........

Hugs,

Monday, December 8, 2014

Christmas, Friends, and Me

Happy December to YOU...  I love December and CHRISTMAS....  This year,  however,  I will celebrate it differently than most years...  But first I will share with you a couple of pictures from last year...  Above is one of our three outdoor wreaths in the front of our home  (Note the header photo at the top)...   Isn't this wreath pretty?


This is a picture from the Opry Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee.  I love this HUGE Poincettia bloom.  It's quite creative,  don't you think?




Bill,  Diane,  Rob,  Kathy at our home
Recently,  we met two more SPECIAL Blog Friends....  AND---these special friends are from AUSTRALIA.... How neat is that!!!!    We met Diane Bohlen (click HERE for her blog),  her husband, Bill (click HERE for his blog),  and their friends Rob and Kathy  (click HERE for Kathy's Blog). 

Diane and I have been blog friends for several years --and it was fantastic to meet her/them...  I hadn't met Rob and Kathy before --but am now following Kathy's Blog.

The group were on their way to the Smoky Mountains for a few days.  SO--they stopped by our home and spent a couple of hours here with us... We had hoped to meet them the next day in the Smokies  to show them around that gorgeous area.  HOWEVER,  the weather didn't cooperate AT ALL... It turned bitterly cold and we ended up with ICE here on the plateau... Needless to say,  we had to cancel our visit... BUT--while reading their blog posts,  it appears that they enjoyed their time in the Smokies DESPITE the weather... I hope they will all come back in a different season!!!!


Here  is a picture of me and my special Auzzie Friend,  Diane  (Adventures Before Dementia)....  She's such an incredible lady ---and we really enjoyed seeing each other. George and I have now met 21 of our blog friends in person... VERY SPECIAL to US.



Here's a picture of Bill,  Diane,  George and me.    Amazing when one meets a blog friend,  it feels as if we have known each other FOREVER...  It was magical --and I am so pleased that the four of these friends came to visit us!!!!!  I apologize for our terrible weather the week they were in our area...  Oh Well---I certainly cannot control that... ha

Finally,  here's the latest update on ME and my terrible KNEE PAIN.
-Nov. 21----Hurt my left knee (same knee I had  Meniscus Surgery on in 2010)
-Nov. 24--- To the Doctor  (got pain medication and an anti-inflammatory med for the swelling)
-Nov. 26--- Thought the knee was getting better,  but 'pulled' something AGAIN that night;  The knee pain got worse and worse throughout the rest of that week.
-Dec. 1--Back to the Doctor  (new pain medication --so that I can sleep, and an MRI set up)
-Dec. 11--MRI

As my Facebook Friends will tell you,  I am trying hard to KEEP a good ATTITUDE through all of this... And--I do know that things could definitely be MUCH worse.   But--I'll admit that it's not easy at times because of the pain.   BUT--with prayers and love from people like you,  and with God's help,  I'll make it through all of this...

AND most of all,  let me say something you already know..  Without George,  I'm not sure how I could get through this especially this time of year.  He is WONDERFUL --and has helped with so many things,  such as decorating our Christmas tree,  etc...  We are determined to have a wonderful Christmas ---and even though I'm SITTING most of the time,  I am sure that I'll look back on this month knowing that I truly do have tons and tons of blessings in my life...

I will keep you posted --but probably won't blog too much this month.  I did have fun putting up my December header/blog colors/appearance, etc... I also have all NEW QUOTES on my sidebar for you to enjoy.

AND---I put a couple of Christmas photos on my other blog  (click HERE for my Photo Blog) so check it out when you have time.

Blogger has automatically added Word Verification to my blogs now--even though my settings say NO.  BUT--you don't have to type in the numbers.  Just hit publish!  Anyone else having trouble like this?????

Hugs and thanks for your thoughts and prayers,

 

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving


Today in our country is a special day,  our Thanksgiving.  This is a time for families/friends  to get together and celebrate their love and their lives with one another.  We all have so much to be THANKFUL for --and yet,  so often,  we dwell on our hard/bitter/unhappy/angry times.

No matter where you live today,  take some time to think about your life and all that you do have to be thankful for.  May God richly bless each and everyone of you not only on this very special day---but also on each and every  day all year long!!!

UPDATE on my Knee/Leg Pain:  I did go to the doctor --and am now on some medications for the pain and for the swelling/inflammation..  Once the swelling goes down some (if I am still having problems),  I will have an MRI to see what is going on.  I'm still  hoping that it's just a strain/sprain.... I am taking some time off from Blogging --to work on some Family History while I am SITTING....   I'll be back with an update in a week or two... God Bless ALL of you...

I love this quote:  “Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have—life itself.” ~ Walter Anderson

Hugs to all,

Monday, November 24, 2014

Rose Buds in our Yard --during September, 2014 (and a Prayer Concern)

Sundance Rose (taken on 9/2/14)
Several of you have talked about how much you like  Rose BUDS----so I decided to give you a blog post showing JUST some of our beautiful roses in BUD-form.  Our Roses are GONE until May ---so I'll just have to enjoy all of our photos during the winter... Hope you enjoy more of our Roses.  Be sure to click on them for enlargements.


Paradise Rose (9/2/14)



Milestone Rose  (9/2/14)



Tahitian Sunset Rose (9/2/14)



Double Delight Rose (9/3/14)



Acapella Roses (Twins)  9/3/14



Francis Meilland Rose (9/3/14)



Summer Surprise Rose  (9/3/14)



Ronald Reagan Rose  (9/10/14)



Perfect Moment Rose  (9/11/14)



Welcome Home Rose  (9/14/14)



Pink Promise Rose (9/15/14)



Apricot Nectar Rose (9/16/14)



Soft Whisper Rose (9/27/14)



Peace Rose (9/29/14)
I could show you MANY more from different months since these were all from my September Rose Folder.  Aren't they gorgeous?  Do you have a favorite?  My two fav's from this group are Soft Whisper and Ronald Reagan.  But there are several others which I love.

My prayer request today is for ME.  I have done something to my left knee (the same one I had Meniscus Surgery on in 2010).  It hurts like CRAZY.... I can barely walk. Am going to the doctor today..  Please say a prayer or send some happy thoughts to me please!!!!!

Hope you have a great Thanksgiving Week...  Take some time to hug those you love and keep an ongoing list of all of your blessings.  We ALL have so many,  don't we?

God Bless All of you.
Hugs,