A Baby Changes Everything

HELP ME

2012-01-03T14:26:00.001-08:00

I am in the middle of taking down trees (others) so I thought we would do something fun on this blog….

I have found several new bloggers that I want to EXPOSE to the BLOG WORLD.

So here is where you help….Send me names and links to new JEWELS you have found.

I love finding new blogs. I remember when I first started blogging and felt like know one ever read but me. So find a JEWEL and share it with is…

Also read MilandDil for a cute idea. My Elf always has great new finds.

I am off to get a massage…

Would you believe I got 5
spa days for my birthday (Dec
22) and Christmas…

Sure made me a Happy Camper!

THE BABY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

2011-12-24T23:58:00.000-08:00

AND HIS BEAUTIFUL MOM, AMANDA.

Merry Christmas to all my blog friends..

WELCOME TO THE TREE GALS HOME

2011-12-15T20:46:00.000-08:00

These are just a few pictures I snapped with my cell phone…I have our ELF PHOTOGRAPHER coming to make pictures are soon as we finish our last house. THAT will be a CELEBRATION DAY!

Come back soon for pictures of my Mickey Village filled with three trees and all things MICKEY

WINNER and SOME DECORATING QUESTIONS ANSWERED

2011-12-11T18:36:00.000-08:00

Time to announce the winner of the Christmas Giveaway

THE WINNER is BECKY at JUST A SMALL TOWN GIRL

I need to get your address in the next day so I can get it shipped….

Here are some links I want to share that I loved
http://www.kellehampton.com/2011/12/party-at-north-pole.html
Two posts I loved by a blogger I love Amy, go here and here

Now for a few answers to your questions…

We wire everything…NO HOOKS

I got started almost 18 years ago…
did a friends house,
that turned into 5 houses,
that turned into 20 houses
that is now 70-80 trees….

I am writing a “hot to get started book” that will be out sometime in 2012

We use clients ornaments and then add to them each year ….make notes and plans for the next year….but all the decorations become theirs. Some clients I have bought everything for. Every house is different.

I buy lots of stuff locally, also at market in Dallas….shop after Christmas sales….over twenty years, have lots of sources.

Do I prefer real or artificial?
ARTIFICIAL 100 per cent.

Real trees which we did 2 of this year are 10 times harder.

No rhythm or reason how we put the stuff on…
We add ornaments, sticks, picks, ribbons all at the same time…

Some days we start at the bottom, some days the top and some day the middle.
Normally two of us start on the tree.
One Elf starts on the mantle or mantles,
another elf on the staircases,
then another elf will be putting out all the Christmas Décor.
If there are multiple trees we try and get them all going at once.

No such thing as too much on a tree…The more textures, shapes, ribbons, ornaments you have the better the look

We start working on the schedule in July and August.

We do the take down on about 20 houses…Especially the really large jobs…We are the best packers…

Hope that answered some questions….
Have a great week.

ANOTHER HOME AND A GIVEAWAY

2011-12-04T21:26:00.000-08:00

Another house, another friend, a few more pictures. We actually did this house while my client and friend was in the hospital. She is still there and you will not waste a prayer on her. I hope she will be blessed when she gets to come home and her halls are decked. The hospital was close to her house and another elf and I were able to stop by and pray with her after we finished her tree. She is one of those people that just make you feel special. She makes you laugh. You always leave her presence feeling better than when you arrived. I am believing for a MIRACLE for her.

If you missed this, or this or this you missed a beautiful and unique house.

I am pretty much on the couch with my ankle up. Not my idea of fun. In the last few days we have been blessed with homemade potato soup, chocolate pie, fabulous lasagna, shrimp, spaghetti and meat balls and to die for chicken salad.

My elves took care of the houses we had on Thursday and Friday. My first tree days to ever MISS.
We only have two houses left and I think I will be able to work some...you will not be finding me climbing any ladders.

I go to the doctor tomorrow and am hoping he will agree with me that its not as bad as we first thought.

It has for sure been a week.

Late yesterday, my elf, Terri messaged me that she was headed to the ER to check on her 2 year old granddaughter.. Lillianna had swallowed a glass Christmas ornament.

After a few anxious hours, they decided to keep her overnight for observation. She is home today and fine.

So I have not left the house since Wed night and its been a challenge. There was plenty I needed to do here, but I could not be on my feet.

AND for the record I am the worlds worst at crutches.

NOW TO A GIVEAWAY.

This will be my BIG Christmas GIVE!!
I want YOU to win it. It will be a $100 Box of Christmas goodies.
I want to ship it out next Monday where you can enjoy it during the holidays. Parker will draw on Sunday.

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post or on a post on
Grammy Girlfriend...

That's it! Who has time to do anything else. Many of you have had questions...

This is a post you can leave your questions about tree decorating and I will answer them in the next post.

Now for a LAUGH

AMANDA found JACK like this today. HIS reason: He wanted to be Rudolph

More Beautiful Tree Pictures

2011-12-01T23:23:00.000-08:00

This post is full of more great pictures of the Hinton House...A collection of many trees and full of character. Be sure you read this post and this post to see the first pictures. This is a grand home. Also you can read about the reason I am now out of
commission because of an injury.

The first pictures are from their Safari Room, full of animals from all their many travels.. Enjoy

A HOUSE WHERE LOVE LIVES

2011-11-28T21:43:00.000-08:00

This is going to be a post in several parts. This is our biggest project of the year and we have lots of pictures..These are friends of mine and a special family...The title of the post says it all. Love Lives Here.

It is a unique house filled with treasures...so be watching for more pictures in the next day or so. You will not believe how many BIG trees we do in one house....Welcome to the Hinton House.

at least 100 more pictures from this home coming.....

ANOTHER WINNER and PICTURES

2011-11-13T23:20:00.000-08:00

Just some shots from a Few of Our Houses

The Winner of the Other Ornament Giveaway is
Michelle at
Undeserving
and Yet OVERBLESSED
http://undeservingyetoverblessed.blogspot.com/

ORNAMENT GIVEAWAY and PICTURES

2011-11-02T23:33:00.000-07:00

Here are some great ideas we are using in decorating homes this year….we were looking for some new ideas and we found them….and are excited to do some new looks.
Some ideas we got off Pinterest.

If you do not use it, you are missing creative talent at his best.

TELL me you favorite tree…leave a comment and check out
Grammy Girlfriend and see how you can win 2 giveaways of ornament baskets.
Who does not like NEW FUN ORNAMENTS!
Leave a comment and/or tell about it on your blog…two difference drawings next week.

my favorite….I love fruit

My second Favorite

I am always just an email away if you have a question about tree decorating….

I am also in the process of working on a book telling how to get started in the tree decorating business.

A great work from home job for young Moms.

It will be out in the Spring…If you are interested I will be sure and let you know more about it..It will be full of lessons I have learned and mistakes I have made….plus ways to get business, ways to keep repeat customers, ways to make a profit..

Plus you do not have to have a blog as long as you leave me an email address.

MY GIRL TURNS 31

2011-10-16T17:18:00.000-07:00

One of my first blog posts in Feb of 2009 was entitled “My Girl”!

Since then I have written numerous posts about my girl. Here, here, here, here and here. I sure don’t expect you to go and read these, but if you are new to the blog, you can catch up sometime.

For a lot of reasons I don’t think you can say “I am PROUD” too many times to your child. I never heard that one time in my life.

Most of you know Amanda as Our Girl, the Mom of the BABY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING, mom to Jack aka Woody, wife to Micah, sister to Greg, sister-in-law to Dana, aunt to Austin and Gray.

Some of you know her as my girl that had a baby her senior year in high school and is the greatest testament to the fact that an 18 year old single girl can be the GREATEST of Moms.

I get emails often from Moms that need to know how we did it and what they can do to survive teenage pregnancy. I have a lot of suggestions but that’s not the purpose of this post…Email me if you need to talk. annah99@aol.com

That gift Amanda gave us that May in 1999 was the greatest gift we ever received.

Fast forward to today…when that gift from 1999 is 12…and his Mom will be 31 tomorrow…She is happily married to the man of her dreams, She is his QUEEN.

She has a love affair with two little men that others envy, is a full time nursing school student making all A’s, moving into the most beautiful new house this week. She has a husband that not only adores her but loves Parker like his own.

When I watch them together, I just have to whisper a prayer of thanks…

He has invested more time in fun things with Parker than I ever dreamed possible. There is no doubt in my mind that their relationship was God ordained…Daily I see Micah teaching him how to be a man. Then there is Jack, our wild and funny boy. Thank you Amanda for another incredible gift. This past year on hard days, he has made me laugh. His hugs are priceless…I guess he got that from his Dad.

So as you celebrate your birthday tomorrow…we will all be busy…me getting tree stuff ready…trying to help you pull your house together …..so if we have to celebrate a little late, know that Dad and I are so proud of you.

Here is a glimpse of Amanda's life today!!!!!!!

     Happy Birthday     Amanda!!!!!!
Amanda is a name derived from    Latin, meaning "worthy of love."
I don’t think there is anything in life more rewarding than watching your own child raise amazing kids.

I am going to post this on both blogs since Amanda is responsible for the holiday blogs name…We start trees this weekend, so Christmas pictures coming.

It would sure make me smile if you sent Amanda a Happy Birthday wish…..you can send it to annah99@aol.com and I will make sure she gets it….she is stressed with big tests during their move…so a little encouragement would make her day.

JUST A PREVIEW

2011-10-02T00:26:00.000-07:00

I am in Dallas for a few days at market and made a few holiday pictures. Thought I would share a little preview with you tonight….just to get you in the mood….Enjoy

There is a special post that I just posted on Grammy Girlfriend so be sure and stop by.

Tree hanging from the ceiling

and along with beautiful trees is a picture of my beautiful daughter
Amanda….in a picture someone snapped at the Miranda Lambert concert
I loved it…

and at an LSU game ( I hope that’s tea in her hand…Ha)

Be back soon with more pictures

A WORD FROM MIKE

2011-08-22T16:27:00.000-07:00

Remember my Marine friend Mike, who wrote this….he is back by popular demand with another great guest post about life. (Turn the music down)

Thoughts for the day

Last week my dad and I played golf on the course here on base. The great thing about this game is you never know who you'll be paired with. We drew a single player that morning. I introduced myself to him as he pulled up in his cart. He likewise introduced himself as Aaron. His voice was, well, Elmer Fudd-ish. "BwootifuI day to pway gwawf." I knew he was a fellow Marine without having to ask. The hair cut said that. As men often do to each other, we usually--and immediately--ask each other what the other does, fairly--or unfairly--sizing up and evaluating each other based on our chosen professions. As if our profession in any way defines who we really are. So I avoided the familiar question, "What do you do?"

Having previously worked in surgery for almost ten years, I'd seen enough tracheotomies to know the scar at the bottom of his neck had been one done in a hurry and not with an instrument really sharp enough to do the job. Amateurish even.
After playing the first hole it was obvious the speech impediment was physical tongue-tying, vice the type often seen with partially deaf individuals or those born with one. Clearly he had no hand-eye coordination issues besides not being able to putt better than I could, thankfully.

Sober golf players tend to not visit a whole lot except on the tee box. We were all focused on the task at hand. Marines typically size each other up by asking what units they are in, where they've deployed to, battles fought in, etc.
It took us until at least the back nine to get to all that. We had been in some of the same places at the same time. He pulled up his shirt to show me his entry wound just below the left rib cage, and the typical midline incision scar that accompanies such gunshot wounds. That one was courtesy of the invasion of Iraq. A few years later he'd join the Marine Corps’ first Special Operations Battalion and deploy to Afghanistan twice.

That trip to Afghanistan in 2009 would account for the tracheotomy scar. He was crossing open terrain when he got shot in the face by a sniper. Fortunately, it impacted him in the left jaw bone.
Unfortunately, the fragmentation of the bullet pulverized his tongue and internal carotid artery. After being shot, Aaron sprinted 400 yards to the corpsman’s location so he could render first aid to him. The corpsman performed a hasty tracheotomy on him so he could adequately breathe until he got medevac’d.
Aaron will medically retire sometime in the next year with a 100% disability. He’s married but no kids yet. He married before his first trip to Afghanistan. “She stuck around after I got shot. Guess I married the right one.” Indeed.
He works private security details from time to time, gouging them for hundreds of dollars a day for VIPs because he’s got a special ops background and is no stranger to a gun fight. In his time off he’s taken up golf. Aaron’s not sure what the future holds. But right now he’s just trying his best to enjoy life. “Twice was enough.” Getting shot and nearly dying that is.
Another wounded warrior story which, outside of family and a few close friends (and occasional golf partner), no one will ever know.
I thought the same thing a few weeks ago when I was awakened in the dark hours of a Saturday with a text notification from CNN that 22 SEALs had been killed in a helicopter crash. I looked at my watch and started doing the mental math: That got reported at least six hours after the fact.24 hours to gather remains. 48-72 hours to get them out of country and to Dover AFB.
Next of kin will be notified by the end of the day, if not first thing Sunday morning. They try to do death notifications all at once. The logistics of that would be a nightmare. 3-5 days for remains identification and funerals the week following. I know this process all too well.
22 SEALs dead. One or two is acceptable—militarily speaking of course. It’s the risk we accept. But not 20 at a time. These guys don’t grow on trees.
Who were they?
Where were they from?
What were their stories?
They’re certainly not the sum of their medals. Only through the tears of those who knew them can even we get a glimpse.And it’s hard not to stereotype about what type of people they were. After all, probably 20% of active forces could be special ops. Less than 10% will apply. 5% will make the screening cut and they’ll cull that down to less than 1% by the end of training. Why? Because of all the missions that can fail, theirs can’t. Athletes they may have been, but that’s not what makes them great or heroic.
If it was, every star athlete out of college would be recruited for special ops. It’s their heart and mind that make them great.
They were everyday people from anywhere towns asked to do astonishing missions under extraordinary circumstances so everyday people from anywhere towns can live their ordinary lives.
I doubt many standing in football stadiums the past two weeks(or the coming months), watching the NFL circus unfold into the regular season, gave any thought to the security of this nation; that a couple ordinary guys from Shreveport, LA put a bullet hole through a terrorist’s head half-way around the world so Americans wouldn’t have to worry about a bomb disrupting the regular season. We Americans are fickle.
The economy goes to hell and we’re worried about standard of living in our retirement years. Meanwhile the Constitution gets shredded, weakened or re-legislated with no one reading the contents of a bill. The normalcy bias is killing Americans—“Things can’t really be this bad. It’ll get better.” But it doesn’t. So nothing gets done. It’s a state of unbelief. And it’s paralyzing.
We need a battlefield lesson. When trapped in a cross-fire you move or get killed. Stay put and you die. SEALs know this lesson. They’re dying so we can enjoy the ideals of freedom printed on a piece of parchment signed in the year of our Lord, 1787—the Constitution.
I’d challenge you to do a couple of things. 1) Get to know your warriors and their families. Not all military life is glorious or affordable. They’ve been given a tough assignment, by us. They aren’t nameless, faceless anybodies without families. They bleed and sometimes die. Not always of their own decision. Read a book about a battle, recent or back to our nation’s birth.
Understand what they go through and what we’ve asked them and their families to sacrifice. If you live in an area where there is a military base, seek their friendship. If not, stop by the local recruiting station—the most thankless job in the military—and thank them. 2) Get involved. Don’t let your freedoms be destroyed by incompetence or pride. Both get you killed on the battlefield. Both will get your freedoms taken. There’s no interest like self-interest.
If you care about something, engage your Congressman. If you don’t, no one else will and they’ll make dangerous assumptions about your lack of assertion. 3)
Live like today actually counts for eternity. Be quick to apologize when you are wrong and take less than your share of the credit when it comes to glory.
There’s a Marine helicopter squadron whose motto is, “Give a @hit.” Great motto. Act like you care. Think. Decide. Act… Love. Eat. Pray…and thank God you weren’t born in Libya.
Our country has been blessed with much. So much is required of us to maintain what was handed to us.
Statistics show that those who inherit large sums of money are prone to squander it quickly because they have no idea the sacrifice with which it was obtained.
Please don’t do that to your freedoms handed to you by the lives of so many. We threw tea in a harbor once because of tyranny. What will you do to keep tyranny, disguised as law, at bay?
Just remember, a couple of boys from Shreveport, and other places, continue to hook and jab with an enemy to keep you sleeping peacefully in your tempurpedic at night. So that when you awaken, you have the moral strength and intestinal fortitude to fight peacefully to keep your rights, and the peace of mind to enjoy them.

I love you Mike McClendon and thank god that 20 years ago God allowed our paths to cross and then connect…You are one of my heroes.

RANDOM AS IT GETS

2011-08-16T23:31:00.000-07:00

It is hard for me to even think about trees in this weather, but the fact is I HAVE TO…and soon….

This will just be a “little random” before the season starts.

If you missed it, read this post. I have received so much feedback from it through comments and email.

Check out MilandDil Designs and see who the winner is on her giveaway. Terri is my head elf and her Etsy store is full of great things.

Jack and I saw THE HELP this afternoon. I think it was the best movie I have seen this year. I LOVED IT.

Amanda took the boys to see The Smurfs and here are a couple of cute shots…
We were just a door down at the theater.

Jack thought you had to keep the 3D glasses on the entire time.

Two Special Boys

And this last one makes me LAUGH…Do you think Jack has fashion design in his future?

His favorite words are TA DA….when he enters a room…
He was totally dressed for the day and suddenly appeared in a new outfit….
What you can’t see is he had flip flops on the wrong feet with white socks..so picture that…and yes that is a pull up….
Don’t you love the way he tucked his shirt in.

School starts for Parker on Thursday. That always makes me sad. I love the summer with no schedule and little's everywhere.

We are all (as in all the kids and little's) making one short trip Labor Day weekend with all the family going to Dallas for the LSU game…and maybe LEGOLAND and a few other fun places…

The summer just went too fast.

Check out my Pinterest Boards. I am so proud of them.
I have 100 plus boards and have worked so hard on them
I feel like I am so organized and have my on catalog. BUT IT IS Addicting….

Many of you enjoyed reading the guest post a few months ago from my dear friend, Mike, the handsome Marine.

He has promised me he would write again this month. His words are always profound and thought provoking.

See how random this got….Sorry.
My mind is pretty random these days.

One last thing…Ashley, a precious little girl I have written about many times is in MUCH need of prayer.

Her Mom, Trish, really needs encouragement.
They face some of the hardest decisions I can imagine making. She is in the hospital here in Shreveport.
I hope to stop by and take her some goodies tomorrow.

I will be back soon with our first holiday giveaway and some pictures I snapped at market of some new looks.

I am sure you are totally worn out from reading this…

A One Hundred Dollar Value Giveaway

2011-08-09T11:42:00.001-07:00

Hopefully that $100 value giveaway in the title has gotten your attention. Teresa gave me permission to do a guest post to introduce my new business MilandDil Designs. When I’m not working on MilandDil, I help Teresa during her holiday tree season as one of her elves.

My DIL and I have been really busy trying to get the word out about some of the creative floral designs we have done. So here’s the deal…okay, first let me show you a few of our creations. And you can see many more on our website or our Etsy store.

GIVEAWAY DRAWING IS NEXT MONDAY, AUGUST 15TH

MilandDil Designs is giving away a $100 credit for any current product we are offering or you can use it toward a custom order…you decide. There are three ways to qualify.

1.Go to our MilandDil Designs Facebook page and hit the like button.

2. Go to MilandDil Designs blog and begin to follow our blog.

3. AND IF YOU LEAVE A COMMENT on our blog I’LL PUT YOUR NAME IN A THIRD TIME!

So whatcha waitin’ for????

Introducing MilandDil Designs

2011-07-26T15:32:00.001-07:00

I’m back…Shinnyupatree (Teresa’s head elf) doing a guest blog for Teresa. Such a busy year for me with lots going on…seems like I can’t find enough hours in the day, week, month, can you relate?

Teresa suggested I share one of the exciting things I’ve started doing since my last post. So I’m introducing you to MilandDil Designs .…a floral design business I’ve started on Etsy.

Mil – that’s me mother-in-law, and one of my daughters-in-law – that’s Dil. My designing partner DIL is named Olga and she is going to nursing school. My other DIL is already an RN in the NICU at a local hospital.

I wanted a way for Olga to get a little extra tuition money for her nursing school…something that allowed her to spend time with her little one, Lilliana …my 15 month old granddaughter. And yes, just in Grammy style, here’s a picture… or two…maybe just three and I’ll stop. That’s Olga with Lilliana, her little Russian-looking photo, and her unruly curly hair.

Our design skills compliment each other…I say I know enough to be dangerous. No formal design training, no floral training…just a love for beautiful things and somehow that is translated into creations that can at times be a little quirky. I don’t follow rules (no surprise if you ask my husband). Things don’t have to necessarily be symmetrical or balanced. In fact, I’m continually looking for ways to be a little bit different… a creation that has my signature.

Olga on the other hand has had formal floral training and she has learned the rules for floral design. It makes me laugh when she says she wants to “do it the way I do it”…and yet anything she does is fantastic. We’re learning from each other…the young teaching the old, the old teaching the young.

The summer is slowly fading…hot temperatures here in Louisiana can only mean one thing – Fall and Christmas are right around the corner. So here are pictures of a couple of my Christmas creations currently for sale on Etsy.

Thanks to Teresa for giving me a chance to promote our little business. I’ll still be her right-hand elf this year during tree season…so look forward to more of our antics. And MERRY CHRISTMAS!

A FEW FUN DAYS BEFORE SURGERY

2011-07-12T22:01:00.000-07:00

AUSTIN SURROUNDED BY A LOT OF LOVE

Gray thinks its funny….

I will update after surgery on Thursday….Thanks for all your prayers.

And for a laugh….Jack, AKA, Woody is designing a new clothing line….called “I choose my clothes”! Coming soon to a store near you.

PLEASE PRAY

2011-07-11T19:19:00.000-07:00

Rarely do I post the same thing on both blogs but this post merits it.

You will not waste a prayer on our family this week. Austin, (Dana and Greg’s oldest little) is having heart surgery in Little Rock on Thursday morning.
It’s a surgery that they have known was in their future since Austin was small, but they had hoped it was still a a few years off.

Because of some blood pressure problems this last year and some other blood work numbers, the pediatric cardiologist decided the time is now. The doctors at Children's Hospital in Little Rock agreed.

I am sure it is a routine surgery that they do everyday in this hospital (they do not even do it here) but when it’s your boy having it, it becomes anything but routine. It becomes anxiety and sleepless nights.

First thing this morning I saw Greg’s middle of the night FB post and knew he was worried and sleep was not happening. He and Dana along with Austin, Gray and Parker left today. Parker was in tow to keep Austin preoccupied and they are all spending a couple of days in Hot Springs at an amusement/water park. Jack, Jack aka Woody, Amanda and I will meet up with them in Little Rock on Wednesday and spend the rest of the week. The surgery is Thursday morning.

It’s a scary thing to hand your child off to a doctor that you have never even met ( all the consulting is between his doctors here and the ones there).


Austin and his new dog MAX

My beautiful daughter-in-love Dana….I am a fan of two pair of glasses….for me it is reading and sunglasses. Dana just does not have her contacts in.

My Boy that loves his family with a love that is rare. He speaks it daily. He lives it daily.

Austin, very intent at Chucky Cheese!

AUSTIN and his BEST BUDDY, PARKER! We are counting on Parker to keep Austin's mind off the surgery the next few days.


          THE FAMILY

Thanks in advance for your prayers. After Jacks stroke last October, the blog community blew me away.

I went back and read all those comments and emails today.

Bloggers by the 100’s that checked in everyday..and I have only blogged for a two and half years. I know people prayed.

At that time I had no idea that the stat counter existed but now that I can go back and read it, many of those first 7 or 8 days, I had over 500 hits each day. And they could not have been because they were reading a fun
Disney post. Forever I will be grateful to you.

Now I am asking you to pray for
My Boys’ Boy.

Please pray that the surgery has no complications, fixes the problem, that Austin does not experience any fear this week and that Dana and Greg have a peace…that same peace we experienced that hard week in October.
Holiday posts coming soon....plus a guest poster...

MEET SHANNON

2011-06-23T18:49:00.000-07:00

I am linking up with Kelly’s Korner today to introduce you to a gal that I have known well for twenty years.
Her family was one of the first families we knew when we moved to Shreveport. She and Amanda were best friends from grade school on. She was a bridesmaid in Amanda’s wedding. She is really just like family to us.

Meet Shannon!



She is a 30 year old professional. She lives in Shreveport, La. She works for a home health company doing sales and marketing.
She is SMART, CUTE, and FUN LOVING. She is NEVER far from a good time or party.
She is a daughter, a sister, an aunt. She is a great friend to more people than I even know.

I think she has a lot of BFF’s for that reason. She is always a listening ear.
She is a Christian and faith, family and friends are very important to her.

She lost her Dad, who was one of the nicest men on earth, in a car accident 18 years ago.   I know she lives everyday wanting him to be proud of her.



She will make someone a great wife and some child a wonderful mother…and just to throw in an extra, she is a good cook. She had a good teacher in her Mom.



She has just not found the right man yet!
I would love to be the one that helped her find him.
Email me at annah99@aol.com
if you would like me to connect you or someone you know with her.

EVERYTHING MY BLOG IS NORMALLY NOT

2011-05-06T00:37:00.000-07:00

(This is a serious and deep post, so turn the music down )

If you have read my blog for any
length of time, you know I love a good read, a good deep thinking post, maybe even a debate. BUT normally I keep anything political or religious off the blog. So I am warning you, if you don’t like that, skip this post.

This post is written by one of my favorite people on earth. I feel like you need a little history so this will be long and you may want to read it in parts. Mike is a young man that became friends with my family twenty years ago and since that time I have considered him family. He and Greg are close in age and he spent lots of time at our house for years. He is one of those few people in life that would do absolutely anything for you.
When Jack had his stroke and I was a little more than scared in the ER at Baylor, I got a text from him (he lives in California) that he would be on the next plane if I needed him. He is the same guy that when my Dad was near death and I was so afraid that he had never ask Jesus into his heart (or whatever your denomination calls it). Mike got in his car drove hours to a hospital in Texarkana. I can still remember looking down the hall and seeing this handsome Marine coming down the hall on a mission. I’ll save that story for another day….but it’s the one and only time in my life I ever heard my Dad pray.

Mike and I have spent many hours discussing and solving the worlds problems. Fast forward a few years and God sent him the perfect lady….and now they have 3 sweet kiddo’s.
He is a Marine helicopter pilot, which has taken him all over the world. He is the BEST of the BEST. Anyway this whole post came about because I emailed him and ask him his thoughts on Sunday nights news plus I wanted to know more about NAVY SEALS. So below are his thoughts and they may only be for me, but I am going to share them…..because that’s what I do…SHARE…Ha

And so I give you Mike…and the crazy thing is he probably did not have to retype one line…It just flowed…This was the note I got from him….

Ms. Teresa,
I put these thoughts down. They aren't earth shattering. I mulled these things starting on Monday morning when the death of bin Laden hadn't changed the long TSA lines at the airport when I checked in. I'm in Pensacola doing some training for three weeks. So I get to miss another Mother's Day thanks to the Corps. But, it's the life I've chosen and Melissa graciously allows me to do what I love...for now.
Love you and miss you guys,
Mike

Sunday May 1^st was my brother’s 31^st birthday. Neither he nor my mother fared well immediately after his birth and both nearly died; her from dry toxemia, him two months premature. My mother’s favorite uncle died in a car crash earlier that morning compounding the emotions. So May 1980 was an interesting month: Mount St. Helens would blow her top eventually, and just days previous on April 24^th, the Iranian hostage rescue would end in disaster in the eastern desert of Iran after the mission was aborted by Presidential executive order. Ironically enough, the Ayatollah would gain significant support citing what he believed was divine intervention on behalf of Islam for the mission’s failure.

Each May 1^st I’m always very thankful to God for the lives of both my mother and brother who are so dear to me, and I recall with vivid memory the events of that month. Last Sunday marked another rather, some would say, extraordinary event. I was leading a bible study for Marines and their families as we do nearly every Sunday evening. As we started to dismiss, cell phones were blowing up with text messages that U/Osama bin Laden had been killed. Smiles and snickers broke out, “Can you believe that?”

I watched the news when I got home to get the always flawed first reports—if you haven’t caught on to that trend by now take my advice: first reports are never accurate.

I didn’t have a huge flood of emotions about it. I had a lot of thoughts on it though in the days since. It was humane and within the law to allow room for capture in case of his surrender. Though I’m not sure that if I was the first Seal into the room that I wouldn’t have shot him a little closer to right between the eyes than he did—whether bin Laden was begging for mercy or not.
I’m pretty sure the thoughts that would have gone through my mind entering that compound would have been the memories of men and women holding hands while jumping to their deaths out of the World Trade Center inferno on 9/11.
Some will certainly proclaim divine intervention in finally bringing him to justice: it happened, it must have been the Lord’s will. I would tend to agree.

It hasn’t been said yet, but I’m waiting for someone to say--now that reports are indicating he wasn’t armed and was killed in front of his wife and children--why couldn’t it have been handled differently?

It’s a great question—for someone who was born yesterday. You don’t send in Goldilocks to catch the big bad wolf. When you want to know someone is dead, on foreign territory, and need to travel there without anyone’s permission and really care about the consequences of failure, you send the Navy Seals.
After so many of our Americans are dead, what’s one more life to insure the just death of bin Laden is certain?

Briefly, I’d point you to the myriad of documentaries available on the Discovery or Military Channels to fully understand what these men go through to become a Navy Seal. You don’t just wake up one day after high school and say “I want to be a Seal.” That’s not how it works. You enlist in the Navy (or are commissioned as an Officer) and have a “normal” job: electrician, linguistics, intelligence, corpsman, something, anything. But then you get screened for it, meet some minimum (and I do mean minimum) physical requirement. Then you spend the next 18 months having your life stripped away, mostly just reprogramming your mind. Most of us could do a lot more with our lives than we do, our mind just gets in the way and says it can’t be done. Seals learn to turn their mind off when their body shouts “Quit!!”

A very scant version of this mind over body exercise is seen on Biggest Loser. The acid trip version of Biggest Loser is of course Seal training. There’s nothing like it in the world, thus, there’s no one like them in the world. Ordinary men trained to do extraordinary missions. They are King David’s 30 warriors, the elite. They are the cherubim who guard the Garden of Eden. That’s the level these guys are on. They don’t fear anything. They do bleed and they do die, but fortunately, not on this mission.

Then there is the hullabaloo over the Pakistanis not knowing he was in their country.
We Americans have such bad memories and when we do remember, we think everyone else thinks like we do. With all our technology, we can’t keep out poor Mexicans looking for a better life in our own country!!
How many serial killers or felons have kept kidnapped individuals in plain sight? Pakistan is not a closed country. They have no idea who comes and goes through their borders unless they are on a plane with a passport.
I could go to Pakistan and hide out for 10 years and no one would ever know, and I’m white as a sheet!! I can go a long way in Pakistan with no deodorant, a beard, brown shoe polish and some clothes dragged through the dirt. Give bin Laden credit. He kept us crawling over mountains and dropping bunker-buster bombs in caves for 10 long years.
He wasn’t stupid, he was brilliant, charismatic, and ideologically committed—which is something Christians could stand to be more of, ideologically committed.

As a Marine, I honestly was glad that he had received his justice on earth and was headed to his eternal reward. But I took an oath; I solemnly swore to defend the Constitution of the United States, against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I bear true faith and allegiance to the same. I took that obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion in April 2001. I continue to well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office to which appointed. So help me, God. And because I took an oath, bin Laden falls into the category of just another enemy. One less to deal with. And on some level most all Marines see him the same way.

But as a Christian man, I’m a bit troubled. I trust in the sovereignty of God. Totally. I know some who would advocate that He created the world, and then left it to itself. I’m not there. The other end of the pendulum is that God sits up there like a galactic genie in a bottle waiting to fill my every desire. I’m not there either.
I think most of us look back as ask why did this happen.
Bin Laden has become a footnote in the last 10 years, but the mayhem he inspired has us all looking around asking what in God’s name is going on.
On some level, you have to believe God’s hand is in all of this. I mean, what kind of all powerful God do I serve if His PERFECT will is not accomplished every second of every minute of every day?
If He’s not capable of executing His perfect will, I’m not sure I want in on Christianity.
I need to have the security of knowing nothing happens without His express permission.
If you teach your kids the song, “He’s got the whole world in His hands,” how do you explain all of this?

Why did my buddies get shot down in Iraq and burn up in a ball of fire the day after I flew by the same exact spot? Why do good things happen bad people? Why do the wicked seem to not suffer in this life? The answer to all these questions is simple: I don’t know.

And any other theologian worth his/her salt will tell you the same thing. The scripture says “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter.” I know some of us have sat in church meetings where charts were displayed and charismatic leaders have voiced “God said” x, y or z was going to happen.
They point definitively to some month or feast at which point Christ will return, turn on the vacuum cleaner and suck all the believers out of here since those who love Him are far too precious to suffer tribulation. It just begs the questions “What is suffering? What is tribulation?”

Persecuted for their faith some will say. But this can’t be it, for that has been the case since Christ walked the earth. If He didn’t come back for believers boiled in oil or torn apart by wild beasts in coliseums, who am I?

What could I possibly do to merit being saved from a horrible death? If I’m a true believer, hasn’t He already saved me from the worst death imaginable, death leading to eternal damnation?

While bin Laden was certainly demonically inspired, “Satan’s blind slave” (John Newton of Amazing Grace fame), as a Christian I must evaluate why I am glad for the death of any man, unjust or not. Suffice it to say, without judgment there is no mercy.
The word “gospel” (evangel) literally means good news. What is the good news? That though we were slaves to sin (2 Peter 6:17), God rescued us. Christians like to think we have choices in our destiny, that we chose Him. I’ve come to find out that’s not true.

I’m not sure how many wreathes can be laid at various sites to heal wounds, quell violent memories. If I could, I’d lay a wreath around my head every time I lay down at night, try to keep my hands from a cold sweat when I think about what it must have been like to die a violent death like my buddies did.
The mental gymnastics my mind goes through trying to wrap my mind around the anatomy of an IED blast, or the inferno of a helicopter engulfed in flames in flight makes my throat tight and my head pound.

There’s a very good reason Paul calls us to cast down every thought that exalts itself above the knowledge of God. Our mind is at enmity with Him. It’s hard to let go sometimes.

It’s hard to accept reality. It’s hard to accept that God really is in control, but it’s apparent we aren’t. We lie to ourselves and think that healing means forgetting and thus miss out on a lot of peace.

No doubt, there are certain people in this country that needed bin Laden to die to have closure. I have for years wondered if we had captured him already, waiting for a political moment to spring it.
But this moment was bigger than politics. What mattered is that we got it right. And President Obama did. Chapter One of the 9/11 story closed.
Finally.

The problem is that we still have to live with the scars that the death of this man won’t erase.
I marvel at how the death of one man is so glorified as just, when so many died innocently in rather obscurity, but whose lives were infinitely more precious. And life will go on. Unfortunately, not well for those who have lost loved ones in planes or towers.
Or the war following. Some will never move on, instead trying to memorialize the lives of past loved ones. Oh that they would find peace in the death of Christ which points so magnificently to the resurrecting life that swallowed up the grave. For that is THE ultimate hope of all who call upon the name of the Lord for salvation.
It is only in embracing His death that we really have life and drop all fear of losing our own, however tragically it may be snuffed out. It is these times that point us to regard our lives here as aliens, longing for that completed work when sin no longer ravages our lives.

“Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” Revelation 1:17-20.
Even so Lord Jesus, come quickly.

That’s just one of the reasons I love him. He makes me THINK.

GOD BLESS THE USA

2011-05-01T20:42:00.000-07:00

BECAUSE HE LIVES

2011-04-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

Because he lives I can face tomorrow,
Because he lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know he holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just Because HE LIVES!

I am starting to count my 1,000 gifts and there is no better time than now.

I so want to see the small things….
1. For the gift of Hope that Easter brings
2. That God created families
3. The Joy of children and then when mine married I got two more.
4. The Unspeakable Gift of grandchildren and in my case 4 little boys
5. The Miracle that we all live in the same town
6. That Amanda has the opportunity to go back to school and achieve her DREAM
7. Blog friends
8. That I live in America, as messed up as it seems most days.
9. That I have money for gas
10. An email from an old friend on just the day I need it.
11. Parkers invitation to a Youth Leadership Conference in Washington and that he can afford to attend.
12. A new beginning for one of my kids.
13. New Beginnings for all of us.
14. Jacks recovery, nothing short of a MIRACLE
15. Snail mail
16. Today, grateful that its not tree season
17. That I had the energy to clean out our storage building. (I really was not sure I did)
18. New grandbabies coming for friends this month
19. A doctor that is a phone call away, ALWAYS
20. That we finished our taxes, probably the most dreaded work of the year.
to be continued……

Wishing you a BLESSED EASTER!

PARTY TIME

2011-03-31T19:44:00.000-07:00

This is my second year to
attend the
Ultimate Blog Party!

I LOVE IT and love meeting new friends….it is not too late for you to join in. This year I am giving one of my famous CARD BOXES and to make it more FUN, I am going to give another one away to a lucky visitor on either of my blogs.
All you have to do is leave a comment. I promise I will try and visit every blog…
My name is Teresa. I am a wife of 37 years to Jack, a Mom to Greg and Amanda, a Mother-in LOVE to Micah and Dana, and best of all a GRAMMY to Parker, Jack, Austin and Grayson. If you like family stories this blog might be for you. I try and document everything, as we do this thing called LIFE together. My family blog is Grammy Girlfriend.

This is a blog about the life of a tree decorator. I have been a business owner for 20 years. This year we did 80 trees. Most people have never even heard of this kind of business. The Christmas/Holiday decorating service is booming. I am known as the “tree lady” in my town and I arrive to each house with elves!
A BABY CHANGES EVERYTHING…has more than one meaning.

The title is taken from our life story and from the wonderful song that Faith Hill sings. This blog gives me a chance to pay it forward and help others with tree decorating tips.
I have blogged for 2 years, If you had told me two years ago that I would have written 375 posts and have 1400 followers, I would have said you must have me mixed up with someone else. I thought my first post would be my last….I have met the nicest people ever. We had a medical crisis in our family this past year and bloggers came out of the wood work to see if I was OK. Calls, texts, comments…totally blew me away.
I love little’s (especially mine), ALL THINGS DISNEY…(I am a good friend of THE MOUSE), coffee, football, American Idol, massages, travel with all the family. I love a good book, love to sleep late, love diet coke, love Christmas, Tim McGraw, Brett Favre (sorry), mystic tans, great hotels and great sheets,my Keurig, TiVo (how did we ever live with out it), magazines, Beth Moore Bible studies, hot baths, rainy days, pajama days (today was one),the smell of lavender, fresh flowers, a good movie. SO SURELY we have something in common.

These are they people I party with the MOST…..

So happy that you stopped by. Please come back often. Besides some funny stories, I have lots of giveaways. For the next month on my holiday blog, I am going to put the spotlight on other blogs. If you would like yours featured, leave me a note in the comments.
Have fun at the party!

THIS BABY(BOY) CHANGED EVERYTHING

2011-03-28T18:24:00.000-07:00

I am bursting with pride tonight, so please indulge me. I went out to get the mail today. I had a huge amount for a Monday, but peeking out was a letter that looked VERY official and important. It had the Congressional Seal on it.
It was addressed to the Mother of Parker Powell…but heck I could not wait to see what it contained. (Sorry Amanda, inquiring minds have to know)
What I found was a letter informing Parker that he been nominated and selected to attend the
Junior National Young Leaders Conference in Washington D C this summer.
A very prestigious honor for an eleven year old. I am so excited for him.
With tears pouring down my face, I was thinking…This is the Baby That Changed Everything. You can read his story here and here and lots of other places on my blog. This boy rocked our world. Not one day in my life stands out more than May 27, 1999.
I am not sure who I am most proud of Parker or his Mom. She was a single Mom for the first 8 years of his life.
She did her job well. Parker was her first priority at all times.
I remember our pastor and good friend dedicating him and he said
“Parker will be a WORLD CHANGER”
I think he was right.

TIME FOR SPRING WREATHS

2011-03-17T11:34:00.000-07:00

If you read my family blog, Grammy Girlfriend, you know we have been in medical crisis for the past couple of weeks, really the last five months. We had a little bump in the road, actually a giant scare, but I think we are again back on the road to normal.

That means I need to get to work. I have orders for SPRING WREATHS, flowers purchased and some great ribbon. Now I just need to find motivation and time.
I was at Paul Michaels a few weeks ago and made some great pictures of their Easter trees….Jack, AKA Woody erased them. He loves him a camera…and a phone.

But I will get to work on wreaths and try and post pictures next week..
I am preparing to do a remodel at my house, Floors, countertops, bathrooms and those will probably lead to others…but I will BE SO GLAD when it is done….Moving all the little stuff makes me tired to think about.

One day soon, I am going to have a guest blogger on this blog. She is one of the few bloggers I have met in person and she is a doll and SO talented. She has a great giveaway going on her blog right now.
Be sure and check it out
KRISTEN’S CREATIONS
Live, Laugh, Love and Create!
I love her blog.
Please read this blog and pray for little Lucy.
My heart hurts for this family.

JOIN THE PARTY

2011-02-28T22:04:00.000-08:00

A fun party is starting. Link up at Lynette’s. There are great prizes, including a GREAT one from me. I want you to WIN.
Check out her blog and pick up the party button.
It is always fun to get to know other bloggers.

For those of you new here, my name is TERESA. I live in Shreveport, Louisiana.

We go by real names here.
I am married to Jack (38 years) have two kids Greg and Amanda, two kids-in-love, Dana and Micah and

4 Little's…Parker, Jack, Austin and Grayson
They light up my life. If you don’t like Grammy stories you may not like this blog.
I have TWO BLOGS…one family blog…Grammy Girlfriend
and a Holiday blog,
A BABY CHANGES EVERYTHING…
because that’s my business…holiday decorating…So here’s getting to know me better…
How would people describe your personality? (If they could only use ONE word.) Are they right?

energetic and at the moment NO

What celebrity/celebrities would create a “Star-Struck” feeling if you saw them in real life?
Tim McGraw, Brett Favre,

What is your comfort food/drink?
coffee, diet coke, ice cream

Movies: Action, Drama

Books: I have never met a book that did not want to come home with me….we are readers….of everything

Music: Country, Christmas

If you inherited a million dollars, what is the first thing you would do with your money? Give money to families with sickness and make life easier for them….then take the entire family to Disney for at least a month.
THEN take hundreds of little kids that have NEVER been.

If you could live anywhere at all (and take all your loved ones with you), where would you go?I will have to think on this one…I really would just love to travel with them about three weeks out of every month.

Strange Talent?
I am not very talented. I can tie hundreds of bows and never look down…

MY favorite blog
Kat at Just a BeachKAT
love her honesty and sincerity.

What’s something you consider yourself to be good at? Sending cards, decorating Christmas trees, planning trips

What is one of your favorite things to catch a whiff of? coffee
When you leave a social gathering, do you wish you had talked more or lesstalked less?

If money wasn’t a factor, what stores would you shop in? Probably would not change…Target, Central Market, Dressin Gaudy (local)

What is your greatest fear? Losing a family member or chronic illness
What is your greatest accomplishment? hands down
Raising TWO great kids that are hard workers, great parents and make the world a better place.

Be brave – tell us something very random and weird about yourself.

My husband was the football coach, I was the cheerleader….but its lasted 38 years.

Do you have a strong desire to do something you’ve never done? What is it?
Be a Disney PLANNER

PARKER’S DAD

2011-02-03T00:24:00.000-08:00

I could not decide which blog I should post this on. This is a post I have thought about writing many times. A post that I will have run by Amanda before I post it. There are things that are just family business, but I am hopeful this post will encourage someone. I have received many emails and comments about PARKER, THE BABY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING. If you have read my blog for anytime you know Parker is our oldest “little” who is eleven and not so little anymore. It literally seems like yesterday that my then 18 year old Amanda, sitting in our pastor and good friends office, both of them crying and looked at me and said “Mom, I’m pregnant”! I can tell you a thousand things that would have rocked my boat more than that. She will confirm to you that my reaction was not much more than, “We need to get a nursery decorated”! And we did. I had just finished tree season and so from that very ordinary day in January until May all we did was plan, decorate, dream and eat. We laugh at how many times she and I ate out. Within a week we knew it was a boy. And this was a boy that I could not wait to get my hands on. From that moment in the delivery room when I got to cut the cord, I have been crazy in love with this boy, a love I never knew existed. Thank you Amanda for handing me that precious gift. Parker was our only grandchild for seven years. When Greg married Dana, we were blessed with Austin. Then eight years after Parker, Jack came on the scene…and then the next year we were blessed with Grayson. BUT PARKER had a LONG TIME where he was the one and only. He and Amanda lived with us the first five years of his life. He is the meaning behind the title of this blog. He DID CHANGE EVERYTHING.
In other posts I have told you all about him. He is brilliant, he is well traveled, he knows the Mouse well, he is kind, he is well mannered, he is handsome, he is a little adult that takes being a big brother to Jack very serious.
He said tonight, “Grammy doesn't Jack have the cutest laugh” and he does. Parker bears the name of both my grandfathers, his great-grandfathers. He is called by my Moms maiden name, his Moms middle name. There is no doubt in my mind he will be a world changer. Yep, he is pretty near perfect, at least this Grammy thinks so. I have told you all that before. I have also told you how protective we were when Amanda married. How scared we were. In some cases, how we needed to back off. Amanda knew who she loved. I just needed to be sure that person knew how to love and parent Parker. I don’t have to tell you I had some pretty hard qualifications. Amanda married Micah when Parker had just turned 8. (I think) You can read the Micah post here. I got this one wrong…and everyday I am thankful that I did. Never in my wildest dreams did I think Parker would ever be such great friends with the man that married his Mom.
What I have never talked about is Parker’s Dad. Actually Parker gets really lucky here. He has two. He has never wanted for male role models in his life. He has an Unc (Greg) that has loved him as much as his own from the day he was born. He has two grandfathers that think he is “the best thing that ever happened to them”! He also had the privilege of having his great grandfather in his life for his first eight years. This boy is blessed. And he should be spoiled and I guess he is, but most days I see nothing that would give that away.
BUT he does have a Dad that he loves very much and that loves him very much. This next part will just be from my perspective. (just a disclaimer since its my blog) Have we always had a great relationship? NO
Have I always wanted Parker to have a relationship with his Dad? Yes
Amanda had to grow up overnight. Brad had a choice and for a some years he chose a different path. A path I hated and I think he would tell you one he hated. Never was he totally out of Parker’s life, but at times on a very limited basis. I think there was a period of time I gave up hope. There was a period of time I did not really care. It was easier that way. Did we have problems? Absolutely!
Brad moved away from our town for a few years and in that time I saw a huge change. I am sure he would tell you I watched him closely, always afraid that it was just temporary. It took a couple of years for me to really think it was a REAL CHANGE. Now that it has been more than a couple of years it makes me so happy when I see how much he loves Parker and how Parker is so proud of him. I think in many ways Parker saved his life. This is the bonus. He and Micah have become friends and do lots of things with Parker together. They have been on a weekend camping trip, watched ballgames, shared meals…that means everything to Parker. Amanda and Brad have a good relationship…So what was once a not so great situation, to put it mildly, has totally changed. And in my book, that’s a good thing. Meet Brad, Parker’s Dad.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACK (WOODY) STROTHER

2011-01-30T20:44:00.000-08:00

The cutest birthday pictures ever….well maybe I am a tad partial. I had to get someone to make them for me as I was sick…running fever and decided the best thing for me and the little's was to stay home. Sad,but know it was the best thing.

I don’t think you need any script on the pictures. As you can see in the pictures Jack (Pop) is doing good. You can also see that my adult kids are just big kids.
You can read the picture titles in their faces. TOY STORY MANIA and Jack LOVED EVERY MINUTE of IT.
Just came in the mail from Amanda

Wow do I love this BOY…..

ANOTHER BABY CHANGED EVERYTHING

2011-01-29T18:03:00.000-08:00

HIS name IS Jack Woody Buzz Strother.

His Mom and Dad are Amanda and Micah!

and his Big Brother is Parker

AND THREE YEARS AGO on JANUARY 31
ANOTHER BOy ROCKEd OuR WORLD. ANOTHER BOy CHANGED EVERYTHING.
A REALLY FUnNY BOY.
How Lucky I Am TO be HIS GRAMMY! He is a miniature of HIS DAD. (remember this is the MICAH that I did not want Amanda to marry)
I was first Jack’s mammy, then his gammy and NOW HIS GRAMMY. (finally)
I could write a book on what this boy says. He has a very BIG vocabulary.
A VERY vivid Imagination.
There is a big age difference in he and Parker.

Parker is 11 and Jack is turning 3. Parker and I spend most of our time shaking our heads and laughing at what comes out of his MOUTH!
He Lives in Toy Story World, Almost ALWAYS in character. HE EXPECTS you to be ALSO. So to be his friend it is important to know your lines.
He is a Night OWL like me, so when he spends the NIGHT, (which is often) he stays up as late as I will) some of my MOST Precious times with him are in the MIDNIGHT hour.
he is almost impossible to discipline because he is so funny.
Tomorrow is his party, so check back for party pictures. And of course, he
is having a Woody Cake..
For some reason he decided this week to rename me. I am no longer Jessie, I am now Lostso! POP is now
Alien! He is in charge of
naming everyone and YOU MUST not argue with him about who you are.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACK WOODY BUZZ STROTHER!
I AM SO GLAD YOu WERE BORN.

And YES
I am the only person that gives him his CHOCO MILK in a BABY BOTTLE. AND he LOVES me for it.

I HAD ANOHER POST BUT THIS IS MORE IMPORTANT

2011-01-17T00:07:00.000-08:00

My heart had been broken all week for blogger friend, Joanne Heim. I cannot go five minutes without thinking about her. This time last week she was fine. Tonight, she is fighting to live, literally after suffering a stroke on Tuesday. This is a 38 year old super fit, full of life Mom and Wife.

Life changes in a heartbeat. I am going to copy and paste some information that just came out. Check her blog and read about the last week.
From her close friend, How You Can Help
Hello, my name is Janna, and I've been given permission by Toben to hijack Joanne's blog for a little bit. I met Joanne several years ago through her lovely sister Kristen. I have the pleasure of considering these two sisters my dearest of friends.
Many of you, like me, feel honored to call Joanne "friend.” Some of you know her in real life and some from the blogosphere. Some of you may have never met Joanne but have come to her blog to get updates and to pray. I feel confident that Joanne would consider you a friend, also.
The outpouring of love, prayer and interest in Joanne's condition has been overwhelming. The family is extremely moved and encouraged by how the Body of Christ has come together in this time of crisis. Many of you have asked how you can help. So with the collaboration of some of Joanne's many friends, we've organized some new features on Joanne's blog to Help the Heims.If you have ever met, read or come into contact with Joanne, you have probably been blessed in some way. That is Joanne. Now it is our turn to bless her. Let's join together to show her family our support and love. -------------------------------------
How You Can Help the Heims:    Financial gifts
Even with the most desired outcome, Joanne's medical and recovery time will be very costly. There is time off of work (Toben), medical bills, etc. Giving financially is one of the most practical things we can do to help them on this long journey ahead.Click on her sidebar to give via PayPal:Or make checks payable to Toben Heim. Mail to: Joanne Heim, c/o Kristen Haufschild, 11004 Grayledge Circle, Highlands Ranch, CO 80130
Prayer
Thousands of people all over the world are praying for Joanne. Please do not cease in lifting Joanne up to the Lord. She needs a miracle. Psalm 46 is the scripture that the Heims are claiming over Joanne. Please read it as a prayer for her. Spread the word…..Spread the word about Praying for Joanne by displaying her button your blog. Grab the HTML code from the sidebar.
Encouragement     Send cards, letters, pictures, scriptures, prayers, etc. to Joanne. Mail to: Joanne Heim, c/o Kristen Haufschild, 11004 Grayledge Circle, Highlands Ranch, CO 80130
PLEASE DO THIS…you know how I feel about snail mail
News Stay updated on Joanne's condition here on her blog and on Twitter via Toben.   Thank you for being a part of her life, her recovery and her blessing.
Below is the post by her weary husband tonight. This week has been a nightmare.
http://thesimplewife.typepad.com/the_simple_wife/2011/01/rollercoaster.html
I will admit I have struggled with this all week. After emailing a dear friend, I do not think she will mind
me using an illustration she gave me…It is one I have thought about all day.
From Melinda
I had a friend tell me once that life was like trying to work a puzzle without the benefit of the picture on the lid. We have random pieces that we do our best to fit together, but it would be so much easier with the lid. To me, that's where we sit right now, with Joanne, where my friends sit in their grief, and where I've been sitting all year: learning how to rest in the fact that the One who holds the lid to the puzzle box lives in us. He can see how it all plays out, why some people get the miracle (more lives affected for the kingdom if they continue life on earth?) and others don't (more lives affected for the kingdom if they pass to eternity?). It boils down to a matter of choice for us: We can trust that, because He knows how it all fits together, and He loves us enough to have made a way to spend eternity with us, we don't have to understand, just trust. WOW
I am so thankful to have friends in the blog world that will pray.

THE ONLY THING I CAN THINK ABOUT TONIGHT

2011-01-13T23:18:00.000-08:00

I have a blog friend that many of you will know….but for those that don’t, please add her to your prayer list, your churches prayer list…send her name to anyone who prays.
Just do what you would want others to do if this was you or your loved one.
I have only met Joanne twice, both times at a Beth Moore event in San Antonio. I cannot remember what I had on yesterday nor anyone I was with, but I still remember the first time I saw her and exactly what she had on. She had her own style. She had the greatest smile. As I have followed her blog, I have realized what a great Mom and Wife she is. Shes a wonderful cook, a runner, a reader (which I love), just one of those gals you wished you lived next door to.
Her name is Joanne Heim from The Simple Wife!
She is fighting for her life right now in a Colorado hospital! Fighting hard but the news has not been good. She was on her treadmill two days ago, 38 years old, and collapsed. She was found by her daughter. She had a blood clot in her brain which led to a stroke and has had two surgeries in two days. The last surgery to go in and remove part of the skull to allow for the swelling. I would guess something similar to Gabby Gifford's. The MRI does not look good, a poor prognosis, something I heard a lot about three months ago when Jack had a stroke. I know there are Miracles…I have one sitting across the room from me. I grabbed these pictures off her site as it is always easier to pray when I have a face and a family.

Joanne needs a miracle…please pray with me for one. Again it reminds us how fragile life is.

Only 359 Days until Christmas 2011

2010-12-31T11:47:00.001-08:00

Hey, friends….it’s Shinnyupatree, Teresa’s head elf giving you a post-Christmas debrief. Are you kidding me? I can barely move around all the remnants of Christmas 2010 and now you’re saying something I don’t want to hear about Christmas 2011. It’s never ever too early to think about Christmas. I think about it all the time….summer, spring, winter and fall. But that’s another whole story and I probably need to be in therapy.

Now down to the business at hand—preparing for next season by properly storing your holiday decorations. This isn’t the perfect way. It’s not the only way. It’s just my way. So maybe you can pick up an idea or two to help make next Christmas a little easier.

A great way to start planning is to first jot down some thoughts about Christmas 2010. Trust me, do it while things are fresh on your mind. Ask yourself what would you do differently next year? My debrief list will probably look something like this:

Start earlier. Main tree went up two weeks before Thanksgiving. Maybe move to first of October.
Replenish replacement bulbs for outside lights when stores first put out Christmas supplies…again start earlier. Buy them when supplies are plentiful. Purchase bulb stakes at Ellis early—need about 50 more.
Schedule ahead (again earlier) friends and family trees that I do. Start asking in September-October.
Floral projects. Check door wreaths and tabletop trees in storage for refreshes or redo.
Put together two small trees for Devin and Laney.
Schedule Christmas cookie day with grands earlier than three days before Christmas.
And the list goes on and on until I run out of ideas or changes.

So you get the idea of the debrief list. Mine will go in a cute snowman journal Teresa gave me. Just make it handy and easy to find. I’m pretty sure you could find one now for a good price. BUT DON’T PACK IT IN YOUR CHRISTMAS STUFF!

A CONFESSION: My Christmas addiction means I have something in every room during the holidays. I’m telling you in my 2,400 sq. ft. home there is not one area except maybe my kitchen pantry or closets that doesn’t have Christmas decor in it. Trees, Santas, floral arrangements, wreaths, garland, lights, books, toys for the grandchildren…I’m sorry it’s obvious I have a problem. So I had to come up with an easy storage system and solution. Maybe you can use some of my ideas for your own holiday decor—if not this year maybe next…this would be a good time to jot that down in your debrief journal as the first entry.

STORAGE CONTAINERS - Purchase and replace as you are able CLEAR storage bins. Last year I bought 20+ of these Sterilite 70 qt. clear containers. They’re great because they stack easily filled or empty, the lids lock on securely and can be labeled on the handles, and most importantly you can SEE the contents.If you’re using solid containers, try to gradually replace them with clear as you’re able to afford it. If you standardize your containers, you can make more efficient use of your space. We have an off-site storage unit, but this could also work in an attic.
PICTURES – Take pictures of your holiday displays for placement and ideas for next Christmas. (You will use these pictures in the next step.) It doesn’t mean you will put everything out in a “paint-by-number” way. For me it’s an easy way to decorate without having to reinvent the wheel. I know I’ll be flexible and have freedom to make subtle changes especially if I’ve bought a new item in the after-Christmas sales. If you’re using a digital camera and pc, create a new folder on your computer named Christmas 2010 holiday decor. It’s also a good idea to burn it to a cd for a backup just in case your pc isn’t around the next year. Here are a few of my 2010 placement pictures.
PRINT PICTURES - Print the photos on regular paper or cardstock. Remember you’re only using them for reference so photo paper is not necessary—save your money. I took it a step further last year and printed a collage of each room on a sheet like this…
PACK DECOR BY ROOM – Packing each room in its own bins allows you to have everything handy to put out next year. Label your bins by room and place the printed photo or collage on the inside front of the bin.
PACK TREE DECORATIONS – All my trees are packed in bins labeled by tree; for example, den tree. I pack fragile glass or collectible ornaments in ornament boxes like this…or wrap them in bubble wrap in large 2.5 gallon Ziplock bags. You can then place the ziplock bag on top of other non-breakable ornaments in the bin like this…
SORTING – Christmas bins are stacked in storage by room. So if next year I want to do the den one week, or the dining room, those containers can be pulled for just that room. Spare ornaments not assigned to any particular tree or house are sorted by color. That way if I need extra red in one of my trees I can pull the bin of red and fill in as needed. Then the next year those red ornaments are packed with that tree.
COLLECTIBLE SANTAS/FIGURINES – For most of my collectibles I have saved the original boxes for storage. Yes, I am spoiled because my husband (who kindly pays for my off-site storage) built shelves in the storage unit for me. Everything else goes in a regular clear plastic bin for that room.

So now get ready for Christmas 2011. Don’t forget to do your debriefing. Don’t you just love an elf telling you to do your homework? I promise it will pay off big time for you next year.

I will be posting photos of my home decor in the next few days and I would love if you would take a peek. Stop by with your comments or shoot me a question if you have one. My Christmas will be staying up for a while. Hey, get this…my hubby wants to keep my main snowman tree up until next year…a first for him, but I guess that shows he really loves it.

Thanks for stopping by.

Have a safe Happy New Year!

Best to you all,

Shinnyupatree

A BABY DID CHANGE EVERYTHING

2010-12-25T01:00:00.000-08:00

We went to a wonderful Christmas Eve service and one of my favorite singers sang this song. She has a Faith Hill voice and she was amazing. We had a gourmet meal prepared by Amanda and Micah and then the Christmas Eve service made the night so special. We will celebrate with Greg and his family on Sunday.
After the service we rode around and looked at Christmas lights and then it was time to get TWO boys to bed so SANTA could stop by.

Can’t seem to capture the BEAUTY of this in a PICTURE….a garland filled with lights and ornaments of every shape and color

Merry Christmas to all my
blog friends.

COLORED LIGHTS

2010-12-15T10:08:00.000-08:00

If you read my post on my main blog about finising the tree season,I wrote about colored lights.

I wrote about this home and tree that left me feeling so good when I left, though it was not the type tree I am most comfortable with. Below are some pictures from this gorgeous home. (all picture will enlarge) This home has a story. The Mom and Dad are close in age to my son. Actually the Dad at this house is the son of my first tree client 18 years ago. This is a a family I love. They are a couple that has had so much heartbreak, losing baby after baby after baby. This week they celebrate their 17th anniversary and for the first eleven years they wanted children more than anything. In the last six years God has blessed them with three little ones through adoption. All incredible stories that maybe I can get Ashley to share one day in a guest post. Enjoy these snapshots of ONE HAPPY HOME and as you look at them remember whatever you are praying for...

THERE IS HOPE!

SHE IS ALL THAT AND MORE

2010-12-06T20:00:00.000-08:00

THIS IS AMANDA, the Mom behind the title of the blog A BABY CHANGES EVERYTHING! THIS IS PARKER, THE BABY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING.
You can read their story here and here….so many bloggers have ask me about the blog name..I love Faith Hill and when she sang this song last year, it so told our story that I knew it was the perfect blog name. Twelve years ago in January, Amanda told us she was pregnant. And that baby, who is now 11 changed everything. Today she is happily married and has another boy. As a teenage Mom and now a 30 year old Mom, she is the BEST. Last week she resigned her job of 11 years to go back to school and become a nurse. I am so proud of her. She will get her chance to be a stay at home Mom and Jack will love that. He is NOT a morning person and so not a happy camper when he has to get up in the mornings… TWO BROTHERS SNUGGLING at THE GRANDPARENTS
OUR JACK IS A LAUGH A MINUTE…as YOU CAN PROBABLY TELL FROM THE PICTURES.
I spent most of my life wondering if my parents were EVER proud of me. I don’t want Amanda to ever WONDER. WE are so proud of her. Leaving a job and giving up an income is scary. Starting back to school is scary. But there is not one doubt in my mind that she will excel and be the best nurse. I have seen how she has been so attentive to every need of her Dad in the last 9 weeks. Not only is she beautiful on the outside, she is beautiful on the inside…and no two boys love their MOM more than Parker and Jack.
More tree pictures tomorrow…WE ARE DOWN TO ONE HOUSE….
The winner of the CARD BOX is
Donna at
The HOUSE ON THE CORNER
This was a giveaway on my main blog,
Grammy Girlfriend!
After Wednesday, I move into shopping, wrapping, sleeping, maybe a few short trips, basically doing whatever I want each day. That sounds more than wonderful this year. With Jack’s stroke, nine weeks ago, this has been the hardest decorating season ever. BUT WE MADE IT. Jack is improving each day and he really is a MIRACLE.
Be sure and check out the pictures of some of our recent houses in the post below

BEAUTIFUL HOMES, WONDERFUL CLIENTS, ALL MY DEAR FRIENDS

2010-12-03T13:55:00.000-08:00

SNAPSHOTS FROM MY HOUSE AND WINNERS

2010-11-30T20:26:00.000-08:00

Santa, Jack and Woody

some snapshots from my home….that hopefully are creating a little MAGIC for some little boys.
And the WINNERS of the GIVEAWAY are
Gray Cardigans and ONE LIFE LIVED

EMAIL me your information soon and these packages will be shipped Thursday…They are all packed and just need a label.
SIX more houses and we are FINISHED DECORATING FOR ANOTHER YEAR….I am TIRED…and ready to enjoy the holidays with my family. Will be back soon with more pictures and more prizes

Shinnyupatree Found a Friend

2010-11-28T22:44:00.001-08:00

Hey, everybody – it’s Shinnyupatree (aka Teresa’s head elf). November was a CRAZY month – trees/mantles/staircases….almost every day. We’ve laughed, cried (mostly me), put a tree down on purpose in a controlled fall (don’t try this at home). I’ve had a couple of meltdowns, not a pretty sight. And Tylenol Arthritis Pain Formula has been my constant companion. Because of our hectic schedule and all that’s going on, we haven’t posted any pictures. But today is your lucky day – I’m posting photos of one of our favorite houses. PLUS, I found a precious elf friend. Let me tell you I wanted to steal this little guy, but he looked so very happy in the girl’s playroom. Enjoy and look forward to more photos soon.

The playroom tree has a collection of Julianna and Reagan’s keepsake ornaments. Aren’t they adorable?

Here are a few closeups of some of their ornaments.

More of this wonderful house…the main tree and the gingerbread tree in the kitchen. Look for more photos soon…maybe, just maybe you can get an idea or two to use in your own holiday decor this year. Bye for now…. Shinnyupatree

WE HAVE DECKED SOME HALLS and a GIVEWAWAY or TWO

2010-11-25T22:58:00.000-08:00

I have been so busy that I have not had a time to put any giveaway’s together, but tonight I filled some Christmas boxes and would love to ship one to you! THERE WILL BE TWO WINNERS.
A comment is all that it takes to enter!!
I will have Parker draw on Monday night…and I really HOPE you win.
I just posted on GRAMMY GIRLFRIEND, so there is an update on Jack there. Here is some of what we have been doing round the clock..

And there are many more pictures and stories to come……but the good news is we are over the half way mark…and can see the end of tree season 2010. And that is REASON TO CELEBRATE.

I HAVE DONE SUCH A POOR JOB At BLOGGING

2010-11-17T19:32:00.000-08:00

The holiday blog has been so bad this year….I know those of you that read my other blog, understand the circumstances…I would love to think I am SUPERWOMAN, but Jack’s stroke has proved to me that I AM NOT….

So for a smile tonight….my favorite cowboy…WOODY JACK STROTHER and their tree that I did Monday night

TODAY we HAD TO PUT A TREE DOWN, another FIRST! It did not fall, but the only way to fix the stand was to lay it down and it felt like it weighed 1000 pounds…and every one of us have hands that look LESS than pretty.
AND YES, THAT IS ELF TERRI UNDER IT…..and she is STILL ALIVE!!!!
We will be back soon with pictures of a gorgeous home we did yesterday…

ONLY TIME FOR PICTURES

2010-11-12T21:32:00.000-08:00

I don’t have time to write a post…hoping I will soon
Will share a few homes we have been in this week…and that has meant very few hours in my own home…This has been a WORK week..and tomorrow is another long day…Enjoy!

That is probably plenty for tonight…but not even half of what we have done this week….TIRED would not come close to describing my body right now. Have a good weekend.

HUSBAND OF THE YEAR AWARD

2010-11-08T21:46:00.000-08:00

This was one of our most FUN HOUSES EVER! Darlene is a dear friend of mine. She has always wanted her house decorated by my elves. Little did she know, this was going to be the YEAR.

This year is her 50th BIRTHDAY (I hope she does not mind me saying that) She has a wonderful HUSBAND.

She has a wonderful daughter that was a partner in crime….we all worked hard to pull this off.
Jimmy had a plan. A man with a plan is fun to work with. Throughout the summer he and I, along with their daughter Ashley, PLOTTED about how we could SURPRISE Darlene with ALL NEW CHRISTMAS STUFF….ALL NEW…Get that…EVERYTHING NEW.

We decided to do it late October, so she could enjoy it for a longer period of time. Jimmy’s plan would be to take her away on a short business trip and we would move in to work…

The new tree was bought, ready to go. We were up early the next morning ready to go to work, creating MAGIC. Remember he wanted her to have ALL NEW THINGS.

We had so much fun working on it, knowing how surprised she was going to be. We decorated every nook and cranny and this is a BIG HOUSE. They had only lived in it one Christmas before, so nothing had to be in any specific place. We had a lot of permission to CREATE, all the time envisioning her eyes when she walked in.

You will see the little white tree below that we did for her office, with pictures of her grandsons and children's memento's.

If I showed you every picture we made it would be an all time LONG POST. So I just posted some of my favorite shots.

Back to the plan ….Ashley, her daughter, disarmed the garage doors, so when they arrived home, they had to go through the front door. Trees with twinkling white lights could be seen through the front. I am told she just stood their speechless and then had a good cry.

I saw her a few days later and she is still giving tours…
What fun it was to make SOMEONE’S DAY, MONTH, HOLIDAY SEASON. JIMMY, WE VOTE YOU HUSBAND OF THE YEAR!

Jimmy and Darlene……what a special couple.

AND THE GIVEAWAY WINNER is Nonny at Love Being a Nonny!

THE FIRST FEW HOUSES

2010-11-05T21:31:00.000-07:00

If you read my other blog, you understand why this one has been silent for a few weeks. Tree season is underway and tonight I have just a small amount of time to blog but wanted to show you a few houses that are finished. I promise to do better in the next few weeks, though I may have to get Terri to post for me some… The first house of the year has a traditional tree and then a pink and black tree in “Brooke’s Room”

And another house…..

Topper

SHE HAS GREAT STUFF

2010-09-27T20:50:00.000-07:00

I introduced you to my blog friend that I got to meet in real life a few weeks ago….Kristen…She is beautiful and she is so talented…
Her blog is full of GREAT IDEAS and her ETSY SHOP is the best. I have purchased gifts and things for myself. It’s like treating myself to something that I do but from someone else. You would have to be in my business to understand that. I get so sick of my stuff. I have loved every single thing. Her prices are TOO reasonable and she is much better than me at getting things shipped. So stop by and start your holiday shopping or treat yourself

(Just talked to Kristen and her shop was full last night and empty today. She will be filling it up in the next few days so just keep checking back…I told you her prices were good. Make yourself a note to visit her.
So a few more looks for you….

A GIVEAWAY and A GUEST

2010-09-24T22:36:00.000-07:00

Keep looking for that white tree and we are going to show you some ways to use it soon. I also made a run to Hobby Lobby this week and will show you some of their best buys in ornaments this year…If you live near me you probably won’t find them, as I bought all of them. Trees are everywhere in my shop but I just cannot bring myself to work on one until the temperature gets below 90. Also, if you have any specific things you would like me to post on, any “how to’s”,any questions you have. I know a little about a lot of things, but I know a LOT about trees.
I did finish the fall wreath and will show it to you in the next post…
I have all but one of the ornament giveaways shipped and why not add one more. So, if you would like a few ornaments, because they are overtaking my house, leave a comment on this post…Parker and Jack are here for the entire weekend, so one of them will draw MONDAY night…. That gives you a really good chance….just a couple of days of comments.
Another Christmas lover is Gretta at The John’s Family, Enjoy her guest post and stop by and visit her.
I am married to an incredible man named David & we have 4 amazing kids ages 15, 9, 7, & 5. We are blessed to be able to home school our children and are enjoying this new journey in our lives. I also enjoy making handmade jewelry and crafts, playing piano and creating photo books to capture fun times we enjoy with family and friends.
Christmas is my favorite time of the year because it brings families together, people all throughout the world focus on Jesus Christ and there is something magical about the Christmas season. I was raised in a home that had some wonderful family traditions like delicious recipes that were made year after year for Christmas celebrations, extended family gatherings that included Dirty Santa and even a few gag gifts and my personal favorite: our yearly Christmas ornament. My parents bought me and my sister a special Christmas ornament each year. The tradition began with my very first Christmas. My first Christmas, I received a "Baby's 1st Christmas 1977" ball ornament and one of my cousins made me a Winnie the Pooh dough ornament because I had a Winnie the Pooh nursery.
My grandmother and my two aunts (on my Mom's side of the family) also joined in this yearly ornament tradition. Each year, we received an ornament from all of them so as we grew up, we got 4 ornaments to add to our collection each year. The ornaments from my parents were always related to something we enjoyed that year (a particular cartoon character, a piano, Barbies, etc) or were from a particular place we had visited. Our family grew up camping and taking lots of road trips to various places and one of my Mom's favorite things to do on our trips was find a Christmas shop. Often at these shops, we would find an ornament we just "had to have" and that would end up being our yearly Christmas ornament.
Each Christmas, as I was growing up, this tradition was creating a Christmas ornament collection that I would one day enjoy as an adult. In fact, when I married David in 2000, I had enough ornaments from our yearly Christmas ornament gift to fill an entire 6 1/2 foot Christmas tree! My mother in law wondered where I got all those ornaments and loved the tradition of giving a Christmas ornament so much that she bought David his own ornament that year also to add to our first Christmas tree together. We have continued this tradition of giving a yearly Christmas ornament to our own children. Beginning with their very first Christmas, we buy them an ornament. Like my parents did, it is usually related to something they like that particular year (Veggie Tales, penguins, Barbies, etc) or something they accomplished that year. It is our hope that one day our children will enjoy the same memory-filled Christmases as they fill their own trees with their special ornaments from years past.

Even though I am married with 4 kids, the tradition of receiving a yearly Christmas ornament still continues with my family. Each Christmas, David & I still receive 3 ornaments (one from my parents and from each of my aunts) and our children receive the same. My sister and her husband have also joined in to the yearly exchange and give each of our kids a special ornament each year also. My grandmother passed away in 2003 and one of the most precious Christmases for me was putting up my tree the year she had passed away. I had 26 ornaments she had given me to hang on my tree and each of them had her handwriting somewhere on them. You see, the person who gives the ornaments always writes the year they gave it (if the year isn't on the ornament somewhere) and their name or initials. That way, there is no questioning when we got the ornament or who gave it to us years down the road. The first Christmas David & I were married, we put up our tree and then sat on the couch and enjoyed the twinkling lights and a tree filled with treasured family ornaments from people that love us. Now during the holidays, when people comment on our trees, David always tells them "These are not just trees...they are our family. Our trees are deeper than Christmas veneer because my wife, our marriage and our 4 kids are represented on our trees and it creates a warmth in my heart every time I look at them."
I want to encourage you to consider starting your own tradition of giving a yearly ornament to your children, grandchildren, niece/nephew, etc. It creates a lasting memory for your children and a legacy that lives on after you are gone.
This is something we have done in our family also…and now do for the grandkids…..nothing like a good ornament collection.

LOTS OF EYE CANDY and WINNERS

2010-09-16T20:40:00.000-07:00

I just returned from my next to last trip to market before tree season begins...so thought I would give you a little preview of Christmas 2010 and the new looks I saw at market. ...BUT FIRST, near the end of the day I was in a showroom (looking very tired and had one of those end of market days look) AND I was in a showroom that I had not even planned to go in, and there was my blog friend , Kristen. Hop over to my main blog and read the story.

The winners of the ORNAMENT GIVEAWAY are

EDWINA at THE PICKET FENCE

and

KIM at A CREATIVE SPIRIT

There will be another guest post this weekend and ANOTHER GIVEAWAY. I have ornaments EVERYWHERE.
Here is a look at Holiday Decor 2010

VERY MUCH THE WHIMSICAL HERE and CERTAINLY NOT FOR EVERYONE

I hope these pictures will ENLARGE when you click on them so you can see some detail. I had the hardest time getting them to load tonight.

I did not get a picture of the tree but I saw the cutest tree done in all these colors. Perfect for a little girl's room!