Catching My Breath!

 It's a dreary Sunday and while I should be starting my Christmas decorating, I have chosen to take the day to catch my breath after such a wonderful, family filled weekend...and start tomorrow instead. I think after I am done with this blog, I might just throw a "fake" log in the fireplace and nestle in to watch some Christmas movies. But first, I want to share some of my photos from all of the fun. Everyone was able to travel safely to be here this holiday and it just reminds me again how special these moments are! We had people and dogs in every nook and cranny and it couldn't have been any better!

My fun started with Hudson's 16th birthday celebration downtown at Mark's Prime. "Light Up Ocala" had just happened so everything was beautiful and it was warm enough for us eat out on the patio-which is our favorite place to be!

My family from out of town stayed at my house but we did our feast at daughter #3's home. We managed a few group shots and the rest are just a few random photos throughout the day. As usual, I start out with good intentions and then just put the camera down and don't think about it again.

My grand daughter's boyfriend took this one but we wanted one with him in the picture so he set up the timer. He wasn't quite as good at that as my sister-in-law is but, in her absence, we took what we could get. Lol

At least no heads were cut off in the taking of this picture. Lol

Jen's 2 beautiful tables.

And one more little birthday celebration with the whole gang!

The next day we were all up in Gainesville for my brother's 70th birthday celebration. What fun it was to have the whole family from both sides, old and new friends and neighbors all there to help him celebrate his big day. We had a wonderful time visiting and then getting a a big circle and sharing so many stories and memories we have of him from his 70 years!

 

My brother has been a runner and loved the color pink for most of his life so my sister-in-law used pink, black and silver as the color scheme and asked me to make everyone a runner's "medal" using all of his "teacher" pictures from his 30 plus years of teaching. It was so much fun to look at his pictures as he "progressed" through the years.

And then, of course, Saturday was the BIG game between UF and FSU. And, because we are now a house divided, it is a big one! Most of my family went but I was supposed to be dog sitting. As it turned out, daughter #1 decided to head home early to beat the traffic and ended up taking both dogs with her...so I was home alone watching the game. As much as I would have loved to have been with the gang, since it was a late game and I had had a super full week, I was kind of glad to be sitting with my feet up. It was a good game but let's just say that out of the ENTIRE, VERY LARGE family on both sides, only 2 of us were super happy with the outcome! Lol

So, I'm off to think about Christmas and maybe make some plans...and then, hopefully, hit the ground running tomorrow. I'll be back and hopefully when I am, I will be sharing the house ready for Christmas. Stay safe and stay tuned.

It's a Wrap!

 With family beginning to arrive soon, I have started to do a bit of cleaning and preparation so I think it is time to finish up our tour before it's too late. On to the family room.

The coffee table got a little change with the addition of the brown bottles this year.

I just realized that the candle in the lantern is reading as beige-not sure why but it is the same color as its counterpart on the other side. Lol

And the last rooms to share are the bathrooms.

So that is the decor for Thanksgiving this year. Not sure when I will be back because this will be a super busy week. Tomorrow grandson #2 celebrates his 16th birthday so we will be downtown at his favorite restaurant once again and, since we just had "Light Up Ocala" everything should be beautiful and festive!  Family from far away will begin arriving soon and staying with me but we will do our actual feast at daughter #3's house. Everyone will be here with the exception of my brother and sister-in-law who will have lots of her family staying with them in Gainesville as the next day will be a party for my brother's 70th birthday at their house . And then, the following day is the UF/FSU game. It is sure to be a crazy weekend but we will all be together for the first time since June when we had our going away party for Harrison. He is home for a 9 day leave so everyone is so excited to catch up with him. I know I will have many photos to share and then I will be off to decorate for Christmas. I am truly having a hard time believing that another year has come to a close-do they seem to go as fast for everyone else as they do for me? Stay safe and stay tuned.

A Dining We Will Go...and More

Since I've already done some Thanksgiving grocery shopping and have made my to-do lists, I know that the day is fast approaching. Thinking I had better wrap up our tour pretty soon. Let's catch the dining room and sunroom today.

For some odd reason, I really like this long box that I made out of old wood years ago. And, it makes an easy display for the velvet pumpkins-also from a few years ago. I almost always have some extra wood in storage and I enjoy grabbing some and making whatever I'm in the mood for that day. After a recent walk around the yard, I saw where an old bench I made might need to be replaced-looks like the new year list of to-dos is already beginning.

And on into the sunroom

I have a lot of people ask me why I bother to decorate for Thanksgiving...why not go straight into Christmas? And, that is a valid question...and I might even ask myself that same question every now and then. But, when I look at these pictures, I know the answer. First of all, I just love autumn and I realize that this will be the last chance I will have this year to have these beautiful sights and smells around me. And, perhaps most of all, Thanksgiving is a true family holiday. It is the coming together of loved ones for no reason other than to be together...and eat. Lol Even though there is a lot of food prep, everyone shares the load in our family and we have the whole day-and days before and after-to just visit and catch up. With the ages of my gang these days, there are lots of changes-jobs, relationships, homes, pets, etc. And, of course, we can share these things through media but there is nothing quite like all being together and doing it in person-with lots of hugs...and photos if I have my way! I will be back for one more post before the big day-and the family-arrives. Stay safe and stay tuned.