A new year has begun -- catching up ...

Well, before I begin on what's going on in my life just now, I want to post some pics of what I've been up to since I last wrote here.

Christmas happened of course.  I decorated the house, even though we weren't having any company I wanted to do that to get in the mood.  It always makes me feel better somehow, warm and cozy inside.  And we had a very nice family Christmas at Jeff & Jane's house in Winchester.  All seven of us were there.  A great family day!

The day was made somewhat sad by the fact that when we left there we went up to Portland for the visitation of one of my two best friends from high school (well, all 12 years of school actually), Leanna Beechler Myers, who died unexpectedly from a fall at home.  Here's a picture of her with me and Vesta -- the three musketeers I guess ...  That was a difficult evening, speaking with her daughters, sister and especially Larry.  I saw Dick Warner with wife Diane, and Becky Harshman Caldwell there.  I'm sure that Judy and Ann were there sometime that weekend, too; they live nearby.  Just an unexpectedly shocking thing to happen.  It took my breath away and I'm still thinking of her today.

Me, Vesta & Leanna, 1962, Petroleum High School, Petroleum, Indiana.

Over the Christmas holiday I did some baking!  Made a chocolate chip cheesecake and two apple pies during those two weeks.  I gave one pie away and took the cheesecake to the family doin's.  Here's what they looked like ...  I've gotta say that the apple pie was probably the best I've ever made; used a new recipe found on the Internet at Allrecipes.com.

P.S. JUST learned that if you loosen the cheesecake from the side of the pan immediately after it comes out of the oven it won't crack like this. Gotta remember that next time!

I got my latest hooked rug to a good stopping point just before the end of the year so I could leave with a good feeling about it.  I know -- that makes no sense, but to me it does .......  Here's what it's looking like.  Now when I return to it in the spring I'll be feelin' confident about it!  But it's a BIG rug and I have a LONG way to go.  It's called "Yellow Ware Bowl".

I think I mentioned that recently we went to Casey, Illinois for a Saturday drive.  While there I went into the yarn shop.  Oh My!  It was great.  And as you know, everything is BIGGER in Casey.  Here's the world's biggest wooden knitting needles and crochet hook.  Of course I can't go into a yarn shop without buying something.  And you gotta love this town; it's so interesting!

Along the way here to Las Cruces, NM we stopped at several antiques shops (left a day earlier than we would have had to so we could putter along and stop here and there).  Well, I found this quilt top and had to have it.  Here it is airing out on the back patio (it has that old funky smell).  Can't wait to get it quilted when I get home!  It's made out of lots of old 1940's fabrics.

Well, in a few days I'll put some pictures on here of the wall decor at this house we're staying at in Las Cruces.  It's very interesting; not anything like the decor you'd expect in a southwestern home! It's just a 3-bedroom ranch in a huge subdivision of cookie cutter homes.  This town is much bigger and busier than we would like, but we'll probably find our way around.  Most of our day trips will be out of town, anyway.  Today we went in search of the  nearby12-plex movie theater so we could see Star Wars and the road was like one long parking lot as we got near the theater, so we'll go back at a more quiet time.

Along the way here, on new year's eve, at the Holiday Inn Express in Clovis NM, I accomplished a major goal -- something I've always wanted to do.  And if I can do it, you can, too.  I read the last of the book of Revelation, finishing reading the entire Bible in a year!  Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Like most people, I've read parts of the Bible, and I read something every day in that good book, but not just sitting down every day and eventually reading it through from Genesis to Revelation.  I found a chart of how to do this online.  You can also do it chronologically, and I may try that some year, too .... Ah!  Feels good!

So it's off to a new year!  Who knows what this year will bring my way!?  Happy new year to you and yours.  And God Bless You!