14 in 2014

You've heard me talk about Kim Klassen many times on this blog. She is a talented blogger, photographer and philosopher. I admire her so much. Especially the past months when she has been going through trials with her husband's cancer. But she still shows up on her blog to keep us up to date but also to still share her talents. 

   Today she put out a challenge. Which requires a lot of thought. To list 14 things that you want to happen in 2014.  I think it's hard to come up with a list of dreams and goals. But here are mine. In no particular order. 

1. I will create a photograph that is so outstanding that I will frame it and hang it on my wall. 

2.  I will understand all those buttons and gadgets on my camera and use them correctly. 

3. Sadie and I will take long happy walks to get in better shape. 

4.  This will be a year of relaxing and not rushing. 

5. I will enjoy more time reading great books. 

6. Don and I will find an activity that we both enjoy doing together. 

7. I will lose enough weight so that climbing the basement stairs will not be hard. 

8. I will enjoy my three o'clock tea time ritual each day. 

9. There will be a fabulous trip in my future this year. 

10. This will be the year of decluttering and letting go. 

11. My garden will be spectacular. 

12. Each day I will find great happiness in my family and friends. 

13. I will let go of past problems, disappointments, resentments, and troubles and only look to the future 

14.  I will be bursting with joy. 

What are your 14?

2014...a fresh start

Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us. Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.  Oprah Winfrey 

It's a new year and a fresh start.  Didn't get it all done last year?. That's ok you've got another 365 days. Was there something that didnt go right?  Now you have a whole new year for change. Aren't we lucky that every day can be a beginning of something great?  Do you have a goal or plan for the new year that you would like to share?

Have a blessed, safe and healthy new year.  

Back to Bradford, PA

OI was thumbing through the web and found the greatest website about my hometown.....back to Bradford, PA. It has a wealth of postcards, pictures and stories. Backtobredford.com

  Here are some old images of my hometown. 

The calm after the storm

What an exciting week this has been. Now the little ones are winding down. Sara who has had bronchitis is still coughing and going back to the doctor tomorrow. I've enjoyed these sweet polite children. They are a joy to be with. 

Are you getting older?

Resolutions that make sense

Word of the year

Each year I try to find a word to inspire me throughout the next year. Last year it was energize.  This year my word is commitment. 

com·mit·ment

kəˈmitmənt/

noun

1. 1.

   the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc.

   "the company's commitment to quality"

   synonyms:

   dedication, devotion, allegiance, loyalty, faithfulness, fidelity More
2. 2.

   an engagement or obligation that restricts freedom of action.

   "business commitments"

   synonyms:

   responsibility, obligation, duty, tie, liability; More

   
   

   This year I want to make a commitment to improve my photography skills. I have a new DSLR camera now and there are so many possibilities for making a,aging pictures. I know that it isn't the camera that takes the pictures, but the photographer so I am committed to taking lots of pictures and using my editing programs to enhance them. I will also commit to actually printing out the best of them for an album or a frame. 

   
   

   
   

   
   

   I will also commit to eating healthier this year. I will fix meals that are more nutritiously and have more healthy snacks in the house. 

Uno

Is your family a game playing family?  We love games in our family. Every time we are together all our favorite games come out. Chris loves Pictionary while Don's favorite is Five Crowns. Mine is marbles...a homemade board game played with  large marbles. Games teach the little ones many things...following rules, counting, fair play and how to lose gracefully. These are good life lessons. We are not a competitive family and play just for the fun of it. The more the merrier.  

It's a wonderful life

Pure contentment tonight. The delightful squealing of two excited children is still ringing in my ears. Children certainly make the holiday special. Nothing makes you smile like seeing a three year old hugging her new baby doll.  And a five year old's happiness at winning his new card game. Now it's lights out from a busy day, games of UNO, playing on the floor with the kids,telling stories and sharing in family love. How blessed I am. 

Ryan and Jenny

Remembering a castle

See this castle way up on the hill?  

   It is Neuschwanstein castle the most famous castle in Germany and the one that Walt Disney based his magic castle on. When I visited Germany with my sister and niece our friend took us all around Germany and France in her car. One of our stops was a visit to this castle in the summertime. We saw a horse drawn wagon at the bottom but decided instead to,walk it. Little did we know just how far up on the hill it was. 

It was a long walk but worth it when we saw the huge red front. 

We had a wonderful tour and it changed my idea of what a castle was. I thought cold, dark, and dingy but this was opulent. 

Every time I see an image of the castle I think back to that wonderful trip. Aren't memories great?

The Christmas spirit

LET US KEEP CHRISTMAS

Whatever else be lost among the years,

Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing:

whatever doubts assail us, or what fears,

Let us hold close one day, remembering

Its poignant meaning for the hearts of men.

Let us get back our childlike faith again.

Grace Noll Crowell

All the leaves are brown

And the sky is gray. 

Happy Holidays

Here's wishing you all a blessed holiday season. I will be taking a few weeks off to enjoy my family. I may pop in now and then with a few pictures. Soon it will be a new year with fresh promises. Do you make resolutions or set fresh goals?  This year my goal is to learn to use my new camera and be a better photographer by learning to see things from different angles. What goals do you have for,2014?  I have a friend who told me the best resolution that I had ever heard.   BE GOOD TO YOURSELF.  AND BE GOOD TO OTHERS.  have a marvelous time over the holidays!

The Kinzua Kuties are at it again.

We used to be Red Hats but now we are the Kinzua Kuties meeting once a month for activities or lunch. Wednesday was our Christmas party at the Pennhills Club. It’s a beautiful setting and we had a delightful menu to choose from. The soups were Tenderloin and purple barley or Chicken Fajita. You could choose from one of three sandwiches: Pot Roast, Chicken Parm or Salmon wrap. And for dessert everyone had a cake with many layers of filling.  Afterwards we had a gift exchange and I also won a door prize. A good time was had by all.

Christmas inBradford

Our Downtown..photo by Kim Nichols who started a Facebook page..I grew up in Bradford, PA 

The year in review. 2013

It's fun  this time of year to look back at the past year. It was a very good year. One of the reasons I love blogging is that is a much better record of my life than my memory. As I went back through the months I remembered many happy rimes throughout the year. I randomly chose some pictures to highlight events during the year 

January

My three friends and I have a little tradition where we go out for lunch to celebrate each other's birthdays. 

February looking towards spring. I made this carrot wreath. 

March. It's not unusual for us to get winter snowstorms in march. 

April

Finally the daffodils are up...notice that there is still snow coming down. 

May

At last nice weather we can enjoy while we watch the flowers begin to bloom. 

June

The lovely lavender. 

July

Always fun to have visits with the grandchildren. 

August

We were so happy to have our landscaping finished. This is a picture from the summer before. 

September

All summer long my friend joan and I walked Sadie on the trail near the university. 

October

I'll never forget my accident. Just thankful that only the car was hurt. 

November. With friends again at my house. 

December

This has been a real learning year for me with photography. I studied under Kim Klassen and tried many photo techniques. 

It was a marvelous year!

A cup of friendship

At Christmas time it’s fun to visit with friends. Becky came today for tea. Becky and I were fellow teachers and have know each other for many years. She is such a delightful person and can tell a great story.  We had a good time chatting away.

The candle were lit at the table and I made Praline Pecan Scones.




How delightful to share a cup of tea on a cold day.

A little Christmas fun

I thought I'd pass along a little fun today. Smile.