A Home Just Made For The Holidays

Our women's circle from church was recently invited to

a Christmas get together in an oh so welcoming home.

This wonderful place belongs to a delightful lady

and her husband who have long been  members of our church. 

It radiates warmth and whimsy throughout the year but it's during the

holidays that it truly shines!

I wanted to share just a few pictures with you...

From the living room...to each sweet bedroom...

this special place just shouts, "Welcome! Come in and have fun!"

She has the most magical collection of dolls, children's books and old toys.

Paper dolls of all kinds...

Isn't this a fun time of year? We have already enjoyed a few parties and holiday open houses and on Saturday we all saw "White Christmas" at a local dinner theater. It was a wonderful production!

Yesterday it snowed a few inches and oh does the world sparkle this morning!

I hope your part of the world is well and that you are finding plenty to smile about today.

Thank you for all the emails and cards and comments we have received about our Kipper. We miss him so, so much but know he is happy & well & warm in Doggie Heaven.

  

Wishing you all a sweet week ahead...

The Season Arrives...

We are trying to catch our collective breaths and begin to embrace the season...missing our Kipper but knowing he is in a beautiful & special place. Thank you all for your sweet messages, emails and cards. You will never know how comforting each word has been for us.

The cards are ready to be addressed, the shopping is done and the pantry is filled with baking needs. We still need to finish the outdoor decorating but today it's snowing! Perhaps we will get that done tomorrow...who knows! It all gets done eventually doesn't it? Tonight is the first party of the season and tomorrow Bill & I will attend a wonderful tour of homes in a historic section of Dayton. I will be sure to get a few photos to share with you.

I hope you are enjoying each day of this glorious season. Stay warm, smile often and embrace the magic!

Love to you all...

My Kipper

Tonight we said goodbye to our little heartbeat at our feet, our protector, our loyal and loving friend.

We all went to say goodbye and get his sweet kisses in return. Bill & I stayed with him as he left this world.

After many tests and xrays it was determined he had a

tumor growing in his wonderful heart. It all came on so suddenly and there was nothing anyone could do.

Thank you all for loving Kipper and for caring about him, about us. I will never stop missing him but I know he is in a better place now and not in any pain. We love you our Kipper Pipper Pie.

The next time you have some ice cream, please remember sweet Kipster Dude.

Love to you all,

Sue

A Christmas Story

During this time of year I love getting out our favorite holiday films to watch and enjoy. This year I need a little extra help getting into the spirit so we are trying to watch as many as we can this week. Last night we pulled out A Christmas Story!
Made in 1983, this movie is based on the short stories and semi-fictional anecdotes of author and raconteur Jean Shepherd, including material from his books In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, and Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories. It was directed by the late Bob Clark. Not a critical hit when it was released, the film has since taken on a life of it's own & become a holiday classic. It is shown numerous times on television during the Christmas season, and even in a 24 hour marathon on TBS each Christmas Eve/Christmas Day!
Set during a snowy Christmas season in 1940′s Indiana, nine-year-old Ralphie longs for the ideal Christmas gift, a 200-Shot, Range-Model Air Rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time.” But when his gruff dad and doting mom, and even a stressed-out Santa, quote the usual BB gun warning, “You’ll shoot your eye out!” Ralphie mounts a full-scale, hint dropping campaign that is a sly combination of innocence and calculation. The movie is not only about Christmas and BB guns, but also about childhood & real family life.

Click here for a post I did about our 2010 visit to the film house and museum of movie memorabilia! http://rabbitruncottage.blogspot.com/2010/03/youll-shoot-your-eye-out.html

If you have yet to see this sweet, oh so fun movie, give it a try! I bet you smile...betcha!

Prayers For My Kipper

                                                         Our Kip with Ritter's 'scream on his face

I believe that God loves dogs and cats and all the animals of the world. I believe that he sent Kip to me at a time when I needed him so much. He has been my little heartbeat, my buddy. He has so much spirit and spunk, just filled with, as we always say, joie de vivre. 

      

You can imagine our fear when we saw that he could not jump or get up well on Tuesday. We got him into our vet (and, thank God for dedicated and loving vets!) and she thought it was either a deep tissue pull or the quick onset of arthritis. We took him back to the vet clinic today and 2 of the vets concur that this is most probably what it is. They will do x rays after Christmas to allow the steroids a chance to work.

They did all manner of manipulations and tested this and that to rule out anything more severe. Once he gets up and moving he can walk and still likes to be out. But it is that sweet spark that is missing. He knows something is not right, that he feels badly and can't do what he usually does and it scares him.It is like we lost our boy even when he is next to us. I have spent most of the last few days crying and making myself ill from worry. I know that those who have never been close to a pet will think me a silly

but he is our baby and we all adore him. To see him like this is breaking my heart. The vet says to allow some time and pray and give him loving care. We are doing that...

but please, dear friends, could you also say a prayer for our boy? Tonight has been a long night as he has been quite ill from either the steroids or the glucosamine they began today. The por baby can;t get a break!



It was last year, at this time, he had emergency bladder surgery and wow. We were so scared but thanks to good vets and the prayers of dear people (like all of you!), he did well and thrived. I believe he can get beyond this too. He is 9 yes but is healthy in every other respect. A small dog, they have always felt he will live to see 15 and far beyond.

All I want is for him to be happy again. To see this sadness, this fear on his face is breaking my heart.

I hope you will all understand if I don't post for a little while. This holiday season was going to be different and sad due to a divorce in our family but having Kip ill as well is robbing me of my spark too. Hopefully both Kip and I will find our way back to our joie de vivre.

My love to you all.

A Bittersweet Farewell To Autumn

From the first crisp mornings that push away the lingering heat of Summer, to the last sweet hours of Thanksgiving eve, I revel in this glorious season. The rich hues of swirling leaves, farm stands filled with plump pumpkins, the delighted giggles of children trick or treating & warm conversation over the Thanksgiving table...each moment of Fall fills me with a sense of peace & contentment. The sun seems to glow a little more golden, a little warmer as the days grow shorter. We begin to set our sights on the joys found inside our homes...a mug of steaming hot chocolate, a cozy throw, a down filled chair nestled by a crackling fire...and we prepare for Winter.

Farewell sweet Autumn...

A Blessed Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is the holiday of peace, the celebration of work

 & the simple life..that speaks of the poetry of the turn of the season.

 ~ Ray Stannard Baker

I am so thankful for many things and among those sweet things...I am thankful for each one of you!

Wishing you the most blessed of Thanksgiving Days.

May you be surrounded by warm smiles and happy laughter.

 

Southern Getaway

 Bill, Grace, my mother and I took a little 4 day getaway last week.

Grace had two days off  school due to teacher conferences so off we went!

 We headed down to the Great Smoky

 National Park to catch the last of the Fall color and just enjoy

the peace of this special place.

 The Cades Cove area of the National Park has always meant a great deal to Bill

and me. It is a spot rich in history and beauty.

Went into Marysville and spent lots of time with dear friends who moved to Tennessee not long ago. We got to meet their new puppies, two long haired miniature dachshunds who were just so precious!

While visiting with our friends they took us to meet a skilled artisan in the great Smoky Mountain tradition. He makes, plays and sells the most beautiful dulcimers. It was a delight to hear this music and see this lovely art form continued.

We also had the chance to hop over to Crossville, Tennessee one day. 

My parents moved to Crossville after retirement and lived on a lovely

lake there for 27years. We were able to visit with many

dear friends which is always a treat!

 One of our friends is the head winemaker at Stonehaus Winery.

We always bring home a few bottles of this delicious wine!

We were also so pleased to be able to meet with over 20 of our family members one evening in Knoxville. Such a joy to be able to have dinner and enjoy these wonderful people! My father was born and raised in East Tennessee and many of our family live in this area. We also got to spend a little time with some of Bill's family who now live in Tennessee. Isn't being with relatives, especially those you don't get to see often, a blessing?

The weather was perfection while we were in Tennessee. Highs in the 60s, sunny and bright. Autumn weather at its finest! Here in Ohio the weather was equally pretty I hear!

This week will see all that change as the cold Northern air moves in accompanied by an icy rain. Perfect hot soup and crusty bread weather! Hmm...let's see what I have in the pantry to work with...

Stay warm and dry and enjoy your mid November. Each day is such a gift!

Love to you all!