Vignette # 4 ~ Christmas Eve ~ Sun going down

What is it about Christmas Eve?

There is a strong sense of anticipation 

There is joy and excitement about what is coming.

Everything glows.

Jesus is coming soon.

When we wake up on Christmas morning He will have arrived.

Our Christmas Eve service at Hope Bible Church was amazing.

All of our people showed up with their families to celebrate Jesus' birth.

Everyone was excited.

We sang carols, listened to God's word proclaimed, and lit candles.

Candlelight is so fitting.

It was a dark, cold night when Jesus came.

but,

there was a star that shone brightly. 

It led some shepherds right to where Christ was born.

They Worshipped Him.

We worshipped Him, too, on this beautiful Christmas Eve.

How blessed we are to be "In Christ."

We came home to a simple meal of soup and bread.

Filled with Love, we gave thanks and ate.

Christmas Day is coming.

💗

.

 

Vignette # 3 ~ roses ~ Christmas Eve

David was here in the afternoon.

We were putting the finishing touches on our Christmas Eve dinner.

Christmas Eve Worship was scheduled for 5 o'clock...dinner would be after.

I had come to grips with the fact that Amanda and her family would not be present this year.

She is having a new beginning...

A full-time job at a brand-new fitness center in North Plam Beach,

opening a few days before Christmas.

I was sad but understanding.

When the doorbell rang, I was surprised...

I was not expecting guests or any more Amazon deliveries.

There on my front porch stood a young guy with a huge box addressed to Mom.

The box had more red roses than I had ever seen in one place before.

tucked away inside was a note...

She was there in my heart in a big bunch of red roses.

With no time to arrange, 

I put them in a big pitcher of water and headed out the door for church.

(there were more in another container.)

🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

*More about Christmas Eve later.

 

Vignette #2 Christmas Eve Eve

We decided to spend Monday evening down on River Street.

David made reservations at Graffito, a pizza restaurant at Plant Riverside. 

We were full of excitement.

Let the fun begin.

We had early reservations so that we could do a little last-minute shopping after we ate.

It was a gray and gloomy afternoon, and as soon as we arrived, so did the rain.

It was also freezing cold with wind blowing off of the river.

As a side note,

Walter was battling with a nosebleed sustained in a tussle with Harry earlier.

He powered through and was a real trooper.

The pizza was delicious, and the service was great.

We looked around at all of the beautiful trees and decorations in the hotel lobby

Then, we headed outside to browse the Christmas Market.

Of course, there was a stall selling hot chocolate and cider, which we all indulged in.

Those hot treats enabled us to look at everything in the cold and light rain without being miserable.

What a fun start to Christmas week.

It felt festive and fun.

The kids loved all of it.

The old homes in downtown Savannah put on a grand show.

Exquisitely beautiful to gaze upon on a cold rainy night two days before Christmas.

🎄

 

a vignette of Christmas 2025

Hope Bible Church party at David and Erika's house.

Friday evening, December 20, 2025.

We had fun getting all of the finger food prepared and displayed.

Anna working on the charcuterie board that you see above.

One of the drink stations.

Sarah's hot cider and my lime sherbert punch.

We had a coffee station, too,

It was cold outside.

The veggie station.

There could be no food that required a fork.

You always have to include some healthy stuff.

I brought the picked asparagus.

Lucy made these iced gingerbread cookies.

Erika working hard in the kitchen.

Sweets!

A little blurry but so festive.

Our church comes out strong for any fellowship.

It is so much fun to get together, especially at Christmas.

So many kids eating and running around outside with flashlights.

So many adults eating and talking and just being merry.

The best of times!

🎄

*A vignette of Christmas 2025, part two, will be published soon.

 

the beach ~ New Year's Day ~ 2025

What can we do on New Year's Day?

Why, go to the beach, of course.

It was glorious!

This tree, future driftwood, had made its way up to the bottom of the stairs.

The beach in front of our condo is wider than I've ever seen.

The hurricanes have stolen so much of the sand dunes.

The sun was shining, the water blue, the sand golden.

It felt so good to walk on the beach in the cold air.

Brrr

Pure joy!

Brightest sun.

Harry got blocked behind Erika, shielding herself from the glare.

The shadow is me taking the photo.

There's that sun I was talking about.

Afterward, we got tacos at Chamacos.

What a perfect way to welcome

2025

"Love never dies.

it never goes away,

it never fades."

Thank you Jesus

 

Ben Rector - Extraordinary Magic - 6/27/2018 - Paste Studios - New York, NY

This song!

I 💗 it!

I spent this afternoon at my desk going through a large stack of notes and notices that had accumulated since Thanksgiving that I had ignored and wished I had thrown away.

Christmas gift lists, 

gift receipts,

grocery lists, 

instructions on how to make macaroni and cheese, 

telephone numbers,

people I needed to contact for various and sundry reasons,

reminders to take my car in for maintenance, etc...

Sorting through all of this was a monumental task that I had put off and dreaded.

But there in the midst of the madness of discarded holiday notes was this... 

Ben Rector, Extraordinary Miracles, with a note to myself to...

"Listen when you have a moment."

If I hadn't finally made time to go through the stack, 

I would have forgotten all about this reminder.

Some people really do have "the magic."

Life is full of wonder for them.

💗

New Year's Eve at my home

 

The sun was beautifully coming into my house yesterday.

I love light.

Jesus is the light of the world.

I love Jesus!

This year, I placed my nativity stained glass in my bedroom window.

I caught this reflection on the floor yesterday,

The star is in the shape of a cross.

It took my breath away.

If you've come to my home, you know that I love barn pictures.

This one is a winter scene.

New this year.

Just perfect.

Ready for New Year's Eve,

Very clever decorations on my tree, don't you think?

Here is the "silly" version of the pic I posted last night.

We ate leftovers from our big dinner party the night before.

I had lime sherbert punch in the punch bowl in the 

makeshift drink station in the laundry room.

We played "Roll the Dice" for cash prizes.

There was lots of laughter and fun.

No "sparklers" this year."

No one complained.

Here are Lucy and I in our Happy New Year hats.

Wishing all who read a Happy New Year.

2025 seems important.

Maybe Jesus will come this year to get His church.

Do you know Him as your Lord and Savior?

Are you ready?