More Opryland Hotel photos

These photos were taken inside the hotel (except for the nativity scene which was just outside the entrance in the courtyard). And this is just the tip of the iceberg!! There is SO much to see and do. Next year, I think we'll get a package deal where we can stay a night, see the Rockettes and ICE and enjoy the decorations at a more leisurely pace.

family and fun

Yesterday, we were able to make a trip to Nashville. This is something we try to do each year at Christmas time....just to see the beautifully decorated Opryland Hotel. We had an added bonus this time. Aunt Mary took an afternoon off work (at Vanderbilt's library) and joined us.
This is where we had lunch....a tradition. Unfortunately, Abigail's hamburger was pretty much charred....but Bruce's ribs and my chicken and Mary's bbq were quite good.
The entrance to ICE! This place is amazing.



All of these exhibits were hand carved from ice. Some is colored and some is clear. It was cold (average of 9 degrees), and that is why they issue you a parka to wear during the tour.
The most amazing part of this exhibit is the nativity scene. There are lots of animals, angels, .... but this is the most important part of the story:) After this, we returned out parkas, ran into the mall, then headed to the hotel.
Abigail and Aunt Mary with the horse inside the Delta section of the hotel.
This year the nativity set was moved outside. Abigail is looking at the Christmas story from the book of Luke.

Can you see it????

This is our rear bumper after the accident on Monday evening. As you can tell, there is no damage..maybe just a small scratch??? We are grateful that we were okay and the van was too.

A quick recap in case you did not know there WAS an accident....

On our way to my niece's birthday dinner on Whitesburg Drive, we were waiting in our van to turn from the Parkway access road to Airport Road. We were first in line and got a green light. Just as we started to move, a fire engine (with lights and sirens) approached the intersection and so we stopped. The young man behind us did not hear/see what was going on and he was too close to keep from hitting us. Other than a stiff neck/back for me and a headache for Abigail, we were no worse for the wear.

We decided not to file a report since there was no damage to the vehicle, but an off duty officer did witness it and hung around until an on duty guy (Nathan J....for those of you who may know him from church) arrived. The impact flipped the 'switch' and would not allow the vehicle to start again....but finally, Nathan located it (no thanks to the owner's manual) and we were able to head on to the party. We'll never forget where the restart switch is though....after standing in the rain/cold for over a half hour!!

One of 'those' days.....

Ever have one of "those" days? Today is a day where I have LOTS of things to accomplish and limited time in which to do so. Well, wouldn't you know....Abigail finished her math in record time as well as her other work and we headed off for Sciquest for her class there.

As I was getting my stuff together, I placed my car keys on the seat instead of in my purse, and of course, locked myself out of the van!! I had gotten distracted by something else and just did not follow thru with my normal pattern:(

I had a full hour's worth of errands to accomplish while she was in her class and somewhere I needed to be within 30 minutes of the class's end, but since it took the locksmith almost an hour to arrive, I spent the hour waiting.....without a book to read....without paperwork to assess....with nothing to do but WAIT!!

Did I have an extra key in my purse? Of course not!! Could Bruce help out? Well, not from Louisiana he couldn't.

Amazingly, I breathed a quick prayer of gratitude....had this happened in a different location or at a different time, it would have been more inconvenient. And, had I not been a AAA member, it would have been a costly mistake too.

I had to take care of one matter of business while in town, so I made sure I was not causing an issue to be a little late to the next place I needed to be. Thankfully it was not an issue, so I managed to take care of the most pressing need, get to KG's on by 1 p.m (only a half hour behind my original arrival time) and have a bit of time in the afternoon for another obligation or two. I still have one thing to take care of, but doing it tomorrow won't be the end of the world.

SO, I had an eventful morning. Thankfully this afternoon has been much more normal. And, I hope that my evening choir rehearsal will go smoothly as well.

my new "do"

I went in for a haircut today and told my stylist to do whatever she wanted. She asked me a few questions (like how much time I had to devote to fixing my hair each day and if I wanted to be able to pull it up/back) then came up with this. It looks really short, but she says I have enough to pull up and it can also be styled under (instead of flipped up like today). Take a good look, as I will never be able to make it look like this again:)

a good picture....

On Tuesday, we headed to the library. Since I create a detailed December album every year with a lot of the fun ways we celebrate the holidays, I tend to take more photos..including photos of normal things.

I thought this one turned out really nice. As you can tell, she is into Pokemon..she returned these items and got several more books and videos...many of them related to....you guessed it...Pokemon.

Also, she had been to the beauty shop earlier, so you can see her hair actually cut and fixed nicely.

Check out Abigail's blog

Abigail wants to have a blog.....so she has started one today. Just go to my favorites/blogs I follow and click on PURRFECT PETS and you'll see what is on Abigail's mind.

a new tradition

This year I decided to include an advent calendar in our daily routine. We have done one in the past, where we opened a little slot each day and got a piece of chocolate. This one is different. I had to do a little legwork, but found a list of 25 small items that have some symbolic meaning. I also have a scripture reading that relates to each item. For example, on Dec. 1 Abigail found a quarter in the pocket. We talked about its value and how we also have 25 days until Christmas. She commented that a quarter would not help her much with Christmas shopping, and that led into the story of the widow's mite and how she gave all she had, and while it did not seem like much, in God's eyes it was a HUGE gift because of her heart. I am looking forward to using this each day, and to see Abigail SO excited to learn about the day's item/lesson is wonderful:)


We enjoy Veggie Tales at our house...and when I found this on sale after Thanksgiving, I snatched it up. The little candy cane is attached to the dowel and we simply put it in the correct day as we take out our object lesson.

I had actually bought a kit so we could make an advent calendar, but we did not get to it in time. Maybe we can make it later and give it as a gift to someone special for next year's use:)

our front door......

If you come by our house, this is who greets you at the front door...a ROLL TIDE santa:) And, he's holding a little sign from the game (thanks to Bruce's trip to T-Town).

"Christmas Vacation" revisited......

Every year, we watch the edited version of "Christmas Vacation" with Chevy Chase. One of the big parts of the movie is his adventures with 'exterior illumination.' Well, we have our own Clark W. Griswold right here in Harvest, Alabama.


After working off and on for three days, Bruce was ready to light the lights for the first time. (and this only shows part of them) So, here is the before........

.....and after......

Please feel free to drive by anytime to enjoy them:) We'd love to see you.

We are thankful......

Abigail, the roving photographer, captured those who were in attendance on Thursday. For these, and many more, we are thankful.

Thanksgiving tidbits.....

We had a really nice Thanksgiving yesterday. It was nice to be with family. Only one of Bruce's siblings did not make it, and my brother did not make it, but everyone else in the family did. My sister in law's sister was able to come as well. This is the turkey just after it finished cooking and just before Bruce, the carve-master, got ahold of it.This is the turkey after carving. We also enjoyed mashed potatoes, dressing, garden salad, cranberry salad, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole (2 different recipes), green beans, steamed broccoli, mac and cheese, cauliflower au gratin, rolls, gravy and various desserts (too numerous to mention).
After lunch and nap time, Jeff entertained us on the guitar with several songs. These photos show him and his audience:)

The turkey.....tomorrow's the big day!!

This is our turkey....before he/she goes into the oven. I will be awake at 2 a.m. to get the process started:) But that is okay....I'll just hit the sack early Thursday evening, or maybe take a little nap:) after the feast. Though I sort of doubt that I will stop long enough to fall asleep during the day. The turkey out of the bag with oil, salt, pepper and oregano added...ready to start the cooking process....
This is what an almost 18 pound turkey looks like in the bag....It is the largest one I have ever cooked. I am not sure why I got such a large one, as there will only be 10 people here. I guess I was thinking.....LEFTOVERS!!!! Yum yum!

Happy Birthday, Allie Roo!!

It is hard to believe our 'little beagle girl' is five years old. She and her sister celebrated today by eating the chicken I cooked to make my broth. They were quite happy:)

Our family.....

Thanks to our friend, JW, we were able to get some potential Christmas card photos today. This is what we are looking like these days...

Fall dress....

Abigail requested that I make her a fall dress. Being a procrastinator (at times) I just made it last week, so she could wear it to church yesterday.Abigail chose the pattern and the fabric. Thankfully it was pretty easy to make. I'll also be making a Christmas one and later a 'snow' one by the same or a similar pattern.
As fast as she is growing, it is certainly more affordable to make at least some of her clothing, as long as she'll wear my sewing:)

Pumpkin makes you silly....

After Abigail's final art class for this semester, we enjoyed lunch at The Olive Garden. Abigail enjoys making people laugh...can you tell???
Silly silly girl...I guess the pumpkin did that?!?!?!
It's funny. Neither of us really like pumpkin pie, but each fall, if we time it right, we are here when they have Pumpkin Cheesecake. This is so yummy. We got a piece to share.
Abigail is my bottomless pit. I ordered a 'choose two' appetizer of stuffed mushrooms for me and chicken tenders for her. She also had a kid's meal of macaroni and cheese. She ate at least 4 breadsticks and a decent sized bowl of salad and most of the cheesecake as well. The meal was pretty cheap because the salad/bread came with her meal and she got to 'share' with me (as the waitress put it). Even with the dessert, I spent just a little over $20 and that included tip AND a bottle of their salad dressing to give as a gift.