Thoughts from Alice W.

Holiday Home Part II (Yes...a little late!)

 

I know you may be thinking..."holiday home at the end of January?" But yes, I am just now finding time to do the second posting about our home decorated for Christmas. If you are way over the holidays by now...I don't blame you! I am too and all of this stuff has been taken down some weeks ago! Thanks to all of you who have waited patiently for me to get to this, and I do hope you enjoy this little tour of my dining room (I also included the front door wreath since I missed that first time around!). If you missed the first tour of our holiday home and would like to see the living room and our tree, you can view that here. I actually took several photos this year of my decorating (too many in fact!), but have carefully selected some to display here to give you a feel for the room. I may post more on Flickr when I find some free time. I am going to keep the text to a minimum this time around, so enjoy! 

(Just a quick note that the "Believe" banner above was created by the very lovely Madai of Wren Cottage, and was the secret I discussed in this post.)

  

 

  

   

 

 

 

  

  

 

 

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Till next time... 

   

Proud.

1. we.are.proud., 2. Begin Obama, 3. dctrip09 118, 4. DSC_8546 Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

Even though for the past several months I have kept my hope and personal preferences for the election private, I am so filled with pride and overwhelming joy this week that I cannot contain it one moment longer! I am so proud to be an American alive at this time in history, and cannot wait for the day that I can tell my own children about this incredible experience. It has certainly changed my life, as I know it has for so many others. I will be praying for my new President, his wife and young daughters every single day, and will continue to ask myself if I am doing my part to help my country and community. I hope you will do with the same.

So very proud,

Romancing the Blog and a Birthday!

Recently my dear friend Lesley asked me to create a Valentine's blog party graphic fitting for the occasion of her special blog event. I love working with Lesley...she is a dream client let me tell you! I enjoy her style and she is so easy to please! I have had the pleasure of creating several graphics and banners for her in the past, and she even has one of my website designs on her site. She is also a wonderful blogger who always shows off other artists and creators. The time that she spends promoting other people is so inspiring and shows her giving and generous nature. If you haven't had the chance yet to visit her blog be sure to head over to it asap...you are sure to be inspired!

And all of this is to say...I will, of course, be attending her "Romancing the Blog" party on Valentine's day and hope you will be too! If you want to participate, you can grab the image above and post about it on your blog to get the word out, and/or add the graphic below to your sidebar with a link back to her blog http://flatwoodsfolkart.typepad.com. I can't wait to see how everyone else "romances" their blogs. Look forward to seeing you there!

And in other news...my very very dear friend Tracie is celebrating her birthday today! Tracie is one of my dearest friends here in blogland, so I hope you will all stop by to wish her a day filled with all the loveliness in the world! She deserves it!

 Enjoy your day dear friend!

Till next time...

A Winter Ouch!

Living in Western New York we receive a lot of the white stuff this time of year. Some people really enjoy playing in it...me not so much. I would rather stay inside where it's cozy and warm and watch it fall softly out the window. Above is the view of our neighborhood from my studio window...as you can see we have quite a bit built up. Well this kind of weather is perfect for outdoor sports...such as snowboarding...which my husband loves! Yesterday, he took my two younger brothers, Malachi (15) and Jaron (12), to a local ski hill, while me and Renoir stayed home and decorated.

Later in the evening I got a call from my dad saying that Josh had tried to call a few times and they weren't able to get service there, so they couldn't connect. Of course, I started to panic a bit. I kept telling myself to stay calm and that everything would be okay. I prayed hard though. Later I got a hold of Josh and he told me that my brother Jaron had fallen during one of their runs and hurt his arm. They weren't sure how bad it was last night, so after the medics at the lodge bandaged him up, they came home. This morning, however, he went to get x-rays...and he broke his wrist! Poor Jaron :(. If you think of him say a little prayer for a speedy recovery!

Here is a pic of him hanging out with Renior over the summer...

and here is him and me a couple of years ago (sorry for the flash!)...

Lots of prayers for you Jaron! I love you!

Till next time...

Settling In...

Please excuse me as I settle in. I recently moved from Blogger to a new home here. Changes are often hard, and while seemingly a small one, this one is no different. So many questions now...How do I change this? Add that? Will I get used to the format? Will my old friends still stop by for a visit? Will new friends find me? Or will I be all by myself in this currently empty home?

Only time will tell. But all I can say is, so far, it feels good. It feels good to have a fresh, clean space to think in...to share new thoughts...to shake off all the clutter and problems of the old place. A new beginning...just like the New Year ahead represents, so too, does this new blogging home for me. So, while there aren't many pictures on the walls yet, and no chairs to sit in...I do hope you will come in and make yourself at  home...

Till next time...