The First Christmas Was Simple

 

The first Christmas was pretty simple. It's okay if yours is too!

A Holy Babe, a manger, a Promise of Eternal Life for those who follow Christ. Simple beauty. Merry Christmas to you all.

Book I wrote "Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts"

 

Some of you recall my excitement when "A Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts: Stories to Warm Your Heart and Tips to Simplify Your Holiday" was published. I had 5 co-authors, all Christian women writers who are friends. Two of us live in Texas, three in Ohio and me Terra Hangen here in California.

It is a hardcover book with full color on each page, with recipes, upbeat true stories from our lives, and all the Scriptures about the Christmas season. It contains my story about Christmas camping in the Everglades and Karen's about her first Christmas with adopted children and many other stories. It was published by the traditional publisher New Leaf/Abilene Christian University Press. See Amazon link below:

Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts

Christmas is almost here and friends and other readers tell me they get this book out each year to share with their families. Some of you blog friends have copies I know. I just decided to share this, I am just so pleased this book is published and full of happiness to share in this season of love. It is a hard world, I know, and we are called to be light and to shine. I hope each one of you finds some joy today and in this season.

Cathy of Acorn Hollow asked where she can purchase the book: Amazon.com and also most bookstores will order it for you. Thanks for asking.

Light Collar for Pup, We Got Our Christmas Tree and a Funny Snoopy

 I received my first Christmas card (see photo below) of the season in the mail today, and share here a cute Snoopy funny that my dad sent to me maybe 20 years ago. I have kept it all this time. The Snoopy comic says "In our family the older we get, the cuter we get." This is so true for my family and for all of you my dear blog friends.

I got these cool collars that loop easily over Bounce's head so he is visible when we are walking at dusk or later. The collars are inexpensive and very visible as we walk and cross streets. I have used little quarter size battery operated lights attached to his harness but these glow lights are more visible from every angle and you charge them like you do so many devices now, like Kindles and lights. I put them on my pup when he goes out in the back yard after dark too, so I can see where he is.

My friend's friend died last month while walking her dog at 8 p.m. a few miles away. It is so sad, a hit and run. They think they caught the driver, she is 58 and in jail. The lady was a grandma, mom and active. So the lights will be a help at night. Stay safe friends.

P.S. My sons took Mr. B out to a Christmas tree farm on Dec. 3, hiked up and down and got a lot of exercise, had to carry Mr. B parts of the way as he is 12 years old, and found a gorgeous tree to cut down and bring home. After church they set up the tree and put on the lights and the angel topper. This is as early as we have had a Christmas tree up. Christmas is coming so fast, each year it seems to arrive faster for this senior lady.

Worship with Others Leads to Longer Life, Studies Show

 

Being part of a faith based based community and attending services four times a month has been found to increase longevity. Above is a photo of Saint Coloman Church in Schwangau, Germany. The church is named after the Irish monk, Coloman. I think it fits this subject of my post today.

In my AARP bulletin a while ago an article lists 99 tips for longer life. Tip number 99 states: "Pray for longer life. A 2016 study followed 74,534 women for 20 years; those who attended religious services more than once a week enjoyed a 33 percent lower mortality rate than those who skipped church."
That  lower mortality rate of 33 percent is huge!

The AARP list was written by Mike Zimmerman who has written a dozen books on health. Though the title of the tip says "pray" the tip itself says attend religious services.

Dan Buettner's new book "The Blue Zones: Secrets for Living Longer from the Healthiest Places on Earth" lists in his Power of 9 "Belong. Being part of some type of faith-based community and attending services four times a month adds to the longevity of the Blue Zones populations."

The above photo is a synagogue in Romania.

I am also in what we call a "small group" in my church, where the 25 members meet once a week in fellowship and I agree with the leader who says we are family. We help each other in every way needed. We are supporting a refugee family from the Ukraine and found them housing here. Then a wildfire here forced them to move and we found them another home. Imagine the anguish of worry about the war, and having to move repeated times. At church we create families.

"For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." Matthew 18:20.

Above is a photo of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, my beautiful lady. Yes, I do feel she is mine and of course she belongs to the world. I visited her a dozen times when I lived in Paris for two summers, listened to several free organ recitals and felt uplifted whenever I entered this Cathedral. My husband and I were also in Paris for one Christmas and he went to a midnight service in the vaults below the church. He told me it was very dark and cold and he sipped from a small bottle of Grand Marnier to keep him warm. I hope Notre Dame will be beautifully restored to its original design.

Remember, gather together in church, temple or synagogue, the rewards are great in this life and the next.

Yacht Harbor, Long Term Friends and Antoine St. Exupery

"

Three of us long term friends enjoyed a get together at the harbor last week, you can see my friend standing at the top of the deck. Antoine  de Saint. Exupery in his "Wind, Sand and Stars" wrote "Old friends cannot be created out of hand. Nothing can match the treasure of common memories, of trials endured together, of quarrels and reconciliations and generous emotions. It is idle, having planted an acorn in the morning, to expect that afternoon to sit in the shade of the oak." Aren't his thoughts beautiful? He is well known for writing "The Little Prince" and sadly he died when his small plane crashed during WWII as he was helping in the war effort.
 

Restaurant where three of us celebrated a friend's birthday. The restaurant above is at the yacht harbor and we sat on the outdoor deck in ideal weather.

The birthday girl is on the left and that is me on the right.

I am on the left and friend on the right. We three have been meeting since 2009 and before, don't recall the exact year and we have been friends for longer than that. We met at work and during the worst of covid we met on Zoom twice a month. It is so worth it to have long term friendships, they are special.

Thanksgiving and a Pupaversary

 

We are celebrating Thanksgiving here in the USA on November 23, plus this is the 7th anniversary of my dog Bounce's Pupaversary, when we adopted him from the shelter on November 23. So this is a big day in our home.

 

Can you guess what the above photo is? I think it looks weird if you don't know what it is, it is Bounce's birthday cake toy, which we will give him Nove. 23, he loves these and has had 4, this is the brand new one still with tags on. It plays the happy birthday song and he likes to grab a candle and carry it around.

 Psalm 100 - "Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations."

 Bounce on his Pupaversary on November 23. It is a love fest between him and his people family.

Sunsets, Heart Shaped Leaves and Ephesians

 Here are sunset and heart shaped leaves photos from my neighborhood walks. 

I find these leaves fascinating and have shown you photos of them in past years. These are photos I took this week.

 Here are some leaves in a row in the gutter.

Enjoy your sunsets and sunrises and beauty all around you. 

Here is a Scripture favorite of mine: "And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:17-19

Gold Leaves, Poem by G.K. Chesterton

 

Gold Leaves by G.K. Chesterton

Lo! I am come to autumn

When all the leaves are gold;

Grey hairs and golden leaves cry out

The year and I are old.

In youth I sought the prince of men,

Captain in cosmic wars,

Our Titan, even the weeds would show

Defiant to the stars.

But now a great thing in the street

Seems any human nod,

Where shift in strange democracy

The million masks of God.

In youth I sought the golden flower

Hidden in wood or wold,

But I am come to autumn,

When all the leaves are gold.

Thank you to Epoch Times for showing me this profound poem in your recent Life and Tradition section. The photo was taken in Connecticut by my husband Will years ago. The words "Grey hairs and golden leaves cry out, the year and I are old" resonate with me as a senior citizen. I find this poem to be very beautiful and profound and hope you like it too.

Brushing My Dog's Teeth, Is That Strange?

 

Can you believe I brush my pup's teeth once a day? Does that sound crazy? The veterinarian told me to do that to save Bounce's remaining teeth. Before I adopted Bounce I would never have imagined brushing a dog's teeth. No one I know does that. My friend has a German Shepherd (Alsatian for you European friends) and says her dog would not let her do that.

According to veterinarians small dogs have more tooth problems than larger dogs. Bounce is a 14 pound ChiWeenieCorgi. ChihuahuaDachsundCorgi. Before I adopted Bounce from the shelter, he was neutered by the shelter and several teeth were pulled. He was five then and is almost eleven now, and a couple years ago had to have a couple more teeth pulled, poor guy! He still has plenty of teeth I am happy to report.

Ever since then I use chicken flavor dog toothpaste and brush his teeth once a day. He doesn't mind it, yum, chicken flavor. My sons told me I am a saint for doing that. But I want Bounce to keep the rest of his teeth.

Do you brush your pup's teeth?

I saw dolphins in the ocean today

 

Walking with my pup Bounce today along the ocean I saw dolphins swimming near shore. I did not take photos since my camera doesn't have a powerful zoom lens, so I found these photos online to post.

The above photo looks like what I saw, they may be feeding or playing or courting, and I do love dolphins. They are so sleek and beautifully made for their environment. "He hath made everything beautiful." Ecclesiastes 3:11

Homicide Hills, The Undertaker: 2 European TV Shows, and New Dog Welcome Mat

 

 My cheery new dog welcome mat for in front of my front door gives people smiles when they visit me. This is my new attempt to post this, earlier it insisted on posting with the date Sept. 1, I don't know why. Two people quickly commented but their comments show on the Sept. 1 post (in case they come back and don't see their comments).

Some photos from two European TV shows I enjoy watching. The above is a screen shot I took from a delightful German TV series and shows the detective in her red convertible stuck behind a flock of sheep. She is a big city detective sent to the country in the Eifel Mountains to work. This show is all about a great and eccentric cast of local people. Her small crew of police often sit around the office bored to tears and hoping for a crime. Once in a while even a murder occurs and they are excited to try to solve it. Often the crime is on the lines of a missing bunny. I watch this on Hulu, 58 episodes.

 The above three photos are from the TV series The Undertaker and this is very character driven too, with the main character in the last photo being the undertaker who always gets drawn into solving crimes. The young man in the goth black suit and ruffled shirt mode plays Fabio who turns out to be a gifted addition to the staffing of the mortuary, and who is kind and creative with people. This is set in a small town in Switzerland. The main character is played by Mike Muller, a soulful actor who plays the overweight, grumpy and sometimes romantic lead. The first two photos show Fabio played by Reto Stalder, quite the handsome young man. I watch this on MHz Choice. 40 episodes.

Nobel Physics Prize Winner Refutes Climate Emergency

 

 Nobel Prize winning physicist John Clauser and 1,600 other scientists make brilliant arguments against there being a climate emergency. In the article in the link below Clauser explains how all the models lack inclusion of the importance of clouds in reflecting back the sun's heat. He also explains sloppy science used in the 40 climate models often referred to. I think we can all learn by reading this article and hope everyone will read it, no matter your ideas about climate emergency.

Nobel Scientist Refutes Climate Emergency

If for any reason the link doesn't work, go to epochtimes.com or search John Clauser. A commenter said  they would never read an article from Epoch Times but this ideally would not deter us from reading what this Nobel Prize scientist and 1600 other scientists have found, and main stream media is not reporting it, so where would you find it?

My week that was, Ups and Downs of New Roof and Hip Pain

The first photo shows some of the five roofers on our roof and their trucks. I didn't want to invade their privacy so I took the photo from across the street.

The above photo shows my house on the right and my neighbor on the left, they are gutting their house and adding an addition, so their house will be like new. Gutting means taking out all of the interior.
 

Starting Wednesday August 23 the roofers I hired came over to tear off our old roof and put on the new one. I had 3 companies come over and give me estimates and picked the one I liked the best. At 5 p.m. that very day I had sudden severe pain in my left hip. That evening and the next three days I could not walk, I only managed to hobble. Meanwhile the five man team of roofers are making lots of noise on the roof. Not very restful for me. This hip pain has happened bcfor including a year ago, at which time they took xrays and told me it is arthritis in my hips. Common for oldies like me.

The above photo shows on the right the new "forest brown" shingles, progress can be seen. The project is completed now with 7 full week days of work. Next up, someone to paint the fascia boards and then the contractor will come back and put up the gutters and downspouts in a couple weeks.

The above photo shows how everything in the garage was covered in plastic, and also the entire attic covered in plastic, even the floor, because the attic and garage are open beam and dust and debris seeps in when the old shingles are pulled off of the roof. The contractor said the dust could damage power tools, etc. The contractor said he does not allow his crew to go in attics, fortunately my sons went up there and did the plastic covering there and in the garage. I certainly couldn't. 

Below shows the completed roof. Completed roof, but now 200 linear feet of fascia boards (the white boards above the garage doors and all around the house) remain to be painted barn red, and then gutters and downspouts installed. 

 

What a week, so much pain in my hip and noise from the roofing. Oh how I love peace and quiet. To celebrate my handsome Forest Brown roof, shall I have a party and invite you all? We would not climb on the roof though.

Homicide Hills and The Undertaker and Puppy Welcome Mat at My House

 My cheery new dog welcome mat for in front of my front door gives people smiles when they visit me.

Some photos from two European TV shows I enjoy watching. The above is a screen shot I took from a delightful German TV series and shows the detective in her red convertible stuck behind a flock of sheep. She is a big city detective sent to the country in the Eifel Mountains to work. This show is all about a great and eccentric cast of local people. Her small crew of police often sit around the office bored to tears and hoping for a crime. Once in a while even a murder occurs and they are excited to try to solve it. Often the crime is on the lines of a missing bunny. I watch this on Hulu, 58 episodes.

 The above three photos are from the TV series The Undertaker and this is very character driven too, with the main character in the last photo being the undertaker who always gets drawn into solving crimes. The young man in the goth black suit and ruffled shirt mode plays Fabio who turns out to be a gifted addition to the staffing of the mortuary, and who is kind and creative with people. This is set in a small town in Switzerland. The main character is played by Mike Muller, a soulful actor who plays the overweight, grumpy and sometimes romantic lead. The first two photos show Fabio played by Reto Stalder, quite the handsome young man. I watch this on MHz Choice. 40 episodes.

This and That Photos

 

Bounce, bird bath in my back yard, peaceful place to sit in the gardens at my favorite coffee shop, wonderful book "Flash: The Homeless Donkey Who Taught Me About Life, Faith and Second Chances" a true story written by Rachel Ann Ridge, Foreword by Priscilla Shirer (love her), and clouds near my home. Dori complimented the photographer of Bounce and said Bounce likes the photographer, that is so true, my oldest son took the photo.