It's a Wrap!

 And just like that we're wrapping up 2022 already! All the festivities are behind us now so it's time for the December recap. 

I started a tradition of making a gingerbread house with my grandchildren every December. I cheat, aka buy a kit. This year's version was a castle, and Avery could hardly wait till December 2 when they were allowed to decorate it. This was the first year the little people insisted on taking creative control into their own hands and Grammie was primarily a "watcher".

The next day our house was the location for a princess tea party for Avery & friends.  

So much anticipation!

They had the best of times drinking tea and playing together. 

In the evening of that same day Jeremy (uncle JJ) was in a Christmas parade for his employer, so we took the kids. It was so cold but they enjoyed it anyway. 

Jeremy was battling a flu bug but powered through the parade anyway. The following week I had quite a bit on my calendar, but I picked up the bug so instead I laid on the sofa all week aching and miserable. We all took a turn with it, so fingers crossed we're done being sick for the winter now. Got that out of the way first thing, right? Please, Lord, let it be so.  

The kids had Christmas banquets through their jobs, but the gold standard was Jeremy's banquet where they had genuine Waygu steak from Japan. 😲

Arianna bought matching Christmas jammies. All pairs of pants were too long, so Grammie was commissioned to shorten them with her handy-dandy sewing machine. I still don't know exactly how it happened but Avery's pair got shortened twice and Colton's pair not at all. 🤦

 One day we borrowed the little people to help us decorate Christmas cookies. Their enjoyment is totally worth sweeping up spilled sprinkles and wiping off sticky chairs afterwards.

When you want kids aprons in a store but they are expensive, so Grammie makes you some instead...

♪♪ Oh, what fun it is to cut snowflakes with Auntie Arianna... ♪♪

This was our first year to have a real [full sized] tree. I always did a potted Norfolk pine but I've given up on keeping them alive and well. I rather like our crooked balsam fir.  

And then Winter Storm Elliott showed up with impeccably horrible timing... To travel or not to travel, that is the question. Thursday evening we had our doubts, but Friday morning Richard checked the weather all along our route and decided that it's not going to get better anytime soon, so we packed extra blankets and warm clothes. It was -5* when we left home and this is what the roads looked like...

...but the farther east we went the better it got. The sun came out, it warmed up to the single digits, there was no snow or ice, so we knew we had made the right decision.  

Since my grands were not there, I didn't take as many pictures of my family's Christmas gathering. 

Jeremy & Arianna headed home Sunday but we stayed for additional festivities. 

My youngest niece playing with the Christmas pageant props at church Sunday

Visiting my 99 yr old Grandma on Christmas Day

A Christmas party with my Stauffer aunts and uncles was a real treat

Richard & I got up at 4:45am Monday to drive home and celebrate the holiday with our kids. It was 20* warmer [at home] than when we left, so we survived the travel in frigid temps without any calamities. 

Grammie couldn't resist buying Avery a camper since we love camping

My adult kids resist having their photo taken with their gift so poor old Mom can remember who got what... they chose to open their gifts all at the same time. Gone are the days of posing with gifts for "paparazzi Mom". I'm just waiting for one of them to take after me, caring about documenting life with photos, but so far no dice.  

It's tradition for each of the grands to get a turn blowing out the candles...

 I usually choose a word for the year, but I didn't have one for 2022. It's been a tough year. From being tired of COVID cramping our style [at the start of the year]... to losing another grandbaby...  to church problems... to supporting family through a hard & messy experience that we never dreamed would touch our lives... to ridiculous gas prices and even worse diesel prices... to my dad's heart attack... to cholesterol woes for both Jeremy & I...  If ever there was a time when we felt a need for a Messiah more keenly, it would have to be this year. Hallelujah for the HOPE that came down! 

Happy New Year to you & yours!

Cheers to 2023! 

Giving Thanks Post

 I know we're supposed to give thanks all year long, but it just seems appropriate that my November recap is on thankfulness. 

Hmm, where to start? Like grandmas everywhere, I'll begin with my grandchildren. 😄 I'm thankful for these little people. I love being Grammie WAY more than I ever thought possible [for someone who was never a baby person]. It's infinitely easier to exercise patience with grands that want to "help" with painting or make big flour-y messes rolling out soft pretzels than it was with my children. Do I owe my kids an apology or did I earned this?

For some reason I've been grieving our 2 grandbabies in heaven lately, but I'm thankful for the rainbow baby expected in March. And very thankful the scare we had with Baby Miller turned into a false alarm. 

I'm thankful for a good man that has stuck with me through the good, the bad, and everything in between. 31 years. We've been in it for the long haul and there is no one I'd rather be growing old with. 

We didn't do anything 'far out' for our anniversary this year because we wanted to attend his niece's wedding that Saturday. We got massages, then went to our Hillcrest friends' cafe for the soft opening...

The food is every bit as good as we expected. We'll be regulars whenever we get in that area.

Then we went to a concert. I had researched Christian concerts around our anniversary and found one by We are Messengers and Jorden St Cyr. The names weren't immediately familiar to me, but I discovered I had some of their songs on my Spotify playlist.   

We might be showing our age, but it was quite LOUD! Not used to that kind of volume, however I have a new appreciation for the lyrics of their worship music. (I just hope the church had good insulation or the neighbors got a free concert whether they wanted it or not.) 😂

We ate at a smokehouse. Take my word for it, the food was fab-u-lous! The smell wafting from that place was enough advertisement. I had a prime rib sandwich with sweet potato fries (that little cup on the left is marshmallow creme dipping sauce for the fries. Wow!) 

Richard's prime rib

And this busy little coffee shop had the best hot cocoa I ever had.  

I'm thankful for hope. Let's just address the elephant in the room. It's not exactly a secret that our church is going through a rough patch. My better half is more discouraged than I've seen him in a long time. I'm super weary of it all myself. Is it TMI to say if we had other viable options we'd have walked away already? But this isn't Lancaster Co where there is a bazillion Mennonite churches. We've prayed but God hasn't opened doors to move away, so we feel stuck. Did I just say that out loud? (Who are we kidding? I couldn't move away from my grandbabies anyway.) However, this summer it came to me that when a marriage hits the rocks, it's a good practice for the couple to remember why they fell in love in the first place. I felt God prompting me to stop thinking negatively and dwell on what I like about our church. It was hard. It took awhile to come up with anything. Last month the leadership team took us [members] through the same exercise. It was good to hear other's ideas, to add to my short list. So, long story short, I'm thankful for a leadership team (and outside help/ministers) who are doing the tough job of navigating this minefield of how to 'do church'. IMO, a reset is a good idea.    

Maybe I should quit while I'm ahead [on sensitive subjects]... but for a number of years I personally have been longing to be a part of a small church. Not sure if it's a 'grass is greener on the other side of the fence' illusion or not, but it sounds refreshing to me. My one experience with a tiny church (Hillcrest) was a good one. But I've had experiences before where I asked God for something and when I got it, it wasn't as nice/easy as it sounded. Here's to hoping my longing for a small church doesn't come to fruition in a painful way. 

I thankful that even though our industry went from 70mph to 35 (figuratively speaking) this summer, we are still doing ok. Decent paying loads are harder to come by, but we can ride it out. When things were booming post-COVID, we knew it wasn't going to last forever so a downturn in the market is not unexpected.  

I'm thankful for friends. I have some of the best! This month included a ladies road trip to Indiana. As you can imagine, it was very quiet, we didn't talk at all. 😁 We may not have solved any of the world's problems but we feel better about our own.

Also enjoyed good food (that pumpkin pulled pork soup was delicious, by the way!)...

...and shopping...

I'm thankful for family. I didn't take many pictures of the Miller Thanksgiving this year, but here is one. 

The older we get the more we are aware how rare it is to still have all 4 of our parents. None of them require full time caregiving, we haven't had to deal with Alzheimers. And we are blessed to be part of sibling groups that get along. We're relatively low-drama people. 🤷 So easy to take all that for granted. 

I especially feel overwhelmed with gratitude lately with how well our DIL has fit into our family. We got off to a rocky start, but thankfully it changed. I don't know what we'd do without her now! 

I'm thankful for good medical care. Menopause has not been my friend. I've struggled with hot flashes for around 8 years and I honestly thought it was going to drive me insane if I couldn't cool down. Cozy sweaters and fuzzy blankets were enough to make me panic. I tried all manner of herbs & potions over those years to no avail. The local doctor's office was zero help with their "deal with it" mentality. This fall I stumbled upon telemedicine with doctors specializing in menopause. Eureka! They put me on medication and after 1 week my hot flashes vanished. Blessed relief. So far no negative side effects. I'm waiting/hoping for the weight loss part to kick in... not thankful for 25 uninvited pounds that came on fast and refuse to budge. I never was a foodie, but this sucks ALL the joy right out of eating! 

I'm thankful for my hobbies. Jeremy gave me the Lego lighthouse for my birthday, knowing I'm 😍 for all things lighthouse but too "tight" to spend the money on myself, and I just finished putting it together. It is super cool with a working, rotating light and many fun details down to the Lego teapot in the keepers house and a tiny Lego cat.    

Reading is another of the little pleasures in my life. I haven't mentioned lately any books I've read. [Dear me, I just went back and looked- not since February. Even longer than I thought.] I generally slow down with reading over summer, but in the fall -with its dark, cozy evenings- I pick up the slack again. The best I've read recently were Kidnapped In Haiti by Katrina Hoover Lee and Related by Chance, Family by Choice by Deb Dearmond (MIL/DIL relationships). Currently working on Devotion by Adam Makos which Jeremy bought this summer at the air show. It was just released as a movie, but alas I have a strict "always read the book first" policy for myself. I don't very often recommend a movie but I took time to watch Miss Potter this month and really enjoyed it. It's the story of how Beatrix Potter became a famous children's author.  

The list goes on of things I'm thankful for, but I've monopolized enough of your time. Drop me a comment of something -or two- you are thankful for. 

Have I Mentioned I Love October?

It might be the changing seasons, cooler weather, longer evenings... it could be because it's birthday month for me... or it could just be the activities the month usually brings... but I like fall, especially October. 

 The first weekend in October was our annual Church Camping.  We are blessed to have a very nice facility we can rent. 

We always have 5 star meals, IMO. 

And this year a bubble tea shop by the youth was a fun new feature.

Teamwork challenges are a highlight...

Jeremy's game, Cards Christians Like, was popular this year...

I found out who my puzzle peeps are! There was rain in the forecast for the weekend so I brought a puzzle for Saturday entertainment, however it was 2/3 finished Friday night already. 

We had an epic campfire this year! 

I donated blood the Monday after church camping. I've decided that was my last time. Apparently, the needle moved against the side of the vein, which acted like a stopper in a drain. Rotating the needle had the effect of unstopping the drain -and whoosh! Losing blood that rapidly left me feeling horrible. Like just let me die kind of horrible. Uh oh, I think I'm going to vomit kind of horrible. It felt like "forever" till I felt well enough to sit back up. I've had too many bad experiences. Time to admit I'm not young anymore and I don't feel fabulous afterwards, like I used to.       

The 2nd weekend in October was our son's anniversary so we got to babysit our favorite little people while they went on a little getaway. 

Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing up is like 

shoveling the walk before it stops snowing. -Phyllis Diller 

Besides making glorious messes, we played with Play Dough...

And had a tea party (in the basement, so spills wouldn't matter)...

And then because someone forgot to wear her twirly princess dress, we had to have another one...

Uncle JJ's motorcycle helmet is fun! Even if it makes you top heavy.

The following week I went to PA to help my mom with fall cleaning. I didn't take any photos. Flew through a rain storm on the way home; in a small commuter plane that meant bobbing around like a cork in a waterfalls and took twice as long as usual. I'm pretty sure my stomach was in my throat a couple times when we went scootching around in the clouds. 🤮 I normally love flying but this was rather a Tigger-ish experience.  

He said firmly: "Tiggers don't like haycorns."

        "But you said they liked everything except honey," said Pooh.

        "Everything except honey and  haycorns,"   explained Tigger.

Meanwhile, Jeremy flew to SC and got to drive around a race track, testing out tires. It's a tough job but somebody's gotta do it! 😃

When the weather is just the right amount of cool, and the leaves are at their peak of showing off, I highly recommend biking on a trail. Invigorating! 

I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers. -LM Montgomery

What did I do for my birthday you ask? I had a delightful homemade brunch with a friend and worked on a puzzle (not pictured) with her...

Then Richard went grocery shopping with me (something we haven't done in "ages"), followed by going out to eat with the family. When one restaurant has better seafood...

And another has better dessert...  You do BOTH!

Colton picked out a crazy cat card for me, which makes me laugh every time I see it.

And Jeremy got me the coolest lighthouse, with a working light. The keeper's quarters has amazing detail, right down to a Lego tea pot. 😍 I think he's got multiple birthdays covered with this one!

7 Rules to be Happy & Successful as You Age

1. Your 20s are mostly practice — they almost don’t count.

2. Your 30s are when you figure out who you’re going to be.

3. You don’t pick up speed until your 40s.

4. You don’t gain real momentum until your 50s.

5. You likely won’t have made your most significant, make-a-difference in the world achievements until your 60s.

6. In your 70s, you’re reinventing yourself.

7. You therefore cannot possibly be old until you’re well into your 80s. And even then, it’s iffy.

Our school has a benefit auction every October. It's always a good day for me- because it means I have money to pay the teachers. Of course, working at an auction is one of my very favorite things to do, so there's that too. This is pre-auction; I don't have any good pictures because I'm too busy during the auction to worry about photography.  

One of my brothers brought my parents out for the weekend. They got here in time for the auction Friday evening. On Saturday we did some sightseeing, crossing off a bucket list item for my mom. You can read her full history version here.

We saw the Betty Zane monument and cemetery where she is buried. 

We also went to the site of McColloch's Leap but the monument is currently removed for refurbishing. You can still get the idea of what a daring feat it was by peering over the edge of the hill. 

On the same hill is an abandoned shell of a castle. Some folks feel the graffiti makes it a great work of art, others feel it is desecrating a historical site. I was there for the view, my artist SIL for the "art". 

This past weekend was our biennial Miller "Camping". The siblings take turns being in charge; this year it was our turn. We really like this large 13 bedroom AirBnB.   

Probably the best part of the weekend was the Candy Land game for the children.

And the pinata, too. 

The patriarch of the clan turned 82 on Sunday so we had to do something to recognize the occasion. 

The Miller offspring, in order of age.

Ruth, Marion, Wilma, Richard, Cindy, Wanda, Rita, Michael

Richard's parents with most of their grandchildren & great-grandchildren.

(I'm so pleased all but 1 made it for the weekend. It's an honor to have nieces & nephews that show up for family events.) The grandchildren range from age 33 down to 6. The greats start at 5, down to newborn and counting...

There you have it. These are just some of the things that kept me busy this month.