Saturday, December 31, 2011

2011 - The Year In Review

JANUARY

We started the year in Nashville, Tennessee. It was a good start to what turned out to be an extraordinarily long year.

It as still Christmas at the Opryland Hotel...



People were partying on the streets of Nashville on New Year's eve...



I had a wonderful visit with my sister and her family.



When I got home, daughter #1 told us she was moving out...again. Happy New Year!!!!

FEBRUARY

With daughter #1 and her cat gone, life settled down to a nice routine.

The cold weather kept me inside, so I cooked....

Breakfast Casserole...



Potato Pancakes from the Loveless Cafe Cookbook (sorry, only thing that ever turned out!!!)



Eggs Benedict...poached eggs after decades of fried.....



Okay, so not an ephiany month. That's what you get when you make no New Year's resolutions.....

MARCH

My youngest child turned 16 years old...



I visited North Carolina,because my mom broke her leg. Their springtime is much earlier than where I live. It snowed back home while I was there.



Nephew Aaden turned two years old while I was there...



Daughter #1 moved back home...with her cat...

APRIL

We took a trip to North Carolina for Spring Break, which coincided with Easter.

Sunrise service at the Atlantic Ocean on Easter Sunday...It was early, but it was beautiful.



On the way home, we stopped to visit my mom, who was in a rehabilitation center. Her cast was hot pink!!



MAY

Forgoing our usual trip to Myrtle Beach on Mother's Day, I opted to stay home and try to score some presents. This year was a homerun. I got a Kindle. It it definately one of my top 3 gifts of all time (not including my children). I absolutely love it, and believe everyone should own one.



My sister Becky and her family came for a visit. It was so wonderful to have them here! We toured Washington, D.C...



And Williamsburg, Virginia. It was such a fun time!



I also planted my very first square foot garden! I did two boxes on the deck...



And one big squash patch in the yard...



That one didn't work out too well (too much shade). I moved it to the deck and they were still was a flop. A squash borer got to the plants and it was game over...



Daughter #1 and her cat moved again...thank goodness Bill has a truck with an 8ft bed.

JUNE

We headed back to Myrtle Beach for two weeks.




It's actually amazing we could smile in the picture above. We had just discovered that the camper had been delaminating. That happens when water gets under the lamination and causes extreme damage to the walls and roof. So we had to bring the Rolling Turd home with us.



As usual it only took a dozen hours to get home from Myrtle Beach, with Bill only stopping every couple of hours to squirt grease on the axle bearings to keep the wheels rolling.



Daughter #3 moved back home...she and daughter #1 practically bumped into each other as they were moving in/out of the house.

JULY

The only thing that really mattered this month was the passing of my mother. It has been very hard, and she is dearly missed.


Janice Lee Bulmer: July 23, 1938 - July 22, 2011

AUGUST

With the help of our RV Dealer (sort of like a drug dealer; you must go back to them if you want a fix), The Forest River Company agreed to fix our RV. They replaced both sidewalls, the roof, and both axles. All that caulking on windows and roof that Bill did over the years were for naught...wash and caulk baby, on beautiful beach days...again.



Hurricane Irene hit our area. She broke trees and caused some flooding. She also caused alot of leaves to land in my happy place...





Daughter #1 and her cat moved again, but not back home this time.

SEPTEMBER

Right after Hurricane Irene, (in the same week, I believe), we had an earthquake that damaged our Nation's Capital. We then had what seemed like 40 days and nights of rain. The flooding caused so much damage it closed schools for a week, and washed out roads. The kids were thrilled about the school closings, till they discovered they'd lost all their half-days and days off till Thanksgiving.



OCTOBER

My friend Nadine lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She flew me out (first class!!) for a two week stay with her. We then took a one week road trip by car. It is a breathtakingly beautiful country!





NOVEMBER

Bill's brother Robert died on November 10, 2011. He was only 49 years old and died in his sleep from Heart Disease. So sad....

Bill and his brother Robert and his highschool graduation.



We went back to Myrtle Beach for Thanksgiving. It was great to skip the holiday this year, since neither one of us was in the holiday mood.

We left the Rolling Turd at home so Bill could have some peace.



Daughter #1 moved back home...with two cats.

DECEMBER

The last month of the year always brings the excitement of Christmas with it. This year the excitement wasn't quite there, but we still had a nice holiday. The family was all together as we opened up gifts on Christmas Day.

We always begin with the reading of God's Word.



I'm so thankful we once again have a small child in the house at Christmas. They bring such joy to gift opening!



Bill's joy at his gift was so 27 seconds ago.



____________________________________________

So the sun has now set on another year. One filled with happy times and very sad times. God has been faithful to bless us and comfort us during both the good and bad days. May He, who grants all things, be pleased to give us all joy, peace, strength and mercy, in the coming year.

Oh...and Daughter #1 and her two cats have moved out...again!! With all that commotion, she got straight A's on all her courses she is taking for her Master's in Education!!

Cassidy will now, as Tiny Tim once did, will leave us with this: God Bless Us Everyone!!

3 comments:

  1. Darlene,
    What a wonderful blog. I love the pictures! Oh, by the way where did daughter #1 move to? Cassidy is something else. Wish you all a New Year with happiness, peace and a growing love for God.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kim says: That was beautiful so beautiful I want to cry! But I have learned to trust in God's ways and His mercy. God is so good.

    ReplyDelete