Savoring--A Creative, Thankful Family Gathering

With a brand-new daughter-in-law marrying our Jacksonville son this past January and our other son and wife newly moved from Southern California to Atlanta, this is our first year ever to gather the six of us around our very, very thankful table. Each person contributed to a delicious meal, and our "We Are Thankful For" poster garnered many written thoughts of gratitude throughout the day. Although creativity and beauty may not be the most basic essentials of life, it is difficult for me to imagine a meaningful life without them--in some form. The beauty of our Thanksgiving table was a gift from our Atlanta "daughter", whose artistry shines in everything she does. The photos show the table before dinner and the centerpiece she created, which is still lovely. My husband read a Psalm, and we all gave thanks for God's love and care. Family, good food, home, beauty, love, and our spiritual life--we are truly thankful and hope that all of you are experiencing blessings and gratitude in your lives as well.

Question of the day: With many people in difficult circumstances around the world, I don't want to be insensitive or glib. But, do you think it is possible to live with a sense of gratitude through both ups and downs?

Savoring and Giving Thanks--Our Son's Wedding

After a break from posting, I'll give you a quick glimpse of the reason we have been very busy and seldom online for the last several weeks. Our younger son, Peter, married an absolutely wonderful woman, Ashley, on Saturday, January 2nd. We have enjoyed the usual showers, bridesmaid luncheon, rehearsal, and rehearsal dinner (on two different nights because of the holidays)--all went smoothly and were wonderful celebrations. The wedding was stunning, and the reception a great party. In addition, we were thrilled to have some long-time friends, many of Pete's aunts & uncles from both sides of the family and several of his cousins and their families travel to Jacksonville from many different regions of the country for the occasion. We hosted as many meals and other gatherings in our home as we could to take full advantage of the time we were together over several days. We said the last good-byes this morning as several family members left on planes and trains.

It will take several days to sort through all the photos from the wedding and other celebrations and even longer to get the professional photos, but I will post one candid of the bride and groom for you to see. Although it's not the purpose of this blog to share family news and photos, I wanted to show you why I've been AWOL for awhile and to share our joy. And given how proud of our family and grateful for them we are, a few more posts about this amazing time in our lives may be coming.

Savoring--Friends Who Made Our Open Studio Reception Wonderful

Several good friends enhanced our Open Studio Reception last Sunday, and we are deeply grateful for the contribution they made to the event. Before I mention two friends in particular, I must say that I could not imagine even having done this without my husband, Mark, along with our younger son and his fiancee, Pete and Ashley. They have encouraged my painting in ways that gave me the courage and vision to stage an art showing in our home. I cannot find words adequate for my gratitude to them for this, and for all the love they show. They also helped host, serve, guide guests to the paintings, and handled all the details so that I could mingle and play at being the artiste.

Since our reception theme was seasonal, Harvest Delights, I had invited our friends, Brian and Kristin Lapinski, to participate. They grow fantastic produce using sustainable, organic methods on their "Down to Earth Farm". I envisioned a spread of their colorful, delicious winter vegetables and flowers available for our guests to purchase. Brian responded that my date was a couple of weeks too early for many of their winter crops, but that he would bring what he could. Then, he had the brilliant, creative idea of planting mixed salad greens in low 12" bowls, raising them from seed in his greenhouse and bringing them, still in soil in the pots, to sell. The salad bowls are amazing, and our guests loved them. Whenever we need greens from ours, we cut the amount we want, and the rest continues to grow. For a single, reasonable price, we will have multiple cuttings of super-fresh baby greens (and reds, for that matter--there is a variety of salads in the bowl). In the photo, you see the bowls displayed on the table--more bowls are available in the yard behind the flower pot on the right.

Meanwhile, in the living room, our friend, Greg Spiess, an accomplished professional musician, provided lovely piano music. His gift of music put everyone at ease and enjoying themselves, even if they did not know other people there. The easy mix of light classics, show tunes, and popular "classics" from recent decades gave the reception a very classy feel. We are delighted with the invaluable addition to our party Greg generously provided. He is a prince!

Question of the day: How do family and friends support your dreams and projects? I feel a wonderful sense of community in my life and feel that I seldom, if ever, do anything strictly on my own--I stand on the shoulders of others and reach higher because of the encouragement of others.

Exploring--Wisconsin's Beautiful Lakes & Precious Family Time

For the third and final post answering the age-old question, "What Did You Do on Your Summer Vacation?", I have a taste of our visit with members of our extended family.

Late in June, we enjoyed a delightful change of scenery from our coastal North Florida home visiting people we love in Wisconsin. My husband's siblings and their families live in the Chicago area and in Wisconsin. A festive high school graduation party for Mark's niece provided an opportunity for all of us to gather in Wisconsin. Since he and I could get away for a couple of weeks, we made it a road trip and took the dog. Having written about our side trip to the Apostle Islands, this post covers the majority of our time away.

Mark's brother and wife have recently purchased a lake cottage near Oshkosh, a relatively short drive from their home, fulfilling a long-held dream. They generously offered it to us as our headquarters for our visit, so we felt totally pampered. Of course, it did mean that we were in the chosen gathering place for any and all that were free during the day or evening--but that was super, since precious family time together was the reason for our journey.

Their lake home faces west, and I have more sunset photos than you ever want to see. Every evening provided a different, majestic display while we sipped cool beverages and felt like royalty. During our stay, we played in the refreshing, clear water, took walks on nature trails, enjoyed boat rides, and feasted on scrumptious, fresh-caught fish. This lake is part of a chain of lakes along the Fox River. Boating along the chain provides a variety of scenery, from marshy or forested preserve land, to vacation cabins old and new, to impressive full-time water-side homes, to trendy city waterfront with dock-side restaurants and clubs.

We, and our adventure-loving Shih-tzu, Magnolia, aka Maggie, are thankful for Dick & Marlys' generous sharing of their lake home, for all the members of our beloved extended family, and for the varied beauty of our wonderful nation. Our time in Wisconsin this summer provided a well of memories to keep us going during less enjoyable or less relaxed days in the future.

Question of the day: What good times with friends or family and/or experiences of natural beauty from recent months have filled your well with memories and gratitude?