MY ONE LITTLE WORD FOR 2012

Here we are again at the end of another year.

The beginning of a New Year is like a Butterfly emerging from a Cocoon, the birth of many new possibilities.

Last year, I chose One Little Word that I would focus on for the entire year of 2011.

That word was HAPPY.

Please click HERE to read my post on My One Little Word for 2011.

And click HERE to read Robyn's (from All Things Heart and Home ) post from last year that inspired me to chose One Little Word for the New Year.

And for the most part, 2011 , was a Happy year for me.

My family and the TIME I spent with them made me HAPPY....

Joe

Jim, Danielle and Joey

I fulfilled something on my Bucket List......

Staying a weekend in the Stegmaier Mansion in the Amelia Suite

I was lucky enough to go to several concerts......

Michael Buble'

Elton John

Guns and Roses

Trans Siberian Orchestra

And these always make me HAPPY!

Blogging has made me extremely HAPPY.

Working night shift and sleeping weird hours, I do not have a lot of TIME for building relationships but through blogging, I only need to turn on the computer and many of my friends are just a mouse click away.

I did get quite a few projects done around the house like painting my Kitchen, which I had been trying to get to for over 5 years.....

Even though Joe insisted that I almost killed him doing it.......

LOL!!

I also finally found a border that I was HAPPY with and put it up in the Guest Room.....

I did get to create some interesting things which always makes me Happy......

Dabbled with this vintage Sewing chest

Joe's Pittsburgh Chair

Joe's Hockey Puck case

And my Victorian Style Crafts always make me HAPPY when I am creating them.....

Finding great buys at the thrift stores, flea markets and yard sales made me HAPPY...

A shelf I refinished from a Thrift Store

We did work on our back yard all summer as I wanted to try to create a little Cottage Garden in my back yard.

I was really HAPPY with how it came out and I enjoyed spending time out there until it got really hot......

Another thing that really made me HAPPY was buying a new pillow top mattress even though we are using Joe's Grandfather's antique bed that is now as high as a table!!

My poor back is much happier with the new pillow top mattress!!

And of course, I decorated for Holidays and the different seasons all year like the crazy woman that I am and decorating always makes me HAPPY!!!

Valentine's Day 2011

Easter 2011

Patriotic Decorations 2011

Fall Decorations 2011

Halloween Decorations 2011

And of course, Christmas Decorations always make me HAPPY!

I spent some time with my friends by attending events with the Victorian Group that I belong to like Tea's at the Stegmaier Mansion...

Lisa Lewis, Victoriana Lady

Sue

Then we had several Get Togethers at our home with friends which really make me HAPPY...

Joe and Tony

Sue, Dave and Anne Marie

John and Lisa

Carol and Anne Marie

Then I had my 5 year check up and remain Cancer Free and that made me extremely HAPPY!!

So for the most part, I was HAPPY for 2011.......

In looking back at the year and at my Post on what made me HAPPY, I was realizing that some of the things that originally made me HAPPY were no longer giving me the joy that they once did.

And I started to make some changes.....

And then 2 events happened and I was no longer HAPPY and became very sad.....

In the beginning of December, I found out that my dear friend, Lisa, was moving to Mass. from Pa.

Lisa and John

Several days later, I received the news that one of my other dear friends, Rose Marie,
had lost her long time battle with cancer.....

Rose Marie

I became very upset and very sad.......

I said Good Bye to 2 of my friends on the same day at Rose Marie's Funeral which Lisa attended before she moved away.

I am full of Regret........

You may question why I am regretful......

I regret that I did not make more of an effort to spend more TIME with these 2 wonderful people who had graced my life.

And now, the chance has passed and I will never be able to get it back.

So this event and several other things through out the year has caused me to STOP for a moment and reflect on what my life is like and what I want it to be like in the future.

I had felt during the year that I was burning the candle at both ends, so to speak. That my life was spinning past me at the speed of light.........

So one of my decisions to change this was to "retire" from running our Biannual Church Flea Market which had become a second job for me. One full time job is more than enough. Having to take 2 weeks vacation a year to run this event was also too much........

I also did not participate in our church's annual Harvest Tea where I decorated 2 theme Tables for 20 guests. Again, I loved doing this event but it was extremely Labor Intensivc. And again, I had to take several vacation days to be part of this event.

So I guess what I am trying to say is after much thought, I have chosen my One Little Word that will guide me through 2012.

Did you catch it when I mentioned it several times in this post???

TIME is my One Little Word for 2012!!

Now you may think that is a strange word to pick but I feel that I need to make some changes in my life , to slow it down ....

So I can take the TIME to be with the people that I really want to be with and have the TIME to do the things that I really want to do.

All of this was no one's fault but my own.

5 years ago, after hearing that word, CANCER, I was afraid that my TIME had run out. So I threw myself into doing all the things that I had wanted to accomplish before I had no more TIME left. This was not a bad thing and I learned a lot about myself and what I was capable of.

One of those things was that I could establish a little Craft Business and that people would really buy the things that I created!

Who would have thought????

But then I realized that the things I wanted to accomplish were robbing me of TIME to do new things and accomplish more.

Robbing me of TIME to spend with people who are so important to me.....

Robbing me of TIME where I did not feel stressed out to the max and crazy....

Robbing me of TIME where I felt calm, at ease and not under tremendous pressure.....

So TIME is going to be the word that I will look to to guide me in 2012.

I will be searching for ways to spend my TIME more efficiently, not to waste TIME, not to miss a chance at taking the TIME to do something that I may never get to do again.

Spending TIME with family and friends, doing fun things....

Taking TIME out for me!

You see, ME, was my second choice for my One Little Word for 2012. I know it may sound like a very selfish word but think about it......

How many of us concentrate on ourselves , or on "ME" ?????

Most of us do not. I am at that stage of life where my children have grown and are on their own and I do not have any grandchildren so I think this is the perfect TIME in my life to concentrate a bit on ME.

I do so hope to spend more TIME in my Craft room creating things that will make me HAPPY
( 2011 word again).

And I hope to be able to take TIME to go back to sewing like I did in High School....

But most of all, I hope to spend more TIME with the people who make me HAPPY.

I also hope to let you all in on my journey in creating more TIME for ME in 2012 so I will be posting about it from TIME to TIME!!!

LOL!!

So have you picked one little Word for the New Year????

Have you thought about it????

Let me know if you decide on One Little Word that will guide you in 2012.....

Wishing you all a very HAPPY and HEALTHY NEW YEAR!

I am linking up to all my favorite parties:

Masterpiece Monday

Blue Monday

Mod Mix Monday

Amaze Me Monday

Metamorphosis Monday

Tea Time Tuesday

Tea Cup Tuesday

Tabletop Tuesday

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Wow Us Wednesday

Outdoor Wednesday

Rednesday

Tablescape Thursday

Vintage Thingie Thursday

Cottage Flora Thursday

Open House Party Thursday

Fertilizer Friday

Home Sweet Home Friday

Show and Tell Friday

Potpourri Friday

Vintage Inspiration Friday

Thrifty Things Friday

Pink Saturday

Seasonal Sunday

New Year's Party @ Holiday Haven

Itz Festival Time

Many Hugs,

Debbie

With a Heavy Heart

It is with a very heavy heart that I tell you that my dear friend, Rose Marie, has passed away.


She truly was one of the most elegant women that I ever knew. She sold Victorian Style crafts under the name of Victorian Rose.

Her husband, Joe, who was always at her side, called me today to tell me that our Victorian Rose was no longer with us.


She fought a long hard battle against breast cancer that had spread to her bones and other places for the past 27 years.

And she did it with such grace and dignity.

I would truly appreciate it if you would keep her wonderful family in your prayers.

Hugs,
Debbie

MOTHER NATURE'S TRICK ,RATHER THAN TREAT!!!!

 This post is from October, 2011 but I thought everyone would get a kick out of Mother Nature's Trick instead of  Treat!!!
I am linking up to The Fabulous Fall Linky Party over at my friend Sherry's Blog, The Journey Back!!

The Original Post.....

Happy Halloween!!

No wait.....

or is it Christmas....

No, it is Halloween!!

Mother Nature decided to TRICK rather than TREAT the Northeastern seaboard of the United States!!

Up to 16+ inches of snow fell yesterday through out my area in the Pocono Mountains of Pa.

I originally planned a different post but I just had to show you these pics!!

In my last post , I showed you a pic of a tree in my neighbor's yard. I had planned to show you how beautiful the fall color of this tree is now.......

Stunning Fall Foliage......



And then this.......

Mother Nature created a different Masterpiece and decided to change us from Fall into Winter in a hurry!!

What a Metamorphosis!!

Same tree in the back ground!!

These first couple of pics taken in the front and back of my yard around 2:00 pm on Oct. 29.......

Guess I could kiss my Mums good bye!!

Looks like my chippy angel is wearing a white fur hat!!



The weight of the snow knocked down my wooden pumpkin sign!

Looking toward our road.....

That's not frost on the Pumpkin!

My Halloween lights on....

A weird type of orange glow in on the white snow!!


Isn't this a hoot!!



Here is a tree in my back yard around 2:00 pm....


Trees in the back yard.....



My neighbor's tree in the back yard hanging low with the weight of the snow!!

See it by the fence!

My bird house!!


About 8:00 pm at night on Oct. 29 with the tree hanging low.....

White against the black sky of night!

We got about a good 8-9 inches of snow!!

A pretty night time photo!!



And this tree is getting lower and lower to the ground!!

How much snow is that on my Bird house????

Taken this morning at 5:00 am with the snow ready to fall off my awning and the white trees against the black sky!!


Wait!!!

Did I see a witch flying by??????

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Please come back when I post about my Fall Get Together !!

I am linking up to :

Seasonal Sunday

Masterpiece Monday

Metamorphosis Monday

Amaze Me Monday

WOW Us Wednesday

Outdoor Wednesday

Outdoor Fall Decor Party Thursday

Please stop and visit these Hostess's and all those playing along!!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Hugs,
Debbie