Boxing day,..... Sell sell sell.... Buy buy buy......!!!!!! I find this to be such a sad tradition. My son in law works at Best Buy and he had to work today. The sales were expected to be a million dollars just for his local store a lone. Good for the company but I am sad to say not for the consumer. People are spending money they don't have....... I remember a time when stores were closed on Christmas day and boxing day. Even gas stations were closed. Folks had to plan ahead. It was a mad dash to get to the bank, grocery store and gas station to stock up for 2 whole days while every thing shut down. We all survived. It was great just to slow down and spend time with family and friends. Not any more! Stores are open even on Christmas day and the boxing day sales are getting far too carried away. It's all about the money.... Even the Christian book stores stay open just in case they can make that last minute sale. How sad. People are known to line up at 2 in the morning just to be first in line to get the fantastic boxing day sale. That 37 inch flat screen TV that they just can't live without. I think they must be crazy. You would not catch me waiting in line in minus below freezing in the wee hours just to get my hands on any electronic device for any good deal. I do not get it. Some how people have lost the whole meaning of this Christmas tradition. It's not about the money and the gifts and the spending. What would bring me great joy during this holiday season would be to give and serve others less fortunate than I. Next year I want to go and put on a turkey dinner for people who are truly without. I have an aunt who does this every Christmas. Her and her hubby go out on the streets on Christmas day and give out food to the street people. That is my goal.

Okay, aside from my feelings on boxing day and the crazy retail biz , I want you all to know that I did survive Christmas with my ex. What was especially sweet was that my son was right by my side at all times. Him and his gorgeous wife were my champions. They never left me for a minute. And My Abby was so lovely. What was so sweet was during dinner she said out of the blue " I love you Gramma" It did my heart good and is what I needed to hear. So yay, it's over and I survived and I know that my babies love me and it's all good. Happy holidays to everyone and a wonderful wish for the best in the new year. Above is my to little grandbabies. They are so sweet are they not!

Happy birthday to my sweetie pie. Abby is 3 today. Love that little girl. My how time flies when you're having fun. I can't believe she is already 3. It seems like only yesterday that her daddy was 3 and I was taking him for walks and kissing his boo boos. I think back 3 years ago when Abby was born and I feel bad for my daughter inlaw. Abby was born exactly one week before Christmas and Jen and Jordan brought our sweetness out to family christmas dinner. She must have felt so overwhelmed with a new born and adjusting to a new baby(first one). Sorry Jen if we freaked you out. I remember what it was like to have a new born (the first) and being so upset going to dinner with family and friends. Everything was so new. I am so grateful for our little girl. Thank you Jen and Jordan for Abby.. She is such a joy and delight to our family. Anyway, like I said time truly does fly when you're having fun. Happy birthday Abby darlin. Gramma loves you so much!

I know I have not been around much. I just don't seem to know what to post about. Then I thought , why not post about my beautiful little grand babies. They are truly my joy and what keeps me going. In fact all my kids(inlaws included) keep me going. Some days it is hard, but when I see my kids and granddaughters all is right with the world. Christmas is only a week away and I approach it with much anxiety. This year I have been invited to my daughters for Christmas. She is so excited about hosting Christmas at her home this year( for the first time). She has also invited her dad to join us(my ex) and his new wife and new family. This will be a first. I don't know how the day will play out. I pray that it will all go smooth. There has been a lot of hurt that has come from this divorce. Hurt mostly on my part, so I don't know how it will be. I hope it will not be too stressful. If I feel too overwhelmed I will just have to excuse myself and quietly withdraw. My kids do have a right to be with their dad too. So we will see what happens. Are my grand babies cute or what. I adore them.

Abby will be 3 in a few days and Jo will be 3 months on Christmas day. What sweet granddaughters I have.

My blogger friend Wanda has started me thinking about nativity scenes. I recently viewed her show case of unique sets. She has very beautiful ones. I have 2 sets. One from Mexico that a client of mine gave me over 17 years ago , made of rustic plaster. Very small and important just the same. The other set is one that I have been collecting since 1988. It is a set made by the Fontanini family from Italy. My ex mother in law started me on this set by giving me Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus. The beauty of this set is you can add a figurine when ever. Each one is sold separately, with a gift card that has a brief story about the charachter. My family has been giving me a figurine or 2 every year since 1988. I have a total of 50 figurines to my set and counting. The Fontanini family have been in business since 1908. Today Fonatnini Heirloom Nativities are acclaimed for their life-like sculpting, painstaking painting by hand and meticulous detailing. You may remember seeing the virgin Mary featured in the Mr. Bean Christmas special. When Mr. Bean is in the department store with the toy chopper..... If not familiar with that scene then forgive me for ranting. I love the fact that Fontanini is a family business that has passed on the traditions from generation to generation. I have continued on my own tradition by starting my daughter and sister on sets of their own. It's fun to see what figurine is added each year on Christmas morning. My sister has also started her sister in law on this Fontanini journey. The other nice feature about the Fontanini collection is that the figurines are not breakable, so my grandchildren can touch and experience the nativity hands on. Each year if I don't put out any other Christmas decoration, at least you can be sure that my Fontanini nativity set will be set out. It makes me happy.