Happy New Year!

UPDATE!

Here we are celebrating the New Year!


Welcome 2008!


We had a great 2007. I'm sad to see it over but 2008 holds many new and exciting things for our family. Lori will graduate from high school in May and we will welcome our first grandchild in June. Exciting things to look forward too.
Happy 2008!





Happy New Year to everyone! In a little bit we will be headed to our downtown mall to celebrate the New Year. This is the 3rd year our town has hosted a Ball Drop on New Year's Eve. We love it. It's almost like being in Times Square! I've never been to Times Square on New Year's Eve but I've watched it on tv for years and I imagine ours is a lot safer!

Happy New Year!

Here's a list of the event:
TIMES SQUARE SOUTH
BALL DROP 2008
DOWNTOWN CUMBERLAND
TOWN CENTRE
DECEMBER 31ST 2007
9 PM - MIDNIGHT
( OUTDOOR HEATERS )
2 BANDS
GALLA & DAN
FIREY & MULLANEY GROUP

ROCKIN' NEW YEAR'S EVE SPONSORED BY:
A-1 INSPECTIONS
RAY THE RELIABLE CLEANERS


Have a safe and happy New Year's Eve and a great New Year's Day!

Saturday Road Trip

Saturday we took a road trip to Garrett County. It's part of Maryland and is the county right next to where we live. It is higher in elevation and much colder. We had another desitation in mind but it didn't work out so I suggested we take a trip up to Garrett county and check out some back roads and have lunch at one of our favorite restuarants. Paul liked the idea so off we went.

This is the view from a scenic overlook on Route 219. We've been by here lots of times but never stopped to take a photo or travel down into the overlook area. Today we did!



This is the church down in the valley.


Some sheep having a mid day meal.


Ready for winter weather.


He doesn't look happy that I'm taking his photo.


I bet the water is cold.


Honey, maybe we better move on.


Of the many things to do in Garrett county one of them is skiing. We've had a mild winter so far. Cold temperatures but not much snow. It looks like their making snow at The Wisp.


There are a few faithful skiers out there.


We ate at a favorite restaurant - Unos





This bar is located right beside of Unos. Paul likes the monkey on the roof.


Deep Creek Lake is right behind Uno's. You can see it behind the Christmas tree.


We found a few treasures at Grand Central Station.


We were lucky to come upon these horses!


Paul got a little up close and personal with this mare.



The view on the other side of the road. It was cold.


Time to head home after this. There wasn't much else that could top those horses!

Look What I Got!

Paul and I have been married for 28 years. This year he bought me a diamond for Christmas. Isn't he wonderful!

Faces of Christmas!

At my mother in law and step father in law's house on Christmas Eve:





More from down on the mall:

Wordless Wednesday

For more Wordless Wednesday participants click here

Me and my sister - Christmas Eve - Downtown Cumberland Mall

Merry Christmas to Everyone!

"Christmas Hoopla"!

I've been tagged by Laurie & Chris at Miss Flower to list 12 random things about myself!
Fun fun!

Here are the rules: List 12 random things about yourself that have to do with Christmas. Please refer to it as a 'hoopla' and not the dreaded 'm'-word. You have to specifically tag people when you're done. None of this "if you're reading this, consider yourself tagged" stuff is allowed...then nobody ends up actually doing it. The number of people who you tag is really up to you -- but the more, the merrier to get this 'hoopla' circulating through the blogosphere. Please try and do it as quickly as possible. The Christmas season will be over before we know it and I'd like to get as many people involved as possible. Please give Andrea some link-love as the “Hoopla-Creator!”

Here goes:

1. When I was a little girl our presents from Santa were never wrapped and the presents for each of us were all together in a separate pile.

2. I received a baby doll for Christmas until I was 12 or 13 years old.

3. I thought that Dad paid Santa for our Christmas presents. I can remember visualizing him paying Santa.

4. I quit believing in Santa Claus in 1968 when I was 8 years old. My brother showed me my Barbie Doll which was hidden in my parents room. Bad brother!

5. I like certain Christmas carols sung by certain people. I love Doris Day singing Silver Bells, Dean Martin singing Let it Snow!, Bing Crosby singing White Christmas, Jim Nabors singing Do you Hear what I hear, Johnny Mathis singing Winter Wonderland. There are more too. I'll listen to others sing the songs but these are my favorites.

6. I collect Santa Claus figures. I have at least 50 in all sizes and shapes.

7. I don't snoop. I don't like to know what I'm getting for Christmas until Christmas day.

8. We always open one present on Christmas Eve.

9. My favorite Christmas movies are Scooge with Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol with Alister Simm, The Bishop's Wife with Cary Grant, David Niven, & Loretta Young, and It's a Wonderful Life with Jimmy Stewart. I have all four on DVD.

10. I used to hate the movie A Christmas Story. Now we watch it every Christmas Eve when TBS shows it for 24 hours.

11. After having an artificial tree for 41 years I now want only a real tree.

12. I always put out one of our Manager scenes to remind us all of the TRUE meaning of Christmas. We have three sets. One was my family's when I was little, one is from Paul's family and one is new from my Mother in Law several years ago.

I tag the Camera Totin Idiot, Sandy at Writing in Faith, & Tracy at Seashide Enchantment.

Once again it's Christmas

Once again it's Christmas - Times have changed but the Spirit remains the same.
A Picture Story by Lee Mero - Christmas 1959 - An American Annual of Christmas Literature and Art.

(Click on each picture to enlarge and you'll be able to read each page better.)











Isn't this so cute? I just had to share it this Christmas season. Paul bought this at an antique store last year and I feel in love with this article. I hope you were able to read it. Each page didn't scan in as well as I would have liked. The magazine is 8 1/2 x 11 and just fits on our scanner.


The cover of the magazine.

The Carpenters - Merry Christmas Darling

My Perfect Christmas Tree!

You Should Have a Blue Christmas Tree

For you, the holidays represent a time of calm, understanding, and peace. You avoid family fights, and you don't get too stressed out - even when things are crazy! You like to make Christmas about making everyone's life a little bit better. You don't get caught up in greed or commercialism. You're too sincere for that. Your blue tree would look great with: Lots of silver tinsel You should spend Christmas Eve watching: It's a Wonderful Life What you should bake for Santa: Chocolate chip cookies

What Color Christmas Tree Should You Have?

Wordless Wednesday

**UPDATE**

Thanks so much to everyone for their comments about my Wordless Wednesday photo! I took this picture November 19, 2006 in Gettysburg, PA. November 19th is the anniversary of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. We were fortunate enough to be able to attend the event in 2006. My post on the event is here.

We were leaving Gettysburg after the event when we passed by Santa standing on the corner. Paul stopped so Sara and I could take his picture. We are in the area of Gettysburg where the round about called the Diamond is located. The town Christmas Tree is here too. I've added some other photos at the bottom of the post. The pictures are of Sara and me with Santa and the Christmas Tree.

Santa is portraying a Civil War Santa. He was the nicest man. Maybe he really was Santa! You can find information about the Civil War Santa at a website called Original Santa. They have a cover of Harper's Weekly showing a Civil War Santa.







Find other great Wordless Wednesday blogs here.

My other Wordless Wednesday post are here. Please feel free to take look if your new to my blog.