Welcome "Penny" to our family !!!!

Christmas was wonderful. We had many gatherings of family and friends and all the trimmings.
On Dec. 20th, Bo graduated from Stetson Law College and we all had a wonderful time celebrating with his friends and their families in Florida. We rented a wonderful house there on the water and had a little buffet for everyone after the graduation. Now he is enrolled in a bar study course and will take the bar in late February. Pictured above, "Penny" his new puppy .. she is our graduation gift to Bo. He has wanted a bulldog for many years but was never really in a place to have one . Now with graduation over, he will enjoy having a study buddy and little friend to move on his journey with him. She is only 8 weeks old !!! It took us over a month of constantly searching the internet and many phone calls....lots of scams ...to find her. Is she the cutest little thing??????

Thanks Scott and Cindy

Again this year, my sister, Cindy and her husband, Scott hosted Thanksgiving. Their hospitality is overwhelming as 30 to 40 people gather there each year to give thanks to the Lord for all the bounty of life and to fellowship with each other. The feast is always a spread of southern dishes, everyone brings their signature dish. My contribution each year is a picnic shoulder ham and my broccoli salad. The salad is a mixture of bacon, broccoli ( raw), red onion, pecans, cheese,and golden raisins. My son, son-in-law and my nephew , Robby will not let me get away with a new dish. Usually, I make a plum cake although this year, I did not. I will save that for Christmas dinner. It was a beautiful day , crisp air and sunshine. We were blessed to have all of our children with us there this year. Bo was home from Florida, Kelly and Tom with the two children came and stayed until they had to move on to the other grandma. Peter and Amy joined us and all of Cindy's kids were there as well. My 83 year old aunt came for the first time in decades to be with us and my mother and her husband were there . Several other friends from church and our extended family, the Vatters were able to join us as their children were all out of town.
We spent the rest of the weekend eating turkey sandwiches and Christmas shopping ...putting our box together for our loved ones in Italy. In the evenings we just hung out together at the house. Now , I will start packing away all the fall decor and replacing it with my treasured Christmas decorations. Hopefully, by the weekend, the house will take on a Christmas flavor. Tonight it smells like gingerbread because I did some early baking for Bo to take back to Florida tomorrow.
The rest of the month will be dotted with Bo's graduation, family gatherings, Sophia's 8th birthday, my brother-in-law Scott turning the big 5-0 and Bo's 28th birthday , an office party, the JOY party here at the house and of course, Christmas Eve buffet and Christmas Day at Cindy's house. We are blessed and though all of the family imperfections are here ...we won't focus on them but rather on the blessings we have through Jesus, the health we enjoy, the liberty we are afforded in our great country and the blessing of living in my beautiful city, Charleston. We will look past all of our failures and celebrate our victories knowing that God is a redeemer and our closest advocate and friend . He will be the focus of our holidays, his birth and his Lordship over our lives. We pray that you and yours will be blessed with His presence and that you will make wonderful memories in the next few weeks for all of your loved ones.
Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Roberts family.

Okay so I am a color person !!!

I want to love the shabby chic and all the cream and white but every time I get the chance to throw some color in the mix, I do it. Finally, one room in the new house is painted. The Charleston room is now" Baked Cinnamon". I love it. As I stand in the room now, I feel warm and cozy. Granted the room looks a little smaller but it is the cozy feeling I love and want in all my rooms so now I have begun a rampage of paint buying. Today, hopefully, we will get the paint for the dining room. I have decided on a rich shade of gold because I love the glow that color gets in candlelight and I hope to fill that room with friends and candlelight as soon as I can. I will post some picts soon. Of course, as my friend Tiffannie can attest.... it is always about 2 weeks before the holidays that I decide to do major changes to the house !!!!! Why do we do that????? Haven't we learned yet.... January, February and March ...there is nothing going on and that is the time to do this stuff but inevitably I find myself stapling, sewing and painting in November and December... if you are ever here on a holiday, you may smell fresh paint.
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and get your sleep. I read that during sleep our bodies create an acid that flows into the muscles and makes them tender and pliable.... making it hard to get a pulled muscle. Now I know why I tend to have a pulled out back or neck during the holidays. Sleep is the secret!!!!

Turkey Cranberry Wreath and Holiday Plum Cake

So many people have asked for this recipe, I decided to post it..... it is a family favorite. I am also posting my holiday plum cake recipe. This has been a holiday staple for the Roberts household since my kids were young. I make it small loaves and give it as gifts and it is beautiful made in a bundt or tube pan.




Turkey Cranberry Wreath Recipe

2 pkgs. crescent roll dough
1/2 c. mayo
2 Tblsp. honey Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. course black pepper
2 cups cooked chopped turkey (or chicken)
1/2 c. thinly sliced celery
3 Tblsp. snipped fresh parsley
1/2 c. dried cranberries (Craisins work great)
4 oz. grated swiss cheese
1/4 c. chopped walnuts
1 egg separated

Combine all ingrediants except the crescent rolls, and the egg.
Separate crescent roll dough into triangles, With wide ends facing toward the center, arrange 8 triangles in a circle on a round baking stone or a pizza baking sheet. Corners of wide ends should touch, it will look like a flower. Take remaining 8 triangles and match wide end to wide ends with points facing the center of the baking stone or baking sheet.
Scoop mixture onto the wide ends of the dough, making a circle.
Weave dough, outside piece, inside piece, alternating all the way around to make a wreath.
Take separated egg, discard or save for later use the egg yolk. Beat egg white lightly and brush over wreath.
Bake at 350- 375°F depending on your oven for 25-30 minutes.
It's really good, I've made it with leftover turkey, deli turkey (not the best though), and chicken. The cranberries really give it a zip!!

Holiday Plum Cake

Sorry folks... that one is a family secret and my daughter has forbidden me to give it away so if you got it on the one day it was on the blog...count your blessing.

Let's Party til the wedding is over !!

Thank you Aunt Harriett for the wonderful engagement party for Peter and Amy. Thank you also to all of you who came out to wish the happy couple a wonderful engagement. I feel already that my days of having Amy to myself are slipping away so quickly. I am so glad that she is marrying Peter but at the same time will miss her being within reach every day for hugs and chats and Jammie time.
I think that we will be celebrating for the next 6 months... Amy and Peter.... our new grandson , Britton and Bo's graduation from Stetson Law School in December. Once the holidays hit in a few weeks , we will be on gooooooooo time. My lofty goal of having the downstairs painted by Thanksgiving and the Archdale house on the market is pressing in on me now. What am I doing taking time to blog??????? gotta go !

Now the paint choices !

It is incredible how many shades of green are in the paint chip racks...and gold and red and any other color. You can even choose between hundreds of shades of cream or white...WHITE .. I kid you not ! Each night I pull all the paint chips out and go from room to room to see if one of them just sort of jumps out at me and says" I am the one !". Eventually, I will just pick one and go with it and for the most part that works. A decorator told me once that if you pick a palette of three colors and stick with them ( varying hues are allowed) that you can never go wrong. Fall colors work best with me. I just feel good around them ..they are warm and cozy. So , on with the "broken pot " which is a shade of terra cotta ... and paint on with the "restrained gold" ... what does that mean? Hopefully, when it is all on the walls the house will look" lived in" . That is the shade for which I am really striving. Picking the colors has been difficult but now the real hard part .... picking up the roller ! The holiday crush is on.

Like I have time and Money to Decorate right now !

The wedding is just around the corner...right after the holidays and decorating for that season, Bo's graduation Dec. 20th in Tampa and still trying to get the house on the market ( old house ).
I do not really have time to decorate and shop and paint but the ox is in the ditch so who needs sleep really? Jim and I are off on a little 4 day jaunt to Niagara Falls to attend a wedding and see friends but not before I get this dining room at least a jump start to the holiday frenzy. Jim picked up the table and sideboard for me today. I just love them. The table is 86 inches long at it's longest but has many configurations from 2 people to 10. The chairs are most favorite furniture I have ever bought. I cannot wait to get the new tapestry on them and have a few precious friends over for dinner.
The wedding plans are moving.. We booked a site for the reception. It is a beautiful ballroom and will make a great spot for a big celebration. Everyone is so excited. Amy has waited a long time to find her perfect match. She just started a new job as well. Her new job is perfect for her and pays her very well and she is working in her field which is rare. She is an instruction designer for The Citadel. We are a Citadel family so her love for the school is just icing on the cake.
Kelly loves her job. Sophie and Caleb are doing well . Caleb and I have the best time the 4 days I have him each week. He is very into superheroes ! I have learned all the names of every superhero group that exists. I did not know I would get such an education. He has mastered the computer now. He can navigate around and print his heroes very well.
Bo is doing really well. He will study from graduation until Feb. and then take the Florida bar. I am sad that he is not moving home to Charleston but happy he will only be a days drive away. We are all looking forward to the holidays ! Turkey, broccoli salad, pumpkin pie, plum cake.... I can feel the pounds just thinking about it all. I love Christmas so as much as I do not really have time, I am sure that the house will be loaded down with decorations. I hope you all are enjoying the fall ! The colors here are just starting to turn. Back to the dining room project...

They are even cuter than the picts !

Jim and I got a chance to see some of our little "youth group grands" over the weekend. Donald and Mary Beth brought " Charley" to see us and we also got to love on little Jrew Rose. Thomas and Dita were in town and brought him to see us ! I promise you that even those pictures you see here on the blog are not as cute as these two little ones are in person. I had a hard time letting go of them at the end of the visit. Jrew is just a little shrinky dink of Thomas and Charley is sooooooo beautiful. They were both as sweet as they could be. Donald and Marybeth and Thomas and Dita are doing a wonderful job as parents and each of them love their new roles.
The Spanns live in Greenville and the Roses live in Nashville. Too far away from Auntie MJ.

Retirement is not for the faint of Heart

Ahhh! Retirement. You spend your whole life thinking that day will come when you can put aside your work and rest and enjoy traveling, chillin with friends, relaxing on the beach, boating. Well, hopefully, it is coming but to date I have not seen any sign of it. The work only changes. No one tells you that with retirement comes grandchildren, weddings for your offspring, graduations and aging parents and aunts. There is no mention of the mounds of paperwork that still pour into your box and the upkeep on all the things you have aquired over the years of hard labor. My niece, Mandy was complaining about her new schedule the other day. School all day and then work. I said " welcome to the real world, honey". She quickly retorted, You ain't got no job!"
So innocently said my dear. My job is 3 houses to be upkept, one to get market ready, one to decorate and unpack, one to continuously clean and ready for friends and parties, one grandchild to print superheroes for each day, one husband ( God bless him, he is the overlooked one in all of this) , paperwork and computer work... for the house, the ministry of JOY, the wedding, a wedding to plan , a graduation to prepare for, food in the house, calendar to keep and that is only what I can think of at this moment. I HAVE A JOB ! School and a 3 hour a day job, trade me anytime. That said, I have a blessed and wonderful life so not complaining just making sure all of you know that retirement is not what you think. Enjoy your life whatever stage you are in !
Life is sooooo busy that for the first time in 32 years, I did not get out to buy a birthday present for my two wonderful girls last week. Late but not forgotten girls. It will come when you least expect it. LIFE is Busy !

Let the planning begin...

Well, it is well underway ! The planning and stressing out for the wedding of Amy and Peter. All we know so far is it will be in the spring. Unbelievable to me is that all the places we have called for the reception site are booked for all of April, May and June until 2011. Is that incredible that people are planning for a wedding in 3 years? I am sure the right place will surface but for now Amy and I are online and onphone searching for the perfect venue.
Over the weekend we did manage to get away to a nonservice area for mobile phones which gave us a much needed and forced rest. We spent the weekend at Givhans Ferry state park enjoying the family reunion. It is an annual event where we reunite with cousins and aunts , uncles and catch up on the latest weddings, engagements, babies, deaths and happenings. We had a cabin and 2 campspots so it was a lot of fun.
NO PHONE SERVICE ! That was really a challenge for everyone. I don't know what earth shattering news we missed. How did we ever manage without the constant connection to the world.The weather was perfect for camping ( though I slept in the cabin) and it was really great to taste all the home made dishes at the reunion dinner. The bluegrass tradition continued with the younger generation taking the helm. Clary and Scottie have really mastered the mandolin and all the guitars and singing and violin were awesome. If you closed your eyes, you could just pretend the Old Grady Boys were there . I am sure that if they could hear , they would be pleased to know the tradition has not been lost.
The calendar continues to be filled with so much activity ! The holidays are now getting close.. Bo will graduate , Amy will get married, my house will get decorated, Kelly's stint at teaching will end, the custody battle will get solved, the new pastor will get chosen and installed, the garage will get cleaned and organized and Jim and I will survive it all. What dream am I in again????