{happy new year}

Taking a short break~

Blessings Galore to all in the New Year!

~Rhonda :)

Philippians 3:13-14 - "No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven."

Celebrate

"Celebrate with great joy." Nehemiah 8:12

Celebrate

HIS GOODNESS!

{Text taken from "Ornaments of Christmas Joy,"

Meditations to Draw You Nearer to the Miracle in the Manger,

by Mary Grace Birkhead}

He sets you free from your failures ~ CELEBRATE!

He calls you His precious child ~ CELEBRATE!

He longs to be gracious to you and show you His love ~ CELEBRATE!

The world may be pushing in on you, but allow your spirit to CELEBRATE His abundant goodness!

"They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness."
Psalm 145:7

Wishing you all a Very Merry and Blessed Christmas!
In His Love, Rhonda

Trash to Christmas Treasures ~ Three

Just a few things to share for my final Trash to CHRISTMAS Treasures Post,

and then a hodge-podge of pictures of various Christmas decorations.

Grab a glass of egg-nog and your favorite Christmas cookies, and get comfortable! {smiles}

Below, What to do with a slightly crumpled bow, wall planter, and hand-full of poinsettias and greenery, and sparkly accents? All from many past Christmases ago.

Throw them together, for a festive arrangement.

I found the planter below, at the flea market a few weeks ago, for a couple of dollars.

Perfect for the Gold Christmas Topiary.

The stocking candleholders were found at a yard sale last summer, for $2.00.

Couldn't wait to use them this Christmas, and here they sit on the old ice chest.

The other half of the vignette...

And remember the fresh tree scraps I swiped from my neighbor's trash pile, they seem to multiply. :) I added some to the bottom of the bird candleholder.

For more TRASH TO TREASURE transformations, visit the host of this event,

Diane, at A Picture is Worth a Million Words.

Since we are in the kitchen, I'll show you the rest of the decorations. Last year, I decorated the kitchen in a gingerbread theme, complete with a 6' pencil tree. Since then, we have added an antique butcher block and wood ice chest, so I didn't have room for all the decorations this year.

The set of three Mercury Glass Candleholders, were found at Sam's Club. They were marked down to $24.00 for the set. The greenery snaps on and off, so they can be used after Christmas.

This large jolly Santa, bobbles on his legs!

My kids love him, calling him "The Bouncing Santa!"

A Poinsettia, with rose shaped blooms.

And now on to Ashley's room.

Her red, white, and zebra tree, decorated solely by her!

She found the little red plastic, glass-looking ornaments at a thrift store.

Last Friday night, we hosted Kevin's company party.

I added a table to the end of the dining room table to make a T for extra seating.

The centerpiece was made from two old wreaths, that shed much worse than live cedar. LOL!

....tweaked with lots of fresh greenery and Dollar Tree reindeer.

And last, but not least, my prized Christmas Story Lamp Nightlight,

given to me by my MIL.

Who I would like to wish a

VERY Happy Birthday, today!

Hope it is a wonderful one, Frances!

~Rhonda :)

festival of trees~blue monday

Wow! Has it really been five days since my last post?

Since Wednesday, I have been doing alot of cooking, running here and there, entertaining, and traveling to other parties and church events.

Tis the season to be BUSY! {smiles}

Below are some of the goodies I prepared last week.

Chocolate-covered Marshmallows....

Christmas Tree Cupcakes for David's School Party....

....Made with Dollar Tree Suckers.

I added the green sprinkles for mere decoration, however David decided that they were fallen needles from the Christmas Trees. Oh, the imagination that comes from the mind of a child!

And cupcakes for Ashley's School Party....

Now for my BLUE MONDAY Christmas Contribution....
{Weekly event hosted by Sally at Smiling Sally Blog ~Be sure to visit her for more BLUE Posts!}

A couple of weeks ago, the Festival of Trees was held in our town, to benefit the local Hospice Organization. I volunteered a couple of mornings, as a school groups tour guide. My last group on the second day, was a special needs high school class of about 10 students. They were the most well-mannered group I led, and took in every tree, ornament, Santa, etc., with excitement and an innocence that would warm your heart. They were such a blessing and delight.

I took a few pictures to share of the Christmas Trees....

The first tree, dominated by BLUE, was sponsored by the local Newspaper.

The angel, "fringe" on the tree skirt, and garland were all made from newspaper. The "ornaments" were strips of pictures from thoroughout the past year.

The Snowman Tree, below, was the children's favorite!

{...and many adults, too! :) }

Coming in a close second, was The Grinch Tree, with ornaments made from lightbulbs.

{Made by one of the elementary schools}

Beautiful Jewel-tone Trees...

Another BLUE tree...

The beautiful wreaths were made and donated to be sold at the festival.

The Angel Trees.

The paper doves contained names of Hospice patients from the last year.

~~~

And finally, I wasn't going to send out Christmas Cards this year. (Partly because I was running out of time.) Ashley crowned me the Christmas Card Grinch, so I gave in with guilt, and took pictures to send, after church yesterday.

David was wearing a BLUE shirt, not very festive.

After trying to get shot after shot, of David NOT clowning around, this was the best two.

Cheers! ~Rhonda :)