For 2015: Be it resolved...

...  that I will be more awesome!  Whoa. Yeah!  I like that resolution! (I found it just googling 'New Year's Resolutions')...

 

(That's my favorite resolution ever.)

And now for some of my own...

Be it resolved that I will visit my daughter and her hubby SOON. (They've moved to Portland, Oregon, and I've never been there... so I must go check it out.... to see if it is okay for them.)  (It's up to me... to see.)

Be it resolved ... that I will get back to exercising ... though I don't much like going to the gym... where svelte people are exercising.... Well,  I guess I need to work on my attitude towards those svelte folks. (I mean, they're just folks, right?)

Be it resolved ... that I will lose 10 or 15 pounds in 2015. (I resolved that in 2012, 2013, 2014. Hmm. maybe I need to resolve to be happy in the skin I'm in?)    (Now I like THAT resolution!)

AND BE IT RESOLVED... that I will finish the book I started a long time ago... about my sweet twin-Peggy.  I need to finish it, so, well, I can finish it...... so it won't be hanging over my head... and my heart.
That last resolution I really need to honor... and do... and finish.
However I state it, I need to resolve to do that.... and then do that. 

OH and I need to do that first resolution.... 
That will be fun.

Let's all make that our resolution for 2015!!

I dare you!! 

And we can each translate it however we want.

(Be kinder, more patient, thriftier, less whiney, etc., etc.)

 

  Oh yeah.

I'm movin' on up...

... to the center of the tea room!!

(Thanks to Jacob Kizer, for taking this picture.)

I was back there where that carriage (or surrey, or whatever you call it) was.... but now I have to make sure the back of my hair looks nice,
oh, and my shoes are polished,
and my nails look okay.

(And I can't wear my bath-robe to the tea room.)

Manager Claudia called me last week, and asked if I minded if they moved the piano, since people couldn't hear me in the party area.  I said 'I think that would be okay'.... then wondered if it would really be okay..... but it was!!
Well, I didn't realize it was so okay until I started counting my tips!
Yesterday I got $73!!! The day before that I got $58!  That's better than the usual $8 to $12 ... or $0.   Whoa.  'Course it is the holiday season and people are feeling generous.... and of course, they have to pass by my tip jar now, and well.... I need to get a bigger one!!!

So I'm excited.
And I'm playing some new tunes... and though "Let It Go" was a new tune last fall, it is getting old fast.... so I'm letting it go.

I do play old tunes still, though.
After all, it IS an antique mall.

Come see me at LoneStar Antiques Simpliciteas Tea Room (5605 Denton Highway, Haltom City, TX).  I usually play on Tuesdays and Fridays and Saturdays, from 11:30-1:30 (till 2 on Saturday). (Well, one Tuesday a month I'm gone to Oklahoma on business.)
See my schedule on my calendar at my website, NancyCarmack.com.

Yes, I'm shamelessly promoting myself.

Well, why not?  It's my blog, after all.

We had a wonderful time... and I got the most wonderful gift!!!

Christmas 2014 was fantastic.
I will show you pictures.... and they will be kind of random in their order.

Here's the one I'm making the very first .....

That's my dear mother with her dear great granddaughter, Nell!

The next picture is of the most wonderful present anybody ever received anywhere....

Bailey drew my name, and gave me the most wonderful blanket - 

with my life on it!!!

Whoa!!

That above picture does NOT do it justice! 

It is beautiful and so very soft.

Mm.

I love it!!!

And here's little Nell whom I love...

She enjoyed the doggy-chair she got!
It fit her just right.

And here is her cousin Anna enjoying it, too....

... with her brother and sister, enjoying some of their gifts!

Here is Ryan with his chicken bird house his folks got him.   Fun!

You may notice throughout this post that Ryan and Nell got more pictures taken of them than anyone else.  I guess my camera just gravitated toward them somehow...

Nell loved going through the tissue paper, and the boxes!

And Nell's Nana got to model her new coat!!

And here's Uncle Ryan and Nell again....

And here I am with her after her nap...

Before her nap we had breakfast....

There were 12 people in the dining room (here) and 10 in the breakfast nook, but I didn't get a picture of them!

But I did get a picture of the cooks, after they cleaned up...

From left, Will, John, Sam, Jerry, Ryan, and Zach.

Mother and Elizabeth got to have a good visit... as did Will, John and Sam....

And after the meal, Ryan's little sister relaxed, while Ryan looked through a little Portland book with his folks.

And then Ryan relaxed with his little niece...

And then Sam showed off his hoodie made with his daughter's art...

And here he is with his son-in-law who's wearing HIS Laura's art hoodie....

And here's the artist herself with HER hoodie...

Santa got those hoodies from Laura's site at Society 6.

(Santa surprised her!)

Click HERE to go where Santa went.

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Well, those are the pictures I got from our Christmas.

I did NOT take as many pictures as I should have!

(I was too excited with my own gift Bailey gave me to think about much else.)

Would you believe that I did NOT get a picture of the giver of my most wonderful gift ever....

If I could go back in time for just a day I would have taken her picture...

with me and the wonderful gift.

Here's the giver, Bailey, with her sweet family....

(This precious picture was taken at Thanksgiving.)

And here's another picture of the most wonderful gift....

I laid it out on the entry-way floor for that picture. (You have to see it in person to really 'see' it.)

Thanks, Bailey!!

You couldn't have given me a more wonderful gift!!!

(Yes, I'm a little obsessed with that gift.)

I hope you're having a good after-Christmas-Day- time!

I am.

We'll break the fast Christmas morning....

... with our traditional Christmas breakfast that Sam - and the guys - (whoever guys are in the kitchen building) will cook.

'Breakfast' means breaking the fast. 

I have found that the only way I can effectively fast is by sleeping.

So Christmas morning I will have a superb BREAK-FAST.

It's what we do for Carmack Christmas.

Monday Sam and I bought groceries for Christmas breakfast...

That's at Market Street in Colleyville.

There are coffee beans in the cart, plus Simply Orange orange juice (yum),
Grand's HomeStyle Biscuits, Owens Sausage (for biscuits and gravy),
large eggs, Oscar Mayer Thick-sliced Bacon,
Pork Tamales,... 

and other stuff, I can't remember.
(Oh yeah... some yummy jam, and honey, and hot picante sauce for Will and Ryan.)

And yesterday I got some delicious-looking cinnamon rolls at Walmart.  (We usually have pancakes on Christmas morning, but what with maybe 19 folks attending (our highest attendance yet), we've opted for easier cinnamon rolls. I mean, we want Sam - the chef - to be able to sit down with us and eat.

Before we have the breakfast, we'll see what Santa has brought us.

I usually know what he's brought, since I'm one of his elves (yes, I am!)...
but I so enjoy seeing how the recipients receive the gifts he's (we've) brought.

That is the anticipation I'm having now.

If there's one thing I like, it's ANTICIPATION.
(Well, among other things.)

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!

Fuzzy's Tacos... no --- Fuzzy PICTURES!

Some of these pictures are fuzzy.... but they represented a FUN time!!!!
(This post has nothing to do with tacos.)
(I just wanted to get your attention.)

Last Friday afternoon, I went to a little tea party hosted by these two....

That's Elizabeth and Anna.

Caroline and Andrew also hosted the event.

Well, it really wasn't a LITTLE tea party... I mean, look at that big table!!....

I loved the napkins for the party...

And these were two of the guests....

That's Jim and Alice (Alice is Caroline, Andrew and Anna's great grandmother, Coco).
They are a wonderful couple... and so fun to be around.

After we ate, Caroline shared (by memory) the Christmas story from the book of Luke....

 It was wonderful.

And then her little sister Anna shared with us some of what she'd asked from Santa....

She wants a magical unicorn, or maybe just a horse,

and a little Pomeranian puppy,

and I forget what all else.

Her brother didn't 'perform', but he did serve the fruit salad.

(My camera was in my purse for that.)

It was a wonderful time.

And it was just a select group of people invited:

Jim, Alice, Mother, Sam and me.

(I'll get pictures of Mother and Sam on Christmas morning.)

I felt very honored to have been part of that select group.

---------

Christmas is day after tomorrow!

Whoa!

BUT

I. AM. READY.

Well, there are a few more things I could do,

but I need to cease and desist.

Perfection is overrated.

Stop right now.... this very minute...

... and be thankful that your heart is beating.

Some of you are already thankful.... 

well, those of you who have had bypass surgery,

or pace-makers, or stints,

or other heart-stuff.

The rest of us take our hearts for granted.

Would that we wouldn't.

Here's a picture from just a year ago....

That's Trish (on the left) and her BFF Terri, setting up the Christmas Village in the Tea Room at LoneStar Antiques (5605 Denton Highway, Haltom City, TX). 

This past week dear Trish's heart stopped beating.

It was stomach cancer that had spread and spread. 

Who knew last year that Trish would not be here for Christmas this year?

Life is too fragile.

We too often take it for granted.

(Well, some of us do.)

This year I'm remembering my twin, and my Daddy, and my Granddaddy Andy,

and Grandmother Jennie, and Granddaddy Earl and my Grandmother Ora,

and other aunts and uncles, whose hearts stopped beating.

I am so thankful for them.

And so thankful for those whose hearts are STILL beating:

my dear mother,
and some aunts and uncles, and cousins,

and friends.... 

and Will and Bailey and little Nell,

and Laura and Ryan and Ryan's family: Jerry, Vickie, Zach and Victoria,

and Bailey's family: Bob, Robin, Shea, Scott, Camryn and Macy,

and A. J. and Jessica and Luca and Enza...

and of course...

Dennis and Lita (La Loca)

and Ttasha and Galen...

and the Huffmans:

Elizabeth and John, and Caroline, Andrew and Anna.

and of course CAP!...

and Pat and Ken,

and the Tompkins and the Adrians,

and Justin, Amber, Arlo and Thatcher,

and 

Steve, Lorie and Mac,

and 

John, and Josh, and Jason,

and

Rob, Caroline, Sawyer and Delia...

and our Shiloh-pup.

Oh, and did I say Sam-the-man?

And MY heart is still beating.

Thank you, Lord.

Thank you for that.

Let me NOT take that for granted.

I love that my heart is still beating.

And when it's not, I'm thankful for heaven.

What a profound relief: ETERNAL LIFE.

(John 17:3)

And what a profound relief: the Christmas Story...

God became baby Jesus...

and we can truly know God - through Jesus.

THAT IS PROFOUND.

I PRAY THAT YOU NOT MISS THE PROFUNDITY OF THAT.

IT IS A MIRACLE.

AND

IT IS TRUE.

Christmas Whimsy...

... from LoneStar Antiques (5605 Denton Highway, Haltom City, TX)...

Just for Fun...

Q: If Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus had a child, what would he be called?

A: A subordinate claus.

Q: Why did the elf push his bed into the fireplace?

 A: He wanted to sleep like a log.

Q: What nationality is Santa Claus?

A: North Polish.

 Q: Why did Santa spell Christmas N-O-E?

 A: Because the angel had said, "No L!"

Q: Why is Christmas just like a day at the office?

A: You do all the work and the fat guy with the suit gets all the credit.

Q:How do canines in Mexico say Merry Christmas?

A: Fleas Navidog.

Q: What do you call a bunch of grandmasters of chess bragging about their games in a hotel lobby?

A. Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer.

And finally...

P.S. This is the first time in the history of this blog that I've repeated a post. I 'aired' this one on Dec. 23, 2012. I liked it so much that I brought it back!