Merry Christmas to all!

I hope you are having a great holiday season! I've been having fun. Here are a few pictures from this week.

My little pink tinsel tree. I love it, but next year I want a real tree, even if it's a miniature one.

My friend gave me a gorgeous arrangement of tulips, berries, and greenery. Flowers are one of my favorite things so I've really been enjoying this bouquet!

My friend Silke Powers gave me several great gifts, including these pretty fingerless gloves that she made and the wonderful bobcat mug with her artwork. Silke now offers her artwork on items over at Society6.com so if you have not checked it out yet, head on over there to see her mugs, totes, art prints, iPhone and iPad cases, and much more.

My friend Stephanie gave me a Christmas stocking in a bag, and I had such fun opening all of these goodies!

Many other people sent cards and gifts this Christmas, and I'm so thankful to have such good friends and family in my life. More importantly, as a cancer survivor, I am grateful every day just to be here, enjoying my life. The goal for next year is to increase the gratitude factor, which automatically increases the joy!

Truly, it was a great Christmas, and I hope yours was too! I have been absent from the blog world for much of this year. One project that's kept me busy is making beaded stretch bracelets for my Etsy shop, Fresh Start Beadery. You may or may not see more of me here in 2015. Who knows what the New Year holds! But I certainly wish all of you a terrific 2015. I think it's going to be an amazing year!

Worldwide Moment

Worldwide Moment: today at 10:16 a.m. ET
holiday prep

Wordless Wednesday ~ July 23, 2014

Wordless Wednesday

Florida or Bust

I'm off to Florida for 6 days! See you on the flip side!

Seaside Saturday ~ March 1, 2014

Here we are in a new month, and the year is now 1/6 over. Hard to believe! All of us in the Northeast are feeling ready for spring! There is a certain beauty to Maine in winter, however. To give you a glimpse of the Maine Coast in March, I dipped into the photographic archives and pulled these 3 images from March 2011. I was up the Coast at Reid State Park, and for the first time, I was there after dark. The occasion? The super moon! The park stayed open after sunset, and a small group of hearty folks turned out to see the moon rise from the sea. It was a wonderful sight! Unfortunately, I couldn't capture it with my camera, but here are a few shots I did manage before it got dark. Please click on each photo for a better look.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy ♥ Day to you! It's a day for hearts and flowers!

Seaside Saturday ~ January 11, 2014

We've been having a bit of a rough winter here in Biddeford, but finally last Friday (January 10th)  it was dry and not quite so cold (about 30 degrees, compared to the previous week's single digits). I decided I couldn't wait another day to see the ocean. It had been too long!

I stopped by the public beach at Biddeford Pool, where the lifeguard stands wait patiently for summer to come. The parking lot was covered in ice, but I gingerly made my way to the beach.

The nice thing about the off-season is I have the beach all to myself.

Of course, it's a bit too brisk to linger for very long.

But I did manage a short walk and a bit of picture-taking.

It was later in the afternoon, and the sun was low in the sky.

The sun sets early here at this time of year, about 4:30 p.m. or so.

I'm always intrigued by this building, formerly a hotel and now a retreat center. If you've ever read Anita Shreve, you may remember the house that was formerly a convent that appears in several of her books. I imagine it might look something like this building. And since Anita Shreve has summered in Biddeford Pool, who's to say she didn't draw on it for her inspiration?

After my walk on the beach, I drove around the area a bit and stopped to take a few quick shots of a field full of Canadian geese. Actually, that isn't a field; it's a golf course.

The geese took off about the same time I did.

I continued along to a road where I could view the open ocean.

As I said to my Facebook friends, we Mainers see a different sort of beauty in the winter, a beauty that summer visitors will never know.

Happy New Year, 2014!!

This is a sweet vintage New Year's postcard from 1910. It is much cuter than my photos suggest, but hopefully, you can get the idea.

The postcard is addressed to Miss Nellie Knicerbocker, Lenoxville, Pa. And the postmark bears the date of January 4, 1910.

The message on the back intrigues me. Here's what it says:

Nellie, will you please be so kind and send that telescope (satchel) on the next stage and we will pay the charges.

Attend to it at once as we would like to use. Send it to Papa - to Clifford.

Lovingly, Kate.

So who are Kate and Nellie? Sisters, perhaps? And why is it postmarked Lenoxville if it's being mailed to Lenoxville?

I guess we will never know...