Kudos to Swiss Chard & Kale!

The Swiss Chard and Kale that Tom planted from seed in February 2011 survived the hottest summer ever and is still producing like nothing ever happened. I just think that these plants deserve some recognition for their perseverence through hard times-- hot weather and little rain!!

Weekend Project

Had prints made of favorite spots in Kauai. Found frames with mats included at Aaron Bros. for "buy one get another for one cent". Picked 4 photos that made a good combo for a gouping. Saturday night before Mixed Blessings practice I put a hammer and nails and a yardstick to good use. Here's the results!

Old friends not forgotten

It's probably been 20 years since we've seen Don and Terry Rohrer, but we were invited to their son's wedding on December 29th. Kent and Shya's wedding was at Texas Old Town near Kyle. We were able to attend and had a fun time catching up with Terry and Don, and also Terry's sister Tammy. Derek was his brother's best man, and sister Hilary sang a song for the bride and groom. It was a lovely wedding and reception! The day had glorious weather for an outdoor ceremony. We were blessed to be included. We hope and pray that Kent and Shya have a wonderful life together.

Brand New Year - 2012!!!

It's a brand new year and what am I thinking? I've got to make some resolutions, but then again I don't want to disappoint myself, so I've been avoiding it. I did find some really helpful hints for living happier and healthier in yesterday's Parade magazine--

"Make One Healthy Move a Day - 7 tips to get you started" by Jessica Cassity

1)  Create a list of five things that make you happy. Commit to at least one mood-boosting act every day. Write a blog, stew a stitch, bake a cake, help a friend, cook a meal, paint a picture, read a book, take a walk, would all work for me! And or course, being thankful always helps people be happy!

2)  Cut calories, not taste. Swap high-calorie ingredients for healthier options. Thanks to my beautiful daughters and disciplined husband, our table is healthy and nutritious most of the time!

3)  Quit waffling on our decisions. Washing your hands can help you stop questioning a decision. I really need to take the kitchen sink with me when I go Christmas shopping! :)

4)  Sharpen your short-term memory. First eliminate distrations like TV. Or barking dogs...

5)  Strengthen relationships. Pay attention to the small things your family and friends do for you. Parade also had the article, "Up Your Gratitude" (by writing handwritten notes) by John Kralik, which I highly recommend! But, do as I say, not as I do! Or at least not often enough. But I love stationery and cards.

6)  Get organized about paying bills. Go digital. My motivation this morning for collecting and documenting passwords in a safe, easily accessible place. Yay! I won't have to pay a late fee to Kohl's!

7)  Stop dwelling on past mistakes. We've all tripped on a stair or fumbled a word. But I have so many goofs...I resolve to try to replace the goofs with positive memories!

And in the Statesman's Wall Street Journal Sunday column by Katherine Rosman. "It's Jan. 1. I Resolve to Change...Quite a Bit." Very funny. Or impossible. Or not.

So, this afternoon, after making some attempts at being more organized - like safely documenting those passwords so bill paying isn't a hairpulling experience every time I forget them... Tom and I went out and did 2 things that we've been talking about for several months. We went to Costco and bought a membership, then bought the memberships to 24 Hour Fitness. Next we drove over to 24 Hour, signed up, and even tried out some of the machines. We both scheduled the orientations to fit our calendars, so in a few days we'll be good to go! And at least we will have a attempted to change a little bit, if not quite a bit.

Happy Holidays from Hanalei!

So I needed some justification for spending so much time documenting our awesome trip to Hawaii. This card seems to be all the affirmation I needed. Just look at that beautiful bay... maybe we will go back some day!

Daily Rainbow Collection - Kauai

Nov 5
from Hanalei Villa driveway

Nov 6
from our balcony at Hanalei Villa

Nov 7
from Kalalua Trail

Nov 8
from the helicopter

Nov 8
from the car on the way to Poipu from Lihue

Nov 8
from the little grocery store parking lot
(same as from car above)

Nov 8
waiting for the boat tour

Nov 9
walking down to the pier for the boat tour

Nov 10
walking to Poipu Beach from our condo

Nov 10
almost to the beach

Nov 10
at the beach

Nov 10
close-up at the beach at Poipu
in all it's splendor and glory--
remember God's promise?

Nov 11
from the condo balcony

Nov 11
last time to Poipu Beach

More of Kauai

Random snapshots from our Kauai travels... there was so much to see in so little time and I had fun trying to capture everything  beautiful and/or interesting!

from Hanalei Pier
think "South Pacific"

rooster running loose
in a Hanalie shopping center

more chickens :
http://joansjoys.blogspot.com/2011/11/chickens-in-park.html

 hanging heart on a bench

Next ones are from the car on the way to Kalalua Trail--



Norfolk Pine trees lined up



On the back from Kalalua Trail...

Back in Lihue...

Red Dirt Shirt Shop

Tom's red dirt shirt

Spouting Horn

Palm tree in the park with 2 kinds of clusters:

rocky beach