Endings Are Just Beginnings...

Well, I did it - 366 days of pictures and posts. There were many days where I loved posting and many days where I wanted to forget about it! Regardless, it reminded me of the many things I have to be thankful for each day. So often as I would decide what to photograph, many things would cross my mind that I'm thankful for but could not take a picture of that moment or that day.

God is so good to us. As James says, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." So true. He has truly blessed us this year with so many good gifts.

As 2012 (and this blog) came to an end, I'm looking forward to what 2013 has in store. It won't include a 365 project such as this, but it will include one main goal:

Striving to walk more closely with Jesus every day by choosing to spend time with Him above other things. You can pray for me in that regard this year!

Thanks to all of you who followed this project and encouraged me along the way. Special thanks to Ressie who initially inspired the project! Love to you all!

Day 366 - The End of the Year!

1 second 'til the New Year! Happy New Year everyone! We had a great evening hanging out with some friends, enjoying good food and fun. Ready for the start of 2013 and excited to see what it brings!

Day 365 - Ornaments

One of my favorite things about Christmas decorations is the ornaments! So many of our ornaments have memories associated with them from my childhood, and now Roy and I are starting our own collection, too!

Here are a few of my faves:
1. Cute snowmen couple I gave to Roy a couple years ago.
2. Two snowmen Roy has given to me: the one on the left was the year we were engaged and the one on the right was from this year!
3. This little cross-stitched ornament was hung on my incubator when I was born (which just happened to be on Christmas!).
4. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus Willow Tree ornament. I love the simplicity and beauty of the Willow Tree series.
5. Little People Farm - my brother gave me this a few years ago. Little People were my favorite as a kid! I had the farmhouse, so this definitely brought back some memories. Best part - when you open the barn door, it moos like a cow!
6. Pink Snowman!!! This is the ornament that always gets me super excited and makes Roy laugh cuz he thinks I'm silly :) And I am! I got this one at Winterfest at Kings Island the Christmas I turned 6. It's always been a favorite!
7. The blinking Santa and Rudolph. Another one of my childhood that makes me smile :)

There are so many more. I could post lots of them! But these are just a few of the memories that hang on our tree this Christmas!

Day 364 - Jammin' on the Bass

Tonight was our Praise Orchestra's Christmas Concert. All the music we played was Mannheim Steamroller music! It was quite fun, especially all the cool bass parts!

Day 363 - Baking with Roy: Homemade Bagels!

This morning, Roy and I made homemade bagels for the first time! He'd put together the dough on Wednesday, so today we boiled them, topped them, and baked them. It was so fun! They were quite delicious, too!

Day 362 - Date Night: The Polar Express & More

One of my favorite books as a child was The Polar Express. My dad and I would read it together every year. Tonight, Roy and I had a great time just hanging out. We went to Panera (love these Christmas gift cards!), sat in a booth by the fire, ate our yummy food, and played some games. I also enjoyed a ginger peach tea, which was delightful :) We stopped by Target to get some popcorn, and then we came home to enjoy watching one of my favorite Christmas movies. It was quite a wonderful evening!

Day 361 - Snow!!!

We finally had our first good snow today! This is our apartment complex lit up tonight with the grass all covered in white. Beautiful!