Loving the Blessings and Joys In Life!

Merry  CHRISTMAS! Debra Clopton here feeling blessed beyond measure and praying the same for you.

 

I'm loving this season! We went and bought our tree at the local Christmas tree farm which is right down the road from our place and had a wonderful time with the family. Then my oldest granddaughter came home with me and we started decorating the tree. What fun and what cherished memories!

My granddaughters were old enough to really enjoy it this year. I thought I'd share a picture of each of them with you of the day. 

My plan this year is to spend more time enjoying the joys and blessings of my life, to romp and run more with these sweet girls! I'm praying each and every one of you find joy in your days too and not let your blessings slip away with the business of life! May we each and everyone celebrate Christ birth this year and the Joy and Peace that only He can give.

 

I've written  a lot this year and I'm excited about what is coming in 2015 with my books and I'm hoping that something I've written brings you joy and makes you smile!

 

As I've been promising 2015 will have 4 new Mule Hollow Stories that are connected to the book that came out this year HER MULE HOLLOW COWBOY they'll be RAFE, CHASE, TY AND DALTON named after each cowboy hero of the book. I hope you'll sign up for my newsletter here so you'll be able to know when the books are available http://debraclopton.com/contest

 

But coming Febuary 17 and ready for preorder now is my 1st book in my Four of Hearts Ranch series from Harper Collins Christian BETTING ON HOPE

PreOrder 

Description:

A bet gone wrong. A small town’s meddling. And a cowboy intent on saving his ranch.
Maggie Hope is an advice columnist whose background leaves her with little advice to give . . . and it’s beginning to show. When Maggie fills in at an interview with champion horse trainer Tru Monahan, the on-camera chemistry between them is undeniable. Maggie’s bosses know this is the opportunity she's been looking for to launch her career—and their bank accounts. In order to save her column, Maggie takes Tru up on the bet that he can teach her to ride a quick-stepping cutting horse like any cowgirl, despite the fact that she has never been on a horse. And in the meantime, she can get the scoop on the man under the cowboy hat.
Tru has been on the competition circuit for longer than he’d like, but he knows it's the only way he can afford to keep the Four of Hearts Ranch that means so much to his ailing grandfather. So when his sponsors see the opportunity for Tru’s fans to get to know the star on a more intimate level, he knows he must oblige. To his dismay, Maggie not only invades his small town of Wishing Springs, but she also invades his heart, and that is something he cannot let any woman do—for her own good.
In Wishing Springs, Maggie finds what she has always been looking for: a community and a home. But when her past catches up to her, it threatens everything, even the tender hope that this town holds all of her heart’s desires.

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 ~~~MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM MY HEART  TO YOURS!~~~

  

My Mystery Adventure

Summers fly by so quickly. I hate how fast they vanish. I often think I’ll have more time in the summer to spend with my grandchildren and then, POOF, they are back in school. This year I was determined not to think about making time but to actually make it. Thus was born our mystery adventures.

A mystery adventure is one trip every week where Grandma Pat picks you up for the day and doesn’t tell you where you’re going. Yesterday, our mystery adventure was to a local hobby store for cake decorating supplies.

My ten-year-old granddaughter’s favorite TV show happens to be about cake decorating. When I told her what I had planned, she squealed, “Can we use Fondant?” I said yes and she actually jumped for joy. Who knew?

I thought the sugar high came AFTER eating the cake.

I confess that I have never done more that slap frosting from Betty Crocker’s cans onto a cake and called it good. My local grocery store has a great bakery where they make cakes with Fondant, so why should I go to all that mess and trouble. Well, as it turns out, the mess is the best part of a mystery adventure.

Icing bags in hand, my granddaughter and I spent an hour trying out all the tips in our kit and licking our fingers. We frosted a cake shaped like a castle, rolled and cut Fondant into flowers, and added candy unicorns for good measure. It was an afternoon of fun that was over all to soon. I hope she never forgets it.


Happily, I sent the cake home with her and her parents. I had the fun, let them have the calories.

What are some of your fond memories of time spent with your grandparents? I’d love to hear your stories.

Grandkids

Patricia Davids, here. My daughter and my granddaughter stopped in today. It's always a treat to see them. Fortunately they don't live far away and I see fairly often. As my granddaughter was showing me her "best Christmas gift ever!" I thought, little girl, you don't know the half of it. Grandkids are truly the best gift ever.

Those of you who have them know exactly what I mean. Those of you who are young parents have an inkling, but you can't appreciate the power of the word, grandchild. Not yet. Hopefully, you will one day.

I've got two grandchildren. They are seven years apart in age and while they don't always agree with each other, they do love each other. I pray they stay the best of friends.

I love my daughter but it wasn't until I held my grandson that I discovered this very special, sweet bond could exist. What an eyeopening experience. What a wonderful reward for not strangling my own kid when she was a mouthy teenager bent on making my life...well, difficult. I wasn't the best wife or the best mother. I'm not ashamed to admit it. I gave it everything I had. I'm still married to the same guy and my daughter speaks to me so I must not have done too badly, but let me tell you being a grandmother has been my best job.

Do you know how I can tell? Well, for one, my seventeen-year-old grandson cooked a log roll cake for Christmas dinner. By himself. When I said I was surprised by his cooking skill, he looked at me with a big smile and said, "I learned it from you. From all the times you pulled a stool up beside the stove and let me help you cook when I was little."

Ha! I thought I was the one having fun. Yup, grandkids are the greatest gift. Tell me about your grandkids if you have them. What are they like? If you don't have grandchildren, what are some of your happy memories with your grandmother?

Strapping in the Babies

My granddaughter is the subject of many conversations that I have these days. My husband and I just finished watching her for nearly two weeks while her mom and dad went on a vacation. What a fun time!

But things are different today than they were when my kids were babies and toddlers. Everything has multiple straps that must be buckled and tightened. Every one of them is different, and sometimes, I feel as though I ought to have an instruction manual in order to figure out how they work.

The high chair we have is easy. There are just two side straps that buckle into the one the goes between the legs. It is much easier than the one she has at home, since it also has arm straps. Then we had the stroller. Once Grandpa and I figured out how to unfold it, we had arm straps, that hooked together with the one in the center. It was like putting together a puzzle to get all the parts in the right places. Thirdly, we had to figure out how to buckle all of the parts of the car seat. The little silver things that went into the center piece were hiding from us, but I knew they all had to connect. Finally, the topper came on Sunday morning when we couldn't figure out how to get the car seat out of my car and transfer it to a larger car for our trip to church. We wound up taking two cars because we were going to be very late for church if we wasted any more time trying to figure it out. Next time, I will watch while they install the seat, so I'll know how to take it out.

At least when I took her to the beach, the only thing that required a strap was her hat.





Do you have any interesting stories about keeping kids strapped into various chairs, car seats or strollers?