Merry Christmas Everyone!

You came!  Merry Christmas!

Here is a pictorial review of our year.  All in one place, saving lots of paper....trees....branches!

January
A trip to New Orleans with good friends Bob and Donna!  Laissez les bonne temps roulez!



February
We went to New York City (where Kelly will be living as of January 2012) with good friends Rick and Patty and found a
Chinese New Year's parade in Chinatown!



March
We went to Park City with friends and family...a good time was had by all!
(and no bones were broken)

April
TJ rode 180 miles in two days in the MS 150...again!
And it did not rain again in Houston until October....

April
We got to see Christopher and Daniel in Madison for Easter!





Early May
The Dixon sisters went to the Cayman Islands to celebrate one of us getting older.





May

Kelly graduated from St. Louis University!!!!

Way to go Kelly!



Later in May

We went to Nova Scotia and found our new sun porch...almost finished and tulips in bloom!





June
We waited for the garden to grow....and did a lot of work around the farmhouse!



July
We started harvesting the bounty from the garden!

August
Rachel, Matt, Daniel and Christopher came and spent their vacation with us in Nova Scotia!

And Grampy and Katie taught the boys how to dig up potatoes.

September
TJ and Lisa went to see London Bridge....still standing.



October
Michael and Jehnna were married in Boulder, Colorado

November

We visited the grandsons...and their parents, for Thanksgiving!



December

The tree is up, the house is decorated and we are waiting for Jesus.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Love, The Mahoneys

P.S. to read more about any month just click on the blue highlighted month name. 

Bah Humbug

Are you one of those overachievers who already has their Christmas shopping done, their cards sent, cookies baked and the house decorated?  Bah humbug!   Obviously, I am not....at least this year!  I am finding it very difficult to actually get into the spirit. The 80 degree muggy weather might have something to do with my lack of Christmas spirit....just saying.   I don't think I am alone in this either, until yesterday the stores seemed empty.  Guess I'm not the only last minute shopper out there.  At least the traffic online has been manageable, no parking problems or lineups at the cash register! 

Maybe one of the reasons I am not feeling the spirit is because the little shopping I have done has been online.  No hustle and bustle to get into my psyche, just a computer screen.  No endlessly piped in carols playing in the background, no Salvation Army bell ringers, no pushing and shoving to get the perfect item, no over the top decorations to delight the eyes..... just my dirty floors, and dishes in the kitchen with the washer and dryer humming in the background.  Hmmm, maybe that explains the lack of spirit I'm feeling. 

Guess it's time I sharpen my elbows and go shopping.  One can only buy so much online before you have to go to a real store.  Get my earplugs, bah humbug!   Next on the list....Christmas cards?  We will see, I don't want to overdo it!

Hello and Goodbye

This week I had the profound experience of saying goodbye to one life and hello to a new life.  Within one week, a good friend of mine was taken from this world and a baby was born into our extended family.  Life and death, opposite ends of this journey through life.

My friend had cancer, but in the end it was not the cancer that caused her death, it was complications from a fall... an accident.  We all assumed that eventually the cancer would win but it was not at that point yet, so we were all caught a bit off guard by her passing. We were not ready.   If you have gone to church lately, you know that many of the readings have been about keeping alert, staying awake, because we do not know the time or the place when God will come.  "The day of the Lord will come like a thief."  "Watch therefore---for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning---lest he come suddenly and find you asleep."  These words remind us to do our best and live a life pleasing to God.  Our friend lived her life to the fullest, she never let it get her down...for long. She was a force of nature with a raspy voice, who made you feel cared for and had an exuberance that was infectious.  Even if we were not ready, I think she might have been and I am sure she is looking down on us from a much better place...and eating a little chocolate.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, a baby boy was born.  One life taken and another given.  A precious, innocent, beautiful little boy was born.  His life is before him.  There is so much happiness and love surrounding him.  So, while the world is less one wonderful woman, it has a new little boy to make us all smile and give us hope.

Welcome to the world Sam!