So Long 2015...
January: Lots of snow, our daughter-in-law hit the big 40, and pictures of us...house, grandkids, and Maggie.
February: More snow, Valentine's Day, February follies...that was postponed because of snow...Tate and Sawyer's 3rd birthday, and a painting day craft with friends Diane and Stephanie.
March: February follies in March...Warren was Elvis Presley escaped from a nursing home, Baseball, Softball, WPPI conference with friends Diane, and Stephanie, photo shoot with grandkids, and Maggie.
April: another painting craft class, Warren biking and posing, flowers, Softball, Photoshoot with grandkids, my friend Ruth visited (I worked with her in Waco), Photo shoot with Stephanie DeFranco...I was Cruella in her 30 days of Disney challenge.
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| Cruel make up, hair, and photo done by Stephanie DeFranco |
May: Warren decided to retire after 43 years in practice. It was bittersweet. Sad to say good-bye to his amazing patients. Sweet to look forward to him not working. The McNally's and the Norris' had a wonderful surprise retirement party for him. All the boys came to help with the celebration. I made the cake. It was a fun time.
May continued: My Granddaughter turned 10, Mother's day, more baseball, Maggie, more photoshoots, Dr. Bond hospitalized.
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| Photo of Dr. Bond, and his wife taken by granddaughter, Stephanie DeFranco. |
July: Independence Day, Luke and I go to a 3D Minion Movie, Twins, Maggie, Warren, and I buy rain boots when I go to visit my friend, Pat in Tennessee.
August: Luke's birthday, Maggie, Warren's brother, Bruce, visits, fun, and relaxing activities.
September: I decide not to dye my hair anymore. Last photo with dyed hair, and my new white hair, we buy a house in NC, Warren and Luke participate in the Tour de Apple, and Apple carnival rides.
October: Warren's birthday, Luke does his second half ironman, Luke visits Grandma Mac's old home in Albuquerque, my hiking friends, and best of all I get to meet my very favorite pastor, Alistair Begg, at the Cove.
November: Our anniversary...we went to Tupelo Honey and had sweet potato pancakes, with Chicken on top, I go to Dollywood to participate in a 5K run with my friends (it was at night through the Christmas lights...we wore reindeer antlers, and red noses), fall colors, Maggie, Luke, Hikes, and my photo of the pump jack was selected to appear in the Heritage Foundation's 2016 calendar...in the month of August, and Thanksgiving turkeys the boys made.
December: Celebrating Christ's birth. My Christmas tree on the front porch, Mark's birthday...I made him a cake shaped like a laptop computer, Christmas...Mark and Amber came, Warren relaxing, Christmas game of Bananagram, Twins, record storm in NM...grandkids in the backyard, and trees that are the view from our bedroom window.
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| Photo of snow and grandkids done by their Daddy. |
It was a good exercise for me to go back through a year's worth of photos to try to select ones that reflected the most memorable moments of that particular month. I remember not only the time and place, but the feeling, smells, and joys I had being present in that moment. I love that about photography...how it stirs up all your senses as you remember. Photography helps me remember, keeps the past in my present, but most of all, it is a spiritual practice as I seek to "find the light", I am communing with God, my light. I gaze at all the wonder, majesty, and awe of His creation, and see how beautifully He has "knit" together the members of my family...and I praise Him. I worship Him. He is good, and good to me. It has been a year of change for us...some very difficult, as well as heartbreaking. But, all in all, it has been good. We have found the blessings in the wilderness. We say good-bye to 2015, and embrace and say hello to 2016.
"It's a new dawn, it's a new day, it's a new life, and I'm feeling good." -"Feeling Good," Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley.
