Don't you just love walking on the beach when the breeze is warm and the moon is full?  I sure do. It would be even nicer to share it with someone other than my dog, Duffy, but even so . . . such beauty should be savored.

It's so nice out today, I'm looking for excuses to be out of doors. Maybe I should get back to painting a second coat on the new fence?  The weather report for the northeast just reinforces my pleasure at being where I am. Can you imagine? Boston has already spent over $16 million on snow removal and they are expecting another 20 inches tonight? And just think of all the flight cancellations. That doesn't portend well for discount flights any time soon.

Okay, enough procrastination - time to get back to outlining my new book and filling out the characters so I can start writing again. Stay warm, dry and safe everyone.

Attended the Space Coast Writer's Conference this past couple days and met some really neat folk. Sat in on some really great workshops and bought books by author's I've never had before so I'm excited to get my hammock out and settle in for a good read. A special thanks to Mark Mynheir, T. Davis Bunn, Aimee & David Thurlo and Lois Winston for some great ideas, encouragement and inspiration.

Some folk like to turn back their odometers but not me! I want everyone to know why I look like this! I've traveled a lot miles and some of those roads were unpaved!

I know, I live in Florida now so I should be rooting for the home teams, but some habits die hard and rooting for the New England Patriots is one of them. So, I turn the game on eager to see them roust the Jets, only it doesn't work that way.  Belichick and his offensive coaches should have been reviewing the tapes and finding out how all those holes were happening and plug them. For a quarterback who doesn't get sacked all that often five times in one game is outrageous. Only the first should have been a surprise. The second should have been a wake-up call loud enough to be heard all the way down here. Alas, the Pats were too cocky by half and they got what they deserved. So, how about them Celtics? Oh, wait! That was the Orlando Magic they just beat, wasn't it? Maybe I should just shut up before some local boys come calling.

I have a lot to be thankful for. At the moment, it's that I live here in St Augustine. According to the news last night Florida is the ONLY state in the union, including Hawaii, without snow. And today the northeast and most of my family are getting pounded again with another blizzard. I have a friend in Australia who hasn't yet responded to my queries about his safety with all the flooding there. So, when I find myself whining about the temps being a bit chillier than I'd like, I'll give myself a kick in the you know what and thank God for my blessings!

We had what everyone sings about: A white Christmas, filled with laughter, love and joy, and the whole family together in one place, lots of wonderful gifts, a visit from Santa and great food. I headed north to New England via Long Island to attend a birthday party for my youngest grand daughter and arrived a week early to help my daughter-in-law get ready for the arrival of the rest of the family (I have 4 kids and a step-son- all married, and 11 grandchildren so it's a big, boisterous, happy crowd when we are all in one place.)

Here's 6 of the 11 (teenagers always seem to be somewhere else!)

Lucky for me, the first snow didn't arrive until after I got there, but it was enough for my dog Duffy and grand daughter Natalie to have a grand time playing in and to make it a white Christmas. The day after Christmas, we got another 18 inches! The newest member of the family, Jack born last month, is a snuggler so I got lots of time rocking with him cuddled against me. The girls were full of fun, the youngest two gave us a dance recital to the Nutcracker Suite, the oldest two played their violins for me and my grandson, Kit played a few numbers on his trumpet. One night the men in the family got a fierce game of Risk going while us girls played cards. All in all, it was another grand family gathering and I brought home another collection of wonderful memories to cherish until next time.
     
 

I got all my own decorations up for the holidays, but the list of sewing and craft projects seems to grow faster than I can get them done. Just to add to the list of chores, the weatherman warns us that the next three nights are going to be really, REALLY cold - cold for Florida anyway, and temps are going down below freezing. Of course, when I had my new laundry room built on outside my house in September there was all kinds of time to consider what to do about the exposed pipes that ran along the outside of the house. But, alas, procrastination is a failing of mine so nothing got done until the dire warnings appeared on last night's newscast. Home Depot here I come!  Fortunately the day itself was warm enough so I could crawl around installing the stuff without numb fingers and ears feeling like they would snap off if I touched them. So, that's done! But unfortunately NO writing is getting done. I am still working on creating my characters and getting to know them in my head, but no face to face time on the computer with them yet. On a happier note, when the wind off the Atlantic was just too brisk to make a walk on that beach comfortable, Duffy and I headed over to watch the sunset over the inland waterway. I'd not been to that beach since spring and forgot just how beautiful it is.

I went to see the "Luminaries at the Lighthouse" last night. It was spectacular with thousands (literally) of little bags with candles in them all along the paths, on the lawn and even on walkways to the water. The view of St Augustine by night from the top of the lighthouse was equally breathtaking.

My first Thanksgiving in St Augustine was an unexpectedly wonderful day. I am used to spending the day with at least some of my family, watching the Macy's Day parade, football either on the local high school field or on TV, and eating way too much. But this year, I spent the morning chatting with neighbors who happened by, visiting a friend and walking the dog on a lovely warm, sun-drenched beach. Then I headed to Hastings for dinner with another friend and her family. In the evening, I chatted on the phone with some of my children and grandchildren. All in all, a charming, heartwarming day filled with blessings