...a really blessed Christmas

I've been asking,"are we there yet?" for about a week now...
and today was finally my "dancing day"... we have "arrived"...
the waiting & busy-ness of Advent...is finished...
and the celebration of God, with us...has become reality...



and for me, no better place to celebrate...
than with some very dear friends...
who have become like family to me...



amidst the holiday trappings of tree & turkey...
they haven't forgotten the reason we celebrate...
and it is a pleasure to put behind us...
all the hectic scrambling to just relax & "be"...



Mr Greenthumb, turkey roaster, par excellence...
also made a savory stuffing[with homemade wheat bread...]
and another secret ingredient I'm NOT telling...
as well as his signature tabohli & a delectable turkey gravy...

Miz Minka roasted sweet potatoes in the skins...
and crafted a wonderful candied red cabbage...
I oven roasted Brussels sprouts & made mashed potatoes...

it was a marvelous feast... everything was just perfect...



of course,"click-click fever" was rampant...
with the 3 of us taking turns at shooting away...



and it didn't stop at the table either...
where we had the now, almost expected shots...
of Miz Minka & I taking pictures of each other...
taking pictures of each other...well, you get the idea...



after Mr & Mrs Greenthumb, his sister M & I had finished dinner...
three of Mr Greenthumb's kids dropped by for visiting...
gift giving, game playing & popcorn...



even HRH, Minka [the cat]was sociable...
so much so, in fact, that she wore herself out...
and I caught her in a big yawn...



soon enough... after popcorn & Cranium...
Mr GT took his sister home & the kids left...
leaving Miz Minka & I to exchange pictures...
and upon Mr GT's return, the 3 of us laughed ourselves silly...
watching the "Christmas Lunch" episode...
of "The Vicar of Dibley" on DVD...

after giving me enough delicious left-overs...
for at least a week...and cleaning up the kitchen...
they helped me pack my plunder to my car...
scraped the ice from my windshield...
and sent me on my way back home to Mudville...
through the crystal clear & bitterly cold night...

leaving me once again blessed...
to have spent this very blessed holiday...
where 3 were gathered in His name...
and He was present amongst us...



"come let us go & see this thing that has come to pass...
for today is born a saviour, Christ the Lord"...

may you be blessed this Christmas with His presence...