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Monday, December 31, 2012

Year In Pictorial Review

2012 Year In Review

2012 has been a year full of ups and downs for me.  Ending last year convalescing from shoulder surgery, I had a lot of down time and it was then that I discovered Lisa Freemont Street's Youtube channel.  I had always been drawn to vintage clothing, antiques and all sort of kitsch and immediately fell in love with her channel and started to seek out others like it.   I already owned a few vintage dresses but hardly ever wore them-I was one of those ladies that feared being different.  But, after much soul searching and self discovery, I decided that I was a vintage girl at heart, so why not be who I truly was.  I decided to delve into the world of wearing vintage hairstyles plus started collecting more vintage, reproductions, and retro styled clothing.  My goal is to supply my complete wardrobe with said items and donate my modern clothes.   But, a downfall of convalescing is my diet began to get lax and I have put on weight.  This makes shopping for clothing difficult, or rather more depressing than joyful, so I have been very particular about what I have gotten and have held off on many purchases until I can get my weight under control.

So many things have happened over the course of this year.  Joyous occasions such as the birth of a new grandchild along with two of my other grandchildren celebrating first birthdays, my youngest sons,which are twins, graduated high school, and we finished off the year with the wedding of my second oldest son.  I went through some changes with my job and I also began my blog and have met many wonderful fellow bloggers.

Although most all of this year has been wonderful for me, I've also had some not so joyous occasions, most recently with the news that my father has a terminal illness.  This is a difficult time for my family but we are so thankful that we have had the privilege of calling him our father and grandfather.

In this post I wanted to share the things that have happened in my world throughout this past year, not necessarily a "best of" but more of a chronicle of the year, and what better way to do that than by sharing photos of the things that transpired.  So, without further rambling on from me, here is my year in pictorial review.

I started the year exploring vintage hairstyles and authentic ways to achieve them, plus some not so authentic ways.  Through a lot of trial and error, I have achieved some pretty good successes and learned from my failures.

Pin curls and scarf
Retro Gran learning how to pincurl her hair.

Hair extensions
I wanted to have the option of longer hair so I purchased hair extensions.

The year also brought some storms our way.  We really only had one major snow storm all last winter and it was late into the season, close to spring.  Then spring brought lots of flash floods and summer brought an extreme heat wave with severe weather, tornadoes, and power outages.  This year also brought us a Blue Moon and a Super Moon, both of which were grand sights to see.

Snow storm
The only real snow we had last winter was in March of this year.

Flash floods
Flash floods wreaked havoc on the mulch in my flower beds, not to mention my sons truck.

Super Moon 2012
View of a SuperMoon from our front porch

severe storms
This was the sight we saw while driving through a severe hail storm.  Poor quality picture taken with my phone but - Scary!

Within my family we saw the birth of a new grandchild, graduation for our sons, senior prom for my niece, a wedding for my second oldest, and the celebration of first birthdays for two more of my grandchildren.

High School graduation
Our boys graduated, so proud of them and so thankful that part of their and our lives is over.

Cousins
Two of my grandbabies achieved the milestone of first birthdays.   What fun we had.

Senior prom
I had the privilege of helping my niece get ready for her senior prom.

Newborn
The tremendous blessing of a new bundle of joy.

Christmas Eve wedding
The love and joy of gaining a new daughter and grandson - officially.

We also had the addition of a beautiful British Shorthair kitty to our pet family which we named Oliver.  It has been several years since we have had a cat in our house so we are enjoying his liveliness immensely.  Although, I must say that our English Mastiff, Tucker and our Rottie/Lab mix, Reaver could probably have lived happily without him.  

Lab and Rottie mix
Reaver is our old faithful family pet and the best dog you could ever want.

English Mastiff with Santa
Tucker is his mommy's baby.  He has truly captured my heart and I think Santa liked him too because he brought him a gigantic elk antler.

British Shorthair kitten
Our new kitty, Oliver.  He is such a ball of energy and joy.

My projects for the year were fewer than in years past, partly because of recovering from my shoulder surgery, but mainly because we have a toddler living in our home at present which I'm sure many of you know, its very hard to get things accomplished except during nap time, and being that I work full-time  I usually was out of the house during that precious time.  But I did manage to get some yard work done and we installed a new water line.  My sewing was very minimal this year but I did whip up a diaper bag for my son and his fiance and created a dress for my granddaughter.  I spent a lot of time socializing my grandson and mastiff together and still found time to create 20 cakes and 200 cupcakes.

Kubota tractor
Hey, I can operate a tractor with the best of them!

Water line ditch
Ditch for the new water line all the way through our front yard.

Baby and Mastiff
My grandson and Tucker have become the best of friends.

Hungry Caterpillar dress
My granddaughter loved her Hungry Caterpillar dress.

Homemade Diaper Bag
Diaper bag - I have another one to make so maybe I will do a tutorial with it.

Lilies and Butterflies cake
I only make cakes for my family, but we have a HUGE family!  I created this one for my nieces 18th birthday.

Throughout the year, the Mister and I succeeded in escaping on several little getaways.  We hiked the trails of Gatlinburg, Tennessee and wandered the streets of Pigeon Forge several times this year.  We took a couple of the grandchildren to the North Carolina Zoo, survived a torrential downpour of rain on Grandfather Mountain, spent a week with my sister's family at the Outer Banks, and ventured out to Ripley's Aquarium.  We also visited my hometown and a local cemetery for Memorial Day.

Civil War veteran's gravesite
This is the resting place of a Civil War veteran.

In front of Old Mill Pigeon Forge
Walking the streets of Pigeon Forge, TN

Nature trails in Gatlinburg
Hiking one of the many nature trails in Gatlinburg, TN

View from Grandfather Mountain
Drenched from the torrential downpour but the view from Grandfather Mountain is breathtaking.

Victoria Crowned Pigeon
I love visiting the zoo and seeing creatures at the NC Zoo such as this Victoria Crowned Pigeon is well worth the visit.

Playing on beach Outer Banks
I could totally retire to the beach and do nothing but play with my toes in the sand all day, but call me weird, I did not like the Outer Banks.

Jelly fish
Jellyfish are so mesmerizing to watch and these beauties at Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg put on quite a show.

N&W Caboose
My hometown of Rural Retreat, VA has a caboose sitting smack dab in the middle of town.

All in all, I had a very full and wonderful year and look forward to seeing what 2013 brings my way.  I hope all of you have a very Happy New Year!





Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone, from my home to yours!  I hope you have a joyous day filled with love and laughter.  Here are some old photographs to enjoy on this blessed day.

Audrey Hepburn with Santa
Audrey Hepburn

Bette Davis Christmas
Bette Davis

Ava Gardner Christmas
Ava Gardner

Betty Grable Christmas
Betty Grable

Boris Karloff and Ginger Rogers
Boris Karloff and Ginger Rogers

Clara Bow Christmas
Clara Bow

Cyd Charisse Christmas
Cyd Charisse

Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds Christmas
Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds

Diana Dors Christmas
Diana Dors 

Elizabeth Taylor Christmas
Elizabeth Taylor

Esther Williams Christmas
Esther Williams

Gene Tierney Christmas
Gene Tierney

Greer Carson Christmas
Greer Carson

Jane Powell Christmas
Jane Powell

Jayne Mansfield Christmas
Jayne Mansfield

Joan Crawford Christmas
Joan Crawford

Judy Garland Christmas
Judy Garland

June Haver with Santa
June Haver

Lana Turner Christmas
Lana Turner

Loretta Young Christmas
Loretta Young

Lucy and Desi Arnaz Christmas
Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz

Margaret O'Brien Christmas
Margaret O'Brien

Marilyn Monroe Christmas
Marilyn Monroe

Myrna Loy Christmas
Myrna Loy

Natalie Wood Christmas
Natalie Wood

Marilyn Monroe Christmas
Marilyn Monroe

Piper Laurie Christmas
Piper Laurie

Rita Hayworth Christmas
Rita Hayworth

Sandra Dee Christmas
Sandra Dee

Sandra Dee Christmas
Sandra Dee

Shirley Temple Christmas
Shirley Temple

Shirley Temple Christmas
Shirley Temple

Susan Hayward Christmas

Susan Hayward Christmas
Susan Hayward

Susan Hayward
Susan Hayward