Winter Project

I always wanted to marry a man who is not only intelligent but also knows how to work with his hands ~ you know, woodworking and that stuff. Jeff just happens to fit the bill. That's why I married him, of course! :) He's very intelligent (he's an electrical engineer, after all); and, if I can brag a bit here, he actually received mostly "Far Exceeded Expectations" on his most recent review! I'm extremely proud of my man. :) But anyway... he also spent a few years in his early twenties working in construction, so he has a great basic knowledge of carpentry, plumbing, electrical, etc etc...

For a long time Jeff and I have been talking about buying/building a mantle around the fireplace in our rec room. Doesn't it look lonely? It really needs something to set it off.
But we also needed to get rid of that boring bookcase and get something that has some character. Then sometime maybe over the summer, Jeff had the spectacular idea of building a custom built-in bookcase spanning the entire wall! He thought it would make a great winter project, and I loved the idea, impressed that he had the confidence to tackle such a big project. We've had fun planning it over the last few weeks. We made a few changes to the original 3D sketch Jeff drew - like giving the fireplace area more space - but here's the general idea:
And today was our first trip to Home Depot for lumber! Here it is in the basement waiting to be primed.
We're planning to paint it white to match all the white trim in the house and to balance out the kitchen's white cabinets which are on the other end of the room. Work will begin soon! I'll be posting pics as things progress, of course. :)

An Entire Weekend of... Nothing

Does anyone else love nothing-filled weekends as much as I do?

No places we have to go, no tasks to accomplish. Just be. At home. Ahh.

2011!

Goodbye 2010... Welcome 2011! I'm ready for a brand new year!

We welcomed the new year last night with a houseful of friends... food... Pictionary charades... A wonderfully fun time. As the night went on, families dropped off one by one, but three couples lasted until midnight with us. We passed the midnight mark by singing a couple worship songs and then praying together. A lovely time with wonderful people. I actually was full of energy all evening long! I guess it was because I was the hostess... I wanted to make sure everyone was taken care of, there was enough punch in the bowl, all that stuff.

New Year's Eve is one of my favorite times of the whole year. I think it's because it was such a special time when I was little. As a church we would get together and have a full evening of food and fellowship and a movie or games. Then as midnight approached we had a time of worship and testimonies, which was a fantastic way of testifying to God's faithfulness and just encouraging each other as we faced a new year together. We always sang "Crown Him with Many Crowns" as midnight hit, and then went around and hugged everyone and wished everyone a happy new year. And then we'd sing happy birthday to Jim Thomas!! Remember that, Fellowship people?? :) Anyway... it's one of those special childhood memories that sticks with me. It's bittersweet how time changes things... on with new times, making new memories and traditions with new people in our lives. But we'll always have the old memories!

Reasons to be thankful looking back over 2010:

• Jeff. He's the most amazing husband in the world and I LOVE HIM!!!
  
• A lovely June wedding at our first anniversary!! Loved having family and friends gather to celebrate with us! And I loved having the opportunity to wear my wedding gown!
  
• A beautiful house and area to live in. Northern Virginia is truly one of the most beautiful places on earth. And our home is large and beautiful and... I'm just so grateful.
  
• Jeff's steady and secure and well paying job. That alone is a huge reason to be thankful in these times!
• Times of hardship and challenges. Because they bring growth! And I've experienced both hardship and growth this past year. I'm grateful that God is good, that He works all things together for my good, and that He is efficient in His dealings with His children - he doesn't waste anything!
• I get to be a homemaker! Jeff actually prefers that I not work ~ one reason he's the best! :) I get to stay home and take care of my home and make meals for my family and decorate and all that fun stuff.
  

A few of my hopes for 2011:

• A pregnancy, hopefully...... (I might have fertility issues, so I'm working with my OBGYN to figure out a course of action)
  
• Direction for Jeff and me to be in ministry together somehow
• Growth in my step kids' lives, and greater unity as a family
• To become fluent in sign language (just for the fun of it!)

Lamentations 3:21-23 "Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Happy New Year to YOU and may God richly bless you as you walk in Him this coming year!

Merry Christmas!

What a beautiful Christmas the Case family has had this year! Last night I sang in the Christmas Eve service at our church in Purcellville. The service highlighted the children's choir, with a few adults backing them up with harmonies, so I was one of the backups. :) They had a nativity scene with the kids and it was adorable! It was just a beautiful candlelit service. Only Phil could come with Jeff and me to the service, though, because Kiff had to work. She was home shortly afterward, and we enjoyed pepperoni bread, potato soup, and It's a Wonderful Life... during which I fell asleep. Oh well. I sort of heard parts of it... You know how it is... :)

Then this morning, we woke up to a beautiful and gentle snowfall!! I couldn't believe it! I think that's the first time I remember having a white Christmas! So magical.
Here are the tree and presents before the onslaught...
...and the stockings too, of course...

I made French toast for the fam. Mm mmmm.
Present opening time!
Me with my gifts. Sound of Music!!! A few jewelry pieces from Kiff and Mary... shirts and a fun bag from Mary... a rice cooker from Phil... snow boots from Jeff... and lots of other smaller things... so fun!!
My big gift this year was a knee-length black classy wool winter coat from J. Crew. Love it!! I already opened it because 1) I knew I was getting it (I picked it out), and 2) I needed a nice coat to wear to the Kennedy Center where we went last weekend to see Handel's Messiah, which was amazing, of course. Kiff and Jeff and I went to see that together and had a lovely time. :)

Allie got a bone for Christmas, and here she is guarding it with ferocious growls... so funny.
Jeff's new winter hat! He and I took Allie for a walk in the Christmas snow.

When we got back, we all played a super fun game of Pictionary together. We got to the end of the first game and Kiff was having so much fun, we just kept going! So much laughter and fun.
Our 2010 Christmas family shots...


And one of the kids with Allie. Sweet. :)
Jeff and I are so grateful for such a warm time of making good memories with Phil and Kiff. We were praying that God would bless us with just that this year. They're both off with friends now, leaving Jeff and me to ourselves (which is always a treat), but what a great day we all had together. Thankful.

From our home to yours... Merry Christmas! And may the year ahead be a wonderful one for you!

My Afternoon

Decorating Christmas cookies...
gentle snores emanating from a lazy dog on her bed in the kitchen corner...
Christmas with the Academy (my favorite new Christmas album this year) playing on my iPod...
and a bitterly cold wind making a racket outside...
That's my afternoon today. :)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

And one final pic: Jeff's 55th birthday was the 8th, and I took this of the two of us after our romantic candlelit dinner that I prepared for him... :)

My New Niece and Other Happenings

The week after Thanksgiving I took a little trip down to the Lexington area - for three main reasons. First, I wanted to visit my Grandpa who is in a nursing home. He didn't know who I was which was very strange for me. He just turned 93, and his body and mind are declining quickly. He can't walk anymore unless two or three others who are strong enough can help him, and he sleeps more than anything else. He does feed himself, but only if someone is with him to keep him awake throughout the meal. So... it was difficult for me to see, but of course I was only there for a brief time. Grandmom needs much grace during this time. What is exciting is that he is on the brink of eternity and knows Jesus. We don't know when he'll be going Home, but what a joy it will be when that happens to know that he's forever in paradise with the Lord!

Second reason: to visit Dad & Mom's new cabin which is just beautiful. They are out of their B&B and are loving their time off from the daily upkeep of the business. They're just like two peas in a pod in their lovely little cabin-in-the-woods in Fairfield, VA:

Third reason: I have a new niece! Nomie and Scott had their sixth child - another little girl named Lucy Mae. She's adorable of course and even has red hair which I think is precious! Here is Maggie (big sister for the first time!), Lucy and me:
Lucy Mae, being held by Grant who is sadly out of the picture. Sorry Grant!
Autumn and Grace with Lucy:
Emma with Lucy:
and Nomie with Lucy:
I spent all day Thursday with them... they skipped their normal home school routine for some stay-at-home field-trip type activities, and we all had fun playing and learning together.

Back at home now..... the house is decorated for the holidays, most of our gifts are bought already (a great feeling!) and "soon it will be Christmas day!" Hope you all are enjoying this wonderful time of year!