Happy Holidays, Readers!
I hope your week was filled with love.
We had a great Christmas here at the Lamp Post.
Christmas Eve,
bled into a beautiful Christmas morning sunrise.
These shots are unedited.
The sky looked just like this over the vineyards.
Beautiful!
The family was excited with Santa's bag contents.
Note, Hubby is still on the floor,
but he was able to shuffle to the living room for the festivities.
Presents are a good motivator.
Here's the aftermath.
Amid the rubble and rumble of the excitement,
Eloise got a few surprises herself!
Thank you to the elves who helped out Hubby!
Speaking of surprises,
who would have thought that my rough and tumble boy,
would be most excited about this teddy bear from his grandparents.
Sam has a soft side that not everyone sees,
so I'm posting it for the world to see!
My boy is sweet!
We spent Christmas day with family.
And I got a new place to record my:
I've got lots of brilliant ideas swirling around in this big, blond head of mine. Eloise has lots of little projects and plans for 2014. Little things that will turn into big things, for sure. I'll divide some of my ideas through the next few blog posts. Here is your sneak peek for some upcoming topics over the next several weeks:
- New Year's Eve: The Lamp Post Year in Review
- January 3rd: Eloise's Resolutions
- January 10th: What's on my Bookshelf as well as What is Coming to Yours
You'll also find out about the reappearance of Fionnula Flanagan, and two envelopes I've received in the mail. One was mailed directly from England! How does she do it? We'll have to ask Fionnula in a few weeks. This time, Fionnula, the Readers will demand answers. Until then, you can admire my new ring!
Strangely, I had to take off the ring I usually wore on that right hand, pointer finger as I lost the stone. I'm hard on my jewelry and never take it off. It gets dinged and nicked and wet on a daily basis.
NOTE: If you are from Erie and you see something glimmer on the Iroquois High School football field, you may want to stoop down and pick it up. It's my emerald. Finder's keepers. I already melted down the gold from the band.
Thanks, Fionnula! This ring replaces my missing emerald and feels perfect on my finger. Enjoy the rare photograph. It was very hard for me to work my camera with my left hand!
This is Gail "Hal" Halvorsen.
This 92 year old, spry gentleman was a pilot during World War 2.
He is known as the Candy Bomber.
Eloise could not reiterate the story better than my journalistic hero, Tom Brokaw. Broadcaster extraordinaire, Mr. Brokaw, narrated a historical piece featuring Mr. Halvorsen on Christmas Eve, during a performance of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The story is moving and beautiful and 100% true. Grandma and Grandpa insisted we watch it on Christmas Day, prior to opening the gifts. I am so glad they did. We all sat silently with tear filled eyes, and listened to the story of a member of The Greatest Generation.
Thankfully, I was able to find on youtube, the complete, thirteen minute segment, aired as a PBS special. Please click on the link below to hear the story of this remarkable man and how one small act of kindness became something very big. To quote the father of Pilot Halvorsen, "from little things, come big things."
Please watch. No, I take that back. Please sounds too nice. I INSIST that you watch this. If I see you, I will ask you if you watched it and quiz you afterwards. Don't worry about remembering the details, because the story is so touching to your own humanity, you won't forget it. To my Questies, this will be your first lesson upon our return to school in the New Year. Mrs. Eloise will be giving you all a gift related to this segment. After you watch it, can you guess what it is going to be?
I hate to get pushy with you over the holidays, but for the video link to this remarkable story:
From little things, come big things. That is my mantra for the coming year. The video I have put together illustrates this very idea. The slides are all photos from my workout group, lead by Erie Chiropractor Dr. Steven Krauza. He is a man on a mission to change the health of my city for the better.
Who would have thought that by little things, like reading food labels, reducing caffeine, and becoming regularly active outdoors, could lead to such big changes? The big changes aren't measured in smaller pant sizes and bigger biceps, though. They are measured in the individual outlooks on health and wellness, observable in smiles and twinkling eyes.
I named my video Test Your Resolve, Too. It is a play on words stemming from my blog last year, one year ago to date. It marked the end of Resolution, Dr. Krauza's wellness program in the fall of 2012, and it was my summary of the experience. I gave the program glowing reviews then, and have continued to stick with this group for sixteen months.
CLICK HERE TO READ MY 2012 REVIEW
The wellness/fitness related blogs circulate more than Handsome Mr. Tim McGraw's do (must be the pants). People are interested in joining the movement. If you live in Erie, Pennsylvania, or even elsewhere, and are interested in making small changes that lead to big gains, contact Eloise and I'll connect you to the right people to get you started. From little things, come big things.
Eloise extends a special thank you to Erie photographer, Matt Kleck, whom I've nicknamed Clicky. The good guy that he is, allowed me to borrow some of his shots to use for the video. His are the crystal clear ones taken from amazing angles.
I hope I inspired you today, Readers. There are four days left in this year to think about the changes you want to make in the upcoming dozen months. Spread kindness. Share. Think well. Eat well. Be well.
Check back on New Year's Eve for Eloise's Year in Review.
XOXO,
Eloise
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