Happy New Year...well a few days late

Happy New Year to those of you who actually follow my blog :) You faithful few have inspired me to keep on going...and make me feel guilty when I don't post for a bit...well you don't make me feel guilty...I just feel guilty when it has been a while since I have posted....
I think for the new year I am also going to blog about my attempt to lose weight...ha..almost everyone's new year's resolution but for me this has been an on going process for the past almost 3 years...well really all my life but the past three years I have actually seen results that are lasting thru the muddle and fuss of life....after a stall out (more cuz I wasn't trying that hard) I have started back up again and will do some posting...more for my own accountability than for you who might not be interested at all in the journey ;)
So far this year I have stepped out in several areas of life...quite unusual for me who in no way is a joiner of anything that smells of commitment...not because I am afraid of the commitment but more cuz I have tended to be over-committed in the past and have shied away from it for the past decade...or so :)
I started going to a ladies Bible study at a different church than I attend...so a whole group of ladies I have never met...except for one....to study with.....amazing for me to make that choice...well it was kinda made for me by the Lord...as I was watching the video I kept thinking to myself...nah...not gonna do it....didn't even look too much at the book that was in front of me...didn't fill out the fill in the blank first couple of pages and certainly wasn't too interested....HOWEVER...plans were different...half way thru the video I knew that I would be attending the entire Bible study..and that I had been being prepared for it by a simple video I had watched only days before. We are studying the book of Esther and I had watched A Night with the King....HA!!! Isn't that just like the Lord to do that to a person in preparation for something he has in store for you? Well he did it to me/for me and I KNEW it was something that only he would orchestrate so I committed and started writing in the workbook :) SO unlike me :)
My other major thing has been to get back on track with weight loss....have been doing well since November and then let myself go during the holidays knowing I would get back on track once they had past...Well they are past and I am back on track and looking forward to that scale going down......
Well this has been a long post with no pictures so here are a couple of pictures from the holidays. My good friend Denise who is a wonderful photographer came over to Noel's house and took family pictures. This was the first Christmas in 7 or 8 years that we were all together so it needed to be documented. Altho Noel could have taken the pictures I figured it would be easier on her if someone else did it. The only one missing is Stan, who is serving our country over in Iraq and couldn't come home for a quick photo shoot....he was missed dearly by all of us and specially his wife and kids....

My son brought his new wife home for us to meet also..and for her to see what our celebration is like...chaotic???? But a family full of life and love....

Here are my four kids...all grown up....this picture makes me tear up as I think of the adults that they have become. I have hanging on my entry way wall pictures done of them in pastels by a friend...this picture just makes me see how far they have come and how I look forward in anticipation to seeing their continued growth.
Love you all, kids.....I know I don't say it enough but you really all make me proud!