Keeping Warm Memories Instead of Warm Feet [Christmas 2013 Photos + Update]

Here we are, the last day of the first week of January and already we want 2013 back. Am I right? No? Okay, you are right, there are certainly a number of things to look forward to in the coming year once we get past this miserable cold.

Angie and I will be celebrating 6 years of marriage on the 27th, which is something we are incredibly proud of. Her most of all, no doubt, as that is more time than anyone should have to put up with me. I am unsure how she has managed it but remain grateful that she has. I'm still as crazy about her now as I always have been. Even now I get goose bumps like a gorram [that's right, snuck that in there for my fellow Browncoats] teenager when she gives me The Look. Perhaps Rex Harrison sung it best in My Fair Lady:

 

"Damn! Damn! Damn! Damn!
I've grown accustomed to her face.
She almost makes the day begin.
I've grown accustomed to the tune that
She whistles night and noon.
Her smiles, her frowns,
Her ups, her downs
Are second nature to me now;
Like breathing out and breathing in.
I was serenely independent and content before we met;
Surely I could always be that way again-
And yet
I've grown accustomed to her look;
Accustomed to her voice;
Accustomed to her face."

 

 

Granted, he was singing about a character played by Audrey Hepburn. I think anyone could get accustomed to that face in short order. A true classic beauty, much like my Angie. She is pictured below (second from the left) in an image that I think - thanks to her fellow image mates - shows where she gets her fantastic looks. As an added bonus, if you look to the far left you can clearly see who she has given them to in turn. To the far right of this generational photo is Nana, who left the warmth of Florida at a young and healthy 88 years of age to brave the harsh cold of northeast Missouri to help make our Christmas unforgettable.

 

 

 

Thanks to everyone who helped making our first Christmas as hosts to both sides of the family a massive success and wondrous day. The following are several images that more or less illustrate how special our day was.

 

 

 

Rick Schonert (my father-in-law) as Santa Claus (above) who conspired with not two, not three but FOUR Grandmas (pictured below; Bottom left is Nana, Bottom right is Gigi [short for Great Grandma], Top left is Grandma Laura, Top right is Omi) to make Christmas remarkably special for everyone and ensure our tree looked small in comparison to their kindness.

 



The rest should be self explanatory. If you were here for Christmas, then these will be a journey down memory lane and a reminder of the good day we all had together. If you were not with us for Christmas (and if you are one of my followers or friends from online) then I hope you are able to get a good sense of what comes first in my life and in the lives of my family members as well.

 

 

 

 

 

And, lastly, every Christmas needs a Preacher and a Grinch. These roles were filled by two qualified and professional men. The first being my father, Roy and my Grandfather (my mother's side) who I simply call, Papaw. 

 



 

Okay, fine, I'll put a picture of me up too. It is a picture of yours truly opening a present, which seemed to be something my mother was fond of when I was a kid. Perhaps she still is. This one is for you, Mom. (Yes, that is a picture of Clay Matthews on the wall over my shoulder)

 

 



 

My wife cooked Christmas Dinner (with some help from the other moms and whatnot, considering there was an abundance of that irreplaceable resource here), which was fantastic and we all eventually parted ways. Officially ending one of the best holiday seasons we have had since we merged these two great families.

 

Moving forward and changing the subject, I cannot express with the words I possess how excited I am creatively right now. As this blog might be partial evidence toward, my muse has lost its off switch and I am constantly working on something. Whether it is my science-fiction television pilot, a children's book (several, actually), a potential fantasy fiction, a second science-fiction endeavor with an old friend, an opportunity to pen the characters and story of a video game, or several other projects, I have definitely not been wanting for something to write.

 

I'll keep a running update of my progress in this blog and I challenge you, my readers, to do the same. Not because it is a new year or because I said so, but because I am truly interested in what my friends, family, and followers are up to.

 

In closing, I would like to extend an offer to anyone else who blogs regularly. Follow me, and I will return the favor. :) Just comment on this post with your blog information or send it to me via e-mail at the_last_penfighter@Hotmail.com.

 

Thanks for reading, and enjoy your week as we prepare ourselves for hump day.

 

~M. A. Weeden