It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

 Good Morning Friends

I am in a complete state of mumbo-jumbo right now...

Youngest son Mike is here for a week and so my routine goes right out the window...

Everything he wants, everything he needs...that all comes first.

Then I must drag out of him what home cooked meals he would enjoy mom to make for him.

He tries to resist, oh "anything is fine" he said,...I replied "please pick your favorites. 

I want to cook for you...It is my way of showing you that I love you so much.

 He was unsure, he doesn't want me to feel like I have to cook everyday he is home.

 Even though I know he loves when Mamma cooks, I know his favorites...

 thankfully we were able to settle on the menu before long.

 The meals for the week are all lined up and I have most of the ingredients.

1. Saturdays - Homemade Tacos

2. Sunday - we snacked on "Picky Food `& Football food the entire day..

3. Monday - Pizza - you just can't beat a Jersey Pie

4. Tuesday - Pot Roast, Mashed Potatoes & Veggies

5. Wednesday - the hubs picks, it's his birthday

6. Thursday - Thanksgiving - a typical turkey feast at my niece Deanna's house

7. Friday - Shore Fresh Restaurant, our favorite for Fried Shrimp

8. Saturday - he flies back home to Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Tomorrow, we may go to the movies to see

"Deliver Me From Nowhere".

So today, we were able to decorate the house in its entirety inside, it took most of the day...

- outside still needs to be done -

We played a few card games, the same as yesterday...

for dinner we shared a delicious pizza from our favorite pizzeria. 

Monday nights sunset...

I wish you could have seen it in real time, it was epic!

Tomorrow, I'll show you pictures of the house, all decorated for Christmas.

Cheers To The Weekend

We had such a great weekend...

one of those great weekends where I did not document it well.

It happens often,

when you are so busy having fun, you forget to take pictures.

The tree at our favorite sandwich shop

is still sporting it's autumn decor.

I really enjoy eating out for lunch, we usually go later in the afternoon and then skip dinner.

The hubs had a BLT and I enjoyed an awesome wedge salad with blue cheese dressing.

The November sunsets have really been amazing!

Youngest son Michael is home, for a whole week, I could not be more excited.

He flew here from North Carolina into Newark Airport, everything went very smoothly...

the plane took off on time and landed early.

I saw a new game advertised on Instagram, and just had to have it...plus, we were in need of a new game.

Crack List

a card game that combines the elements of classic category games and Uno.

We played, 

there was some winning all the way around...we all loved it, Mike mentioned he wanted a "re-match". 

My Kansas City Chiefs

 

pulled out a win in overtime 20 -23...it was a great game, a real nail-biter.

I have been crafting, making and knitting several Christmas gifts.

More on that tomorrow!

Saturday Critters #623

The Yellow Rumped Warblers 

have returned to my feeders...they will stay here for the winter.

I only see these birds during the cold weather.

They have been nicknamed "Butter-Butt".

They are able to stay north because they are attracted to and able to digest waxy berries of plants like the Bayberry and Wax Myrtles.

They are the only Warbler that does not migrate to Florida.

Male Downy Woodpecker

The Downy Woodpecker is the smallest of all of the woodpeckers, 

they excavate a hole in a tree to prepare for nest building.

Males and females are similar, the male has a red patch on the back of it's head, the female does not.

I see both Male and Female Downy Woodpeckers year round.

Female Downy Woodpecker

Sharing today's images with Eileen at 

Viewing Nature With Eileen 

for Saturdays Critters

The Alestorm

This past week we took the 15 minute drive to see the Alestorm, 

a 32 foot Catalina Sailboat beached in Sea Girt on September 20, 2025.

The sailboat ran aground during a storm while traveling from New York to Florida,

"the weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed, if not for the courage of the fearless crew,

the Alestorm would be lost"

The hubs made me add that part...

The Alestorm remains on the beach in Sea Girt, the owner and the township are working together

trying to figure out how to remove the sailboat.

The owner stayed with the boat for a period, receiving help from the locals,

after 30 days he abandon the boat.

I guess there is a lot more to the story, the owner of the boat has a bit of a questionable background.

The owner of the sail boat mistook the beacon from the nearby lighthouse for an inlet.

It was a beautiful day, and an amazing sight to see this huge sailboat on the beach.

The hubs...looking for sea glass and shells, he didn't find any.

Only a few yards away,

The Sea Girt Lighthouse

an L shaped Victorian building flashed it's first light December 10, 1896...

the beacon could be seen from 15 miles at sea.

The lighthouse was built to illuminate a blind spot midway in a 38 mile stretch between the 

Navesink River Lighthouse and the Barnegat Lighthouse.

- built in 1896 and restored in 1981 -

There Is Always That One Stick

 If you enjoy taking pictures of nature and the critters that call the outdoors home...

you will know exactly what I am talking about.

You have felt the pain.

You have the perfect subject, you are close enough for a great picture...and there it is, that one stick.

It is almost like the ducks, birds and turtles know, they have to know...

that they are turning a brilliant picture into a bomb.

I know there are ways to remove these sticks...but I don't really edit my my pictures...

I don't know how and I don't want to learn.

All The Leaves are Brown...

and the skies are gray...I went for a walk on a winter day.

The two big Maple Trees in the backyard are a mix of green, brown and yellow...

there are so many leaves on the ground...

the wildflowers are peeking through those that have fallen.

I walked around the backyard this morning, the fog was thick and ominous...

I could barely see the bridge.

It was cold, frosty, raining and dark... 

but there was one bright spot that caught my eye!

Opydyke's Holiday Shop II

A continuation from yesterday's post, I am sharing the last of the pictures from 

The Holiday Shop 

We visited over the weekend and I wrote about it yesterday here.

I love these trees.

they are $ 1,000.00 each.

As we grow older, our Christmas list becomes smaller

and the things we really want for the holidays can't be bought!

- i like that -