I hope you all have had a very, merry Christmas!  We surely did here at the Mountain Pasture!  The full moon was gorgeous, gorgeous!   Christmas Eve the temperature broke all records for a high.  I think it was 77 degrees here, and we picked fresh, pink roses from my rose bush.  That was a first in my lifetime.  As my son said,  “Mom this centerpiece looks like Easter, not Christmas!” We also had fresh tomatoes from Grampaw Grant’s garden for our salad!

As we walked through the pasture, we saw tall, native grasses and mesquite trees that still had green leaves on them.  It is unnaturally warm here in Central Texas this winter.  We do have many red cardinals and many white-tailed deer though.  Our dog, Houdini, enjoys the walks as much as we do, and he always manages to scare up some rabbits and quail.  He and Mike, out cat, are quite the mighty hunters.   The three fat squirrels keep a sharp eye out for both the dog and the cat.

We tried some new recipes for Christmas this year including,  roasted Brussels sprouts with toasted pecans, roasted broccoli with a lemon/Parmesan sauce, a standing crown rib roast, and a gluten-free raspberry cheesecake!  Yummy!  Of course, Stephanie made her outstanding Scalloped Potatoes with Gruyere cheese (heavenly delights) as well as the cheesecake, and I made my usual homemade rolls, Mama’s chocolate cream pie with meringue, Mama’s pecan pie, and Clara Wash’s lemon chess pie!  Joe III created the Brussels sprouts and the roast, and Uncle Bob Close provided the baked ham.  Joe and Stephanie made the green bean casserole on the box recipe, and Grampaw Grant provided the fresh tomatoes for a beautiful green salad.  All together it was toooooooooooooo much, too much, too much, but oh, so good!

Grampaw, Chase, Jay, Kat, and Cousin Henry kept the grandchildren entertained inside and outside, and Grampaw even built a fire outside, just for fun!

We are so thankful for family and friends, and we hope that you all have found some peace and happiness during the holidays and will experience much happiness in the coming new year.  We are looking forward to the celebration of E.G. (Sandy) Hall’s 90th birthday shortly after the New Year!   What a beautiful example he has set for all of us on how to live and how to age gracefully.

Cheers to all of you for a prosperous, happy 2016!