"Barley" Claus guards our tree

 

Happy New Year..almost

Well, Christmas has pretty much come and gone (sad face), but NEW YEAR'S IS STILL ON THE WAY! (happy face) It also happens to be our one year anniversary (happy smiley face)...and a day that the whole world celebrates. (fireworks and many happy faces) I shall compose a pondering of the year to come soon (shelley=happy face; shelley's friends reading the blog=whocares? face). Well you don't have to read it!!!! :) actual happy face emoticon

Here are a few pictures from our happy Christmas season.

Merry Christmas to All...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Hello everyone out there in blogger land. It's Christmas Day, and I'm hanging out here at the house in Newnan. We're having a pretty chill day. I've showered and eaten and it's 2:30. That's not too bad! Nice and restful.
I should mention just for fun that we were going to Birmingham today, but a little virus stepped in and decided to annihilate those plans. Jerod woke up at 4 in the morning with some intestinal vomitous distress. My mom and I whisked off to find something open at 4:30 on Christmas morning...and hit the jackpot with a HOT SPOT convenience store. He's toast right now...but my brother Dr. Giles to the rescue!! He called in some anti-nausea medicine and hopefully it will help Jerod feel less "spinny" and get some sleep.
And there are loads of unopened presents awaiting him downstairs when he starts to feel a bit better! Sad that my boy feels badly...especially on Christmas. At least we're in a comfy place with family. Our dog Tink won't leave his side...it's very sweet.
According to the pharmacist at CVS (thank you for being open!!), there are a lot of folks grounded with the stomach bug today.

Well, wasn't that all happiness and pleasantry? I am very thankful for family and rest and cars that run, warm houses, food on the table, dogs that love me, JESUS, and so much more. I do love Christmas, even if the plans don't go exactly as we hope.

Here's something funny...
Christmas Carols for the Mentally Disturbed
1. Schizophrenia --- Do You Hear What I Hear?
2. Multiple Personality Disorder ---We Three Kings Disoriented are
3. Dementia --- I Think I'll be Home for Christmas
4. Narcissistic --- Hark the Herald Angels Sing About Me
5. Manic --- Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streets and Stores and Office and Town and Cars and Buses and Trucks and Trees and.....
6. Paranoid --- Santa Claus is Coming to Town to Get Me
7. Borderline Personality Disorder --- Thoughts of Roasting on an Open Fire
8. Personality Disorder --- You Better Watch Out, I'm Gonna Cry, I'm Gonna Pout, Maybe I'll Tell You Why
9. Attention Deficit Disorder --- Silent night, Holy oooh look at the froggy - can I have a chocolate, why is France so far away?
10. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder --Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle, Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells ..

Pa rum pa pum pum, jingle jangle, fa la la la la, and Gloooooooooooooooorrrrrriiiiiiiaaaaa,
~Shelley, the elf in charge of cool rags, water, blankets, and anti-nausea medication...

That's Dino-Bite!

This pic just cracked me up. It's random, in the spirit of my friend Gretchen, who always posts fun photos. Doesn't that T-Rex look excited about dinner?

Goodbye Red Chaise

They came, they saw, they bought.
The good folks of Rock Hill came in spurts a few weeks ago and happily carted our reject stuff off in various minivans and cars. Our "early birds" made a repeat appearance and took to cussing when Jerod told them not to bother even coming up the driveway at 6:40 am. It's really fun to make rednecks mad.
I sold my red chaise lounge chair for a steal. Sigh. I'll miss her. We read many a good book together. There was just no room. Sigh (again).
Not too much else going on. In a rare Martha Stewart incarnation, I baked homemade bread, made curtains, and added bead trim to a lamp shade over the past few days! We'll see if I can stay "on that roll" heading into the holidays. I can't wait to cart everything out of the attic and set it up! Outwardly I'm outraged that they dare start ushering in Christmas on November 1, but inwardly, I kinda like it. Jingle all the way, I say.
(Well, maybe I wasn't saying that on Monday, when I had to drag LOADS AND LOADS of university Christmas stuff down two flights of stairs! BUT, it was a stairmaster moment---and I need more of those, you know what I'm sayin'?)
We'll start decorating here at work on MONDAY! (11.21) It takes about four days to get the President's house all decked out. I'm so excited to see it!!!!!
OK, I should scoot...let me know how YOUR Christmas decorations are coming out and your favorite Christmas THING.
Merry Thanksgiving to all and to all a good night!

Price stickers and early birds

Our blind dog is having some trouble navigating through the house tonight. Our den is currently buried under a mountain of stuff. CD racks, vintage toys, shoes that rubbed me wrong, one old printer, a board game, various computer cables to whoknowswhat, throw pillows that match nothing in particular, purses who have served their time, etc.
It's the "etc." that scares me a little...what was so important about this junk that made us hold on to it for years, moving it from house to house to attic?

Some of it was useful in its day. Some of it is just CRAP! I can't believe we get to have a yard sale in the morning. I mean, people will actually show up at our house before the sun rises, and pay US money to take away our crap. What a deal! (I LOVE THIS COUNTRY!)

Last March, we did this (yes, we DO have that much crap) and there were people meeting us at the door a full 30 minutes before we "opened" to see what crap was emanating from the house next in order to grab it or turn their noses up at it. One savory fellow bragged to us about having 90,000 watches in his collection. That's not a collection; that's lots of similar CRAP in one place. :) He bought a few non-working ones from us...even the freebies I got from TIME magazine. I would call him pathetic, but then, I'd have to check out the plank in my eye...you know.

My weakness is books. I have discovered the joys of our book exchange shop, but still there are boxes and shelves full that I cannot purge. Selling books you love is much like giving away your friends to strangers. It's weird and wrong. Keep books. Especially if you're like me, and you only have vague recollections of plots...in five or eight years re-reading them is like reading them for the first time!

OK, maybe I shouldn't have admitted that aloud.
I'll keep you posted on how our SALE goes, and what kinds of interesting Rock Hillians show up before the crack of dawn...

It's Fall, I think I'll turn over a NEW leaf

We're watching a documentary on the Grand Canyon...a welcome relief from the canned laughter and fake reality shows on the popular fare.
BUT, that's not what I'm here to divulge...that was just a slice of life from the Joneses. In that vein, I will also highly recommend to you the Pillsbury Oatmeal Raisin bake-em-at-home cookies. They are fabulous with a splash of Good Humor soft vanilla ice cream. Slice of life over.

New leaf...oh yes. (I wonder from whence that phrase comes...I shall look it up shortly)
Started the new job at WINTHROP U. last week. So far, so loving it! I was seeking a professional challenge and a family-type environment. Check...and check. I work in a beautiful setting with very nice people, and I'm just a few miles from home. I've enjoyed mid-day runs home for lunch, and I really really DON'T miss getting on I-77 every day.

Jerod is still hacking away at his plans for school each weekend, making him wonder what possesses anyone to teach. Yeah, yeah...fulfillment and all that...but spending four hours on the internet to come up with a science lesson will really make you want to become a burger-cooker or a port-a-john emptier man. :) (he's threatened the latter. Of course I'll love him no matter what he does, but I do have to live with the SMELL!)

Enjoying the new leaf/life...and the promise of good times to come...and the hint of Fall in the air.
Go Panthers.
Later.

To nap, perchance to dream...

Oh heaven! Bliss in sheets and pillows! Sunday afternoons, the pace painfully slow...even the trees are sleepy. Yes I awoke from a nearly four-hour nap earlier with the feeling of completeness. I was slightly sad to wake up right at the moment that the Miami Dolphins kicked the winning field goal to beat the Panthers in the final six seconds!! (I had it on mute while I slept). So, THAT was disappointing...but otherwise...loveliness. I am especially adept at creating a coma-like state...is that a spiritual gift?
In other news...today was my last official Sunday. I'm feeling at once relieved and a little sad. I really do love these kids, but it's time to go. I cannot begin to express how EXCITED I am to have a new challenge professionally!! YIPPEEEEE!
And I think we'll be going to a new church for now too...RENOVATUS in Charlotte. "Oh the times, they are a changin' "
for more on Renovatus: http://renovatuscharlotte.blogspot.com

Later friends...

Cryin', Lovin' and Leavin'

I have news. Actual exciting news. I am leaving my job of EIGHT years next week (09.30 to be exact). I have accepted a position with Winthrop University here in Rock Hill.

I'm so very thrilled for the change of venue, a new challenge, and the three-mile commute! In my current job, I've seen THREE classes of students go from sixth grade to graduation...that's a lot of kids! I will miss the interaction with these loveable and fun students in the throes of finding their faith and dealing with acne all at the same time. They are near and dear to my heart...but it's just time to move forward. The pic is of the calendar I designed this year for the youth department...just a little tribute to my time there. Sigh.

So, super excited...but also feeling like the central character in a country song--hence, the title of today's blog. I'm already getting so many well-wishings from my current co-workers...it's nice to feel loved. It's made me really think about appreciating people more and encouraging them verbally. I want my legacy to be that of an encourager...not just a busy bee...something I've been thinking of more and more. Fliers, events, and projects will all pass, but people are worth a sizeable investment. So...I'm gone! And off the big WU...back to school if you will. :)

Happy Trails. And shout outs to my Central peeps.

Orange ya glad to be alive?

Close Up of Orange Flower ca. April 1997
My mom claims that I always have liked orange the best. And why not? It's such a lovely amalgamation of the red and the yellow. It matches and complements most every color and enhances the world at its best...and at its worst, infuriates USC Gamecock fans. My computer is currently propped upon a rusty-colored pillow, illuminated by an amber-colored lamp shade. Orange is striking, slightly unordinary, and is a even a nice flavor. Did you know that NOTHING rhymes with the word ORANGE? Hmmmmm? I am at once dismayed and ecstatic that some of the world has caught on to the graces of my highly honored color. Everywhere I go, there seem to be orange things of all shapes and sizes leaping off store shelves. Just today I had to fight an enormous urge to purchase a small orange rug at Target. I have nowhere in particular to put it, but it was on sale. (because it was orange, you say?) Don't you dare dis my color, yo! Orange is jubilant. Orange is triumphant. Orange is...life.
Yup.

Smellin' Coffee

Wednesdays...
Are the antithesis of SATURDAYS. Rush, rush, rush for 10-12 hours straight. But I digress. Catching my breath on a few minutes of solitude. You know, I thought my life was interesting enough to write about on a fairly regular basis, but as it turns out...we're fairly boring! :) But keep tuning in as things could still become interesting at ANY MOMENT. Yes, any moment.
(pause for another moment) Well, it wasn't THAT moment. But it could be the next one!
Jerod is still burning up interstate 77 every day. Pray that he doesn't lose sanity in the midst of planning for five classes every week!
I'm still waiting by the phone to hear about something that I want to hear about but can't tell you about yet. (no, there's no Jones-child or anything before you go conjecturing). So, at ANY MOMENT my phone could ring. And maybe it'd be YOU and that would be equally exciting.
So there. I should quit writing while I'm still mildly entertaining.
Bu-byeeeeeeeee!

Mr. and Mrs. Jones (freshly married) 

Saturdays are the loveliest days...
Nothing like a Saturday to get caught up on life a little. I never thought I'd get excited about getting 8 loads of laundry done and the bathrooms tidied up, but alas...it's happened. I could almost skip for joy that I will not have to hunt for my favorite black shirt this week or wear the "last resort" undies. :) Jerod was a busy bee (a really tall bee, mind you) getting ready for his first week of school at Woodlawn. He even did a science experiment in the kitchen...and waved a cup of purple food coloring over my ironing board as I was ironing!
That's about as exciting as we got today. A little hike at our local greenway, and some homemade peach ice cream at The Peach Stand completed a lovely Saturday. I'm going to go finish recharging my soul battery by reading the last of the Chronicles of Narnia. I should also say that we've gotten a little addicted to watching the world poker championships on the travel channel...nice to watch other people be reckless with their money...comforting in way.
Ahhhh...Saturdays.

Summer Update #1

Greetings Friends and Family!
I thought it about time to get into the 21st century and do some blogging. (BLOG=short for web log--like an online diary for the technology impaired)
Perhaps it will be a fine way for everyone to keep up with the Joneses (thus the orginal name!). Check back occassionally to get the latest!

Hmmm...updates:
Shelley...
Still working in the youth department at church. I just finished our summer camps here at the church. We had two jam-packed weeks of camp, and the campers and counselors really seemed to have a ton of fun and have an awesome spiritual retreat.
I had a minor trip to the EMERGENCY ROOM on the first evening of camp. Embarrassingly enough, I was cutting some wire for skewers for our evening hot dog/smore roast when the wire had the audacity to jump up and hit me in the EYEBALL! Yes, the actual eyeball. I won't go into details, as I've found that such descriptions make many people go a bit weak in the knees! Let's just say there was blood... Part of the adventure came in finding the hospital, being that our camp is 30 miles from the small town of Nowhere, South Carolina. All is well, though--a minor corneal laceration...and I'm all better now.
I'm glad that our busy season has come to a close, and we'll drifting aimlessly into the Fall. Aimlessly because our youth pastor and his wife will be leaving at the end of this month to start a church near uptown Charlotte...more on that in the future.
I'm getting ready to finish unpacking boxes from my move to Rock Hill in December (gasp!)...it's been a crazy busy year! Also looking forward to PAINTING my bathroom a lovely shade of off-white. Yes, friends, off-white...very risky, isn't it?

Update on Jerod:
He's still tall. :) And walking taller after back surgery in June...thank God, pain is all gone, and he's just doing some extra healing these days. I still won't let him do much...much to his constant dismay. The really good news is that he starts a new job in a few short weeks at a new school in Davidson, NC (quite the commute, but worth it, we hope!). Check it out at www.woodlawnschool.org. He'll be teaching third, fourth, and fifth grade math and some science too.

Well, that's enough for now. I hope to post some photos of our European vacation soon (yes, the one we took in April...didn't I tell you it had been a busy year???).
See you on the blog!