The day after Christmas was a day for quiet family time. I didn't have to work, meaning I could spend more time socializing.

( Girl time with Mom and sis, and the first vids with my new camera. )

My sister and her husband visited this weekend. It was the first time we'd seen them in person for several months. They arrived Friday night, but of course, I was working at that time. They watched some TV with The Gryphon and then hit the sack.

Saturday, the plan was to go to the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge in the morning. But by the time ( Read more... )

This weekend, my husband, The Gryphon, and I visited my sister and her husband in Northern Virginia. This was our first visit to their new place since they moved to the state about six months ago.

As we were driving down, I could tell exactly why they'd chosen to move to Virginia. Many of the landscapes reminded me of Central Pennsylvania, with the ( Read more... )

I was explaining to someone recently that I keep all my photos, including those that might be considered misfires. Sometimes I end up using them later, as part of a graphic for Wild Violet. Often, though they're not intentional, I find they retain an abstract beauty. Here are some from 2004 and 2005. I'll share others at another time.

( View the blurry beauty. )

My husband, The Gryphon, and I drove to Central Pennsylvania this past week to celebrate Christmas with my family, driving up on Wednesday afternoon. I'd hoped to arrive in time to attend the Christmas Eve service at my parents' church, but by the time we arrived, the service was half over.

My sister and her husband were already there, and my dog, ( Read more... )

On Thanksgiving day, I had set our alarm to wake us in time to catch the free continental breakfast at the Comfort Inn where my husband, The Gryphon, and I were staying. I didn't realize that, since the alarm consisted of playing music on the radio, it was thus ineffective when you left the radio on all night in order to soothe a nervous doggie.

( Welcome to the Wilson family Thanksgiving. )

Like The Gryphon and I, my dad had stayed overnight at my sister's after Saturday's party. On Sunday, we enjoyed party leftovers for breakfast, along with fresh brewed coffee. The egg custard was particularly good reheated, along with a taquito, some corn bread, and a low-fat brownie for dessert.

( Our trip home, plus a stop in State College. )

Christmas morning, my Dad had to run his rounds, so we all waited until early afternoon to get together to open presents.

This did mean, however, that we got a chance to talk to my brother on the phone and to share a nice breakfast my Mom had prepared, of some breakfast casseroles and fruit salad.

( Lots of holiday pics and details on our celebration. )

The Gryphon and I left for Central Pennsylvania on Saturday to spend Christmas with my family. The plan was that everyone would get together for dinner, so we left in the afternoon.

We made good time, despite the holiday traffic, and we arrived at 5 p.m., which was actually before my Dad expected us. We set about getting our things unpacked.

( More about our holiday, plus pics of the ornaments we made. )

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, my parents had to go back to work, and so did I. Fortunately, I can work from anywhere.

The Gryphon and I took the dogs for a morning walk. Once more, The Gryphon took our doggie, Una, while I took my sister's dog, Emma.

( More about our day, with some fun pics. )