Winter Wonderland

It's WINTER!!  Christmas is a little over two weeks away (confession: I have yet to decorate my house, although I helped to decorate our church.)  Truly, I've been a pingpong ball for some time.

And last night, we had SNOW!!!  If I am to believe Facebook, most of my friends would rather not have snow at all.  My first instinctive response to anti-snow comments is to un-friend the speaker.  My second is to sarcastically comment, "So move somewhere else and leave the snow to those who appreciate it."  And thankfully, I've managed to resist both urges, and consequently maintain my friend tally.

Well, anyways.  We've had such a consistently warm winter thus far that snow hasn't even been a thought (except for one freak storm in October.)  I've missed it, and started to sadly think we would be having a green and brown Christmas.  So I was quite excited, even more so than normal, to see the lovely white flurries begin to swirl about.

Here are some photographs.  It's nothing compared to the more Northerly places, of course, but to someone in Florida I'm sure it's quite shocking. 

My new iPhone takes wonderful pictures, even at night. 
I thought there was something magical about this one.

I always think these trees look like they're wearing white gloves.

Remington taking his time this morning.  Who
cares about business when there's fun to be had?

What are your Christmas busies, and snow stories?

~ Sarah

Fall Festival 2011

*Contented Sigh*

Happy Autumn!  I know I've managed to sneak that into every post during the past few weeks, but really, Autumn is such a happy time.  I can't help but wish the happiness on others.  :)

This past weekend was the Fall Festival at Elk Mountain Ski Resort.  Unless I'm deathly ill or there's an emergency, I always make it to the Fall Festival.  They have craft booths, bands, family activites, etc, etc, but the main event (for me) is the ride on the ski lift.  We wander in and out of the tents, it's true, but after I'm done with that ride, I'm ready to leave any time.  Usually, I come with an Autumn 'kit', which includes blankets, hot chocolate, warm sweaters and coats, gloves/hats/scarves, and a camera, but summer paid us a late visit this year, and the day was actually hot.  Even at the very top of the mountain, where everyone takes pictures and usually shivers, it was comfortable without a sweater.  The ride down on the lift is especially wonderful as you view the horizon, so I'm always surprised how many people opt to walk down the ski slopes instead.  But to each their own. 

I loved this little girl dashing down the mountain in her long, flowing skirt.

The view from the top of the world...

The view going back down.

Later, Jayson and I stopped for some ice cream to top off the perfect day.

 

Happy Autumn!!  <3

~ Sarah

Pictures of the Pennsylvania Flood, 2011

Hey there!

I am very thankful today for many things... I am thankful for the high ground that my house is built on, I am thankful for the levies and dams that helped to keep some places I love dry, I'm thankful that the water is receding, and most of all, I'm thankful for God's protection surrounding my friends and family, even those that needed to evacuate.  Homes can be rebuilt or dried off, even replaced, but not people.

Unfortunately, other places around me are not so 'thankful' today... there was devastating flooding in many parts of NEPA.  My heart and prayers are still going out to those people who have a great deal of cleaning and repairing to do (and that's after they've been released to return to their homes.) 

Last night, my husband and I took some photos of the flooding from a plane.  I thought I'd share them today.

On the left is Nicholson, and on the right is Hop Bottom. 

 

On the left, Deer Park Lumber.  On the right, Shadowbrook Resort.

Both near Tunkhannock.

Tunkhannock:

Here is the flooding in Tunkhannock around the bypass.  You can see how far it extends on both sides of the river.

Falls Bridge:

Wyoming Valley (we couldn't get closer because of the airspace around WV Airport)

Misc. flooding pictures:

Thanks for visiting... please keep PA in your prayers.

~ Sarah

Tribute to Pennsylvania

Where do you live?  What is it like?

Every place has its own uniqueness, its own beauty... but although I have seen a number of beautiful places, I’ve never found one I love so much as my home, especially now – when the summer is coming to a close, and Autumn (oh, lovely Autumn!) is nearly here. 

 

Jayson and I were off to the fair last week.  Our usual M.O. is to meet friends of ours on the last night of the fair for the Demolition Derby (yes, yes, ‘you know you’re a redneck if...’) Our friends couldn’t make it this year, but we went ourselves.  The fair was alright, but the ride was divine!  It was a perfect late-summer afternoon.

As Jayson curved, climbed and crawled through the charming countryside that is our home, I rolled down the windows, closed my eyes, and let my hand and hair be carried in the breeze.  We passed through glorious, rolling mountains, petite farm houses and beautiful, dainty gardens.  The signs of Autumn are beginning to peek out from behind summer... a colorful leaf here, a wild tree speckled with blushing apples there, a cool breeze feathering through the tall grasses.

We drove in comfortable, companionable silence, enjoying our journey.  Then, the car slowed, and I heard a turn signal as we prepared to turn onto the interstate.  I felt my heart sadden.  “Is there no back road we can take?”

A half-smile from his lips and a twinkle in his eye... yes, there were back roads, and we would travel them today.

I love Pennsylvania.

~ Sarah

Bradford County

Happy Summer! (For it really isn't the 'summer' until Memorial Day has come and gone, is it?)  I hope everyone had a lovely holiday!

Thank you to all those who have served in the
military so that we could enjoy our freedom!!!

Well, we over here in "LwYH Land" had a very busy weekend... at least three things every single day.  But it was wonderful!  (Now, this isn't really a blog about me -- it's more about things I've done that you may like... so I'm only going to babble about part of my weekend.)

Saturday, we stopped at an incredible place along Route 6 on our way to NY for a several-day celebration.  We knew we would be late anyways, so we chose the scenic route, and took our dear ole' time.  (I think the end result was almost 5 hours late...)

There's a wonderful place in Bradford County, PA: an asylum that was created for French Nobility during the Revolution, particularly Marie Antoinette.  We didn't actually visit the asylum (Azilum) itself, but there is a scenic overlook that doubles as a tribute.  We did stop there for a while, and have plans in the works to spend some real time in Bradford County.



My husband and I agreed that we'd move to Bradford County in a heartbeat -- it's beautiful, serene, and extremely charming.  If you ever have a chance to go up Route 6, do not hesitate! 

Happy that Summer is finally here!  <3

~ Sarah

PS -  I don't pretend to be anything of a photographer with my handy-dandy iPhone camera, but here is someone who took a marvelous set of pictures from the same location (and they did it properly!)