An Award, and A New Year...

..Well, I was *awarded* awhile back, but I just haven't gotten a chance to post about it until now! This cute little thing is from Raquel of God's Daughter, a personal friend of mine. :) Very sweet young lady! <3

There are some very simple rules for this tag/award:

Name five things you love about blogging, then tag five friends!

..Easy enough, don'tcha think? ;) So..

~~Five things I love about blogging~~

1. "Meeting" new friends, of course! <3

2. Getting the chance to be a blessing, and more often, BE blessed to/by fellow bloggers. :)

3. Getting a comment as soon as I post. ;)

4. Having a sort of on-line diary where I can tell the world my thoughts!

5. Sprucing up my blog, and quickly click "view blog" as soon as I change the littlest thing on it...:D

..And NOW, I award five lovely young ladies who have blessed me...

Miss BleahBrianne -- She always leaves such nice and thoughtful comments! And is also a faithful visitor..:) Thank you, Bleah!

Miss Grace -- A sweet young lady whom I hope to recieve a letter from very soon! ;)

Miss Irie -- She, as well, leaves lovely comments, and visits my blog often! <3

Miss Camille -- A sweet girl {and commenter ;) }, you can tell, from her lovely blog!

Miss Katie R. -- My *newest* pen-pal, and, of course, as lovely as they come! :)

..And ALL of you deserve this award, rest assured. 

Now. Can you BELIEVE that this is the last day of 2010???!! Goodness gracious...where has the time gone? No, I won't even ask...;)

Do you have any special "traditions" for New Year's?? Stay up till 12:00, perhaps...break open a bottle of Martinelli Apple Cider? Blow horns and throw confetti? Or simply go to bed? I'll tell you what we have planned--a Chinese dinner at a restaurant called the "August Moon.." we always go there, every year. Then, we are going to a "gym night" thing, where we will play games till 12:00...*yawn* :) 

In the case that I have no further contact with the computer until then...

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S, 2011, EVERYONE! 

..May the LORD bless you this year. <3 Thank you for giving me one successful year of blogging! 

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Blessings for this New Year!

Christmas Has Come and Gone...

...For Christmas this year, Mom and Dad got us a wonderful, exciting present...a laptop for all of us kids to share! :D It is SO nice, and fast, and..sleek! Much, MUCH better than the one computer we have..so, anyways, I am typing away on the newby's lovely, smooth keyboard, sighing with satisfaction as the internet signal comes up with an "excellent speed" signal. ;D Haha...

Anyways. How were ya'll's Christmas'? Okay, AKWARD sentence structure there..you grammar geniuses correct me there...:)

~We had a wonderful one--on Christmas Eve, we had ALL of my dad's family over (he has six siblings..well, had seven, but my Aunt Vicky passed away several years ago..:( ), and we had a big potluck/gift exchange among the kids. =D One of my gifts "from" my little cousin Maley {;)} was a Starbucks giftcard!

..Oh, goodness gracious, I looove Starbucks! When we go. Which is..never. :) No, I'm not a coffee drinker, but they have other good things there, as you may well know...

Anyways. I hope to gather a group of girlfriends soon and go spend the giftcard...I wish you all could come! <3

~On Christmas Day, we had our Grandma and my Mom's sister and family over for dessert/gifts, etc. We had a lovely time here!

...Our Christmas tree is getting a little dry now, as it is situated quite near our woodstove. :( Ah, well...all good things must come to an end. I remember reading a sad story about a certain Christmas tree--I don't remember what it was called or where I read it--telling of how the tree thought that it would always be happily set up with lots of lovely adornments and admirers...and then, of course, it was thrown out after he holidays.

I wonder if that's how our tree feels? I hope not. And I'm being sort of silly, aren't I? ;) Bear with me, Dear Friends!

Don't forget to read the last post about an upcoming GIVEAWAY that is soon to make its appearance in honor of reaching the 100 follower mark. Thank you to all of the sweet commenters who said such nice things! And I already have one sponsor...<3

Blessings to you all! If YOU would like to help sponsor my giveaway, e-mail me at:

lmmorud@gmail.com

An Important Announcement...

..Well, I have hit it. The big One-Oh-Oh! 'From Under this Umbrellla' *officially* has:

100 followers!

Thanks to Miss Zoe Luna for helping me with the last number! :) I am super-duper excited that so many dear friends enjoy my blog enough to follow, and hope I make it worthwhile for you. ;)

In order to make it even more worthwhile, however, I want to do what every good blogger does when they reach a mark in their blogging career. Can you guess?

That's right--a 100 followers giveaway! No, this isn't the giveaway post, merely a "pre-giveaway-post," to get you ready and excited. So, come around here often in the future, for you might just happen upon a very large giveaway.

One more thing: I would love to make this thing as huge as possible...so, if any of you are willing to sponsor one or more prizes from an Etsy shop you have, or merely from your own dresser drawer, please let me know via e-mail:

lmmorud@gmail.com

..if you have an Etsy shop, keep in mind that I will be doing some advertising for you! ;)

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Blessings to you all! I can't wait for this..spread the informal word, if you'd like...

Wintertime Photoshoot..

..What more perfect time is there for a photo shoot? I certainly don't know...Wintertime is perfect.  Olivia and I recently shot some "sisterly portraits" in order to send them out to friends with Christmas cards...also, our family took our Christmas picture. Here they all are! What do you think? :)

And the family one:

...And, by the way, isn't is CRAZY that Christmas Eve is *tomorrow??* What are ya'll doing for the big day? We are having all of my dad's side's family (akward sentence, hehe!) over tomorrow evening, then on Christmas Day we are having a get-together with my Mom's family. :) I will update you soon on some things we've been doing to celebrate Jesus' birth.

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Ice Skating!

My family and I got to go ice skating with another lovely family, the K.'s, this last week!

..Seven of their nine children were on the ice with us. :) We had a glorious time wobbling about for the first hour, gliding with shaky confidence the second, and aching the last few minutes. =) I recieved many blisters, many sore muscles, and many lovely memories.

{Gretchen and Korena K. trying the ice out...}

{Anne pausing for a sweet smile :) }

..It was the first time I had been for..oh...eight years? A loong time, anyways...it took awhile to get the true ice skater inside of me showing! ;)

A fun time was definitly had by all!

~~*~~

When was the last time you went ice skating?

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"Timeless Wonders" Entries!

Here are the five photos I am entering in Raquel's photo contest. I had a hard time choosing, and even went out and took most of these on one day...:)

"Face of Winter"

{I thought this was a unique shot...I had the idea that my "eskimo" fur coat would look kind of cool in a photo. It turned out rather well...a little odd, but, very "original," I guess! ;) }

"Forgotten Rose"

{A rose from our dining table bouquet that someone recently gave us was left forgotten on the table for a moment, so I took the opportunity! I like how the macro turned out...:) }

"Secluded Dew"

{THIS shot was very difficult..I had to get down on my hands and knees, try to force the camera to focus for many long minutes..then, at last, SNAP! I captured it before the dew could fall.}

"Pink and Creme"

{Another shot of the beautiful roses, in their full color...there's just something about roses that makes you want to take pictures of them, isn't there?? ;) I just love the vivid pinks.}

"Perished Beauty"

{This was obviously taken way back in Summertime; I also got wayy down for this one..it focused pretty well, and dead dandylions make great subjects...}

...So, how do you like them? Which one is YOUR favorite? My personal favorite is "Secluded Dew..." that was a really hard shot to get, too! ;)

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How the World Can Butcher You.

                    I witnessed a slightly disturbing sight today. Rather sad, rather depressing…rather, a necessity of life. And to all of you who own meat animals, it is something that is normal.


You see, our neighbors’ cows were butchered today. I have seen it done dozens of times…they butcher about three times a year, buy new cows, and the cycle continues. But, never before have I seen it with the perspective that I am about to share with you. Something suddenly clicked in my mind as I watched the sad ordeal, and I found another illustration that the LORD has for us hidden within everyday circumstances.

First of all, let me fill you in, shortly, on what exactly happens when a cow is butchered {don’t worry, no nasty details}. :)

1.) The cows are grazing peacefully in their pasture.

2.) One of the cows lifts its head, and spots its loving owner prancing merrily towards it with a bucket full of its favorite meal.

3.) The cow suddenly finds its own lush grass unappetizing, and starts for the bucket of goodness. After all, what can it lose?

4.) The loving owner lifts his rifle.

5.) Just as the cow is upon its coveted food…BANG! Sorry, buddy, but we had to do it.

6.) The other cows follow in suit, despite having witnessed this failure.

…Do you notice anything…familiar about this procedure? Let me lay it out for you as I realized it.

1.) They are going about their life peacefully.

2.) They suddenly see an activity or temptation that is uncertain, but looks better that what they have right now.

3.) All at once, they find their own life boring and unappealing and start for where the grass is {supposedly} greener. After all, what can they lose?

4.) The Enemy lifts his arrows.

5.) Just as they think that everything is going great and nothing is going to stop them…BANG! Everything falls apart, and their life is in ruins.

6.) The rest of the World follows in suit, despite perhaps having witnessed this failure.

Beware of the Enemy and his temptations, or you will end up…

A dead cow? :)

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Well, Can You Guess? I Watched...

...Well, I know almost *everybody* is doing a post like this, but I just thought I would join the ranks of Narnia-lovers and let you know that:

                  

The third Narnia movie,

~The Voyage of the Dawn Treader~

...is wonderful! Fantastic! Just as good as the others...better than "Prince Caspian." :) I loved it in 3D, and it was only the second movie I had seen in 3D...the fourth movie I have seen at a Theatre, ever. =) Simply FABULOUS--I reccomend it to anyone (though, there are some scenes that would be considered "scary," perhaps, to under-eight-year-olds)!

..I won't tell you anything about it, as not to be a spoiler, ;) but it was fun being able to watch it today with some good friends, and my two sisters. Good times, good movie~~please watch it, if you get the chance!

What did you think of it?

                                                                   

Regency Dress Beginnings...

I mentioned earlier that I and a few other young ladies are going to be attempting at making a regency dress in the near future! For those of you who don’t know what, exactly, a “regency” dress is, let me clarify: it is simply a dress fashioned after the styles of women from early 19th century England. They usually feature a long, draping, straight-ish skirt with an empire waist and slightly puffed sleeves.

Anyways. I have my pattern all picked out—see?

My pattern is the long-sleeved one on the right...isn't it pretty? :)

...Now, all that is left to be done is the choosing of the color, fabric, embellishments, and…ah, yes, the making of it. ;) How could I forget? This is my first *big* project, so I’m a little nervous…but, we have an excellent teacher in the lead, a Miss Nicole C. She is a very experienced seamstress, and has sewn several regency dresses, civil war dresses, etc, already! We are also hoping, in celebration of finishing the dresses, to attend a regency ball reenactment in the spring. That would be fun—if only I could learn to dance! I am afraid that all I know is the waltz and the polka. Hmm.

What do you think?

Light Pink

Blue Pin-Striped

Navy Blue

Teal

Yellow Pin-Striped

Rust

Burgundy

..And all the other colors in the rainbow! Several of these shades of colors are not exactly what I'd like, but..you get the picture. :)

I am SO excited...I'll be sure to keep ya'll updated, AND to show you the product-in-progress!

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A Few Christmas-Colored Crayons...

~*~

Is it really only nineteen days until Christmas? How the year has flown by. It’s time to get out my buried Christmas-colored crayons, Christmas stickers, gold glitter, white envelopes—time to reincarnate my own little personal Christmas card factory that always transforms my room into a Snowbird-themed mess this time of year. And my crayons are starting to need replacements. After all, I’ve been doing this how many years? :) 

...I remember when I was small, the excitement of this holiday was more than enough to last me through the rest of the year until the next, but nevertheless, Christmas has always held a special place in my heart. Why shouldn’t it? I am still a little kid who likes the presents (hehe...:), likes the fun, likes the spirit, loves celebrating Baby Jesus’ birth and reading the Nativity story on Christmas Eve no matter how many times I’ve had heard it.

It has all been wonderful. And still is. But, somehow...

..I'm growing up?

Now, don't get me wrong. Christmas hasn't lost its charm. The Nativity Story still makes me stop and think how wonderful our LORD and Maker is, and how loving He was to send a Sinner like me a precious little baby to grow up and die for me.

But?

Suddenly my eyes are open to the World around me, and I see how much is going on. How many people are suffering and starving. Dying in the moment we recieve our last present on December 25th. 

Think about it.

.. Then, please join me in prayer--or donations--for the Christian global support ministry organization "Samaritan's Purse." ..

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*Blog Spotlight!* Meet This New Lovely...

...I am back! I am well! Er..nearly. :) But praise the LORD, I am well on the road to full recovery, which is a welcome relief. :) And for a "come back post," I want to do something a little different...something that I've wanted to do for a little while, and yet I just haven't gotten around to doing: a "Blog Spotlight!"

...I've been thinking. There are *so* many new bloggers out there, getting started every day. As all of us rather well-seasoned ;) bloggers know, it takes aWHILE to get a little band of followers, commenters, encouragers, etc. So, I have decided to feature one (perhaps two, we shall see!:) godly blog every month which I have recently discovered, introduce you to the maker, and hopefully inspire some of you to go and visit for a few moments. I will be checking around "town" for suitable blogs to present to you as the days go by, and if you know someone new who you would love to see get the spotlight {or maybe you yourself? ;) }, let me know, and I will head on over there to scout around. =D

But. Without furthur adiu, here are some delightful new web-homes just opened on blogspot. Get those buttons clicking, ladies!!

RUBY IN THE ROUGH
By Mrs. T.

 About the Blog: This pretty new blog is the realm of Mrs. T, actually, a lovely personal acquaintence of mine! You have most likely visited her daughter Raquel's sweet blog, God's Daughter, and perhaps seen this new spot featured there as well. It is definitly worth checking out. In Mrs. T's own words, Ruby in the Rough {isn't it a sweet name?} is to be the story of "a mother's journey in striving to become a Proverbs 31 woman, by God's grace.." Check out the goings-on over there today, if you will! I have full faith that this will soon become a popular blog. =)  About the Author: "...I am the wife to my wonderful husband for 21 years now; mother to 7 precious children, 2 boys & 5 girls. I love my Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ, with all my heart. He is the reason I am a homemaker...and the reason for everything else in my life. I hope my blog will let you get to know me a bit better."

I hope you don't mind me featuring you, Mrs. T! I look forward to how your delightful new blog progresses. :)

Blessings,
Miss Lucia

P.S. (I am only *two* followers away from the BIG 100!!! And, it has now been exactly ONE year since I began blogging. Does this call for a soon-to-begin giveaway? We shall see, we shall see...;)

A Quick Explanation...

..First of all, let me apologise for the quietness around here of late! I can explain...

..I am sick. =P But, my fever is gone now, and all I have is a sore throat and a slight headache, so, praise the LORD! It was no fun, though, as all of you most likey know. First you're cold...then you're hot...you don't feel like eating...yesh, very wonderful. I seriously haven't eaten for two days! So, I just wanted to let ya'll know about that, and HOPEFULLY I will be back to the blogging world very soon.

Blessings to you All!

Miss Lucia