Fourth Advent Sunday

It's the fourth Sunday of Advent...yes, Christmas is almost here and yet I must post about what I saw this afternoon on a wondrous walk...crisp and bright and beautiful...and of course how can I delete the dozens of Mt. Baker pictures I've taken yet again, all the same really but...just can't get enough of that majestic grandeur...so flip through these quickly...taken from a few different angles and always trying to avoid those wires that seem to be everywhere...

I'm diverted momentarily by this pretty splash of color...

 ...and then this again...and again...

...then another little diversion...

...my eye caught the light dusting of snow left on the north side of these rows of blueberry bushes with Mt. Baker just slightly over to the right and straight up of course...like this....

...and like this...

...and yes, I really really like Mt. Baker - wish you could have been there - I just can't record the beauty, the grandeur, the freshness of this gorgeous sentinel so near and yet so far (about 50km from here) - my heart rejoices

 ...this all happened between 2:30-3:30pm this afternoon.

Just an hour or so later, I spied this from inside the house while passing by a window:

...almost full moon - coincides with the winter solstice on December 21 this year...

...and within our home the Christmas spirit is alive and well.  

The season always begins with listening to Handel's Messiah early November over and over again- (something like seeing Mt. Baker) - never seem to tire of the exquisite music and the "words" of course... are the Word - alive and active! 

...the tree is up...

 

...and Grandpa and Grandma are almost ready, happily anticipating a blessed Christmas time.

 

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Two of my favorite renditions of "O Holy Night" - my all time favorite "carol"(right now that is) can be found at:
1.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gemjzIzsekhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gemjzIzsek
2. ..sorry I can't embed this link so from the above link just type in "Celtic Woman" -their rendition of this carol is stunning, thanks Colleen for the tip.