Pop! Clink! Fizz! It's The Hodgepodge

Hello Hodgepodgers and happy new year! I look forward to more random fun here on Wednesdays in 2026, but for now let's close out the year that was. If you've answered today's questions, add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Cheers! 

1. Did you make resolutions or set goals for the year we're waving goodbye? How did that work out for you? Will you set any goals for this new year, new season, or new month? Share one or two if you'd like to share. 

My personal self-improvement (for lack of a better word) goals for this year were more in my head than written on a piece of paper or a blog. 

I also made seasonal bucket lists which always have a few tasks on them along with some fun things too. I did okay with those,  but there were many things I didn't get to and I'm fine with that. Mostly fine. I use the bucket lists more as a guide or reminder as opposed to a 'MUST DO!!' kind of thing. 

I need to review my fall list and make one for winter still, and hope to get to that this week. 

2. When did you have the most fun this year? 

It's hard to choose just one thing, but some of the most fun I had would definitely include time spent with grandkids (and their mommas) at the lake. 

We also took a beach trip all together and that ranks high on the fun list too. 

College friends here for a weekend was another highlight. 

3. What's a song or song lyric you'll associate with 2025? Tell us why. 

If you read my post yesterday (linked here-Anchored) then you already know my answer, but it's this one-

Cornerstone...'

 '...when darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace

  In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil...Christ alone, Cornerstone, 

    weak made strong, in the Saviour's love, Through the storm He is Lord, Lord of all...' 

I also love this one by Christy Nockels and it's another that goes along with my word of the year. I've seen her perform live and she's so good. 

My Anchor   ...

'My anchor, forever, My shelter within the storm, 

You're my deliverer, You never falter, 

You're the rock I stand on...'

4. Best (or a favorite) bite of something delicious you tasted this year? 

 Again, it's nearly impossible to choose just one, but most recently this crab and cucumber appetizer with the coconut lime vinaigrette over all was so scrumptious and something I want to recreate at home. 

5. What do you want to do more of in the new year? Less of? 

More of? 

more time spent in creative pursuits, more movement, more prayer, more filling my mind with 'whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy..' I want to think on those things.  

The world screams the opposite so swimming against the tide has to be intentional. 

Less of? 

less spending, less couch time aka no broken bones, there's probably more but nothing is coming to mind

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

"Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning, but a going on, 

with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us." ~Hal Borland 

Thanks for joining in here each week. It's such a wonderful group of bloggers of every age, stage, geography, and background, yet we come together easily to encourage, laugh, share, discuss, and support. 

The world needs more of this. 

Wishing you peace in this next new year xo Joyce 

Anchored

Before the year comes to a close I want to revisit my 2025 WOTY (Word Of The Year)-anchored. 

The dictionary defines anchored like this- "to make something or someone stay in one position by fastening him, her or it firmly.'' The Bible dictionary adds to the definition with this- 'held by an anchor, moored, fixed in safety', and in the Bible itself the word anchor is an emblem of hope. 

So how did that word play out in my life this year? 

Blogging is a funny thing in that we're writing about life, but of course not all of life. There are always things happening behind the scenes that don't get talked about here, but that nonetheless add meaning and mystery, heartache and blessing to our daily lives.  

That has certainly been true here in 2025. While our immediate family is doing well there have been a lot of hard, confusing, disappointing, and just plain sad things going on with people we love and care about. I suppose that's always true to some degree, but this year it feels especially so. 

Plus, the world. Ugh. I know I'm not the only who's feeling exhausted by the all the conflict, the complaining, the hate that's so prevalent today. It would be easy to feel adrift...completely unmoored...in this world and in this year marked by upheaval and just plain ugliness if I had no anchor to 'fix me in safety'. 

On January 1 of this year hubs and I committed to reading through the Bible together every day. We followed the chronological plan available from The Bible Recap, and we also listened to the brief daily podcast where the host, Tara Leigh Cobble, adds clarity to the day's reading. She does an excellent job of staying on point, while providing links to deeper dives into various topics if you want or need to know more. 

Being anchored to God's word this year has been such a gift. When life feels confusing or sad Scripture remains a solid steady place to stand. Returning every day to the promises found in God's word provided not only comfort but direction, reminding me the world may tilt and change but He never does. 

In 2025 God's word has truly been an anchor for my soul. 

We recently sang an old song in church called Cornerstone (linked here),  and the words really struck a chord with me. They brought my word to mind...

    '...when darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace

    In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil...Christ alone, Cornerstone, 

    weak made strong, in the Saviour's love, Through the storm He is Lord, Lord of all...' 

I have the good intention every year to memorize scripture, but I'm just going to be honest and say things don't stick the way they did even a decade ago. Makes me so grateful for the many verses I learned while growing up because those adhered like glue, but adding a lot of new memory work is hard. If you're reading this and you're under 50 do it now!

I did memorize this simple verse though, and I say it to myself often, including several times on Monday because Monday ended up being a day and as a result Tuesday will probably be the same.  

He is my hope. My cornerstone. My anchor...and I will carry that with me into this new year. Today too. 

Christmas

Hello friends. We're back in the 864 (although my own number is not 864) and today I'm recapping our Christmas in the 215. We cover a lot of geography always. 

We spent Christmas in the city of Brotherly Love this year, aka Philadelphia. My younger sister and her family live there, and my momma lives with them. They have room for a big crowd in their beautiful home which makes large holiday gatherings really nice. 

My brother lives nearby so he and my sister-in-law come and go from their own house, but my older sister, my niece, and my niece's husband all flew in from SC too. 

Elf was on our flight. He paced a lot. Too much maple syrup perhaps? 

Travel was smooth and we arrived in Philly around noon. That evening we all went to dinner at a NJ steakhouse which is something of an institution. For those who've never been to this part of the country, Philly is just a short car ride across the bridge from south Jersey.  

I had lobster ravioli that was delicious, but very rich, and we all had the cesear salad made tableside with a whole lotta garlic. So good! 

My sweet momma with her girl gang. 

The day before Christmas was spent doing last minute wrapping, prepping for our turkey/ham dinner that evening, and catching up with family. My brother in-law made breakfast pizzas which were yummy and we had snacks and too many cookies in the afternoon. 

Also on Christmas Eve hubs went with my nephew and brother-in-law to pick up our Christmas morning breakfast from a local favorite-Marchianos. They prepare the most fabulous breakfast breads which are similar to calzones, and are filled with egg-pepper-cheese, ham and cheese, bacon-egg-cheese, and more.

You have to order them well in advance and they give you a time for pick up. Still a long long line, but the waiting is part of the fun, and the men enjoy the whole experience. 

We played a fun game my sister brought called Blank Slate , and there was a roaring fire which would not have happened had we stayed in South Carolina. It was 75 degrees at home.  

There's a wonderful bakery in my sister's neighborhood and she had purchased trays of cookies, a carrot cake, and a pecan pie so plenty of sweets. 

Christmas morning we opened stockings, then had the breads for our breakfast, then opened more gifts. Both girls Facetimed and we got to see the grands who were having a wonderful day in their own homes with their other grandparents. 

That afternoon my brother-in-law's brother stopped by to visit for a bit, then my brother and sister-in-law, and my sister-in-law's brother (did you get all that???) all came for Christmas dinner. Hubs played sous chef and helped with the port wine reduction. 

My sister and brother-in-law outdid themselves with all the fabulous meals, and Christmas Day was no different. 

We had steak and lobster, asparagus, and a vegetable tian that was both pretty and tasty. 

The day after Christmas is my older sister's birthday and we always make a big deal of it because she insists-lol. Not really, but it's become something we really celebrate since we're all very often together. 

The original fab four with our momma-

We had a delicious brunch at home and then that afternoon we all went over to the Garden State for a birthday dinner hosted by my brother and sister-in-law. A few more friends who are like family joined the party and a good time was had by all. 

An ice storm moved in while we were at my brother's house and the drive home was treacherous. We crawled along and saw lots of stopped and sliding vehicles, but thankfully made it home unscathed. 

Several of us played some cards after we got home, and I learned Texas Hold 'Em, which was a fun way to wrap up the celebrating. 

We flew home Saturday afternoon. Our flight was only slightly delayed and we'd have been in on time except! once we landed the airport seemed surprised to see us and we sat on the tarmac over 45 minutes waiting on someone to open the door. 

It was fun to get away, but there's truly no place like home. I've always loved the week between Christmas and the new year. No pressure, the tree's still up and lit, and there's lots of time to think about what was and what will be. 

Wishing you peace as this old year rolls into the new...

Linking today's post with Holly and Sarah for their regular Monday weekend recap hop. 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 634

Hello friends. Here are the questions to the last weekly Hodgepodge in 2025. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here on Wednesday (December 31st) to share answers with the rest of the world wide webbers. See you there! 

 

1. Did you make resolutions or set goals for the year we're waving goodbye? How did that work out for you? Will you set any goals for this new year, new season, or new month? Share one or two if you'd like to share. 

2. When did you have the most fun this year? 

3. What's a song or song lyric you'll associate with 2025? Tell us why. 

4. Best (or a favorite) bite of something delicious you tasted this year? 

5. What do you want to do more of in the new year? Less of? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Full Hearts

Linking with Joanne at Slices of Life for Talking About It Tuesdays

Recapping our fun full weekend today, because Monday was spent getting the house back in order and preparing for Christmas round two. 

It's an in-law year here for my girls so we had an early celebration. I don't know that this will happen every in-law year, but it worked for this one. Now that daughter1 and her family live nearby logistics are far less complex, and for that we're so grateful. 

As per usual I'm looking right when I'm supposed to look left. I blame lack of sleep. 

Daughter2 and her family rolled in from Tennessee on Friday around noon. They brought their new addition with them and we all got to meet Banjo. He's a love and handled all the kid chaos really well. 

The little brown dog tolerated him. He isn't a fan of other dogs, and much prefers people, specifically his person, but he also knows where there are kids there's going to be food dropped so he rolls with it. 

Daughter1 and her hubs had a work party to attend Friday evening, so they brought their crew over here for dinner and shenanigans. I made a big pan of baked ziti, then after dinner we loaded everyone into the cars for a trip to town to see the phenomenal lights our tiny town displays. 

The party goers came back here after and we put kids to bed and watched some football. The adrenaline was off the charts but everyone went down pretty easily saying, 'the sooner we go to bed, the sooner it will be morning'. Truth! 

Saturday morning the two oldest grandsons, who normally sleep like teenagers,  were up at 6:30 AM. Little Miss had gone home with her parents the night before so we had to wait for them to arrive before we could have breakfast and presents. 

Finally! 

Sugar opened her vacuum and promptly cleaned every rug in the house. This little toy actually sucks up dirt, not a lot but still it's doing something. My daughter said as soon as they got back to their house on Sunday she got right to vacuuming there. 

Remember when running the vacuum was a good time???

We gave sweet baby J a bank that works kind of like an ATM and he spent the day opening and closing it, feeding it money, taking the money out, and just carrying it around under his arm. I love when a present is a hit! 

We bought the two older boys remote control planes which I thought might have been a scam, because they took forever to arrive, but they made it just in time and it's almost as complicated as flying an actual jet lol. Dad helped and once he got them working showed the boys and I think they'll have so much fun with them as they get better at the operating system. 

Little Miss got a purse from her auntie M that she wore on her arm all day, and lots of princess, pink, sparkly, girly girl things which are so much fun to buy. 

I love seeing my girls love their sister's babies. 

We had snacks mid-afternoon and the kids played so nicely together. 

You forget what your countertop looks like with littles in the house. 

Hubs grilled the most amazing ten pound prime rib roast on the big green egg which everyone enjoyed. 

Daughter2 and her bunch left to go home shortly after breakfast Sunday morning. Hubs and I put some of the kid stuff away before heading over to the grandson's piano recital around 2. They've been taking lessons for just over a month and they each went right to the piano and played without missing a beat. 

We were home for a couple of hours afterwards before heading out again, this time to church for the carols and candlelight service. So lovely! Plus, Little Miss, who can be a bit hesitant in big groups, sashayed right up to the front of the sanctuary when they asked the kids to come up and sing This Little Light of Mine. Truly one of my most favorite moments of the entire holiday season. 

Also, daughter2 got everyone together to snap a photo, which is a little bit like herding cats, but she gets my momma heart. 

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good week! 

Christmas With The Vanderbilts

We had a fun and festive Thursday in spite of the gray skies and drizzle. Friends had some complimentary tickets to Biltmore House and invited us to use them. 

They actually had four complimentary tickets so another couple of friends came too, and since their car held us all we didn't even have to drive.  

Did  I spend an entire day out of the house doing something fun with family coming to town tomorrow and just a week to go before Christmas? 

Yes I did. Carpe diem!  

Also day date episode eleven if you're keeping count. 

I've been to Biltmore a number of times, but not since 2019 and never at Christmas. Biltmore is known as America's largest home, and was built by George Vanderbilt in the late 1800's.  I've always heard it's extra beautiful this time of year and it's true. Wow. 

Every room has a beautifully decorated tree-

Most light fixtures are adorned with some sort of gorgeous ribbon or embellishment-

Bannisters are wrapped-

And fireplace mantels are draped in garland-

I cannot imagine the amount of work that goes into getting the house ready for Christmas. 

It takes me weeks to get my own tree up and finished, and Biltmore is over the top in terms of decoration. This Noah's Ark tree was adorable-

Animals hanging two by two...

The trees fit the rooms they're in and the decor is appropriate for the period furnishings. 

Christmas dinner anyone? 

You need to reserve tickets this time of year and entry is timed. We went into the house at noon and spent almost two hours walking through. 

After we'd seen all there was to see (or all that's open to the public anyway...apparently the house has 250 rooms so we didn't come close to seeing it all) we drove about thirty minutes up the road to Sierra Nevada for a late lunch. Hubs and I shared a burger and their famous duck fat fries which were yummy. 

We got lucky with traffic and in spite of the dark, rainy, fog made it home about 6:30. It was a fun, full day and while I could have been at home ticking off those last to-dos, celebrating the season with friends is always on my list too.

Check.