Dear Sassy Ladies,

What a beautiful day Saturday was! Thank you Susan B. and Suzanne for choosing such a lovely location for our Annual Christmas Luncheon. Magnolia Hall is truly beautiful and the luncheon was delicious. Everything was perfect! I was so happy to have 22 of our 23 chapterettes present. Marsha was the only one absent, but she had a good excuse being in Florida with her brand new Grandson. This was the best attended event of the year! It was wonderful having the entire chapter together.

We all enjoyed Suzanne's slide show of pictures from all of our events in 2008. It's amazing how memories return just by looking at a photo! A huge thank you to Suzanne for making each of us our very own CD. What a lovely keepsake!

Wanda read a cute Christmas Pageant Story that brought back memories of when our own children starred in Christmas plays. Now we watch our grandchildren with pride!

Our Secret Sister exchange proved that some of us are smarter than others guessing who our SS for 2008 was. You all did a great job picking the perfect gift for your Secret Sister. A lot of love went into each and every one of them. Of course, I had the best Secret Sister of all. Thank you so much Susan B. for all the  touching cards, my bountiful birthday gift basket, and the lighted glass block you gave me for Christmas. I have been blessed! Also, I need to say how much I enjoyed being Dot's SS this year. Dot, it was a pleasure having you for my SS!

A huge thank you to all the little elves who left goodies and cards on our plates: to Le for the darling RH trinket box, to Ann for the bone ornament with our puppy pictures, to Trudy for the crocheted wreath pin and to whoever left the bag of candy and the cookies. Cheryl and Donna, I love the wine glass and will feel very royal whenever I enjoy a glass of wine in it!  I hope all of you will wear your little snowman pin and remember the love that came with it. When I ordered them, I knew he had on a red hat, but I didn't realize he had on a purple coat! An added bonus!

Joanne we neglected to sing Happy Birthday to you, but we all hope that your special day is blessed with happiness! Also, we send birthday wishes to Guilliana and Sara our other December babes!

Don't forget the Christmas Open House at the Royal Castle this Sunday (Dec. 21) at 2:00 p.m. My prince and I are anxious to welcome you to our home! We lost a few who thought they could attend, but we still are expecting 34 happy Royal subjects. For those who can't attend, we'll miss you and wish you a very Merry Christmas!

January 10 is our annual Planning Session. We will meet at the Grayson Senior Center. See invitation for time.  Joan and Suzy Q need your RSVP and $10 luncheon payment ASAP. I hope all of you have been thinking of fun events for 2009. April is already spoken for but the other 11 months are open.

Thank you all for being such an important part of my life! We always reflect back this time of year on the joys and hardships we have experienced . We have all faced good times and bad, that have been made happier and easier by the friendships we share. As Wanda always says, "Have I told you today how much I love you?"

Thanks again Susan and Suzanne for a lovely Christmas event!

Have a great week and I'll see all of you on Sunday! Enjoy every moment of this special season!

Love and hugs,

Linda