wellborn my hometown

MERRY CHRISTMAS. & A Blessed Holy Season to us all.

Michelle Law's Christmas haircut was the same day as my Christmas curls appointment at Hair Rescue on US 90. It was the first time I had seen Michelle since her husband Jerome's funeral at Mt Olive Baptist Church.
"How are you and the children doing" I asked. "One day at a time" she answered. Then she told about how they decided to take turns in the kitchen after her mother's comforting visit ended. Jerome's travail was long. The children switched from homeschool to Suwannee County School system but he & Michelle continued to teach love by example. The family coped then and they have come up smiling now too. Charlie invites his family to eat with Chef Charlie on his night. Grace calls her night "Gourmet Dining with Grace" and Michelle's night Is Michelle Magic. Somehow this glimpse of bravery warmed my heart.

Goldie Marie and Ted Fralick with Chad (in his 20's now)came to deliver a Christmas present, a Guidepost Daily Devotion Book.
Goldie Marie and I shared friendship with one she called Miss Margaret, (Margaret McLeran). Margaret liked to give her chosen friends the Guidepost Devotional at Christmas. GoldieMarie carries on the tradition while I bet Margaret smiles down from the heavenlies.
We caught the afterglow of Fralick's having just bought a 26 foot motorhome in Lake City.(Merry Christmas) It will sleep 8 and GM. and T. will see how many of their immediate family will find themselves able to accept an invitation to see Maine and New England this summer.
In addition the Fralick' drop in was when our teenage Gainesville Grandsons (McCreas) plus parents, were visiting us for their Christmas gift of themselves. We have convinced them that time together is much better than anything purchased and wrapped. It was!
I love to call up the mental picture of four young men in my kitchen (where the cookies were) enjoying one another. It was instant friendship. We knew all four of them as little boys. It seems like only yesterday. Now they fill up a kitchen and demolish quantities of calories without getting fat. :-) Even so, they make me unafraid to leave this world to them !

I'm sure the problem of transferring the WCA pictures to this blog would not stymie them. It does me, surely it is only a temporary stymie.

Your blogger emailed Wendell Snowden, WCA President, seeking photos(worth a thousand words) taken at last nights WCA extravaganza Christmas Party for Wellborn's children and the young at heart.
/Users/jinnywilson/Desktop/WCA_Cmas_24.JPG
/Users/jinnywilson/Desktop/WCA_Cmas_20.JPG
/Users/jinnywilson/Desktop/WCA_Cmas_26.JPG
/Users/jinnywilson/Desktop/WCA_Cmas_15.JPG



Wendell verbal picture was e-mailed. It read

"A new member, named Penny, took lots of pictures and said she would give us them on a CD. We took a couple, also. Let's see what she gives us first, because hers should be better than ours.

We were surprised at the attendance. We really didn't have enough of anything, but like the "loaves and fishes" the last child to see Santa got the last stocking, and after the party was over, there were still 5 cookies left.

We had a great bunch of "elves" who worked really hard - and Santa, too!

December 11, 2007 Donna Jolley writes

Last week I talked about the digital side of photo albums. This week I would like to talk a little about types of albums you can make and set the stage for scrapbooking hands on.

There are many different types of photo albums you can make. I would just like to mention a few. Have you ever thought about making an ABC album for a little one. When my first "great" nephew was born I started taking pictures and by the time he was two I made him a photo album with pictures of him on every page. A picture of him with an 'a'pple, a picture of him with a toy 'b'oat, a picture of him that was 'c'ut in a 'c'ircle. You get the idea. It is the perfect gift for a 2 year old.

Besides the everyday family album or special event album, there is the family heirloom album. You take a picture of each heirloom and then put that picture in an album and your journaling tells the history of that piece. How about a treasured piece of jewelry? Another great idea is the family recipe album. Take a picture of that favorite dish and write up the recipe and put them all together with a picture of the cook! This makes a great gift also.

If you have a special hobby that you do why not make an album about it. Does you husband have a hobby? Woodworking, fishing, hunting? These make great albums too.

Know someone getting married, a wedding album makes a perfect gift. A new baby on the way? Decorate the pages so all Mom has to do is put in the pictures and journal. We all know how busy Moms never have enough time, this takes all the work out of her hands and gives her the time to just add that special picture and tell the story.

Smaller 7 x 7 or 8 x 8 albums are very popular right now as they are quick and easy to do. The traditional albums are 12 x 12. They now have many different sizes to work with, so while you are out and about this holiday season, check out the different types of albums out there and think about what you would like to make.

Make sure you paper and pages are acid free and lignin free. Acid will eat your photographs and lignin is what turns white paper yellow with age. You want your albums to last for years so make sure you get the best products out there.

I won't be writing next week due to spending the holidays with my children and grandchildren, but be sure to check back so you can see all the pictures that I take.

Merry Christmas to all, Donna

December 9, 2007

Our hometown sorrows over vandalism that broke the window of the WCA Community Bulletin Board in front of the Post Office. :-( It is hospitalized in Jack Allred's barn and will be back on duty ASAP.

Wellborn Community Association members Mayso Martin ( with his wife's help) and Charles and Cheryl Osgood strung Christmas lights as an After December's Pancake Breakfast activity. The lights are around a manger scene on the stage behind the community center.
I bet Rev. Wyart Martin smiles down from the heavenlies.
Wellborn's earthlings can rejoice at the manger scene with all the lights in the WCA backyard now.
The best view is from C-10A.

The December Blueberry Pancake customers were greeted by a life size Santa whose mechanical innards were capable of Ho Ho Ho and MERRY CHRISTMAS and more. That Santa was added to the Christmas Fun by Charles and Cheryl Osgood.
Inside the WCA welcomed customers with delightful Christmas decorations.

December 15 @ 7 PM is the next Santa Party. This time a real live Santa arrives on a fire truck. It's tradition!
IT IS THE ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARTY FOR OUR HOMETOWN with stockings and gifts for the kids and raffle ticket drawings for all. Lots of work ahead of time results in lots of fun for all who come.

Sandhill cranes are the high flying honkers who are migrating South. Just look up and up when you hear them.
Another spectacular sighting in our nearby pond is a dozen hooded merganser ducks. White sided heads with display capability and white chested too when he paddles towards the viewer. The males are almost as dramatically colored as wooducks but not so private about their whereabouts.

A quotable quote from Ron and Esther Chappel is " As new members of a group, we don't volunteer right away, but we are willing to try our hand at most anything we are asked to do." Wellborn United Methodist Church thanks these new kids on the block for a gorgeous Chrismon Tree in the sanctuary and also a more playful Christmas tree to party around in the fellowship hall. Chrismons are Christ Monogram ornaments full of symbolism, always white and gold. The fellowship hall tree acquired paper angels and glittered stars after Children's Church today.

Come see !

A DONNA JOLLEY BLOG on December 5, 2007

See some Christmas projects. Then read about how you can do it too.




Hello to all on this beautiful crisp fall day. I love the weather down here, it can get cold at night and then warm right back up during the day and the sun is always shinning! I must apologize for not writing last week. I got caught up making photo albums, calendars and flip books on line for Christmas presents. Last time I wrote I told you I was going to tell you more about albums and types of albums this time around.

I want to share with you some simple ways to preserve your memories. Online is one great way to make albums for just a little of your time. They have different sizes and different styles. Something for everyone. I have been using Snapfish.com for years but there are lots of other sites out there. Just do a search for pictures and you'll get more than enough to keep you busy.

One of my favorite projects that shows off your photos and also helps you remember special dates is a photo calendar. You can have your own photos on the top and now you can even add photos to the date of a special day. We put pictures of each child on the date of their birthday! You can also write a short caption right on the square, Kelsey's bday, on the date, June 6th. No excuse for not knowing when everyone's birthday is anymore. It is a gift that is enjoyed all year long. They usually cost around $20. Walgreens and CVS I believe even have them now. So if you are stuck for a gift idea here's a great one!

Another type of album I like is a 5 x 7 paper back everyday book. Snapfish had them on sale for only $5.99 each, regular price is $11.99. That was a great deal. They are so easy to make. They have a premade format for you to choose from, everything from how many photos on a page, to different paper backgrounds. You simply pick and choose your photos and drop them in. You can also upgrade to hard back photo albums, and larger sizes. There is also room to journal on most pages. These make great brag books.

Another great brag book is a simple spiral bound 4 x 6 flip book. It has the same format as the everyday book, but it is smaller. Usually only one photo on a page with some journaling, you can add as many pages as needed, for a price of course. But they are wonderful to carry around. Are great for a small project, to showcase you favorite photos, children & grandchildren, and even your last vacation. Plus they are easy to store.

Something on my list is the new photo frames that hold all you digital pictures and shows them as a slide show. I know it isn't a album, but it is a great present. Of course they only hold so many photos so you have to pick your favorites!! Most stores now carry these, even Walmart.



I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and I'll give you some more ideas and tips next week!! Till then....donna

At the December 1, Saturday morning Wellborn Community Association Blueberry Pancake Breakfast Ted and Goldie Marie Fralick, Nikki Fralick Sutton, Anthony Sutton sat on one side of their full table. Across from Ted sits Nancy Coffey, next to her is best friend & happy Mom Sutton with daughter Angie Sutton Volling next and son in law, Jeffrey Volling, at the end of the table. They had so much fun sharing Thanksgiving festivities in South Florida that Goldie Marie and Ted said "C'mon to our hometown and we'll do Pancakes and Christmas on The Square."
Nancy Coffey said "Of course you can take our picture. I have always wanted to be in a blog!".


Ron and Esther Chappel are regulars for Blueberry Pancakes. They often come with their daughter Carolyn and her friend Melinda. Ron is president of the Wellborn My Hometown Blog Fan Club and he is my Biblical Barnabus, in his encourager role.:-)
Note the Peanut Butter jar front and center. Ron says "Anything that is any good is better with peanut butter!"


Bobbi Fenderson's latest horse-y adventure was a Big Friesian Event in Ohio. She was admiring the majestic horses when little furry piece of love was placed in Bobbi's lap, unexpectedly and perhaps providentially.
She fell in love with this six week old peek-a-pom, and it was an instant mutual love affair. Puppy is named Shammi because of her color and soft , tho' longish fur. Bobbi doesn't believe the salesman's claim that she won't shed, that the combo breeds always just get the best genes. ?
Just the same this puppy never yipped enough to be discovered in the motel AND, believe it or not, Shammi used the airplane rest room and is "potty trained"!
Simultaneously Jerry Fenderson and a friend were sailing a 38 foot sloop down the east coast from Merrimac. N.H, to St Augustine, Fl. It was blue water all the way to Norfolk, Va., and then headwinds helped them to choose the intercoastal waterway. The adventure took 27 days (in ports enroute for the nights tho'.) Jerry and Shammi met eachother in St Augustine. Surprise ! :-)


Mary and Louis Berry are regulars for WCA Blueberry Pancakes. December's breakfast date included daughter Yvonne Brimm and her granddaughter Raivyn Summerfield. Raivyn is one of ten great grands Mary and Louis have brag rights on now.
"Or is it eleven" someone asked. "No, not quite yet" was the concensus opinion.