My Happy Holiday Home Tour

Hello and Welcome to my happy home

all dressed up for the holidays.

Last night when I was taking these pictures, a gentle rain was falling.

Our holiday lights combined with those of our neighbors made the gloomy evening much brighter and cheerier.

Welcome in.

Feel free to hang your coat.

I've got my hat & scarf parked here with high hopes that we will see at least one snowfall this winter.  Fingers crossed.

Could I interest you in a cup of hot chocolate?

The foyer table is dressed up for the holiday season.

It will come as no surprise that shades of blue feature prominently throughout my home.

Across from the foyer table is the living room.

The tree in here features my parents collection of ornaments.

This is where I start my day with the tree lights on, a warm cup of coffee and often a cozy Christmas book to peruse.

Just past the living room is the large island that is kind of a central point in the house.  In the fall I purchased this large wooden tray and enjoyed decorating it with pumpkins and gourds.

Here it is all spiffed up for Christmas.

In the background you can see the kitchen.

You've seen it before, but I'll take you in to see a few little vignettes.

This wooden tray was found at the thrift shop.

I added a bit of vintage whimsy and tucked it into the corner where it brings back memories of childhood Christmases.

While doing the dishes, this is the view.

Christmas cards seem to dwindle more each year.

I do appreciate those that I still receive and enjoy seeing them and being reminded of the special people who sent them.

Just past the kitchen is the dining table and hutch.

Everything on the table was thrifted, including the table runner which looked brand new and couldn't be more perfect for the color scheme I was working with.

Finally we make it to the family room.

Christmas music is playing and the fire is lit.

The presents are wrapped and soon it will be time to gather together and make new memories.

Thank you for visiting today.

As you leave through the garage door, my whimsical snow couple and I would like to wish you

A Very Merry Christmas

and

All Good Things in The New Year!

Happy To Be Home

A beautiful day in sunny Florida.

Judging by this picture one might get the idea that we enjoyed a tropical vacation.

The main reason for our trip was to move my mother-in-law into assisted living from the apartment she has been in since 2014.

We drove down on Thanksgiving day.

Not knowing what would be open, and in an effort to save time, we packed lunch and ate at a rest stop.

Turkey Jerky, sweet potato chips, homemade pumpkin muffin and clementines were my attempt at making this somewhat unusual Thanksgiving still seem festive.

The traffic was light as we had hoped.

We arrived at our first destination in time to celebrate with our son and his family.  Thankfully we were able to visit with them for a few more days.

Jaxson loved going on walks with his grandparents and showing us the best views in his neighborhood.  Grandma wanted a picture by the pretty poinsettias.

When grandpa was ready for a rest, Jaxson found a palm frond and used it as a fan.

😄

Soon it was time to head further south and begin our work.

We spent 6 days going through my mother-in-law's belongings.

She is in a much smaller place now so everything had to be dealt with in short order.  Like so many from her generation. she was a saver.  I was amazed to come across her high school scrap book filled with crumbling corsages. Boxes and boxes and boxes of photos made me glad that we now store them on our devices for the most part.  We brought back what we could fit in the car to be distributed to various family members.  We lost count of trips to the donation center.

Once the jobs were done, we enjoyed a celebratory dinner and visited her in her new home.

In her room with her daughter and yours truly.

Our last day we visited during "happy hour".

Mother & son enjoyed the Christmas carols being played on the piano and a nice conversation.

Somewhat teary goodbyes are always hard.

At 95 years old she is in remarkable health.

Prior to her move she had a few falls and it became clear that she couldn't live alone anymore.  Convincing her of that was interesting (to say the least).  After an adjustment period she is now doing very well in her new home.

We are now back home and Christmas seems to be coming way too fast.  The smartest thing I've done in a while is ...

putting up my trees and all Christmas decorations prior to leaving.

After a very busy few weeks and a long drive home it was so nice to walk into our home all lit up for the holidays.

Merry Christmas to me :).

This afternoon is my eye injection appointment and then I'm off the computer for a few days.  Can't wait to have a minute to sit and catch up on blog reading.