Some more Pix of Christmas Decorating........

These are the last pix of Christmas............

This is a closeup of the handmade ornaments:The TV and cabinet was our Christmas gift for this year. My sweetie also got me 10 romantic DVD movies to watch on it. Oh, and he came home with 2 more today. I covered these letters with scrap booking paper. They came out OK, but I think I was supposed to darken the edges so that they stand out better. I think I'll get L, V, and E and use the O for Valentine's Day. (Looking forward, instead of back).........

Notice the little dog toy in front of the baby carriage--My girls had one just like it when they were small--at least 38 yrs ago. I saw it at the Salvation Army and grabbed it immediately. I couldn't believe it was there. Then I wondered if I gave it to the SA many years ago, and if it could be the same one. I'll never know, one of life's little mysteries.

More shots of the mantle:

Little corner table: And that's all folks!

I can now move forward and wish everyone a very Happy New Year! I hope 2009 is a healthy, prosperous, and happy year for all!

OK, Better Late Than Never, as Promised!

First, I want to say that I hope every one's Christmas was beautiful and that all your wishes came true for all of you. My Christmas was very nice, with lots of love and great joy. My immediate family were all together and that made me very happy. I love them all very much and it would not feel right if we were not together. As promised, (and I knew it would come), I finally have time to post some of my decorations. This is the TREE with presents: (Don't tell, but the presents have NO ribbons, shame on me!, {I don't think anyone noticed.}):








The above ornaments are hand made, mouth blown ornaments that have Sterling Silver tops and hanger rings. I found them at my favorite thrift store for 50 cents each! They are very heavy glass, it looks like two layers. The inside layer is colored and crackled and then the outside layer is clear glass. They are so beautiful and I guess they were meant to come home with me. There are seven all together and they sure are beautiful.

Above is my dining room window. I love the apothecary jar with the pine cones and silver balls. Above picture is a closeup of the snowballs I managed to make. The picture doesn't do them justice. I used the Diamond Dust on them and they sure do sparkle.

Above are some of the goodies, we also had a Cherry pie and a Pumpkin Pie.

Above is the corner china cabinet in the dining room. These bears are candles that my neighbor friend gave to me many years ago. She has passed on, so they have a special meaning to me and I put them out every year in remembrance of her.

Above: The shelf in my dining room.

One table in the living room.

These little girls are patiently waiting for Santa, they all have on their best smiles and are being VERY good.



Now because there is a huge space here and I can't get it to go away

I

will

show

you

some

of

my

ornaments:

This is a baby bootie made into an ornament. I found it at an "antique and more" store in November.

The long ornament above is actually a red plastic ornie from Wal-Mart. I put the Diamond Dust on it last year and it held up very well and really looks very pretty.




This little birdie came from the German ornament store at Disney. It is said that it is Good Luck to have a bird in your tree. Since I am of German origin, I believe that to be true.

This is a "new" ornament from the thrift store this year. I actually found three of them that were good, two in the package were broken. They cost me 49 cents for three good ones.

This one is "new", too, 49 cents, also.

I made a bunch of these snowmen last year, 28 in all, and sent one to each of my Mom, sisters and their families, nieces, brothers and families, boyfriends families and friends. They sure were fun to make and everyone liked them.

I cut these Santa faces out one year and painted a bunch of them, so I have lots of them on my tree. I love making Christmas ornaments and every year I think I am going to make them early, and I always end up doing them at the last minute.



This one is big! It's also another thrift store find, in fact there's two. The other is gold with sparkles on it and is shown in the first picture of the ornaments section.

This is one of the speakers that I use for a little table. I put some of my "old" stuff on it. I like the look. I tried to put more pictures on this post but it wouldn't let me add any more, so I will have to do another post with the rest of them..... I hope I have not bored you with all the stuff, but I said I would let you see my "Old Fashioned Christmas" and I wanted to keep my word.

Christmas is such a hectic time for all, and especially when you own a retail store, but it is to be expected and we have to do the best we can every year. I didn't think I would have time to do anything, but it all worked out, I got the shopping done, some baking and our dinner was wonderful, thanks to my sweet boyfriend, who did all the cooking. We had roasted leg of lamb with mint sauce, roasted vegetables, I made some Pampered Chef beer bread, that was delicious, delicious wine and good company. What more could I ask for? I want to do it all again next year 'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Merry Christmas to All

May the Joy of Christmas bring Peace to All.

Getting There.....

I have not posted much this month, I have been way too busy with work at the candy store, 'Tis the Season, and I don't have any pictures to show you. BUT, I have been doing some decorating here and there, a little at a time, and eventually I will get it done and show some pics. I have been doing some shopping and a little cooking and a LOT of work, so in the end (Dec.25) I hope it all comes together. Thanks to all of you for your comments, 'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Making Plans for my Christmas Decorating!

I'm trying to decide how I should decorate for Christmas this year. I have my theme. It's an "Old Fashioned Christmas." I have so much vintage stuff to spread around this place and I am still "arranging" it all in my head. I was looking back at some pictures for some ideas and thought I would share some with you. I like to have some displays throughout the living area.

One year, I filled apothecary jars with Christmas candy and that was good. Everyone loved that. That was before I owned a candy store!



This was my dining room that year:

I have at least 100 Teddy Bears, all have red bows and some have Christmas clothes.

They do take up a lot of room, but the biggest problem may be Dusty, my dog.....he happens to have this thing for Teddies. He already adopted one and he loves it so much. It's bigger than him and he drags it down off the rocking chair and buries his face in it's belly. He has licked it so much he has almost worn a hole in it's tummy. So, that may not work.

Let's see.....I have about 40 small trees of all kinds, but I've used them before on my mantle. That looked cool.

Then one year I hung glittery snowflakes from the dining room ceiling on fishing line at varied lengths and everyone liked that. I don't have a picture of it.

My Santa collection has about tripled since this picture!

I have lots of ideas floating around in my head and I just have to decide what to do! I have started to put some stuff out, but I haven't gone into the attic yet. That's when the real decorating begins! I guess I'd better get busy!

'Til next time, Love Ya, Jean

Happy Thanksgiving!

TURKEY RECIPE

I thought this sounded good!
Here is a turkey recipe that also includes the use of popcorn as a stuffing -- imagine that. When I found this recipe, I thought it was perfect for people like me, who just are not sure how to tell when poultry is thoroughly cooked, but not dried out. Give this a try.
8 - 15 lb. turkey
1 cup melted butter
1 cup stuffing (Pepperidge Farm is Good.)
1 cup uncooked popcorn (ORVILLE REDENBACHER'S LOW FAT)
Salt/pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush turkey well with melted butter, salt, and pepper. Fill cavity with stuffing and popcorn. Place in baking pan with the neck end toward the back of the oven.
Listen for the popping sounds. When the turkey's butt blows the oven door open and the bird flies across the room, it's done.
And, you thought I didn't cook... ....hehe
Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Fruit & Walnut Banana Bread

Today, I wanted to show you the recipe that I developed from a traditional banana bread recipe. The banana bread alone is spectacular, but I wanted to change it a little. As you all know, too much of a good thing gets boring after a while, so I added some extra ingredients to the recipe to enliven it a little and change the flavor. We really love this recipe, but I will switch it out at times to keep it lively.

Fruit & Walnut Banana Bread

3/4 C. All Purpose Flour

1 1/4 C. Whole Wheat Flour

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon Ginger

Sift all the above ingredients together. Set aside.

1/2 C. Butter or Shortening. (I use Olivio Soft Margarine.)

1 C. Sugar

1/8 C. Molasses

1 C. (2 medium sized ) mashed Bananas

1/2 C. Milk

1 teaspoon Lemon juice or Vinegar

1/2 C. chopped Walnuts

1/2 C. Raisins

1/2 C. Craisins

Cream Butter. Gradually add sugar, creaming well. Add eggs, bananas, and molasses. Blend thoroughly. Combine milk and lemon juice. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Blend well after each addition. Dredge fruits and walnuts with some extra flour, this keeps the fruit and nuts from sinking to the bottom of the bread. Stir into batter. Grease bottom of 9 x 5 x 3 inch pan. Pour in batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 60 to 70 min, until bread springs back when touched lightly in center. Cool 10 min. Remove from pan. Finish cooling on a wire rack. Store at room temperature, wrapped in aluminum foil. This is extra good, spread with butter or margarine and lightly heated in the microwave. It is also one of those breads that is better the longer it sits. I hope you will try my recipe and I am sure that you will enjoy it. Yum! I think I'll go make one now! And if you make it, let me know how you like it!

A Christmas Giveaway!

I was just visiting with Yvette over at The Charm House and she is having a fabulous giveaway! The prize is a beautiful Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus set for Christmas! This is a picture of the set:

This set is a Fontanini 5" Collection Holy Family. It is gorgeous and all you have to do is go to her blog and leave a comment. She has some other ways that you can get more than one entry, but you need to go to her blog to find out how to do that. It's easy, I assure you! Go See! To get to Yvette's blog you can click on the flashing green button on the right.......

My Tea Tray...

It's tea time at my house............. Come on over............

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

My Mantle:

Today I wanted to show my collection of Silverplate............ I don't think it's that valuable $ wise, but I love it anyway. The curves, the patina of many colors,

and the designs from years ago, makes it all very special to me.

The small cup on the right side is my daughter's when she was a baby. All the pieces have very special memories to me and that's why I love it so much.

'Til next time. Love ya, Jean

Thanksgiving -- Here We Come......

It's hard to believe it's here already, but it is that time again. These guys are just hanging around waiting for the big day!

This one has a message for all of us!

They are very thankful, especially Tom Turkey. They would like us to eat fruit! I prefer pumpkin pie.

Just a little vignette next to the fireplace.

My living room wall with some pumpkins residing beside the turkey. He is still hoping for the best!
And this guy is giving us all a wish for a Happy Thanksgiving.
'Til next time, Love Ya, Jean