White Christmas.

Our shopping is done and the gifts are wrapped and under our tree.

Our house is decorated from top to bottom, inside and out.

Do you see the trio of angels in the lower left corner?

They're singing the Hallelujah Chorus in celebration of 

The Hanging of the Curtains in the master bedroom.

 Hallelujah!

Down the hall in a guest bedroom....

 Santa is sure to find us.

 

 A pair of my sock monkeys are ready to have some fun with a pom pom garland,

which will no doubt be pulled down at bedtime...along with the monkeys.

In the 911 Bakery....

A watchful gnome surveys the scene in the messy kitchen below.

The rest of our kitchen is covered with a dusting of flour

and sprinkles as I try to finish my Christmas baking this weekend.

We procrastinated until the last possible minute, 

but we did it.  We built our first (and probably last) house!

I'm feeling a little like Clark Griswold when his Christmas light display

finally came to life.  After 2 failed attempts to build a mansard roof 

without a pattern to scale, we decided to wander down a different path altogether,

 and built a gable style roof instead.  It still needs the back side of the roof

 attached, but it's going to have a roof that fits.  Woo hoo!

As you may have guessed, it won't be finished on time, but it's well on its way,

 and the fun details like shutters, window trim, deck railings, doors, and paint

 will be added before it's delivered to Maggie's bedroom.

Living in northern Minnesota, a white Christmas is usually a given,

 but this year, just when I thought I was going to experience my first green Christmas

in over 5 decades, Mother Nature dropped a great big white surprise!

View from a bedroom window.

A park down the street after the snow settled.
I can't imagine a Christmas without snow!

The kids better bring their snowsuits and boots because...........

We've got sleds for everybody!

 Is there a prettier sight than a snow covered pine tree?

Delicate dancing fern patterns in the frost on our old windows.


This time of year, I spend many sleepless nights counting the things I've yet to do,
 but in the end it's all about our family gathering together.  What doesn't get done
won't be missed, so I hope to fall asleep the next few nights
counting my blessings.
 

Our Christmas selfie.

 

Thank you for your visits and kind words throughout the year,

and I wish everybody a Merry Christmas! 

Vickie 

*I'm joining the party at:

Tweak it Tuesday Cozy Little House

 

Red white & blue Christmas tour.

It's that time of year.

I love everything about this time of year.
I've spent this past week tweaking my decorations
while my favorite Christmas tunes play in the background,
and here's how it all looks......today.

 Welcome to 911!

Let's start in the living room.

I dressed my recently painted Mora clock with a pine swag I put together
and a mercury glass ornament where a pendulum should hang.

My pie safe has settled in nicely now that I've cut an additional 3 inches off the legs.
I guess they're more like feet now.  As you can see, the piece has lots of flaws character.

After downsizing my holiday decor collection, I vowed not to buy anything new.
 To top the pie safe, I unpacked my Swiss chalet music boxes I've been collecting
 for bedroom number 3, since that project is going nowhere fast.

Several of the music boxes play tunes from The Sound of Music, including Edelweiss
and my personal favorite, The Lonely Goatherd.

  Children's part:
O ho lay dee odl lee o, o ho lay dee odl ay
O ho lay dee odl lee o, lay dee odl lee o lay

Miniatures and twinkle lights bring out the magic.

I found a mama Dala horse to go with my baby and they pair up nicely
with my Swedish candlesticks.  One or two little selfies (gifts to myself) are allowed.
  My old church window returns, but I nixed the glittery banner in favor of
old wool children's stockings hung from a string.

My basket of white wool yarn sits on the hearth next to the red clogs that claim this spot
 every year.  I can picture it now.....an unnamed 4 year old boy will slip his feet into the clogs, brandish his Ninja Turtle weapons (knitting needles) and tie up the bad guys with yarn.
(The 3 little bad guys will love the game, but please don't ask me how I know.)


Perhaps I should rethink the basket.

Nothing looked right on this table
 until I gathered up my old churches and added a forest of trees.

I only unpacked 3 of my vintage angels, because my decorating theme these days is....
Safe, Unbreakable, Replaceable & Washable.....and a glass of wine.
As you can see, the angel on the right has already lost her wings,
so we may have a matching set by the end of the season.

After 11 years of living with the furniture brought from our previous home,
I finally made some changes.  Our old upright piano was moved to our youngest
daughter's house, I sold our too large armoire to a friend, and I donated our
wicker coffee table to the Salvation Army.  That created breathing space in the room,
and allowed me to pick up a few old pieces that function better in the space.

I found this clover leaf table and my round coffee table at a local antique mall
for a steal.  I couldn't believe my luck to find the 2 pieces I wanted for the room
at the very first place I looked for well under a Benjamin!

 I painted over the navy blue base and my handyman stripped the paint off the top.


My round coffee table.

I love this table.


It was a full height newish kitchen table that was already painted and the top
 had been stripped.  We cut down the sweet cabriole legs (it was painful,
 but worth it in the end) to slightly higher than standard coffee table height
 and you'll see why in a moment.

  I applied a stain/sealer to protect the top from stains.
Psssst......Have you tried Candy Cane Hershey Kisses?
Don't!

I am seriously challenged when it comes to making centerpieces.



Did I mention that I love this table?

We left the table high enough to accommodate the children's chairs
I've collected over the years.  Just right for a Christmas tea.
I know in reality it would be spills and chairs tipping over,
but let me have my Norman Rockwell moment please.  :o)

 Late afternoon in the north side of the room.

Running out of daylight.....

 The south side of the room with plenty of space for our small tree.

 Looking into the front entryway from the living room.

 Now for the dining room....

I made a red table runner to give my poor grain sack runner a rest.

 The pine cone garland was an autumn clearance item from Target,
but I think it works for Christmas, too.  The sneaky gnome is back to
ensure the children eat their greens...or no dessert!

The toy soldier lamp has found a new home on the buffet.

My sheet music wreath survived another year in storage.

One more recent find.
For only $2.50 he was too tweet to leave behind!

Whew!  This is the last photo.

Santa's elves were remiss on their toy making duties this year, so if you don't hear from me
 again this holiday season, we're knee deep in dollhouse building.

  Do you remember the dollhouse I showed you last January
that we planned to build before Maggie's December 26 birthday?

We started it December 1st.

Lay ee odl lay ee odl lay hee hoo!


Thank you so much for visiting and have yourself a Merry Little Christmas!
Vickie

I'm joining the parties at:
The Wicker House Create Share Inspire
Essence of Home Share Your Style
Come as you are Christmas Open House
hosted by Common Ground and Cozy Little House

Visions of sugarplums.

Plum colored vest for one of my little sweetie pies.

 I should be finishing up the 6 pairs of mittens I've started throughout the year,

 but being unfocused as I am, I shoved them into a basket

 and started a completely new knitting project. The starting is easy.

  It's the finishing that's a challenge for me.

I had a deadline of our oldest granddaughter's 5th birthday to get it done, so I knew
it wouldn't be joining the sad basket of Mittens Without Partners.
I'm hoping they'll start dating and eventually pair up on their own.
 

I used  this pattern from Ravelry with a few small changes.
It's purple and it's not wool, so that's a win win combo for this particular child.
 Can you believe I found the flannel shirt in all the right colors at Walmart?!
 

What I didn't finish on time was the chapstick holder necklace I promised to make.

Done!  I embellished it with bit of yarn embroidery
and a crocheted chain, which is the only crochet stitch I know.

With Christmas right around the corner, I searched for ornaments to knit
from my yarn remnants.  I'm not particularly fond of eating mushrooms,
but look at the deliciously dotty fungi I knit from leftover wool....

Yum!  You know I couldn't stop at one.


I actually joined a knitting group recently and I'm required to knit a tree ornament
for the Christmas potluck in December.  Me thinks a wooly toadstool is just the ticket.
You can find the free pattern here on Ravelry.



Another sweet idea I found on Ravelry.......

source

A basket full of gnomie goodness!!!!
The band of gnomes above was knit for a kindergarten class,
and I hope the knitter wore a pixie hat when she handed them out.  :o)

I do believe my toadstool ornies need a gnome,
so off I go to gather up my yarn!
Sorry mittens.

Happy Thanksgiving and please don't eat the mushrooms!
Vickie

I'm joining the parties at:

Coy Little House Tweak it Tuesday
Have a Daily Cup of Mrs.Olson Share Your Cup Thursday