Our Christmas Front Porch

I am so thankful that I decorated my front porch yesterday. I was cold and a little windy but I didn't mind it...I put on a hooded sweatshirt and a coat and I was fine. Today is so much colder and even more windy.....I am glad I am done so I don't have to stand out there trying to decide if I like what I have done or not.
I originally was not going to use lights on the garlands I was going to spot light the front of the house but when I got out the garland it already had lights in it so I didn't fight it...there are lights around the door, on the railing and down in the wash tub. I know that I said I was going to put the wash tub away after Thanksgving but I just couldn't....I love it too much I guess.

A few more snowmen

I was going to put up the outside decorations today since it rained all day yesterday but the weather man says 30-50 mph wind gusts today sooo I will wait till tomorrow to tackle the front porch. I thought I would share another pic of the snowmen I have been making so you can see the other shapes....I love to put my snowment out in January and leave them up till March so I am making some new ones for this year. I was thinking about adding some hats to some of them too.

Corner of my home...and stuff

This is a little cross stitch project I have been working on....just for fun.


This is my favorite corner of my living room. I feel so warm and cosy when I sit in the chair in front of this area. Just my kinda spot.



You can almost smell this turkey...all hot and steamy fresh from the fryer. My dh and bil spent 2 hrs braving the snowflakes and cold to provide these wonderful birds....and they were so wonderful.....thanks guys.

the other ornaments

These are the other two ornaments from our exchange...the ballerina hippo is so funny....some of the girls really wanted her....we always have a great time during the exchange....once again it was a big hit.

Thanksgiving ornaments 2007

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving...and I thank the Lord for those who decided to share our home and meal. We had a delightful full house of friends and family. The weather was very chilly with snow flurries so dh and his brother were rather cold as the spent the morning near the garage frying the turkeys but they didn't complain an ounce. I wanted to take a pic of them pulling the turkeys from the fryers but of course I totally forgot until they had it all carved!! So instead I will share pics of our new ornaments. For some reason I didn't get very good shots but I think you will be able to at least get a glimpse of each one. We had 26 people of all ages in our ornament exchange this year...that is a record. I will post the other two pics tomorrow (my computer is running slow)

The tree is ready too

WE finally put the decorations on the tree last night so we are now officially ready for Thanksgiving. We always exchange Christmas ornaments on Thanksgiving so we all have a new ornament for our trees each year. Our ornaments are wrapped and quietly waiting under the tree for tomorrow. Right now the house is calm but tomorrow we will be buzzing with excitment and so many smells will fill the air. Many of you might rememeber that my parents will be joining us this year, they usually are in Florida by now...we are blessed that they are here. Most of our family will be joining in the fun tomorrow. I would like to say that I am thankful for all the new friends I have made through blogging and how blessed I am that you keep coming back to visit me. I am blessed with three wonderful girls and a dh that is always there when I need him. Family is so important, isn't it wonderfu when you can share a day together in Thanksgiving? Be Blessed! Dianntha

Thanksgiving is almost here...much to do.

Today has been a busy day....seems there is so much to do. I always want everything to be perfect...even though I know that is not realistic. I have asked different family memebers to bring special dishes that I know others will enjoy. I did pick up the Thanksgiving groceries today and really it wasn't so bad in the store.
We have been having such strange weather that it is making it difficult to remember just how close we are to Thanksgiving.
A few things I am thankful for....the family that will share our day on thursday...my dh who works so hard....my three beautiful girls...who I adore.
I wanted to share a pic of this santa plaque that I painted many years ago. I just love these Santas...when they go up I know that Christmas isn't too far away. Enjoy your evening and thanks for stopping by!!!!!

Santa Collection

I have been working on displaying my Santa collection. I ususally place them throughout the house...here and there. This year I am putting most of them together for a different look. The glare from the flash makes it a little hard to see but you can get the idea.

Need a Recipe

Today we did some baking and I started to make a serious menu. I was wondering if anyone has a wonderful stuffing recipe. I make stuffing from scratch every year but sometimes no one even tastes it soooo I figure it is time for a new recipe...anyone want to help me out?

I found this bowl last February on a discount table...now who could resist such a wonderful piece of glassware. Well. I couldn't so I have had it out every since just waiting for Christmas. I am going to place a small candle in it...it looks so wonderful when it is lit.


This is the third print ...one of my favorites since my dh family used to raise sheep....it just looks so peaceful. All three of these prints are in my living room.
Tomorrow we are putting up our tree...but today we are baking for Thanksgiving...just cookies and fudge for now...but it is a start.

Another print

Still here and working

I have been working really hard to get things ready for Thanksgiving. We are mixing up all the cookies tomorrow and tonight I put up some of the window decorations. I wanted to show you some of the prints that I hung up...I so love Diana Swartz. Her prints bring back memories and feel so cosy so I wanted to share the three that I have so far....hoping for more next year. I will post a pic of my mantle tomorrow...until then...enjoy your evening. Dianntha
ps...I can't get the other pics to load so I will try again later to post the other two pics.

Thankfulness is a blessing

This is the same tree that I posted before..I thought you might want to see how much the leaves have changed colors in the last week or so. I so love smelling the leaves outside...and the cool weather. For a few days it was so windy that it blew just about everything off our front porch. Some of my normal decorations even were broken. I guess that means I am on the search for new items that I love...but I will have to wait for next years garage sales for that.
I also wanted to share that my parents are not leaving for Florida until the day AFTER Thanksgiving and I feel like that is the best Christmas present I could get this year. It has been many years (like maybe 15) since they have been here for the holidays and I am so hoping that all of our family can get together since that almost never happens. I think they would be happy to have us all together...it's not that we live far apart...it's just that sometimes we don't get along too well...so I pray that this is the year to put it aside for a change and start new. So on that note I would like to say that I am Thankful for my family...I am blessed.

Buckeyes

We spent part of the day yesterday making buckeye's with my mother. She used to make them for the holidays before they started going to Florida and missing all the holidays...so we decided to spend the day with her and this is how they turned out. Here is the recipe if you want to try a batch yourself.

Buckeyes

1 lb. butter softened to room temperature
2 lbs. peanut butter
3 lbs. powdered sugar

Mix very well then form into balls and chill.
In a double boiler melt a 23 oz. bag of choc. chips and enough parrifin to make it nice and smooth so that you can dip the peanut butter balls.
Once they are dipped put them on wax paper to cool and then store in the freezer until the holiday....very easy and super good...let's not talk about calories. Enjoy.

The finished product

We finally put the finishing touches on the bathroom, at least most of it. We put up the new shelf and I put my Dickens Village (well part of it) out for the holidays. I finally got the iron piece secured to the wall. DH also put up the old fashioned corner protecter which we have in other rooms of our home. I am also posting the little oak piece I keep in the bathroom and of course you have seen the curtains and towels. The pictures don't show the colors very well but I guess you get the idea for the theme of the room. Thbis room I normally decorated in all snowmen for the winter but since I repainted and went with a more traditional look the snowmen will have to find a place somewhere else in the house.

A wonderful gift

My dad had a treasure in his workshop that I adored. It is an old wash tub and it even had the lid...I have so wanted to have on of these for my flower garden. The other day he drove in our driveway with this treasure in his truck..actually delivered it to me. I am so thrilled. After Thanksgiving I am going to put it in the shed for safe keeping....but next spring I will be thrilled to fill it full of wonderful plants. He had been using for years and I had never seen it before. He also gave me a large barn door that I am thinking about making into a headboard for our bed. He didn't deliver it but it is safe at his house for now.

Another treasure for my bathroom

I was at Hobby Lobby yesterday..all by myself for a change...and I just browsed for a couple of hours. I found this wonderful ornament for my bathroom...I know that I told you I would stop talking about this bathroom but I thought you might want to see what I found. It was originally the dark brown but my b-room is mostly white so I bought a can of spray paint and decided to give it a few light coats. What do you think?

LeAnn at Discovery is having a wonderful give-away for her 100th blog entry. Please visit her for all the details!