Hodgepodging Christmas Decorations

View from the front porch yesterday.
The sun peeked out for a minute or two and then hid again.

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1. Let's talk holiday decorating. On a scale of 1-10 where do you fall? (1=Scrooge and 10= Clark Griswold). What's your favorite corner-room-table-space to decorate? Is it done?

Probably a 3. The older I get, the less I decorate because the kids aren't here to help and aren't here to enjoy it. Still, my favorite space to decorate is the living room. Am I done? Not quite.  I'll wait until the night before the kids are coming to visit before I put up the remaining lights, candles, and cranberries.

2. Is there a nativity scene in your decorating somewhere? Post a picture or, if it's special to you in some way, tell us why. Or do both-it's Christmas!

Oh yes, we have a Nativity. Many of the pieces came from my cousin Bobby, and I bought the stable at the Humane Society of Barron County auction one year. The Nativity spends all of Advent, the 12 days of Christmas, and the remainder of January on the piano. I had once thought of getting rid of that piano because its sound board, pin block, etc. are beyond repair and we have a good piano, but my daughter said, 'Mom, where would you put the Nativity??!!' Yeah, good point. So we have two pianos in our living room. The little grandkids get to bang on play the Nativity piano. The older grandkids, who can respect a piano, are allowed to play the other one.

3.  Do you live in a social neighborhood? If so are you glad? If not do you wish you did?

We live in a very unsocial neighborhood. Although it's beautiful out here in the middle of nowhere, and I've loved it for 27+ years, I'm ready to move to a smallish town, and live right smack in the middle of it so I can walk my new, yet-to-be acquired German Shepherd puppy by the light of the street lamps, walk a block to the grocer, to church, to the pharmacy, and to the river or lake. And a hill. And an old English pub (not a sports bar or tavern). Or maybe 3 blocks would be acceptable. Oh, and a big city with lots of cultural events needs to be within a 20 minute drive. :-)  I really need to be able to teleport. Is this asking too much??

Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis

4.  As the saying goes, 'there's no time like the present'. How does that ring true in your life right now?

For me, that's certainly true. If not now, when? I hear the clock ticking faster and faster. 

5. Do you dread Mondays? Why or why not?

I have no dread of Mondays because I don't work outside our home, which means that I don't have to go outdoors in the dead of winter and scrape the ice from the windshield and slide off the icy roads into the ditch on the way to work.

 December 6, 2016
View SE from porch

6.  Poinsettia, Christmas Cactus, Amaryllis-which on the list is your favorite holiday plant? Are any of these on display in your home right now?

I LOVE all of the above, but the one I own is a Christmas cactus. I've started many Christmas cactus plants from this one mama plant and it's still going strong. It's ancient.

7. Share a favorite quote from a Christmas movie.

I love this entire segment from A Muppet's Christmas Carol with Michael Caine. It's SO CUTE!!

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

We had cookie baking and decorating here last Saturday, while the guys put the Christmas tree up on the front porch. Then they came in, drank coffee by the fire and snitched Christmas cookies.

 Oliver's mommy helping him decorate Christmas cookies.

He had just awakened from a nap and I think was rather dazzled by it all.

 From left: Christmas cut-outs, later frosted

Molasses

Peppermint

After the cookies were done, we divided them up and everyone took a pail of cookies home. My pail is out on the freezing cold front porch. It would be way too tempting for me if they were sitting on the kitchen counter. I LOVE Christmas cookies!

I need to collect more pine boughs to put across the rest of the railing 
AND move the Christmas tree back a bit, but you get the idea.
I think it tipped since they put it up.

Christmas 2013

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 December 4

Linked to: Thoughts of Home on Thursday

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!

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Wausau: Family, Art, Christmas Decorations

From 'Birds in Art' exhibition

Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum

Wausau

The end of November we visited our daughter's family in Wausau, and while there, also got to see the wonderful 'Birds in Art' exhibition at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. The painting above was one of my favorites, but there were so many to choose from. And yes, I had permission from the museum guide to take the photo. It seemed very odd to take photos of the works there, but when I asked if I could use the notepad on my cell phone to make a note of the artist, she said, 'You can use your cell phone to take pictures, if you want.' I was shocked. And thrilled, I might add!  Okay, here's one more:

'Crowned Glory'

by Debbie Stevens

We had a great time seeing grandkids and their parents.  The Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, by the way, has a great children's room with all sorts of exciting and hands-on things to do to introduce children to the wonderful world of art. (See photo bottom right. Henry and Mom.)

Unlocking the front door

'Vfffffm, vffffffm'  Light Sabres 

Yes, that was a piano! (upper left)

A fun shop in Wausau, Evolutions, was decorated in their typical over-the-top fashion for Christmas. It's hard to take in even a portion of it all, but so much fun to walk through the jungle of creative decorations.

Letters made from books. And when the grandson saw a drawer full of very small book letters, he said, 'Look Mom, they even have lower case!'

Mr. C. and the littlest grandgirl

 Making Snow for Rib Mountain
We haven't had snow 'that sticks' yet, and the forecast
gives us hope for another snowless week!
(sorry skiers  :-)

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Decorating the Cookstove

I'm trying to remember where all these things came from. The Beefeater (I think it's supposed to be) was from World Market one year, and it contained Walker shortbread. I think. The S&P post boxes were given to me by friends who know I love England, and the cast iron train and car have been sitting on top of this stove for years. They may have come from a little shop in Bird-in-Hand, PA.

The little hanging man was given to me by my cousin Bobby (bearer of all fun things), the grapevine wreath I made from vine that I actually think was Virginia creeper. And the license plate is an old Wisconsin plate.

The turkey feathers (left) were from a beautiful (but dead) turkey we found alongside the road near Chetek last year. Doesn't everyone keep turkey feathers?? Cast iron skillets flank the cookstove. They're wonderful pans and were handed down through the family, except for a couple I purchased at a flea market when we lived in Pennsylvania.

The bells were a collection that belonged to my mother, probably given to her by my nephew and his family who live in China. I couldn't resist the gorgeous chicken, probably the closest I'll get to keeping chickens. Every time I get the hankering for raising chickens, we get something like a. ten below zero day which slaps me back to reality. Who wants to go out in sub-zero temps and take care of chickens?  I suspect that Kevin would frown upon keeping them in the house. We do have the room, now that the kids have all left home, but...he's so unreasonable. ;-)

I'm pretty sure I swiped the Scottie dog from my oldest brother many years ago, when we were kids. Or maybe he just accused me and it was so traumatic that it was indelibly etched into my brain, making me live under a cloud of guilt all these years.

But not enough to risk asking.

My REAL Christmas decorations, the Nativity, will come in another post. They're my favorite!

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This post may be linked to one or more of the following: Mop it Up Monday  and Mosaic Monday and Barn Hop and  Get in My Tummy and  Cure for the Common Monday and  Clever Chicks Blog Hop and  The Marketplace  and  and  Market Yourself Monday and  Mix it up Monday and Make it Pretty Monday and Le Chateau des Fleurs and   Making the World Cuter Mondays and Make the Scene Monday and   Motivate Me Monday and  Making Monday Marvelous and You're Gonna Love it Tuesday and Knick of Time Tuesday and  Creative Showcase and Memories by the Mile and  Tweak it Tuesday and  Coastal Charm Tuesday and  Take a Look Tuesday and  Tasty Tuesday  and Adorned From Above and  Love Bakes Good Cakes and Mom on TimeOut  and Cast Party Wednesday and  We Did it Wednesday  and Whatever Goes Wednesday and  All Things With Purpose and Home & Garden Thursday and It's a Party at Creative Princess and Artsy Corner Thursday  and The Girl Creative, Thursday and Be Inspired and Time Travel Thursday and Thrifty Things Friday  and  Friday Fences and  Thursday's Inspiration and  The Self-sufficient Home Acre and  I'm Lovin' it Thursday and Creative Things Thursday and   Mandatory Mooch   and Foodie Friends Friday and Freedom Fridays and From the Farm and   Anything Blue Friday and Junkin' Joe and  Serenity Saturday and Get Schooled Saturday  and Inspiration Friday(ThursNite) and Vintage Inspiration Friday and Photo Friday and Share Your Creativity and   A Favorite Thing Saturday and Sunny Simple Sunday and Sunlit Sunday and  Saturday Nite Special

Winter 2011

 Life in the decorations box

 John's gingerbread house

 Wreath on the front door - fake poinsettias, real snow

They've got until January 6. The morning of the 7th I will take down the tree, the wreath, and all the decorations and pack them away until early December of 2011.  It is nice to have the glow of the lights and the cheery decorations, but there comes a time when you have to face the fact that a new year is beginning and I just have to deal with January, February, and March, whether I like it or not.

 The backyard

 Joe's and Rob's snow caves, excavated during Christmas weekend

My little Jeep is supposed to pull Kevin's one ton work truck out of a snowbank??

uphill??  on ice??

 

The above photos were all taken in late December, but there's no reason to think the snow will go away any time before March - or April. I'd rather plan on April and be pleasantly surprised if it all melts mid March.

It's been so nice to get to know you, my blogging friends, during 2010. I look forward to reading your blogs during this new year.

And now I need to go hang up my new 2011 calendars

and throw away the leftover Christmas candy.

Even the M&Ms. :-(