HOLIDAY HAPPINESS

Is everyone ready for the big day?  Or did that send a chill up your spine?  I have had the most fun the past few days blogging and seeing every one's beautiful tables and reading delicious recipes, even some Christmas decor posts!  I just love the holiday season...it's the most wonderful time of the year!  I've seen a few Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel and we have a radio station that is already playing carols!  Last year at this time I already had a lot of Christmas shopping done but I'm not feeling the need to break my neck trying to stay on top of everything.  I thought if I had everything done early, I could sit back and enjoy the holiday.  Well, I was wrong!  I was still running around at the last minute and everything came out alright.  I think the key might be to just relax and enjoy the whole process.

I had another slow weekend which has been pretty typical around here lately.  Papa came to visit on Sunday and I baked some cupcakes.  Remember the box of Hot Chocolate cupcakes I posted about last week?  Well, I made those.

They were really good but I can't say they  tasted like hot chocolate.  They had little marshmallows in them and the frosting was out of sight.  I would definitely make them again.  I think they are by Betty Crocker.

Today I was browsing the holiday aisle at Walgreen's and I came upon these darling little ornaments.  Aren't these creatures just the cutest?  That porcupine is just too too!  I need more ornaments like I need a hole in the head.  Last year I didn't even decorate the back of the tree, but I do remember we bought the tree The Husband liked and it was HUGE!  I used a lot of ornaments, but this year I am going to get  one a lot smaller, my living room is not big at all so I try to get something proportional.  And, since we get a live tree, it won't be until mid December, long after everyone has been to all the blog parties.  But you know of course, I will post pictures.

I wish I could say that this is my Thanksgiving table this year, all set and ready to go.  But it's actually last year and if you are thinking it looks like Christmas, you're right!  I had just gotten my Winterberry holiday dishes and since we weren't having Christmas dinner here, I decided to use them for Thanksgiving!

Here's a close up.  I am going to bring them out and use them during December.  Or who knows...maybe we will have Christmas dinner here if The Husband is not up to having dinner at a relative's home.  Thank you all for your well wishes, you guys are the best.  We haven't gotten a surgery date yet, but I wish we would soon.  Emily and her fiance are going to Aruba in mid December for a week (she won the trip through her job) and Abby has a big Christmas dance at her boyfriend's university in Michigan at some time during the month.  I want us all to be together. It'll work out.

Back to Thanksgiving tables, I am going to use the Anthropologie white dishes that I have had for awhile that were intended for a wall display.  I now know  I'm not going to hang them so we can use them.  I don't know why I felt that if we ate off them that I couldn't hang them! lol!  And for the centerpiece...I'm still working on it.  I have looked at 1000 while blogging and in magazines (thankfully I don't do Pinterest or I wouldn't even have time to write this post).  The ones that really caught my eye were done with fruit and vegetables, beautiful earthy pears and apples and artichokes, and kale that looks like purple flowers.  As luck would have it, I was going out to the store yesterday to buy my turkey and The Husband tagged along.  And he promised not to whine.  He was so good I bought him candy at the check out line!  I was standing in the middle of the produce section, my mind going a mile a minute and when he asked me what I was doing, he just didn't get it.  Then he found a big bouquet of fall colored flowers and insisted we get them.  I was surprised because he's not a big spender and these were $12.99.  I think he really just wants a normal table.  So...as pictured above, I have the bouquet and I found this wicker basket when I was shopping the house.  This is as far as I've got.  Maybe I'll place the basket on a bed of kale.

I made a few changes in our bedroom to "fall" things up from all the neutral colors I had going on.  This is really colorful for me but I fell in love with the curtains on the Target website and then went to Pottery Barn for the throw and pillow.

It's a really gloomy day here so the pictures aren't so bright.  And yes, we have ivy growing over all of our windows!  The painting on the wall has never been moved in over 20 years (except to paint of course).  I found it early on in our marriage and it was $200.00.  I scrimped and saved, used coupons and didn't shop for shoes (!) and finally I was able to buy it.  It's Andrew Wyeth's Master Bedroom.

Well, tomorrow I am going to make ahead whatever I can make ahead.  Emily is making the stuffing from scratch, as in with stale bread.  I've always used Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix (an ode to my late sister, Leslie, who worked for Pepperidge Farm for 25 years).  But Emily wants to do it the old fashioned way and actually, I'm curious.  Her recipe is very different from mine.  She also wanted to brine the turkey and I put my foot down...that's rather involved and she has never made so much as a chicken before.  But she's a big help and if Abby doesn't help, we'll make her clean the bathroom.  And, one last thing...thanks for all of the recipes and tips for roasted sweet potatoes!  They were all really good, but the Oscar goes to...The Summer Kitchen Girls who gave me a recipe for a sweet potato souffle!  Whoa!  They said it's like eating dessert!  I'll let you know how it turns out and post the recipe in case you'd like to try it for Christmas.

Friday morning we leave for Cedarburg, Wisconsin for our 3 day anniversary trip.  The B&B is booked, I ordered a bottle of champagne and box of chocolates as a surprise for The Husband and in return I want him to take me for a carriage ride!  Can't wait!

Happy Thanksgiving to all and I'm sending much love.  I am so thankful for your friendship and so much more.  See all of you next week! :)