JANUARY PROJECTS & BABY SHOWER PREPARATIONS

January came in as predicted with snow and freezing temperatures.  In that order, streets were covered in frozen snow and ice.  Many schools have been cancelled as it's simply too dangerous for kids to be walking or waiting for buses.  Emily and I made a dash to the store in the early evening yesterday.  As we walked through the icy parking lot in the dark, I remarked, "It doesn't really feel like 3 degrees."  And she replied,
"No, maybe more like 15."  And then a man walking behind us chimed in,
"Oh yeah, 20 minimum!"  We have a sense of humor here in the Midwest.  

Layla is sick as, well, a dog.  Remember Tulo, my granddog coming over and spreading his upper respiratory infection to Milo and Layla?  This was a good week before Christmas.  Milo recovered very well, but Layla had to go on a second course of antibiotics.  She finished that up last week and then over the weekend she kept pawing at her left ear and whimpering.  Yesterday morning I was at the vet as soon as they opened.  Major ear infection, raw throat and fever.  She had to have a chest x-ray and fluids.  My heart was aching for her.  So she has ear drops and two meds that I give her every morning.  This pic was last night...poor thing.  Today she is much better.  I hope this is the end of animal flu season.   

I actually started on a project already, and this is the year I vowed to work on being a little more creative so that's a good thing.  This project came about because the floating shelf that was once below the one pictured here above kept falling down.  It had it's last hurrah Christmas Eve, and finally we were so done with it and the breakage of so many picture frames and treasures that had sat on it.  These were very difficult to put up (we've had them for about a year).  The Husband got angry and almost threw his power drill a few times.  We actually viewed You Tube videos on how to hang them.  If any of you have them and were able to pop them up with ease, let me in on your secret.  

You can see I was left with a big empty space.  I really loved having shelves in the living room because it was  a place to have family pictures and pieces I love all grouped together.  So I decided to go back to regular old shelves.  I made a trip to Home Depot, had two pieces of pine cut in the lengths I wanted, and had one of those little sample jars of paint mixed up in a color called Flagstone.  The color turned out to be way too dark, so I mixed it with a little water and it went on like a wash.  I love how it turned out...it looks quite like driftwood.  Now I'm waiting for The Husband to hang them.  Or maybe I should learn how to use the drill.  Seriously!

Another project is finishing up our office.  I de~cluttered it and had it painted right before Thanksgiving.  I gave it more of a feminine spin.  This was a terribly ugly clock in a wicked "dirty gold" color.  I forgot to do a before picture.  I have a few more coats to do.  If it wasn't so bitter cold, I probably could have used spray paint on it in the garage.  Now I'm looking for a fabric message board for over the desk and then I'll show you my tiny little office. :)

I put all of the Christmas decor  away this past weekend.  It took 2 days because I decided to be super organized so that next year goes a little more smoothly.  Somewhere I heard the suggestion to fill your bins according to rooms.  This will work well for me because I can start on some parts of the house while we wait to get our tree further into December (we get a live one).  So I did that and labeled each box and bin.  And of course, over the next few days you come across things you forgot so it was fifty trips up and down the stairs.  That done, my house looked super bare.  I missed that pretty tree and the lights but since we are having a party on Saturday, it had to go.  Wouldn't you know it, usually my tree is half brown and sickly looking by New Years Eve.  This one was full of life, not one needle had dropped.  :(

So I worked on the mantel yesterday, adding only some mercury glass for a bit of sparkle and lots of votive holders so I can have the soft candlelight on dreary days and cold nights.  

I still have the little cypress trees I found at the nursery when we bought our tree, and I also have a little evergreen in a vintage bucket on the hearth.  My consolation for saying goodbye to Douglas Firbanks, Jr., a few days ago.  

In a rare burst of creativity, I made this little thing to hang on a wall with a leftover boxwood wreath from Christmas and some old sheet music I keep for the odd idea I have here and there.  I don't think it took more than five minutes. 

Of course I'm usually not this ambitious and after Thanksgiving and Christmas, I feel truly entitled to lie around on my butt reading and watching full seasons at a time of Criminal Minds.  But Saturday is the baby shower we are having for DIL, MC. here in my home.  Don't even get me thinking how we will fit thirty ladies in the open space of my living room, dining room and kitchen.  I thought I'd take some snaps of some of the preparations Emily, Abby and I have going on.  Well, Abby hasn't helped so much, she just stands around eating the pink M&M's I bought for the candy dishes (isn't this great timing that we're having a baby girl and the shower coincides with Valentine's Day?  I practically cleaned out CVS of it's pink candy!).

Since space is limited, we decided to have the shower in mid afternoon so we wouldn't have to do a full on meal.  It's all finger foods.  I have a great selection of tea sandwiches to make, as well as small~bite appetizers.  Emily is getting a few dozen petit fours, tarts and small pastries from a local bakery.  Then tea, coffee, pop and wine.  We collected all of our cake plates and tiered stands, stocked up on candles, vases and a few odds and ends from Michael's and The Dollar Tree.  We are so budget savvy!  I'm so excited.

Em found chalk board signs and painted the bases white.  She wrote the labels in her own script with chalk.  She also used card stock to make little folded markers to identify the different foods.  To keep things pretty, the appetizers will for the most part be on trays in  these little mini cupcake papers.  And the color scheme is a very pale pink in keeping with little Ellsie's nursery.

We purchased a few additional items from the Etsy shop where we ordered the invitations.  Everything matches with the pink and brown lettering and the cute little stork.  These are the favors...little muslin bags printed with the stork and "A Baby Is Brewing".  I put a tea bag in each one and added a gossamer ribbon to the drawstring.  

Little cards for the guests to write a message on.  We also found a white ceramic piggy bank at Michael's, bought a permanent silver marker, and all the guests can sign it.  

So...the house is as clean and organized as it's going to get.  Tomorrow I have a trip to the grocery so I can start on some of the fillings for the sandwiches and some little sweets I'm adding to the bakery items.  We're going to get little white tea roses to scatter around in bud vases.  I'm so happy that Emily has had so many money saving ideas, she did this with her wedding, too, and it was simply lovely.  I'm very excited.  

Kevin stopped in tonight.  The baby may be arriving sooner than the due date of February 11.  She is estimated to be over 9 pounds already.  This is one healthy girl!  So she may be coming as early as February 3rd or 4th depending on the doctor's schedule.  The  3rd is my birthday...wouldn't that be something!

I'm off now, a busy few days ahead.  I will get as many pictures as I can on Saturday.  And then...I have nothing but free time for a few months!  I think I might just go into shock with that!

Stay warm!

Jane x