HOLIDAYS: GETTING EVERYWHERE BUT THERE

I love making these pretzels.  It was a big thing for me back in the day when I was very active in volunteering every very last single minute of my waking hours at Abby's school and for her activities as recent as five years ago..  But that's another post.  These are simple, don't require a lot of ingredients and are easy to store and transport.  I actually find it very relaxing to make them but then again anything that takes very little effort is a real pleasure for me.  Actually, Emily is having a group of her friends over (the Wild Eleven as they are called), her school friends that also were bridesmaids at her wedding, and I offered to make these since I had 3000 pounds of almond bark here.  Now that is the key: almond bark.  It sounds worse than it is. White chocolate always seems to burn on me, so almond bark it is.

I heat it very, very low in a pot on the stove.  I've also made a "double boiler" of sorts since I don't have a real one...just a small pot on top of a larger pot with water in it heating slow.  Just melt about 2 packages of almond bark and use about 2 1/2 packages of pretzel rods (any other shape is really difficult and is best left to the pros).  Have your station set up...parchment or wax paper to lie them on, an assortment of sprinkles.   Hold the pretzel rod over the pot of melted almond bark and with a large spoon, just dribble it on, about 3/4 of the way down.  That just gently shake the extra off.  I'm really lucky that my sink is right next to the stove, but you can use paper towels or newspaper...shake your sprinkles on the sticky almond bark nice and evenly and then lie them on the parchment paper to harden...about 20 minutes.  

There are all sorts of ways to jazz them up.  I put mine is a vase with a twiny tie.  You can tie up bundles of them with ribbon or even store a few in mini stockings.  Display them on trays or in a mason jar.  It's endless.  And believe me, they are fun to make!

I made this little holiday sign last week.  I wasn't going to show it to all of you...a certain someone, who shall remain nameless, said it was pretty bad.  I sort of like it.  In the spirit of all saintly DIY'ers, I used a piece of extra wood from Jeff's new floor at his new home.  I had the paint from the living room and of course stencils and little paint bottles and brushes lying about (I'm so very crafty, you know). I even used some newspaper from 1986 that I had in my big stash of scraps.  Okay, is it really bad?  I added the little snowflakes from the Dollar Tree and you can't see, but they sparkle.   Should I continue?  I was thinking of, "Let It Snow", and "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer.".  

If you can't tell, I'm using my new IPhone for these pictures.  I really have a hard time getting night or dimly lit pictures with my big fancy camera (but then again I've never read the manual or the "Dummy" book I received last Christmas, probably from the same idiot that didn't like my sign).   And by the way, this is our den. Say hello to Milo, my constant companion!  Rarely photographed or shared because it is a mismatch of books, dishes, baskets of out of season shoes, Nina the parrot and her humongously big cage for a little parrot (and a lot of seed on the floor), and a very bad choice of The Husband and I of buying really fancy, formal white furniture that we won't let anyone sit on.  ANYWAY...the red basket holds my stash of wrapping paper, bows and bags.  Tonight I picked up more gift wrapping paper at CVS...I'm obsessed with it.  Every year I say I am going to go with a certain color and make it look like a  menagerie of gifts under the tree for a magazine.  So I started with red plaid and then saw some silver and blue paper, and then tonight saw sweet white snowflakes on red.  Happens every year.  The old 27 personalities thing.  And some ribbon and tinsel and blah, blah, blah.   SO...I was at the checkout.and  "Andre" nonchalantly asked, "Getting ready to do a little decorating tonight?"  I laughed, "No.  I don't even have a tree yet."  Silence.  "So" Andre said, "You gonna do a little wrapping tonight?"  "Nope, no gifts yet."  We stared at each other for a second and then burst out laughing!  "What the hell" he said, "You ARE ready for everything!!"

Now, I'm going to show you a little trick that I leaned when I first started blogging and I can't remember who shared it.  I also bet many of you ladies know it but I'm going to tell you all about it because it saved me a lot of grief and mess.

See the gift wrap above and the empty roll?  Pretend the rolls are unwrapped and you've used some.  The edge is flying away and you use a sticky piece of tape to hold it closed and then it rips your paper the next time you want to use it.

Save those empty rolls and cut them in pieces of your own desire as I have with the one on the left.

Wrap it around a roll of paper you've been using that needs to be secured.  Wow, what a simple and useful idea.  You can also use a paper towel or toilet paper cardboard roll.  Genius!

I had to leave you with this funny picture of Emily and Rusty lying on the kitchen floor together.   What I really like about my IPhone is that I can download text pictures.  Ha!  I wonder if she knows it!!  Not only does my Rusty Baby look squeezable, Emily is wearing her glasses and looks just as she did when she was twelve and had yet to discover the freedom of contacts.

So...we had the cute plumbers on Monday.  Sigh.  The cost was not sighable.  I went to my doctor appointments.  I have a lump on one of my lymph nodes that was also there last summer.  I am a super positive person health wise and  I am taking antibiotics for 10 days to see if it is an infection.  I'll keep you informed.  I'm sure everything is fine.  Pauly and his personality showed up Thursday.  It took him 20 minutes to do an excellent job on popping that double closet door in, but he stuck his head around the corner every five minutes to participate in Abby and my conversation.  It really came to a head when Abby and I were in the living room watching a performance of Flo Rida on  The View and Pauly bounced out and started rapping and dancing to the song.  Oh, Heaven.  How do I get people like this?  Why is my life so insane?  Need I add that I can't even watch one more Hallmark Christmas movie because they are all about orphans or widowers who have children and can't marry the perfect girl because of these children (even though they very oviously love said girl to the point of licking her feet?)

Okay.  Tomorrow...off to get tree/or cut it down.  Hopefully the former.  And hopefully Abby will do the lights with The Husband as he alwats gets super irritable doing the lights.  Abby has promised to help me carry up the decorating bins and then hopefully I can spend tomorrow night in my very own mental winter wonderland, hanging ornaments and making House Tour worthy vignettes (and hey, how do you get your house on one of those tours?  Besides of course having a stag head over your fireplace?)

Happy  December 6th!!  :)

XO,

Jane

HAPPY HOLIDAY HAPPINESS AND HORRENDOUS HAPHAZARD HAPPENINGS

Happy December 1st!  There's something about this date, something crisp and clean and promising, like the first fallen snow.  So many possibilities, so much anticipated joy. But...

 I have a running joke with my family, it goes like this, "Now, I'm not one to complain..." and this gets a big laugh because I love to complain.  Well, we talk about holiday stress and then something happens and we REALLY know what stress is.  First, I have the ongoing problems with my laptop.  The Husband went and picked a new one out for me (I know...what is she complaining about?).  Well this one I have is almost dead and very slow.  I have to grab The Husband's when he's not using it.  Nothing of mine on his is bookmarked and I can't seem to send emails.  To muck up matters worse, the new computer won't be shipped until the 13th.  Sigh.

Major, major plumbing problems.  Yesterday while using the washing machine, water backed up into a sewer drain in the garage, and I mean this was sewer, 'in the ground' water.  Pee Ewww!  Then today I used the washer and the same thing happened only in the sewer drain in the backyard outside one of the bathrooms.  The Husband thinks that the length of pipes stopped up will equal big money to have cleaned out.  I'm trying to think positively and the only thing I can count on is that the cute, sexy Irish plumbers will be paying a visit tomorrow.  They are the kind of plumbers you like to see in that crouching position most associated with and disliked when it comes to plumbers.  Oh my, did I just say that?  Blush.

Finally, I have a guy coming to do the closet door.  I rely on Home Adviser if I can't get someone by word of mouth and that's how I came upon Pauly from Pauly's Punch List.  I really really like him a lot but he loves to talk!  We have to have the track replaced on the door and with the hardware and labor, it was not what I expected.  And then of course when I find a good handyman, The Husband finds a few other hundred jobs for the guy.  So he's going to be here two days this week.  Even though you are getting problems solved, don't you hate having a stranger in your house?  He's very nice but when he left, The Husband asked, "Where did you find this character?!!"  He's very sweet though, he called Friday to ask how our Thanksgiving went.  And we chatted over an hour.

Wednesday marked the sixth year anniversary since my sister Leslie passed away.  I don't usually talk much about her on this blog but her daughter posted this picture of her on Facebook and I just couldn't help myself...this was SO HER!!  She had a big grin and loud, "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha..." laugh that went on forever.  She's at work here and we have no clue why she's dressed like this nor what she's doing.  Anyway, I love this picture, you can see her personality, her goofiness. Can you hear her laughing?  Miss you, Lux.

Okay, Thanksgiving 2013.  I brined that 18 pound baby and  it spent the night in my car.  I popped it in the oven promptly at 8:00 a.m. Thanksgiving morning while the rest of the gang went to a nearby park to play football.  This is a much loved occasion for my daughters Emily and Abby to beat the s*** out of each other, a true pent up yearning.  Meanwhile I slept, content that three people had calculated and confirmed that the bird would take 6 hours.  I got up, took a shower, cleaned up the house and I was just starting to put on my make up around noon when I smelled something oddly funny.  The smell of turkey.  Cooked turkey.  Done turkey.  I ran to the kitchen and like the nurse I always wanted to be, I took it's temperature.  180 degrees!!!  Okay, I'm using the s*** word again.  What was I going to do with a cooked turkey when we weren't planning on eating until 4:00?  Sort of ironic when we think of all the people horrified by overcooking or burning a dinner.  And can I fess up?  I wasn't even going to mention this on my blog, I was really mortified and wanted to uphold this persona of a good cook.  Truth is, I calculated 20 minutes per pound and for an unstuffed bird, it's more like 10 to 15 minutes tops.  Anywho...I kept the bird covered very tightly. Everyone loved the appetizers and wine (maybe that helped!) and were pretty okay that dinner was actually on time (I wonder how?!!!)

I made a sweet potato casserole for the first time rather than just boiled and tossed with brown sugar and butter...

...and this dessert was out of sight.   Cheesecake over chocolate chip cookies, a bar cookie thing.  I will give you all the recipe in another post because this was a big winner, served so many and was make ahead.  A trifecta!

The table.  I set it the night before.  I knew I had had my fill of rustic.  I wanted elegant again.  People feeling spoiled, their faces lit up by candlelight.  The clinking of glasses and the good manners.  I was wandering the aisles of Target Tuesday night and saw this gold thingie...I actually think it's to hold a candle.  And I knew I wanted white roses and sparkle.  Since I was squeezing 8 people around a table meant for 4 (yes, I break the rules big time), I kept the centerpiece small and had the silver in a sparkling vase so it didn't compete for room next to the plates.

I don't think the coziness mattered.  We told our favorite Thanksgiving of Past stories and had some good laughs.  The food was good and all went well.  And I think my two Irish nephews felt right at home at how 'normal' we are, if not a little Griswold-est!

Finally, the ladies loving dessert (and their wine, of course) later in the evening!

I have nothing remotely speaking of Christmas here in Blondieville, so we are moving on to Emily's Journal.  This is how she arranged her little city porch with that fabulous old sled she found for $25.00.  Plaid blankets that aren't cheap and that will be left out in the elements were traded for inexpensive scarves.  Good tip.   I wish I had gotten a picture of the tree and candle in the lantern lit.  

Emily made this wreath last summer and just changes out flowers for berries and for whatever.  I think it's so cute and simple.

Don't let not having a fireplace keep you from hanging those stockings...they're a fire hazard if you ask me. She had these made very inexpensively by a girl with an Etsy shop.  On the right you can see the bone for Rusty, the flower for her and the tag for Mike.  

And her beautiful tree.  It's done in silver with white lights and burlap and natural ornaments.  Look closely and you will see the animal print ribbon.  She showed me how she twisted the wireless ribbon from the top and secured it at intervals with florist wire.  She found the sweet tree skirt at Hobby Lobby.  So far the Rustmeister seems to almost be a little leary of the tree.  Keep your fingers crossed.  

Emily started buying Christmas decorations and ornaments before she got married last year, hitting the after season sales.  At that time she rattled on to me about how she was going to do her tree.  I'm sorry, it went in one ear and out the other.  I know I change my mind 20 times a day.  I have a mind like a pinball machine.  But this year it was exactly as she told me a year ago.  She said, "As a designer, I have a vision.  I have a gift and the knowledge to see what others can't and I can pass that on."  I hear so many say that they don't need an interior designer to do what they want to do in their own homes.  Oh goodness, it is nothing further from the truth.  Emily goes to homes and looks at what the people already have.  Then she discusses not only what they would like, but their dislikes, taste, family loves, requirements, and space issues.  She sits and has coffee with these people and gets a good handle on their personalities.  Then the fun part comes and she did this with me.  She has access to hundreds of furniture and accessory manufacturers that we aren't privy to. She will put together endless ideas for you that fit your personality and lifestyle until you're happy.  And this is how an interior decorator works.  I have been wanting to clear the air on this because they are hard working individuals that work and work to make clients happy.  They do not sweep in and tell you that you need leopard rugs and fur pillows!!

Oh my, how did I get off on that tangent? 

This is as close as I am to a Christmas tree.  Found in the lot at CVS.  I really fell for the felt star! :)  The Husband and I have opposing views on how early to get the live tree.  We are pretty good at compromising this late in the game (marriage, not holiday time) and decided on a tree farm nearby next weekend.  That's fine by me, I have the Sexy Irish Plumbers tomorrow, and Pauly the Personality Thursday.  Two doctor appointments (nothing serious), and oh, did I mention my ice maker quit?  1-800-For-Sears.

Holiday Hugs! :)

XO,

Jane

JUST HAVING SOME FUN!

Are you ready for "you know what"?  It's the final crunch and this is where I lose all sense of urgency, organization and sanity.  Last night I was lying in bed just, drifting off to sleep and I remembered the turkey.  The turkey downstairs in the freezer.  The 18 pound turkey that needs to defrost in 48 hours.  Whoa...see Jane run!

I guess it's just a waiting game.  I did my shopping Friday and even ran out last night to pick up a few things I forgot.  I will probably duck out tomorrow with The Husband to get the wine and pick up some fresh flowers.  When I saw these at my grocery store last week I asked it they were fresh and I was assured they came in that morning.  I just felt that they looked a little shaggy so these can stay on the island and I think I may get something else for the yet undetermined centerpiece.  I can't set the table yet as I need it and to be honest, I love mixing and matching dishes and napkins and whatever...I don't want to rush it.  I can play with that tomorrow, so, no tablescape until my next post.  I want to take my time. :)

The Husband and I got IPhones.  Up until now I've had an android.  I didn't know they were so much fun.  I was in the middle of painting that hall closet (more on that later) and I noticed the lighting in the bathroom was quite flattering (and believe me, I need that!).  So I took a few "selfies". I'm not crazy about the light on my nose, it's really not crooked like this!

I don't know if any of you are familiar with Sonya of Beyond The Screen Door.  This girl can sew!  She made me a beautiful table runner last year that I prize.   I recently asked her to make me a tree skirt, the one I have has seen better days.  This arrived the other day.  I'll get a better picture when it's under my tree.  It's a pretty oatmeal colored linen with a cream colored ruffle.  There are cute ties where the skirt meets in a circle.  I also had to have this star shaped tray which she had in her shop.  I highly recommend that you visit her.  You can even email her if there is something special you want.

Still having fun with the selfies.  When we got these phones after our other contract ran out, I was a little cavalier.  I asked my son, Jeff, "So what's so great about this phone?"  His eyes almost bulged out of his head.  "Do you know that you are holding a $500.00 miniature computer in your hands??"  So I'm spending a little more time with this.  I do Facetime with my girls, store my notes and reminders in it and actually use the calender.  And I downloaded some Christmas music.  

Have you been watching any of the Christmas movies?  I had my fill again on Sunday.  A lot of these are shown over and over.  If you missed Naughty Or Nice, you have to watch it.  It's hysterically funny!

 

I thought I'd show you a recent picture of my granddog, Rusty.  What a beast he is.  I'm glad Emily and Mike are waiting a bit until they have kids because this guy is a handful!  He loves to get into everything.  She's not sure what she's going to do with having a Christmas tree.  It will only take a matter of minutes before he knocks it down and eats it in one bite.  But he's so darn cute!

Oh no!

When I last wrote, I had some plans for this closet.  We thought we might make it look like a mud room sort of set up because I was changing things around and hanging hooks along the back.  I painted it gray (sorry about the bad picture...very poor lighting here) and it wasn't a fun job.  This doorway is about 4 feet wide but inside, the width of the closet is 9 feet and I had to squeeze into the sides.  Anyway, I had my doubts about how it would look without doors, mainly because this is a "real" closet that gets used and The Husband's black and gray dress coats and many many golf jackets aren't going to look so fabulous.  If you've seen  mudrooms in magazines, catalogs or on blogs, they have the picture perfect bench with pretty baskets and hooks and shelves above.  And those hooks are holding nothing more than a dog leash and a straw sunhat.  I speak from experience.  We have a mudroom at the lakehouse just as I described and it's totally ready for it's close up!  And so...the closet doors are going back up.  I have to paint them and then I will be done with this project.  And I am never ever ever ever painting anything else again.

So there.

Now I'm off to the Dollar Tree to find a plastic container to brine my turkey in.  I will be up bright and early to do that.  And I always make my potatoes and stuffing ahead of time as well as desserts.  So it will be a busy day.  And then Thursday the family will all be in one place, here, in our home.  Just the thought of that warms my heart.  That's what I give the most thanks for, I've been blessed with a family and so many great people in my life.  We are all in good health and life is good.  I will be thinking about this as I bustle around my kitchen on Thanksgiving, doing what I love the most for those I love even more!

Many blessings to all of you.  Happy Thanksgiving!

XO,

Jane

HOLIDAY EXCITEMENT AND YET ANOTHER PROJECT!

Why does my food never look good?  I made chicken noodle soup last night to use up the overabundance of veggies I had in the fridge.  It always turns out different depending on the herbs and spices I use. This came out quite good with some cumin for depth and thyme because it goes so well with chicken, and of course, a bay leaf.  One must always have a bay leaf in soup or stew.  Says me.  Since I started my healthy eating plan back in early September (which I haven't spoke of very much as I keep ruining it with sugar), I have been buying naan.  it's similar to pita bread but much softer.  I brown it just a bit in a skillet with a drop of olive oil...crisp on the outside and soft and moist on the inside.  So it was a nice, comforting dinner for the onset of the cold weather.  

I was on a roll posting about twice a week.  Then my computer died and while I wait for The Husband to find me a laptop that meets all of his picky criteria, I am using his.  You know how that is, everything feels slightly "off".  And I don't want to load pictures in his.  Sigh.  So I'm just winging it today.

I've had a lot of fun these past few days.  Emily and I had our weekly outing last Thursday.  She wanted me to ride with her to a suburb about 40 minutes south of here.  She belongs to a Facebook group where people buy and sell things.  She found a vintage sled for $25.00.  She's doing an arrangement on her front porch for Christmas with the sled and ice skates, etc.  I was so surprised when we pulled up at this house in a beautiful neighborhood of big, newer homes.  This is what the porch looked like.  The owner wasn't home and said to just leave the money in the coffee pot.  Wow!

See the red sled to the left?  And he had two!!  I just don't have much of a porch if you've seen my house in previous posts (and very little room inside).  We had a great time looking.  See the shutter in the background?  And the crates?  He had at least 10 windows lined up along his house but the rational Jane knows that the two vintage windows she has is more than she has room for.  And who knows what we'll think about windows in ten years?  That we were nuts?

On our way there we spotted a big shopping center just off the interstate, so on our way back we hit Homegoods and Kohls.  Not much damage was made.  I wanted some sparkly candles and I found a few large ones for about $4.99.  Great bargain.  Emily found a large black lantern with a battery operated candle in it for her front porch.  And at Kohls I bought a welcome mat with a snowman on it.  We had a ball as usual!

I was reading an article in Real Simple magazine last night about how stores and shops manipulate us into spending.  None of this is really new to anyone and I take total responsibility for what I do when I'm in a store.  They were talking about the music and the decorations (the sparkly stuff really grabs us whether we know it or not, it signifies luxury), the scent of pine and cinnamon wafting through the air via electronic aromatherapy diffusers.  All of this makes us nostalgic and we buy things in an effort to recreate our past or at least our vision of the past.  I found this article to be so true.  But you know what?  I love how I feel when I'm in a store that's seducing and enticing me with all of that stuff...something for all 5 senses.  And I really, really enjoy shopping with Emily as she creates her very first Christmas of her own with Mike in their new home.  I'm not crazy about the "hustle and bustle" that starts after Thanksgiving, I'm a little weird with crowds, but lately it hasn't been too bad, maybe with the online shopping advantage. 

 

Here's my usual spot on the bed for  reading.  Nice of the pups to give me some room. Layla does this thing where she sits up like a gopher (with perfect balance I might add) when she wants her tummy scratched. The Husband and I actually watched three Christmas movies on Saturday!  They are now on 24/7 on the Hallmark channel.  Since I last wrote I devoured 2 books, I was literally flying through the housework every day so I could grab my book!  Ahhh...just one of the pleasures the impending cold winter will bring!

I suppose some of you have heard of the storms and the tornado they spawned in Illinois this past Sunday.  I thought it was very odd that it was so warm outside when I got up that morning.  It was like an August day with bad weather coming.  And sure enough, by 11:00, the local news was breaking in on the television shows to tell us that a tornado was on the ground just north of central Illinois and from the Stormtracker, it was heading right in our direction.  I really didn't think much because it was so far off and anything could cause it to die out or go in another direction.  But it was coming on a straight path, not leaving the ground, at 65 miles an hour.  In the meantime there were all sorts of storms around us.  The wind was gusting and the rain made everything around us invisible.  The Husband had started watching the Bears game and when they took the players off the field and started evacuating the stands, he decided we should set up camp downstairs.  So he, Abby and I grabbed flashlights, candles, our phones and her IPad and sat in the laundry room.  My first worry was Emily, who was at work  She, too, was in the path just southwest of us.  The Husband didn't want me to call or text her in case I frightened her, but I thought that was crazy.  We were able to follow the storm on the IPad and by the grace of God, that tornado veered northeast and headed south of us toward Lake Michigan.  We got a group text going and Emily was fine.  She and her co-workers took shelter in the bathroom.  Her hubby Mike texted and asked if it was okay to go back upstairs and put his chicken wings back in the oven.  

A small town where the tornado originated was leveled.  It's heartbreaking to see.  Three people were killed but it could have been so many more.  A friend on Facebook wrote, "It was 70 degrees and I was out running.  An hour later I was hiding in my basement."  It was all very frightening.  I think we can all praise the weather people on TV in Chicago for their coverage and for constantly instructing people how to take shelter.  Good job.

Other than the garage (which I just have one more heavy load to get to the curb in order to be done with), I had plans to clean out and organize our office and this hall closet which has been the bane of my existence for so long.  Here's the deal.  When we had our kitchen renovated about 15 years ago, a wall was knocked out to make it bigger. Our once large hall closet was minimized to this and as you can see by the coats jutting out, it was not deep enough.  It wasn't long after that the bi fold doors came off the track.  Is this not the worse "before" picture you have ever seen?  One afternoon last week I had a light bulb moment.  And you always wonder why you never thought of it before.  If we couldn't make the closet bigger, we had to do the opposite.  I decided to eliminate the bar  and instead use hooks along the back wall.  Not only are there 10,000 coats in here (85% of them The Husbands, honest!), but we stored enough light bulbs on the top shelf to illuminate Michigan Avenue.  The floor was a menagerie of totebags, boots, essentials like toilet paper, napkins and paper towels bought in bulk.  The Husband had also saved every box from every electronic device we have ever bought (laptops, phones, cameras, speakers) in the event we had to return them.  

It took me over an hour to clean it all out, make bags for Goodwill, and relocate a lot of stuff to the basement.  

And here we go before a good scrubbing.  I'm going to remove the bar and the top shelf, I think that's only going to invite storage and  storage means organization and that's a job always left up to me.  And I resent it.  That little shelf  midway down on the left side is perfect for a basket to hold our hats, scarves and gloves.  After I scrub away, I have almost a full gallon of gray paint from our bedroom job.  I'm going to do the trim in white.  And then I'm going to have a long piece of wood cut, attach it to the wall about 3/4 of the way up and then add about 10 double hooks to it.  This will keep me busy for the rest of the week.  I have a bench in the garage that I found at a thrift store years ago.  I'd like to bring that in and paint it, but I'm afraid if I use it in this closet, it will become a catch all, and as you can see, I'm trying to get away from that.

Now, I have a question.  I was going to have the doors put back on, but of all people, my son, Jeff, suggested that I leave the doors off and go for a "mudroom" closet sort of look.  I was really surprised.  I thought that was something that I would have come up with and of course, been vetoed out.  I'd love for you to weigh in.

Do you have your Thanksgiving menu planned?  Have any of you started Christmas shopping or decorating?  I just love all the excitement I see on the blogs.  Sometimes I'll be ripping recipes out of magazines or jotting down ideas and I forget if I'm thinking of Thanksgiving or Christmas!  We will be having 9 for dinner on Thanksgiving and then I have been hosting dessert for the past several years and we will have about  15 more.  

The Husband and I have been tossing around the idea of going to a Christmas tree farm and cutting down our own tree.  I happened to be emailing back and forth with a guy in North Carolina that grows and ships trees and he told me that the ones you find in nurseries or temporarily  in parking lots, are most likely cut over a month before.  A fresh cut tree can last 2 months.  That's why I'm always scrambling around in mid December because a live tree would never make it until Christmas if we bought it any sooner.  So we are planning to go to the lake after Thanksgiving and see what they have in that area.  I also remembered that I left the cushions and pillows on the furniture on the front porch.  Gawd!  And The Husband doesn't remember if he put away all my pots and little garden doodads.  He and Jeff seemed to have just taken care of the big stuff on their trip last month.  It would make for a nice 3 day weekend.

Okay, I have a trip to Home Depot in the works but I am waiting for a person that The Husband came up with to come and clean our gutters.  At this rate he is going to be doing it by moonlight.  Let me have your thoughts on that closet and also, how do you feel about holiday shopping?  Do you avoid it?  Dread it? Love it?  Get it done early, late or pretty much go with the flow.  And most of all...are you in the holiday spirit?  I am.  I'm just loving it all.  

XO,

Jane

STENCILED BANNERS & MY USUAL RANDOMNESS

I am so excited to report that The Husband and I actually got out this weekend!  And for dinner!  It seems like it's been ages and I have been climbing the walls.  There's a busy street not too far from us comprised mostly of Irish bars  (we live in a predominantly Irish Catholic neighborhood).  And these little pubs have been here for ages.  Every now and then something new springs up and the kids told us great things about this place, Horse Thief Hollow, so we gave it a shot.  Apparently back in the 1850's, horses stolen from Missouri brought for market in Chicago were hidden in the dense forests and woods that were once here.  A little bit of lively history for you!  Very neat place...industrial like with very high ceilings and exposed duct work, concrete floors and lots of metal along with polished wood.  We LOVED it.  I had the Flat Iron Steak with root veggies and The Husband had an Autumn Turkey sandwich with cranberry chutney and cream cheese.  Yum!   They also brew their own handcrafted beer, The husband sipped on The Kitchen Sink .  I don't have that list but I think it has something to do with all the ingredients. :)

   

After that we went up the street to the little Irish pub Abigail works at (sorry, this picture was taken with my IPhone in a very dark place). We've never seen her at it in two years!!  She not only waitresses but makes her own drinks if she has to.  It was early so she wasn't busy and could stand and talk with us.  Have I ever told you how proud I am of my little caboose?  She has been student teaching this last semester of school and the privilege she feels for this opportunity and attachment to these high school children is more than I imagined.  She teaches English in a predominantly Hispanic school.  Not an easy task.  I worried, how will a young girl, just barely older than her students and tiny, tiny, tiny...be accepted?  They love her!  One boy calls her Mona Lisa because she is "so pretty".  The girls think she dresses "swag", which for this generation (and Abby had to ask!) means "cool".    She finishes up at Thanksgiving, it makes her sad but I now know that she chose the right studies.  She is going to be wonderful in her career and she's going to be happy and that's all that matters to me.  You Rock, Abby!!!

And while this was going on, my other daughter, Emily, and son, Kevin, along with their spouses were enjoying Cedarburg, Wisconsin.  Yes, that's where we were a couple of weekends ago.  Last December when we went for the first time, we got it in our heads that the kids might like it and  got them gift certificates for rooms at the inn we stayed at.  They went up Saturday but not before I could send them off with a little spending dough and a few bottles of Cabernet!  They loved it.  Emily said if it weren't for stopping for food and drinks, she could have shopped the whole time (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree)!  She made this little collage for Facebook and I stole it!  Center picture. L to R:  Mike, Em, Kevin and Mary Clare.

Like a lot of you, we had snow yesterday.  I took this about 5:00 p.m.  It rained most of the day and then finally turned into big wet flakes...I'm surprised it stuck.  Milo loved romping around in it.  It was cold (30ish) today and sunny, so it melted.  Did you know today is 11-12-13?  Seems like something magical could happen.  Or not.

Okay, on to my first project.  I'm doing a little step by step thing here because not only does it make me feel really crafty (!!), but I really didn't have a clue what I was doing the first time I stenciled anything.  Now that was back in the dinosaur age when I had a little toddler and well, 2 more under the age of 7.  I decided to do a border along the ceiling of Emily's room, pink bunnies.  The stencil itself was quite large, the bunny the size of a dinner plate.  Well, doing a ceiling border is no fun...constantly moving the ladder and re-taping the stencil, the pain in your arms from reaching up high.  I worked a little on it every day.  My problem is I never read directions.  I didn't know you "dabbed" the paint on a stencil.  I layered it on THICK!!!  I think people were too polite to tell me what I did wrong.  Eventually, when we re-painted that room, the bunnies had to be sanded down! lol!  I did however go on to stencil around doors and windows and everything I could...ivy, flowers vines, you name it!  The right way!

So, I've always wanted to make a banner.  So,  make a template out of heavy paper, like card stock or even cardboard.  Trace that on your burlap or whatever fabric you like and cut them out.  I folded over a small flap at the wide edge and ironed it to give it a strong crease.  Flip it open and make a line of glue (I used fabric glue found at any craft store) along the very edge.  Lay your twine or jute or whatever you're using in the crease of the flap and then seal it like an envelope.

Then put something heavy and useless on it, like Almond Bark, which is the first thing I grabbed, to hold it down while the glue dried.

These stencils are from Hobby Lobby, around $7.00 for the whole alphabet.  You can wipe them off and use them countless times.  I also used fabric paint, just put it in an old bowl (you can even use a paper plate, much more sensible), and then just dip a small round, cheap brush in the paint and dab lightly.  I go around the edges of the letter first to make sure it's nice and crisp.  I've seen bloggers use all sorts ofideas for this type of project; downloading templates and transferring letters and words and embellishments with all sorts of methods.  I guess this is the old fashion way, but I love it and it's simple.

Ta Da!  Obviously I'm not going to leave this up right now...in fact it fell down right after this picture.  I was using my handy dandy Scotch tape.  So, for some of you banner aficionados, what do you use to hold those banners up with?  Nothing seems to stick to that twine.  Nails, thumbtacks...The Husband would croak!

Another view.  See that rain and gloom outside.  Yuk!  It's official Blues Weather.

Moving on.  Blondie was really getting her groove on.  I remembered Thanksgiving comes before Christmas! lol!  I showed you these pre-made little flags last week, all nicely stitched around the edges with little grommets to make a simple job of threading the twine.  I stenciled these, too.  Did I tell you that Emily had a baby shower for a friend and they had a project of making onesies for the baby with fabric paint?  She brought over the leftover paint the other day, about ten plastic bottles.  God love her, I'm set for life. 

Again:  Ta Da!  (I can be so full of myself!).

So that was my crafty little week.  I had fun.  I think I'm ready to start going around doors and windows again.  Look out.

How are all of you doing with your Thanksgiving plans?  We are having two of the kid's cousins coming as their parent have to work...two big guys in their twenties.  In recent years I have gone down to a 12 pound turkey from 22 pounds.  The Husband always insists on a huge one for the leftovers.  Well, you can only eat turkey sandwiches for a few days and then they get old and personally, I feel that turkey is very bland and I have little desire to make up a recipe for the leftovers.  So last week I picked up an 18 pounder.  And a brining kit full of the required spices.  Emily made the brine last year for the first time with the help of a friend who had the extra spices and her own method.  In spite of the fact that I cannot even change the way I make sweet potatoes without protest that I'm deviating from tradition, everyone loved this turkey, surely because it was brined.  And this was the year that The Husband also admitted he didn't like Brussels sprouts...after 28 years might I say.  I couldn't win for losing.  So I have to trot over to Home Depot and get a big drywall bucket to brine my turkey in, which will be in the trunk of my car so that every raccoon, squirrel and opossum in the near vicinity is not hanging out in my garage.  Monster Turkey will also require me to get up much earlier than the 12 pound one did,  Errrrrr...

Now, I'm not going to say that I am at work on another project (although I am) because when I say that, even put it in the title of my post,  what I think I'm seeing is some very DIY loving people coming to see what it is...don't see it and high tail it away.  Nothing wrong with scanning.  I had page views that exceeded comments (by you lovely loyal friends) ten fold.  Not to sound like a saint, I am first of all a lover of writing, sharing my goofy life and times, giving you something to chuckle about, maybe a little inspiration here and there that if Blondie can do it, you can, too.  And then the fun of visiting your blogs.  Ladies I have known for 5 years or 5 months,  if I follow you, I hold you close to my heart.  So stats mean very little, the NUMBER of followers mean very little although I am so flattered and chuffed that any of you have chosen to follow my blog.  There will always be some of you that look but don't comment...I don't bite and I'm always looking for new blogs to follow and inspire.  Secondly...I mentioned a few weeks ago that I have been falling off some of your Followers Lists.  I am trying to get back on them...so puleeeeeze, if you haven't heard from me lately, let me know and I'll pop over and Re-Follow.

Sorry for such a long post.  Your head is probably spinning.  Just feel free to comment on what turned your crank.  I'll try to be back soon. :)

Joining Jennifer Rizzo at Fabulously Creative Friday

Courtney at Feathered Nest Friday 

XO,

Jane

HOLIDAYS & PROJECTS ON MY MIND!

Well hi, everybody!  I thought before I started blathering on about everything and nothing, I would tie up some loose ends on some of the things that I had finished up here in Blondieville.  I don't think I've ever shown you the mirror I painted actually hung up on the wall in my living room.  I'm liking it and I think there just can't be enough said about rescuing something from someones trash and giving it a new life.  Actually daughter Emily did the rescuing and it was one of her girlfriend's.  I'm really happy with it and I added a pretty boxwood wreath to it.  I found a website of a girl that is a florist and has her own shop.  She custom makes all sorts of neat wreaths and arrangements and such.  I personally think she has the best prices around if you are looking for anything live.  Let me know if you want any information.  

As far as the bedroom redo, I am just finishing up the gallery wall...it's addicting.  You keep finding space for "just one more picture!"  I also started out using my own photos in black and white and they just faded into the wall so I had to reorder and frame other pictures..  But The Husband did get the blinds on the second window (they only come down this far...thank goodness for ivy!).  And I know this looks like an ordinary dresser but if you could have seen it before.  It was definitely organized clutter.  I love beautiful trinket boxes, blingy picture frames, bowls and dishes filled with sparkly jewelry and I wouldn't throw out a bottle of perfume until it was down to the last drop.  Well, I made a clean sweep and I'm proud to say it has stayed this way for a month now.  Shhhh...everything else is just tucked into one of those top drawers! :)  The wicker basket in the background is my laundry which I disguise with folded quilts.  Our closets are like phone booths.

Thank you so much for getting me out of the slump I was in on Tuesday.  It really helped.  And I think the best thing anyone can do when that comes out of the blue is just get outside, even to walk around the block.  You have to have a change of scenery, smell the fresh air, hear the rustle of the leaves...involve all those senses that have gone dormant.  My remedy was close enough, over to Katie's for my highlights and a cut (yep, two more inches off the hair, it now rests on my shoulders.  I can still get it in a ponytail and I am thisclose to chic!!).  Now, you know Katie is my daughter in law's sister, so we were all there eating donuts and laughing while I was being pampered.  Afterward I went over to Emily's and we had pizza for lunch and headed out for some retail therapy.  Hello Target!  She was not such a happy camper, she had to buy a cover for her patio table as it wouldn't fit through the back door to her basement for winter storage.  Nothing like having to spend good money on necessities.  ;-D  Well, what do you think we found next to the (pretty bare) outdoor section?  The Christmas decorations!  And freshly stocked I might say!  We had a ball looking at everything.  I like to pretend to be a consumer reporter every once in awhile, so here's my take again on what's "en vogue" for the holidays.  Woodland creatures, especially deer, deer, deer.  And antlers and mounted deer heads (I guess it's cool to have it in all forms of it's afterlife).  Lots of felted ornaments, too, as well as knitted.  You crafty ladies can do this easily.  And I will also say that Target has wonderful prices compared to other stores, only rivaled by the craft stores and Marshall's, Homegoods, etc.  They had a cute bin with $3.00 ornaments that were just darling.  

I bought a book, too, couldn't help myself.  The Kitchen House came out awhile ago but I remember my SIL raving about it, so I had to grab that.  And then my friend Melanie from Comfy House knew I was getting into Elizabeth Berg and was nice enough to send me one of her copies of one of the author's earlier books.  Thanks, Mel!  I feel like a squirrel hoarding nuts for the winter.  We could get snowed in from now until March and I would have plenty to read!

In spite of all the allure and promise of getting started on a Holly Jolly Christmas, we walked away with just 1 ornament apiece, with mind boggling plans to come back the day after Christmas to wipe the place out.  As we made our way to the outdoor department and then on for me to buy toilet paper, I asked Emily, "Are we materialistic?"  She never blinked an eye.  "No, Mom, we just love Christmas."  And all was well and good in my world.

  

We made our way to Hobby Lobby as Em wanted to buy a tree skirt she had seen there a few weeks ago.  I'm in the process of working on a project involving stencils and I was looking for a brush when I came across these fabric pieces for making banners.  They are in packages of five for $6.99.  For someone like me that can't sew, these are a Godsend.  See the neat edges and holy cow...grommets!  I have always wanted to make a no sew garland or banner and I do have some bleached burlap, linen and drop cloth fabric.  I just didn't want the frayed edges, so this is just perfect for me.  I hope to get to work on these this weekend.    Emily also bought a few simple supplies for a holiday project she came up with and she went home last night and finished it up by 9:00, texting a picture of it to me.  I will include it in my next post.  It is an amazing project for under $10.00!

Now I am going to put my Consumer Reporter hat back on because I came home to a package with a set of ornaments I ordered from World Market (we don't have one near us).  I've always found their prices to be exceptional so when I saw these deer, I ordered them.  I was so disappointed to see they were much smaller than I thought (READ THE DIMENSIONS!).  They are not well made and after seeing something so similar at Target for half the price, I was really feeling foolish.  I had also seen some really cute ornaments on the West Elm website and last weekend the Husband and I were actually going to take a trip to the store on the Northside, but didn't.  The same woodland critters are everywhere and much less expensive.  I have to say, when an idea catches on, it spreads like wildfire.  And I'm all about unique, one of a kind things, so these deer (or moose or reindeer or whatever they are) are the end of the line for me.  

I won't go on long here because this has been such an upbeat post but I had to mention that the great chef, Charlie Trotter, from Chicago passed away this past Monday at the young age of 54.  If you are from Chicago, you definitely knew of him and his iconic restaurant.  He was also the recipient of several James Beard Awards and a great humanitarian and philanthropist known throughout the world.  I was so lucky to have met him many years ago at his restaurant.  I wrote a post about it here.  He signed his cookbook for me and we had our picture taken together, which you can see on that post.  

Personally, I am just so, so sad.   There is something very unsettling and confusing when someone you have never met, or someone you knew very little passes away.  There's that distance or barrier outside of the circle where you long to be because no one else understands your own inner loss.  For me, when someone dies, they leave only a legacy.  The deep down pain comes from the realization that there will be nothing else forthcoming from this person; no further words of wisdom or advice.  He will never make another outstanding meal, write another cookbook, open another restaurant.  I had my ten minutes with him, someone I that I had admired for so long, and I will never again have that chance.    This probably sounds frivolous; he has family and friends and colleagues who are in deep mourning right now, but I can't tell you how much I wish I could go back to that obliviously happy time before I heard this news.  

Today is the first day of sunshine that we've had in over a week.  The dogs stay in bed with me in the morning until I get up, no matter who is up or coming or going.  Milo is like a sentry in my bedroom and Layla is just lazy.  They are not liking the rain and cold at all.  I let them out about 5-6 times a day and like clockwork, they are  sitting on the back porch wanting to come in after 5 minutes, even in nice weather.  They just don't like to be outside alone.  So I've been pulling on my boots (or even flip flops for convenience) and  taking a little stroll around the garden beds, checking out things here and there, dreaming about spring and all those shoots from the tulips and crocus and hyacinths popping up.  Milo romps like a pony in the grass, and Layla has her nose to the ground like a bloodhound.  We don't want to go back in.

So they pretty much get up in the morning and then head for their favorite sleeping spots; Milo, his chair, and Layla, her basket (she looks like a baby skunk in this picture!).  I have decided to start walking them, Milo needs a harness first.  You don't walk Milo...he walks you!  And the pulling of his collar makes him gag.  We never walked Layla, she didn't like it and would sit defiantly on the sidewalk while we tugged at her leash.  Nope, she wasn't having any of it.  But she will do it if they are together.  I've felt like a negligent mother (and lazy, too) not taking them for walks.  You would never do that to a baby.  And they look so pathetically bored!!

Okay...off to the grocery store.  As you can see I'm trying to post more. I wish you all a great weekend.  I'm back to "normal" sleeping patterns and I'm feeling a lot more motivated to pick up where I left off before the blues hit me earlier this week.  Thanks again for all of your words of encouragement. :)

XO,

Jane