Deck The Halls

You may recall from this post that we have a very rambunctious toddler living with us at the moment, so I didn't expect to do a lot of decorating for Christmas.  But, I decided to put out a few things and I wanted to share them with you before my little tasmanian devil whirled through and destroyed them.

Our fireplace is a pass through and is made so that you can walk all the way around it from one room into the other.  I am in the process of redecorating and painting and shared my inspiration for the fireplace with you here.  But, with our current living arrangements, aka rambunctious toddler, the actual fireplace remodel has been put on hold.  Right now it is painted a deep shade of orange which I have definitely grown tired of and looks out of place in Christmas photos, but it is what it is and hopefully I will get to continue with my remodel plan soon.

Each side of the fireplace has a mantle which I have decorated quite differently.  So grab some coffee or hot cocoa, and lets take a look, shall we.

This is the dining room side.  I decided to go with a homespun country theme.

The other side of the fireplace is quite different and if the wall was painted a nice neutral hue, which is the plan, it would have a very different feel.  I've tried to stay with various shades of whites, tan and browns with a pop of green.  There's some mercury glass thrown in for some sparkle.

Our tree is decorated with various bird ornaments and woodland creatures which Oliver, the kitty, has found delightful this year.  We have a slimline tree because, as you can imagine with so many people living in our home, we don't have a lot of space.

I've set up various baskets of greenery, pinecones, etc. because I love bringing the outdoors in and the smell of the greenery, which is wonderful since we have an artificial tree.

And finally, we have part of my collection of old world Santa's.  I don't know about you, but I collect way to many things! 

So, that's it, I hope you enjoyed it and I will be sure to let you know if the decorations survive the two year old and kitty.  I think they are actually plotting and scheming together to destroy them as I write this.  Have you decorated for the season?

Please Excuse Me

Some of you already know that I lost my Father a few weeks ago, but most of you probably did not know and may have been wondering where I have been. Well, here I am, sitting in this fog of grief.

Even though my Dad's death was expected, this is so hard, I never imagined how hard it could or would be, especially for this Daddy's Girl. I am finding it hard to function other than just going through the motions of my day to day life. I put on a good front that I am ok, but deep down inside I constantly ache. I struggle to remember simple things, let alone put two sentences together in some semblance of coherency. So bare with me, please, as I struggle my way back into the land of the living. I know that I am capable, strong, and resilient, I just need time.

It would be very easy to just lie in bed, pull the covers over my head and let the world go by, but my dad would come back from the afterlife and really let me have it. I know that he would want me to go on—to live my life. Isn't that what the grieving process is about, learning to live my life, not without my dad, but with him in my memories, in the traditions and love that I pass on to my children and grandchildren, and especially through the love that I still feel for my dad.

But where do I start, how do I find my way out of this grief, my way through the holidays without my father, and the strength to help my mother, siblings, and my children do the same.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4

I certainly don't feel blessed because I am mourning. I took a hard look at the last part of the verse: "for they shall be comforted." That means God will provide comfort when I'm hurting so badly I feel like I can't take another breath. He will sustain me and carry me through this time. He will provide what I need.  So I go to Him for my comfort and am blessed for it.  And I'm truly blessed for having had a father who taught me to turn to God for my needs and comfort.

So please excuse me while I take some time to grieve the loss of my Dad.  I will still post periodically, when I feel inspired, and hope to once again be filling these pages with vintage cheer very soon.

Renaissance Wedding

Today is my 22nd Anniversary with the Mister.  Last year, here on the blog, I dedicated the whole month of November to our marriage with a five part series on lasting romance.  If you missed it you can check it out by either clicking the button on the sidebar or go here for part one, two, three, four, and five.

Several years ago, for our 10th anniversary in fact, we decided to renew our vows to one another and did so with a Renaissance themed wedding.  Renaissance means rebirth so we thought it only fitting since we were celebrating the rebirth of our commitment to one another.

Our invitations were copies of an illumination that I hand painted and then they were sealed with wax and hand delivered.

I designed and made my dress.  It had three layers, the outer layer was a dupioni silk with hand beading, the inner layer was a silk velvet, and the chemise was a rayon.  I spent hours working on this dress and was quite proud of how it turned out.

We incorporated many ancient traditions, such as a handfasting ceremony, moving the ring sequentially from the thumb to the middle finger, and being encompassed inside a circle made of our guests to symbolize our eternal love.

My mother and I made our cake to look like a castle.  We decorated the Hall in a castle medieval theme and my sisters and daughter served as our serving wenches.  My youngest sons served as our Knights. Our guests also came in costume so it was loads of fun to see what everyone put together.

So, in honor of our anniversary, I thought it would be fun to share some of the photos from the event with you. 

 

 

 

 

Banana Bread

What do you do with your over ripe bananas? Normally bananas get eaten pretty quickly at our house, but every once in a while we have a few that sit around and get overly ripe. When that happens, I like to make up a batch of banana bread.  Here's a great recipe that you might like to try.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 ripe large bananas, mashed well
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips 

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla and then add the banana mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring as little as possible.  Lightly fold in the nuts and chocolate just until combined and the batter is thick and chunky. (Do not over mix the batter, you do not want it smooth. Over mixing the batter will yield tough, rubbery bread.)

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until bread is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 1 – 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf of banana bread

When I was making this loaf I didn't have dark chocolate chips on hand so I threw in some white chocolate instead and I really like the taste that it gave the bread.  You could mix up the types of nuts also, maybe use walnuts instead.

If you try the recipe, let me know what you think.  Happy baking!!

Thank You Veterans

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in the First World War, then known as "the Great War."

In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"

November 11th became a legal federal holiday in the United States in 1938 —a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." On June 1, 1954, in the aftermath of World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became Veterans Day, a holiday dedicated to American veterans of all wars.

So, today, on this Veteran's Day, take the time to thank a veteran for serving our country and protecting our freedoms.