Christmas

Christmas trees start going up in our house on November 1st. Yup, I said Trees, meaning plural. Three big trees to be exact and 5-10 table top and various sized trees find their way into every nook and cranny.

The front of the house can be seen from Main street...which is 4 blocks away...

The den tree is adorned with a couple hundred multi colored lights and all the homemade ornaments.

The main living room tree had a few new additions this year. My friend Brandy made two of these ornaments for me back in August in memory of our babies. Ken purchased our angel ornament this year & he also found a fantastic humming bird ornament in memory of his Nana.

We all know we need to have a tree in the bathroom to provide that ambiance as we sit on the throne!!

We couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a self picture. Not very often you see us razzle dazzled up.

We rent a hall for Christmas seeing there are 32 of us and face it, who's house can accommodate all of us? Here I am with my big sis Laurie. I just realized her shirt matches my scarf...p.s. the scarf was put on AFTER we consumed our fab meal...to hide the bulging belly!!!

This is only one side of our big circle where we play a gift game. Clearly one heckuva fun event!!!

My brother Kelly

Jay & Osten...Jay's my brother Bruce's boy & Osten his his son.

Me with my lil brother JJ

And back to our living room tree

Of course our bedroom needs a tree!!! We took a big honkan bag of pine cones back from Nana's yard Massachusetts back in June when we went for her funeral. I can't think of a better way than to have them on our tree. =)

If you dare to venture up our windy staircase with tiny steps you'll see this at the bottom landing. I guess I don't have pics of the kitchen trees or the one on the upstairs landing. Believe me, those rooms didn't go without yuletide joy!!! My electric meter knows so!!!!

Through the neighborhood

Tonight was our night to get on our comfy clothes, pile the dogs in the suburban & go for a ride to see the Christmas lights in the neighborhood. My lil brother is spending the night so he got to come with us too. Total funness!!! Afterwards we went for shakes.

It's been snowing on & off here most of the day & tonight it was total snowflakage!!! A perfect night for this. The pups were awesome & JJ got a bit stoked too. We're supposed to get blitzed with snow tonight & tomorrow. I'm seriously hoping for oodles upon oodles of white fluff. We'll see what we wake up to in the morning =)

Gary & Quirky Crocheting

We went to the Gary Alan concert Saturday night...Great show I might say!!!

Today friends of ours Pat & Sam & 2 of their boys came over to visit. The boys flocked into the den to play video games while Sam & I crocheted. Sooo, I made a couple quirky things.

A fish toy with catnip for the kitties

and a fun lil basket crocheted out of strips of fabric. I'll be putting stuff inside it & I'm sure it'll make more sense & look not so sad.

That pretty much sums up our weekend. Well I left out the decorating of the outside of the house & different house cleaning things we did. We've got a busy week ahead of us!!! Off to make some cookies now & snuggle with the hubbykins =)

Tuesday's Tasks

Good fancy mornan!!!

I just saw the salt truck go by on the avenue. We only got about an inch of snow yesterday. Kinda a bummer...I was hoping for a crap load. But it looks sooo pretty out my window!!

I watched two Christmas movies on ABC Family last night. They have this fabulous countdown to the 25 days of Christmas. PERFECT!!! I have stuff to watch at night now!!! While watching I munched on stale candy canes from last year...maybe the year before. Before you think oh my, she must be desperate....ok, I was kinda but I prefer chewy candy canes actually =) Well the insane amount of candy cane eatage made me hyper. It was around 2am when I decided it was time to let the puparoodles out for the last time before we head to bed.

Ok, this is the funny part. I open the back door, let the pups into the yard, I stand on the back step looking at the white rooftops in the neighborhood, munchin on my candy cane. As I took a bite out flew a danged bird from under my eave!! I assure you I almost peed myself silly! Some oh so colorful words spewed out of my mouth! They weren't the normal gibberish words I use. Well you can use your imagination! My head was almost dive bombed by a bird at 2am for crypes sake!!!

Once I got up to bed I was still too hyped up on sugar that I barely slept. So, I'm kinda draggin butt today but am determined to accomplish a great many things!!!

1. Vacuum


2. mend the pants & shorts Ken wants mended, and FINISH the quilt!!!


3. clean Chloe's terrarium


4. finish the hats for my nieces


5. make the aprons for Linds & I for our cookie makin extravaganza coming soon =)


6. finish decorating our bedroom


7. maybe hang the garlands on the porch & let the pups play outside (I won't go into the attic or basement by myself to get the rest of the outside decorations)


8. Find the computer desk in the den (Christmas odds & ends have found their way there)

I also find it very important to take time for yourself each day. I know life gets busy, things need to be done... but there are so many fantastic things right in front of your eyes that get overlooked or not enjoyed. Fascinate your senses today & open your eyes & hearts to the fantasticness around you!!!

Ok, now....WISH MY LUCK!!! =)

Return of the Christmas Tree

I finally got my rear in gear today & put up our bedroom tree =)

There's still soooo much more decorating to do upstairs but this is a start.

We didn't get the outside decorating done but hopefully this week I will get it all finished. We're going on week 3 of decorating.

The back entrance still needs yuletide joy, our bedroom needs more, then we have the upper landing....that part is almost finished. Then it's just my craft room.

I did some crocheting & painting while the race was on. I'm not sure if it's noticeable in the pics but I painted snowflakes on the blue Christmas ornies.

Only 39 days until Christmas!!! Are you ready???

Main Floor Galore!!

I finished up the decorationalizing on the main floor today =) There are a few odds & ends to do yet but nothing major. Now tomorrow I can focus on the upstairs. =) My wunnaful in laws gave us their tree & it's honkan huge!! That will go in our bedroom. Ken picked that up for me today =) Isn't he the bestest!!!




I really don't know what to call this area....it's sandwiched in between the built in computer desk area & built in hutch. I guess we call it a buffet type thing...I dunno!!! But it's the place we put our ceramic village we painted years ago =)

This is one of my favorite lil areas...well minus the orange shag carpeting. LOL In this particular planter we have rocks from each of the 48 Continental United States. We also have a salt shaker with salt crystals Ken scooped up with his very own hands out of the Great Salt Lake in Utah. From the location where we were we could see the Bonneville Salt Flatts in the distance. Talk about ultra cool!!!

The lower planter/tier thing of this area displays a fibre optic Christmas Tree =) and pictures of our current pets & pets from our past.

This is looking from our dining room into the den area. Each & every entryway NEEDS garlands & lights. The back entrance/screen porch will have lights too!!! But I'll do that when we do the outside decorating. Which will be soon. =) p.s. I love Christmas!!!!!!

Here's another shot of the village area & the built in hutch. My fabulous Mom in Law gave me the awesome red & green wine glasses. Soooo festive!!!

Here's my other curio cabinet in the dining room all decorated up with....wouldn't ya know it...a Christmas tree!!!! =)

This cabinet hold my Memiere's china & a few special glass pieces we've accumulated.

I have a strong believe each room has to have a tree in it. I'm still brainstorming on how I can do the laundry room...It's basically two bi fold doors that house a washer & dryer inside...sorta like a closet. I'll figure sumthin out =)

Fa La La La La'ing around the house

Welcome to my bathroom!!!!! Yup, it also has a Christmas Tree in it!!




I'm a huge fan of pine garland & white lights. Can ya tell?

The wunnaful bathroom window...the only window in our home that faces the south!! But it's Christmassy & I like it =)

This part it not completed yet. I dunno why I even included this photo. The garland is all nakie & need of yuletide joy in the form of snowflakes & what not!! The laundry room doors have snowflakes on them though! I wonder what else can be done to this area....brainstorm time tonight!!! =) MUST BE MORE CHRISTMASSY!!!!!

Welcome to my lil purple kitchen!!! It's highly outdated but I like it! =) And, it's purple which makes it out of this galaxy AWESOME!!!!!

I don't normally put things on the fridge but my friend in NY has the cutest kiddo & he needs to be showcased for everybody to see =) See the lil Christmas tree in the corner by the bank of drawers?

Then we have the other side of our lil purple kitchen. Ahhh I LUV LUV LUV Christmas lights!! And trees! See the lil baby one in the corner? I don't have room for a huge one in here so these two will do the job perfectly! I am certain they will bring some yuletide joy to all who pass by!! I know they make me smile =)

Now I've got to work in the den/dining area, get the buffet part cleaned off of computer stuff & lay out a ceramic village the hubbykins & I painted years ago. Oh and you guessed it, a tree too!!! Then it's onto the dining room for some severe decorationalizing!!! =) =)

Whew, it's been a long day!

I set numerous goals today & accomplished a great many of them. I have never made pumpkin puree & my to do list did not allot ample time to do this AND the other tasks. I am happy to report that 4 of the 6 pumpkins have become puree though =) The other two were so hard to cut & my hands had had enough. So those two will go for the deer.



I chopped off the top, cleaned out the pumpkin brains, sliced them up & placed onto an ungreased cookie sheet & baked at 350 for 45 minutes. See, they have a hint of brown? Oh, added bonus is that the baking made the house smell delicious!!!

After they were done baking & let sit to cool a bit I began peeling the outer skin & chopping the pumpkin up & placing it in a bowl.

Loaded up the blender & pureed the bazoinkels outta the chunks

And whaaalaaa! We have a total of 16 cups of fresh pumpkin puree for breads, pies, cookies & who knows what else I'll make. I suggest setting aside a couple hours for this. I had figured it would take a half an hour tops to clean them & get them ready to bake...WRONG!!! It took 3!!!

After that task was finished I cleaned up the kitchen, emptied & ran the dishwasher, swept, scrubbed the floor, etc. I now have a clean kitchen =) Well for the time being...

I tidied up the house a bit, did a batch of laundry. My neck is still sore since Saturday morning. I either slept wrong or dancin to "Black Betty" Friday night did me in. So I figured I'd work on my sit still type tasks.

Logan's afghan is finished...

Also made some mittens & a scarf for special lil ladies in my life while I watched a movie "Christmas in the Clouds".

Tomorrow will be a much more productive day! I plan on going to bed at a decent hour. Which means, before 5am!! Ken's on the road so that means I rarely sleep. Tomorrow I will tackle the den and take the Christmas decorations upstairs after I put the Christmas Village we painted out on display. Tonight when I go to bed my jewelry making supplies will be taken to my craft room.

Hopefully I will have some time tomorrow to work on the memory quilt. The pieces are cut & the rows have been laid out & put back in order. Now I just need to park my fannie in front of the machine.

Mission Declutterization & Organization

In my previous post I mentioed how my home is a disaster. Well, Ken doesn't think so...but I sure do!! Being thet I'm a total list maker & goal setter I am going to devote a week to mission organization, declutterization!!! I will post before & after pics.

I feel as though it's important to have a clutter free home. Clutter spazes me out in a way. I may just be feeling overwhelmed by the 20 something storage bins of Christmas holly jolly decorations strewn about my home...I dunno. But each evening I plan on setting forth a list of goals I woudl like to achieve for the following day. I feel like I need this list as I reminder to keep on task and to also remind myself that I did achive a great many tasks during the day. I dunno bout you but for me the days just whoosh by! It seems I am always doing something & not taking time for myself.

Here's what's in store for the rest of the day:

1. process 6 pie pumpkins into puree & freeze
2. empty dishwasher & put dirty dishes in there
3. clean off all countertops, sweep & scrub kitchen floor
4. Laundry (if I do the two loads today I will have the washer & dryer for bedding tomorrow)
5. finish Logan's afghan
6. bring the rest of my beading & jewelry making supplies up to the craft room (that means organizing the area I plan to store the supplies)
7. work on Ken's memory quilt
8. organize desktop computer area (this needs to be done anyways) so I can finish decorating den area for Christmas
9. Organize sewing cart
10. bring all Christmas odds & ends that are not being used upstairs (Tomorrow I will work on decorating the upstairs & using the decorations)

There you have it....I've got oodles upon oodles to do. The checks are already written out, bills are paid online, and the next three weeks of bill paying is prepped & ready to go when the $ is direct deposited. (I do keep a notebook with our budget written out to a science for each weeks bill paying) Have you decluttered & organized lately? Stay tuned for updates & photos =)

Weekend Madness

Ahhh another busy weekend! Ken got home late Friday night & we found ourselves leaving the house at 11:30 pm & heading to Perkins for our friend Chad's 30th birthday. I told Ken he could drink & I would drive. We never drink & drive...actually we really never drink. But it was Chad birthday so a few celebratory drinks would be fun. Well Ken decided not to drink so Nikki & I decided to try some apple pie shots...well after 4 I was a whipper snappin holly jolly gal!! It was totally fun though.

Shaney baney bo baney, myself & Ken

No clue what Ken had the giggles for. But Shane & I did a shot in celebratory fashion =)

Chaddy Chad the birthday boy & myself

Saturday we watched my lil brother Jess & Miss Madison for a few hours while Jim & Donna attended Donna's cousins funeral. JJ also came over & spent the night. Ken & his dad installed a new motion light on the front porch & a new dusk to dawn light on the garage in the back. No more loud buzzing bulb!!! Yahooo!!!! Serious, it sounded as if a swarm of bees or wasps were lodged in the old light. This one is energy efficient too =) Wonder what our electric bill will be next month. I'm actually excited to see it!!! We watched a couple movies before the Kenster & JJ vanished to the den to do some XBOX 360 gamin. Ahhh gotta love gamer geeks!!

On Sunday we put a turkey breast in the crockpot with some broth & picked Jesse & Maddy up & took them up to Ken's family's camp for his cousin Andy's 10th birthday party. Total funness!! The kids were fabulous & such fun. After we dropped them off it was time to come home & veg out in our fluffy clothes & watch the Packer game & the race. We were both tired & dozed on & off. Totally uncool for me!! I slept through part of the race!! By dinner time our turkey was finished. Oh we also added some veggies & had a yummalish turkey noodle (nuunuu as my niece calls it) soup, watched Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Family Guy (Ken's show) & American Dad (another one of Ken's shows) & then we watched Mr Magoriums Wonder Emporium. I suggest you watch that!! Totally magical & whimsical!! I'm almost finished with Logan's (my friend Shash's son's) afghan. There's still so much I have to do & make in time for Christmas. Speaking of Christmas...bathroom is decorated now with lights & pine garland, and a lil tree, village is up on the tv & end stands. My home is still a mess though & in need of some serious attention!!! I wonder if it would be animal abuse if I put some dusting cloths on my dogs feet & had them walk on the tables....hmmm Arizona is an Alaskan husky...perhaps we could have her pull the vacuum around!!! Ok, lots ta do & only a short time to do it!! Happy Monday =)

Buster Brown snugglin with ken while we watched a movie. I just love this pic. =)

The Christmas Village

Only 45 more days till Christmas!!!! =)