... may your spirit be LIGHT

Just like 'that', another Christmas is gone! I think we allow ourselves to get so wrapped up in the preparations and planning, as that is what allows us to enjoy a Holiday (or vacation, or wedding, or any special event) just a little bit longer! "Life is a journey..."

... and with the 'destination' of Christmas reached, it is now time to start embarking on the next journey!

Hmmm... where will 2009 take us? Are you jumping into it with an aggressive resolution? I try to avoid this, but somehow the desire for yet another 'destination' wins out in the form of a resolution every year! After all, how can there be a journey without a destination??

As the temperatures in Upstate NY 'soared' into the 60's this past weekend, I was inspired. Right now, our house is maxed out with X-mas (NOT to be dismantled until after New Years!). My 'daily' beloved treasures are stashed here and there to make room for the Holiday decor. I'm in need of a 'lighter spirit'. Feeling something of a need to purge. To regain control. To tighten up. To air out the cluttered spaces of our home. With this comes my New Years resolution. I have made a specific list of closets/drawers/cabinets/areas in need of a thorough sorting/purging/cleaning/organizing. My intention is to 'do' one of these a month. Sounds 'do-able', and broken down in this manner, not TOO overwhelming.

I'm well aware of the 'lightness of spirit' that can be gained through a deep purge, and I'm ready! Don't get me wrong, I am NOT a minimalist at heart!! I love my 'stuff'... for the most part it does not drain me... It has not put me into debt . It does not restrict our having people into our house (my 'stuff' is not so precious that I stress out when little hands touch it, nor do I hide it before parties for fear of breakage!). It does not interefere with other activities (it is neat and well displayed, but I do not stay home to clean!!). I am not paying for a storage facility just to house it! It is all organized and easily accessible (Yes, I can lay my hands on any given 'stray bit' within minutes). I thrive on my 'stuff'... but occasionally we all need the 'rush' of lightening our load - a bit!

What is your 'destination' for the New Year?? What is your desired 'rush' for 2009?

With an optimistic anticipation, I wish a HAPPY 2009 for everyone!

...Dear Santa,

NOTHING LIKE deadlines to keep ya moving!!

Finished Plarn Bags #7 & #8 last night! Two identical, simple 'MAN-bags' in Purple-White & Carhart tan. To be delivered tomorrow as joke gifts for the 2 guys I work with. They have been unmerciful with their harassment of " 'Sr. Citizen' crafting with plastic bags" and "Bag Lady" comments!!
They will be filled with lottery tickets and their beloved Mallow Cups (which I finally located and ordered on the internet!!). Here is another picture to give you a better idea of the 'styling'!

Anyone who 'knows' me, 'knows' my attachment to socks... Particularly HOLIDAY socks!! I have enough pairs for most Holidays to celebrate the ENTIRE month preceeding. I am LOVING this package that I found waiting for me on my desk yesterday morning!! CLASSICS, (with high ankles - don't 'do' the 'ped' thing!!). With them having the same background colors, I can mix-n-match too! Today I am sporting my all-time favorite pair... one 'Dear Santa' and one Re-Gift!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!

...Turkey or Black?

Trying to identify these birds that are starting to take over our area...

...3,168.

Just back from three solid days of baking with 'The Crew'... 31 different kinds of cookies... (plus a couple of different 'candies...)

66 Batches (guesstimate of 4 dozen per batch)... = 264 dozen...

OR approximately 3, 168 cookies!!

(we left the decorating of the cutouts for our 'little' visitors - I LOVE the solid red sprinkled tree!!)

...number six.

'WALLY-WORLD RE-DESIGN'

I think the Holidays are only as crazy and chaotic as we make them. I was cruising along with no major stresses... UNTIL ... Last minute Christmas party! AND I decided (on Dec. 4!!) that a fellow 'bag loving' friend needed a blue/white plarn bag for our saling adventures. I will be meeting up with her and 'the crew' (ie: college friends) TONIGHT for our annual long-weekend of cookie baking. I finished her bag LAST NIGHT! I'm not a 'blue' person (she is!!), but I think it's looks kinda cool. ** Major kudos to Mom, who has paper grocery bags FULL of years & years worth of neatly folded plastic bags... including lots of the old blue W-Mart bags!! **

...'A VERA PRESENT'

A little thrift 'Holiday de-stressing' therapy...

Set of four new VERA napkins... .75¢, Sweater Clip... $1.00, Silk VERA scarf... .25¢, De-Stressing... priceless. (Sorry, couldn't resist!!)

..."WHAT DO CROWS EAT??"

I was recently asked this question by a friend from the South. Since the town I live in is basically the 'Crow Capitol', they expected me to know the answer. I told them 'roadkill' and 'garbage - particularly if there are old chicken wings in it!'.

DH & I have learned that we can NOT put our garbage out the evening before pick-up, as we will just be sweeping, retrieving and re-bagging it ALL again in the morning. The photo above is the scene left on the sidewalk after pick-up this morning. Our bag was only our there for 1 hour!!

Further down the sidewalk, I noticed some 'left-overs' from a neighbor who had apparently put their trash out last night...
...so I guess the answer to the question will now have to include 'cigarettes'?!!

...If it makes you HAPPY...

Decorating is DONE! ...and these are a few of the things that are making me smile right now.......

TINY BLOSSOMS!I think I can... I think I can...

SHROOMIN' SANTA!I bet when I got this as a 'joke gift' last year they thought they would get it back this year - NOT!

TREE TOPPERS!

In their temporary Haeger Home!


CRAB UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE!

Birthday present that Dad made for me and I wasn't ready to put away yet - making himself at home under the tree!


HAEGER PRESENTS! (under the 'VERA' tree)

...and I thought up this idea all on my own!!


THE CHRISTMAS FOREST!

a bizarre twist on the 'Nativity scene'??


HOLIDAY HAEGER!

What do you think it held originally?



TWO MORE HOLIDAY HAEGER!

I'm sure they were originally a 'bit' more conventional!


A UNION OF CANDLE CLIMBERS!

just fun!


REUNITED!

flocking to the Haeger


FREE HAPPY MAIL!

I may be visiting a mall this season after all...

...we now interupt your regular scheduled program...

Saturday morning I was up bright (well, DARK here in the NE!!) and early, eagerly pulling MORE totes-o-holiday Stuff down from the attic (Brrrr!) and setting up our aluminum trees....



By 10 am, it had brightened outside - I almost think I caught a glimpse of the sun! It was frigid and windy, but clear and no snow!! DH and I decided that we couldn't waste what might be one of our last 'decent' days for a while - inside! So we went out venturing. I DETEST large, crowded malls this time of the year (especially on a SATURDAY!!) - so we toyed around with a few local small village options.



We ended up in Ithaca! NOT 'small', but a FUN - ARTSY college town (Cornell & Ithaca Colleges), set at the foot of the FingerLake Cayuga. We went 'downtown' to the Commons where we happened upon a children's show - complete with carolling, Rudolph and Elves repelling down the sides of the buildings!! A lot of window shopping... a few purchases... and a special treat of lunch at one of our favorites!



Our trip home was 'aimless wandering'... freezing water falls, a couple of thrifts and an INSIDE Estate Sale, where I found this......rather tame for a VERA, and 'blue' is NOT my thing, but for 25¢ it had to be added to my collection!




Yes, there were Tons of things I 'should' have been doing... but who can say 'No' to a SWEET day of pure enjoyment during the Holiday Chaos?!!

My 'early morning' decorating resulted in...The small Aluminum tree in our red/black kitchen was decked with the gold-toned 'Things Remembered' 'cheesy-tacky' ornaments I've been gathering and have graciously had gifted to me AND small red balls. The 'TR' ornament are too delicate though, and just kind of blend in with the aluminum branches. I tried positioning them near a red ornament - that helped... a little. I will have to rethink this plan for another year! Maybe a green (?!) or a darker colored tree... hmmm.

Next was the table top aluminum tree in the Dining room - you know, the one that gets the lime-orange-purple decorations...

The base of this tree is swathed in appropriately colored 'VERA'...

...and the little 'mirror mosaic' bird I found this summer was positioned on a Haeger perch!

This morning there was 'hint' of us possibly hosting a Christmas Happy Hr. this weekend. Just 'in-case' I better FINISH this decorating fun, and do a little cleaning!!!

...meeting of the minds

There have long been studies on the the distinct sides/hemispheres of the brain...

Left Brain vs. Right Brain.

In short, each is responsible for different things. The Right Brain controls the left side of the body - the artistic/creative; and the Left Brain controls the right side - the logical/balanced.

In our home, I am definitely the RB (right brainer - Interior Designer) and DH is the LB (structural engineer). They say that 'Opposites Attract'... and in this case, they most certainly did! It is all good though, we temper each other out!

Such goes the way of our Holiday Decorating...It started on Black Friday, with me just putting up a couple of garlands around the doorways/window. These garlands get my hoards of vintage ornaments (NOT plain solid-color balls! They must have indents, special shapes or multi-colors!)

"It's not even"... "It isn't supposed to be"... "There's more on this side than the other side" ... "That's okay" ... "Let me call up last years photos on the computer, so we can see how you did it then" ... "It isn't supposed to be exactly the same"

Can you guess which of us was making which comments?!!

Remember these 'star' ornaments that I found back in MARCH? They have found a 'home' at last...

Saturday, 11-29 proved to be a decent day for decorating the exterior - DH's domain - outlining the garage! This photo is from last year, but it's okay because it basically looks the same this year with just a few improvement modifications (the line of lights under the window are not there this year, and bigger wreath!) ... I have to admit it DOES look cool!

Sunday, 11-30 the real fun rolled in when we went to pick out a tree. We don't have a whole lot of floor space, so the tree needs to be skinny ~ but we like a TALL tree... A few years ago we found the perfect solution - 6' skinny tree, put on a 12" platform of vintage wooden ammo boxes (covered by the tree skirt). Gives room under the lower branches for LOTS of goodies ~and~ gives it height! As we were decorating the tree together, DH asked 'Where are the real ornaments?' (ie: solid-colored glass balls)... and I had to explain to him (as I do every year...) "The live tree is for 'sentimental' ornaments" ...ornaments from our childhood trees, handmade 'tackies' from Aunties, wedding gifts, special memory Hallmarks... Not the most glamorous of trees, but My favorite!!

I have no saling finds to report, just happy to be 'playing with my Holiday toys'! The 'decorative' 'theme trees' will be put into place (and photographed)... SOON!!!

...it's all about...

As HORRIBLY selfish as this sounds, I had a WONDERFUL 'It's all about ME week'! (Bestowed upon me, since my birthday and Thanksgiving fell on the same day this year).

It started last Friday, and like the Energizer Bunny, it has kept going and going and going... The 'kick-off' was an AMAZING Birthday Boxful from Shara, who spoiled me rotten with ALL of my favorites, including a tacky chalkware fish for my collection, orange/purple & lime green deco's for my Xmas tree, the Seriously Retro dress (one of her finds that I had been lusting after!!), etc., etc, ... even a piece of Haeger!! Did I mention the 'calorie free' slice of cake she 'baked up' for me (first photo)!! Sunday was off 'to market'...

where the 'goodies' continued to abound!

My first 'grab' was this sad cat planter off the 'infamous quarter table'... Pathetic as it originally appeared, I knew what lye beneath...YES! a charming piece of ROYAL HAEGER!! (MUCH better without the 'paint job' - don't you think?!!) Other goodies included an aging Senorita (aren't we all?!), a Shawnee vase, a lipstick stand and a pair of JAPAN Toucans.

Wednesday at work I rec'd a gift of THREE hatpins for yet another of my collections! How many people can say that their boss has done that for them??.

In a continuation of showing you some of my collection displays, here are two (out of five) of my Hatpin holders...

So... the saling season may have ended, but the good stuff keeps a coming!! Hope everyone is enjoying their Holiday Prep / Celebrating!!.

...losing touch with reality

Today I looked around our house, and felt a tad schizophrenic (def: losing touch with reality.)

...Inside the house is decorated for Fall / Thanksgiving...

...Outside has been slammed into WINTER...(Poor 'Rebecca' (the fountain) is looking a wee bit chilly!! )

...Saturday was spent making candy / snacks for stocking stuffers... (NOT to worry... My parents/DH &I exchange stockings the day after Thanksgiving!! It is our 'traditional' exchange with the requirement being that all items are 'sale finds' or 'homemade'!! Dad loves blackwalnuts, so I have several 'candy' recipes that I have revised to incorporate them. *Just for the record, in my book if it requires a candy thermometer or 'double boiler', then it is considered 'candy'!! **If you ever find any of the commercial size 'baking sheets' for cheap GRAB THEM - I found these two, new, at sales this summer for about $1 each and LOVE them - Too big for the oven, but other uses are endless!)

...and this past week, I found a couple of stores with their Halloween on sale 90% OFF!!... (ALL of this Halloween goodness - napkins, reusable plastic plates, socks..., plus a bag of gummie candy, not pictured, only cost $1.23 - GOTTA LOVE IT!!)

What Holiday are we approaching? What season are we in 'exactly'?????

ADDED 11-23: Oh Yeh, and as Shara so kindly reminded me... there are random Bits-O-Birthday scattered among all of the other seasons/holidays!!

...it's here to stay.

We have had snow, on and off, for the last couple of weeks, but...

This is what greeted me this morning when I stepped out onto the porch at 7am! When I went to bed last night, we only had a light dusting, so you can imagine my SURPRISE!! Sure, getting a few flurries in November is nothing new, but they say 'It's here to stay'. Ugh. Yes, it is pretty... for about the first five minutes.

2 hours later, this is the view from our kitchen window of the hill next door...

Yes. it's still coming down - HARD, but the neighborhood kids are out enjoying it. (If you look closely you can see the 'sledding' paths in the middle of the photo!)

EVERYWHERE I LOOK!!! (view from the window by the computer)

It's a good thing I got the Thanksgiving decorations out last weekend, 'cause had it been left for this weekend, I'm sure they would have been bypassed and I would have gone straight to Christmas!!

** DISCLAIMER: This IS NOT going to become a 'weather' blog... but the first 'real' of EACH season is always noteable **

*STUFF FINDS of the week will come later...