Deck The Halls

Christmas. Is it a coincidence that one of the most magical times of the year...the time when we adorn our home with our favorite holiday decorations...comes during the darkest days when we spend the most time indoors? Perhaps, but in any case, I so enjoy creating a festive, cozy place for my family to relax and enjoy during this special season. And in case you are interested, here are way too many pictures of our holiday home. : )

Our kitchen table... I rearranged the kitchen area. I just do that sometimes. No reason. : )

A new centerpiece this year...

the sideboard...

with one of my favorite pieces. This cute Santa is actually a replica of one my mother had.

A nighttime pic of the tree in the kitchen...

near the sweet sign that hangs behind the table.

A lone candy cane that was too cute to leave out...

across from the tea and coffee table all decked out for Christmas.

I found this cute little cupboard to hold the hot cocoa.

And hung one of my favorite signs up too.

I added a new one this year. I just love Etsy...the place where people with many talents offer things for people like me. ; )

One little cupboard in the kitchen displays my grandmother's Christmas tea cups.

The Christmas mantle...

a little pillow on the rocker near the fireplace...

where our Brownie keeps an eye on things...

our special Christmas Eve candle waiting to be lit...

 a few sweet signs hanging up as well...

and the little holiday tree

decorated with candy canes make the Hearth Room cozy as can be.

Here is what it looks like all put together. You may notice we added a love seat. This room is where everyone seems to gather, and we needed more seating. : )

This is the view from the Hearth Room looking into the kitchen...

and a close up of the garland that hangs throughout our home during this happy season.

Around the corner is the TV room...

where these sweet blocks sit on top of the book shelf near a sweet smelling candle that burns at night...

and where our family tree glows day and night...

and still holds some of the ornaments, candles, and bows I bought for our first Christmas years ago.

Underneath...the beautiful Nativity Steve's parents gave us years ago as well. : )

Steve's tree is all lit up in his den...

with beautiful wildlife ornaments all around.

One more tree...the kids tree in the basement. We decorated this a few weeks ago...

with a special ornament from a dear friend to celebrate our first year of homeschooling. : )

And of course...our Home for the Holidays candle that burns every evening (and all day long ) in our country home.

Thanks for visiting, friends!

This Makes Me Happy...Memories And Traditions

So many things about the Christmas season make me happy. Among them is recalling the memories of when I was a child and recreating those special moments as traditions for my own children. Long before the Elf on the Shelf appeared (which we also enjoy) we had our brownie. And our brownie boot. The brownie visited my own childhood home during the Christmas season, and my mother's before that. The brownie is a special helper of Santa. He stands near his Santa boot during the day, then at night he hides. In the morning, the little ones search high and low to find him. He doesn't visit every night, perhaps every three or four nights and when he does, he brings a little treat. Sometimes he brings chocolate or lip gloss or holiday socks...just something to add to the magic of Christmas.

I have such wonderful memories of being a child and seeing my mom place the brownie boot near our fireplace. I knew that meant Christmastime had come. My own mother still recalls sitting in her own living room with her brother and seeing chocolate bars magically fall from the chimney. : )


I was blessed that my mother passed our special brownie and brownie boot on to me, and I enjoy reliving these special, magical moments and experiencing Christmas through a child's eyes. The magical days of childhood are so fleeting. I am thankful to be able to add to the magic and make memories for my children. It may seem silly, but memories and traditions make me happy.

Our brownie...he has seen years of love. : )

Weekend Plans

Love this time of year! This weekend is a quiet one for us, and I am glad. Friday we are planning to visit my father. He is on some new medication and seems to be responding very well. I am so happy for him to have some peace in his mind. : ) After our visit, we are planning on dinner out before heading home.

Saturday Steve and Rhett will be heading back to camp. Steve was successful on the first day this year...an eight point!...and now it is Rhett's turn. Hopefully they will have a not too cold day! The girls and I will be staying home and attending Mass. After that, I am thinking perhaps some Chinese for dinner and home for a night of Christmas movies in jammies. : )

Sunday I am going to put come chicken in the crock pot for a late dinner. Then the girls and I are planning on doing some cookie baking. Like I said...love this time of year. I strive to avoid the crazy, busy, hectic, commercial pressure that seems to accompany this beautiful season. I have learned that by saying "No" to certain requests and invitations allows us time to focus more on the quiet, simple family time that we enjoy.

And that is our December weekend. I hope yours is cozy and festive and fun, whatever your plans may be! Thanks for stopping by!

All set to bake the pumpkin pies last week...

and they were as good as always. : )

Breakfast every single Thanksgiving...Turnovers by Pillsbury...too busy to bake that morning! : )

Have I mentioned what an awesome helper my Peyton is?

A blurry phone shot of Flynn this week...

and then later all ready for Mass.

December means spending some time these days with this...

and a certain little lady wearing an Elf on the Shelf nightgown while waiting for our Zip to return.

And return he did. : )

 Steve was successful this year...father and son had a great time at camp. : )

One last picture...me and my Madison last weekend all ready for Mass.

Happy December Weekend, friends!

Notes From The Schoolroom...November 2013

November was a quick month, wasn't it? We worked along and actually completed the first grading period! Where does the time go?

Madison is working well. Her Consumer Math class is very interesting and quite useful. She is learning about paychecks and deductions and taxes and is finding it very interesting. I am so glad she is taking a course that applies directly to her real life. She is also working well in her Literature class. I love literature myself, and am enjoying revisiting the beautiful pieces I haven't read since college. Her least favorite is Earth and Space Science. Let's just say she tolerates it. : )

Peyton is loving her science class. She is learning so many things that she actually has an interest in. It is so wonderful to watch her read something and then jump up and excitedly share it with us. On the other hand, Spanish is not exactly her favorite. But we carry on. : )

Rhett is becoming my rock star! He and I have the most fun doing his math lessons, of all things! We work through them together, and after we submit them, he always gives me a high five! So cute! He is excelling at Spanish, and really enjoys it. Least favorite for him would have to be Language arts, mainly because he prefers to read books of his own choosing.

Flynn continues to enjoy our mornings together. She is still working on letter recognition, math concepts, and small motor skills. We completed a few fun art projects this past month including handprint turkeys and a turkey headband. She discovered a new love...glitter glue. Yay. ; ) We also began learning about the saints, beginning on All Saints Day, and studying a new one each Friday. She loves it, and so do I.


Things I'm loving...

1. Sitting in my glider watching my kids work
2. Watching Rhett gain confidence in Math
3. Watching Flynn discover letters in places other than the schoolroom : )
4. Sharing a cup of tea with Madison everyday

And not so much...

1. Keeping a little lady from distracting my three older students with cute songs and dances
2. Geometry. Enough said.

Here are a few pictures of our schoolroom adventures last month!

Thanksgiving decorations replaced the Halloween ones...

and turkeys made from handprints replaced the jack-o-lanterns.

Sometimes we did our schoolwork in warm cozy jammies. : )

Flynn and I read about special people who loved Jesus very much...

and then colored pictures and added them to our Wall of Saints.

We made a turkey headband for Thanksgiving Day...

and couldn't wait to try it on! : )

Favorite snacks last month were cheese and crackers...

and chocolate chip muffins. : )

Thanks for visiting!