Pocketful of Blue

I had a little meltdown the day after Christmas. It was the overflowing basket of dirty clothes that put me over the edge. It all adds up. The busyness of the season, the expectations, the demands, trying to get it all done and make everyone happy. By the end, I just felt drained. Hubby was the lucky one who bore the brunt of my tears and frustration. He asked me if I would like to have the next day to myself - he knows me well enough to know just what I needed - time to recharge. I happened upon the blog, Mrs. Kendall , today and read these words: " . . .for me, having something to do every single day without a day to recharge is a strain on my sanity. Call me an introvert, a recluse, a hermit--the label you assign makes no difference to me. The truth is that the holidays drain me. From the onset of Thanksgiving until the end of the year, I'm an increasingly frazzled bundle of nerves." I totally relate. If you do too, I think you would enjoy ...

So true! Thank you all for sharing your friendship and beautiful homes with me this year! And thank you to all of you who come by to visit throughout the year!! Merry Christmas Everyone,

Just a few pictures to share today of our entry and family room decorations. I hope you're all not too tired of looking at Christmas decorations. If you are, I completely understand if you want to run away from the computer,  bury your head in a pillow and scream because you can't take one more blog post about Christmas!  : ) Not that I would ever do that, of course! I'll try to make it short and sweet. ~ entryway ~ ~ Christmas duck - because doesn't everyone have a Christmas duck? ~ ~ Christmas tree - in case you couldn't tell it's the Christmas tree ~ ~ sofa table ~ ~ other table ~ ~ the end ~ I hope you're enjoying these last couple days of preparation and keeping the stress to a minimum! Stop every now and then and take a deep breath or just scream into a pillow! HAPPY HOLIDAYS, - joining - DWELLINGS-THE HEART OF YOUR HOME ~ AMAZE ME MONDAY BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH ~ MET MONDAY C...

I always enjoy decorating the kitchen for Christmas. Just like our dining nook that I posted about recently, I tried to decorate with things that have a winter or Christmas feel rather than things that are specifically Christmas.  The little angel above might be the exception. I just love her, so she had to be included. When I found this tray with the Currier & Ives winter scene on Ebay, I thought it would be really nice for Christmas.  Adding some greenery and red ribbon is an easy way to create the holiday feeling too.  I cut some branches from our boxwoods and stuck them in a jar of water ~ it doesn't get easier than that! This wreath has been hanging above our cooktop for awhile so I just added a simple green bow. And I added some Christmas towels to my utensil basket.  My baking corner has been used a lot this season. The cookies are a gift for Grandpa ~ his favorite chocolate chip. Another favorite ~ this...

I'm never sure exactly what to call this area of our house. It's next to the kitchen and it's our only dining area but it's not  really a dining room.   So I have decided to call it our dining nook. Now that we have that settled, I would like to show you how I decorated it for the holidays. Much of what I decorated with this year isn't specifically for Christmas  but I used things that have a winter or Christmas feel to them. So I put together a vignette on our table using green and red and still incorporating my favorite blue. In the corner above my little table, a wooden star hangs  from my bird hook. We keep this little lamp on all of the time in the winter and I like the way it casts a glow on the star. I especially love the addition of the pomegranates. They're such a pretty shade of rosy red. Thank you for taking a look at our dining nook. I'll be back soon with more of my Christmas...

I think a lot of us love Scandinavian style decorating but I think it is especially beautiful for Christmas. vibeke design It's characterized by a beautiful simplicity. vibeke design Elements from nature are used quite often. vibeke design You see a lot of white and green with a little red slipped in occasionally. vita ranunkler Isn't this little guy below just the sweetest thing? vita ranunkler Simple and yet, elegant. vita ranunkler Add some little numbered tags to some silver candlesticks. vita ranunkler Or a sprig of spruce to some white candles. lantlif What could be more simple, inexpensive and lovely? Do you love Scandinavian style for Christmas too?