My Worst Fear!

Three kiddos and one camera.  Who wins...not this mom!  Tiny Prints keeps on teasing me with coupon codes but my children have no desire to work with me

Can you make a bunch of out-takes into a cute Christmas card?  If so please let me know!

More Citrus

For the past two day B has been home sick.  This has made for many changes in my weekly schedule but these things happen!  Today B needed a project this afternoon since not enough homework was sent home for her liking.  She is so her father's daughter!

Since we were not making any runs to craft stores I looked to see what I had in hand.  We had a ton of clementines and whole cloves.

So I showed the kiddos how to make clove studded clementines.  An old fashioned but easy Christmas project.

All three kiddos loved coming up with their own patterns.  Plus they loved the way their hands smelled.  It was a simple project that we all enjoyed!

This week might not be going the way I planned but I am happy we have been able to keep in the Christmas spirit!

Wouldn't You Be My Neighbor

When we moved from our townhouse to our current house there was no neighborhood to check out since it was all new construction   And it would be a lie if I told you that didn't make me nervous   "What would my new neighbors be like" was a thought that ran through my mind a lot!  Since there were no house to drive by and/or stalk, we really had no idea what we going to get.

I can't not tell you how lucky we were!   Hubby, myself and the kiddos love our 'hood!!!  And this weekend we got to hang out with them at our annual cul-de-sac Christmas party.  In October the ladies came over to my house for coffee and we picked our date.  Since it is always a progressive dinner, we also assigned three houses a course and "teams" to each house.  This year our house was the "dinner" house.

After a week of projects and cleaning I finally had the house ready by Saturday night.  And I have made up my mind - the rug in our dinning room must go!!!  Plus it will be getting a fresh coat of paint once we replace our front door that was damaged during Sandy.

So for one and a half hours, 15 adults and 18 kiddos enjoyed a dinner of spiral ham, roasted lemon and garlic chicken, green beans, twice baked potatoes and biscuits.  Sounds like a southern Christmas dinner to me.  But I could be wrong since I am a Jersey girl.

I have to say that I enjoyed the "dessert" house the most.  It was nice to not have to worry about being in charge of anything at that point.

Plus our sweet dessert hostess remembered B and L's food issues.  Dessert Wiz A made not one but two gluten free desserts and if you were not told they were g-free you would have never known.  Wiz A made a flourless chocolate cake which was unreal!  She also made chocolate chip dough truffles  which were not only gluten free but also egg free.  A win win in my book!

We all had a wonderful night with great neighbors.  L even enjoyed dinner the next day as his breakfast.  What Southern boy would not enjoy ham and biscuits on Sunday?

Not The Best Use Of Time

I think that I mentioned this before but our cul-de-sac has a progressive Christmas dinner and this year we hosted the dinner part of the night.  So one would think that Saturday morning I was up and cleaning for the party but you would be wrong!  We all got comfy in the family room and watched "Brave".  The kiddos and I had already seen "Brave" in the theater this summer but Hubby had not seen it yet and the kiddos really wanted to show it to him. It is a great movie but ever notice how when Hollywood wants someone to be perceived as wild or an outsider in a movie they give them red hair?

I love taking my kiddos to the movies and watching movies with them at home.  It is not so much about the movie itself as it is about their reactions.  M's reactions in particular.  No one laughs like he does!  

Sometimes M laughs so hard we fear he will have a seizure.  Trust me his laughing fits are unreal! M laughs so hard that there is no way the rest of the family can help but join in  and laugh too.  And "Brave" did not disappoint.  M was laughing from the beginning of the movie until the end.  As were the other two kiddos.  The kiddos would give the movie "Brave" two thumbs up!

Watching a movie with my family while I should have been cleaning might seem like a bad idea but I think overall it was time well spent!!

If You Really Knew Me

 If you had ever walked in my front door there would be no doubt in your mind about my love of blue and white china. Growing up, Royal Copenhagen's "Christmas Plates" surrounded my mother's dining room. I always thought they were so pretty and loved that my father gave mom a new one each Christmas. As a result, when it was time for me to register for my fine china I was completely drawn to Royal Copenhagen's "Blue Fluted Plain".

Over the years I have added to my "blue and white" collection from Churchill to Target and everything in-between. One of my cheapest "blue and white" finds is by far my favorite and just perfect for holiday decor. Two years ago in a super cute NoVA shop, Everyday Elegance, B and I found a stack of Royal Copenhagen's "Christmas Plates" from random years for only $10 a plate.  B and I picked up four plates that had an outdoor theme.  (Winner winner turkey dinner!!!)

While getting the house ready for this weekend's neighborhood party I thought that the train plate was perfect for our front table. The plate reminds me of the "Polar Express".  A simple yet cheery table for the holidays!

To me "blue and white" is a classic.  And it does not matter where you live, North or South, a classic is forever!

Four Year Old Baby

When I look at L, I see the tiny baby that came five weeks too early.  I look at his face and I see how far he has come in four short years.  Despite having to work with his food "issues" he really is a very bright, healthy and energetic (very energetic) four year old boy.  So really when I look at his sweet face I should see a four year old but I can't help it I still see my baby.

So today when we were finally done with school, play-dates, a walk to the bus and after-school activity pick-up L totally fell apart. Big real tears. The poor boy was just plain old wiped out!  L asked me to sit down with him and watch a show with him.  How could I not? I did not even bother to take off my coat.

What a great way to spend half an hour!  Feet up, watching the "Grinch" with my baby!!!

Something Old Is New Again

In 2005 we moved from a cute but very small townhouse to a brand new single family house.  The increase in space was great but the downside is white walls from here to there and a need to furnish a much bigger space!  Have I mentioned how much white walls remind me of the NICU - can't stand them!!!!  So I am sure you understand why I am overjoyed that my mother comes down to NoVa year after year to help me clip away at my "to do" list.

This summer we had to make new curtains for the dining room which was unfortunate.  See last year we made perfectly good curtains but the fabric had a light background and we did not use a blackout liner.  Lesson learned!!!

So yesterday I took those "bad" curtains and turned them "good".  I used them to recover Hubby's

Grandmother's dining-room chairs.  This past Sunday Hubby was kind enough to take all the seat

bottoms off the chairs and uncover them.

Before I started cutting I took the time to press the curtains.  I have to admit that things went smoother than I thought they might.  I laid two seats side by side and then cut the old curtains.  At times it was hard to cut my mother's fine hand sewing.

In high school AP Art they made us stretch our own canvas and so I used that same technique with Granny's chairs.  I am sure that I could have made it look better given more time and practice but there are only two little boys who will see the underside of these chairs on a weekly basis.  I hope I am not the only mom with boys who think a dining room table is the world's most perfect fort!

As soon as I saw Granny's chairs re-covered next to my mom's brand new curtains I started to rethink our dining room rug, which I dislike with a passion. Questions, comments, concerns?

I am linking up with Savvy Southern Style and No Minimalist Here