Catching Up

I need to give you a tour of my new sewing space that David generously shared with me, but here's a preview.  The space where the table is used to have a twin bed that was seldom used.  It's so nice to have this space and not have to clear my stuff off the dining table to eat dinner.  

 I've been using my space to make a few Christmas gifts.

We enjoyed unusually warm weather for the Christmas parade this year!  Some folks are missing from our hastily arranged picture, but we had a big and fun group.  

Mom, Dad, Con, and I saw Love The Coopers, which was a cute (if a little dark) Christmas movie, and Christina and I have done our annual homes tours.  The weather has been strangely warm which is making it seem not very Christmasy, but it's coming up fast!

I Did, I Do, I Will

This week we celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary.  Time truly does fly when you're having fun, and I can't believe it's been 8 years already.

 We celebrated twice - dinner out at a yummy Italian restaurant last weekend and steaks at home on our anniversary.

 Eight beautiful roses for eight wonderful years.

Happy anniversary, David!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Some new additions to the Christmas decorations this year.  I found the Shiny Bright brand topper at a flea market for a reasonable price, and couldn't resist buying it to go with David's mom's ornaments.  I also thought it needed a new retro inspired tree and I found this one at Martin's Floral.  It's a very pale green.  Not something I'd normally choose, but I love the way it looks with the old ornaments!

 I also chose a new tree this year for the spot at the top of the stairs.  It's decorated with cranberry colored wooden beads, dried orange slices, and gingerbread men that I made with applesauce and cinnamon.  I also made it a tea-stained red ticking tree skirt.

 And, just for fun, a new Santa pillow in the chair next to it!  I've had a lot of fun with the new-to-me sewing machine!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was definitely a day for which to be thankful.  We woke up to gray skies, but no rain, and warmish temperatures.

 We improved our Turkey Trot time by 10 minutes over last year's time!  The dogs and people had a great time.

 Soon after, the tables were set and the food was ready.

 We had a great Thanksgiving of 13 family members, friends, and neighbors.

 We ate, we visited, we visited about what we ate...

 I think a good time was had by all.

 It was even nice enough outside to enjoy the fire David had made.

 Gracie stayed hidden while all the guests were there, but she emerged as soon as the last car pulled away and claimed her spot on my lap.

It was a wonderful day!

Thanksgiving Prep

Back in September when I volunteered to have Thanksgiving at our house, I think David was a bit worried.  A few weeks later when I committed to doing the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day, he really began to doubt my sanity.  I was convinced though that with sufficient preparation, lists, and crockpots, we could pull it off!

 Many important tasks were started up to a week before Thanksgiving.  Things that just had to be done - like taking every dish from these shelves and washing them. ;)  Okay, I'll be the first to admit that some things that I do to get ready for company don't make a bit of sense.

 They day before, I peeled, boiled, and mashed 6 pounds of potatoes.  That turned out to be a little much for 13 people, but there's nothing wrong with extra mashed potatoes!

 I knew better than to take on the task of making gravy, so we tried (and disliked) a jar variety.  David bought this at Sam's, and after making a sample batch, we declared it a winner.  We did not foresee that I would get distracted on Thanksgiving Day and boil it over on the stove.  What a mess!  Thick smoke and gravy that I thought would NEVER come off the stovetop.  By the time the first guests arrived, though, the smoke had cleared and David had scrubbed the stove clean.

 I even learned to make coffee!  We received this coffee maker as a wedding gift, and hadn't yet used it.  Coffee turned out not to be too hard to make, and my Dad declared it "pretty good" and "better than McDonald's" - which he drinks every day.

Riley does not like change, and the folding table in the kitchen was just almost too much for him.  I can't remember if it was before the gravy debacle or after, but Gracie made a failed attempt to jump on the table, pulling the tablecloth and a couple of dishes off with her.  The only casualty was a really cute pumpkin plate that was a wedding gift, but I was still thankful that the plate was empty and that I didn't already have the jello sitting out!

I was pretty worried about having a house full of people AND an excited dog, so when Todd offered to dog-sit, I was so relieved!  I love that dog, but not having to worry about him jumping on people or eating off anyone's plate took a lot of stress away!