Tuesday, December 30, 2014

An Unfamiliar Room


"Entering the new year
is like going into a big and almost
unfamiliar room."
Faith Baldwin
Evening Star



"Having tried to travel light,
I hope I haven't brought the brittle,
broken disappointments with me--
they can cut like glass--
or the faded shopworn things
that should have been thrown out long since."
Faith Baldwin


"But some old things, the good ones,
without which the new-year room
would be very empty,
are the qualities,
emotions,
and attachments we have cherished;
these fit into the room
like a hand in a glove."
Faith Baldwin



"Love and loyalty--
a quality rarer than one thinks--
gratitude,
remembered without embarrassment,
and joy recalled,
without mourning."
Faith Baldwin


"No new room becomes one into which we
can fit with ease
and live with security
if it lacks these."
Faith Baldwin


"It is easier said than done,
this moving only the good memories
into the new room,
compelling oneself to discard the unhappy ones.

But I find as the years go past
and I move from one year's room into another,
that I manage to take less with me
of the things I do not need
and should never have kept."
Faith Baldwin




Shall we travel light
into the unfamiliar room of
2015?

Saturday, December 27, 2014

A Family Christmas


Our Christmas sparkled


From beginning


To end


I cooked



Christy cooked



We cooked


We laughed


We ate


Christy and Bryan walked with Maddie & Zoe


We enjoyed the Christmas tree


And we enjoyed visits from next door son, Gurn


All our fur babies got along, mostly



I had lessons in operating new devices


We opened stockings


And we opened presents


And Defee & Wallace spent Christmas at home
where Defee read bedtime stories


And the sisters told each other secrets


Some napped


Some peeked


On Christmas Day they visited Wallace's family
where matching Christmas aprons must mean
that the ladies were baking


CC was smiling at her first Christmas



And Nora tried on her first ballet slippers



R.H. and I had lunch before Christmas
with my sister Teresa and b-in-law Fred,
but only we ladies had our photo taken


And to say Merry Christmas to sisters Deb & Jenn
with part of their family
here's their Thanksgiving Day photo


It was a wonderful and blessed Christmas!

Thank you for looking at these family pictures!



Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Merry Christmas!



A
Merry
Christmas
Greeting to
You and those
At your fireside.
Your happiness at
This glad season will
Make mine complete
Accept my best wishes
For this Joyous Season…
And a prayer that the days
Of the New Year will bring us
All Health,
Happiness
And Peace.

Southern Agriculturist
December 1946

And a Merry Christmas from Dewena's Window to you!

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Christmas Table for 6 in Kitchen


For Christmas table #4 from last year, we're eating in the kitchen. 



Of course to truly eat in the kitchen and have the kitchen looking like this, we'd have to have the meal catered. 



This mid-century china pattern is called Dwarf Pine.



I think it's fabulous! There's such a modern Asian look to it.



Those pretty glasses with white Christmas trees came from Goodwill. I have five sets of vintage and not so vintage Christmas glasses that all came from Goodwill and love to use them. Even Arby's Currier & Ives glasses look great with the right table setting.



Thin white French bouillon cups were the only other china as I didn't want to hide the pretty pink plates.



White snow sprayed on dwarf pine from our yard made a nice centerpiece with white Christmas trees.



Setting a fancy Christmas table in the kitchen does work, eating a home cooked meal in there at the same time is not as easy.



I hope you've enjoyed my recap of the 4 Christmas tables I created for one post at Across the Way last year. R.H. and I worked our tails off on that one so maybe you'll forgive me for wanting to post the pictures again.

Now, to end this post I must include a picture of Nora that our son sent me. When you see it, you'll understand why this one had to appear on Mimi's blog.




Is she not adorable?

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Table for 4 in Living Room


Here's the second day of revisiting my four Christmas tables from last year. To sit four in the living room we brought in a garden table.



The table was a mixture of special Spode plates with a crimson border, an urn of flowers in the center…



And Spode Christmas Tree…



And these unusual Metropolitan chop plates…



And there we have a romantic dinner table for four in the living room.