Home Again After Travels

Home again, home again!

For more than a week, we have been on a whirlwind trip to Denver, Colorado. 

To say that our hosts there were marvelous is an understatement. They treated us like royalty! They showed us more sights in that fabulous city in a few short days than I ever imagined possible.

Denver is a pretty exciting city with hundreds of places to see, restaurants to visit, and things to do. It's a great place for young people to live, that's for sure.

In yesterday's post, when writing I would do it differently the next time , I meant that traveling close to the Christmas holidays is challenging.  It takes a big bite out of spending.

 But is it worth it?  Oh most definitely. Sometimes we just have to get out of living in a box, right?

  Plus, one cannot put a price on spending time with loved ones.

In coming weeks, I'm going to post again about our trip so if you like reading about new places, be sure to tune in.

As the plane taxied out of the Denver Airport, tears fell fast and furiously from my eyes. It was time to say goodbye to two people I love so much. 

Thoughts of all we did in the previous days whirled in my head. Goodbye dear ones. Goodbye Denver. 

To our Denver hosts, I send you all the love that's in my heart. Thanks so much for the abundant, beautiful, and sweet memories!

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO DENVER, COLORADO?  IF YES, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY?

Coming Home

On Tuesday, I will be in the air, flying home, so this post will have to do until Wednesday!

We have been on a vacation for nine sweet days in Denver, Colorado, and I have SO much to share with you. Can't wait.

The worst thing about it, though, is that we had no Internet service in our room.  So, any time I went to post, I had to haul my laptop to a place that had a connection.  It was frustrating to say the least but I didn't miss a post.  I love you guys and girls!

See you all on Wednesday, God-willing and the creeks don't rise! 

HAVE YOU EVER PLANNED A TRIP NEAR A HOLIDAY?  (Will do it differently next time but it was wonderful.)

Away from Traditional Colors at Christmastime

Some people love to stick with traditional red and green colors at Christmas time. 

In our house, the tree is usually done in gold and white with touches of pink.

Recently, however, I saw silver, a kind of turquoise, and  white used in decorating and it was quite beautiful. The photos in this post all came from inside the Oxford Hotel in Denver, Colorado.

The decorations hanging from the ceiling were quite breathtaking.

It's the oldest hotel in that unique and vibrant city.  The Oxford is very elegant. 

Turquoise, silver. and white go so beautifully together, don't you think?

There was even a large container of orange water on a counter. 

 It's a refreshing thing to drink and I think I'll keep some in a pitcher in  the refrigerator all through the holiday season.

Although we didn't stay there,  I was able to go into the lobby and snap a ton of photos.  Many of them I'm going to share in near future posts.  It was so beautiful and I truly want to share it with you, my dear readers.

DO YOU LIKE THE COLOR COMBINATION SHOWN IN TODAY'S PHOTOS?

Time to Decorate!

Right after the last Thanksgiving sandwich has been eaten, out come the Christmas decorations.

At least that's how it's always been at our house.  This year, however, is a bit different. We will be getting a later than usual start to decorating.

Pretty soon, however, the angels will come down from the attic as well as box upon box of ornaments and decorations. 

Remember to take frequent breaks as the holiday rush begins.  Baking, decorating, planning, shopping, and wrapping all have to be done, but  not all at the same time.

This Sunday, as decorations get unwrapped and placed around the house, keep happiness in your heart.  It's a stressful season but beautiful, too. 

Looking at the beautiful angel above makes me feel peaceful and filled with anticipation for the weeks ahead.

I hope you have a heart filled with peace today and all through the holiday season. 

DO YOU DECORATE FOR THE HOLIDAYS WITH ANGELS?

Special (Offbeat) Gifts for the Holidays

Are you one of those people who loves giving a gift that's just a little bit different than stuff found in big name stores?

If you are, get ready to check out a few things on today's post.

In a darling store called Huntington Country Store, located in a small burg in Western Massachusetts, you can find so many offbeat gifts that it will make your head spin.

For instance, many people bring bottles of wine for as hostess gifts around the holidays. Well, the Huntington Country Store carries bottle toppers that you'll get a "kick" out of.

Look at  these dancing girls who dove right into the bottles!

Oops. Looks like Santa took a nosedive, too!

Or how about some unique tweezers or nail clippers to stuff in those stockings? These were so cool:

Someone who burns incense might get a kick out of this very scary-looking incense burner:

But, for the holidays, perhaps a gentle angel is more to your personal liking.

 

Go to the Huntington Country Store's website for more pleasant holiday dreaming.

DO YOU LOOK FOR SPECIFIC GIFTS FOR PEOPLE ON YOUR HOLIDAY LIST?

Happy Thanksgiving

                                   (Photo is of  Lake Dillon in Dillon, Colorado, by Susan Wicker)

Today, Thanksgiving Day, we give thanks for all good things.

For family and friends who are so dear to our hearts.

For new babies, perfect and fresh from the hands of God. For their sweet lips and fingers and toes and their eyes when they meet ours.

For delicious turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and  all the other trimmings. Of course, for apple and pumpkin pies, too, and for great abundance.

We give  thanks for the beauty of the earth. For blue skies and clouds, sun and evergreen trees, lakes and brooks and streams.

We give thanks for being part of this great planet.

We give thanks for the gifts of technology and the ability to blog all over the United States and  in countries all over the world.

Today, we give thanks for the amazing gift of life.

To God, our Creator, we give the greatest thanks of all.

Special Thanksgiving blessings to all Followers, Commenters, and visitors to this blog.

Love you all and I'm so happy you are part of my life.

 WHAT HAS BEEN THE BEST PART OF YOUR DAY SO FAR?

Day Before The Thanksgiving Feast

Today, all across American, as we are baking, chopping, cooking, peeling, planning, and getting ready for the Big Feast, we must pause.

It's important to really think about all we have to be grateful for.

(Photo from the Denver Art Museum)

Sometimes, getting caught up in the frenzy of preparing, we forget what the holiday is all about----to be thankful.

Despite the difficulties and challenges all of us face, we are still very, very blessed.  We have a lot for which to be thankful.

So as the preparations begin, let me just say, I am thankful for so many things, including YOU!

WHAT ARE YOU MOST GRATEFUL FOR THIS WEDNESDAY?

Gifts for Bird Lovers

Chances are there is someone on your holiday list that is a bird lover.

He or she faithfully leaves seed out all winter for the chilly feathered ones.

For instance, I know someone who loves red cardinals.  Wouldn't she get a kick out of the little fellow pictured at the top of this post?

Bird baths come and go but one I saw recently can even be separated. The glass part can be used on a table or as a decorative accent in the home.  It was soooooo beautiful.

This unique bird bath was also displayed:

I found the bird house and birdbaths shown in today's post at the Huntington Country Store in Western Massachusetts.  Check out their website on the Internet! 

DO YOU KNOW ANY BIRD LOVERS?

Gearing Up for the Holidays

As the double holiday season, Thanksgiving and Christmas, comes closer and closer, at breakneck speed, remember to take time for yourself.

Wouldn't you just love to disappear some afternoons?  You could leave a sign. like the one below, in your kitchen.

(I spotted the sign in Lanesboro Junction, a fabulous crafts shop in Western Massachusetts. It made me laugh outloud).

There was a Halloween post on this shop which, if you missed it and want to read it, go here.http://writingstraightfromtheheart.blogspot.com/2011/10/creepy-eerie-spooky-halloween-hello.html

You know how sometimes you see something in a shop but restrain yourself?  You don't buy it but then you keep thinking that you should have? 

Well, that's how I feel about this adorable sunflower tablerunner, also seen at Lanesboro Junction. It's beautifully made and would look SO NICE on my kitchen table.

 Uhhhhhh, Santa? (Hubs?)  Santa, (Daughter?) are you reading this blog? Hope so.

Do you know anyone who collects chickens?  These would be a cute gift:

Many of this blog's readers love handmade things. This I know and I'm with you, non-commercial merchandise all the way. That's why I love little gift and crafts shops like Lanesboro Junction. Here's what it looks like on the outside.                                                                                                             

Check out Lanesboro Junction on Facebook! 

WHAT DO YOU USUALLY LOOK FOR IN CRAFTS SHOPS?

Sweet Pilgrim Shakers for a Special Thanksgiving Treat

It's so much fun to win prizes. Some people are really lucky and frequently win. Others almost never have their names drawn.

Usually, I fall into the latter category. However, this Thanksgiving week, I hit the jackpot. Linda, from A La Carte announced a giveaway of two darling, chubby Ma and Pa Pilgrims.

Oh, they were so cute. I told her to put my name into the hat, never dreaming of winning. When Linda alerted me that my name was drawn and that the little shakers were being sent to me, I had one more thing for which to be very grateful!

Saturday afternoon, stepping out on to our porch to get the mail, the little box with a Priority Mail sticker on it was on the brick floor under the mailbox. "Yikes," was my first reaction, looking at the $7.90 price Linda paid to send them. That's expensive.

It felt like Christmas instead of Thanksgiving. I'm just like a kid when it comes to presents. I ripped open the box at the kitchen table. On top of the wrapping were acorn decorations, the colors of autumn.

 Nestled inside paper were the little Pilgrims. I just loved that they were chubby. (In a way, they look like my Polish relatives. Polish Pilgrims? ha ha)

Linda added a sweet Thanksgiving Day card, too!

The little Pilgrims are together again!

They sit, awaiting Turkey Day, on either side of the acorns, which are now displayed in a little glass dish.

Thanks, Linda. Hope you, as well as anyone reading this post,  will have a bountiful and blessed Thanksgiving.

DO YOU REMEMBER SCHOOL LESSONS ON THE PILGRIMS?

Thanksgiving Turkeys to Look At, Not Eat

"What am I thankful for?,"  the little turtle asked himself.

Then he answered.  "I'm thankful I'm not a turkey."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of turkeys, I recently found a really cute little one that was made in Mexico!

In Mexican markets, there are always little wooden animals that have a mechanism inside that makes their heads bob up and down or back and forth.

 Imagine my surprise when I found some of these "Made in Mexico" animals right here in the good ol' USA.




It was in the Berkshire Mountain Country Store in a small town called Lenox in Western Massachusetts.



I bought the little turkey with the wobbly head, just in time for the holidays. It was hard to get a clear photo of him because his head kept bobbing. Isn't he cute?



He joined his cousin, shown below, on a shelf in the bathroom.

Once, in a magazine, there was a photograph of a hutch filled with shelf after shelf of turkeys. It was the home owner's collection. 

Every kind of turkey imaginable was in there including big boys and little babes. There were cookie jar turkeys, soup tureen turkeys, and candles shaped like turkeys.

It was a great collection. (If I were to die and come back to earth in another life, that might be a good collection to begin. It would definitely be a collection to "gobble" about.)

DO YOU DECORATE WITH TURKEYS AT THANKSGIVING?

Dining with the Dolls

For seven years,  a beautiful, hand-carved Guatemalan hutch has hunkered in a corner of an upstairs bedroom.

Dolls on display could not be seen by visitors.  It seemed a shame.

Some people don't get into dolls at all but not me. I love them. To me, dolls are delightful.

My doll collection has brought a lot of happiness into my life. Someday I'll probably give them all away, maybe to charitable causes, but not yet because I still love just looking at them.

So, after hubs went on errands one afternoon, I took all the dolls off the hutch in the bedroom, hauled the heavy piece of furniture down the stairs,  (thought I'd die), and pulled it into the dining room.

A curio cabinet had to come out. That got dragged into the living room. Then I brought several dolls from upstairs down into the dining room.

Trust me, there are a lot more dolls in various places upstairs. As a matter of fact,  my collection has way too many dolls. Oh well. That's not such a big problem in life.

Many of the dolls in my collection came from flea markets, yard sales, or thrift shops.   Rarely did I ever pay more than $10 for one.

 Considering some wear gorgeous, lacy outfits, right down to detailed shoes,  that's quite amazing. Goes to show there are bargains in the doll world, too!

Now, Emily Post approval or not, we dine with some of the dolls.

Today we are joining Diann for Thrift Things Friday at The Thrifty Groove and Cindy for Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.                                                                                                     

DO YOU LIKE OR DISLIKE DOLLS?