Holiday Favorites (Especially Children's Books)

Vee wrote about favorites, as did Jill, and it got me thinking...  Here are a few of my holiday favs!

MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY BEVERAGE:  a shot or two of orange juice, added to a glass of diet Sierra Mist "Cranberry Splash" on the rocks.  Try it.  You'll like it!  (And I confess -- I like to drink this whenever I can find the Cranberry Splash -- but it's usually around the holidays, depending where you shop.)

MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY MOVIES:  "White Christmas" and "Home Alone" (the first)

MY FAVORITE SACRED HOLIDAY SONG:  "O Holy Night" :: As a kid, I learned to play it with my piano teacher and when I practiced at home, I would sing along.  Still love it to this day!

MY FAVORITE SECULAR HOLIDAY SONG:  "Silver Bells" :: I can just hear my Gram singing it in her low alto voice.

~ and because I could never pick just one ~

MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY CHILDREN'S BOOKS:  Though our children don't look at these books much anymore, I cannot bear to part with them as they hold so many memories of curling up together during the holiday season.  When Christmas came, I would put all of the holiday books in a big basket in the living room so that they weren't forgotten.  The kids would pick out a different story each night before bed.  It wasn't that many years back that I was reading a Christmas storybook to our daughter, when our son (presumably too old to be bothered) came and camped out on her bedroom floor while we read.  "Tradition!"  he claimed -- and the tears sprung quickly to my eyes making the book page a kaleidoscope of words, unreadable.  Now you understand.  These books have made an impression on my kids, and the time spent cannot be measured in value.  These books will be saved for grandchildren!

One Snowy Night by Nick Butterworth

How Murray Saved Christmas by Mike Reiss

Illustrated by David Catrow

The Pine Tree Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs

Illustrated by Nancy Munger

The Nativity Play by Nick Butterworth and Mick Inkpen

Why Christmas Trees Aren't Perfect by Richard H. Schneider

Illustrated by Elizabeth J. Miles

Auntie Claus by Elise Primavera

Many additional Christmas books sit on our shelf, but these were some of our kids' favorites.  I've been grinning as I think back through the reading of these, and the voices I used for different characters that "sold" the story.

What's your favorite Christmas storybook?  {From your childhood, your children's or your grandchildren's...}  I'd love to know.  Perhaps it's one I should collect for my... grandchildren?

P.S. Just stopped by THIS CHRISTMAS HOME TOUR, and thought you might like to take a look...

A Christmas Vignette

I don't know about you, but I love the contrast of something sort of glam-glam (don't roll your eyes, you know what I mean) and something that is useful and everyday side-by-side, or in close proximity.  For example: I used to display my gram's wooden spoons in a crystal vase on my counter-top.

Anyways, with that intro, perhaps you will understand why these little beauties spoke to me.  I spotted the small ones at Target, and was smitten.  They are just a heavy twine on a rustic wooden spool.  Believe me, I am not fooled into believing that there is any YARDAGE there.  I just love the look, and purchased them solely as a decorative object.

No, the twine isn't glam-glam, but look at that pretty red velvet ribbon.  I was surprised to find it a few weeks later at TJMaxx.

When I purchased this collection, I already had in mind a little Christmas vignette.  During the same Target visit, I also found this great golden glass key ornament, and imagined it in the vignette with the spools.

Add a sprig or two of rosemary, and finito!  The collection sits on my Johnson Bros. "Old Britain Castles" Christmas tree plate.  The cloche usually sits on its own pedestal, but I thought it looked more festive on the plate for Christmas.

Have you found little treasures along the way in your Christmas shopping?

Silver and Gold

I've been busy decorating for Christmas.  I'm not feeling especially crafty or DIY inspired this year, but I did want to change up the filler in this lamp base.  For so long, I was at a loss as to what to fill it with.  You can read more about that HERE.  Seashells.  Potpourri.  Vintage hymnal page strips.  Scrapbook paper -- and most recently, berry garland.  (By the way, since I liked that look, I was kind of excited to find a store that carries all different colors of berry garlands!  Hmmmm... )  But, it's Christmas-time, and time for another change. [Though the recent berries looked red in my photos, they were actually orange for autumn -- so they had to go.]

When I purchased the berry garland after Halloween, I remembered two different kinds of garland that I purchased at Target after Christmas last year, and I couldn't wait to use them this Christmas.  [Yay for 90% off clearance!]

There's silver beaded garland at the base, and wired star garland above.

I'm really loving this "silver and gold" look.  Do I say that with every type of filling?  I can see this look staying right on through the NEW YEAR and into January!

"Silver and gold.

Silver and gold.

Everyone wishes for silver and gold.

How do you measure its worth?

Just by the pleasure it gives here on earth.

Silver and gold.

Silver and gold -- mean so much more when I see

Silver and gold decorations on every Christmas Tree."

My daughter helped me fill the lamp the other morning.  It was early, and I had been waiting to do this... and she humored me.  Taking it apart is kind of a 3-handed project, so I was glad she was around!  After we put the star garland in and the base back on, it was lacking something.  The garland sort of floated in the glass, and needed to be grounded.  So, we added some silver beaded garland, and Taa-Daa!  The look cost me just a few dollars!  [Gotta love clearance!]

I haven't made a lot of Christmas decor purchases this year, but the small items under the cloche [above] ARE new.  I'll tell you more about them tomorrow.  Stay tuned!

How are you coming on your Christmas decorating?

Have you been following any of the Christmas home tours?  They're fantastic!

Check out this one at The Woodgrain Cottage.

Paperwhites in Bloom and Some Christmas Decorating

So fascinating, these Paperwhites.  In the past, we've grown Amaryllis during the winter, but Paperwhites are new to us.  18" stems hold small clusters of flowers that aren't even 1" across.  It seems anticlimactic in a way, yet I won't deny the beauty of these little ones.

I bought these in a kit from a fundraiser, and while there were three bulbs yielding several stems of similar height, this one is the only one blooming so far.  I'd love to try them again in a larger quantity for a bigger impact.

Have you grown Paperwhites before?

The holiday decorating has begun at our house.  Our daughter decided to put the tree up this weekend rather than next, knowing that she still has today off to work on it.  The lights were an issue AGAIN this year, but my hubby worked on them yesterday afternoon, and I think we're in business!

I've traded out the mugs on the bottle-drying rack for Christmas mugs, and added some additional kitchen "touches."

This sweet tree  is also up in the kitchen, and it makes me smile to think of the care that Marie took in making it for me.

I'm still loving this little "Whiter Than Snow" snowman from last year, and the Winter Scarf Wreath from 2011 which will be hung on the front porch today.

I'll have to start thinking in earnest about Christmas shopping, too.  I've done a bunch -- sort of randomly... but it's time to get those lists made, and start checking them twice!

What are you up to today?

The Day After...

If you follow MY PHOTO BLOG, you've no doubt already seen my Thanksgiving photos.  People really did show up to grace that table.  I was really happy with the way it all came together -- thus all the photos, but... it was really just a representation of all that is beautiful and lovely in my life.

Those "grateful lists" that I've been making for October and November seem almost trivial now that I have had two days surrounded by those I love.  Not trivial as in I didn't really mean it.  Trivial in the sense that there's nothing like literally sitting in the the midst of and basking in the glow of everything that is good in your life. This Thanksgiving really seemed to be that.  Just stopping mid-bite and realizing that this life, these people are what it's all about for me.  Thanksgiving Day has a way of making all the stuff  fade into the background, showcasing the important... the "things" you truly could not do without.

Today?  Today is all about sleeping in.  No "Black Friday" for us.  Probably a crock pot full of chili.  Our "day after" has always been more about recovery(so to speak) than kicking off Christmas with a bang.  Christmas comes slowly around here.  That's not to say that I won't start bringing some decorations out from their resting places today -- but... no expectations, you know?  The tree waits until the first weekend in December.  That's just how we roll.

In recent years, we have learned to do what works for us rather than trying to keep up with anyone named Jones -- and most of all, to do what we do with GREAT JOY!

I hope that wherever this day finds you, that you are also living with GREAT JOY.  'Tis the season!