A little elbow grease….

We (meaning my husband) spent some time working on this furniture for the play house as a surprise for Christmas.  We had picked up this used kitchen set on K.S.L. com last summer.  It was sturdy, but a bit dull looking.  (However, after looking at the same brand of furniture but buying it new, we felt like we hit the jackpot!)

First,  each piece got a coat of primer paint.

We wanted it to be bright and cheery, so we went bold with the painting, adding some knobs and some raised heating coils (black painted wooden circles) on the stove.

Here is the little sink, including its own dish drainer.

And here it is in a new spot.  (Don’t you wish you could move sinks around as easily in your own home?  The little hutch now has its own dishes ready to use.

I love the table and chairs.  Now that they are painted I think they look just like the ones in the Pottery Barn catalog, but we only paid $20 for the whole set (another KSL find)! 

The flooring is left-over laminate from a bedroom project.

The walls…oh, wait, they are still not finished!

Here is one more shot, minus the stove which is still in the house for the kids to use during the holidays.

Don’t you think you should come for a play date?

Too bad we don’t have any heat!

JoAnn

Christmas

Perhaps Dr. Seuss’s Grinch had it right when he stood with his

grinch-feet in the ice-cold snow and said,

“How could it be so?  

It came without ribbons!

It came without tags!

It came without packages, boxes or bags!

(And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.)

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before!

Maybe Christmas (he thought) doesn’t come from a store.

Maybe Christmas…perhaps….means a little bit more!”

-Dr. Seuss

With that said, we spent a lot of time getting all the projects ready.  There was a lot of this….

and this…

and several of these…

A lot of food was consumed….

Stories were told….

Some game time was included…

And the “ugly sweaters” were pulled out again…

Interesting head-wear added to the festivities….

Cousin-kinship was renewed….

Lots of pictures were taken….

Babies were snuggled….

And a whole lot of fun was included in the works!

Yes, I think we could have celebrated the season with a lot less “stuff”, including having much more simple plans, and we could have spent far less money,

BUT

a lot of good memories were made!

I hope this season finds all of you enjoying time with your families, relaxing and having fun with loved ones, and appreciating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Joann

P.S.  Come back tomorrow ( hope) to see how our big project turned out!

Kids, Snow, and Multicultural Christmas Trees

Last week we went on a walking field to the West Valley Multicultural Center, located near our school.  We took off walking amid a soft and gentle flurry of snow falling.  About seventy five of us hiked over the overpass and through the streets (over the river and through the woods?) to meet our guides who had planned a fun outing for us.

The snowy walk was well worth the beautiful scenes we were greeted by.

Our guide told us about many different trees decorated by local people with different cultural ties.  We saw some interesting trees filled with gifts and souvenirs from many countries.

This tree from the Pacific Island cultures had a wonderful cinnamon smell.

We loved seeing all the gingerbread houses.

 

This gingerbread house was completely made from candy!

They let each student paint a Christmas ornament to keep.

We had a great time!

THANK YOU WEST VALLEY CULTURAL CENTER!

Does your community have wonderful secrets waiting to be explored?

♥

JoAnn

P.S.  Did you know that walking-in-the-snow-fieldtrips make for lovely hair days?

P.P.S.  If you would like to see more pictures of the Cultural Center check out this old post.

Keeping Things in Perspective…..

With all the hustle and bustle of the holiday preparations under way, isn’t it nice to stop and reflect on the real meaning of Christmas? 

♥

JoAnn

P.S.  Thanks for the reminder, Liz.  Your picture is perfect!

Thanks!

 

 

Thank you for the great elves you sent my way!

They have been V.E.R.Y.  busy.

They have been shopping, wrapping, and even helping with the house decorations.

What life savers!

They know how to make it a

 

Love,

JoAnn

(You know who you are!)

Simple Joys of Christmas…

When decorating for the holidays who doesn’t  love the glitter, shine, and glow of festive Christmas ornaments; the bright, twinkly lights of decorated trees; and polished crystal , silverware, and china (that only come out of the cupboard on rare occasions)?  There is magic in seeing Christmas as a colorful reflection in the window or in the delicate ornaments hanging on the tree.  It is fun to dress up the house for company and parties.

But…

Some of my favorite holiday decorations are the simple ones.

It is  nice  having some earthy, homey textures and objects in your home, too.

One thing I really enjoy is using this little lap quilt on our table.   I love the textures, colors, and atmosphere it gives the room. 

Another favorite thing would be our puppets, made out of things found around the house.  Check out their history here and here.

This little wooden (kid friendly) Nativity set is also fun.

 

Some other simple pleasures I love include pinecones, greenery, popcorn, and cranberries.  Our early married life consisted of only those kinds of things, and there was still Christmas magic.

What are some of your non-fancy favorite Christmas decorations?

JoAnn

P.S. I must be getting older.  Every Christmas I use a bigger font than the year before!

Trees, memories, and starting over….

Utah was hit with 100 mile per hour winds last Thursday.  Hundreds of beautiful pine trees along the Wasatch front were literally blown over, as well as fences, shingles, and other structures.  Mother Nature pulled out all her strong forces and played with them like a set of toys, quickly changing the landscape forever.

This big spruce tree at Ken’s parent’s house is now resting on the neighbor’s rooftop.

The root system is just sitting on top of the ground.  Can you imagine how much man power it would take to rip it out of the ground and lift it up?

My sister lives in Fruit Heights and said she literally cried as she drove around town looking at all the destruction of the broken stately trees. 

I have always loved trees.  As a child, I climbed any tree that I could find.  I’ve often remarked how a tree lined street would draw me in, no matter what the houses were like.

Trees also serve as markers of time. 

Robbie stands by our crab apple tree when it was newly planted.  Look at it now.  (Not literally now, but during the summer!)

then:                                    now:

This old family picture is in front of the tree mentioned at the top of the page.  Lots of memories have been made in its soothing shade.

(Yes, I know my hair is bad.  Maddie pointed out that she just saw a picture of me with my “silly hair”.)

It is hard to have something beloved, like a familiar tree,  taken away.

Do you feel the same way?

“I frequently tramped eight or ten miles through the deepest snow to keep an appointment with a beech-tree, or a yellow birch, or an old acquaintance among the pines. “

~Henry David Thoreau

We will all mourn the loss of all the beautiful trees that were destroyed, but come next summer, I’m betting that the local nurseries will be selling a lot of new trees. 

People are resilient.

JoAnn

P.S.  We are sure grateful we had our big elm chopped down before this storm.  It would have rested on two or three rooftops!