Christmas

Blooming

My camera has expired so I took these with my iphone. 

We've so enjoyed the blooming bulbs that we are going to plant some more for the New Year. 

A Blooming Weekend

The simple beauty of blooming flowers. 

California. 

Weeping hearts. 

Wishes for peace and solidarity. 

xo

Holiday Scenes

It is a little astounding to us New Englanders that we never saw a White Christmas, nor a white New Year. It felt more like spring over the holidays with balmy temperatures up into the 40's.  But there is snow tonight, and snow angels begin tomorrow. 

I already miss the twinkle of the tree.  

This room is one of the warmest rooms in the house. Perhaps for that reason, or perhaps because of the Christmas tree and its magical presence, we spent most of our days in this room the past several weeks. 

The twinkle even carries to the outside. 

Such light. 

Aglow with coziness. 

The paperwhite bulbs have been growing...

And growing....

And growing. I have always loved watching bulbs grow in the stillness of winter, but even more so, with the children. They love to see the changes and notice each little detail of growth each day. 

Since before Thanksgiving, I have been eating a pomegranate a day. 

I have tried several approaches to removing the seeds but in the end, have returned to scoring the skin, cracking it open and then gently picking the seeds out and dropping them into the bowl. There is something about this task that is very zen and I love it. 

Already our Christmas mantle is taking on some spring hopefulness. 

We have a new favorite muffin recipe. These flax, date and banana muffins (no sugar added) are delicious! They are consumed with much enthusiasm by all. We enjoy them with butter but are also wonderful plain. 

Ingredients: 

1 cup ground flaxseeds

1 cup mashed ripe banana

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1/4 cup vegetable oil or one child size container of applesauce

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups flour (of your choice)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon basking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/2 cup whole pitted dates, chopped 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. In a food processor, combine pitted dates, applesauce, banana and eggs until smooth.  

3. In separate bowl,  combine flour, flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 

4. Combine dry and wet ingredients and add walnuts. 

5. Spoon into muffin tins. 

6. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until done. 

Ladybug cupcake liners are a must, of course. 

Another favorite new recipe, is Butternut Squash and Sage Lasagna .

I wish for you joy, health, and happiness in 2015. 

Happy New Year! 

Getting Ready for Christmas in our (Rental) House

Here are a few scenes from around our house as the holidays near. The initial move-in date at our new home (just down the river from us) was supposed to be Christmas. But in the end it was not meant to be, and we are alright with that as our rental house feels as close to home as one could ever wish for. 

Our little dumplings LOVE to decorate the Christmas tree. In fact, last year they decorated the tree half a dozen times. This year, they were happy with a festive night of tree trimming and have, for the most part, been content to just revel in their tree trimming accomplishment from that night (all ornaments are hanging by the last pine needle of each bough, and amazingly, are staying there). 

Grandma has already sent along some presents, which have been admired - pushed around the room like cars, made into a train, stacked like a tree - but unopened. 

My dear friend Lisa brought me this lovely chair last October. It provides the perfect fireside spot - if we were brave enough to light a fire in the fireplace (after meeting with many chimney inspectors over at our new house, we are even more leery of attempting a fire than we were last year). 

The twinkle from battery operated candles (these are so wonderful during power outages and also for a household with little ones) will have to do. 

The room hasn't changed much since last year, except for the fact that we are in here all the time now. Ever since the flu swept through our house after Thanksgiving, this has been the recovery room. Now that the tree stands aglow, it is our favorite room in the house. 

A month ago, this room was being used as storage and a renovation workspace. We had a newly purchased full sized cannon ball bed, a gilt pier mirror, a Federal mirror and some fireplace accessories all being stored here. Everything has since been relocated to the new house except for this Federal mirror. 

Even though it doesn't really 'go' with the rest of the room, it's fun to have it there, especially if you're a four year old. They like to sit on the sofa and see themselves and the rest of the room in the all-reflecting convex mirror. 

I get a lot of inquiries as to how the white sofa is holding up in a house with young children. I did have a sheet over it during the flu episode, but typically have it uncovered. So far, it shows no signs of dirt and wear. I'm sure that being a shoe-less household that eats meals and drinks (except water) at the dining room table contributes to that. 

I remind myself that I can remove the cushion cover and wash it easily. I also had a second cover made as backup. So despite it's vulnerability, we use it without hesitation. 

I started a Christmas basket in the room, and although these items spend most of their time on the floor or elsewhere throughout the house, it's nice to have a place to put them at the end of the day (or week). 

Among my favorite things about this house are the shutters. They are wonderful and I hope to replicate them in some of the rooms in our new house. They offer privacy without blocking the beauty of natural light. 

I bought all of our simple evergreen wreaths from a nearby family. I thought of decorating them but this is the only one I got to. I just hung some jingle bells on it that usually hang on a door knob. 

The mudroom is our primary entrance to the house. It is always filled with wonderful light. I bought these seagrass rugs when we moved in and I can't say enough about them. They are bullet proof. 

For those who have followed along for awhile, this Louis Phillipe mirror used to be in our old dining room (at the farmhouse). The table used to be in the guest house. 

Wicker and wool. This is where we keep our woolens (a variety of mittens, hats and scarves). 

Typically, mitten pairs take some effort to find as this basket sees lots of rummaging. 

My friend gave me some paper white bulbs, which are the only bulbs we have growing in the house at the moment. 

All of our brass candlesticks are somewhere in the storage unit. I almost asked Mike to try and find the box but decided we could go one more Christmas without them. I did happen across a  faux brass pair at an antique store for under $20, so I bought them to add more sparkle to the mantle. All the while, I was telling the salesperson that it's a little silly that I'm buying these because I have a whole BOX of them stored somewhere in our storage unit. 

Wishing everyone the coziest cheer for this holiday season! 

December Light

Between snowfalls and bouts of chilly rain, there comes an inevitable sun break. I love how much you appreciate the simplicity of light scattered among the days of dappled grey. 

Updates on the house...

It will take a series of posts to fully explain our journey in refinishing the floors. They represent such a key element in our renovation - and selecting the ideal finish for them has not been simple. But we are very close to finalizing them (waiting for one new product to arrive). 

Until then, we will turn our focus to paint. I have begun a search for the best no-VOC interior paints. My key criteria are that the paint doesn't compromise indoor air quality, that the paint is durable and that the paint looks beautiful. Most companies have their own color palette, but can also match the color of the other paint companies. 

Other upcoming decisions include choosing a bathtub and sink for our downstairs bathroom. We spent a few hours last night searching together online (which can be a dizzying endeavor). In the end, we decided that we would instead visit various showrooms so that experts could help guide us to the right products.  Also, we want to be certain that the products we select 'match.' In our first house (our farmhouse), we learned that white porcelain comes in several shades. Our bathtub was a brilliant white, but the first sink we purchased looked amazingly grey - especially since it was close to the bathtub. 

We were able to exchange it for something else but we learned our lesson about the complexities of 

WHITE. 

Master Bedroom

Like the other rooms in our rental house, our bedroom has been pulled together with love and desire for comfort and happiness. But also, with the need to use things we already had on hand. The only new items are the curtains (IKEA) and their hardware (from our local curtain shop). I also picked up the wicker basket for holding firewood on the hearth. 

With many of our belongings still in boxes (beloved picture frames, dish ware, artwork, etc.), we are living very comfortably but sparsely. I have always gravitated toward minimalist design so it doesn't bother me. But there's always that vase you need, or picture frame you miss seeing... 

I took these images in the early morning so the room is quite dark. 

The wrinkled duvet cover and bed linens are fresh from the wash but not from the ironing board - no time for that I'm afraid. If I waited to take pictures until I pressed the bed linens, I would never post on it! 

Here are a few more photos just before bedtime. I decided to use the IKEA bed from our old guest house because it's so comfortable. I love the padded headboard and the ease with which you can nestle in with a good book.