Recovering from the Holidays and the Kitchen Sink

I am still recovering from the holidays around here.  Things have been busy- wonderful, but busy.  We were away for a few days at the beginning of the week and then New Years came so quick.  I am thankful that we live so close to family and are able to do so much, but I am looking forward to some serious R&R in January. 

The Christmas decorations are starting to come down.  After New Years, they start to make me feel claustrophobic.  I think its because we have so much more stuff after receiving all our gifts, especially now with Aiden. 

Anyway, I've been especially appreciative of our kitchen sink this holiday season.  That may sound ridiculous.  But I LOVE our sink.  I have never used another sink that is better than our sink.  I can't take credit for it because when we bought the house, it was installed new by the previous owner.  But I never want another sink except this one.  It is SO deep and the size is perfect.  The arched faucet is perfect.  I have been able to wash large pots and pans, serving dishes, baby, and dog in this sink with no problem. 

 I have some smaller projects and maybe one larger one that I will be working on/planning in the next few weeks, so keep posted!

A Very Merry Christmas Dinner

For the first time since we moved into our home, I hosted a Holiday dinner.  It wasn't real big, 8 people (plus Aiden), which was the perfect number for our small abode.  My wonderful husband quickly snapped some photos for me before people arrived since I was busy in the kitchen.  I realized that I am so thankful that our kitchen is tucked in the back of the house, hidden, because it was a mess throughout the night!

Anyway, here is the table.  The place cards tied around the napkins I bought from the  same Etsy store where I bought our "Merry Chirsitmas" banner.  

I set up appetizers out in the living room and the windowsill in our dining room is the perfect place to set up drinks. 

There was plenty of room on the buffet and the console to set all the food so that it didn't have to be on the table.  

All in all, I think it went well.  I really enjoyed hosting and hope to do it again in the years to come!!

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!  We are trying to recover and find a place for all of Aiden's new toys.  

Deck the Halls

Now that there is more than a foot of snow on the ground, it seems appropriate to do my Christmas decorating post.  And not to mention the fact that Christmas is only 5 days away!!  

I went with a more sliver theme this year instead of the traditional green and red.  

If you feel like you need some quick and easy decorations, notice the wrapped picture frame as presents (something I have been doing since our first Christmas when we were married and in our apartment).  Also, hanging ornaments in front of a mirror or window, and of course the popular ornaments in a vase or bowl.  

This sparkly tree and reindeer I got from good 'ol Home Goods.  I also got the white tree with the balls that match the wallpaper from there.  

This is my favorite thing I purchased this year.  It's from Etsy, and here is the link to the store.  There are a ton of this type of thing on Etsy, but this was my favorite.  I wanted something to hang in the doorway between the living and dining rooms and this fits perfectly.  

So, that's pretty much it.  I am hosting a small Christmas dinner (8 people), and have been planning the table settings for that, so hopefully I remember to take pictures and post.  

Hope you had  a good weekend!

Flash Back

My aunt found these plates at a thrift store and thought of my green-accented kitchen.  

I really like them.  Even though I have white crate and barrel plates that I love, it is sometimes fun to mix things up a little bit.

I tried to do some research about them because they are stamped on the back.  But didn't have much luck.  I mostly found ebay posts sellling this stoneware- it seems like there were quite a few collections.  This one is called ONDINE and I am pretty sure they are from the 70s . 

It looks like at some point there were enough for 8 place settings.  Some are chipped, and some are missing, but I wouldn't need to use more than 4 for us anyway.  It also came with a few serving pieces, which is also great.  

My mom pointed out how they match my curtains and the bright green matches my kitchenaide perfectly.  

Thanks Aunt Barbara and Mom! :-)  

The Rearranger

We had to do some furniture rearranging due to the size of our Christmas tree.

I have to admit I don't actually hate it.  I thought I would because every time Rob and I try and rearrange the furniture in the living room, it usually ends up with me throwing a temper tantrum on the floor and whining, "I knew it wasn't going to work! Why do we waste our time doing things like this?!!"

I think the reason I don't hate this is because the main problem is that wall is too big and needs more than just the chair on it.  So, with the tree there, it is just right.  

I assured Rob that after we take our tree down, the furniture is going back the way it was, no matter how inspired we are feeling.  Plus, we can only use one of the end tables which is OK for the Christmas season, but not permanently.  

The sofa saga continues

Rob and I were watching one of our favorite shows ("How I Met Your Mother") last week and I was saying how much I liked Lily and Marshall's sofa.   I realize that it is a little strange that I notice decor whem I am relaxing and watching tv, but I will say that Rob said he was thinking the same thing.  

Mostly I love the color of it.  I have been struggling thinking about what color sofa we would get because I really am not a fan of the tan/brown, neutral colors and some brighter colors are too scary for me.  But,  I really like this goldish yellow color.  

I can't find this sofa and if anyone has any idea where this sofa is from, please share!

We were in Crate and Barrel the other day and we really liked The Troy sofa.  I like the lines of it and it seems much more practical.  I think that it would take better wear and tear with kids.  It does come in a similar goldish color and they make a pull out bed version of it which would be ideal for us since eventually, some day (no- I'm not pregnant and not planning to be any time soon) we won't have a guestroom.  

The other thing that is great about Crate and Barrel is that you can pick any custom fabric too for any of their furniture.  You can even buy your own fabric for them to put on a piece of furniture.  

So, there's some more sofa ranting from me.  We're just trying to be very intentional about any furniture we buy in the future so it is important to know what you want!

Happy Thanksgiving

I know I have been horrible about keeping up this blog for a while now.  I really am sorry.  It is just that things have been so busy- Bailey's had fleas, I was doing some part-time work the past 2 weeks, the weather is colder and rainy so I have had to think of ways to keep Aiden entertained.  I am not making excuses, just informing you of why this blog has fallen by the wayside.  Ok, maybe I am making excuses.  But, I am really going to try to be better about this.  Especially since Christmas decorating is one of my favorite things.  I have already been collecting some new things to add to the decor this year and am excited to start decorating this weekend!!  So, I promise you will see more posts on here.  Even though the craziness of the holidays is upon us and there is lots of Christmas shopping/wrapping, etc. to do.

Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with lots of love and yummy food!  I don't know if I will ever host a Thanksgiving dinner, but if I ever do, I would use the above picture as inspiration for the table.  

Happy Thanksgiving!!