Layer by Layer!

In art class we paint layer by layer and it is the same when I decorate.

FIRST, I had to clean the kitchen which took quite some time.

Remember! Louis Dean was left 'Home Alone' last week for 4 days AND he BAKED so I had a good bit of damage control to do!!! HOW in the world anyone can TRASH a refrigerator is beyond me!!

I found Tupperware bowls of MILK? Why?

And several containers of what looked like grease and one of oil!

Not to mention that suspicious zip lock bag that Louis Dean SWORE was a perfectly good chili dog!

Okay! I heated it up and added some shredded cheese and extra chili and served it to him for a late lunch! It DID smell good and he ate every bite - and so far he has not been sick - so I guess it WAS good!!!

I pretty much stayed in the kitchen all day.

The needle works I have done through the years are all hanging on the cupboard doors as they always do. I change a LOT of things up every year but SOME things remain the same year after year.

The one at the far end in the keyhole was my very first Christmas needlework - my first needlework of ANY kind! I stitched it in 1969 when Summer was 6 years old and Jesse was 3.

The one on this end was stitched in 1991 when - as it just so happened! - Amber was 6 years old and Benjamin was 3! I treasure those two hangings more than all my others!

The one next to the end was stitched the year the quads were born - 2012.

I haven't done any since then so perhaps next year I will!

My house burned in 1983 and I lost all the contents - but for a very few things.

The Peace on Earth was a work in progress and I had it with me in Colorado working on it when the fire happened. Both Summer and Jesse were home at the time and thankfully got out just in time!

Those Van Guard Heat/Fire Alarms saved their lives - and the grace of God!!

I added a wreath above the kitchen sink this year!

I bought this at a Goodwill and added lights to it.

I will attach a few more apples later.

My favorite Christmas dishes! Summer and I bought these at Target back in the 90's and I use them every day during the months of December and January.

They are stored in a cupboard above the fridge and one year Louis Dean was helping me get them down. He MOVED the fridge to make it easier and then the cupboard FELL on him! Thankfully the corner of the refrigerator caught the brunt of it but it could have KILLED him!!!

Only ONE CUP was broken and he put that cupboard up so sturdy that I can put absolutely anything in it and it will HOLD!

I took a break and went outside to revel in the FALL we are finally experiencing!!

I always clip some mint to go in my daily pitcher of iced tea - green tea with pomegranate today.

The mint usually thrives here year round and I have a ton of it - thanks to me deciding it was an inexpensive plant and I put in in flower beds where it has grown profusely ever since!! As a matter of fact - my second blog post back in 2010 was devoted to mint!!

I Never Meant......

While I was outside watching the leaves fall and I could hear Louis Dean in his room playing his YouTube music! That guy LOVES YouTube!!! He ALWAYS has a song in his heart and on his mind!

The world might be a better place if more of us had music in our hearts!

Instead of moving on to the den, I brought a few things out of the Christmas Storage and decorated a bit in the dining room. This isn't a good photo of a beautiful piece I bought when Deanie and I were in San Antonio last February. I will probably buy white or red pillar candles to go on it instead of these.

The white candle was a gift from Summer and is so fragrant!!

I may go with white and gold and silver in the dining room this year.....

I decided to put my silver tea sets here in the living room. I recently bought a silver pitcher and I wedged a candle light down in it with a silicone bulb and anchored it with some greenery and pine cones from an old garland I have had since the 1970's! It has slowly disintegrated over the years but the pine is plastic so I just snipped it into pieces and continue to use it,

It will all come together bit by bit!

In my rummaging and stacking of books today I came across a perfect one to read this month!!!

I close this journal entry with an updated pic of our front door,

I found the Martha Stewart wreath I used out here last year and just added some red to it!

I am hoping to make a LOT of progress tomorrow!

If I can just get all the trees UP - I can decorate them at my leisure and perhaps the quads will help me next Wednesday!! I have a LOT of trees!! One in every room AND in the gazebo and on the front porch!! I'm sure the quads will be a lot of help and maybe they will KEEP helping me as they grow older!