Sunday Night or Downton Abbey Night

 

 

Busy, busy weekend. Lots of wedding prep going on, especially with The Bride f/k/a The Princess is out of town. Can't tell you what I did cause she has a way of ferreting these things out and I at least have to make it hard for her and not just plain ol' write it on the blog.

I feel like I haven't blogged regularly since....when?  So I am still doing holiday catch up posts and other trivia that I found amusing and/or delightful and never got to tell about.

 

 

 

 

Office Holiday Decorating Contest or That From Which I Am Banned By The Haters

 

Sorry for the crappy photo, but I didn't dare stand in front of my picture and use a flash to take the photo  because 1) It's supposed to be anonymous, and 2) The Haters would saying, "Did you see her standing in front of her picture taking photos?" (I am completely exonerated from any criticism about using the term, "the Haters" because our managing attorney described them thusly to me and we all had a good laugh.)

The handwriting in the background is a listing of every holiday-type dessert from every country I could think of or google.  I loved making my silly little cookie cutter picture because it was one of the few evenings this holiday season when I listened to Christmas music and drew and painted and felt the spirit of the season.

 

 

 

The Amazing Generosity and Talent of The Cookie Fairy

 

Several years ago, I wrote a blog post about how all the women in my family spent the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas baking cookies, cannoli, gingerbread, pizzelle, and other goodies, and  my sisters and I rarely have the time to do so. That year, an enormous box arrived at the house and one of my blog readers, Rachel Scot, baked dozens and dozens of cookies and sent them to us as a gift. Can you imagine doing that? I am continually floored by her generosity of spirit and incredible baking talent!

 

 

 

Each year since then, I open my door to the mailman ringing my bell and tear into a carton of beautifully wrapped red boxes filled with cookies loving made, decorated, packed, and sent. Are those gingerbread men not the cutest things??  And as you can see by the prior photo, there is always a kid waiting round the door and this time it was Micalangela sampling the cookies before I could even finish the photographs. Thank you, Rachel, as always you are a highlight of our Christmas! I hope you received the little prezzie we sent in the mail!

 

Just in Case You Thought We Ignored The Empress and The Sisters This Year

 

 

 

 

We did not. The entire family who could make it was here for dinner and gift exchange and the food was great and the company wonderful.

 

 

Since we were going away, we didn't put up a lot of decorations, but I couldn't not decorate as it is one of my favorite things. My mantel was the most decorated area other than the tree on the other side of the room. Fortunately, the yellow teapot and sugar and creamer stay out all year as do the red and green candlesticks that The Empress gave us several years ago. That great lime green tray was a little find on the Cape and in front of it is the original artwork for my Christmas card. (I still have a few cards if anyone still wants one. I hope all of you that asked received it.) Bella Sera quite approves of it all, though she prefers a fire in the fireplace. Actually, she looks like she's relaxed, but she's really mesmerized by The Sunlight, which in her Dog World is A Living Creature that Must Be Killed.

My Mermaid Knitting had to have a little fol de rol for the Christmas, though. We managed to light the candles once, but I never managed to buy other candlesticks for the empty ones. There's always next year, right?

 

The tree has been at the curb since New Year's day, but the mantel, the candlesticks, and the dining room bookcases are still filled with Christmas stuff. And probably will be to at least...Easter? And why not?

 

 

Now, I have to finish up my project get ready for Downton Abbey (do you know how many times I have typed Downtown Abbey?) As someone I know wrote online, it's so pretty that you can watch it with the sound off just to see the sets and the dresses.  I don't have tomorrow off so the weekend is ending for me. And unliked The Dowager Countess of Grantham, I know all too well what the week end is.