HOME IS WHERE THE TREE IS

The Christmas tree has always been at the center of our decorating for the season.  I've written about our trees during the last five Christmases on this blog.  You can read here about our tradition of red balls with the year painted on.  There are now 56 of those balls on our tree this year.

Collecting ornaments from friends and travels over the years plus inheriting family ornaments necessitated a few years ago to  now decorate two trees.  

Each of the hundreds of ornaments have a story to tell - these are definitely memory trees.

ONE MORE CHRISTMAS MEMORY  --  In 1966, Bob had just finished his first master's degree and was being transferred by the Federal Government to a research station in northeastern Montana.  He was to report for work the week before Christmas.  We hurriedly sold our house, and the government sent a moving company to load up our furniture and belongings for storage.  We combined Thanksgiving and an early Christmas with our families; loaded up our Suburban with our elderly, blind dog, a few warm clothes, an electric skillet, and a box containing our then nine red balls with the years on them.  I was going to have a tree, if not much else.  We headed out, sight unseen, to the wilds of Montana.

There was not a single rental house available, so we were put up in a motel for six weeks until a house became available.

The Park Plaza Motel, Sidney, Mt., Christmas 1966

Without family and the usual trappings of Christmas (except the tree), we experienced what the celebration was all about - the birth of our Savior.  We grew up a lot in those five years in Montana -- we learned to deal with isolation, how to function in months of zero degree weather with snow and ice, and discovered what was important to us in life.  We started a family of our own as our first child was born on a snowy day in March 1968 in that little town in Montana.  By the way, I also learned how to make a full meal in that little electric skillet in a motel room - in 1966, there were no microwaves, no fast food, no take-out!!!

This is my last post for December 2013.  Thanks to all of you who have taken the time to read about the Christmas memories I've shared this month.  We understand the real reason to celebrate Christmas, and we try to focus on that. 

 But, it is also the season to share with those we love making memories and establishing traditions to last a life time.

Now, it is time for the Salmagundi household to worship and be together as a family.  

May you all have a joyous celebration - go make some memories!  I'll be back posting in 2014.

Please check out the following blogs for more Christmas Joy:
Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks

HAND-MADE CHRISTMAS

Each year, I try to make a hand-made ornament to include as a tuck-in gift for a friend.

This year, I made 3" ornaments from some of my recycled wool Pendleton scraps.

 The snowmen are wool applique and embroidery, and are tiny; so it stretched my abilities a little!

They were fun to make - just wish they weren't so tedious, or I would make a bunch more.

Joining the following:

Smiling Sally for Blue Monday

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday

Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday

Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday

Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks

ANOTHER CHRISTMAS MEMORY -- A LOT OF SUGAR AND A LITTLE SPICE

When Bob's family sold their grocery store in the 1960s, I took the opportunity to snoop around in the attic of the building to see what I could find.  I spied this old display jar in a dark corner; and I asked my father-in-law if I could have it.  I'm sure he wondered what his antique-crazy daughter-in-law was going to do with that old thing!  Bob remembers that it held bulk cookies for sale at one time. 

  This Christmas I decided it would be the perfect thing to hold a replication of a family Christmas memory. 

 In our part of Colorado, there are not any tree farms where you can go cut your own Christmas tree.  If you want the experience, you go to the Forest Service or the Bureau of Land Management for a permit.  Then, you pack up the family, the gear, and enough sugar and spice to sustain the troops; head to the mountains; traipse through the snow and freezing cold; get your vehicle stuck in a snow drift; etc. etc.  You end up with the perfect 'imperfect Charlie Brown' tree, sugar-hyped kids, and another priceless Christmas memory.

Since we weren't really an outdoorsy, adventurist family (especially me); we only did this once.  

From then on, a grocery store tree; and now a fake tree works just fine!

Here's proof that we actually did this -- 1980 pictures.  These don't show that much snow, but trust me, there was!

                          Eating cookies                                    Dragging the tree out                   

So many fun blogs to read this season, but please check out the following:
Have a Daily Cup for A Sugar and Spice Christmas on 12/11
Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special
Dwellings for Amaze Me Monday
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Shabby Creek Cottage

CHRISTMAS COTTAGE KITCHEN

Plaid means Christmas to me!  And, what better place to bring it out than in the kitchen where I spend so much time this month.

A Jim Shore Santa in a plaid lunch box.

 Our Hoosier cabinet is front and center in the kitchen.  It gets a lot of use during the season as a buffet table for entertaining.  The sponge-painted porcelain top pulls out for additional space.

 I love adding pine cones into the Christmas decor.  Living in pine-tree country, they are in abundance and free.  See the tiny pine cone in the wheel barrow of the top left collage below -- that's a memory maker -- I picked that up off the ground in Bavaria on a trip to Germany.

 Another Jim Shore Santa makes an appearance in the 'new to me' vintage plaid picnic basket.

It's time to get to the meal planning, entertaining, cookie making, etc.

Please join the following for a plethora of Christmas inspiration:

Fishtail Cottage for A Cottage Christmas on 12/10

From My Front Porch to Yours for Treasure Hunt Thursday

Common Ground - Be Inspired Friday

Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks

Sunday View for Vintage View Sunday

The Dedicated House for Make It Pretty Monday

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

RUSTIC CHRISTMAS

Here in Colorado our screened-in porch is unusable in the winter.  We are presently in a period of a week strait of temperatures below freezing, and that is snow out in the yard!  But, I usually decorate for Christmas a little bit on the porch so there is something festive to see through the living room French doors.

Bob made the primitive Santa about 25 years ago.  The family  calls him Santa Bob because we think it is actually a self-portrait!

The 'wonky' tree seems to belong with Santa Bob.  Yes, that is dirt you see on the floor - just pretend it adds to the rustic nature of the decorations.  
We really do need to get the sweeper out there -- another thing on the 'to do' list this week.  Is your 'to do' list also very lengthy this time of the year?

But, I'm taking time this week to check out the following for mega inspiration:
Must Love Junk for a rustic Christmas on 12/9
Cozy Little House for Tweak it Tuesday
Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

VINTAGE CHRISTMAS MEMORIES

We've spent this week decorating for Christmas.  And after 55 years of marriage, it is so fun to relive Christmases Past as we unpack each decoration.  Below, are some of the vintage decorations that we have picked up over the years while out antiquing and some that belonged to my parents.  My mother always decorated so beautifully for Christmas -- it was a magical time!

 I'm particularly partial to the balls that are indented in design and the ones from WWII that have the cardboard hangers

                      INDENTED ORNAMENTS                             WWII ORNAMENTS                               

                                    GLASS TREE TOPPERS                   GLASS BALL ROPING                                      

On a future post, I'll show you the two trees decorated with more vintage ornaments.

 But now, something vintage with a story -- you probably know we have a story about almost everything in our home!

In 1971 the week before Christmas, our then 3-year old son and I were out doing errands, and we stopped by the dry cleaners to pick up the cleaning.  Why the cleaners was selling Santa Clauses, I don't know; but they were and our son (the Prince of Tantrumland) latched on to one.

 When time to leave, he wasn't about to put Santa down and proceeded to throw a doozy of a tantrum.  I don't know what the child psychologists of today say about tantrums, but my mode of operation then was to get him out of the situation in anyway available.

So, I did what any panicky mother would do -- I paid for the Santa and the dry cleaning and got the screaming kid with a death grip on Santa out of there!!!!

 No harm done, I guess, as I now have a vintage Santa apparently worth more than the $3.00 I paid plus the priceless memory ----

and, our son learned how to behave eventually.

In celebration of this wonderful season, I'm joining the following:
Organized Clutter for Vintage Christmas on 12/7
Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks
Sunday View for Vintage View Sunday
So Much Better with Age for Give Me the Goods Monday
The Dedicated House for Make it Pretty Monday
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Knick of Time for Knick of Time Vintage Tuesday
Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday
No Minimalist Here for Thursday Open House
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday

DREAMING OF A PLAID CHRISTMAS

Alison of The Polohouse has chosen Plaid Tidings as the theme for her December party, Favorites on First.  

I just couldn't make myself do any Christmas decorating until Thanksgiving was over, but I didn't want to miss a plaid party.   Therefore, I'm showing some of the plaid Christmas from 2012.  

Plaid has been a staple here at Christmastime for a few years; so I'm sure all of the above will make a reappearance.  Plus, I have a couple of new plaid containers that are just waiting to be decorated for the season.  It's now time for me to start decorating for Christmas 2013  - bring it on!

In addition to The Polohouse I'm joining the following parties:
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
The Dedicated House for Make It Pretty Monday
Dwellings for Amaze Me Monday
Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday

CHANGE IS GOOD!

This time of the year, I'm usually ready to do some DEEP cleaning before pulling the Christmas stuff out of the closet.  So, this week it has been time to tackle the computer room.  Deep cleaning also usually involves change around here.  I mean if you're going to take all of the books out of the bookcase to clean, you might as well move the bookcases and other furniture around.  Right?
Carolyn at Aiken House & Gardens quoted her Mother this week - "A change is as good as a rest."  I agree - not only does change refresh a room, I seem to come away refreshed as well - just like taking a good occasional nap!
We hadn't changed the furniture layout in this room for five years.  Previously, we had the bookcases split up on two different walls.  We now have lined them up all on one wall - it seems to make the room feel larger.  That's a good thing, as I intend to put a Christmas tree in this room this year (another change).

 These aren't beautiful bookcases to be styled -- they are workhorses designed to hold -- well, books!
In moving furniture around, I then had to work on the small gallery wall in here.  I added prints that we had picked up in England, France, and Germany to go with prints of our Rocky Mountains, specifically antique prints of the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park owned by our little town.  Now all of my favorite places are grouped together.

It is cloudy out today -- snowy and cold, but I'm refreshed and ready to tackle cleaning another room.

I'll be joining the following:
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Creatively Living for Monday Funday
Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
The Heart of your Home for Amaze Me Monday
Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays At Our Home
Cozy Little House for Tweak It Tuesday
No Minimalist Here for Thursday Open House

THE TORTOISE VERSUS THE HARE QUILTING

In my lifetime, I have made more quilts than we, our kids, or grandkids will ever need.

But, I still get the creative urge to make another one.  These days I try to make something simple using scraps from previous quilts.  At least, it satisfies my love of playing with fabric. Also, I have always been a hand-quilter, but I'm trying to move into the modern quilting age where machine quilting is the norm.

 I made this piece last week  -- an example of my new-found "Hare" quilting mode -- simple and fast.  Instead for a rabbit, it looks more like a quilt suitable for a snake!

 

 I'm still learning the machine-quilting part, as I struggle with the machine tension, stitch length, and design of continuous quilting patterns.  But, I'm getting there.

 Since, fortunately, we don't have a pet snake; it is now a table runner.

 Now, for the "Tortoise" -- that slow, persevering animal.  Even though I'm working on learning to machine quilt, I still prefer to hand quilt.  

 This quilt has been in the making for almost 10 years.  Granted it has been stored away off and on when life got in the way of quilting.  However, I'm determined to finish it this winter.  

It is large with 6l blocks plus sashing and borders.  There are over 100 different fabrics in the quilt -- all fussy cut to produce different combinations of fabric designs.  I spent a couple of years making the top using hand-piecing, machine-piecing, hand-applique, and paper-piecing techniques.  Finally, the layers were basted together and the hand quilting began.  It takes me about three evenings to hand quilt one block.  I'm now over half-way done on the quilting -- this has definitely been my life lesson in patience and perseverance.  My 75th birthday is tomorrow, but I'm still trying to learn that patience thing! 

 You can bet that when I finally do finish this "tortoise" of a quilt, I will blog about it!!

I'm joining the following:
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
The Dedicated House for Anything Blue Friday
Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks
Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special
Creative Home Expressions for The Creative Home and Garden Hop Sunday
Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Better with Age for Give Me the Goods Monday
Smiling Sally for Blue Monday
Cedar Hill Ranch for The Scoop Tuesday
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia for Tuesday Treasures
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Cozy Little House for Tweak it Tuesday
Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday
No Minimalist Here for Thursday Open House
Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday

OLD CIGARS, OLD FOLKS

A couple of years ago, when my mother-in-law was downsizing, Bob brought home this box.

 The inside graphic tells the story of the box -- cigar seconds (or throw-outs) -- off colors and shapes, but half price!

 But what made it really interesting were all of the old pictures housed inside.  Bob's mother said the box came to her from her mother-in-law.  Most of the pictures are not identified.

 The picture below, however, identifies the old folks on the front row left as Eliza and Elijah Saulmon (Bob's great, great grandparents) and the tall guy in the back row is Louis Heritage Saulmon (Bob's great grandfather).  Love those old-fashioned first names.

 But who do these adorable faces belong to?

This is a great reminder that I need to be more diligent in documenting our current family photos.

How about you?  Are your current family pictures all identified?

Joining the following:

Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday

The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday

Pieced Pastimes for Saturday Sparks

Sunday View for Vintage View Sunday

Creatively Living  for Monday Funday

 Better With Age for Give Me The Goods Monday

Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at our Home

A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday

Knick of Time Interiors for Knick of Time Vintage Tuesday

Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday

No Minimalist Here for Thursday Open House

Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday

A COUPLE OF SMALL CHANGES

When the kitchen was repainted recently, I chose a light blue for inside of the glass cupboards. (Click here to see the kitchen redo project.)  I wanted to tie the color into the attached dining room, so we painted the back of this cupboard the same blue.

This was what it looked like before.

So much lighter now!

 

 After much discussion, we decided to become a two-computer couple.  After purchasing the lap top, we had a need to set up another work station.  We found this English desk with wonderful patina at a local antique shop to use for the lap top. I was much more thrilled to find the desk than to buy a second computer. 

Maybe I'll like the lap top better once Bob corrals all those wires for our new "wireless" system!!!

KIDS, FLOUR, AND FROSTING!

We might as well inaugurate the new kitchen with kids, flour, and frosting.  It was a real mess!

 The grandkids and I made Halloween mummy cookies --

 And witches hats.

Five years have passed and Caitlin's hair is still not under control in the kitchen -- please, call the kitchen police!  Oh my.

Left - Halloween 2008             Right - Halloween 2013

Such concentration!

Have you made a mess in the kitchen with your favorite goblins  lately?

I'm joining the following parties:

Creative Home Expressions for The Creative Home and Garden Hop Sunday

Dwellings-The Heart of your Home for Amaze Me Monday

The Dedicated House for Make It Pretty Monday

Cedar Hill Ranch for The Scoop Tuesday

Cozy Little House for Tweak it Tuesday

Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday

The Vintage Farmhouse for Creative Things Thursday

Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday

Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday

DIY Vintage Chic for Friday's Five Features