Keeping the Holidays Simple, More Snow! Thrifting

Keeping the Holidays Simple-
This year I'm so glad we had already downsized the holidays with our family. Since I work full time now, year round now, I have less prep time that I used to. Bye bye "winter break"! I know some people have huge, local extended families, tons of parties, etc. but we're more low key. Sometimes I think people just don't know how to say "no, it's too much, thanks anyway". It gets to be too much stuff to do, more $$$ to spend. It kind of cracks me up when people have "holiday organizers", but to each there own. If I had that much to organize I'd re-think my priorities! But that's ME. Running around like crazy is just not our mode. We do a simple gift exchange with our adult kids, and most of us are eating healthier so there's less wheat and sugar. I still bake, just on a much smaller scale! Today I made 2 fresh Cranberry Cornmeal Torte, made with real butter, and a little pure Orange extract. The cornmeal gives it a great little crunch!

Our smaller house is easier to decorate and every year I get rid of more decor. I was looking at my tabletops the other day and realized I just had too much clutter. Time to pass some things on! Our tree went up yesterday, and I'm baking a cranberry tart with cornmeal for a Solstice celebration tomorrow night. It's peaceful, reflective and a nice quiet break from our American plastic culture. Next year I will have some vacation built up to have some time off. I'm getting two 3-day weekends back to back, a nice break! I'm hoping to do some furniture painting and I'll post that if I do. Here's a few fun things around the house, some I may, or may not, pass on to my kiddos-

Keeping all these!

Love our little tree

Love my window

Might pass on

Keeping the birds and snowmen

Santa will go bye bye

 

Our little bedroom tree I made, added the birds and birdhouse

Anya dug under the comforter, I think I'll keep her :) 

From Keep Calm cuz Its Snowing

More Snow!

Thankfully we seem to have settled into what seems like a normal winter. While the N.W. has been slammed with a lot of heavy rain, we've also gotten lots of snow in the surrounding hills and mountains. Great news! The ski resorts have really been hurting the last several years, low water in our reservoirs, and ugly brown hills all winter. It's 5 p,m., 38 degrees and just started snowing lightly. It was a nice sunny day today earlier, and then the storm blew in. Dave and I cleaned up the coop a bit yesterday ahead of the storm. We always try to work with the weather. We are having what's being called by a local weather man a "a train of storms", one after another. Happy dance!

Thrifting-
I really scored last week with this gorgeous quilted table runner and a cute Santa wreath (no pics sorry).  I hit the thrift store on a day when all their home wares were 40% off! I got the runner and and a little white Santa wreath for work for a whopping $2.50! There's lots of quilting there and really perfect except for a couple tiny spots-