Sunny Simple Life Christmas 2014

Well we have celebrated, ate and enjoyed good company. Christmas 2014 is in the books as they say.

I had a wonderful week of gatherings leading up to Christmas and one highlight was an annual trip to see my friend Shelly's house all decked out in the cutest vintage Christmas decor you have EVER seen. I wanted to do an entire post on the pictures I took. Do you think it is too late to share them now that Christmas has passed?

We baked and baked and then baked some more. Tins and bags of goodies left the house faster than I could bake. These peppermint kiss cookies were my new recipe this year. Just the cute colorful look of these cookies will keep them on our yearly list. I will share the recipe because they are so easy and look so fun.

On the 20th I had my group of friends through blogging over for a brunch. We had the best time and I am so lucky to have met such wonderful friends through this blog. I cherish these gals. I set the table simply but it is fun to get my Santa plates out each year.

                             
 Every year we gather at our friends house for their annual Christmas Eve party. We have known each other since childhood and grew up on the same street. They are like family to us.

Finally, at home, everyone tucked in bed, and lo and behold Santa came. This was the kids' tree this year.

One particular kiddo was very excited this year. I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and now onto New Years. Most of our decor came down today. We left a couple trees that will stay until New Year's day but it feels good to have the house restored to order.

Pre-Holiday Room by Room Cleaning Plan - The Dining Room

Okay, onto the dining room in my pre-holiday room by room cleaning plan. I am a bit behind with the start of school and a camping trip but I am going to try and quickly clean through the rest of the house making that a priority. Today is the dining room.

Holiday Cleaning Plan For The Dining Room:

1. Dust all crown molding and use swiffer duster to swipe walls of any cobwebs
2. Clean tops of high furniture 
3. Wipe tops of door jams
4. Dust and wipe down all hanging decor 
5. Remove plates from walls and wash
6. Dust hanging light fixture and clean bulbs
7. Wipe down all door and doorways of grime and fingerprints
8. Go around room cleaning marks on paint or touch up with fresh paint
9. Remove all nick knacks and dust and clean each piece of furniture as I do this
10. Tuck away summer decor for next year
11. Wipe down dining room chairs ( if you have upholstery then clean as needed)
12. Dust dining room table and legs
13. Clean wood floor of dining room (I have no rugs in here)
14. *If you have rugs then vacuum and flip over area rugs to vacuum other side

  I do have a china cabinet in here. I will not be taking everything out and cleaning inside because I do this once a year in spring and it seems to stay dust free fairly well.

Having a holiday grand plan will relieve stress and keep you on track to an organized Christmas.

Christmas Home Tour - The Dining Room

Onto the dining room in my Christmas Home Tour. I keep the table simple because we eat in here quite often and that makes for many changes of the table cloth with a family of six. 

Here the table was set for a dinner that evening for my hubby's birthday.

I have trees in most rooms in the house and in here I have a snowman themed tree that sits atop my child's dry sink.

Rolling pins in red and green set in crocks makes for simple Christmas decor.

This year we put our village atop the china cabinet. It will always go here. I love it up high and the glow of the little village.

My centerpiece is a simple prim tree set in an old wood bowl. Thrifted candle sticks and a braided runner keep things simple but festive. Hope you enjoyed the dining room.

You can see the rest of my home tour here.

Dining Room Spruce Up

We have been busy busy trying to get some unfinished projects done. The dining room has been our main focus for now. We had popcorn ceilings plastered over, molding put up and finally now painted. We took down the crummy looking cabinets hanging on both sides of the china hutch. I said lets just hang plates and boy does that give it a cleaner finished look. We have an odd dining room in the center of our home because of an addition. It has six doorways and little wall space. It is nice and big so I love that for entertaining.

Of course the mister had to decorate the top of the cabinet while I was at the store. I approve.

Fresh paint just makes a room feel so much nicer. Nothing like it for a sprucing up.

We still have a mish mash of furniture and a table we would like to replace but for now it will stay. You can see I don't have much wall space.

On my dream list a large harvest table and open shelved hutch. Much less formal than the ones I was given by my mother when she redecorated. I am so much more relaxed and like simpler less fussy furniture but I was thankful to have them and have used them for many years.

It only took us over a year to get all the crown molding painted. Anyone else on the slow track of home improvement like us? We are paying for it today. Both of us saying ooh and ouch when we are walking around the house.

Autumn's Cozy Corners

Every year we change up our fall decor a bit. It think this is my favorite little scene ala the lineman. I said honey you should sit and rest and he said this is resting for me. 

My daughter had been gone all day Sunday and when she came in she remarked how her favorite times of the year are when we are decorating the house for holidays. I guess that makes all the work worth it.

I spent all day sanding, taping and painting trim and crown molding. I actually have one room all finished and painted. That only took a few years. It felt so good to see it all fresh and done.

I guess it is good to do these projects because everything came down and was dusted and cleaned and re-hung.

The floor was a shade of grey under the heavy piano. I cleaned it with Murphy's Oil Soap. I love the smell of that stuff. All clean and fresh. I am tired today and will indulge in a nap I think.
Next onto the dining room where four doors and loads of trim all have to be prepped and painted.
Give me a few months. I am a slow worker.

15 Minute Pick Up

Organizing in 15 minutes time segments.

I have been working hard to get the kitchen organized and deep cleaned for the back to school rush that has hit our home. Surfaces cleaned and sparkly don't stay that way long in my home. In my continuing pursuit of my word of the year, I have been implementing some additional daily habits to try and keep the house as picked up and organized as I can.

This week I have started a 15 minute pick up in the evenings. After I tuck in the chickens and give Q a bath, and before I allow myself to flop down and give up on the day, I am forcing myself to take 15 minutes and do a quick pick up. Tonight the pick up yielded some laundry that was folded but still sitting on the table, some scattered dishes that made it into the dishwasher and items left on kitchen counters from after dinner snacks. I put those all in their respective places and hung a fresh kitchen towel for tomorrow.

Counters are now clear for the busy morning rush of breakfast and lunch making.

Items left on the dining table were picked up and tidied. We used to use the table as an unloading zone as in everyone unloaded whatever they came in the door with onto my table. Myself included. In my move towards trying to teach myself to be more organized, I have stopped this practice. I try to keep the kids from  setting things down at all on the table and when my husband comes in after a long day and empties his pockets, I just quietly move his things to a tray I have for him in the bedroom. He is actually starting to use the tray first thing so as they say, a habit over time can become a reality if you keep it up.

Having the house just that much more picked up before bed makes rising and starting my day so much more pleasant.

What to Do When Your Date Cancels for Saturday Night

Why you goof off with your dining room table of course. Grabbing this and that and toning down the July 4th decor. A few flags still are appropriate as soon we will be doing some back to school decorating. My daughter starts on August 15th. UnAmerican to start school in the dead of summer.

We eat dinners out here so I have been keeping things more simple. I decided to keep a salt and pepper shaker and napkins out here all the time and just add them to my wooden box. Keeps dinner time set up more simplified. I lit my favorite candle and called it good. I think I watched a movie after that.

Memorial Day Centerpiece

Every summer we travel over the 4th of July, so I decorate for Memorial day and create a Memorial Day Centerpiece as we always have a wonderful barbecue and games.

The red and blue cans were from my girls and the star I just picked up. All from Country General Store.

The centerpiece was intended for the dining room table. All set for the weekend.

Mid Summer Tomatoes

I have tomatoes coming out of my ears. I am glad to share with family and friends but they are ever so lovely to display in a bowl.

I pulled out a new table topper and tried it with a bowl of maters in the kitchen but it just clashed with some of my things in here now.

So I moved the table cloth and maters to the dining room. They really go with my red chairs.

I think this table vignette will carry me through the end of summer.

Okay, I promise to embrace summer heat and all. I will head to my inlaws pool. Thank goodness they live very close to us.

Happy Summer!!

Linking to:

BNOTP

Time Travel Thurs.

Alphabe-Thursday

Open House Party

Cottage Flora Thursday

Show and tell Friday