A Bit of 2009 Treasure...

....and a picture-perfect holiday morning mess.

And you thought I was kidding about the Christmas Morning Paper Flying Frenzy, but I know you can relate. It's been at your house at least once or twice on Christmas morning. Maybe even on Christmas Eve. Right?


Well, this is what my family room looked like at about 11 a.m. last Friday. Man, I feel deeply sorry for the landfill and the poor trees that gave their lives for all this paper! At least Ty (maybe due to lack of funds or maybe because he was playing "green") wrapped all his gifts this year in newspaper. Way to go, Ty! Plus, I guess, technically, all this paper makes for great fire starter. O.K. I don't feel guilty any more.

Moving on.

2009 proved to be a fun time treasure hunting. Over-night trips to Eugene, Springfield and all the little towns along the way. Day trips to Medford and the surrounding areas. On-the-way-back trips from La Pine with shops in Shady Cove and Eagle Point. Portland, Las Vegas, California. Local yard sales, garage sales, rummage sales, second-hand stores. Lots of hunting. Lots of finding. Lots of fun on my own, with friends and fellow treasure hunters.

So here are a couple of those finds....trust me, there are too many to post, but these are a few of them I have

on display right now....

A very cute, vintage Mother Goose Songs For Little Ones book. I have plans for the "guts" of this little gem. Rest assured, I won't be ruining it in any way. The little silver fork is just one of many I have been collecting this year. Forks. Spoons. Ladles. Platters. Dishes.

Speaking of...

This VERY HEAVY serving tray was garish to say the least when I found it. It was heavily tarnished and the detail was all but hidden. It was at a pre-holiday bazaar at our local fairgrounds. There were a few on the table for sale. All the others were cheap-o stamped silver-ish metal. None of them were priced. The vendor-woman said she'd take $10 for the cheap-o ones (that I wasn't interested in) and I was secretly cringing to hear the asking price for this really nice, heavy, silver-plated, potentially beautiful tray.

Then, she dropped the bomb on me! "Oh, that one is $5.00." SOLD!!!. Got it home. Polished it up and created the gem you see here. I didn't take a "before" photo, but you've seen these. All dull, dark gray, and ugly.

 

Next up, is my heavy, cast, black mailbox. I'm sure it's a reproduction, but given the condition it was in, it must have been reproduced a long time ago....? I can't imagine it is a 1930's original, but I'm no expert on these things.

The Coronet Dominoes box lid is, well, I just liked it. Of course the dominoes housed in the original box were long gone when I found the tattered old box, but I really liked the graphics.

 

Lastly, I just found this little Mikasa, Made In Japan, off-white dish. Again, it's probably just a little piece from 1990 or something, but the fact that it's not marked Made In China and looks good with the other pieces I collected this year, and it was .99 cents! I was all but happy to bring it home!!!

Plus, I don't know about you, but I'm really very concerned, deep down, that dishes manufactured in China these days may contain lead. Am I just paranoid, or is this a real issue? And what happens when you add heat? Say in the Microwave or the Oven? Does the United States or CAN the United States regulate all that inexpensive imported product? I guess, I'll have to either do more research or stop worrying already.....

Finally, here is today's Scrabble tiles.......

Snow....none here yet.

Play....you bet ya!

Cold....is 30 degrees (today's high) considered cold? (I promised, when it was 8 degrees outside a couple of weeks ago, I wouldn't complain about 30 degrees EVER again!!!)

Happy Monday......The NEW YEAR is just around the bend.......Let the Party Begin!!!!!

Do These Jammies Make Me Look Phat?

I mean Fat?

What is it about huge, comfy jammies? Why does something SO comfortable, have to make you look FAT???!!!

I know I'm no longer a size 5. I know I'm over 40. BUT, come on...REALLY???

This is me on Christmas morning. Hair pulled up in my Pebbles Flintstone clippy.

These are my new Christmas morning jammies. All washed and dried by my sweetie. All warm. All comfy.

You see, as I was getting ready for the Christmas Morning Flying Wrapping Paper Frenzy, he wrapped me up with just-out-of-the-dryer-Christmas-surprise-jammies. Red Flannel Goodness. Teeny tiny Pink polka dots. Penguins with Pink scarves.(I've heard Penguins mate for life) The sweetest, most thoughtful gift ever. So simple, yet so thoughtful. He's ALWAYS taking such good care of me.....!

They're a bit big, but oh so comfy. AND worth looking FAT .....

....27th Christmas, and you're still surprising me.

Thanks, Baby!!!!

Not-So-Much-Bloggin', but a Whole Lotta Blog Readin'.

That's right. As you can see, I haven't been blogging much lately. I have no lame excuse. No real reason. I just haven't been blogging much lately.

I've spent a lot of time blog reading. Adding myself as a follower. Clicking here. Clicking there.

I've noticed a lot of re-purposing. A lot of Heirloom White spray paint. A lot of Hobby Lobby, Michael's and Dollar Tree. A whole ton of Goodwill and Salvation Army. Maybe it's just the blogging circles I've been "looping" that make it seem that that's all that's going on around the Net. I know there's a whole lot more going on in the world, but really, do I need to read more about recession, more health care reform issues, more gloom and doom? I think not. So, for now, I'll keep looping....

This last month, there have been several linky parties - specialty ornaments, Christmas trees, holiday porches, sweet treat recipes, etc.... Lots of inspiration. I had good intentions, but never really got around to putting it all in motion. Nope, not this year. There has just been too many other things around here to button-up and finish.

I've made a mental to-do list for my holiday week off.

1. I would like to sort and re-pack our HUGE collection of seasonal decorations. Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, 4th of July. What a task it will be, but hopefully it will make using all the blog land inspiration in 2010 a whole lot easier.

2. Get the dining room window trim finished - that has been cut-to-fit for more time than I care to admit. I got it painted and installed yesterday afternoon. Now, I just have to fill the brad holes, caulk the seams, and touch-up paint it. What a difference a little trim makes.

 

3. Work on completing the front entry room wall trim, paint, baseboards and finally the flooring. Foyer? Sounds too formal. Mud room? Sounds too dirty. Porch? Not really that either. This room is between the new front door porch and the family room. What should I be calling it??? I've never had a room like this before! Vestibule? HELP!!!!

4. I've decided to scrap (no pun intended) my craft room off the family room. Instead, I'm toying with the idea of taking over the room under the dining room. The "old" 2-car garage. Pros: More room, very temperate daylight basement climate, concrete floor (what better surface to paint upon?), right behind the regular garage (makes bringing re-purposed items in & out very easy), it already has a ton of shelves installed (gotta love storage!), and the cherry on top...a built-in workbench!!! Cons: Gotta go through the laundry room to get to it from inside the house (no more hiding the dirty laundry!), concrete floor (would need a throw rug), less natural light (1 window vs. 4, plus a glass door), not centrally located (maybe that's actually a plus!)


5. Re-purposing the existing craft room (if you can even call the mess in there a craft room!!!) This room, with all the windows, would make an awesome home office/guest room/reading room/library. Yeah. I think this change would be a GREAT plan!!! Now, I just need the energy to put the plan in motion. I swear there's a whole household of stuff between these two rooms!!!

Ok. So, now, before I get exhausted just thinking about it....I'm off to measure, sketch, plan, and daydream....

But before I go, I've wanted to share a little something I did right before Christmas, but I haven't blogged.

I reluctantly, yet hopeful, signed up for a 12 Days of Christmas ATC swap.This was the first ATC I have ever made - Eight Maids-A-Milking, and was quite happy with the swap. Here is a link to the swap hostess. Why re-invent the wheel, when she has posted some really NICE, close-up photos and a VERY cute photo of them displayed in her home? Thanks, Christine!!

Our Short, Fat, Bald, 2009 Christmas Tree....

Yep. This isn't the typical $50.00, perfectly groomed Noble Fir from the corner lot. Nor, is it a symmetrical, full-bodied, pre-lit artificial tree. Nope. This is, in fact, one SHORT, FAT, BALD Douglas Fir from our mountain slope. I cut it down last weekend and put its scrawny little 1 1/2" diameter trunk into the Christmas Tree stand - held in place with all 8 bolts screwed in as far as they would go.

Three strings of white lights - 100 lights each - are on all the branches, and in the "open" spaces in between where there are NO branches. Through the window outside, it sort-of looks like a Christmas Tree. Or maybe more like a haphazard grouping of lights. Not your regular, if boring, triangle tree of lights.

So, it would seem perfectly on par to decorate it with "found" goodies. This year, our tree has absolutely NO ornaments from our previous Christmas trees. Nope. Not A One. Weird! Not the Cheerios glued on popsicle sticks covered in glitter ornament. Not the applesauce/cinnamon bell-shaped cut-outs. No crystals. No glass. Hmmm. Now, I'm kind of feeling nostalgic for those little gems from when the boys were little. How could I  be that lazy this year and leave them packed away?

Well, I guess, I got a little carried away this year picking up some "new" and "vintage" goodies. Plus, these little branches are so thin and fragile and probably wouldn't hold the Schiefer Family Classics. Well, maybe except for the Cheerios!

So now, on with the short, fat, bald, 2009 Schiefer Family Christmas Tree Tour....

Tree with Flash.

Tree Topper. Winter Welcome Sign and Bow.

Bow is new. Sign was 50% off.

Candy Canes Sign - Filling Up The Center Bald Spot!

Tree Stand Inside Galvanized Tub - Second-Hand Buy.

Red/White Check Tree Skirt - actually a table cloth - Second-Hand Buy.

Resin Elf Shoes with Bells under the Tree. - New, but on sale.

Little Red and White Pixie - Second-Hand Buy. .25 cents.

Another Red and White Pixie, with strange eyes...

Two dimes and a Nickel.

A .25 cent Faded Green Pixie. I really like him. I have others like him

packed away in a Christmas box. I used to be able to find them

everywhere second-hand. Now, not so much. I'd love to find more!!!!

A new felt elf stocking, bells, and candy canes.

Stockings - .99 ea. Bells - like 12 for $3.99. Candy canes - super cheap!

Just when you though I might have a "theme" going here....

How about a red and white mitten with bells at 50% off?

A couple dozen RED bows. New, but on sale!

A SUPER cute SANTA. .25 cents!!!

An adorable Santa Jacket. Or is it a Coat?

...And his matching pants or trousers and hat.

This set was NEW, but 50% off!

A few Metal Stars. New, but only $1 each.

(and a few Reindeer, but I forgot to take photos of them!)

This little Mouse with a sweet little gift. I wonder if it's cheese?

And this little one too! Nice Tree!!!

Both these mice were sweet finds this year.

NO chips either.

AND not Made in China.

Lastly, this little metal sign - also second-hand.

Too cute under the tree.

So, even though our 2009 tree isn't the holiday "standard", I love it. I love that I got to spend time

collecting new, lightweight decorations. I got to cut it off our mountain.That I dragged it

up our mountain to the house. Set it up. Decorated it AND got to share it with all my friends out

here in blogland! I've enjoyed seeing everyone else's trees. The department store trees, the

Charlie Brown trees, the miniature trees, the silver metallic trees, the tall ones, the short ones,

and even the short, fat, bald trees. Happy Holidays.......