BIG PROJECT AHEAD OF ME

Boy did I start something I probably shouldn’t have….Have you ever started something you wished you hadn’t but had to carry through with it because you went just a bit too far????
Well here’s what I did – I started stripping off the wallpaper in my bedroom so I could by new and re-paper but I sooooo love the paper that’s under there that we put on when we moved in.
The paper is from 1979 and it was put up right away and we even had the ole waterbed thing going on! I think that’s where all my back problems started….they were sold with the idea they were good for  you….I think not! They were clumsy getting in and out of….nothing very dainty or delicate looking trying to throw yourself over that hard wood edge….anyway, I digressed there with my 70’s moment.
I thought I’d like changing my paper so a few years later I did and it has been on since – the room is small and there’s lots of paper so the process of re-papering wasn’t too appealing to me being I’m the one that has to do it. You can’t move the furniture because of the carpet and there’s no extra room anyway…so it was put off.
But like a crazed maniac that I can sometimes be I started tearing off the paper behind the door and it started taking off the paper underneath in spots…this isn’t good being I want to salvage that paper!
So now I have to tear off just the top layer and then soak the thin white backing off the wall to not harm the paper below….Man what did I do!
So here’s what we have on right now – it’s actually a very light cream with green and red thingies – plain and ugly and dirty looking as well…but it has been up for many, many years.  
Here’s where I started tearing off the old – see how it gets pieces of the underneath paper….ouch!
This is a good look at it -
This is from 1979 when it was put on…..30 years ago!  
So I guess where I’m going with this is to get a more Colonial look back into the bedroom now with our Pine poster bed and dressers -  I think it will look quite nice…..here’s the furniture the paper will be with if it ever gets off….



So that’s my big boo-boo because now I have to carry through with it or just strip all of it off and buy new paper. But I have looked and I just don’t care for what’s out there. I’m not a cutsie paper kind of person. It has to be traditional or very plain in pattern.
If there are any takers I sure would love some help!
Karen 

GOODBY CHRISTMAS DAY…..

I don’t know about you but I love Christmas Day….seems everyone is in the SAME MOOD….ready for whatever comes their way whether it be the gifts they are receiving…or giving or the table full of holiday fixin’s, and in our house there were many as I’m sure there were in yours too.
My morning started out quiet with getting ready for the gang to show up while Doug was out shoveling snow (or maybe it was a combination of the sleet and snow we had during the night)
By 1:00 two of our sons and their families arrived and it started our celebration. Darren, MaryAnn and Aidan didn’t make it as we sort of knew would happen – Aidan has a virus and was still running a fever so they stayed home. Darren was going to join us alone but we told him it was his place to be with his own little family and we were okay with it, so he thanked us very much for that….although it was the first Christmas in his 45 years that we didn’t share this day together,….sad, but it is life and with a baby these things do happen.
I don’t many pictures today – most of the ones I took are not good enough for viewing by anyone but me because I am a lousy picture taker and as you all know my camera wants to take blurry photos….it’s not the operator either but the ones here are okay.
(Photo Below)
Emily and Joe brought their new game with them so Aunt Jamie is helping them set it up….Jesse is putting a puzzle challenge together (he never did figure it out!)
(Photo Below)
Joe is a Lego fanatic…this year he wanted the biggest set he’s ever owned. Look at that smile!!!!
 
(Photo Below)
This is Dan with his daughter Alex and her boyfriend Clint – he celebrated Christmas with us this year

(Photo Below) Jesse and Alex gave us a basket full of DVD’S and popcorn for Movie Night! Plus Doug got a gift card.
 
 
(Photo Below)
I put it on my list and look…..I got it!!!!!
My first Jill Peterson book….I’ve been wanting this series for ever and never want to part with the money….well all you gotta do is ask and ye shall receive.

Later this afternoon we have been invited to Doug’s cousins house in Janesville for a Spaghetti dinner. His cousin is home from Arkansas and visiting his sister there, so it makes it easy for us to visit him while he’s home.
Lola had to be part of our Christmas too – since the tree was put up she made her bed under it and even with gifts it didn’t stop her….so here she is peeking through the packages.

Close-up

Hope you all had as wonderful a Christmas as we did (minus one family). I know it could have been worse than just not being with our son and his family on this one day – they are close enough to see them in a few days…but there are many of you who won’t even be able to make it up in the near future because of family members being in the Military or over seas or just the fact of the economy making it impossible for the visit….but I know that all of your loved ones are in each of your hearts regardless of the distance.
I know those that I couldn’t be with are in my heart.
Karen

CHRISTMAS PAST and MY WISH TO YOU

I had a wonderful start to my day and it gave me energy so I decided to go Christmas shopping and leave the baking till tomorrow…that’s a good thing though because if the cookies are there I’ll eat them….it was a very snowy day just perfect for Christmas shopping.
I bought the makings for a really easy recipe my friend and also my sister in-law gave me….they’re Pecan Turtles made with the tiny square pretzels, a Rolo candy and a whole pecan….just put one Rolo on each pretzel, heat in oven till the chocolate/caramel gets soft, about 5 minutes and then press a whole pecan in the top….Just that easy.
My sister in-law brought some for my Open House and they were gobbled up immediately.
My shopping is finished but I just have a few stocking stuffers to purchase. This year we’re having an extra guest join us for our festivities. Our granddaughter is bringing her boyfriend so it was shopping for someone new this year and to have a new face at the dining room table – oh, and to fill another stocking!
What a wonderful year I have had with my blog. I have found friends in all of you and I so enjoy our chats on our blogs.
Some of you I have talked to on the phone, some I’ve even met in person, others I have kept in contact with through e-mails. To each and everyone of you….my friends…. please stay safe and warm and have the merriest Christmas ever.
As I promised this morning I said I would scan pictures of our previous years Christmas Trees.
 
I’m missing some years – quite possibly they are on discs that I have packed away. Since the digital camera I don’t get my pictures developed into hard copy pictures…they are all on the computer and then I burn them to a disc.
Now mind you …. as I look back on the pictures they are rather pathetic looking. Seems we progress through the years and wonder just what the heck we saw in our decorating…I loved it at the time….but now looking back…not so good!!!  I still laugh at what I thought was ‘pretty’ But I still hope you enjoy the changes over the years.
1967 – we moved from an old rental house to a NEW duplex!
1969 we moved from the duplex to an adorable 2 story Cape Cod very similar to the one we are living in now. We had two trees this year, one in the living room and this one in the dining room.

1971 still in the Cape Cod


1975 we are now in our new home!

This is the opposite end of the living room….why I thought this looked good is beyond me!



 1976 – still in the new house


1978 – the last year in Janesville in our new home before we got transferred to Burlington


Same year - 1978….yet another attempt at red and white…how sad!

1979 our first Christmas in our Cape Cod in Burlington where we now reside
Same year…opposite end of room….doesn’t look like this now does it? The dark paneling is painted and the bookcases and fireplace have been faced and are deep brick red…remember the pictures I’ve posted before? I posted one after this one so you can see the difference




1980

1981
1983 – we took a 2 week trip to Florida over the Christmas/New Year holiday with 28 other relatives -  each family had their own condo which were owned by another cousin – I do think we had most of the condos rented that holiday. So this was our pitiful tree and gifts. My gosh how outdated this room is now!
 1984….now this tree we cut fresh one week before Christmas – wait till you see the next picture

This is all that’s left of it by Christmas Eve day!!!
As you walked through the room you could hear the needles dropping.
It sounded like rain and never stopped till the branches were bare.
We cut what was left of it off and Doug carried the dead carcass outside!
So we made the best of it, propped it up and threw some tinsel on it and walla…a mini-tree.

And….we also had a fresh one in our family room but it stayed nice and crisp the whole time. 

1986 we bought our first imitation tree….back in 1999 we purchased our German Twig Tree and gave this one to our son Dan
.
1992 – like I said….the other years are on discs and  packed away
 



































1993


1995
2000, our second year with the German Twig Tree which we still are using 
 2001
2003

 2005
My little German Twig Tree
 
2007
2008 

I know this post was so long but I just thought it would be fun to do…I love looking at my old pictures and I hope you did too.


Karen

BLOG LAYOUTS and more….

Yesterday I was looking for a holiday layout and came across:   http://www.scrappinblogs.blogspot.com/

Go check out their gorgeous selection for ALL OCCASIONS....I'm so happy I found it.

After the holidays I'll go back to my newly created Pierced Tin one but this is fun!

Sometime today we're going to bake cookies - I have the dough made and setting up in the refrigerator. We were supposed to cut them out yesterday but decided to head to Janesville to finish up Christmas shopping but we still have one person to buy for. Our 16 year old granddaughter, Alex, is bringing her boyfriend here for Christmas and so it's off to buy for him and so we needed to get a list to go by. I guess that's what we'll do tomorrow.

It snowed very early this morning and is continuing so we have a fresh covering which makes one get more in the mood for Christmas – at least it does for me – it will make cutting out cookies a bit more festive as well.

Also, later today I’m going to scan old pictures of our Christmas trees from years past…oh how they have evolved!  I went through all the years of photos and got a few at least. It was a blast from the past and looking at the three boys so young brought back so many memories, to say nothing of how sad to see me so skinny! Oh how I wish!!!!

So be checking much later today for old photos of my trees!

Have a great day.
Karen

 

WANT NEW BACKGROUND

Okay, I finally made my own  background...it's okay but can't find a nice solid to go with it.
White was too white and this 'gray' is too dirty looking...I'll play with it some other time...this whole thing took me all night!
Thanks to those who e-mailed me and posted here to help me.

Karen

HAND SEWN RAG QUILT and FAMILY

Over a year ago my niece went to the Wholesale Show with me to purchase fabric for her quilt business and bought tons of Honey and Me fabrics and I so wanted her to make me a quilt from it all for my husband. We have lots of them but nothing that looked good on the sofa he uses so last week at our family gathering she brought it! Oh my, how beautiful…..now I want one for myself. Tina can put one of these together in less than a day and her sewing is perfect too.

So here’s a peek at it….I didn’t unfold it because then the picture of it would be too small so I did a close up of the colors…I just love them!

Our son sent pictures of Emily and Joe before they they left for their Church program (Emily 12, Joe 9)

Darren and MaryAnn sent us pictures of them yesterday as well.
I had to scan them off the cards they sent so the one of Aidan alone has some shadows on his face for some reason.

 

(Notice Darren’s neck scar…it was taken on Monday and he took the brace off for the picture)

Here’s Alexandra (16) from Sunday – like I said in my previous post I tried to get good pictures but they were mostly blurry.

And a silly one of Jesse with his NO HAIR hair cut…he and his father got the same hair cuts from guess who…ALEX! lol
She always cuts their hair and this time they said SHAVE IT!
Jess has such curly hair it’s unruly so he wanted it free and easy for awhile.  I loved his hair curly – it’s cute but I guess a  20 year old guy doesn’t want to be called CUTE! Only a gramma can call them that, right?

Yesterday we had Darren for the day! Yep, sounds like we had one of our grandchildren….but it’s so rare we see Darren anymore since he doesn’t come here everyday for lunch since the surgery but yesterday there was a lunch and meeting where he and Doug both work and Darren wanted to attend it.

He hadn’t seen any of his co-workers since the first surgery in October. Plus he had to go to the dr. to get X-rays for his apt. today…..anyway Doug picked him up, did their things and then came here and picked me up….we went shopping for about an hour till the x-rays were ready then took him home and had a nice visit with MaryAnn and Aidan as well….so it was a wonderful day all around.

Pray he gets a good release today from his apt. He so wants to drive and get the 10 lb. weight limit lifted so he can try some new things to get his arm back! He wants to learn how to get Aidan out of his crib and playpen but till he gets a release he can’t.  Hope they have some therapy answers for him today!!!! Please pray.

That’s it for today – I’m off to sew the LAST Christmas order which is a swap actually – I got the Tallow Berries and she gets a runner…so off I go.

Hugs, Karen