HAPPY NEW YEAR

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH7PxTHUrXX3y1x59BQ4qLHWJU3W1klKSrKKDUAEteBpISLc-hEgzvm8jIRTAUP3NQkoqUNJeQbrUpFxY6eXMRwrQL5_GV4emPuFkLpcHvwJr-vdsjrBN6WrRDhvOwBAGMNF1OqN6V7ARR/s1600/paris+fireworks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH7PxTHUrXX3y1x59BQ4qLHWJU3W1klKSrKKDUAEteBpISLc-hEgzvm8jIRTAUP3NQkoqUNJeQbrUpFxY6eXMRwrQL5_GV4emPuFkLpcHvwJr-vdsjrBN6WrRDhvOwBAGMNF1OqN6V7ARR/s640/paris+fireworks.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">HAPPY NEW YEAR!</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2011 has been a busy and interesting year for my family.</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">  Lots of traveling across the country, a milestone birthday for me, the loss of loved ones... </span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Makes you reflect and consider what is truly important in your life. </span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> One of the great things that has happened is the return of my traveling Mr. Beaux! </span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> After almost 20 years of nonstop travel with his job he is settling down here</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> and starting his own company.</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">  This has allowed me to return to work<i> and </i>start blogging!</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">  I can't wait for 2012 and all that it will bring.</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> What changes have happened for you in 2011?</span></span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br /></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> And what will you look forward to in 2012?</span></span></div><div style="color: #45818e;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Have a Blessed New Year</span></div><div style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Beaux R'eves!</span></span></span></span></div>

HAPPY NEW YEAR

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2011 has been a busy and interesting year for my family.   Lots of traveling across the country, a milestone birthday for me...

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Countdown to New Year's

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigmLkamWkv-WgDvBrvwziKZdx_DnAqUoRztFr7cAp1hjjTXk0ELRtQpYoyUfqD81O7tRCTXE4uF1LpfmsN6FUdRQLHjZALzWRb5EXhlWiZMvVIR-lmcdEqB-K0jOAFI6TEwRFtbM9c8n_8/s1600/Countdown2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigmLkamWkv-WgDvBrvwziKZdx_DnAqUoRztFr7cAp1hjjTXk0ELRtQpYoyUfqD81O7tRCTXE4uF1LpfmsN6FUdRQLHjZALzWRb5EXhlWiZMvVIR-lmcdEqB-K0jOAFI6TEwRFtbM9c8n_8/s640/Countdown2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Happy New Year!</span></b></span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">What a <b>busy</b> day!  We got in last night from our trip, went to bed early so I woke up early... I had to de-stage a house this morning. I'm a home stager which means that I get houses ready to sell and when they sell <b>(YAY) </b>then I have to gather my things before they move.  Took my daughter to the Plaza to do some after Christmas shopping, the gift cards were burning a hole in her pocket.  Stopped by<b> Trader Joe's</b> to pick up a few things including flowers. Then home to do my tablescape.  <b>WHEW!</b>  I'm tired!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHfkUhQbD4GQ6XqH_qHIb7g2-85-vtiiKzRGGK_n3dfw81Z4GxEcfc5N5Sf44k2BDqqnYiej_olCKdyoN_xFVMNZGxMwJAPRDd_oyZLE2jdOmqEGSqxjfRXv7VTeh7dpyYWmKqgGJjAfc8/s1600/Countdown1jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHfkUhQbD4GQ6XqH_qHIb7g2-85-vtiiKzRGGK_n3dfw81Z4GxEcfc5N5Sf44k2BDqqnYiej_olCKdyoN_xFVMNZGxMwJAPRDd_oyZLE2jdOmqEGSqxjfRXv7VTeh7dpyYWmKqgGJjAfc8/s640/Countdown1jpg.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">My table is all ready for our <b>New Year's Dinner</b>.  I wanted to keep it semi casual so I used my Lenox Butler's pantry dishes and I decided on a Black and White theme.  I had the Crackers left from Christmas because we weren't here to open them.  It's a favorite tradition of my children.  They wear the funny hats all night long and read the jokes inside.  I had some old Pottery Barn Hotel napkins and I happened to have some iron on transfer paper. (really I did!) So, I transferred the numbers onto the napkins.  I like the way they turned out.  <b>What do you think?</b></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPnKRE0MnkM6Ne_wQI32TtzkGTSRwu4mCc6Z0VW6I-HYt2vZPh_bMqyK5OvhEGHYBRFKGg2ZwVTVoke9d3bRjVgx7eXZyz7aeKk2019S-TQkDPgKN1-cb8VtOa7PPnySzh2YWsYGDP9CVg/s1600/Countdown12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPnKRE0MnkM6Ne_wQI32TtzkGTSRwu4mCc6Z0VW6I-HYt2vZPh_bMqyK5OvhEGHYBRFKGg2ZwVTVoke9d3bRjVgx7eXZyz7aeKk2019S-TQkDPgKN1-cb8VtOa7PPnySzh2YWsYGDP9CVg/s640/Countdown12.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's the countdown the Midnight!  10, 9, 8, 7,  </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkLIgcezK6e-6TPgCX8yA9ab18q6wnapilG9HiM-QXxUaIidD7DV2MXKFkgaBaP2S_8O0RVJCbI5oqSG_aZuWRnRfgdipvYbFYKj58KEHAbUPI-psYXiU8w-uGqiYH4url5oJhcboiXCI/s1600/Countdown4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkLIgcezK6e-6TPgCX8yA9ab18q6wnapilG9HiM-QXxUaIidD7DV2MXKFkgaBaP2S_8O0RVJCbI5oqSG_aZuWRnRfgdipvYbFYKj58KEHAbUPI-psYXiU8w-uGqiYH4url5oJhcboiXCI/s640/Countdown4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">I added Black Ribbon and a string of pearl ribbon around the napkins to<b> "Fancy" </b>them up a bit. </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSL7Oo2CJpd-lL5VOtbdG1VmN4Ajg7lnhX72Af3aUd1r8fcX6pXF63sakntwuiczJA3x0ersPVFs0vQV4muNQH69tcGzF8LSXOqZ-kHdVGCNoNCGxLKyZZzbcNjcnIL60tfHupl0rqeql/s1600/Countdown9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSL7Oo2CJpd-lL5VOtbdG1VmN4Ajg7lnhX72Af3aUd1r8fcX6pXF63sakntwuiczJA3x0ersPVFs0vQV4muNQH69tcGzF8LSXOqZ-kHdVGCNoNCGxLKyZZzbcNjcnIL60tfHupl0rqeql/s640/Countdown9.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I found these placemats in my drawer in a package of Six that I had never opened.  On a trip to<b> China </b>(my husband worked there for a few years) I had bought a set of placemats, napkins and chopsticks together.  I<b> stenciled </b>the pattern on with the help of my lovely 15 year old daughter. I'm sure the shopping trip made her more of a willing participant. </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSKA_z3srk841Fv5VYAXqG5daqpSpEZil5rgSi2Mr3_8DrGTkiurfp230h2trD8BKWreCuZTSzll1tvyuMLKGEmWyBpKe3xCxg8weCpXpcpVNg2pOyPPVpKfwM9-W6oEecJRQP_2DRaXW/s1600/Countdown3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSKA_z3srk841Fv5VYAXqG5daqpSpEZil5rgSi2Mr3_8DrGTkiurfp230h2trD8BKWreCuZTSzll1tvyuMLKGEmWyBpKe3xCxg8weCpXpcpVNg2pOyPPVpKfwM9-W6oEecJRQP_2DRaXW/s640/Countdown3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I adore the way my Centerpiece came out!  I had an old wine box from a trip to Napa, an estate sale Silver Champagne bucket, a few sparkly snow flakes from Nell Hills, and my Trader Joe's Daisy's.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrw-sLZ2AtC2UEoJkEzC8rGY5Wo17WG2bptaWQxFEhCPEP2qO3TI6y1kGbfSPRJ4xjsiDkAisXu7lFmIEy2iTTz7F_CMayibQv8Xlxnp2S14_1sdG98qMB_-TsKYuRK9KgDXro1TPuId8/s1600/IMG_2181.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrw-sLZ2AtC2UEoJkEzC8rGY5Wo17WG2bptaWQxFEhCPEP2qO3TI6y1kGbfSPRJ4xjsiDkAisXu7lFmIEy2iTTz7F_CMayibQv8Xlxnp2S14_1sdG98qMB_-TsKYuRK9KgDXro1TPuId8/s640/IMG_2181.JPG" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And here's the Flip Side!</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I used my World Market Cutlery and sprinkled some <b><i>Bling </i></b>around the table.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8gTabFvRR6YFolOETH3tSl0d7FCZjS8hHpBaQnMlhWmbcrebhl15ouEBcWwiisFclXrZRddhcWQ4hCzsLLy_TXAikcxR62ie99_NJtN_YTyROr1qaTndwjqSNUTsRImUVYWuIReOvQiWh/s1600/Countdown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8gTabFvRR6YFolOETH3tSl0d7FCZjS8hHpBaQnMlhWmbcrebhl15ouEBcWwiisFclXrZRddhcWQ4hCzsLLy_TXAikcxR62ie99_NJtN_YTyROr1qaTndwjqSNUTsRImUVYWuIReOvQiWh/s640/Countdown.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: small;"> I printed <b>Resolutions </b>on cute paper that I had purchased at Michaels. I like this one...</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUI_ldWgxoLJkR0OjkA8eRakLZ-B7rqmy747uPg2UVC_YHXw5i4fPP0F3mwSMrZULH2vpWu8FaVRH-DWx847uKiGtsqsJOvTlEU6kdLrFSSZZjGj3300memYrGFL_kOBXnLOZEsJpqJR3/s1600/Countdown13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTUI_ldWgxoLJkR0OjkA8eRakLZ-B7rqmy747uPg2UVC_YHXw5i4fPP0F3mwSMrZULH2vpWu8FaVRH-DWx847uKiGtsqsJOvTlEU6kdLrFSSZZjGj3300memYrGFL_kOBXnLOZEsJpqJR3/s640/Countdown13.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cute!</span></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrcJu4-P8CjNL7DW3dT2afdfEKHiAGPquGXWj1xFtze-wUl5-O3K4qi5ajC317RB1b3WVTIMWHIoGZrAztyQGpUVUg4ROP8RdefASAmEYMkCgJqzycn5fi1Pu0GF582M4bI9S9QeJ6sAlX/s1600/Countdown15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrcJu4-P8CjNL7DW3dT2afdfEKHiAGPquGXWj1xFtze-wUl5-O3K4qi5ajC317RB1b3WVTIMWHIoGZrAztyQGpUVUg4ROP8RdefASAmEYMkCgJqzycn5fi1Pu0GF582M4bI9S9QeJ6sAlX/s640/Countdown15.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpO1Njg4MfFZXdK2Sol3v3Hs-qUv6m0IyWs1eRaRLqQlQ06itMdtC0PDDBKc6d8KfAR9p4yM2knCoFHGe6GMjX58_AbKgMfXCuAILkn8AqwBPHuiFo_NNLTNziBU9-kSzx6hZcbKp08Nt1/s1600/Countdown16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpO1Njg4MfFZXdK2Sol3v3Hs-qUv6m0IyWs1eRaRLqQlQ06itMdtC0PDDBKc6d8KfAR9p4yM2knCoFHGe6GMjX58_AbKgMfXCuAILkn8AqwBPHuiFo_NNLTNziBU9-kSzx6hZcbKp08Nt1/s640/Countdown16.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="font-size: small;">The Sideboard is all ready for extra Guests...</span></span></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfIpq0xuZRto3tTiS5n7oOpmV-wD9dt3F50eJ5BI8eXa2HGeUSWxOmMqmZajwZQLps87Le4-K7RF8YuBSNvECk9RZpe6uk4oiZQ2rowdCLOMIFGEH4ZmjcbtA2Iv8g4f3gWeDuEpEW7M9P/s1600/Countdown6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfIpq0xuZRto3tTiS5n7oOpmV-wD9dt3F50eJ5BI8eXa2HGeUSWxOmMqmZajwZQLps87Le4-K7RF8YuBSNvECk9RZpe6uk4oiZQ2rowdCLOMIFGEH4ZmjcbtA2Iv8g4f3gWeDuEpEW7M9P/s640/Countdown6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitb5VKIbbJw11LpVsZSyUvw5jXhrtoexvZ-u0egdP2F_eLOfap2O20PaR9jweUzCxjoe8ZjvdtHj_dua_H1sQftfmU-72IBQ1-OYGHkYFUj2hI7HUAYs_npbZ0J1DCETTQrJWvFWa6JEzM/s1600/Countdown18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitb5VKIbbJw11LpVsZSyUvw5jXhrtoexvZ-u0egdP2F_eLOfap2O20PaR9jweUzCxjoe8ZjvdtHj_dua_H1sQftfmU-72IBQ1-OYGHkYFUj2hI7HUAYs_npbZ0J1DCETTQrJWvFWa6JEzM/s640/Countdown18.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT17mt1novtrJfOWB5I_Pl8Y-5unjqYV13wgXnlsWxwRfVnYm9sv21QAuMlLn8JHHYMdhYDSngsym-VXmTjGY84ciIYllIP29ozSYtrOsuxFPQEeZMKMHMyK3-TzAD24cavVjJIFybJzKU/s1600/Countdown14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT17mt1novtrJfOWB5I_Pl8Y-5unjqYV13wgXnlsWxwRfVnYm9sv21QAuMlLn8JHHYMdhYDSngsym-VXmTjGY84ciIYllIP29ozSYtrOsuxFPQEeZMKMHMyK3-TzAD24cavVjJIFybJzKU/s640/Countdown14.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Now, here is a Resolution that all of us Mothers, Wives, Sisters etc can relate to...</span></span></span><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Happy New Year Everyone!</span></span></span></b><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">I hope you have enjoyed my table.</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">I am sharing on</span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Between Naps on the Porch</span></span></a></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal">Potpourri Friday@<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1073132938"> </a><a href="http://twenty-eight-0-five.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">2805</a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Open House Thursday @<a href="http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"> No Minimalist Here</a><br /><div class="MsoNormal">Feathered Nest Friday @ <a href="http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">French Country Cottage</a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Home Sweet Home Friday @<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_843557197"> </a><a href="http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Charm Of Home</a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Vintage Inspiration Friday @ <a href="http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Common Ground</a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Flaunt It Friday @ <a href="http://chiconashoestringdecorating.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Chic On A Shoestring Decorating</a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Inspiration Friday @<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_843557209"> </a><a href="http://www.atthepicketfence.com/" target="_blank">At The Picket Fence</a></span></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/2011/12/tuesdays-treasures.html" target="_blank">My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia</a></span></span><br /><a href="http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">A Stroll Thru Life </span> </span></a></div></div>

Countdown to New Year's

Happy New Year! What a busy day!  We got in last night from our trip, went to bed early so I woke up early... I had to de-stage a house thi...

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An Affair with Paint!

<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As I'm still dismantling Christmas, I see that lots of folks are sharing their fun project(s) they conquered this past year.  So, I thought I'd do the same!  </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let's just call this the "Year of Paint!"</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I'll keep my babbling to a minimum so that the *tons* (sorry) of pictures can speak for themselves:</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It all started with painting/distressing/staining a simple bench BM White Dove and exPLODED from there!  </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhne8Q-3omYEp7Dq9FHtJJLIZQwUWFtJoboU3NF8wF_OMJPSqUTzIHuOT-h7Kl16w70cODAWAwQF7vR1hSO7XuA-fGVh1_5__UH0DSudkGvmjU6QBz6SF2eQFB1aWzsxi9DGcJaheyzv5M/s1600/2011bench.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhne8Q-3omYEp7Dq9FHtJJLIZQwUWFtJoboU3NF8wF_OMJPSqUTzIHuOT-h7Kl16w70cODAWAwQF7vR1hSO7XuA-fGVh1_5__UH0DSudkGvmjU6QBz6SF2eQFB1aWzsxi9DGcJaheyzv5M/s400/2011bench.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER:</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNj4WtmR1A7PzrpuHfRbN8M-JDewRBt39jn2LcC18fvF2Fwf4d9_6ttWOKKLxl3esIP45BBgMB-qpaaAZRmkQlJ7fshPPjMJDISRSQY9hjgaTWhjXppk-pUAAeDuWrAsyejU1MFMl9EI/s1600/diningbenchoverall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNj4WtmR1A7PzrpuHfRbN8M-JDewRBt39jn2LcC18fvF2Fwf4d9_6ttWOKKLxl3esIP45BBgMB-qpaaAZRmkQlJ7fshPPjMJDISRSQY9hjgaTWhjXppk-pUAAeDuWrAsyejU1MFMl9EI/s400/diningbenchoverall.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">That led to this ...</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0nDDqn9eYJpGyiF9Qdx4ZUv90QMXfg84xYMVY_yO4j9BN2rLvLZYY2CCIUV_MCxPgqIDKArRk1qPOfmvVVIE7rt_1DZu55PVsBa_f_Sfwoh2g0gztX7Rb14xIZkbs903jKpcl_U9kIA/s1600/2011diningoverall1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0nDDqn9eYJpGyiF9Qdx4ZUv90QMXfg84xYMVY_yO4j9BN2rLvLZYY2CCIUV_MCxPgqIDKArRk1qPOfmvVVIE7rt_1DZu55PVsBa_f_Sfwoh2g0gztX7Rb14xIZkbs903jKpcl_U9kIA/s640/2011diningoverall1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER (I painted every.single.piece of furniture in here BM White Dove, followed by distressing and glazing/staining) (sorry the pic quality isn't the best):</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZrc4rHxkFArw0HOUz2JmaQ6z2tPoqtNkmS7xgrKA09avVI41H75nWOll8bjelwQ05XyKsfHAcao25t5dYoMezZRGMESXsK1p6QOSmuvPkJGfbx4_DviF_x-qjt5p85QuY99F3Dz9W0j8/s1600/diningoverall4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZrc4rHxkFArw0HOUz2JmaQ6z2tPoqtNkmS7xgrKA09avVI41H75nWOll8bjelwQ05XyKsfHAcao25t5dYoMezZRGMESXsK1p6QOSmuvPkJGfbx4_DviF_x-qjt5p85QuY99F3Dz9W0j8/s640/diningoverall4.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My paint brush then whisked me over to our sitting room, where I took it from this:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi61NN1DPtRhZhvYP4HIwJYe4luqqHeAlDj3JQIMV6wYWOGT0M76QlwPXtaMFUM162ZV6Vdb6OzbkRvUrNaKytuXxjjwRTgIF17_CpLu6b_dTc-2zimZBhbMkGlhtJA-M3umSoRX7hxk2E/s1600/2011sittingoverall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi61NN1DPtRhZhvYP4HIwJYe4luqqHeAlDj3JQIMV6wYWOGT0M76QlwPXtaMFUM162ZV6Vdb6OzbkRvUrNaKytuXxjjwRTgIF17_CpLu6b_dTc-2zimZBhbMkGlhtJA-M3umSoRX7hxk2E/s400/2011sittingoverall.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">to THIS:  Oh sure, let's paint the bookcase BM White Dove and cover the furniture with white slipcovers!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3q4tjRtfoPXtiTI3s4oqsL0M0rSI657w4zPNwhQEtysD51qf3ipe0wrfx8V5eKozdQ3g1xJ7itxemqTP7Do-f0FFd7Wnw0tgJF8LTeZTCiUr6HRKJYNwioXY7K1PO-TWYrbDNT8OQIGM/s1600/sittingfinalsign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3q4tjRtfoPXtiTI3s4oqsL0M0rSI657w4zPNwhQEtysD51qf3ipe0wrfx8V5eKozdQ3g1xJ7itxemqTP7Do-f0FFd7Wnw0tgJF8LTeZTCiUr6HRKJYNwioXY7K1PO-TWYrbDNT8OQIGM/s640/sittingfinalsign.jpg" width="388" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Next up, the buffet in the great room ...</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixyS0IatXBTCgmGSdyYjKRKEOLSg3JRsW-l11XYWL4shZz0WEUnVc5D58jDS5EgboDu92GSnIsuLw3ud2YR6y29m-gMBhzC9yyujwQCdkdA1mu9U5u7xEwNJ-W1ZLfBrmbOAqHMhtlBDk/s1600/greatbuffetb4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixyS0IatXBTCgmGSdyYjKRKEOLSg3JRsW-l11XYWL4shZz0WEUnVc5D58jDS5EgboDu92GSnIsuLw3ud2YR6y29m-gMBhzC9yyujwQCdkdA1mu9U5u7xEwNJ-W1ZLfBrmbOAqHMhtlBDk/s640/greatbuffetb4.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER (this got coated with AS Old White, followed by distressing and waxing).  Oops, almost forgot I painted the mirror, too):</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiin7Tq-rWCA4HUyYg26BODqGRLp8k7lWC6xsa6e6wWxf8cgFdNW2wv_sDfvyN8juorirVG5tQXt2JNtipcfIUWnNPDMjcHSDqPRExLQIQ4m1P3s-NXueEQ3pinP_cyBIgmAp4IusEm2oA/s1600/greatbuffetfront1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiin7Tq-rWCA4HUyYg26BODqGRLp8k7lWC6xsa6e6wWxf8cgFdNW2wv_sDfvyN8juorirVG5tQXt2JNtipcfIUWnNPDMjcHSDqPRExLQIQ4m1P3s-NXueEQ3pinP_cyBIgmAp4IusEm2oA/s640/greatbuffetfront1.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gee, Becca, while we've got the AS Old White paint can open, let's just go ahead and paint the fireplace on the porch!  (Sorry I don't have a before picture):</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPxzpsYCK5PUXZyHhCHB89vZxWkwCvLnaRnZatf6_TbYaBvQ4-6yzp4lG6Iw6mxlAfu-vLTqRJSZqt8rro_bMDvudpA1C5lsm5JZdt8NXvMrd_-gRGbcXEX7jZYLo__aRqhb4z9YMMGMI/s1600/porchfireplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPxzpsYCK5PUXZyHhCHB89vZxWkwCvLnaRnZatf6_TbYaBvQ4-6yzp4lG6Iw6mxlAfu-vLTqRJSZqt8rro_bMDvudpA1C5lsm5JZdt8NXvMrd_-gRGbcXEX7jZYLo__aRqhb4z9YMMGMI/s640/porchfireplace.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Oopsee, SOMEbody then discovered AS Chateaux Grey:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gtxyuLEHy39YuP9dE2BkYNdJD4DfdteLPB2xKzUuTFApvLr0Agjc_dxI-cjskDwFIijJQYrH3hYdpJigFQ-khCi-AxL4wNWDTreJrqa_g35bDetJ3R3q9VHlBszAAyEe26hBCYknYSE/s1600/chestb4after.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="308" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gtxyuLEHy39YuP9dE2BkYNdJD4DfdteLPB2xKzUuTFApvLr0Agjc_dxI-cjskDwFIijJQYrH3hYdpJigFQ-khCi-AxL4wNWDTreJrqa_g35bDetJ3R3q9VHlBszAAyEe26hBCYknYSE/s400/chestb4after.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And, hey, let's just bring the Chateaux Grey into the kitchen, why don't we?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE6fUoyhAGyAjfwEJnQhYD53l3akWOHIQuVGhfUHNFY-4MZkrmQORfCglfqRzMoumKgs5leN_Vf1hKiJTfmy2cfwub7vltaYZtwyhwTJspCZ4HSSMP-zMK95dpPrrab19h0l_K6SvmoDU/s1600/kitchendoor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE6fUoyhAGyAjfwEJnQhYD53l3akWOHIQuVGhfUHNFY-4MZkrmQORfCglfqRzMoumKgs5leN_Vf1hKiJTfmy2cfwub7vltaYZtwyhwTJspCZ4HSSMP-zMK95dpPrrab19h0l_K6SvmoDU/s640/kitchendoor.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGYTXrjsdO1S9s-Otzio0R_cmcBCMn8nFhh_xS6Ohfu883_6SP24rSHtIqIK0kR-TsHVDVUm4Qqs4FPcB7i61QUobxuY2WDun9KSKAxRjFyJ2b2uaGP0L80fxT0IUO2Uz9qCEe69GL5M/s1600/islandafter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGYTXrjsdO1S9s-Otzio0R_cmcBCMn8nFhh_xS6Ohfu883_6SP24rSHtIqIK0kR-TsHVDVUm4Qqs4FPcB7i61QUobxuY2WDun9KSKAxRjFyJ2b2uaGP0L80fxT0IUO2Uz9qCEe69GL5M/s640/islandafter.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Now wait, since I painted the island Chateaux Grey, apparently, that meant that I had to paint the stools Old White for contrast, and, for good measure, add a fun French image by the Graphics Fairy!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iHPMA7AV1emnb9PyJoUR03j55_YnJvvdAwYkK9WJYSwjP7JgFR31T4C8u42EAJd7QBSkvMMbHQLNetyafkmXr8zJ-UeZP9O7Gg1I7kwKfg1dhYZTZ_qpvYWMzYCN5ArPBXwg2tAmSns/s1600/stoolsb4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iHPMA7AV1emnb9PyJoUR03j55_YnJvvdAwYkK9WJYSwjP7JgFR31T4C8u42EAJd7QBSkvMMbHQLNetyafkmXr8zJ-UeZP9O7Gg1I7kwKfg1dhYZTZ_qpvYWMzYCN5ArPBXwg2tAmSns/s640/stoolsb4.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER:</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LzKGdQEaPswT9pFr8fv9Cjbls8QE0iKRECMQb7clqiN86vkGQR3Q-q-GBUDpJ6ZLDnvkFnG-XS-YO5HeoOFOTkgKKDuQ9fL9zEfa9V37XlK7vedy_CaOTFZTtf5yJqPI8YpyCSlcruc/s1600/stoolsoverall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LzKGdQEaPswT9pFr8fv9Cjbls8QE0iKRECMQb7clqiN86vkGQR3Q-q-GBUDpJ6ZLDnvkFnG-XS-YO5HeoOFOTkgKKDuQ9fL9zEfa9V37XlK7vedy_CaOTFZTtf5yJqPI8YpyCSlcruc/s640/stoolsoverall.jpg" width="538" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Annnnd, because I love odd numbers when it comes to decorating, I thought it only right to paint a third piece in the AS Chateaux Grey.  And, why not just make it a big ol' piece like the dry bar!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTKmuaMx_lD33OCrzes5mFGTJ1hm8PfeqH5omYtkqsgcrurw-EZ3hOhyphenhyphenagm5ErarrkJY1EQpK6Qb4UzK2yS2U_XJGzYd8Hn2Wh5dotUnuLTd8IrRyj7DBxphvEmsodjJ8LdJOm7kFD_7g/s1600/drybar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTKmuaMx_lD33OCrzes5mFGTJ1hm8PfeqH5omYtkqsgcrurw-EZ3hOhyphenhyphenagm5ErarrkJY1EQpK6Qb4UzK2yS2U_XJGzYd8Hn2Wh5dotUnuLTd8IrRyj7DBxphvEmsodjJ8LdJOm7kFD_7g/s640/drybar.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6N5d2moV6sGtCdxBXYCV6Gk6qIOlSIL7s0-qPsM_z9KjX7R-sEcWXkD7eueBLjptSz6i_tUgpkiAv1oU_WhP_DM2uFkHVsVB62UTNjUPIWJ-AvJHwOzqr_s3ev_fhJPw5t2YVtctT5xk/s1600/drybarside2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6N5d2moV6sGtCdxBXYCV6Gk6qIOlSIL7s0-qPsM_z9KjX7R-sEcWXkD7eueBLjptSz6i_tUgpkiAv1oU_WhP_DM2uFkHVsVB62UTNjUPIWJ-AvJHwOzqr_s3ev_fhJPw5t2YVtctT5xk/s640/drybarside2.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And, well, THEN, I thought that I might as well go ahead and paint the cabinets in the kitchen, too!  Except, I only painted the upper cabs BM White Dove (later followed by a coat of AS Old White, follwed by distressing).  I left our lower cabs in their original maple stain:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BEFORE:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATSOME9EOsQpcb2xCivr8ZfK5PEGTWCMSqfO7XCaMyK34Vy411ivIZW27qZBbn3Xp7Tba3Izueg3wQlTuQ5G98PBGGI7uAcDIK9hlpUufh3G8RAVpbbeEpFCiPXQRXxJE4hPewFqpPCw/s1600/cabsbefore1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATSOME9EOsQpcb2xCivr8ZfK5PEGTWCMSqfO7XCaMyK34Vy411ivIZW27qZBbn3Xp7Tba3Izueg3wQlTuQ5G98PBGGI7uAcDIK9hlpUufh3G8RAVpbbeEpFCiPXQRXxJE4hPewFqpPCw/s640/cabsbefore1.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">AFTER:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIRI4gDy73kW3crAR0tYn48hEOQweNj9mOXcOpsMmqe2M3bLilIGuXfStP6IgnmakknHs7hs2ezCCHoMbjshmNUMdk9ZJtXZe-fiI4nZJIoT0QU4RYv8coKxNPRrZ5hwJHMujxzwadJI/s1600/cabsafter3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIRI4gDy73kW3crAR0tYn48hEOQweNj9mOXcOpsMmqe2M3bLilIGuXfStP6IgnmakknHs7hs2ezCCHoMbjshmNUMdk9ZJtXZe-fiI4nZJIoT0QU4RYv8coKxNPRrZ5hwJHMujxzwadJI/s640/cabsafter3.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Still with me?  Let's seeeeee, next was the kitchen table beside the dry bar.  I painted the base of it AS Old White, leaving the top and chairs in their original stain (sorry no before pic):</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfblXxk9EVjAns-SgXwpkiG8RPXt4UYUyW8HjyqB8NBG2gxTjRWAZoqjzknX0H8AXvslmw6pe58xqz1M84TsoHaXu6UT_ejKYZ4blUAD5VzPNwyRkmwJhGWWjfKI_w8A_qsa5ieqUjMM/s1600/fallbreakfasttable.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfblXxk9EVjAns-SgXwpkiG8RPXt4UYUyW8HjyqB8NBG2gxTjRWAZoqjzknX0H8AXvslmw6pe58xqz1M84TsoHaXu6UT_ejKYZ4blUAD5VzPNwyRkmwJhGWWjfKI_w8A_qsa5ieqUjMM/s640/fallbreakfasttable.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Okay ... so, I'm pretty sure *this* is when I realized I had a problem ... even my poor pumpkins got attacked with AS Old White! LOL</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7Bc88pIIVLhG4dx9-RKcJkuZ-ShljdrFWK7ZGca6cN0jBOLIUUmrek9uDlcEVilLPpnAKcuKxBtNv5YaMgGxXWwepoUofXXYR7lzZoxRi3-8pfxUfjfeb5qMsbRpdW5Tw4gQPXcFETs/s1600/whitepumpkin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7Bc88pIIVLhG4dx9-RKcJkuZ-ShljdrFWK7ZGca6cN0jBOLIUUmrek9uDlcEVilLPpnAKcuKxBtNv5YaMgGxXWwepoUofXXYR7lzZoxRi3-8pfxUfjfeb5qMsbRpdW5Tw4gQPXcFETs/s640/whitepumpkin.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Annnnd, most recently, while still in the kitchen, I decided to ask my sweet hubby to take down a lonesome cabinet in the corner and replace it with three shelves that I made all by myself!  I then painted them AS Old White and distressed them.  They make me smile, and I'll have a great time decorating them with each new season!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">BEFORE:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jo8D444aH_mopNmSrvWK-WJpVd4rLaX4MXRRemPhj6h-dkK6fsrb_6Dyk6huUss2UifLRUirC53EO8_IK65JJMxdiPbWqA9Gb-6i-rHM4OtIjlxZ8ZNpFkb_oDryOKcf4VHOoWzyQtQ/s1600/kitchencabsb4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jo8D444aH_mopNmSrvWK-WJpVd4rLaX4MXRRemPhj6h-dkK6fsrb_6Dyk6huUss2UifLRUirC53EO8_IK65JJMxdiPbWqA9Gb-6i-rHM4OtIjlxZ8ZNpFkb_oDryOKcf4VHOoWzyQtQ/s640/kitchencabsb4.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">AFTER:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54inDkpGS3d2U5ckk09jk8wEChiEMxve6j72w6zXCPx2ydIFHlwFh1NG4Z0mWhTOUSLOcYQU83nN73qc-z4jLe3EfdxFcSaYF7IdjXvwgYV7LJRz7-EA4a5-fpVuw_t2FVo073g2w9jc/s1600/xmaskitchenoverallother.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54inDkpGS3d2U5ckk09jk8wEChiEMxve6j72w6zXCPx2ydIFHlwFh1NG4Z0mWhTOUSLOcYQU83nN73qc-z4jLe3EfdxFcSaYF7IdjXvwgYV7LJRz7-EA4a5-fpVuw_t2FVo073g2w9jc/s640/xmaskitchenoverallother.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Needless to say, I've been one crazy painting mama this past year and think an intervention is definitely in order!  Thankfully, I'm not sure that there is anything left to paint in our home.  LOL  (Nah, I'm sure I'll find SOMEthing to splash with paint in 2012!)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Okay, you're next ... what are your fun projects you conquered this year?!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Thanks so much for stopping by!</span></div><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/248/3B01215062574D4D6FFA221C1E7FF50B.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I'm linking up with:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Savvy Southern Style/<a href="http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com/2011/12/wow-us-wednesdays-46favorites-from-2011.html">WUW</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Delightful Order/<a href="http://delightfulorder.blogspot.com/2011/12/delightfully-inspiring-thursday-party_28.html">Delightful Inspiring Thursday</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Kristen's Creations<a href="http://kristenscreationsonline.blogspot.com/2011/12/share-your-creations-party-18.html">/Share Your Creations</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Katherine's Corner/<a href="http://katherinescorner.com/2011/12/29/thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop-16/">Thursday Favorite Things</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">No Minimalist Here/<a href="http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com/2012/01/open-house-party.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NoMinimalistHere+%28No+Minimalist+Here%29">Open House Thursday</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">French Country Cottage/<a href="http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/2011/12/feathered-nest-friday-happy-new-years_29.html">Feathered Nest Friday</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div>

An Affair with Paint!

As I'm still dismantling Christmas, I see that lots of folks are sharing their fun project(s) they conquered this past year.  So, I thou...

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Happy New Year!

<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday!  Do you have wrapping paper and empty boxes everywhere?  Are you stuffed from this past weekend's fabulous meals?  We are, for sure!  Jax is busy playing with all of his new "goods," and John and I are cleaning up (yuck).</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Are you someone who opted to go with the "less is more" motto this season when it came to holiday decorating?  If so, I envy you right.this.second!   Yes, I have the lovely task of taking allllll of our decorations down and, lemme tell ya', this is NOT a part of the holiday season that I enjoy!  </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Sooooo, while I am preoccupied in lots of *mess* this week, I wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year, and that I can't wait to see what trouble our decoratin' minds get us into in 2012!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKkxremYmJzU134eZbXEBuCeoGkz1fFN41QdfJnPtpVVVZfXJ93no7_Mgm_vk9B1Qxo3GwiEYqqPNpYgnrlbLrrqur92tZ_sySZfN_IuA02Ur-k732kBTQ1rwfjFmkKZkcFEr2HuzmaI8/s1600/xmasus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKkxremYmJzU134eZbXEBuCeoGkz1fFN41QdfJnPtpVVVZfXJ93no7_Mgm_vk9B1Qxo3GwiEYqqPNpYgnrlbLrrqur92tZ_sySZfN_IuA02Ur-k732kBTQ1rwfjFmkKZkcFEr2HuzmaI8/s640/xmasus.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54489/248/3B01215062574D4D6FFA221C1E7FF50B.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>

Happy New Year!

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday!  Do you have wrapping paper and empty boxes everywhere?  Are you stuffed from this past weekend...

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Sweet Gingerbread Dreams

<span style="color: #444444;">It's almost here!  Christmas Eve is my favorite day of the year next to Christmas.  The excitement, the last minute present wrapping, the cooking and the anticipation of the big day.  <b>This year</b> we secretly flew out to the Orlando area to surprise my Mother-In-Law for Christmas.  The plan was hatched at my Niece's wedding in October and the emails and phone calls ensued.  My Hubby's two brothers and their wives flew from California and we flew in from the Midwest on Thursday.  My Sis in law lives close so I imagine it was quite difficult for her to keep it all a secret!</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #444444;">My MIL was quite surprised and it is still probably sinking in that she now has a houseful of uninvited guests!  It's OK we are an easy going type of family and we are all pitching in to make it a great Christmas.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #444444;">While here in Orlando we went to see the HUGE, life sized Gingerbread House at the Grand Floridian Resort.  OK, it's Disney, so you know it's going to be 1st Class.  Here are some photos.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq0I3VoWdZnXyaHJBsQai3MlwfXrOcOyNUUJ-47E6zfGKrMa9YKdjdzDwX4_kwFFjU_qS4Tl3hMAGuu4GjAa1JCK0Nhh05xp8UK7XMY7KfUZdi_MbBbW5nYlpPwGzVBpW0XzA1LFwKIJpe/s1600/IMG_2140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="618" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq0I3VoWdZnXyaHJBsQai3MlwfXrOcOyNUUJ-47E6zfGKrMa9YKdjdzDwX4_kwFFjU_qS4Tl3hMAGuu4GjAa1JCK0Nhh05xp8UK7XMY7KfUZdi_MbBbW5nYlpPwGzVBpW0XzA1LFwKIJpe/s640/IMG_2140.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOB3uR1VLu32ezOPfAcBp2DKlSRPbY3BIZ-LUxltweWVH5L-u8MjT0gAYVsE8Y7JxoU1_ByKzPkBB1LjnEivcLRMCDFHe3lEK_B14cNTcqEtOs_T24yERmk3tHSbY2ruEg4UNbn4O_n8Ke/s1600/IMG_2140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Can you just imagine being a small child and seeing this?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUxGVhyphenhyphenWSNQsyYrIRHe9HEemmoeR2w6aUcfIGIgD3tM0mm5U_Ug0XRD5O4vMXu60X9JpC_npYNtXD_yYlmlEJZaC599CRBLssr1wVqvXq3Efo-5KHlvGrzJ26LtInGPXhnZPNBYFnIqtCS/s1600/IMG_2112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="638" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUxGVhyphenhyphenWSNQsyYrIRHe9HEemmoeR2w6aUcfIGIgD3tM0mm5U_Ug0XRD5O4vMXu60X9JpC_npYNtXD_yYlmlEJZaC599CRBLssr1wVqvXq3Efo-5KHlvGrzJ26LtInGPXhnZPNBYFnIqtCS/s640/IMG_2112.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Side View</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTH92nEm3eZKZfzX6w9igWLaCKtkfNAW-BTusxEyjDvlHlX95izwXrBlRXPUJOgakEpMmtHhlpfLBCgHBW5gG_hB-fNyA7agrm1LbKm_OiTMwu-O95UWy1Ooan8gChAUlc8KKwrOz-irlc/s1600/IMG_2114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="606" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTH92nEm3eZKZfzX6w9igWLaCKtkfNAW-BTusxEyjDvlHlX95izwXrBlRXPUJOgakEpMmtHhlpfLBCgHBW5gG_hB-fNyA7agrm1LbKm_OiTMwu-O95UWy1Ooan8gChAUlc8KKwrOz-irlc/s640/IMG_2114.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Adorable!</span></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMAyjmsLaQfIdZpZLz2vYQmRr9-fu17hJTJ5CvgTe6sP_nQ6bRPLh0CA9M1-6fkKbyQcI49KzRCklNY4TWaXDZ8haXujaTt6AD2P3HB2o0O7GQ_lGYDVdJ8qO9nL7pgaYjkbkYPoaxvcx/s1600/IMG_2113.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMAyjmsLaQfIdZpZLz2vYQmRr9-fu17hJTJ5CvgTe6sP_nQ6bRPLh0CA9M1-6fkKbyQcI49KzRCklNY4TWaXDZ8haXujaTt6AD2P3HB2o0O7GQ_lGYDVdJ8qO9nL7pgaYjkbkYPoaxvcx/s640/IMG_2113.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Here's the Calorie Breakdown...</span></span></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDrUTIxP9uMmRRaQ1jMIEjYL0Qlm91OQC0keC-MWexxfUkIqYzMQBFv_Ers-KPHDef0iHFNYoCepqesCsfyF8bNDDy_M8_Cz6tjLrSW8tVARYaHBjUVgtt4IFwvY20l8_KjnNyKv2pRcF/s1600/IMG_2135.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDrUTIxP9uMmRRaQ1jMIEjYL0Qlm91OQC0keC-MWexxfUkIqYzMQBFv_Ers-KPHDef0iHFNYoCepqesCsfyF8bNDDy_M8_Cz6tjLrSW8tVARYaHBjUVgtt4IFwvY20l8_KjnNyKv2pRcF/s640/IMG_2135.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">They sell these shingles in the back of the house. <b> Here is a funny story...</b>  A few years back my Sis in Law took her two boys to see the house with my In Laws.  While they were busy taking pictures and looking at the house, Grandpa went and bought a shingle and started eating it in front of the boys.  They were flabbergasted as they thought that he had ripped it right off the house.  He never let them know the truth!  We sure miss him and his practical jokes, sadly he passed earlier this year. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh081gMMXZ6D1LUFCCNYFyT2HdVGm7Odhjk93X1-oPuswGHPMR06-4jvixt_NTVvaWVgHqJW6XcXYdnGf-o8wpehovEKwYGKPQwFigIXFEtzdmYv0utIpPS1mayN-RUCLyiby8K-qgkDONZ/s1600/IMG_2167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh081gMMXZ6D1LUFCCNYFyT2HdVGm7Odhjk93X1-oPuswGHPMR06-4jvixt_NTVvaWVgHqJW6XcXYdnGf-o8wpehovEKwYGKPQwFigIXFEtzdmYv0utIpPS1mayN-RUCLyiby8K-qgkDONZ/s640/IMG_2167.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTH92nEm3eZKZfzX6w9igWLaCKtkfNAW-BTusxEyjDvlHlX95izwXrBlRXPUJOgakEpMmtHhlpfLBCgHBW5gG_hB-fNyA7agrm1LbKm_OiTMwu-O95UWy1Ooan8gChAUlc8KKwrOz-irlc/s1600/IMG_2114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Smile!  The girls were more than happy to pose for the camera.  Cute Aprons!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVvy41onD3l66OaoUFCx9uFPtY0aVbiKinCEDCn3A_rk39ApGqEAZtJkVF3EYkamC7KrgvQDYAgrTcB0O8M8UaFuoXpbKBzNoLgjt0r1k-s4zE-uFBdtz_BEzS8BxtOw2EivsdMNYLDloW/s1600/IMG_2129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVvy41onD3l66OaoUFCx9uFPtY0aVbiKinCEDCn3A_rk39ApGqEAZtJkVF3EYkamC7KrgvQDYAgrTcB0O8M8UaFuoXpbKBzNoLgjt0r1k-s4zE-uFBdtz_BEzS8BxtOw2EivsdMNYLDloW/s640/IMG_2129.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_OgTTZlhOH3LpNtH_VS3lLHei_TyzU6r4tlRTDYtFPmXZo_MlufpS6akxliUbYpyn6_oUSQakIT4zHfCG7ylsJ0-IYxMmdeokpUhzPfi18htwOaFeTLTwgzBUbHrXME8tjWdGDYMk2Lp/s1600/IMG_2128.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_OgTTZlhOH3LpNtH_VS3lLHei_TyzU6r4tlRTDYtFPmXZo_MlufpS6akxliUbYpyn6_oUSQakIT4zHfCG7ylsJ0-IYxMmdeokpUhzPfi18htwOaFeTLTwgzBUbHrXME8tjWdGDYMk2Lp/s640/IMG_2128.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Tin Soldiers standing Guard.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbzY2FFQK5W1CVlrJfL4wmwaIlYUncrUvxfl-5cLxF_5GIVjTrwQ8f95jvojToeHn0j5k-PYeZD0FKR4Oue2poXOfhvlanVjSNeC_-XgpnpSI3GyXXEy7XvQ1rKdno526vBlEzg8RDuzvx/s1600/IMG_2130.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbzY2FFQK5W1CVlrJfL4wmwaIlYUncrUvxfl-5cLxF_5GIVjTrwQ8f95jvojToeHn0j5k-PYeZD0FKR4Oue2poXOfhvlanVjSNeC_-XgpnpSI3GyXXEy7XvQ1rKdno526vBlEzg8RDuzvx/s640/IMG_2130.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3DIwNF2-_rCMtt7E9WCEDs8EaQKyN_Cw94Ogtt2IcoCu8Ro10ly4-jp7NYNhj-FICqfG6yLMHGX1nYIJK9KQ8-0OR04shq1CrvjdQ5yTgJtG9Ylp9Rn827CoUA5sGcZe-4QLNsouSwIeP/s1600/IMG_2133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk10NMvdY6VozMxdq-QtzbtIn7hyphenhyphenu-nPqCGWGE3gPq6w9ERk5FxRprgXoxHDqVmOopTdqEpQa9fF5W8W-rYdzbk99SQj03ocpYFm5huba-UGLHKlR8PoPZb0NtgFHGbK-aJuHDOZEtEu7Y/s1600/IMG_2137.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk10NMvdY6VozMxdq-QtzbtIn7hyphenhyphenu-nPqCGWGE3gPq6w9ERk5FxRprgXoxHDqVmOopTdqEpQa9fF5W8W-rYdzbk99SQj03ocpYFm5huba-UGLHKlR8PoPZb0NtgFHGbK-aJuHDOZEtEu7Y/s640/IMG_2137.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1LEdWcEY-7x5kUyqekNggRx3bqYOPfkgj0FvSy_Tz8rSRMbKr3cuUoZF8DEGKGrLE6XbiylCJTdD1l5Tl_Km6oUTczpaHgmYZXes_4p6mu6ZqU749o-1w_S2MbYY1YwInbOufpoBELN7/s1600/IMG_2115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1LEdWcEY-7x5kUyqekNggRx3bqYOPfkgj0FvSy_Tz8rSRMbKr3cuUoZF8DEGKGrLE6XbiylCJTdD1l5Tl_Km6oUTczpaHgmYZXes_4p6mu6ZqU749o-1w_S2MbYY1YwInbOufpoBELN7/s640/IMG_2115.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Hope you enjoyed my tour of the Giant Gingerbread House!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!</span> </div>

Sweet Gingerbread Dreams

It's almost here!  Christmas Eve is my favorite day of the year next to Christmas.  The excitement, the last minute present wrapping, th...

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