tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69759255392633385602024-03-05T07:29:38.839-06:00Maison NewtonMaison Newton:
Heart, Hearth, Home...Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.comBlogger545125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-64404154821504294842022-09-06T20:00:00.003-05:002022-09-06T20:00:55.363-05:00Been Busy! Here's a Quick Look for Less<p> Hola everyone!</p><p>I haven't blogged in months but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. Tonight I'm just doing a quick post to show you the new curtains I've purchased for my living room, which is getting something of a revamp (still in process).</p><p>Here they are:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjhK7Re2XOi_qPJSZmB3N3FpbmqNz3ybBg1qaNt-w91lM2yRQv5lbNL3auUVygOcf5UbptZHdO--Fx2gaAx3kfIjmImgUTjEvVCMXby6OzIhAmuam3j0inoFyf9s1KpOekNze-gp78J_FVT2r9wafBhD4IUS8hQzNAtUctXpvijYK97evTQWBczfmAlw/s535/2002%20Hygee%20Geo%20curtains.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="535" data-original-width="532" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjhK7Re2XOi_qPJSZmB3N3FpbmqNz3ybBg1qaNt-w91lM2yRQv5lbNL3auUVygOcf5UbptZHdO--Fx2gaAx3kfIjmImgUTjEvVCMXby6OzIhAmuam3j0inoFyf9s1KpOekNze-gp78J_FVT2r9wafBhD4IUS8hQzNAtUctXpvijYK97evTQWBczfmAlw/w398-h400/2002%20Hygee%20Geo%20curtains.png" width="398" /></a></div><p>Above are the Lush Decor Hygee Geo Room Darkening Curtain Window Set. Found <a href="https://www.kohls.com/product/prd-3628110/lush-decor-2-pack-hygge-geo-room-darkening-window-curtains.jsp?skuid=46107083&ci_mcc=ci&utm_campaign=WINDOW&utm_medium=CSE&utm_source=bing&CID=shopping20&utm_campaignid=380493012&utm_adgroupid=1238050300344140&gclid=20a980d025db1d7eb20ee3c7c2c6de50&gclsrc=3p.ds&msclkid=20a980d025db1d7eb20ee3c7c2c6de50">online at Kohl's</a> for $114.99 for a set of 2, each is 52" wide by 84" long. </p><p>I found the identical curtains on sale at Amazon (which expired earlier this afternoon) for - get this and hold on to your hats - $22.39 for the set. The sale expired and the current price for this set of 2, each 52" wide by 84" long, is $31.99 for the set. STILL a real bargain. Here's the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GZBLC6K/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_image_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1">current link at Amazon</a>. </p><p>I'm sure you love a great bargain just like me! I'll be back posting but it may still be a few weeks, depends on the weather as I'm enjoying as much time as possible and doing as much work as possible outside in my front and back yards, and depends on how long it takes me to get an accent wall completed. I've been in the taping around the edges before painting stage for over a month...</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-5072306887764860242022-01-01T14:57:00.000-06:002022-01-01T14:57:41.898-06:00Happy 2022 Everyone! Last Christmas Decor Photos for 2021<p> Hola! I hope everyone had a lovely New Year's Eve - but a safe and sound one!</p><p>Today dawned cold and extremely dark in Milwaukee. At 7:15 a.m. I was still waiting to see any hint of daylight outside. I kept peeking through the curtains in the dining area where I set up my computer during the day for the holiday season, as I like to be in the living room in the evening with a fire going in the fireplace and the Christmas tree on display. It's much easier to move a relatively few steps from the dining area to the living room with my laptop.</p><p>It finally got "light" enough by about 7:30 a.m. We are expecting possible snow later on. A forecast I looked at this morning said we could get as much as 7.4" if we also get lake effect snow. EGAD! But thus far, it hasn't started snowing. It is looking very very dark, though, to the west/southwest - that's the direction the storm is blowing from toward the east/northeast.</p><p>The squirrels are really busy today eating me out of house and home. Right now, because of the population explosion that occurred beginning last winter - and yes, I admit it's probably my fault for feeding the animals in the first place, I have more squirrels than ever visiting daily, and ALL day long, from dawn until dusk. The squirrels are really fat and waddle, but they're eating me out of about 20 to 25 pounds of nuts a week right now.</p><p>But I love them anyway, they're such fun to have around, even though they are busy tearing up the backyard lawn trying to bury some of those nuts.</p><p>I have some final photos of the Christmas decorations, such as they are. I never did get around to taking a photo of the outside of the house at just the right time when the lights on the tree are on, the wreath is lit up, and the two little Christmas tree flanking my front door are lit up too, and make sure it isn't blurry. I seem to be a pro at taking blurry photos. So, without further ado (and no picture of the outside of the house decorated for Christmas), here are the final photos for 2021 Christmas:</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhjj40ykyUS_RaorQENgAIqLZLtUmry-KlSQo6lQsQ0iKRtp0s2XmJSR02_iPLyi-1DVGn9Xz7pXGSfdn7pVz0MRN9eOZvqVKdmDWmff4YKSOMarY3aPra1JDasziMtLVRGc6BVLc6p8DqkyP0qT58i5B31Gua2ZpqfoGJXxwegA0j7Ht1iCgOKaAK3cw=s2592" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhjj40ykyUS_RaorQENgAIqLZLtUmry-KlSQo6lQsQ0iKRtp0s2XmJSR02_iPLyi-1DVGn9Xz7pXGSfdn7pVz0MRN9eOZvqVKdmDWmff4YKSOMarY3aPra1JDasziMtLVRGc6BVLc6p8DqkyP0qT58i5B31Gua2ZpqfoGJXxwegA0j7Ht1iCgOKaAK3cw=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tree as finalized, with no gifts underneath.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg0LXGLeRjhBVbGNQJWEWO021oU89YBprshS8rPV0XnPdVl-bEt_0XjyQoq3ujhrzfwMMLXEFYztyatSe1pffvfToBbRfuY5AMW23SLdiVBaLnONlKCeZ2_JemdgsdYwAR3YmyDrjGtwpceZ1pDXmICxrqROHSjNGUGLexjdJU7hg_gAB4JG_MqF7BIIg=s2592" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg0LXGLeRjhBVbGNQJWEWO021oU89YBprshS8rPV0XnPdVl-bEt_0XjyQoq3ujhrzfwMMLXEFYztyatSe1pffvfToBbRfuY5AMW23SLdiVBaLnONlKCeZ2_JemdgsdYwAR3YmyDrjGtwpceZ1pDXmICxrqROHSjNGUGLexjdJU7hg_gAB4JG_MqF7BIIg=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tree as finalized, with my haul of gifts under it. My family bombarded<br />me with goodies this year!<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhmgwhDOZg422q-emLNT8DeXHAi79g0B84_pdKVpumbFHRdftnYeQXC87EQOpoUxaqBw7JkSIzI_C3onmZ0XBGXwSWqxYuuyDapOmX-BklM7gsUv3yOI-GCehNwSbslosDgtlPTgUfdPw0N93HR_nhzcikeOUtpeIWlt3DGjasDC0KmGDd_D7u6Df02rQ=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhmgwhDOZg422q-emLNT8DeXHAi79g0B84_pdKVpumbFHRdftnYeQXC87EQOpoUxaqBw7JkSIzI_C3onmZ0XBGXwSWqxYuuyDapOmX-BklM7gsUv3yOI-GCehNwSbslosDgtlPTgUfdPw0N93HR_nhzcikeOUtpeIWlt3DGjasDC0KmGDd_D7u6Df02rQ=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A close-up of some of the ornaments on the tree - looking at the side of the tree toward the front door.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiGt4VqyCmVZS6sfID7a7CD6fJzsHKGMlpL3PPag0JwjRY7lnV5ANme6k8a-Y9xH65103yclk93pGQKgFZ327rvlTxarz018EGyV96ApWSG0pn5h1xgeTC54Kz21oANI7A_hyOh-iZNt0vC5GJ-cgFcvpoV3-rCiLVOlJye-xFbb5MlS0ZqVLee3BobzA=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiGt4VqyCmVZS6sfID7a7CD6fJzsHKGMlpL3PPag0JwjRY7lnV5ANme6k8a-Y9xH65103yclk93pGQKgFZ327rvlTxarz018EGyV96ApWSG0pn5h1xgeTC54Kz21oANI7A_hyOh-iZNt0vC5GJ-cgFcvpoV3-rCiLVOlJye-xFbb5MlS0ZqVLee3BobzA=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a close-up of part of the lower front of the tree.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>There was one other close-up, but it turned out blurry - my signature mark as a taker of photographs! I did try to take several photos of my and Mr. Don's ornaments on the tree this year, but they just came out to blurry to use. Perhaps I need a new set of hands that don't shake so much. <br /><p></p><p>Not sure when I'll be back with a new post. I have a backlog of projects that I'd planned and still have not gotten around to do and here it is, 2022, going into my eighth year of living here. Time flies these years, whether I'm having fun or not!</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-11355305466999183522021-12-22T15:58:00.006-06:002021-12-22T15:58:49.715-06:00Two Sisters' Beautiful 2021 Christmas Trees<p> Here is Sister 2's beautiful tree, she decorates in an elegant style. I love how she doubled her ribbon to overlap, I will have to try that next year.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgFXO2uVJ11ZoNYXlDYJAwljhkZ5WDq3k8GBtt1wXI-sFWESXW0lYo4x2pgVtYDsL8mfEB6-nWFSA10LqD3BXFIa7Vr9RjwOaslO_Wf4OJBf5xyrCUc9rVymC9phEDeNUTMbMLWCpYQ5pXaNBZOtv1LVY2uC90Kq2XzqktnTXe4s6otMBY8O6t2f7X5hQ=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="1860" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgFXO2uVJ11ZoNYXlDYJAwljhkZ5WDq3k8GBtt1wXI-sFWESXW0lYo4x2pgVtYDsL8mfEB6-nWFSA10LqD3BXFIa7Vr9RjwOaslO_Wf4OJBf5xyrCUc9rVymC9phEDeNUTMbMLWCpYQ5pXaNBZOtv1LVY2uC90Kq2XzqktnTXe4s6otMBY8O6t2f7X5hQ=w296-h640" width="296" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Here is my youngest Sister's beautiful tree - she likes a rustic more "woodsy" style. She used old-fashioned silver tinsel, silver colored beaded garland and lots of glass and acrylic icicles to add glitter.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjsemvWFZTb1PpVL1FvL2IBF03Sdn-zIqypuRzhwNnt5G8-DxtSJ115cZGmck_fUv8qKuLj0ONl_z1ZDIn6z_CioxDtGZoShbntjkn_aVtSY4uwTlEN7yjLWIM5clpCeUgpIAZjKJucQDN_geL5wfH3WX0Tl5SMUbbwFak6n3xotruc8q9iAMwd-xztJw=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjsemvWFZTb1PpVL1FvL2IBF03Sdn-zIqypuRzhwNnt5G8-DxtSJ115cZGmck_fUv8qKuLj0ONl_z1ZDIn6z_CioxDtGZoShbntjkn_aVtSY4uwTlEN7yjLWIM5clpCeUgpIAZjKJucQDN_geL5wfH3WX0Tl5SMUbbwFak6n3xotruc8q9iAMwd-xztJw=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><p>It's hard to keep up with my talented sisters! Their trees get better each year. </p></div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-91730287644749815632021-12-22T15:25:00.004-06:002021-12-22T15:25:55.215-06:00Finished, Done, Kaput! 2021 Christmas Tree and Mantel<p> Hola everyone! The tree is done - finally. I've been tweaking for what seems like forever. The tree is fully loaded. Next year, I'm going to take extra time to place more large ornaments inside the center of the tree so I don't notice as many "holes" and hollow spots. The mantel is done and was finished rather quickly. Didn't tweak it much at all. Here they are, in all their "glory:"</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgTAE4w5C_elhd-eb6Dp7CskKplZ7cZjYSkujeuKcL7yNl6btqap1gNxBLE0wlvhX6r9Sn2hyJfcWKLyUs1svYV2aEFkO6XXS-cVHPsRXlT60lVHBlRecoY0QvdUXk25YDXxb7HCbEJ7UMvKb7lWty1RRJz2FZ0um5sFcsf5hAzJulEq63ISHqCQXJ6AQ=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgTAE4w5C_elhd-eb6Dp7CskKplZ7cZjYSkujeuKcL7yNl6btqap1gNxBLE0wlvhX6r9Sn2hyJfcWKLyUs1svYV2aEFkO6XXS-cVHPsRXlT60lVHBlRecoY0QvdUXk25YDXxb7HCbEJ7UMvKb7lWty1RRJz2FZ0um5sFcsf5hAzJulEq63ISHqCQXJ6AQ=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>This year I added a dream catcher oriented toward the southwest to catch good dreams and repel evil spirits (so the legend of the dream catcher says it works):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhggwMLmkUKx3mIY252-IzL81WEfJ9InJFpQD239sXb5wG8CmTDowExEdcJ6Qq_AHdi31SdK7d_48vfHeOiOkeTMZnbYdlO4wdhFrnPC5RNQ6cFlOAS2rslv6O70Mv2y6PTtUKnL72DIMf_ZrNK8PYnl26C1pYGIC-_NlGeYDykNumj64CyCQ6Sl8GLJw=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhggwMLmkUKx3mIY252-IzL81WEfJ9InJFpQD239sXb5wG8CmTDowExEdcJ6Qq_AHdi31SdK7d_48vfHeOiOkeTMZnbYdlO4wdhFrnPC5RNQ6cFlOAS2rslv6O70Mv2y6PTtUKnL72DIMf_ZrNK8PYnl26C1pYGIC-_NlGeYDykNumj64CyCQ6Sl8GLJw=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>Here's several different photos of the mantel. I haven't been able to get a really good photo of the mantel when it's all lit up at night, I probably should take the time to read through the manual for my camera and find out how the different settings work.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhdNHXmmgoJ7dsVw2Wc773S4rzgYhdyydRwhiTzYr-6Mf2c_75J6tdFKP6TJHi9mIKTgFw6hFGqvF0lK_TPzi6ZZX7wy0gSiIUjkFywxWzwoOoBxWucGpPKhjooGCsjcLF-SqAZsLs3l-tHiiv2K_gLONoG61rDmXuaOF3ReEfDJ9NGyes2SySPSmPOAA=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhdNHXmmgoJ7dsVw2Wc773S4rzgYhdyydRwhiTzYr-6Mf2c_75J6tdFKP6TJHi9mIKTgFw6hFGqvF0lK_TPzi6ZZX7wy0gSiIUjkFywxWzwoOoBxWucGpPKhjooGCsjcLF-SqAZsLs3l-tHiiv2K_gLONoG61rDmXuaOF3ReEfDJ9NGyes2SySPSmPOAA=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsFcunliJrytRCSp_KvJvgIfEQfquff3GWuMHWmH5FTA6UbXCzwaqRq1CjqZE-NXyRwFpb6fVG3ZQ5u-74Rh-WrI-BoVV76qv2pzrK8nyJ7mFbbfuzfV-pEyRe_ySu2iRldJEQ5jVcCy2ZIG7ka5O7DqaXhQPz0eojdv8af_SujkCZJHb0cb517TGbog=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsFcunliJrytRCSp_KvJvgIfEQfquff3GWuMHWmH5FTA6UbXCzwaqRq1CjqZE-NXyRwFpb6fVG3ZQ5u-74Rh-WrI-BoVV76qv2pzrK8nyJ7mFbbfuzfV-pEyRe_ySu2iRldJEQ5jVcCy2ZIG7ka5O7DqaXhQPz0eojdv8af_SujkCZJHb0cb517TGbog=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgWqVYXZiEX2M8IYBhEjYPm3OfdikxrbdRBhVDnLE8FBTGVnrrYfG-KEVobX2MU9xUXXmGczH6n4pFmUr40D0SgxfizWCR-MktURRaZ2LhqyuHQ4ZbT6eZk1OYlEvf3RJ61n-3DKd1HlxTi21nfcnL7AUEi9C_L7Lh-L7_1dgSuMDHIVWhHlop4bDACMQ=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgWqVYXZiEX2M8IYBhEjYPm3OfdikxrbdRBhVDnLE8FBTGVnrrYfG-KEVobX2MU9xUXXmGczH6n4pFmUr40D0SgxfizWCR-MktURRaZ2LhqyuHQ4ZbT6eZk1OYlEvf3RJ61n-3DKd1HlxTi21nfcnL7AUEi9C_L7Lh-L7_1dgSuMDHIVWhHlop4bDACMQ=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgsLaVTZsL3L9v8Ph0_Y92cB1deQEs4m3BMJsYDoakUlBCE1LGw9zPqafFTTdFK2g1ejFyM89QEJv6-MT6omhg7NP9dnOzPak4V69OO3c6IW2sErfQdqT5n3PNvb79Oe4P1ue_JPG6Bu9oWTLO7wWM0ZS3CrNCZ8ZVxWrwq2QNcGisGiR5EBZufSCqoWg=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgsLaVTZsL3L9v8Ph0_Y92cB1deQEs4m3BMJsYDoakUlBCE1LGw9zPqafFTTdFK2g1ejFyM89QEJv6-MT6omhg7NP9dnOzPak4V69OO3c6IW2sErfQdqT5n3PNvb79Oe4P1ue_JPG6Bu9oWTLO7wWM0ZS3CrNCZ8ZVxWrwq2QNcGisGiR5EBZufSCqoWg=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1CQ8_uGVggx166dTGWLU12a8oikLusFUAZzi-iKgdWL2QxQzMaGiakDQd5N6gvvr8JzgtBjWTpnk2vSSXWPDzS1olEXvPuXEnxceu-wd8LPUJlVxwqViXbIqpQ2J47mObpLw2BSyfnKESmSkYikjNLyGLAjhI6Rqt_7FsBankQzK8F2W0j8ZBvze0lg=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1CQ8_uGVggx166dTGWLU12a8oikLusFUAZzi-iKgdWL2QxQzMaGiakDQd5N6gvvr8JzgtBjWTpnk2vSSXWPDzS1olEXvPuXEnxceu-wd8LPUJlVxwqViXbIqpQ2J47mObpLw2BSyfnKESmSkYikjNLyGLAjhI6Rqt_7FsBankQzK8F2W0j8ZBvze0lg=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgB888Io7DOc6iU5HqjFrMY7XlaxsTMHCA_iWcY6bePpYisPU3PjWIo_KjR_kG1Cm9Imk9oDPOI16xXSIhEWrDZAallvHvV0yfYgZjdox27humMTLctJtKgISM8RytdJqjur5Pq8Uk4B5rp_ZcB6nn5lNHcBCpIhD9jAVH-IOFKWzOGEA7rBsEKwZXBLw=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="2592" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgB888Io7DOc6iU5HqjFrMY7XlaxsTMHCA_iWcY6bePpYisPU3PjWIo_KjR_kG1Cm9Imk9oDPOI16xXSIhEWrDZAallvHvV0yfYgZjdox27humMTLctJtKgISM8RytdJqjur5Pq8Uk4B5rp_ZcB6nn5lNHcBCpIhD9jAVH-IOFKWzOGEA7rBsEKwZXBLw=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The sun lights up the tree during certain times of the day and the ornaments and ribbons sparkle:<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCGjrb_7fctXv6k3jLmXMc0gvwKYNdOIUxN8u18KclBxsuASsLC9Ro1OInshSLLnw5Bn9N5ZtYV_E-zE6_gAseGdjpS6QtnFOxw9plEhbZZKbfTsa1vDMvBpEMdBQslWtTARYdBPugUuBts1W1ODwIGYbGlwPCQdysEtEEFhd-kdZReW8rMwGWM9M1dg=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCGjrb_7fctXv6k3jLmXMc0gvwKYNdOIUxN8u18KclBxsuASsLC9Ro1OInshSLLnw5Bn9N5ZtYV_E-zE6_gAseGdjpS6QtnFOxw9plEhbZZKbfTsa1vDMvBpEMdBQslWtTARYdBPugUuBts1W1ODwIGYbGlwPCQdysEtEEFhd-kdZReW8rMwGWM9M1dg=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><p><br /></p></div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-45679283510514041452021-12-16T14:51:00.000-06:002021-12-16T14:51:18.600-06:00Christmas Tree Burn-Out, and a Couple More Youtube Videos I Liked<p> Hola!</p><p>Here it is, December 16th, and I'm (maybe) finished fussing with the decorations on the tree. It's been a saga, for sure! I need to take new photos. I thought I had, but it turned out the batteries in my camera were going wonky or something and none of the photos "recorded" on the memory card. So - will be taking photos later. Stay tuned. </p><p>This is it, the tree IS finished. The mantel is what it is, I'm happy with it but I want to have a fire going when I take the photos, so I'll do that this evening.</p><p>While I've been fretting about the tree and the mantel, I've been binge watching Youtube videos on "how to decorate a Christmas tree" and "how to decorate a mantel." Yeah, I'm a real glutton for punishment.</p><p>Anyway, I came across "Creative Christeen" and I really enjoyed her approach to decorating both her mantel and her Christmas tree this year, and love what sounds like an "East coast" accent. </p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WBuaglQpig">"Neutral Palette Christmas Tree: Budget Friendly Decorating Ideas," December 1, 2021</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwO2mw-Bv0U">"2021 Christmas Mantel Decorating Ideas," November 13, 2021</a> </p><p>She decorated with a farmhouse vibe this year.</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-40297440595291846902021-12-05T13:35:00.002-06:002021-12-05T13:35:39.699-06:00Final Round of Christmas Tree Decorating (With Fingers Crossed Behind My Back) - And the Tree's Revenge<p>Hola! </p><p>Yes, I confess, I've been fussing with the Christmas tree. I added still more ornaments, but the tree still looks pretty naked to me. I know this may sound a little cray cray (okay, maybe a lot cray cray) but maybe the tree is eating some of the ornaments at night...</p><p>I swear, if I lived in a warm climate I'd strip the tree down, haul it outside and spray paint it with a light layer of white paint. Maybe that would make the rose gold/pink ornaments show up more. As it is, there are not enough of them to show up on the tree. I though about but fought off the urge of ordering yet MORE ornaments and decided I am not going to order more rose gold or blush pink ornaments until Christmas clearance sales are on (after Christmas). Thus, the tree has way more gold and clear glass ornaments on it from my prior years' stash and it's not anything like the rose gold inspiration trees I published photos of earlier. </p><p>Beyond frustrated and extremely disappointed. The 2021 tree is an okay looking tree, but it's not what I wanted, it's not what I'd envisioned. Nobody likes a "fail," but this year, my tree is a fail.</p><p>This is the FINAL tree -- so I say, but don't believe me. This is actually Attempt 3 or maybe it's Attempt 13, which yes, I admit, doesn't look much different than Attempt 2 or Attempt 1 (except for the too large and gaudy gold pointsettias that were removed), but it <i>is</i> different. OY!!!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmFhnyEl4qCBWI4tm_UxVlsnLfVp5r5VxPF3HLm6_ZKOJz3mPrOPsYJNTMGZVD7phRaHxfUQO53QUYY0AewFp0Xf_lRvTvNERK5ahTkYw5hdOexxZhH1BaRzRC_L6yHnqAbjwRD96fc1Y/s2048/DSCN6063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmFhnyEl4qCBWI4tm_UxVlsnLfVp5r5VxPF3HLm6_ZKOJz3mPrOPsYJNTMGZVD7phRaHxfUQO53QUYY0AewFp0Xf_lRvTvNERK5ahTkYw5hdOexxZhH1BaRzRC_L6yHnqAbjwRD96fc1Y/w480-h640/DSCN6063.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's Final (Round 13???)</td></tr></tbody></table><p>After sitting here a few nights looking at the aftermath of Attempt 2, I decided that part of the problem was with the bottom row of branches that I was not able to adequately fill in the gaps with the materials/decorations I had on hand. So, I got down on my hands and knees on Friday morning (12/3/21) and got a good workout bending the ends of the very strong branches upwards between one and two inches (some were much harder to force upwards than others). I also pulled the tips on each of that bottom row of branches more upward. Some of the gaps between the branches and between the bottom row of branches and the next row of branches above it were filled or somewhat filled more by this process. Not so noticeable during the day when the lights aren't on, but very noticeable when the lights are on - the lowest level of the tree has been "tightened up." </p><p>You probably can't tell from the photo either but I did some "rearranging" of the ribbons to fill in some of the gaps/holes I kept (and still keep) seeing. And yes, I added even more ornaments. I find it hard to believe, but there are only a couple boxes of ornaments left in basement storage, and I SWORE that they are not going on this tree this year. I'm DONE. Every time I think about putzing with the tree further, I think about the <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4emYaDbaJ8w">Band Perry song</a></b> and that stops me, LOL! </p><p>In the photo above I can see the white "frosted" effect that I found so pretty and led to me ordering this particular tree in the first place. That "frosted" look hasn't really shown up too much in prior photos. </p><p>This year it's been Jan versus the Christmas tree, a continual struggle over several rounds for more than a week. I thought I had won (finally), but last night (12/4/21) the tree got a TKO when, right after I'd plugged in the extension cord that has the lights plugged into it for the top half of the tree, I stood up only to see a light that appeared to be sputtering and then blinked a few times and out it went. And with it, about half of the top third of the lights on the tree. A PARTIAL BLACK OUT! </p><p>WHAT THE (BLEEP)! This is only the second and third season for ALL of those lights. They're LED lights, they aren't supposed to "burn" out after a couple seasons of Christmas use, for pete's sake! I don't leave my tree lit 24/7. So now - how on earth can I fix it? The tree is fully decorated. I am NOT going to un-decorate the top half of the tree, take down the ribbons and attempt to fish out the bad light string and replace it. </p><p>Soooooo, I may end up resorting to what I did in 2019 with my 10 years-old wired pre-lit tree where more lights were burning out seemingly daily: I inserted battery operated LED lights. The "warm white" didn't exactly match the color of the other lights, but they added light nonetheless and I could string them where I wanted the lights to be (more or less).</p><p>ARRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH! </p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-74289002238813162822021-12-05T12:12:00.000-06:002021-12-05T12:12:16.697-06:00The Tree Is Finished - Yes It Is, For Real. I Ain't Adding One More Ornament To It. I Swear.<p>After the failure of Ribbon Application on Christmas Tree 101, I ended up taking it ALL off and started over. That was after once again binge-watching several "Ramon at Home" Youtube videos and other designer videos on how to put ribbon on trees. This is how the second attempt at ribboning (is that a word?) the tree turned out:</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauOs3hfyGY5j6u_M5eI6Sc63YMnby9jG0ys-x_Da3VTSETUYPGIAhoTxBJUbju726YGWuUaQxdhLre_CjHuwNKmrt0MkoL7RZX6DkygGsZEDsSOYyPEF5JVJSX1Bqgzl-RJxq3gbFJmx7/s2048/DSCN6040.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauOs3hfyGY5j6u_M5eI6Sc63YMnby9jG0ys-x_Da3VTSETUYPGIAhoTxBJUbju726YGWuUaQxdhLre_CjHuwNKmrt0MkoL7RZX6DkygGsZEDsSOYyPEF5JVJSX1Bqgzl-RJxq3gbFJmx7/w300-h400/DSCN6040.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before: Ribbon Failure</td></tr></tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaP5NX8q8qfQz5YaCF1YtI0PKcVOmTcd7qeF_Iv_YVUPBxodgVIkia1qJ-WHxhZ5stTn7XvR3J3YlTogQ14VXnZotj1eHbih5fE3wYiqL3Ht3N6Q7XsU6F9TZxTdzwkh6gP-2z0cYwE7fV/s2048/DSCN6041.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaP5NX8q8qfQz5YaCF1YtI0PKcVOmTcd7qeF_Iv_YVUPBxodgVIkia1qJ-WHxhZ5stTn7XvR3J3YlTogQ14VXnZotj1eHbih5fE3wYiqL3Ht3N6Q7XsU6F9TZxTdzwkh6gP-2z0cYwE7fV/w300-h400/DSCN6041.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After: Ribbon Will Do</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I also added some more picks to the tree topper decorations and am satisfied with it. It's about the only thing that turned out relatively well on the tree.<div><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHihmGgfEmaNIypGcqh2tl_R3kwvmtJvJLPjIIOiaepLesz0dBWSr_2xpb0_QT6Fsh8HSX5Q0nhib3HvkJNsge8p1GESKyk0vNT0ABl7QngRcIZkmKi-7lK3ZK5H3SrIR-igObzDS63p1/s2048/DSCN6047.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHihmGgfEmaNIypGcqh2tl_R3kwvmtJvJLPjIIOiaepLesz0dBWSr_2xpb0_QT6Fsh8HSX5Q0nhib3HvkJNsge8p1GESKyk0vNT0ABl7QngRcIZkmKi-7lK3ZK5H3SrIR-igObzDS63p1/w480-h640/DSCN6047.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's Finished! (Round 1)</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I had to get down on my tummy and wiggle around the tree like a giant worm to get the tree skirt under it and covering the tree stand. The branches were very close to the floor, leaving maybe a foot of space. I tried to work the tree skirt around on my knees but I wasn't able to get really under the tree that way to get the tree skirt properly tucked around the tree stand. Maybe my arms are too short???</p><p>I determined on Sunday night (11/28/21) that I was done decorating the tree, and sat back that evening with only battery-operated candles and the lights on the Christmas tree (plus the light my lap top puts out), lighting the living room. </p><p>The longer I sat on my sofa last Sunday night with my handiwork staring me in the face, I came to the conclusion that the decorations just didn't look right. I kept focusing on the giant (and rather gaudy) pointsettias. They were too much, or I had not decorated the rest of the tree enough to compensate for their large and gaudy glory. I knew I'd have to do something, probably remove the pointsettias. But I really didn't want to redecorate the entire tree. I'd already spent hours first assembling it and fluffing the 928 tree tips, and then weaving six strands of LED warm white lights in and out of all the branches.</p><p>Monday was dedicated to running errands and taking a 43 minute bus ride downtown to visit my dentist. By the time I got back home, the only thing I wanted to do was get into my warm slippers, wrap an afghan around my shoulders and drink a couple of glasses of wine while catching up with my emails and the news on MSNBC online.</p><p>Which brings me to Tuesday, 11/30/21. The day dawned sunny and hit a high of 46! The bird bath unfroze and those intrepid sparrows of mine were taking baths at the height of the day, LOL! I spent my time switching between working outside to rake/sweep up yet more leaves, pine needles, pine cones and peanut shells left by my squirrels - working without a jacket or hat on, and hauling up a couple boxes of additional Christmas tree decorations from the basement. I ended up not using the second smaller box of decorations. I stripped off the offending pointsettias. The tree looked naked but also more balanced, I think the flowers were out of proportion to the rest of the decorations and ornaments I'd put on the tree. But I needed to add more ornaments anyway to fill in the blank spaces where the pointsettias had been.</p><p>I added 34 additional ornaments (yes, I counted them) from the second box, many of which are larger (4 to 5 inches) decorated glass balls and finials. I have more ornaments I thought about adding, but I decided to just go full stop. I SWEAR. Here is the finished, completely done 2021 Christmas tree:</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipBRNF-IAum5-IENPqiO1BLaQik-i2AG605B2FQ9JvU1brri3FLzmUEK_LyK9eoAUqpu80PlVgqAkJQmcMwPikdjFRehQVftMb9-SV7B_75ZnX5yj72Vka6mYxL_qhCR_EGITPhf5SsN21/s2048/DSCN6060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipBRNF-IAum5-IENPqiO1BLaQik-i2AG605B2FQ9JvU1brri3FLzmUEK_LyK9eoAUqpu80PlVgqAkJQmcMwPikdjFRehQVftMb9-SV7B_75ZnX5yj72Vka6mYxL_qhCR_EGITPhf5SsN21/w480-h640/DSCN6060.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's Finished! (Round 2)</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Well, we'll see. When it comes to my Christmas trees, one of the givens is that I never stop putzing around with it. I am going to try and break myself of that bad habit this year.</p></div></div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-86806580396223258592021-11-26T17:08:00.006-06:002021-11-26T17:08:50.848-06:00The Never Ending Saga of the 2021 Christmas Tree - Decorating 101<p> Hola! Today I did epic duty and individually applied and then twisted, twined and tweaked 590 lights on my Christmas tree. I did not buy a pre-lit tree, after experiencing the slow death of lights on my previous 6.5' tree that served me well for 10-11 years. Each year for the last 3 years of her life, she lost more lights and I was helpless and clueless on how to fix them. I couldn't wrap my head around lights on half the tree still working after 10 years, and half the lights on the tree just deciding to die after 8, 9 and 10 years.</p><p>So - today was suck it up Jan, get the lights on the tree! I got the box filled with lights from basement storage and spent about 3 hours doing my best to weave the strands of lights in and out of all the branches. I started at the bottom of the tree as a decorator on Youtube told me I should do, and with one last string of 120 lights to work up to the top of the tree thinking I'd have more than enough, I see it looks a bit sparse of lights at the top 15 inches or so. DRAT! I will pick up one more box of lights if I can find something in LED "warm white" at the supermarket tomorrow. Sigh.</p><p>Then I wanted to put the ribbon on. I pretty much ran out of steam, but no excuses. There is ribbon on the tree. Am I happy with how that ribbon looks? Nope. It is a far far cry from Ramon at Home's gorgeous trees with perfect ribbon that he makes it look so easy to do - and I can't do it! Right now I'm thinking I'll take it off tomorrow, but maybe I just need to tweak it some. </p><p>I am feeling rather inadequate right now. As punishment for failing Christmas Tree Ribbon Application 101, I'm going to spend the evening re-watching every Ramon at Home video on how to decorate a Christmas tree. For your viewing "pleasure," below are two shots of the tree with the lights (and the ribbon) on it. I have started on the tree topper as well, and discovered a box of picks and florals that I ordered at the end of last season that I totally forgot about. I'll be using some of them on 2021's tree. Right now I'm not happy with the status of the tree topper either, it needs more pizzzaaaazzzz!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix43RD9hWu8NSfdB-SF9ap_dRy7mBcnwQ2B9l4bUjBI_n5YpoNrOMD3tXwnfAqdZDefM3XPPQU9L51s8zeEVZrpbTw0w0rvZP8jVuDmAcPFdI-C3tcDKlQYmkfeu6ElDpIJzWEz2prAQmJ/s2048/DSCN6038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix43RD9hWu8NSfdB-SF9ap_dRy7mBcnwQ2B9l4bUjBI_n5YpoNrOMD3tXwnfAqdZDefM3XPPQU9L51s8zeEVZrpbTw0w0rvZP8jVuDmAcPFdI-C3tcDKlQYmkfeu6ElDpIJzWEz2prAQmJ/w480-h640/DSCN6038.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>I definitely need to do something about that ribbon, OY! I really need to rev up my "decorating the Christmas tree" MOJO. </div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-63339430876422391132021-11-25T14:29:00.000-06:002021-11-25T14:29:01.183-06:00Happy Thanksgiving! Happy Me, the Christmas Tree is Up!<p> <b><span style="color: #bf9000; font-size: medium;">Happy Thanksgiving</span></b> to everyone! I wish all to have a wonderful day with family and friends. Feast and be merry. I'll be making my own feast later on - filet mignon, scalloped potatoes (from a box mix - easy peasy), baby green peas, being careful to leave room enough in my tummy for at least one mini chocolate eclair! </p><p>Are any of you a Three Stooges fan? As a babyboomer, I'm very familiar with them, grew up watching their old clips and series on black and white television back in the day. Now they're on Youtube. Every year, I send a clip to my siblings for Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas. This year for T-day, it was <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKf7AUlmAok">Curly "stuffing" a turkey</a></b>. I'm sitting here laughing just thinking about it - CLASSIC! </p><p>Yesterday Mr. Next Store Neighbor (the husband part of a sweet young couple with a 2 year old girl and another little girl born a few weeks ago) invited me to join him in a visit to a highly styled wine and spirits store - <i><b>Total Wine (Spirits, Beer & More)</b></i>. It's just a little too far for me to walk there from my house and no easy way to get there by bus from where I'm located, so since they opened a few years ago, I haven't been there. It's pretty overwhelming! And from what I saw, at least in the wine section, they have better prices than buying wine at the Metro Mart and a gigantic selection, it's a superstore for all beverages and things related to alcoholic beverages. </p><p>The place was PACKED! I shouldn't have been surprised; people will do last minute shopping the day before major holidays, that's just par for the course. But I was still shocked at how crowded the entire shopping center was - hardly any parking spaces available. Inside the wine and spirts store itself - a very large space - it was crowded with shoppers in all aisles, even the ones I thought would be the most obscure. So much for the mainstream media's constant whining about "inflation, inflation" and it's impact on "average" American families. I live in a very "average American families' neighborhood and saw no signs of people having any problem spending oodles of money on cart loads of goodies in the jazzy liquor store.</p><p>I was dazzled by the displays, in the wine section (the area where I spent the most time browsing and oogling) some of the wine bottles were just gorgeous, dressed in glittery gold, silver, or jewel tones applied directly to the bottles in lieu of paper labels. I picked up a few items I normally wouldn't have bought (dark chocolate and red wine blend, anyone? OOOO LA LA!) I may be sampling the dark chocolate and red wine blend this evening. </p><p>Fittingly, it is snowing right now in southeast Wisconsin - the first snowfall of the season that has lasted more than five seconds, occurring on Thanksgiving Day. Further north it snows much earlier in the season, but it's rather late for the first snowfall here in Milwaukee. It won't stick around long though, unless we get a foot or more (I'd better check the forecast), because the ground here isn't frozen yet. The snow is melting upon contact with the ground, and the ambient air temperature is 36 degrees F.</p><p>But seeing the large wet white flakes cascading down from the grey sky is firing me up to get the Christmas tree decorated. I unboxed the new tree I'd ordered yesterday. I should have followed my own advice to others and put down a sheet before ever attempting to assemble it. DUH - Jan, the Dummy, did not do what she told others to do. Now I've got a mess on my hands after several hours spent first assembling and then fluffing out 928 tips over parts of 2 days! Holy Hathor, it seemed to take forever, but probably something like 4 hours total ( A LOT OF TIME FLUFFING), spent on touching each and every one of those branches to fluff the tree to, well - not perfection, but I'm not fussing with one more branch! (And, of course, right after I typed that I found myself staring at what appeared to be a particularly obnoxious hole in the bottom area of the tree that demanded I try and remediate it immediately! And I've been puttering around moving inner branches here and there pretty much every 15 seconds since I started typing this). </p><p>Anyway, here is the new tree in her naked (EEK!) state below after what is turning out to be Round One of fluffing - taken before Round Two: fluffing the fluffing (does that make sense?):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUNKi4Qm6SLGeMUnIetIX66iXZhNS1dFTCNzI6Dsl6NZ0SOuCdSsYdLJY2PXwIBPlzrhMtNawkfZA9myli1hM5m8Mlew5dQOAPvlSw9RAtq2nI5KKSSrx8idfLYhxeFF_yLt33XitrkwIx/s2048/Christmas+2021+tree+fully+fluffed+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUNKi4Qm6SLGeMUnIetIX66iXZhNS1dFTCNzI6Dsl6NZ0SOuCdSsYdLJY2PXwIBPlzrhMtNawkfZA9myli1hM5m8Mlew5dQOAPvlSw9RAtq2nI5KKSSrx8idfLYhxeFF_yLt33XitrkwIx/w480-h640/Christmas+2021+tree+fully+fluffed+1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6NzBAOKnK2zN0_8XGT5ei-jg-Wt4anxjig_lww5mAivfMOrMwd_RN8aPAsDLe6dOh2T6F5lD14KjGvURtH0ECS8kdNeyEX1OkLxvH2AQSscS-rT2dDYzjUsniiUXG9lIcBYNz79Nrme9/s2048/Christmas+2021+tree+fully+fluffed+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6NzBAOKnK2zN0_8XGT5ei-jg-Wt4anxjig_lww5mAivfMOrMwd_RN8aPAsDLe6dOh2T6F5lD14KjGvURtH0ECS8kdNeyEX1OkLxvH2AQSscS-rT2dDYzjUsniiUXG9lIcBYNz79Nrme9/w480-h640/Christmas+2021+tree+fully+fluffed+2.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p>I won't lie - I am thoroughly in love with this monster of a tree and already wondering how I will EVER get it lugged downstairs to the basement once the season is over, but to quote Scarlett O'Hara, "I'll think about that tomorrow." Perhaps I should have shopped for a slimmer version of a frosted tree, but when you fall in love - well, what can I say? I'll deal with it by moving the wing chairs a bit further from the tree once it is fully decorated than in previous seasons. Right now they're shoved pretty much to the sides of the room so I have space to bring in my step ladder if I need it in order to string the lights, design the "tree topper" and then decorate the tree with ribbon, ornaments, floral picks and probably a miniature kitchen sink somewhere, just because. </p><p>I take back what I said yesterday about the branches not appearing to be as "frosted" as I thought they should/would be when I first saw the tree online in all its glory. These photos show that the tree IS frosted, and I am loving the way the pine cones are really showing up as "stars" of the Christmas Tree Show! You'd think at 70 I'd know better by now than to judge a tree all scrunched up and sad looking in a box, begging me to take it out and make it beautiful like it's supposed to be. </p><p>After my break, I'll vacuum up the needles and little bits of pine cones that came off the tree as I was unbundling it from the box and then fluffing out each "trunk" with those 928 smaller branches.</p><p>The longer I've been sitting here in the living room (where the laptop will now be located until the Christmas tree comes down some time in January) looking at the new Christmas tree parked in front of my picture window, the more I'm falling in LOVE with it! </p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-67169780337665444422021-11-24T15:58:00.003-06:002021-11-24T15:58:59.227-06:00Holy Cow - This Is Going to Take Forever to Fluff This Tree!<p>Hola and oh my goodness. What have I done? I am not ready for this!</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9b0dPc6X7wR2eL0SjJDrtQisWjBhVYkJ-Fo4pHNC_LKOXlmogeS8NirYKTPa4Ar1aATu_A42UX4OBmFBYi-IjWfqv-Co-H2jXJeQ0XygLD12XQnozdD3By-jh4ywYac3A28JTs_qeCVZy/s2048/DSCN6035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9b0dPc6X7wR2eL0SjJDrtQisWjBhVYkJ-Fo4pHNC_LKOXlmogeS8NirYKTPa4Ar1aATu_A42UX4OBmFBYi-IjWfqv-Co-H2jXJeQ0XygLD12XQnozdD3By-jh4ywYac3A28JTs_qeCVZy/w400-h300/DSCN6035.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /> Here's the box the new Christmas tree arrived in - after I opened it earlier this afternoon. When it first arrived, I thought to myself OH OH. This is going to be one smushed up tree. How on EARTH did they ever fit a 6.5' full Christmas tree in this box...<p></p><p>Oh boy, I was SOOOOOOO right. Do you think I should run for President in 2024??? I'll only be 74 years old, much younger than either Trump or Biden. Think about it - maybe it's time to hire a wise old formerly hot chick attorney to do the job.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaEH0CpZk3ZYPkBWh7NV0D8eNjpcnKwKFySq7C2NZu5QwFKeN2kG9h2f-WnG8HZzOh16ip-bKfXKHT-p2gOpbp-FwqfybH-f2JzzP59gjpdCECM91Fl1WsN_Y7j7yhhjNDLGqf40gEOmBR/s2048/DSCN6032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaEH0CpZk3ZYPkBWh7NV0D8eNjpcnKwKFySq7C2NZu5QwFKeN2kG9h2f-WnG8HZzOh16ip-bKfXKHT-p2gOpbp-FwqfybH-f2JzzP59gjpdCECM91Fl1WsN_Y7j7yhhjNDLGqf40gEOmBR/w400-h300/DSCN6032.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTX06yXWAZJXKA8gGM4ZaCNqV4meSeIWy56vbjyHhInjX6McBRPr_-1SDUF0081T4eZ0pY2pg7vlS5bkaZm_i6D8oks3H4S1BwddOoBoOLuBD0LIznHl4fW5EW8BXkOLENifAlrgKtyqn2/s2048/DSCN6033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTX06yXWAZJXKA8gGM4ZaCNqV4meSeIWy56vbjyHhInjX6McBRPr_-1SDUF0081T4eZ0pY2pg7vlS5bkaZm_i6D8oks3H4S1BwddOoBoOLuBD0LIznHl4fW5EW8BXkOLENifAlrgKtyqn2/w400-h300/DSCN6033.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><p>It will take me forever to fluff this tree. Here's the bottom-most third of the tree, I have thus far managed to fluff two branches and not done a very good job of it, LOL! Something tells me I'll be fluffing for the next five days if I want to try to get the tree to meet up to my expectations. The tree has 928 tips. OY! It looked SOOOOO pretty in the ads selling it. I will have to fluff and fluff until my fingers fall off. And the "frost" on the branches is barely visible. Maybe once the tree is properly fluffed it will show up more??? I do like the large pinecones though, that's something anyway :) </p><p>And I also like this. I don't know if you are able to tell from this not so good photo, but the individual branches on the stems have slightly different color tones, and I really like how it makes this decidedly scrunched up PVC tree look a little bit more "realistic:"</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Q_yJ8-JUk1dISHMM3O_6saKJiHF_yv66VAJPnHqRkYIVtCffg0sjUBwA2VZoZW7KITMk3I_w2esav5PRVY5-2EUZKsu59Cx4nuz-2jhd4Ae5BzAY54Occ2omVZv-uWpOm4dbccAodHZo/s2048/DSCN6034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Q_yJ8-JUk1dISHMM3O_6saKJiHF_yv66VAJPnHqRkYIVtCffg0sjUBwA2VZoZW7KITMk3I_w2esav5PRVY5-2EUZKsu59Cx4nuz-2jhd4Ae5BzAY54Occ2omVZv-uWpOm4dbccAodHZo/w640-h480/DSCN6034.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p>And it looks like all of the "frost" on this tree just happens to be on this one branch that I photographed. Geez Louise. I can already see I'm going to have tons of clean-up to do. I KNEW I should have put down a sheet under the tree once I had the stand situated. Drat! I will suction up the fall-out from my attempts at assembling and fluffing the bottom third of the tree tomorrow morning - early - and then put a sheet down to (hopefully) catch all the stuff that's going to fall off the tree during the next several days as I assemble, fluff, fluff, fluff until I drop and then decorate. Oh my sigh (a big one).</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-63026010906360131802021-11-22T18:59:00.001-06:002021-11-22T18:59:16.943-06:00Another Pale Pink/Rose Gold Christmas Tree for Inspiration - She's a Beauty!<p> Holy Hathor! This is gorgeous:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEaTOjnCWgTcNmVAhFAGWV1nVQT1hTMuU6TG9ckONnepeLkkc9Kh1jO2zBcWrAz1xdHR55hJ9iHrAoKAwpQNpqj2GrodWnornw0OcbxWoDtevgcfRPAsWkpVnoKCkubEj4_YSFjmboqlEt/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="466" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEaTOjnCWgTcNmVAhFAGWV1nVQT1hTMuU6TG9ckONnepeLkkc9Kh1jO2zBcWrAz1xdHR55hJ9iHrAoKAwpQNpqj2GrodWnornw0OcbxWoDtevgcfRPAsWkpVnoKCkubEj4_YSFjmboqlEt/w277-h640/image.png" width="277" /></a></div><br />From <b><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/pin/208080445275369207/">Pinterest</a></b>.<p></p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-39918476430835128902021-11-22T12:11:00.000-06:002021-11-22T12:11:52.197-06:00Trying "Evergreen" Garland for the Christmas 2021 Mantel<p>Hola! All the years I've been decorating for Christmas, I've never had an "evergreen" garland on my mantel. I've decorated with white feather boas with white lights woven in and out, and lots of silver and gold; one year at the second Maison Newton home (that I sold in 2014 to retire to the current Maison Newton) I clipped some evergreen branches from shrubs in my backyard and used them on the mantel and also in the dining area in floral displays. Some years I've done more simple decorations with ornaments, white lights and candles - no feather boas, no garlands. But never anything with an actual "evergreen" garland.</p><p>So, this year, I thought - of course after I'd already sent in a steady stream of orders to various online vendors with no garland ordered - "Hey, why not see if you can find a nice artificial evergreen garland and use that to decorate the mantel this year." </p><p>I shopped, and shopped, and shopped online until I nearly dropped (but did not). I wanted as inexpensive an evergreen garland as possible, and as luxuriously looking as possible, thick and fluffy, two goals (price versus looks) that seemed to be on opposite ends of the Rainbow.</p><p>But, after visiting and revisiting several vendors and checking out endless streams of garlands until it felt like my eyes were going to fall out, I settled on a garland I kept going back to at Michael's online store. I decided to "up" the price I was willing to pay a bit, and I ended up purchasing this 6 foot Douglas Fir and Pinecone Garland by Ashland:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL-nkM_uk5w3EXV7BD4PErO-qmG2WLNaA598XsYJ0NIOpaF63crG5dHUQehGUCw3EPGx3PAKh41gBzBu6_i9U3FGw7Zel3Ezm7Mf2W19ULoIpQ-2Te7uG_NydLTrwrmXfVLc8jj8ny5gf4/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="540" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL-nkM_uk5w3EXV7BD4PErO-qmG2WLNaA598XsYJ0NIOpaF63crG5dHUQehGUCw3EPGx3PAKh41gBzBu6_i9U3FGw7Zel3Ezm7Mf2W19ULoIpQ-2Te7uG_NydLTrwrmXfVLc8jj8ny5gf4/w400-h400/image.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />I got in on sale for $17.99 (regularly $29.99). Here's a <b><a href="https://www.michaels.com/6ft-douglas-fir-and-pinecone-garland-by-ashland/10673743.html">link</a></b>. I did pay extra for delivery, but it was worth it as there is no Michael's store that I could easily reach travelling by foot or bus from where I live. <p></p><p>The garland arrived today and I have to tell you - it's gorgeous! It is made entirely out of soft PE (not PVC) so each of the bristles has a very realistic appearance and the garland is soft to the touch and totally flexible, there is no wire in it as there is in garland made from PVC. The pinecones are a good size (but not gigantic) and very realistic looking.</p><p>LOVE! It really is beautiful garland and a steal (I think) at $17.99. It is not "thick" per se, but I intend to interweave one or two of my white feather boas in and out of the branches to make it look sort of like "snow." There will also be lights interwoven and some ornaments and/or glittery floral picks, maybe all together. And maybe some battery-operated candles. Artistic license - you know how that goes, LOL!</p><p>I can't wait to start decorating the mantel. I've been watching Youtube videos left and right, and going through Pinterest images until my head is spinning. I'm starting my Christmas decorating earlier this year. I hope the living room including the new Christmas tree I purchased, will be finished by Thanksgiving Day so I can spend Thanksgiving luxuriating in a fully decorated room. I started shoving the furniture around and vacuuming yesterday, will finish that today and maybe unbox the new tree and get it assembled.</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-35785545801535284302021-11-13T14:41:00.001-06:002021-11-13T14:41:06.155-06:00Youtube Videos I Have Watched to Inspire Me in Decorating my Christmas Tree and Shopping for Yet More Tree Decorations<p>Hola! What would we do without the inspiration that Youtube videos can provide? I've learned so much watching some of my favorite channels, many of them found "accidentally" - that is, they show up at my "Home" page no doubt based on videos I have watched in the past. If they look interesting I may check them out - and sometimes I find a new channel to add to my "watch" list.</p><p>This season I'm going to attempt to create a "glam" tree look using primarily rose gold and gold ornaments, along with a range of clear and tinted glass ornaments, silver ornaments, champagne colored ornaments, and a range of old and new florals, sprays and picks. I've generally decorated my Christmas trees using the "more is more" approach, but I have yet to cover nearly every square inch of branches showing on the outside of the tree.</p><p>One of my favorite floral decorator channels at Youtube is Ramon at Home. Below are two videos I watched last year that absolutely inspired me. Ramon describes how he decorates as he's actually doing it and gives step by step instructions as he moves along. He also has videos on how to make ornament clusters, ornament garland, how to decorate mantels, wreaths and lanterns. He's a fount of knowledge, information and inspiration for me.</p><p>Ramon at Home: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBijySxl2oQ">Three Christmas Tree Decor Ideas 2019 - How to Decorate a Tree on a Small Budget </a><br />Ramon at Home: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdFNJ-xPUls">How to Use Ribbon on a Christmas Tree 2020 - Glam Christmas Tree Tutorial (Rose Gold)</a></p><p>There are also instructive videos on how to decorate glam Christmas trees from Decorators' Warehouse - Holy Hathor! If you like the glam look and want great tips and step by step instructions on how to do it, check out these videos.</p><p>Decorators' Warehouse: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PZtH5qWqy4">How to Decorate a Glam Christmas Tree 2021 </a><br />Decorators' Warehouse: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TSvsuT8_HY">How to Decorate a Glam Christmas Tree 2020</a> </p><p>I'm gearing up for Christmas 2021. Christmas is my favorite time of year. Yesterday I spent a couple of hours just looking for floral picks and sprays online at a price I considered reasonable. I ended up purchasing some floral sprays from my go-to site - Amazon. It seems I have little resistance to the temptation to buy new Christmas decorations on a regular basis. </p><p>I am somewhat proud of myself, however, in having thus far resisted buying any blush/pink/rose gold ribbon or mesh - I think the prices are ridiculous for the amount of ribbon you actually get. I'll stick with my wide gold tones French ribbons to decorate the tree and check in at the Family Dollar tomorrow to see what they may have in stock. </p><p>And, while I was really tempted, I also resisted buying any larger size rose gold ornaments. I thought it might be nice to add some 3 inch diameter ornaments to the mix since I purchased a much taller tree than my 5 footer from last year. But I have boxloads of ornaments already stashed in my basement storage area, accumulated over years of Christmases. With the addition of the new picks and sprays I ordered yesterday, I will have more than enough to fill in any large "holes" I come across as I decorate the tree. </p><p>I would post images of the floral sprays picks I purchased yesterday, but I haven't been able to get the new "snipping" tool to work on Windows 11. Arrrrggggggghhhhhh!</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-52629114636755001662021-11-13T13:47:00.006-06:002021-11-13T13:47:47.178-06:00Inspiring Images for Rose Gold/Blush Pink Christmas Trees<p>Hola! Today it's blustery and cold here in Milwaukee, brrrrrr! I've been gathering inspiration for decorating my Christmas tree this year, which will be going up as soon as the new one I ordered arrives mid-week next. I'm already working on getting the living room furniture switched around to make room in front of the picture window for the new larger, frosted look tree. I sure hope it's as beautiful in person as it was in the ad! </p><p>In the meantime, here are some rose gold inspired trees I've found that just take my breath away.</p><p>Below, from <b><a href="https://www.mommythrives.com/18-stunning-christmas-tree-ideas/">Mommy Thrives</a></b> website, posted to Pinterest: </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh016kTMCuVh-hWkyLdnVZTFz4j_KTu6J2BLWdJCaQ5U9h221VVASjH5LjIqGohY0EgCNDSgLfGfJHFhSmHGr8dKRm-qOZQ7eczzAAmMXgP4Ibnm5YOD8wJ8812318H8Jinh5qNz1QNyewW/s1002/Rose+gold+tree+1+from+Mommy+Thrives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1002" data-original-width="564" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh016kTMCuVh-hWkyLdnVZTFz4j_KTu6J2BLWdJCaQ5U9h221VVASjH5LjIqGohY0EgCNDSgLfGfJHFhSmHGr8dKRm-qOZQ7eczzAAmMXgP4Ibnm5YOD8wJ8812318H8Jinh5qNz1QNyewW/w360-h640/Rose+gold+tree+1+from+Mommy+Thrives.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p>Another tree from Pinterest below, posted by Valeria Shannon at <b><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/bellinha1015/my-future-home/">My Future Home</a></b>:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHm-dHIZfDyoSlMAiB3X0UvYpMpxh1Zt1c24BrgiBZQZ7Vr99NNKjtFnROgpDQQ-62z7OdVSfkdpZBh1X20pcPKVNRHQPOxfMj2H4UCvOqtEVR6HnhIo69FrqdXdQf2L7wqOn5cngJF76/s1002/Rose+gold+tree+2+posted+by+Valeria+Shannon+at+Pinterest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1002" data-original-width="564" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHm-dHIZfDyoSlMAiB3X0UvYpMpxh1Zt1c24BrgiBZQZ7Vr99NNKjtFnROgpDQQ-62z7OdVSfkdpZBh1X20pcPKVNRHQPOxfMj2H4UCvOqtEVR6HnhIo69FrqdXdQf2L7wqOn5cngJF76/w360-h640/Rose+gold+tree+2+posted+by+Valeria+Shannon+at+Pinterest.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p>And the tree below, from <b><a href="https://lisarobertson.com/rose-gold-and-rich-colors-christmas-tree/">Lisa Robertson's website</a></b>, was done in 2020. I am enraptured by this tree, the color combinations, with the addition of the blue and maroon-red tones, while leaving "breathing room" for the eye to rest on the green tree underneath all the splendor!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEj1r2zkqDhKQ6NbrDsFuPn-QfcPqVjAMfhs-1oJaRwfHIkdM3Jl8oWlj1vHJLqe68p1U_Wb7wLnw3QOkPbcdyFOTpcBU96h9meumCBNZsfWsem8mTqgLHLBlwxeiVgq37-5McypLsbfk/s2048/Rose+gold+tree+3+from+Lisa+Robertson+dot+com.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEj1r2zkqDhKQ6NbrDsFuPn-QfcPqVjAMfhs-1oJaRwfHIkdM3Jl8oWlj1vHJLqe68p1U_Wb7wLnw3QOkPbcdyFOTpcBU96h9meumCBNZsfWsem8mTqgLHLBlwxeiVgq37-5McypLsbfk/w480-h640/Rose+gold+tree+3+from+Lisa+Robertson+dot+com.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>All of the trees are gorgeous, but it is #3 that speaks to me the most - despite its size and grandeur, it seems "friendly." Is that a strange thing to think of when looking at a decorated Christmas tree? I also really love the look of #1. What #1 and #3 share is showing some of the underlying green branches of the actual tree. I love the birds and the florals used on #2, along with the frosted look of the tree that you can sort of be seen on a few of the branch tips barely revealed. So, I'll try to combine the looks on my tree, while remembering the lessons from <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYQMvwO14rbg8sWm9amW5Ng">Ramon at Home</a></b> on how to do the ribbons and insert floral sprays and picks.</p><p>Stay tuned! </p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-9402373089781066512021-11-06T16:09:00.004-05:002021-11-13T13:50:04.263-06:00Oops, I Did It Again!<p> Hola! Well, I didn't expect to be back here so soon, but here I am.</p><p>After Christmas 2019, I decided that I just couldn't handle lugging my 6.5' artificial Christmas tree up and down the basement stairs any longer. Even in three separate parts it was h-e-a-v-y! The tree had given me a long and great service of about 10 years, but had reached the end of its life.</p><p>So, I opted for a smaller tree. I had seen advertised at Balsam Hill (way out of my price range but gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous trees!) a "blended" PVC and PE tree. I hunted around online for a less expensive "blended" tree, and eventually settled on another vendor. I thought I had bought a 5 1/2 foot tall tree and would stand it on a covered 12 inch tall base of some sort. That was the plan, but the actual "green" part of the tree I purchased was only 4 1/2 feet tall with another 12 inches of bare metal central pole plus the base. I liked the tree because the PE soft bristle branches (only located at the ends of many of the branches but not on all of them) gave the tree a realistic appearance and the price had been good, so I thought - okay, give it a go.</p><p>Suffice to say, it was a hodgeboge mess. I couldn't find a table that gave me the look/height I wanted. I ended up using a table I already owned. I covered up the bottom bare portion of the metal "trunk" and the tree base" with some of my old white feather boas and twined some lights in and out. I loved the decorations on the tree, but the rest of it - a big disappointment. The proportions between tree/table and window were all off.</p><p>This is what the new tree looked like for Christmas 2020:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz_UecU_vawYvtTDY3KZOXt3EVALzLxez0jLS8Zr_UrxmMWHnM-osc1J-hWlk3vSSNVB82bpEI0EQmUYSJbIkSOSRqVY2YKLZ0bHH_UYvrILYOQ4nHgSgg_hy5Fd2Y11aCMLbi1dwT_AzD/s2048/2020+December+tree+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz_UecU_vawYvtTDY3KZOXt3EVALzLxez0jLS8Zr_UrxmMWHnM-osc1J-hWlk3vSSNVB82bpEI0EQmUYSJbIkSOSRqVY2YKLZ0bHH_UYvrILYOQ4nHgSgg_hy5Fd2Y11aCMLbi1dwT_AzD/w480-h640/2020+December+tree+4.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>Nearly as much table and mismatched cloths as tree. Not a good look. I loved how the decorations on the tree looked from the bottom branches up, hated how it looked from the bottom of the tree downward.</p><p>Oh how I missed my 6.5' tall but ratty old tree! I see now (hindsight) I should have gotten a teal blue piece of cloth or something to put underneath the gold tree skirt rather than my fall back deep red faux satin flat sheet. Well, you know what they say about hindsight being 100% perfect. Anyway...</p><p>Today while I was checking the news online and saw that Michael's was having a 40% (or more) off sale on Christmas trees. Having been watching <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/RamonatHOME"><b>"Ramon at Home"</b></a> on Youtube for at least the last month already (what can I say, I love Christmas and Ramon is one of the best decorators of Christmas trees I have ever come across on Youtube), I didn't even try to resist. I went online to Michael's to look for a new Christmas tree.</p><p>I was looking for a 6 foot tree. They are available, but I just could not find one that I absolutely fell in love with. And then I fell in love - with a 6.5' tall tree. LOL - the same height but even WIDER dimension than the tree I had decided after Christmas 2018 was just too big for me to handle any longer. Go figure, I sure can't, not even gonna try.</p><p>The tree is the an unlit Full Snowy Delta Pine with Pine Cones, 6.5 feet. It has white "frosting" on its tips and on the pinecones. That the tree be unlit was a must for me, no more trying to mess with dying lights on a prewired tree. It's actually easier and more relaxing for me to weave individual strands of lights in and out on the branches and replace them as needed if I can find the faulty light(s). The price of this frosted pine-coned beauty made me hesitate though. It was more than I wanted to pay at $179.99, about 50% off from the listed price.</p><p>I didn't want to pay any more than $150 with free shipping. Disappointed, I was moving on to something else when I thought (duh!) - try doing a search using the key word descriptions for the tree you love. And lo and behold, I found the tree - at all different prices at several different vendors. </p><p>I ended up buying the <a href="https://www.bisonoffice.com/6-5-full-snowy-delta-pine-with-pine-cones-artificial-christmas-tree-unlit/BG2927337/p/?bo=13366&gclid=CjwKCAjwz5iMBhAEEiwAMEAwGL4lsIJJHhnpyeYngqhRuz98zmfEaLS5NjjQ5y_rIG3x9ZEuvmHpMRoCEUkQAvD_BwE"><b>tree from Bison Office</b></a> for $139.30 with free shipping. Exact same tree. Delivery date 10 days away but I'm fine with that. Here's hoping the tree actually turns out to look like this:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp45MV3uTAWgicnLgCltAk2H7CdIo5S7Q4nMQGcgjyekRLi4EOTrQFBhOull-lwM9w5T_XEA9_VeKHvlOCShyphenhyphenmkfYWyWEk-wR_CO6EQbl2n4OElKDV7UD0uYsvidVcWsU55Whn7406jmT7/s1000/2020+Christmas+tree+purchased+from+Bison+Office.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp45MV3uTAWgicnLgCltAk2H7CdIo5S7Q4nMQGcgjyekRLi4EOTrQFBhOull-lwM9w5T_XEA9_VeKHvlOCShyphenhyphenmkfYWyWEk-wR_CO6EQbl2n4OElKDV7UD0uYsvidVcWsU55Whn7406jmT7/w640-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+purchased+from+Bison+Office.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Fingers crossed!<br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-74802558499524859232021-11-06T10:59:00.006-05:002021-11-06T10:59:46.578-05:00A Season Late - My Spring/Summer Look for the Living Room in 2021<p> Hola and LOL! Yep. I've had the photos since May but just did not get around to posting anything much this spring/summer. I spent a lot of time outdoors working in the front and back yards and on other activities. My Maison Newton blog fell by the wayside.</p><p>So, back in April, I did a short post and showed you <a href="https://maisonnewton.blogspot.com/2021/04/new-year-new-season-new-hope.html"><b>a preview</b></a> of the colors, along with the new area rug, I was going to put in my living room. At long last, here are the photos of what the room looked like during the spring and summer seasons:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3P7Nv2LawCeAQ4Mij46b0FVIvMoA5O3pfsP1jVupzA3MPBL_Wek_Sh3hr_X_hCGQfRTZXtz5H3IPYUwyq7fDcoBjIqQEPEpKrBfWDgerVto-jZ8wUSuO23c9s_mCxYJjr767e7kq-CMZL/s2048/DSCN5993.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3P7Nv2LawCeAQ4Mij46b0FVIvMoA5O3pfsP1jVupzA3MPBL_Wek_Sh3hr_X_hCGQfRTZXtz5H3IPYUwyq7fDcoBjIqQEPEpKrBfWDgerVto-jZ8wUSuO23c9s_mCxYJjr767e7kq-CMZL/w640-h480/DSCN5993.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHc6SmL3qqgJ2Ry8XmJ_R_4_IiuhXrLyTk1W7MshqJKFhrGkw_x2tPJO-vkvJk4ZvY9hqBOWx9LkJIkw3h55SCWowWZhdCr1-Vj9K8AmCNiUAejvuraeRuf5THY9STFcBpq-KqMAg64pN/s2048/DSCN5994.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHc6SmL3qqgJ2Ry8XmJ_R_4_IiuhXrLyTk1W7MshqJKFhrGkw_x2tPJO-vkvJk4ZvY9hqBOWx9LkJIkw3h55SCWowWZhdCr1-Vj9K8AmCNiUAejvuraeRuf5THY9STFcBpq-KqMAg64pN/w640-h480/DSCN5994.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Those paint touch-ups my handyman did on the wall back in 2014 (see above - to cover over patched nail holes) are driving me crazy. On the "to do" list for 2022 - new paint for the living room, if I can ever decide on a color. They show up so vividly in photos, not so much in real life when you're in the room. Go figure! As usual, I found some abstract prints on line that color-coordinate with the rest of the room, you can see two of those that I printed out in the photo above.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK9Qt6epH-MBVsZ3PX_JTTM2-1U79QgezT-y39i4zHIwYoTiTEhGms2VFTLbG3eYYV4p8nL9Lz8X_dPSzICdSswY1EKxLoydoD3ZZlIg7q_aWZyaz8lI13Pu_bmBNjTgXBrj9wOw1652JC/s2048/DSCN5995.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK9Qt6epH-MBVsZ3PX_JTTM2-1U79QgezT-y39i4zHIwYoTiTEhGms2VFTLbG3eYYV4p8nL9Lz8X_dPSzICdSswY1EKxLoydoD3ZZlIg7q_aWZyaz8lI13Pu_bmBNjTgXBrj9wOw1652JC/w640-h480/DSCN5995.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Unfortunately this photo turned out dark. I'm not the best photographer, that's for sure! The three pink colored throw pillow covers are new purchases this season, to coordinate with the new area rug; the two gold pillow covers were purchased shortly after I moved into this current edition of Maison Newton in July 2014. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jYO1-WyXxpfQ_80w8PaYATKo_ORQPR6N1zJ3xHpYH3juX5sMPP58H7qPLWYzKmim7ghE4kh-gweGgEYDnmXVTL1DJzb7YbIag7Eno6m7MJAkFQVmTRsvg6AMakLMji3X7G1LG1NyPROk/s2048/DSCN5996.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jYO1-WyXxpfQ_80w8PaYATKo_ORQPR6N1zJ3xHpYH3juX5sMPP58H7qPLWYzKmim7ghE4kh-gweGgEYDnmXVTL1DJzb7YbIag7Eno6m7MJAkFQVmTRsvg6AMakLMji3X7G1LG1NyPROk/w640-h480/DSCN5996.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2GDa4oMrTRDHCwh7ybl1xRLxG_GP9uySp6pe0NpUj3MaukHaFpNtWK2RgptQe_bx-6oW1v1QBF2w1kMTmqo-YfrhbVUPul0_Q4BzE_JcT_oVGGNaM75-FDyhbdcvHAq-FYgUQEaHmv5uM/s2048/DSCN5997.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2GDa4oMrTRDHCwh7ybl1xRLxG_GP9uySp6pe0NpUj3MaukHaFpNtWK2RgptQe_bx-6oW1v1QBF2w1kMTmqo-YfrhbVUPul0_Q4BzE_JcT_oVGGNaM75-FDyhbdcvHAq-FYgUQEaHmv5uM/w640-h480/DSCN5997.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p>The bright colors really perked up the room, and me, this year. The photos don't do those colors justice. There is a rainbow of reds, pinks, oranges, golds, yellows, blues, grays, turquoise and white. The pattern is not a mirror image on each side of the rug, and the colors do not necessarily match on each side. It is a work of art for a machine woven rug.</p><p><span style="text-align: center;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpW2CvphFYGDlZ4lkhNNYZgvO5ixtRcMsHtmCstfaVqeWDgd7XDNluqO66vtmw8pJJPE80-FAgWz0XMUDLfQzpTiRFOxlc7PJicG8YPamoTtbYJfcZwpvWTC1n_AjdBF6YOKcDFjcHPfsE/s2048/DSCN5998.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpW2CvphFYGDlZ4lkhNNYZgvO5ixtRcMsHtmCstfaVqeWDgd7XDNluqO66vtmw8pJJPE80-FAgWz0XMUDLfQzpTiRFOxlc7PJicG8YPamoTtbYJfcZwpvWTC1n_AjdBF6YOKcDFjcHPfsE/w640-h480/DSCN5998.JPG" width="640" /></a></div> <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwRSYkxE52u2Cq-bZmOzWLy81XFeNa9n7NRivByoBRyJOtDSzgqdYM3s0ju51yynknR65TLAPY6UxakR-8HSEMSYcMsaoeI6e1juhtSHfN9jrXQ56WvEZywn5cVKp6opS6XhlJep1MQnxc/s2048/DSCN5999.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwRSYkxE52u2Cq-bZmOzWLy81XFeNa9n7NRivByoBRyJOtDSzgqdYM3s0ju51yynknR65TLAPY6UxakR-8HSEMSYcMsaoeI6e1juhtSHfN9jrXQ56WvEZywn5cVKp6opS6XhlJep1MQnxc/w640-h480/DSCN5999.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I later added pink side panels on either end of the large picture window, but I wasn't satisfied with how they looked. They ended up flanking either side of the patio door for the spring/summer season. The dinette area and living room are open to each other. In the first photo, you can see part of the large opening between the spaces and notice that teal curtains were still on the patio door (that was the color for winter 2020). I changed out the pictures and decor in the kitchen/dinette area to coordinate with the colors in the living room for 2021, but I didn't take any photos.</p><p>Today, November 6, 2021, it may hit 60 around here today and may stay that warm through Monday, Holy Hathor! By this time in 2019 we'd already had half a foot of snow and very cold temperatures - Halloween was greeted with strong winds, near freezing temperatures and torrential rain! I'll take the 60 degrees F, thank you very much, Mother Nature! </p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-29623603390511661362021-11-01T13:37:00.001-05:002021-11-01T13:37:05.673-05:00Easy Curb Appeal Added Over Seven Years<p> Hola! I moved into the current Maison Newton in July 2014 and retired in January 2015. I've been puttering around the front and back yards since I first moved in and slowly making the home my own - hopefully for the better from when I bought it. </p><p>This is a review of what I've done to the front of the house since I moved in to "dress her up" and make her pretty. It's always so rewarding when I'm out working in the yard and a passerby stops and complements on how pretty my house looks. Other than maintenance yard work (mowing the grass, fertilizing, weeding, trimming shrubs, trees and grass and occasional edging the lawn), the steps I took to add to my home's curb appeal were pretty basic:</p><p>1. Added annual and perennial plants to the garden beds, changed out plants that didn't do well.</p><p>2. Added planters and door mat to front door area.</p><p>3. Used a shepherd's hook to hang a bird house during spring and summer and a lantern with battery operated candle in fall and winter.</p><p>4. Added nice trellis to the front of the house.</p><p>5. Painted front door.</p><p>6. Added shutters to the large picture window.</p><p>7. New larger front porch light fixture.</p><p>8. New larger address plaque.</p><p>9. New larger mail box.</p><p>10. Lined front garden beds with concrete blocks.</p><p>11. Added new garden bed (area not shown in photo below) on south side of the driveway - it can be seen from the public sidewalk and added a lot of color and beauty to the yard, as well as replacing a lot of mud-encrusted gravel.</p><p>12. Seasonal plantings here and there, to fill in bare spots and add some color, especially late in the season.</p><p>The house was well maintained but plain out front when I bought it, and the shrubs, trees and plants were much smaller than they are now. Here's a photo of what the house looked like a few months before I bought it (early spring 2014; I bought the house at the end of May 2014):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrWKNoMsBzDwLdv0sa5m8sn5exdTMpdVxDXITPedQggFUsvahc86WkhTEeQlWljrE4unQW2HN98k0MgSmUBjTl3ckYZh4rjewEQLrOynlTk1PS895T4SoFMdTghNTH7X_KdHotz-6jKF4c/s665/My+House+2014+sale+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="441" data-original-width="665" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrWKNoMsBzDwLdv0sa5m8sn5exdTMpdVxDXITPedQggFUsvahc86WkhTEeQlWljrE4unQW2HN98k0MgSmUBjTl3ckYZh4rjewEQLrOynlTk1PS895T4SoFMdTghNTH7X_KdHotz-6jKF4c/w640-h424/My+House+2014+sale+picture.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>One of the first things I did after I moved in was put up sheer curtains across the front window so people couldn't stare into the house 24/7/365! I like my privacy. </p><p>Within a few weeks I added a rug/mat to wipe shoes outside the front door and later added matching planters on either side of the door. Below is a photo taken about 2 years after I moved in. I had painted the original mail box red, added a swatch of wallpaper across the front of it to add some contrast to the red, and moved an old black metal trellis (that had been in the flower bed along the north side of my driveway) to between the windows on the left front side of the house. I also hung a decorative wreath on the front door and change it out with the seasons. What looks like a dark streak underneath the mailbox on the right side is a string of colored beads on a metal chain with a little bird on top. The old mail box had two "hooks" hanging from underneath where a rolled newspaper could be inserted, and those hooks were great for holding decorations, especially at Christmas.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5GAo0PLDG_95-dEeztXsSEwv3axO5Mv7uVQ2ZiyI8gOH-AB3COeX3qjWTKBnyJbcQ5qacuQV7gYbKlZlQIqTH0Y3icDLnYbkaSEAahIjZ_nHB_g5CVo3Uqk1itICaFJMrB9pU196_NqW/s2048/DSCN5418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5GAo0PLDG_95-dEeztXsSEwv3axO5Mv7uVQ2ZiyI8gOH-AB3COeX3qjWTKBnyJbcQ5qacuQV7gYbKlZlQIqTH0Y3icDLnYbkaSEAahIjZ_nHB_g5CVo3Uqk1itICaFJMrB9pU196_NqW/w640-h480/DSCN5418.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I don't recall the exact timing of improvements as I made them, but I had always wanted a red front door and finally, after living in the house five years, I got around to painting the fiberglass front door a bright cherry red, in the summer of 2019. Yeah, it takes me awhile to get motivated sometimes. Below is a photo I took during the painting process.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpozOZVN-b0V1akIkdvX-lAPbeXFT-XNWhtsz6O3e8Elj5MYTBD8irxIoiyvwIbvf_iXye0dwaXZpDNnDXHdVxEeaMbk9kAudtm1-xi-2kFXYHa07LgkvkZgBml7r-zkYKweNX6FZSSSAe/s2048/2019+Front+Door+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpozOZVN-b0V1akIkdvX-lAPbeXFT-XNWhtsz6O3e8Elj5MYTBD8irxIoiyvwIbvf_iXye0dwaXZpDNnDXHdVxEeaMbk9kAudtm1-xi-2kFXYHa07LgkvkZgBml7r-zkYKweNX6FZSSSAe/s320/2019+Front+Door+2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p>In 2019 I also added the following (via the wonderful work of a handyman): (1) new light fixture; (2) new address plaque that is more visible and readable from the street (I covered up the old built-in address plaque with a piece of painted styrofoam, you can see it underneath the light. It always bothered me that the house number wasn't centered under the light); (3) new larger red mailbox; and (4) the decorative shutters on the picture window. </p><p>I had added the two artificial topiaries on either side of the door in 2017 (I think) and they lasted about three years before they started falling apart from sun damage. Every time I touched one some of the artificial leaves would fall off. I stored them inside in the basement during the winter, it was the sun that got to them even though they were treated to resist UV damage. That front door and everything on the little front porch takes a real beating in the summer with sun from the southwest and full west. I retired them at the end of the season in 2020. In the photo below, taken in autumn 2019, you can see I added a second set of planters (temporary only) that were filled with hardy garden mums going into the fall.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtYZaUXD0qUVDbTI-unqCtpFycGoAUqfTJPFvXHraGTR1pR5b39xuXsBkGYvNgCC_HBIObQVNKcEUgFykBTT_Mng5QBy30HzFGZpwkg9EawIgJv3eN4YRTrkVt12IcVkok7NvZ0zGb3lCK/s2048/2019+Front+Door+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtYZaUXD0qUVDbTI-unqCtpFycGoAUqfTJPFvXHraGTR1pR5b39xuXsBkGYvNgCC_HBIObQVNKcEUgFykBTT_Mng5QBy30HzFGZpwkg9EawIgJv3eN4YRTrkVt12IcVkok7NvZ0zGb3lCK/w640-h480/2019+Front+Door+4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>With 2020 came the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the extreme heat and humidity, I got more active around the yard and the house than ever before. Summer 2020 was when I finally lined the front garden beds and a garden bed in the backyard with small concrete retaining wall blocks I had bought from a niece-in-law a couple of years before. They'd been sitting out behind the garage ever since then - a huge stack of them. </p><p>Each block weighed 14 pounds and I lugged each one about 100 feet from behind the back of the garage in the backyard to the front yard, one by one. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOnuF377ISH51mTXRsWgr3NVBNo5z5Zl7Kpgt1WWy5YrJ1EkA5HB60XKeKhlfNWdD-oo8WuZD89w2lOP9LsTQ3GNjCLVhD12HKQwkQwlusPmJqxmThVEfPzVX-rzUiqtAIpEYoOIqcivaf/s2048/DSCN5859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOnuF377ISH51mTXRsWgr3NVBNo5z5Zl7Kpgt1WWy5YrJ1EkA5HB60XKeKhlfNWdD-oo8WuZD89w2lOP9LsTQ3GNjCLVhD12HKQwkQwlusPmJqxmThVEfPzVX-rzUiqtAIpEYoOIqcivaf/w640-h480/DSCN5859.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidE1Uzaj_60NAj0Sg8WWRW24gr0NtZoX-fVaNUYj9E56T0jno9xyCvwE1C8ES3ByRdls5vq3GTsfXAMgLzirsM_9pbkZK1k0eF7fUJlztOPuTUnGftfCrwX96xypR2k31RYHZg0OnXgkiT/s2048/DSCN5861.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidE1Uzaj_60NAj0Sg8WWRW24gr0NtZoX-fVaNUYj9E56T0jno9xyCvwE1C8ES3ByRdls5vq3GTsfXAMgLzirsM_9pbkZK1k0eF7fUJlztOPuTUnGftfCrwX96xypR2k31RYHZg0OnXgkiT/w640-h480/DSCN5861.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn0Oyo15mh9Nkx8riTK5vXplfFwi8KWEaAhwLv05IwSJAnMGgA43VqALHIYJL96qwI2Hz_qYoAUOuhp0Jz2HWsQPCKdTLStavgzTcel2tqpUYTyDKyaGxKu8ZYSU3bWlC3p_q3EyWVd3dq/s2048/DSCN5882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn0Oyo15mh9Nkx8riTK5vXplfFwi8KWEaAhwLv05IwSJAnMGgA43VqALHIYJL96qwI2Hz_qYoAUOuhp0Jz2HWsQPCKdTLStavgzTcel2tqpUYTyDKyaGxKu8ZYSU3bWlC3p_q3EyWVd3dq/w640-h480/DSCN5882.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>The white plastic trellis replaced the black metal one to anchor the space between the two windows on the left side of the house in 2016 or 2017. It shows up much more against the colors of the house, but is stored in the garage during Wisconsin winters. The photo above is what the house looked like in summer 2020. You may notice the little bird house hanging from a shepherd's hook to the left of the front steps. In the autumn and winter that goes into storage and is replaced by a lantern with a battery operated timer candle. <div><br /></div><div>And below are some photos of what the front of the house looks like now, autumn 2021. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlyZNQ6WVrovfB3mreLrBf8h4ynYnDgGZ2KxD1Mzf1Oc6jlOTfGzZEV6LJOUgaeKYVzOCqrQYmj1TnycsaTyXg8xx_Jk0l1M9x8nJwSnhXR_z54yHBTgdztpGRcs6OAH_CPfXuJAX0aXu/s2048/2021+Autumn+front+of+house+curb+appeal.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlyZNQ6WVrovfB3mreLrBf8h4ynYnDgGZ2KxD1Mzf1Oc6jlOTfGzZEV6LJOUgaeKYVzOCqrQYmj1TnycsaTyXg8xx_Jk0l1M9x8nJwSnhXR_z54yHBTgdztpGRcs6OAH_CPfXuJAX0aXu/w640-h480/2021+Autumn+front+of+house+curb+appeal.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>The planters were filled with red geraniums and white petunias from May to the end of September, but as the weather got cooler the petunias started to look a bit straggly, so they have been replaced with some splashy-colored (orange, yellow, red) hardy daisy mums, and the planters have been supplemented with some artificial autumnal picks. The hardy dais mums cost 10 and there were four individual plants in the one pot I bought at my local supermarket. I call that a bargain! My Halloween/Thanksgiving ceramic pumpkins and owls are outside in front of the planters, and the candle-lit lantern is on the right at the bottom of the steps:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VZgiUMfFQ-oNki2OtLRZnGlpT4xyIZl1RwULc69iOcbSkJfAw4xbzt2bWE-wcrInm950OAeA58iWO9E2peaPOgGCGWeky0mYdIMaR4fFNSuP7xoTjZtwK8EnBB4WOdnChdJJ0LwhT6_a/s2048/DSCN6030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VZgiUMfFQ-oNki2OtLRZnGlpT4xyIZl1RwULc69iOcbSkJfAw4xbzt2bWE-wcrInm950OAeA58iWO9E2peaPOgGCGWeky0mYdIMaR4fFNSuP7xoTjZtwK8EnBB4WOdnChdJJ0LwhT6_a/w640-h480/DSCN6030.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_couWxUHbGLfHYmEc4ZMOGXuI_7yTgJHfHK7mLq72CeuivuacpOEdyVP82sXg9_S3lydFb-ZMbs_cCXimVTozffcUFB-_605YLf1qqCAFMmFYWuBRM_LMeCwYA6c0F4TR7NukThbX6MA_/s2048/DSCN6026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_couWxUHbGLfHYmEc4ZMOGXuI_7yTgJHfHK7mLq72CeuivuacpOEdyVP82sXg9_S3lydFb-ZMbs_cCXimVTozffcUFB-_605YLf1qqCAFMmFYWuBRM_LMeCwYA6c0F4TR7NukThbX6MA_/w640-h480/DSCN6026.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>On the left side of the front, this year (2021) I added two red drift hardy roses in late May along with some white dianthus. On November 1, 2021, they're still blooming away! The original tall grasses that were in the spots where the rose bushes now are just didn't do very well for me, they faded away more each year. I finally took out what was left of them in 2019 and the garden bed was left pretty much bare other than for existing shrubs and a very large volunteer columbine that appeared a few years ago (that I removed this year and transplanted elsewhere). The drift roses will survive the winter, but I am crossing my fingers about the white dianthus making it through to spring 2022.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxv4fQNzm0n-I4ZFpx0AcWKHfi3y-nFNuYt7x1ewSunMUpodNMSrHPQ31i2ybV-YQpZTiaY6hN_a34qieH1K9RHqojRCbNhIjyRSMEElIdf1Ji85LgY_7-Tgi_OgXzFfiR0WbfvABeC1qE/s2048/DSCN6028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxv4fQNzm0n-I4ZFpx0AcWKHfi3y-nFNuYt7x1ewSunMUpodNMSrHPQ31i2ybV-YQpZTiaY6hN_a34qieH1K9RHqojRCbNhIjyRSMEElIdf1Ji85LgY_7-Tgi_OgXzFfiR0WbfvABeC1qE/w640-h480/DSCN6028.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div><p>On the right side of the house, I added some seasonal color with two of the hardy daisy mums. My poor hostas took a real beating this year. We had record-breaking heat, extremely high humidity, and a drought - all at the same time. The two hostas that get the most sun were damaged with sun scorch, insect damage and perhaps some kind of infestation. But from the sidewalk, the damage isn't as noticeable and the bright daisy mums add a spark to this smaller garden bed underneath the large picture window. We haven't had a hard freeze yet, so I'm letting the leaves that are still on the hostas continue to take in the sun while they fortify their roots for the coming winter. </p><p>For the cost of the changes over the years, I don't have an exact figure in my head but I'd say maybe between $700 and $800 over seven years, not including the cost of live plant. The largest cost was for the burst of activity in 2019 when I ordered custom-made shutters for the front picture window, the new porch light, the new address plaque and hired a handyman to install them for me since I have no skills (or the correct tools and know-how) when it comes to doing work like that. All in all - I consider the cost over the years a real bargain, and I love how my house looks on the outside.</p><p>But there are always more projects to do. Am thinking of doing something with the front sidewalk, which has sunk quite a bit in front of the front porch. Also am not a fan of the concrete front porch. The flowering cherry on the left side of the house is too large to be that close to the house, even after having it trimmed back substantially in March. I would like to replace it with a tree that won't overtake the house. The garage needs rain decent rain gutters. I would like to cut down on the lawn area in both the front and back yards but do I really want to add more garden beds to what I already have???</p><p>Decisions, decisions...</p></div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-68058205120915449742021-04-18T21:10:00.003-05:002021-04-18T21:10:56.827-05:00Yard Work!<p>Hola! It's been so busy here. Whenever the weather has permitted since our wonderful warm streak of about 10 days where we sometimes hit 70F ended, I've been outside working the winter and pandemic blahs away. Whew! The result is a front yard that has fresh mulch and leaves cleaned out of everything and the lawn, which had exploded in growth, had it's first haircut on Friday 4/16.</p><p>I was so tired out after shoving my electric lawnmower for more than an hour I didn't have any ooomph left to attempt doing the trimming, let alone the edging I really want to do and that is really needs. I did get the trimming done the next day, but the edging will have to wait.</p><p>After I got the grass trimmed all around the front yard on Saturday, I pulled the electric mower back out and plowed away at the backyard. Whew! I thought I had kept myself in pretty fair shape over the winter because I didn't gain any weight and exercised daily, but boy oh boy, I was aching after I finished mowing that back yard. But it looks good - if I didn't look at the areas where the mower is too large to fit and a lot of trimming needed to be done.</p><p>Which brings me to today, Sunday - the day of rest, peace and quiet, right? Except people who work (I'm retired so I don't worry about what day it is), who didn't get out on Friday like I did to cut their front lawns or backyards, and people who didn't get out and do it on Saturday, although I heard mowers going throughout the day, decided to get out and do it today before the temperature plunges back down again and we may get freezing rain/snow overnight tonight or possibly tomorrow. I wonder how far the sound of a power lawn mower travels when there isn't a strong breeze? More mowers were going this morning as I waited until a respectable 9 a.m. to go out and start trimming the backyard. </p><p>What a chore! But I got it done and cleaned up part of the refuse left behind afterward while I was waiting for a visit from a rep of a local company that specializes in tree and shrub trimming.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVOAa2tdGCUnfY-w_2e7itaXRtAqHu1tjed6yNRwbZDKgUvLjzbz3-qJPQY824sUyRROfTQL57SBQCGVEx1We482h-GQhPFZaQwa13B6alRZ-DT0TQpGEVZ2IQ3iBLu2Zx-69EH8Ai7SQj/s2048/DSCN5807.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVOAa2tdGCUnfY-w_2e7itaXRtAqHu1tjed6yNRwbZDKgUvLjzbz3-qJPQY824sUyRROfTQL57SBQCGVEx1We482h-GQhPFZaQwa13B6alRZ-DT0TQpGEVZ2IQ3iBLu2Zx-69EH8Ai7SQj/w300-h400/DSCN5807.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Here's my beautiful Japanese maple in summer 2020. <br />As you can see, it's far too large for the space and already <br />this year the branches have gotten even taller, more full <br />and are rubbing against the rain gutters, the siding and the roof.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Yep - I decided - sob sob sob - to have my Japanese maple in the backyard garden area removed, as it was planted far too close to the house. I can't really handle the pruning that it needs yearly to keep it in control by myself any longer, I have to face it, I'm not as young or strong as I used to be - and the six years I've been in this home I've noticed the difference as each birthday has passed. This year I'll be 70 - in 4 scant months. I will replace the Japanese maple with a smaller specimen tree that I will plant out in the lawn area of my back yard, because I do love their gorgeous colors and form. It will be able to grow freely out there.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOh_btJL6LtbrSpZbW2hZO1S8rgvKOLV2QNqKhKL4tueKhb9c0TyWH4TSJVH9HlETU-y2yhEuL6oNcJVOzM2VRjz3esDRewxOpacf0eF2ksDkdpDhOMhyyTxRrkrPdrfyFzas-DxJOXXOl/s2048/2020+07+21+second+front+bed+nearly+completed+and+untrimmed+ornamental+cherry+tree.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOh_btJL6LtbrSpZbW2hZO1S8rgvKOLV2QNqKhKL4tueKhb9c0TyWH4TSJVH9HlETU-y2yhEuL6oNcJVOzM2VRjz3esDRewxOpacf0eF2ksDkdpDhOMhyyTxRrkrPdrfyFzas-DxJOXXOl/w400-h300/2020+07+21+second+front+bed+nearly+completed+and+untrimmed+ornamental+cherry+tree.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Here's a photo of the flowering cherry in July 2020. You can see</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">how much it's encroaching on the house and nearly totally covering one</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">of my bedroom windows, as well as hitting the gutter and the roof.</span></div><p>The beautiful flowering cherry that the former owners planted far too close to the house for its ultimate size (and it's still growing) - I couldn't bear to take that down yet. What on earth could I ever replace it with? Instead of the drastic measure of either removing the tree completely or pollarding it, we're going to limb up the tree quite a bit to raise the canopy, do a severe cut back along the house side so branches are no longer scraping against the house and on the roof, try and balance it as much as possible from street and side views, and do a lot of trimming/thinning out of branches on the inside of the tree to let more sunlight come through to the struggling lawn areas and plants growing underneath. I'm prepared to do this for the next two to three years since to keep the tree healthy we shouldn't remove more than a third of it at a time. Fingers crossed I don't have to make the sad decision to have the tree removed in a few years.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJHIfdZnP0lfqZ7kAwDgxaIp9VA9Sce7e9SzpnslyUgLYt2yVzPYTIsUhaEqKeDyLCSDL6WCn514Ey7rYn4Ap4wTwot4za_4auuxYnxs0tGYJnkUEi5NqKZEpVdPXb1svFAoZsMdxVRd7h/s2048/DSCN5822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJHIfdZnP0lfqZ7kAwDgxaIp9VA9Sce7e9SzpnslyUgLYt2yVzPYTIsUhaEqKeDyLCSDL6WCn514Ey7rYn4Ap4wTwot4za_4auuxYnxs0tGYJnkUEi5NqKZEpVdPXb1svFAoZsMdxVRd7h/w400-h300/DSCN5822.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Summer 2020 - this is after vigorous spring pruning by me earlier<br />in the season. It grew even more after this photo was taken. You can see <br />how it is rubbing against the rain gutters, the side of the house and is above<br />the roof. It also hangs out over the driveway. Just a matter of<br />time before it completely overtakes the space.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>The purple - whatever it is - (I've called it a purple plum) that anchors the other side of the house next to the driveway, oh my. It grows faster than I can keep up with. The arborist suggested digging it out and trying to transplant it but there is a beautiful peony shrub (planted by the previous owner) coming up all around the base of that tree/shrub now and I just couldn't do it - plus I don't want it planted anywhere in the front or backyard - nowhere to go with it. So, we settled on extensive trimming and we'll see how it goes over the next year. I may have to have them come out every year from now on and continue to trim back those two trees (or one tree and one shrub-that has pretensions to turning into a tree). </p><p>The two giant pines on the other side of the driveway will get a haircut so there are no branches hanging down too low over the driveway and some broken branches (from various windstorms) on the interior of the trees will be removed. </p><p>I'm also having some trimming work done on the arborvitaes in the backyard so they are not encroaching over my neighbor's narrow walkway between my fence and the side of his garage, or scraping on his roof. Heaven forbid, I don't want him out there on a ladder hacking away at my beautiful trees! </p><p>Total cost: $550. Not inexpensive, but for the amount of work that needs to be done, a really good price. Having it done by a trained crew also saves me a lot of work that emotionally I would find difficult to do (I'm such a wussy), that I don't have the proper equipment to do for myself (or the know-how), or the strength to be able to do for myself anyway.</p><p>I have to say, I was very impressed with the owner of the business, who came out on a Sunday to see me. I didn't expect that, but he called within less than hour after HomeAdvisors notified him on Saturday that I would like to receive a quote for the work that I wanted done. He's young and has started up a fairly new company, but he knows his stuff. After years of watching gardening shows and home improvement and landscaping shows, I've learned a lot, and I saw quickly that he knew what he was talking about. </p><p>The work will be done sometime next week. I'm not limited as to time, so it will really depend upon the weather, which may be turning nasty on us.</p><p>Meanwhile, I've been working off and on as weather and time has permitted to try and get the garden beds in the backyard cleaned out. What a chore! My first priority is to make sure the front and sides of the house that people view as they drive by or walk by are in pristine condition. As I've been out working during the past 3 weeks or so, I've received so many complements from neighbors walking by the house. Just amazing, and very gratifying, I have to say.</p><p>The poor backyard is always at the end of the list. But it's getting there, pant pant pant...</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-67429686306648239292021-04-10T16:34:00.002-05:002021-04-10T16:34:23.521-05:00New Year, New Season, New Hope<p> Hola everyone! I hope you are all well and have made it through the Year from Hell No. 2 - 2020. Shame on me for not having posted anything since December 2020, wow. Time is passing much too quickly.</p><p>I've been busy doing spring cleaning inside - and outside, I've put in a lot of hours. We had an incredible streak of far above normal warm weather for about 10 days and I worked outside daily for at least a couple of hours each day. We had a lot of wind storms in March. This year March did come in like a lion and go out like a lamb, and April has brought April showers. No flowers yet other than a small patch of wild violets (sooooo pretty!) but boy oh boy, the rain we've received sure has greened up the lawn and with the warm weather, perennials are bursting through the earth much earlier than usual including through layer upon layer of still unraked molding leaves in the flower beds I haven't had a chance to clean out. It's been raining for the past 3 plus days, off and on, and the garden beds are too wet and soggy to work in and the lawn is too wet and soggy to walk on, even though it already needs to be cut! </p><p>I've been limited to running out whenever the rain halts for a few hours to sweep up the patio every few days and the driveway. I am, however, hopeful that all the rain will wash away a lot of the gunk that was left behind by city crews in March who were a few houses down on the street fixing yet another burst water pipe. Boy, we sure do need that Infrastructure Bill. Milwaukee water pipes are over 100 years old, and showing their age. Because of the pandemic our tax base has been decimated and we don't have the funds to do a wholesale repiping of the city, even though it needs repiping - badly. This is the second burst pipe in about 18 months, and the subsequent mess of inches of clay, small rocks and stones left behind in the gutters for we the homeowners to deal with. Thus far I haven't touched the gunk, hoping first that melting feet high snow banks would wash most of the stuff away (nope); and then that the rains would wash most of the stuff away (nope). Sigh.</p><p>Every year there seems to be more to do, but it could just be that I'm slower now than I was 6 years ago when I moved into this, my "retirement" home. This year I'm facing 70 head on - and I DO NOT LIKE IT ONE BIT.</p><p>Sooooo - let me show you a few things:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAU_E732Ip-v4fC9WIAni8a09Yu5ZHlA5J_AxSSG8jombiikNO2aA2hFzN5scWVEWO4GEOgvkMnF_ym1F5A75vNQJ9qnMl-ejcUjA7itm6RIqZJhjqgEwYunb9LtUWlNvHGX4x7S0KNJ_2/s605/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+Rugs+USA+Cartouche+rug+in+pink.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="605" data-original-width="422" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAU_E732Ip-v4fC9WIAni8a09Yu5ZHlA5J_AxSSG8jombiikNO2aA2hFzN5scWVEWO4GEOgvkMnF_ym1F5A75vNQJ9qnMl-ejcUjA7itm6RIqZJhjqgEwYunb9LtUWlNvHGX4x7S0KNJ_2/w279-h400/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+Rugs+USA+Cartouche+rug+in+pink.PNG" width="279" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjThPLUFv0yD7uD1-c-_EdKV7SSpPQDdjtTCLsWuqZuMya_3IUz-bx-HjK_pjBRzgKhVq8r5ElbGZplenWO_5R9_w7Eb6e3dlp2L2VSVMYJ44W4JDkC0TQeZfCwZF1oQF2P9nL-uwvn_r5/s1200/Pink+and+turquoise+abstract+art+4+resized+999+by+1200.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="999" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjThPLUFv0yD7uD1-c-_EdKV7SSpPQDdjtTCLsWuqZuMya_3IUz-bx-HjK_pjBRzgKhVq8r5ElbGZplenWO_5R9_w7Eb6e3dlp2L2VSVMYJ44W4JDkC0TQeZfCwZF1oQF2P9nL-uwvn_r5/w166-h200/Pink+and+turquoise+abstract+art+4+resized+999+by+1200.PNG" width="166" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76MXE_FrChZ9PGHAN7pU4B8ya7cMKwNl9iI2qy1noWRewgJsTzMLFhBo2-mZKWAQsQEmuB4Ta90CxSPuiMwz0PA2HbS5qaJF5Ocj0j9HwalkfdkSXiaLleMMr33x4HAq-Dt_JnKzADf-0/s1200/Pink+and+turquoise+abstract+art+5+resized+999+by+1200.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="999" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76MXE_FrChZ9PGHAN7pU4B8ya7cMKwNl9iI2qy1noWRewgJsTzMLFhBo2-mZKWAQsQEmuB4Ta90CxSPuiMwz0PA2HbS5qaJF5Ocj0j9HwalkfdkSXiaLleMMr33x4HAq-Dt_JnKzADf-0/w166-h200/Pink+and+turquoise+abstract+art+5+resized+999+by+1200.PNG" width="166" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZnRz82VjkqeCdxL2HNKsCQ6KWBHZ3o7Rq_JsOP4pCI1FkWGW6GjUwX7HOx8-CIT63hsKBVeknS0udfJu7eJ8aLTbYH0i7YWE7dv1mzt64TyLjmrobBV2W3fBBrFm5WfIVZTYJlGoy4KK6/s728/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+pink+pillow+cover+1.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="665" data-original-width="728" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZnRz82VjkqeCdxL2HNKsCQ6KWBHZ3o7Rq_JsOP4pCI1FkWGW6GjUwX7HOx8-CIT63hsKBVeknS0udfJu7eJ8aLTbYH0i7YWE7dv1mzt64TyLjmrobBV2W3fBBrFm5WfIVZTYJlGoy4KK6/w200-h183/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+pink+pillow+cover+1.PNG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqscGoRIhuLM0AllCenGP-tJ42VCNUWvtbpSooOLX0blzMzL5CeE81m7X3Kxaqq89b6rQC0nN8sf5ZNI9DLMDwSVwuUF-UFOg-mqDNmbIfSqN5UNc0yUlylfFWeGVXgDv6sEOGI-eApxKE/s675/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+pink+pillow+cover+2.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="654" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqscGoRIhuLM0AllCenGP-tJ42VCNUWvtbpSooOLX0blzMzL5CeE81m7X3Kxaqq89b6rQC0nN8sf5ZNI9DLMDwSVwuUF-UFOg-mqDNmbIfSqN5UNc0yUlylfFWeGVXgDv6sEOGI-eApxKE/w194-h200/Maison+Newton+2021+04+10+pink+pillow+cover+2.PNG" width="194" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div>Welcome to the new color palette for my living room decor for spring and summer 2021. It's done already, I worked on it off and on last month, but I haven't taken photos of it yet. I promise I'll post them. It's the brightest and most "unlike me" decor I've ever introduced into any of my beloved Maisons Newton. It makes my eyes pop every time I enter my living room, and I LOVE it! I keep thinking this must have something to do with psychological damage I unknowingly sustained during the 13 plus months of pandemic hunkering down. Ya think? Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-50718674409422915462020-12-15T16:18:00.000-06:002020-12-15T16:18:11.025-06:002020 Christmas Tree<p> I've finally gotten some photos downloaded. For autumn/winter, I switched out the decor in the living room to include my favorite old teal lamp, and purchased some throw pillow covers and two 4' x 6' area rugs on sale in a beautiful traditional ("Oriental") print in rich colors of turquoise, teal, gold, different shades of darker blue and deep red accents here and there.<br /><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNhi2fi8p4S9spyRrAwTIJOh9e-kiTKnYK8Nvi51yf6ylSK7a-8RL-5L-fvK2zGngkfFkKweAca9B4x0kCMdeLf3S-0Wl-tkO5hXaPrL4kFHEpUFcUaCsB67q154IBsJZ66YuqmYvIOdYI/s2048/DSCN5903.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNhi2fi8p4S9spyRrAwTIJOh9e-kiTKnYK8Nvi51yf6ylSK7a-8RL-5L-fvK2zGngkfFkKweAca9B4x0kCMdeLf3S-0Wl-tkO5hXaPrL4kFHEpUFcUaCsB67q154IBsJZ66YuqmYvIOdYI/w480-h640/DSCN5903.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p><br />I got lazy and decided not to change to out again to go with my "traditional look" Christmas tree I've had for the past few years with primarily gold and red. I kept the turquoise/teal, and ended up buying some inexpensive non-breakable teal and turquoise ornaments from Amazon to put on my tree along with gold, silver and crystal ornaments from my stash. I added French ribbon in two different patterns/textures and pulled out my large gold poinsettia picks (13 years old), miscellaneous "hole stuffer" picks that are smaller, my gold-painted pinecones, and three different kinds of icicles. Gold and silver butterflies that I bought on clearance several years ago from the Jonathan Adler collection complete the tree.<br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP_7SCtrLA5Lk-qud6zOzY5w_XYZ19DM2hdyYNQ57dxg4E-ct_6x9A2N9G8AGHc_IiecPOe3VFciQavcJaqr2zxxa6Qhw6YpppQshCCHQ64dGoO1CuUc7HSLxw0dk4w_YbhlJf8848Ib1W/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+3.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP_7SCtrLA5Lk-qud6zOzY5w_XYZ19DM2hdyYNQ57dxg4E-ct_6x9A2N9G8AGHc_IiecPOe3VFciQavcJaqr2zxxa6Qhw6YpppQshCCHQ64dGoO1CuUc7HSLxw0dk4w_YbhlJf8848Ib1W/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+3.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6W_KBmqaQSAaWnNZugLR8pBiAmA5JbA4uRMPC0z0txQ81IuHoK9PsmMenWZGL9XfBqr9kyL4L7bue3uViqgEYtVZz-Pljh15EyQCcKFJ5_vszDMSlMNj_UJKCBQjP03Cqi3c991QREYLU/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+1.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6W_KBmqaQSAaWnNZugLR8pBiAmA5JbA4uRMPC0z0txQ81IuHoK9PsmMenWZGL9XfBqr9kyL4L7bue3uViqgEYtVZz-Pljh15EyQCcKFJ5_vszDMSlMNj_UJKCBQjP03Cqi3c991QREYLU/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrq2jcHi90MEYtkRrTuLKIyWN9AS0P-Znv7Nb8vQaVND1IUL6IvzY6SpWh9KNHw6hGLmgdbvdffv2cJC2miPngwMVnHpFcQlsMbjFPzSxAoXMGvzY5OIvT-xlUTN0oGysD_QPJ-hz7HVVL/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+4.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrq2jcHi90MEYtkRrTuLKIyWN9AS0P-Znv7Nb8vQaVND1IUL6IvzY6SpWh9KNHw6hGLmgdbvdffv2cJC2miPngwMVnHpFcQlsMbjFPzSxAoXMGvzY5OIvT-xlUTN0oGysD_QPJ-hz7HVVL/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+4.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbO4j4DTz-tsOUMCuWCiqWMEoyV7MX-m065O6yAyO2Jwr0xJYeFvEdFO7mfrJ-Z8dB7r9yZrrweStiR9zINXfKcCCHW5jq37k4JUAe9rDIyn0GQmizQfJEgiCoibI3cG12WEAn74WwALt7/s2048/2020+Christmas+Jan+and+Don+ornaments+on+tree.JPG"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbO4j4DTz-tsOUMCuWCiqWMEoyV7MX-m065O6yAyO2Jwr0xJYeFvEdFO7mfrJ-Z8dB7r9yZrrweStiR9zINXfKcCCHW5jq37k4JUAe9rDIyn0GQmizQfJEgiCoibI3cG12WEAn74WwALt7/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+Jan+and+Don+ornaments+on+tree.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">There's "me" (the Nefertiti pendant) and Mr. Don (the souvenir sword</div><div style="text-align: center;">and representation of the Keep from the ancient castle where his his</div><div style="text-align: center;">family's Scots clan originated). On the tree every year, sentimental as I am.</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/AVvXsEgPRE0W0tkvKYYTuX68VtUnlGjeAOo7NxDcivXRC8AShyphenhyphenZIgPyttGw5eM1Y54NkuySm-rZIpoqjMgENsJ2xNW_udk06B_DDBGiHVeYYI_JHMYZUh3k6m_4-nlYNGt7dJKGnVcm9C5_5S09J/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+closeup+1.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPRE0W0tkvKYYTuX68VtUnlGjeAOo7NxDcivXRC8AShyphenhyphenZIgPyttGw5eM1Y54NkuySm-rZIpoqjMgENsJ2xNW_udk06B_DDBGiHVeYYI_JHMYZUh3k6m_4-nlYNGt7dJKGnVcm9C5_5S09J/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+closeup+1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVtPMQYuCJ0ZA9qQFl7x91zSs168b0XR0qcH8-_JxV7Z61gmK1s1pFtaygXqhR801Pu14KDc6m8oFRvzE2L8MFcLMzIme5aEpp3jEdzC-ejFaia3B8eLlezM4rTwfqOsCz-hfDEUwPcmk/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+closeup+2.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVtPMQYuCJ0ZA9qQFl7x91zSs168b0XR0qcH8-_JxV7Z61gmK1s1pFtaygXqhR801Pu14KDc6m8oFRvzE2L8MFcLMzIme5aEpp3jEdzC-ejFaia3B8eLlezM4rTwfqOsCz-hfDEUwPcmk/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+closeup+2.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_cCVqejhPVZMSaq4o1te8UzGvWIQNSiIFcqRA946Vm0eW4x72qFdqr3cidVlKctSVnz81l2TwdRyKg2Qkk8NErD5REual5WDNXD6g_TZHeIPgyDqmfdC-vT35c8O2OeI_oI29ZfKjfVHd/s2048/DSCN5942.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_cCVqejhPVZMSaq4o1te8UzGvWIQNSiIFcqRA946Vm0eW4x72qFdqr3cidVlKctSVnz81l2TwdRyKg2Qkk8NErD5REual5WDNXD6g_TZHeIPgyDqmfdC-vT35c8O2OeI_oI29ZfKjfVHd/w480-h640/DSCN5942.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJmpiQj5xN2NZV2c8FVBfZQ_09jAZTJ3z780KJ27o26R6L3JFNcn-mm0uqJuegTlj67aeME7zW-947hmsvkjkFcqSp02E8nMkM2533WO4UGyXEDQMeVaRY3z609c-KGBUQhJ_5dVta4QMb/s2048/2020+Christmas+tree+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJmpiQj5xN2NZV2c8FVBfZQ_09jAZTJ3z780KJ27o26R6L3JFNcn-mm0uqJuegTlj67aeME7zW-947hmsvkjkFcqSp02E8nMkM2533WO4UGyXEDQMeVaRY3z609c-KGBUQhJ_5dVta4QMb/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+tree+2.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div>And the cardinal tree anchors the countertop in the kitchen/dinette:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMOgOHivJ6FgAntiuPv6PQE4d4ppm4wI_czl2lL53qjrvfxr_Uouc_x9jYcRC0V50jSa_16tmoCUN80jobIgGMQ3I5IFtNAk43xE07tiOgMFw6PB8e_Oo7h1yFb_hF43g2oyZYjCR6cEI/s2048/2020+Christmas+cardinal+tree.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMOgOHivJ6FgAntiuPv6PQE4d4ppm4wI_czl2lL53qjrvfxr_Uouc_x9jYcRC0V50jSa_16tmoCUN80jobIgGMQ3I5IFtNAk43xE07tiOgMFw6PB8e_Oo7h1yFb_hF43g2oyZYjCR6cEI/w480-h640/2020+Christmas+cardinal+tree.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-56897874755248099182020-12-08T11:34:00.002-06:002020-12-08T11:34:55.650-06:00Make Your Own High End "Feather Filled" Ornaments<p> Hola! I've been meaning to post, but honestly just been super-busy as I'm sure you all have, too, particularly during this time of the year, pandemic or not.</p><p>I recently came across some ornaments at West Elm that I absolutely fell in love with, and since they were on special at 50% off, I decided to buy the pair, even though even at 50% off they were outrageously priced. While I was window-shopping at West Elm, I came across these feather-filled clear glass ornaments. They're very pretty, and ridiculously priced. On my retirement budget I can't afford to buy such baubles, even on "sale," but even when I was working and making good money I wouldn't spend the 50% off price for these. Not when they're so easy to make for yourself!</p><p>Here are the pretties from West Elm:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5v2hvKYa8LM2QPEd-am4Dm3F2GNrVk0Kb-wTa8R8Cl1zRZhYJExCkmYITqDPrqf6w3Uzz_YhopfblwCTLfsYSJMB0D80BeCuN3bl1Ck6r0VTGjm7XAXvQmrArNKP68f9vZ2DylyzxuX_e/s537/Blog+2020+12+07+West+Elm+Feather+Stuffed+Ball+Ornament.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="493" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5v2hvKYa8LM2QPEd-am4Dm3F2GNrVk0Kb-wTa8R8Cl1zRZhYJExCkmYITqDPrqf6w3Uzz_YhopfblwCTLfsYSJMB0D80BeCuN3bl1Ck6r0VTGjm7XAXvQmrArNKP68f9vZ2DylyzxuX_e/s320/Blog+2020+12+07+West+Elm+Feather+Stuffed+Ball+Ornament.PNG" /></a></div><p>Above is <a href="https://www.westelm.com/products/feather-stuffed-ball-ornament-d8955/?pkey=cbonus-deal-holiday-decor">West Elm's Feather Stuffed Ball Ornament</a>, 3" (diameter) and 3.25" height (to account for the cap where the hook or a ribbon goes to put it on your tree - or whatever you are decorating). The regular price is $9.00 for one, and a set of 2 is priced at $27.00 Holy Hathor! Sales price is $5.40 for one, and set of 2 is sale-priced at $18.90. I still can't figure out why you wouldn't be better off just buying two at $5.40 each, or even 3 on sale, which would still be less than $18.90. Hmmmm - am I missing something?</p><p>Anyway, I thought to myself, "Self, this is an easy hack." I'm not a particularly crafty or handy person, but even I can manage this hack!</p><p>I found both of these items online and didn't look further than them since I thought the prices were already really good:</p><p>From <a href="https://www.michaels.com/plumes-blanches-de-creatology/10108629.html?r=g&cm_mmc=PLASearch-_-google-_-MICH_Shopping_US_N_Craft+%26+Hobbies_N_Smart_BOPIS_N-_-&Kenshoo_ida=&kpid=go_cmp-9972406265_adg-99939223639_ad-433378147590_pla-981059439317_dev-c_ext-_prd-10108629&gclid=CjwKCAiAwrf-BRA9EiwAUWwKXuG1ez-waMkMkE7jthLuPH_iR0QO0TpW6syzYTgv1Lj0Gjr4SAzlCxoCCFQQAvD_BwE">Michaels a fair-sized bag of white feather bits</a> for $3.29 that could be easily stuffed into several clear Christmas ornaments to create the high end look from West Elm:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8zgn74bDoNFXnnsTHjjPjZng2pl2w4G-dPJmc5ZzTl1eXb4IrpYHsbyHF03u11-DYJM2_Brk8OI_ym1sF-MgyBOOep5QYKqXJZsJv5X9NmZKP258k6LVk7CDi9MVUDcnvxjbx0iwBHCmr/s635/Blog+2020+12+07+Michaels+bag+of+white+feather+bits.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="528" data-original-width="635" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8zgn74bDoNFXnnsTHjjPjZng2pl2w4G-dPJmc5ZzTl1eXb4IrpYHsbyHF03u11-DYJM2_Brk8OI_ym1sF-MgyBOOep5QYKqXJZsJv5X9NmZKP258k6LVk7CDi9MVUDcnvxjbx0iwBHCmr/s320/Blog+2020+12+07+Michaels+bag+of+white+feather+bits.PNG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Michaels also offers clear plastic Christmas ornaments of 2.6" diameter and 3" height (<a href="https://www.michaels.com/25ct.-3in-plastic-clear-christmas-ball-ornaments-by-artminds/10639159.html">25 count on sale now for $9.99, regularly $19.99</a>), and a slightly larger size 3" diameter and 3.5" height (<a href="https://www.michaels.com/25ct.-3.5in-plastic-clear-christmas-disc-ornaments-by-artminds/10639163.html">25 count on sale also for $9.99, regularly $19.99</a>):</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnMr2_S5-xaDlvvK9epAMEls2HG_MePNKDGjMSwTqeHUQGi0GUrArOSJ9YNfgmfljeNKNvtjY1ETk5iUV6i1nCUUltMSadE1U3wtraSTJ2yq3gs0BA39JRE-tZLjgKHTDB2jPA8d8ogJCM/s618/Blog+2020+12+07+Michaels+3+in+clear+plastic+Christmas+ornaments.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="583" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnMr2_S5-xaDlvvK9epAMEls2HG_MePNKDGjMSwTqeHUQGi0GUrArOSJ9YNfgmfljeNKNvtjY1ETk5iUV6i1nCUUltMSadE1U3wtraSTJ2yq3gs0BA39JRE-tZLjgKHTDB2jPA8d8ogJCM/w302-h320/Blog+2020+12+07+Michaels+3+in+clear+plastic+Christmas+ornaments.PNG" width="302" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Yes, they're not glass. But if you're a Miss Klutz like I am plastic ornaments are the way to go. And if you have kiddies with curious hands, dogs with big whopping tails or cats who can't seem to resist batting at ornaments...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Not a difficult task to spend a little time taking the silver clip off the top of the ornament, stuffing feather bits into the opening to a fullness that appeals to you, and re-inserting the silver clip at the top of the ornament when you're finished. <i>Voila</i>! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It occurred to me just before publishing this that probably dozens of others if not hundreds and maybe even thousands of bloggers have come up with the same hack, but here it is, for what it's worth. I think they're cute. They may make appearance on my Christmas tree in 2021...</div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-892866243165743262020-11-01T16:01:00.002-06:002020-11-01T16:01:18.234-06:00Easy Chicken Casserole<p> Hola! I hope everybody is keeping well and safe.</p><p>Cold and extremely windy weather has arrived in my part of Wisconsin, brrrrrrr! It's the time when the thick throws come out and are draped everywhere and flannel sheets go on the bed with a quilt and extra faux Sherpa throw - just in case. And my gel fuel fireplace is getting used.</p><p>This experiment in my limited cookery skills came about a few days ago after I had pulled out an aluminum wrapped mystery package from the freezer, thinking it was about a pound of ground beef. My original intention was to make my easy version of a Shepherd's Pie. But after it thawed out and I peeked, it turned out to be a very large boneless/skinless chicken breast. I mean - BIG, like the size of two chicken breasts you would get at a restaurant when people were still eating at them.</p><p>So there I was - with this chicken breast that I wasn't prepared to use. I could have made some kind of chicken and rice dish but - nah - just not my style. So I rummaged around, discovered at the back of one of my cabinets a can of Campbell's Golden Mushroom Soup. That came out to the counter. I had a half of green pepper in the veggie drawer in the fridge, that came out. I had frozen veggies in the freezer. Out came two bags - one corn, one peas. I dumped about half of each into a bowl to thaw out a bit and the half-filled bags (after I sealed them) went back into the freezer. I could have topped the dish with instant mashed potatoes (surprisingly good if made with just the right amount of butter, milk and salt) but I have a lot of boxes of Idahoan instant potatoes in one of my cabinets - I picked up several when they were on special, they last for months, don't take up space in the freezer or fridge, and are quite delicious. I pulled out a box of Scalloped Potatoes.</p><p>Okay, I thought, I'll make a version of a sort of chicken Shepherd's Pie but with the scalloped potatoes on top rather than mashed potatoes. Well - turned out to be absolutely delicious, so I have another easy peasy recipe to add to my <i>repertroire</i>! </p><p>I want to be clear that I will never audition for "Master Chef," LOL! I am a SLOW cook. It takes me forever to do the prep, even easy peasy prep. But here's the recipe for all cooks who want to try something new and quick for some of you:</p><p><b><u>Ingredients</u></b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>8 to 10 oz. boneless/skinless chicken breast, cubed in 1/2" to 1" size</li><li>1 can Campbell's Golden Mushroom Soup (do not use regular generic Cream of Mushroom Soup, you won't get the flavor and rich deep color of Golden Mushroom Soup)</li><li>Vegetables - use approximately 8 to 10 oz. of frozen mixed vegetables to your taste (I used some frozen peas, some frozen yellow corn, and chopped up half of a left-over green pepper)</li><li>1 box Idahoan Scalloped Potatoes (prepare per directions and set aside)<br /></li><li>Salt to taste (I don't use a lot of salt, it was about 1/4 teaspoon. As you will be topping with a commercially made product - the potatoes - and mixing in the canned soup - there will be a lot of sodium already added to your dish).</li><li>Optional: 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup total of sweet pink or white wine<br /></li><li>Optional: 2 tablespoons dried chopped onions or 1/8th cup chopped fresh sweet onion</li></ul><p></p><p> <b><u>Directions</u></b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Begin browning chicken in about 2 tablespoons oil. I use extra virgin olive oil.</li><li>Optional: Add chopped onion to pan with raw chicken and oil. If you use dried chopped onion like I often do, add some extra oil to the pan.</li><li>Optional: Add wine after slight browning of chicken (with or without onion) occurs. Simmer 5 minutes.</li><li>Add drained vegetables to chicken along with chopped green pepper. Bring back to a simmer.</li><li>Add Golden Mushroom Soup to the simmering chicken, vegetables, wine and olive oil.</li><li>Optional: Use about 1/8th cup additional wine to "rinse" out soup can and add to pan.</li><li>Simmer chicken/veggy/wine mixture about 10 minutes after the last ingredient (or optional wine) is added.</li><li>Remove from heat and pour contents of pan into a round casserole dish (size about 4" tall and about 9" diameter) or other casserole dish contents will fit in when topped with potatoes.</li><li>Top with the prepared scalloped potatoes.</li><li>Bake uncovered in preheated 350 degree (F) oven for 30-40 minutes. You want to see the potatoes slightly browned and bubbling around the sides of the casserole dish.</li><li>Remove and cool about 10 minutes covered to eating temperature.</li></ul><p></p><p>This casserole gave me five delicious and hearty meals (two are going in the freezer in individual servings). It's really tasty! The best thing is that this recipe can be made with ground beef or cubed beef stew meat and topped with any style of potatoes you/your family likes best.</p><p>Grandma, if you're looking on or watching over me from somewhere, I hope you'll be proud that at 69 years of age I'm getting brave enough to experiment a wee bit more and "go for it" cooking-wise in the kitchen. </p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-64525299073260148102020-09-29T16:09:00.001-05:002020-09-29T16:09:22.666-05:00The White Rose of Sharon Came Back to Life!<p> Hola!</p><p>This week has come on with below-normal temperatures and rain in the forecast. Yesterday was pretty much off and on rain and the temperatures fell from comfortable mid-70s to around 80 with much lower humidity last week to the warmest day yesterday (it got up to about 63)! Temperatures will decline all week and drop into the 50s at night; and a possible frost warning for SE Wisconsin by Saturday. That's unusual for this time of year, but hey - the new normal is never knowing what will be thrown at you next!</p><p>I did have a good streak of weather to get quite a bit of yard clean-up done and what I consider a miracle occurred: the White Rose of Sharon survived! Here's a pictoral summary: </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMjLGhIZy37iB10fB71Y1AdcEFMzAHpo9J8_7ntgI7pMTfMUbu5X1h36eSu2eekPYy46cnSJjozNwKclJqDAYZ2LWLCtdja2q2V2lLXmtsA9_Zck2yju24IPwypinchAf5J93OCeX6QnzD/s2048/2020+07+21+Project+cutting+out+dead+Rose+of+Sharon+and+weed+trees+in+east+back+flower+bed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMjLGhIZy37iB10fB71Y1AdcEFMzAHpo9J8_7ntgI7pMTfMUbu5X1h36eSu2eekPYy46cnSJjozNwKclJqDAYZ2LWLCtdja2q2V2lLXmtsA9_Zck2yju24IPwypinchAf5J93OCeX6QnzD/w300-h400/2020+07+21+Project+cutting+out+dead+Rose+of+Sharon+and+weed+trees+in+east+back+flower+bed.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p>Above, a picture of what was left of my white flowering Rose of Sharon after last year's hard winter and equally rotten spring, taken this July. You can see the flower bed is also filled with weed tree saplings and I will never win the battle again the ever-invading (from next store, right underneath the fence) ground ivy! Lots of dead wood where the shrub used to be, but there are also new shoots that have sprung up since the spring - just not sure if those are the same Rose of Sharon or seedlings from one or both of my other two Roses of Sharon that share the same flower bed.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37gxIbQetCoBzt_mNqRWHKQlOQC2Hq48qvh-wKSR1d_SRo-z8hDTikLLUMJGPB_IlxnyLaZ-MsUDRa0AlWH1KkxHYsFvgCO3jon03TpA3B3kfIdIxtU_Bnqm3C5xtA94XEafwoSNRmfWL/s2048/2020+09+22+white+Rose+of+Sharon+for+Goddesschess.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37gxIbQetCoBzt_mNqRWHKQlOQC2Hq48qvh-wKSR1d_SRo-z8hDTikLLUMJGPB_IlxnyLaZ-MsUDRa0AlWH1KkxHYsFvgCO3jon03TpA3B3kfIdIxtU_Bnqm3C5xtA94XEafwoSNRmfWL/w300-h400/2020+09+22+white+Rose+of+Sharon+for+Goddesschess.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The photo above was taken September 22nd. After pruning down much of the dead wood to the ground and saving any branches that showed small signs of life (July 21st - August 21st, when I tackled cleaning out this flower bed), cleaning out the weed trees around it and pulling as much of the ground ivy as possible (and cleaning out dead stems and leaves from the day lilies), the white Rose of Sharon started shooting out leaves from the branches I didn't cut to the ground (but trimmed off any fully dead wood) and she started setting some flower buds. I didn't think she'd open though before the cold weather set it. I was still girding myself to dig her out before the deep freeze hits. But after I deep watered the lawn and flower beds about every 10 days 3 times, and a week's worth of heavy rain earlier in September, she really took off growing. The branches that had survived from last year and the shoots from the ground that shot up several feet seemingly overnight. Lo and behold, the blossoms burst open about ten days before I took this photo! At first, only a single flower opened, but I was thrilled to see even that one. A few days later, a second opened, and then a third, and then several opened simultaneously.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeTicEvuM-0gQvEvhMyXvNAAh4tftVKShkDr9pTQ4xfULYS6tFqV-qH9PIF7m6eHNry44ZQpuoR4rPVmTdOb09EtwYnp-jd9CP33hfTRQrUoIYhyphenhyphenbpX6ZvxF7CVyTwNpOE4LaCGrKMpDWL/s2048/2020+garden+clean+up+whie+rose+of+sharon+09+29+lots+of+new+growth+and+blooms.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeTicEvuM-0gQvEvhMyXvNAAh4tftVKShkDr9pTQ4xfULYS6tFqV-qH9PIF7m6eHNry44ZQpuoR4rPVmTdOb09EtwYnp-jd9CP33hfTRQrUoIYhyphenhyphenbpX6ZvxF7CVyTwNpOE4LaCGrKMpDWL/w400-h300/2020+garden+clean+up+whie+rose+of+sharon+09+29+lots+of+new+growth+and+blooms.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />The photo above was taken today, 9/29/20. Lots of flowers, and there are still many buds that haven't opened. It's just amazing how she sprang back to life . You can see how tall the new shoots have gotten, particularly on the left side. But as I said earlier, I'm not sure that those are a new white Rose of Sharon! The leaves are larger for one thing, and it doesn't look like the new shoots came out of the base of the original shrub. So, I'll have to wait and see what happens next spring and summer. When seed pods form, I'll go out with an envelope and collect some from her, just in case.</div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-52241224913400722942020-08-21T13:00:00.000-05:002020-08-21T13:00:09.722-05:00Garden Projects Galore!<p> Hola everyone! </p><p>Work never stops around Maison Newton, just as it probably doesn't stop at your homes, either. Regardless of where we live, there's always something, it seems, that needs to be done - or should be done even when we drag out feet and try to ignore it...</p><p>The largest garden project I did last month was lining the front beds (finally) with concrete blocks. I had reported the first part of the project on July 16, 2020 - you can <a href="https://maisonnewton.blogspot.com/2020/07/working-on-front-yard-garden-beds.html"><b>read about it here</b></a> if you like. It took several more days after July 16th (hot, sweaty days), but I did finish laying blocks along the border of the longer bed on the north side of the front yard. </p><p>In progress:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigUrwcWY3PVaegHnCo6kAfJ5HUMeRvTJEFJQnYgHqJuLTLdoaIXEmoD0ix52W-LNUXvneOQ3uaRtIm1VuJbuaBJ3lLxoblXlSbvLgnGy5Y3mXRyGZ-NmiqMlKhssNuI5wzstGI4Wj3Q0bg/s2048/DSCN5860.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigUrwcWY3PVaegHnCo6kAfJ5HUMeRvTJEFJQnYgHqJuLTLdoaIXEmoD0ix52W-LNUXvneOQ3uaRtIm1VuJbuaBJ3lLxoblXlSbvLgnGy5Y3mXRyGZ-NmiqMlKhssNuI5wzstGI4Wj3Q0bg/s640/DSCN5860.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p>Finished north front bed:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9in6jB7pw9Lgou2gaPkbOfjN92lGtOSMZPeCG9H5WK4CRN9gjcfF0_P9_zfM7B5LZwqCogDN-2GTPyC9EesR3E-AbcjDzc6359Pyo7AZlc-1b85VILkW2YI8VproYEqQyW1BoD07lQqcf/s2048/DSCN5861.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9in6jB7pw9Lgou2gaPkbOfjN92lGtOSMZPeCG9H5WK4CRN9gjcfF0_P9_zfM7B5LZwqCogDN-2GTPyC9EesR3E-AbcjDzc6359Pyo7AZlc-1b85VILkW2YI8VproYEqQyW1BoD07lQqcf/w641-h480/DSCN5861.JPG" width="641" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChLwELSo5knecpdWg8RJYrnRR0y62U8Bic6v4iymF2dajZngBgW9KI8cD_YMbN6ZrYkYVEgf_9XrFOaxqv3irW_fM4S5IyDrkNzv7XzSBDcVFy19SfyFs5bB6PXoGzb31Dds_Yn78tMeq/s2048/DSCN5862.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChLwELSo5knecpdWg8RJYrnRR0y62U8Bic6v4iymF2dajZngBgW9KI8cD_YMbN6ZrYkYVEgf_9XrFOaxqv3irW_fM4S5IyDrkNzv7XzSBDcVFy19SfyFs5bB6PXoGzb31Dds_Yn78tMeq/w640-h480/DSCN5862.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>The bluegrass lawn now looks much better. We had a major rainstorm at the end of July, and I treated the lawn a second time, and then spot-treated a third time for sod web worms - the little buggers! And during the month of August, while we've gotten some rain, it's not near enough to keep the lawns lush. I've been deep watering - CHA CHING on this quarter's water bills but a gal's got to do what a gal's got to do. I live in southeast Wisconsin - WE WANT thick green lawns here with no brown spots. Brown spots are anathema! Or maybe I'm just a lawn nut case. </p><p>I'm very happy with how this project turned out. The band above the stone veneer on the front of the house is concrete and along with the concrete walkway, the low block wall coordinates beautifully and adds a great finishing touch to the front yard. BONUS - I actually got MUSCLES on my upper arms from all the heavy lifting (each block weighed 14 pounds). Now I'm trying to keep those muscles and wondering if I'll have to take up weight lifting during the winter...</p><p>Last month I took some photos of the state of my backyard flower beds. In two words: GIANT MESSES! So, I finally sucked it up and realized I had to at least try to clean some of the mess out. It still amazes me how when I took photos on June 29th everything was gorgeous; and when I took these photos below on or around July 21st, everything had turned into a disaster over one month's time!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uegv-IQAi31_zlIcvHoDG1LRVFy2-SOatixnj5cVcUUVF-P7zJq0q6Ssop6I-GmrjBH6ktONMkP5ZWHVBxcGdfMxuYwKzNugCwsqobagfupb-RwzBAjEPxLiMmR0DoDsLg-2pW_rioa3/s2048/DSCN5876.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uegv-IQAi31_zlIcvHoDG1LRVFy2-SOatixnj5cVcUUVF-P7zJq0q6Ssop6I-GmrjBH6ktONMkP5ZWHVBxcGdfMxuYwKzNugCwsqobagfupb-RwzBAjEPxLiMmR0DoDsLg-2pW_rioa3/s640/DSCN5876.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p>Above is an overview shot of the back (east) garden bed, which includes the arbor vitaes planted in the corner to disguise the utility pole. The large shrub in the middle is a Rose of Sharon that I received when it was about a foot tall as a seedling from one of my friends. The Roses of Sharon on either side of the bed did not do well last winter - probably because we went straight from summer while they were still blooming right into winter. Autumn skipped us last year and everything was a mess. The shrub on the left side doesn't look too bad - from a distance. But close up, a good third of the original shrub is totally dead and needed to be pruned down and removed if possible without injuring the rest of the shrub that did sent out greenery this year. The shrub on the right side was severely damaged (hard to tell from this distance), nearly all of the original tall shrub died off. Only a few of the remaining branches sent out greenery this season, and it appears that a new shrub sprouted from what I think might be the root ball under the center of the shrub. It's hard to tell, because these Roses of Sharon are prolific seeders and I have mini-shrubs coming up EVERYWHERE in that East garden bed, sigh. The Rose of Sharon on the left side sent out a few blossoms and has a few buds remaining to open; the center Rose of Sharon has good buds and flowers, but not as many as in prior years. The Rose of Sharon on the right side has no buds set at all.</p><p>You can see at the bottom of the photo that the patio is partially covered in dead branches that I'd pruned from the ornamental cherry tree out front (that exercise over three days probably started the muscles forming in my arms, since I did all of the sawing of larger than 2 inch branches manually, and my loppers, used for branches up to 2 inches in diameter, are also solely powered by my woman in her sixties flabby upper arms. It was quite the work-out. </p><p>I waited for the large branches taken off the tree to dry out, as they are then easier to cut and fit into garden trash bags for disposal, at least for me. Any leaves that come off during the cutting/bending and stuffing into bags process are swept up and used as mulch hidden under the lowest of my plants and shrubs. </p><p>From this distance, the East garden bed doesn't look so bad, even though nearly all of the day lilies had blossomed and I was waiting for the now bare tall stems to dry out sufficiently so I could pull them out of the plant with one good yank! You really don't see all the weed trees that have popped up seemingly out of nowhere, the wild grape vine that I have been endlessly battling for the six years I've lived here, and miscellaneous mayhem weeds that have popped up over the season among and behind the arborvitaes.</p><p>More will follow in the post(s) above...</p>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6975925539263338560.post-40456558696083093752020-07-29T15:48:00.001-05:002020-07-29T15:48:20.293-05:00Easy Recipe for Stuffed Green PeppersHola!<div><br /></div><div>I've been working away on various projects around the yards and gardens. Working through what feels like literal "Hell" outside most days, with extremely high temperatures and excessively high humidity. Tropical - equatorial weather I'd say - practically sitting right on top of Lake Michigan (with its famously cold waters) in southeastern Wisconsin. I took a bunch of photos of items that need to be addressed with the intention of doing a post on how a gardener's work is never done and yep, haven't done it yet. Sigh.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Good-For-You Stuffed Peppers" src="https://www.cscassets.com/recipes/large_cknew/large_50159.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: From <a href="https://www.prego.com/recipe/good-for-you-stuffed-peppers/">Ragu website</a> recipe for stuffed green peppers.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>I LOVE stuffed green peppers. I sometimes buy Stoffer's Stuffed Green Peppers if they're in stock, but they are not often in the freezer section of the supermarket where I shop when I'm there. I've used online recipes to make stuffed green peppers before, but I wanted one that was easier to make, took less time (for me, at least) to make, and hopefully would be tastier. Prior recipes I've used produced good and edible results, but didn't give me that "punch" in the tomato sauce/base that I like (e.g., they didn't taste like Stoffer's Stuffed Green Peppers), despite using plenty of spices/herbs and seasonings to pump up the flavor.</div><div><br /></div><div>One thing I DO like for it's flavor is Ragu ready-made spaghetti sauce. The chunky garden style with green peppers and onion is my favorite. (I also use it as my secret weapon when I make my chicken cacciatore). I also like the similar Prego sauce, but Ragu is often on sale more than Prego, and I always try to buy what's on sale to save whatever money I can. My walk early Monday morning to the supermarket offered the Prego brand of sauce on sale, so I bought a regular size jar of Prego tomatoe sauce with green peppers and onions rather than the traditional tomato sauce.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here's a link to the recipe at the <a href="https://www.prego.com/recipe/good-for-you-stuffed-peppers/">Prego website</a>. I'm listing the ingredients and instructions below, because I want to talk about how some of this worked out for me.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ingredients:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>1/2 cup uncooked instant rice (the recipe called for brown rice, for a lower cal recipe. I used my favorite Basmati rice instead).</li><li>1 pound 90% extra lean ground beef</li><li>3 cups Prego Tomato Sauce (your favorite variety)</li><li>6 medium green peppers (I purchased 3 larger green peppers - I'm only feeding myself and only have so much room in my freezer for left-overs)</li><li>1 cup shredded fat free mozzarella cheese (about 4 ounces)</li></ul></div><div>Directions:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Cook the rice according to the package directions but do not add any salt or butter.</li><li>Cook the ground beef in a skillet until it's well-browned, breaking up the meat as you cook. Pour off any fat after meat is cooked.</li><li>After ground beef is drained of any grease, stir in 2 cups of Prego sauce and the cooked rice. Set mixture aside.</li><li>Cut each green pepper in half lengthwise, removing core, seeds and white membranes.</li><li>Place the pepper shells in a large baking dish or roasting pan (big enough to fit the peppers)</li><li>COVER the dish (I used aluminum foil tightly wrapped over the top of the baking dish)</li><li>Spoon the meat/sauce/rice mixture into the peppers - really stuff them and mound them up. Spoon the other 1 cup of sauce over the peppers and let drip into the baking dish/pan.</li><li>Bake at 400 degrees F for 45 minutes or until peppers are tender, then remove from oven.</li><li>Top with the cheese, let stand for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.</li></ul></div><div>They turned out looking absolutely scrumptious and delicious, YUM YUM! </div><div><br /></div><div>It didn't occur to me until afterward that perhaps I should have cut down on the amount of rice, ground beef and sauce I needed to make the recipe since I only used 3 halved green peppers, not 6 large halved green peppers that the recipe calls for. I compensated for the lack of 3 additional peppers by really piling on the ground beef/sauce/rice mixture into the pepper halves I had (6 instead of 12) and then added extra sauce to top off the peppers as the mixture seemed a little dry to me and I felt it needed added sauce in the pan before baking. I had a partially used jar of Ragu sauce in the fridge so I used the rest of that. </div><div><br /></div><div>I didn't have mozzarella cheese and while at the store didn't even think to buy any. Instead, after I'd removed the peppers from the oven and they were resting I tore up a couple of slices of Swiss cheese from my fridge and placed that on top of the cooked peppers. The Swiss cheese melted just fine. One serving of stuffed peppers was more than enough to fill me up. I kept one for the fridge to have for supper tonight and put the other 4 halves into individual freezer containers for future meals.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you make this recipe and use 6 large halved peppers, you're going to have a LOT of stuffed green peppers on hand, but this is a great recipe if you have a larger family or hearty eaters (lots of guys at home or as guests), or enough freezer space. I've frozen homemade stuffed green peppers before and they thaw out and heat up just fine.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now, back to pulling weeds out of the lawn and watering the grass. It took half a day to adequately water the front yard and garden beds. Now I'm working on getting the backyard done. I was going to cut the backyard grass today (the front yard was done on Monday) but the grass is doing that tell-tale laying flat on the ground that means it's parched for water. A good soak will perk it right back up and it should be ready and standing nice and erect for an easy cut tomorrow morning after the dew dries. Now watch - all the rain forecast over the past 2 weeks that has missed us time after time will come tonight, LOL! Isn't that always the way it goes. </div>Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16575870809633911343noreply@blogger.com0