Holiday Open House - Snow?

Got this stuff at Pier 1.  It looked a fun activity to try.

Just add water=instant snow!

It came with this cute little shovel too.

Mix with water and the cute little shovel.  It expands a lot!

I thought it would be pretty on the buffet in the dining room. FAIL! The snow is too wet and sticks to every thing!!

I ended up decorating the buffet like this instead.

The only snow that 'survived' was in this little cloche.  It is starting to dry out and contract back to it's original form finally.

I made my own snowy decor.

with Styrofoam balls, cones and fluffy snow like I used here.

I'm still waiting for some real snow, got that Santa? Pretty please!!

Linking up with:

Black & White Wednesday

Never Growing Old

Whatcha Got Wednesday?

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Holiday Open House - Our Traditions

Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without our family's traditions.  We have quite a few but here are five that we do every year to get us ready for the big day.

Cheers!

1) Going to the tree farm to cut down our tree.  We started this tradition even before we had kids and we usually get it on Black Friday to kick off the holiday season.

2)Advent Calendar Not just a run of the mill, lift up a numbered door kind of Advent calendar either (although I love them too). This one has a box for each day of Advent to fill with treats and trinkets for my girls. Sometimes it's a daunting task to fill it up but they really love it and it's the first thing they check every morning.

One day last week they each got a mini set of colored pencils.

I found them at my favorite store in Epcot (Mitsukoshi in Japan). 

3) Photo Christmas cards Sometimes it's all of us, sometimes just the kids (or kid, when we only had one).

(our 2010 card)

4) Baking

We always make (a lot of!) cranberry bread to give out (and enjoy!).

We usually bake some other treats too. This year it was magic cookie bars and

cut-out sugar cookies.

And I couldn't resist this cute gingerbread Mickey kit when we were in Disney.

5) Picking out an ornament Each of the kids has their own tree and a tote full of ornaments and we continue to add to their collections when we visit a local garden center each year.  The place is always decked out with Christmas displays and a visit there is just what you need to get in the spirit!

What are your holiday traditions?

Linking to:
Whassup Wednesday

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Holiday Open House - Dining Room

I didn't know how to decorate the dining room this year.  We purchased new furniture early in the year and swapped out a plate rack for this big mirror. 

The plate rack held our Christmas china so now I didn't know where I was going to put it all.  I also wanted to keep the buffet accessible for it's true purpose-serving food- but I wanted it to have some decoration.  A quick trip to Good Will solved my problems.  I found this Bombay & Company tray table which I figured could provide another (much needed) surface in the room.

It's acting as a mini bar.  I added a few coppery brown ornaments to the tray and popped the Partridge in a Pear tree topiary into the Pottery Barn ice bucket.  A few cocktail shakers and some Ikea champagne flutes from my daughter's Sweet 16 brunch add to the bar look.

 

From the front entrance, looking into the dining room.

The other pivotal piece I found was a mercury glass jar.  It was perfect for the buffet.

 I moved the topiaries in from the family room and added in more of the coppery ornaments and champagne flutes.

These will be easy to move when it's time to serve Christmas dinner.

And the best thing about the room decorating process was that all of our Christmas china fit in our new china cabinet without having to move too many regular pieces.

Did you have any decorating challenges this season?

Linking up with:

A Stroll Thru Life

Coastal Charm

House of Grace

Sweet Shot Tuesday

Life in My PJ's

Fingerprints on the fridge

Whassup Wednesday

Between Naps on the Porch

IHeart Organzing

Time Travel Thursday

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Holiday Open House - Other Trees and Decor

Each of my girls has their own tree in their bedroom.   They each have a tote of their own ornaments too.

Big Sis has a 6 ft pre-lit (well mostly).

Some of her ornaments

Tink (and the other side says "nice")

Little Sis has a 4 ft pre lit Martha Stewart tree with colored lights. She's ready for a taller tree next year.

She's got a lot of ornaments too.

Our last and final tree (#7) is this tabletop tree from my mom. It's big enough to put on the floor.

lit up at night

during the day

Some of the other decorations that I put up every year...like this Santa board with pegs.

A feather wreath on our coat closet door.

Our Santa "Got Cookies" plate and "Got Milk" jug.

 
Santa photos from our childhood.

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My almost a collection of nutcrackers.

The kitchen wreath that I decorated with cinnamon/applesauce ornaments, vintage cookie cutters, cinnamon sticks and fabric ties.

More peppermint decor above the microwave.

A small garland and mistletoe over the sink.

Snow man platter and some holiday china.

Our Christmas village in the snow.

The jar snow family that I made a long time ago.

Sparkly mini wreaths adorn hubby's office door.

And this soft nativity I got when my kids were little.

Are you all decorated and ready to go?

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