White on white on white....

...against white.


I can't decide if the abundance of white in our home is because I am afraid of color...


...or because I love the simplicity of various shades of white. I suspect it is a bit of both.


A perfect example is the white ceramic cat on a white battenburg runner on a white recycling center against a white beadboard panelled wall....

... with a white applique on the recycling center, of course!

Wouldn't all of this white look striking against a robin's egg blue wall? Or what if the wall stayed white, but I painted the recycling center my favorite shade of peachy-pink! Oh dear... just trying to decide between those those two options is making my head spin, which is probably why everything always stays white!

I'm linking up to Faded Charm for White Wednesday this week. Be sure to pop over and see all the bloggers sharing their White Wednesday posts!

Donna

The White Stuff = Hunkering Down... and a Big Thank You

Well, although the blizzard arrived and it's still snowing, blowing, and drifting...
(click any photos to enlarge)

...it could have been a LOT worse! The first thing I did this morning (after taking this photo) was to push the snow off the top of the bird feeder and fill it with lots of seed for our feathered friends!


Remember the welcome bunny I showed you in yesterday's post, taken after our December 22nd mini-snowfall?

Here he is this morning! The bunny and poinsettias are hardly recognizable under the blanket of white!
The following photos were taken from about the same vantage point as the photos in yesterday's blogpost, but there's a lot more snow today!

I haven't ventured outside yet this morning, so this photo was taken with me hanging out the dining room window, but it's the back garden gate and arbor that you saw yesterday. I can still make out the gate's "heart" in the center of the wreath... I love this old gate!


In yesterday's photo, the whole picket fence in front of the shed was showing. Now just the tippety top of the pickets are peekng through the snow! Oh, and the birdbath that is attached to the deck railing on the left? I highly recommend a heated birdbath to anyone who lives in a New England-like climate. The birds LOVE it! As you can see, the snow has melted into the middle of it, and the birds and squirrels use this all winter long, when all other sources of water are frozen solid. The mourning doves also use it as a steam bath. Flocks of them like to gather around it and warm themselves... too cute!

And right before Christmas I made one last dash to the Post Office, and just look at the beautiful surprise that was waiting for me!! (I was so anxious to open it when I got home that I forgot to take photos of how beautifully it was wrapped!)

My beautiful friend Claudia, from Mockingbird Hill Cottage, sent me one of her handmade fabric hearts, made with two coordinating red and cream fabrics! I LOVE it! It is just so beautiful, Claudia, thank you! And look at how classy her Moo Minicards are! Add to that the handwritten note stamped with the bird and mhc... It was all so very special, and such a sweet surprise!!! You know what else it was?....................................Baby-proof!!!!

There's nothing like hunkering down when a blizzard is wreaking havoc outside your home, and who knows better how to hunker down than a kitty?


Sleeping Beauty was the perfect backdrop to show off my beautiful new heart!

Baby and I thank you, Claudia! And to anyone living through c-o-l-d winter weather, I'm wishing you cozy winter days!................ Donna

To Susan who asked about where to purchase heated bird baths... I purchased mine years ago at a local Wild Birds Unlimited (or similar) bird store. If you can't find a heated bird bath locally, there's a wide variety on-line to choose from:

If you don't have an outlet to plug in a heated bird bath, here are some that are solar powered:

http://www.google.com/#q=solar+heated+bird+bath&hl=en&prmd=ivns&source=univ&tbs=shop:1&tbo=u&ei=SDcZTcGvEIP7lwePjoW_Cw&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CD8QrQQwAA&biw=1348&bih=699&fp=c5de9f7a219740fb

Here are some you can purchase on-line from Wild Birds Unlimited:

http://www.shopwbu.com/products/category/567.0.1.1.42047.0.0.0.0

And here are some from CSNStores.com:

http://www.csnstores.com/asp/keyword.asp?keyword=heated+birdbath&command=dosearch&matchtype=3&keywordvalue=heated+birdbath

And just some in general from a Google search:

http://www.google.com/search?q=heated+bird+baths&hl=en&sa=G&prmd=ivns&source=univ&tbs=shop:1&tbo=u&ei=3DgZTcL2JsSBlAet9ezTCw&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CFIQrQQwAg

The storm before the storm....

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!!! We had a small, quiet, lovely one here. Luckily, for all those who traveled on Christmas day, the blizzard didn't arrive here in New England until today.

This was the small snowstorm that arrived a few days before Christmas.

(click to enlarge any photos)

It was just a teaser of what was headed our way.


Our two "welcome" bunnies....


...may have snow to the top of their ears before this next storm is through.

We are officially under "blizzard conditions" until Monday evening at 6 p.m.

All of these photos were taken on December 22nd.

And although it didn't amount to much, this snowfall was enough to give us a beautiful White Christmas.

I'll try to take photos from these same vantage points...

...once the blizzard has moved out.

I am so ready for spring!

Donna

Merry Christmas...

...to you all! I hope you have a wonderful Christmas day, filled with love and laughter!

With all my best wishes ,

Donna

I've finally mastered Christmas minimalism...

...thanks to one small ball of fur. And it doesn't hurt nearly as much as I thought it would!

This is our house right now, decorated for Christmas 2010. You really have to compare it to past Christmas's to get the full impact of how many decorations I did not put out this year (I normally go over the top when it comes to Christmas decorating). I also didn't have to rearrange the furniture to make room for the tree in our small living room (definitely a plus!).

See what I mean? This is last year.

Instead of my tinsel tree, the Christmas cactus has been moved into the living room bay window because....

...Baby has taken over the Dining Room bay window, where the cactus has been sitting for years. She likes that window best because the bird feeder is attached outside of it!

Fake poinsettieas have replaced real ones...


Again, because of you-know-who. (Poinsettias are poisonous to cats and since she is into everything, I'm definitely not going to take a chance with her! Here's a toxic/non-toxic list put out by the ASPCA if you ever need to refer to it).

Bottlebrush trees aren't breakable (I see you back there, Baby! Watching my every move!)...

...so a tray full of them seems to be a safe centerpiece for the trunk/coffee table.

...and if little Miss Mischief does knock them over...


...it's easy enough to set them back up on the tray.

I'm old enough to know the truth of the phrase "never say never," but I'm thinking I might try to make this "Christmas minimalism" an annual tradition, because it was SO easy to decorate - and undecorating is going to be a BREEZE!

I'm linking up to Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday, so be sure to head over there to check out all the other participating bloggers!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Donna

'Twas the Night Before Christmas ... my growing book collection

I absolutely love beautifully illustrated copies of The Night Before Christmas. I wrote about my (extensive) collection in this 2009 blogpost and in this 2008 blogpost.


This past year I added four more delightfully illustrated copies to my collection. Three I happened across at thrift stores, but one I searched for and found on-line.


This weekend we had our first dusting of snow - just enough to make it feel like Christmas truly is right around the corner. That got me in the mood to get the books out.

So Baby and I went into my office, turned on Miracle on 34th Street...

...and went to work photographing them.

(click any photos to enlarge)

This 1991 version is illustrated by Jerry Smath. I am so glad I found it because the artwork is delightful! See for yourself:

Here is the next copy I found:

This copyright 1985 book has a Victorian flair, beautifully illustrated by Scott Gustafson.

Now the next book is the one I searched for (illustrated by Grandma Moses, copyright 1948), because in last year's comments J.G. suggested that if I didn't have this version, I should definitely consider adding it to my collection. She was so right - I love it!

The quaint, folk art style of Grandma Moses suits this story perfectly!

And last, but definitely not least, I came across this gorgeous version, filled with a variety of classic artwork from the late 1800's to the early 1900's.

So those are the newest additions to my collection.

And if you love this Clement C. Moore story and the various artists' renderings as much as I do...

... be sure to check out the links above to my previous posts about my ever-growing "Twas the Night Before Christmas" collection. You never know, you might just find a favorite version that you'll want to track down for yourself!

Comment: Bobbi, send me your email address so I can send you the information you requested regarding pop up books!

Donna